Kentucky Kernel: October 20, 2022

Looking back

Historic flooding in late July and early August devastated many families and people across Eastern Kentucky. People from all around the commonwealth have done their part to help recover lost items and archives.

By Hannah Stanley news@kykernel.com

On Oct. 18, Jason Alman za-Arroyo and Juan Guerre ro-Zendejas attended a pre liminary hearing for their alleged involvement in an off-campus shooting.

Almanza-Arroyo, 19, and Guerrero-Zendejas, 20, were ar rested based on physical descrip tions of tattoos and attire, as well as an anonymous tip.

Two female victims sustain ing leg and foot injuries attended the hearing for their own per sonal interest and were asked by Judge Lindsay Hughes Thurston if they wanted to speak, in which both shook their heads no.

Almanza-Arroyo allegedly

Suspects in off-campus shooting appear for preliminary hearing

fired a shot early in the morning on Sept. 8 at a fraternity rush event with 10 counts of second degree assault, in addition to multiple other charges.

Guerrero-Zendejas is being charged with one count of tam pering with physical evidence.

Thurston stated there is a probable cause of the gun being handed off from Almanza-Ar royo to Guerrero-Zendejas based on Guerrero-Zendejas being located a block away and going in the opposite direction to the scene of the event and both individuals having pending cases together.

Both cases for Almanza-Ar royo and Guerrero-Zendejas will be going to the grand jury at a later date.

ABBEY CUTRER | STAFF

Juan Guerrero-Zendejas walks into the courtroom during a preliminary hearing on a charge of tampering with physical evidence on Tuesday, Oct. 18, 2022, at the Robert F. Stephens District Courthouse in Lexing ton, Kentucky.

New details come to light in former UK department head’s hearing

By Lindsey Davis news@kykernel.com

On Oct. 7 at 8:36 a.m., Kevin Real entered the courtroom for his preliminary hearing follow ing his arrest in early September.

On Sept. 8, Real, 65, was arrested and charged with sex ual abuse of of a victim under the age of 12 years old in the first degree, sodomy in the first degree and incest by forcible compulsion/of someone incapa

ble of giving consent under the age of 18. Real is the former UK Department of Communication chair and has worked at the uni versity since 2022.

According to the arrest ci tation, Real allegedly sexually assaulted the victim for the first time when they were six years old and again in July 2022.

At his arraignment hearing, his bond was originally set at $30,000 full cash but was re duced to $15,000. Real was re

quired to remain at home and have no contact with the alleged victim, among other conditions.

Real’s attorney, Christopher A. Spedding, filed a motion for a change in conditions of his bond.

According to the motion, “the allegations that have been made against him (Real) have left him bewildered. He strenuously de nies that there is any merit to any of the allegations that have been made against him.”

It also said that Real was

convicted of a bank robbery in federal court in the mid-1980s and sentenced to serve five years in prison.

Speeding said that Real has been sober ever since and need ed to be released from home in carceration in order to attend his 12-step recovery meetings.

Spedding said, “the inability to attend these meetings is taking an emotional toll on Dr. Real.”

After the motion was pre sented, attorneys for both

the defendant and the plain tiff approached the judge. Af ter minutes of deliberation, a conclusion was made on the new conditions of Real’s bond.

Fayette District Judge John Tackett ruled that Real is now released from house arrest. He will be electronically monitored and is not allowed to leave Fay ette County or step foot near the house of the alleged victim, among other terms.

Humans of UK:

Danzo Sangwa has a passion for fashion accessibility

By Laurel Swanz features@kykernel.com

This is Humans of UK, in spired by the Humans of New York Instagram series by pho tographer and autho Bran don Stanton. This series dives into the individuals of UK as well as their stories, strifes and passions.

“We know why you here” is the business motto for Danzo Sneakers, owned by 19-yearold sophomore marketing major Dan “Danzo” Sangwa.

The reason clients go to Sangwa is simple: to buy nov elty sneakers at a comparably affordable price.

Sangwa is an international student at UK from the Dem ocratic Republic of the Con go. Upon moving to the U.S., he found that many students were interested in shoes but couldn’t find the ones they wanted at a fair price.

In November 2020, he took matters into his own hands, opening his business Danzo Sneakers to provide cool shoes for cool prices.

“That’s when I decided, what about starting this busi ness – this new thing to see how we canWW work with prices to make all the college students afford the type of shoes they

TRAVIS FANNON | STAFF

Dan “Danzo” Sangwa poses for a photo on Tuesday, Oct. 18, 2022, at the University of Kentucky in Lexington, Kentucky.

want?” Sangwa said.

Sangwa does the legwork for his clients, finding and purchasing a wide range of rare shoes from Air Jordans to Off-Whites in bulk. He then re sells them for 5-10% less than larger-scale competitors like GOAT or StockX.

“Making a difference is at tracting the people. If I’m de ciding to make the same prices as those big businesses, I’m fail

ing,” Sangwa said. “My goal to begin with was to make a differ ence with the prices.”

His sales are currently con ducted online, but he hopes to one day open physical stores in the U.S. and back home in the Congo.

“The Congo is way dif ferent than the U.S. when it comes to modern things, in frastructure, transportation, clothing … (the Congo is) still

in progress, and we need those people that are getting educa tion overseas and in America that can bring that education back home,” Sangwa said.

Growing up in the Congo, Sangwa helped his parents with their business endeavors, spark ing his own dream of being a business owner. It was also there that his love for fashion began. He said he wants to give back through his business.

“As much as I can change the Congo, I’ll go for it,” he said.

Sangwa said he also believes in the importance of shoes.

“When you have it, it doesn’t matter the type of clothes that you wear, how much your clothes is, just the shoes that match everything else and that’s it,” he said. “Your outfit costs a million dollars.”

Although Danzo Sneakers reaches mostly college stu dents now, Sangwa aspires to help sneakerheads everywhere experience the joy of a good pair of shoes.

Despite the hardships of business owning, Sangwa said he is dedicated to this mission.

“Certain people won’t help you, they’ll just talk, but at the end of the day they’re not gonna support you. They’re not gonna be a part of your evolution, so you stay focused on your plan and keep moving,” he said.

CONTACT

Rayleigh Deaton, editor-in-chief editor@kykernel.com

Jack Weaver, managing editor

Kaci McCarthy, audience engagement editor kmccarthy@kykernel.com

Hannah Stanley, news editor news@kykernel.com

Kendall Staton, asst. news editor

Emily Girard, features editor features@kykernel.com

Cole Parke, sports editor sports@kykernel.com

Samantha Money & Ali Cetinok, asst. sports editors

Brooklyn Walters, opinions editor opinions@kykernel.com

Jack Weaver, photo editor photo@kykernel.com

Abbey Cutrer, asst. photo editor

Akhila Nadimpalli, lead designer

Allie Hall, asst. designer

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KENTUCKY KERNEL OFFICES

340 McVey Hall University of Kentucky Lexington, KY 40506

On the front cover: JACK WEAVER | STAFF Kentucky mens basketball head coach John Calipari gives a speech during Big Blue Madness on Friday, Oct. 14, 2022, at Rupp Arena in Lexington, Kentucky.

news

Tree Week 2022: Planting celebration through education

By Morgan Loy news@kykernel.com

The fifth annual Tree Week took place Oct. 8-16 in Lexing ton and other locations around Kentucky. The Urban Forest Initiative working group, a col lective of individuals working in tree-related fields, created Tree Week to help promote the tree canopies of Kentucky.

Tree Week is intended to cre ate a space for those who may not think about the trees around them to learn more about them in free public events, such as a Lexington tree giveaway, tree identification tours and a concert featuring music written about nature in Kentucky.

“Tree Week is a celebration of trees and green space around Lexington and in other commu nities in Kentucky,” Claire Hil brecht, member of the Tree Week planning team, said.

Hilbrecht said trees fight against climate change and en hance the livability of cities such as Lexington. There were doz ens of events held during Tree Week, with many taking place in Lexington and even a few on the University of Kentucky campus.

“Tree Week is just an op portunity to kind of get out of that routine of seeing the green space as just something in the background, and actually getting involved with the green space,

and forming relationships with particular trees and learning how they function in cities,” Hil brecht said.

The Signature Tree Planting Kick-Off event took place on Friday, Oct. 7, at Kirklevington Park. At the event, there were several informative booths set up, and three trees were planted to honor the beginning of Tree Week 2022.

Elizabeth Kilcoyne of Seed leaf, an organization that focus es on growing and sharing food, hosted a booth.

“I think Tree Week really aligns with our values,” she said. “There’s nothing better than planting a local food tree.”

The Mayor of Lexington, Linda Gorton, spoke at the event and presented a proclamation to Heather Wilson, who works in the Lexington Fayette Coun ty Urban Forestry department. Gorton declared Oct. 8-16, 2022, Lexington Tree Week.

On Oct. 8, UK biology pro fessor Carol Baskin led a group of students in identifying the different trees planted on UK’s campus. She explained the unique characteristics of vari ous tree species and where they are native.

By comparing leaves and acorn types, she showed stu dents how to tell each tree apart. Baskin expressed the importance of students being able to rec

ognize the trees they encounter each day.

“It makes you be a lot more observant of your surroundings,” she said. “I think when people can tell an oak from an iron wood, the world is no longer a big green blur.”

The UK grounds team, with help from a group of students, added six more trees to campus during the UK Campus Tree Planting event on Oct. 13. The trees are located behind the Gat ton Student Center.

Nic Williamson, UK’s arbori culture superintendent, and other grounds team members showed students the proper ways to pre pare a tree for planting and al lowed them to try it themselves.

Williamson explained the long history of UK’s green space design and emphasized the efforts that have been made to plant and maintain the trees on campus.

“We have over 12,000 trees here on the UK main campus,” he said. “It’s a pleasure to live, create, go to class, learn and walk amongst these nice green spaces we have.”

Students split off into teams to dig and plant trees. UK soph omore Rosbelly Rios said she was excited to watch a tree grow and recognize it as the one she planted. Rios worked with UK freshman Julia Zimmer to plant the tree.

“It’s nice to know we’re planting a tree,” Rios said.

Lynn Roche-Phillips, co-lead er of the Urban Forest Initiative, also spoke at the event. She emphasized her interest in the far-reaching effects of trees.

Roche-Phillips explained that cities where marginal ized communities often live

lack trees and green spaces. She said she is working with four communities across Ken tucky to bring attention to the lack of green spaces in those communities.

“I got involved because I see the benefit of trees as a tool of social justice,” she said. “A tree does so much.”

MARIA RAUH | STAFF

Volunteers planting the first tree for Tree Week on Friday, Oct. 7, 2022, in Kirklevington Park in Lexington, Kentucky.

‘Celebrate, love and culture.’

The return of NPHC’s annual Homecoming Step Show

By Laurel Swanz news@kykernel.com

The uproarious hip-hop mu sic, laughter and high energy had nearly everyone in atten dance out of their seats at the National Pan-Hellenic Coun cil’s (NPHC) Homecoming Step Show on Oct. 14.

UK’s Black Greek life com munity celebrated together for the first time since 2019. The step show is a long-standing tradition for the historically Af rican-American sororities and fraternities of UK.

Through competitive step ping and strolling, they honored the NPHC’s fight to develop social programs for Black stu dents and celebrate the com munity the NPHC has fostered here. The event also serves as a fundraiser for NPHC.

“It means culture, it means celebration, and just honestly, it’s highlighting the history, es pecially, of Black alumni and Black students here at UK,” active NPHC advisor and alum Uriah Carter said.

Students, alumni, friends, family and community members gathered in the Gatton Student Center Grand Ballroom Friday night to watch five participating sororities and fraternities com pete for a $500 prize.

“It’s the first step show in two years, and there’s a lot of excite

ment around it because it’s a tra dition; it’s like a family reunion,” Carter said.

The event was overseen by the NPHC but run by the stu dents. They were in charge of everything from choreographing creative, themed performances complete with dialogue, cos tumes and music to event pro motion and stage lighting.

“We’re very proud of the hard work they have put into this. This is an event that truly connects not just the current students here but UK alums and Lexington all in one place,” Brandon Thompson, NPHC’s associate dean of student involvement, said.

Participants brought their own modern twist to stepping, a tradi tional form of percussive dance. Their performances consisted of a mix of step-style and hip-hop movements, humor, pop culture references and nods to their orga nization’s history.

A panel of alumni determined the winners based on performance difficulty, creativity, crowd appeal and enthusiasm.

Iota Phi Theta was selected as the winning fraternity. Their performance was inspired by the book Holes by Louis Sachar, down to their storyline and bright orange jumpsuits.

Senior Iota Phi member Ja kori Tinsley said that step show helped expose him to Greek life as a first-generation college student.

“Honestly, step show has been monumental to me since my fresh man year. These type of events are so important because they show people who are first-generations things that they can do on top of all the other service and brother hood aspects that come with join ing our fraternity,” Tinsley said.

Step show means something different to everyone. Non-Greek life students Jodie Graham and Caitlyn Bowman attended the event to support their Greek life friends.

“I think that it means a lot to have representation for Black stu

dents at UK, cause we really don’t get that, so to have a whole event dedicated to women and men that fought so hard to be here means a lot,” Graham said.

The winning sorority was Al pha Kappa Alpha. Their segment was Squid Game themed. Per formers stepped through a series of tasks resembling the games portrayed in the popular TV show. The performance’s message was to work together and never betray the Alpha Kappa sisterhood.

Sisterhood motivated Alpha Kappa senior Alexandra Benjamin as she danced, she said.

“To come back after two years and win, especially when we ha ven’t won in a while, it just feels really good to bring it back for the home team. Our alumni and sisters came back, so it just feels good to do it for them and just for the lega cy of the chapter,” Benjamin said.

Benjamin’s sisters in the audi ence showed the same pride and love, cheering her on with their own unique call. Each sorority and fraternity spoke rehearsed cheers throughout the show, showing their support for their chapter even if they weren’t performing.

TRAVIS FANNON | STAFF Students participate in the National Pan-Hellenic Council’s Homecoming Step Show on Friday, Oct. 14, 2022, at the Gatton Student Center in Lexington, Kentucky.

sports

Kentucky mens basketball ranked No. 4 in preseason AP Poll

By Cole Parke sports@kykernel.com

Kentucky mens basketball earned the No. 4 overall ranking in the 2022-2023 preseason college basketball AP Poll on Monday.

The ranking marks the 13th time in 14 total seasons under current head coach John Calipari that the Wildcats find them selves ranked amongst the top 10 in the preseason poll, with the Cats being within

the top 11 in all 14 seasons.

The ranking also marked the 11th time the Wildcats have been tabbed within the top five during that tenure.

Other rankings across the sport see Kentucky ranked in similar or higher spots with ESPN and CBS Sports ranking Ken tucky No. 4, Blue Ribbon magazine rank ing the Wildcats No. 3 and KenPom.com giving UK the No. 1 overall ranking.

Looking ahead to Kentucky’s sched ule, four of Kentucky’s non-conference

opponents found themselves ranked within the top 25.

Michigan was tabbed at No. 22, with Kentucky traveling to London, England, to battle the Wolverines on Dec. 4.

Kentucky’s CBS Sports Classic oppo nent, UCLA, was ranked No. 8 in the poll, while UK’s Big 12-SEC Challenge oppo nent, the national championship winning Kansas Jayhawks, were tabbed at No. 5.

The only opponent ranked higher than Kentucky is the Gonzaga Bulldogs which found themselves ranked No. 2, just be hind the North Carolina Tarheels.

The final team ranked ahead of Ken tucky is No. 3 Houston, who made it to the Elite Eight in last year’s NCAA Tournament before being knocked out by Villanova.

Rounding out the top five, Baylor tied with Kansas in votes so the Bears claimed co-ownership of the No. 5 spot. The Bears were a No. 1 seed in last year’s NCAA Tournament, having won the national title the year prior.

Ironically the Bears were in Kentucky’s section of the bracket, though both teams were stunned in the first two rounds with the Wildcats falling to No. 15 Saint Peter’s and Baylor being upset by No. 8 North Carolina, with both underdogs going on to face-off in the Elite Eight.

Looking ahead to Kentucky’s confer ence schedule, five SEC teams, includ ing Kentucky, were ranked in the pre season AP Poll.

tucky traveling to Tuscaloosa on Jan. 7.

Five spots above Alabama, the Tide’s in-state rival Auburn found itself ranked No. 15, having earned a No. 2 seed and regular season SEC championship last season before being upset by No. 10 Miami in the second round. The Tigers travel to Lexington to face Kentucky in side Rupp Arena on Feb. 25, the secondto-last home game of the regular season for the Wildcats.

Just outside the top 10, last season’s SEC Tournament champions, the Tennes see Volunteers, are ranked No. 11, having earned a No. 3 seed in last year’s NCAA Tournament before being dumped in the second round by No. 11 Michigan.

Kentucky faces the Vols twice in the 2022-2023 season, first traveling to Knoxville on Jan. 14 before hosting Tennessee on Feb. 18.

Finally, the No. 10 ranking went to the Arkansas Razorbacks, who made it all the way to the Elite Eight as a No. 4 seed last season, even stunning No. 1 Gonzaga in the process, before coming up short to No. 2 Duke.

The Razorbacks travel to Rupp Arena on Feb. 7 before hosting Kentucky inside Bud Walton Arena on March 4 in the final game of the regular season.

MICHAEL CLUBB | STAFF FILE PHOTO

First, Alabama found itself tabbed at No. 20, having been upset in the first round of the NCAA Tournament last year against No. 11 Notre Dame, with Ken

The Wildcats have high ambitions go ing into this season, returning the bulk of its production, including consensus nation al player of the year Oscar Tshiebwe, along with adding the usual amount of five-star prospects in the process.

In a year where some feel like a nation al title is a must, the road to No. 1 starts from the No. 4 position.

Kentucky Wildcats head coach John Calipari reacts to forward Lance Ware getting a jump ball call during the Kentucky vs. Florida mens basketball game on Saturday, Feb. 12, 2022, at Rupp Arena in Lexington, Kentucky.

Cats bounce back; overcome No. 16 Mississippi State 27-17

By Cole Parke sports@kykernel.com

No. 22 Kentucky football (5-2) bounced back after back-to-back losses, defeating No. 16 Mississippi State (5-2) 27-17 on Saturday.

The win also marked the triumphant return of starting quarterback Will Levis, who played his first game since Oxford two weeks prior, missing Kentucky’s loss against South Carolina with a foot injury.

Levis made the most of his return, com pleting 17-23 from the field for 230 passing yards, one touchdown and one interception.

“He is a tough player,” Kentucky head coach Mark Stoops said. “He’s a great lead er. He has that belief about him because he’s earned it and he’s worked for it.”

Also, having only been sacked once during the contest, the game marked the first of the season in which Levis finished with positive rushing yards, finishing with seven with the sack setting him back 10 yards.

The return was not all good for the likely future first round NFL Draft pick though, with Levis leaving the game in the third quarter after taking a hard hit in the backfield.

He landed hard on his left shoulder and, after being attended to on the field, ran straight to the locker room, avoiding the sideline injury tent altogether.

Miraculously for Kentucky fans, Levis returned not long after, immediately re-tak ing charge of the offense and going on to lead Kentucky to 21 of its 27 points.

The senior quarterback was light hearted about the injury, despite wear ing a sling after the game, proving his

determination to lead his team.

“After I got the X-Rays and they came back negative, I was just ready to go,” Le vis said. “I was just hoping to hear good news, which I did. Got the magic shot and just got back out here. It’s my left shoulder so who cares?”

Levis was far from the only name that stood out however, with the spotlight also lighting up veteran running back Chris Ro driguez Jr., who attempted 30 rushes for 196 yards, the second highest single-game total of his collegiate career. With the 196 yards, Rodriguez Jr. surpassed 3,000 career rushing yards at Kentucky.

“He is going to be a very good NFL running back,” offensive coordinator Rich Scangarello said. “I know a lot of scouts who come through here and it’s nice because you’re able to give everyone a real honest opinion about how special of a kid he is. He’s got competitive greatness and I trust him completely. It’s the individual and the talent that makes him so special, he’s a really great guy.”

According to Stoops, the offensive line also had the best game of the sea son, only allowing one sack and creating holes and blocks for Rodriguez Jr., even on outside rushes.

To make the feat more impressive, the line did so even after losing starting right tackle Jermey Flax, who was returning from an injury he suffered against Ole Miss.

“(The O-Line was) excellent,” Levis said. “Not too many pressures and they got it done in the run game. Especially Deondre Buford for coming in and replacing an in jured Jeremy Flax, he’s been working his tail off and for him to come in and execute was

huge for us.”

Kentucky’s defense also held tall, holding Mississippi State quarterback Will Rogers to just 203 passing yards with one touchdown and one interception. For context, entering the game, Rogers had thrown roughly seven touchdowns for every interception he threw, making UK’s ability to hold him to a one-toone ratio even more impressive.

The Wildcats also shut down the Bull dogs on the ground, holding Mississippi State to just 22 rushing yards, a testament to the front line of Kentucky’s defense.

“We knew that if we could stop the run and stay with our keys then we can make them one-dimensional,” Kentucky lineback er DeAndre Square said. “It sounds funny

because their air raid is what they do, but we knew we still had a good chance.”

The Bulldogs entered the game with passing making up 76.8% of their total of fensive output, but with Kentucky’s impres sive run defense, Mississippi State received roughly 90% of its offensive yardage from the air raid and only 10% from the ground.

On the other hand, Kentucky, which en tered the game with passing making up 74% of its total offensive output, finished with a perfect split, amassing 239 passing yards and 239 rushing yards.

With the win Kentucky has a week off to recover from the nagging injuries that have plagued the team all season.

CARTER SKAGGS | STAFF Kentucky Wildcats running back Chris Rodriguez Jr. (24) celebrates a touchdown during the No. 22 Kentucky vs. No. 16 Mississippi State football game on Saturday, Oct. 15, 2022, at Kroger Field in Lexington, Kentucky.

See

JACK WEAVER | STAFF

Kentucky Wildcats guard Cason Wallace (22) guards Sahvir Wheeler (2) during Big Blue Madness on Friday, Oct. 14, 2022, at Rupp Arena in Lexington, Kentucky.

By Cole Parke sports@kykernel.com

The past week of results had ups and downs for Kentucky.

Basketball:

Most anticipated of all events was the annual Big Blue Madness event, which introduced fans to the new mens and womens basketball programs as they pre pare for the 2022-2023 season.

Football:

Moving into results, and not far behind the Madness in anticipation, Kentucky football bounced back after two-straight losses to defeat No. 16 Mississippi State 27-17 at home. The win marked the sec ond victory over a ranked opponent this season for Kentucky.

Cross Country:

Kentucky mens and womens cross country also finished 10th and 3rd respec tively in the Panorama Farms Invitational

in Virginia. The event concluded the reg ular season for both teams as they now seek to claim victory in the postseason.

Golf:

Kentucky womens golf had a week to remember, winning the Ruth’s Chris Tar heel Invitational in North Carolina, mark ing back-to-back tournament victories for the program. The Invitational marked the final fall event of the season, with the team not returning to competition until February.

Soccer:

Kentucky mens soccer had a week to forget, needing two consecutive lategame equalizers to remain undefeated on the season after entering the week ranked No. 2 overall and No. 1 in RPI.

The men first drew No. 22 Dayton 2-2 at home before reaching a 3-3 draw on the road against West Virginia after al lowing three straight Mountaineer goals.

Kentucky womens soccer, on the oth

Wednesday wrap up: Oct. 12-18

The “Wednesday wrap up” series gives readers a broad look at the weekly activities of all UK Athletics programs, many of which do not often have their results put in print.

The series starts with a broad recap of all events, high lights three athletes who performed particularly well or notably and wraps up with a look at the week ahead and what’s to come.

This week in results:

er hand, reached a much more meaning ful draw on Sunday, tying Florida 1-1 for the first point in conference play under first year head coach Troy Fabiano.

Rifle:

The reigning national champion ship-winning rifle team also found itself victorious on Saturday, defeating NC State 4693-4617 to remain undefeated on the young season.

Volleyball:

Finally, Kentucky volleyball defeated Ole Miss 3-1 on Wednesday, improving to 6-1 in SEC play after starting out 0-1.

Three stars for UK:

With so many wins and positive re sults, picking just three standouts was not the easiest of feats to accomplish, but three athletes stood out for their impacts on their respective teams.

1. Will Levis, football

While maybe low hanging fruit, it was impossible to not include Levis as a standout from the week.

Seeing how the program seemed to slow down to a halt against South Car olina in his absence, his return seemed to help the program against No. 16 Missis sippi State.

Beyond just that, his triumphant re-re turn after being injured against the Bull dogs sent Kroger Field into a frenzy and sparked a huge surge for Kentucky to overcome a 10-6 deficit and ultimately beat a top 20 team by two scores.

His willingness to make his team suc cessful regardless of the circumstances just goes to show why he is such an im portant piece for this Kentucky football team.

2. Madison Jones, womens soccer

While it could be argued that other stars such as Hannah Richardson played an overall better game against Florida, it’s undeniable that Jones recorded one of the most important goals of the season for this Kentucky womens soccer team.

opinions

Kentucky mens soccer deserves more fan attention

By Luke Fetzer opinions@kykernel.com

The leaves are falling, the air has begun to chill, and col legiate sports are in full swing.

Football and basketball may be the most viewed sports during the fall, but the Ken tucky mens soccer team is argu ably the most elite of them all at UK.

Ranked second nationally and one of the last five teams within the top 25 to remain un defeated, the Cats go into every game fighting for recognition.

Those figures don’t even mention that UK sits first in Ratings Power Index (RPI), which calculates winning per centage, opponent’s winning percentage and opponent’s op ponent’s winning percentage. The Cats are also leading in the Sun Belt Conference, which is consistently ranked as one of the most competitive confer ences in the sport.

So far, the Wildcats have played 12 games, winning eight and drawing four, outscoring their opponents 33-13 in that period. The figures make them one of the most dominant teams on both offense and defense.

Leading the scoring for the Wildcats is Norwegian forward Eythor Bjorgolfsson who, even after not featuring in a handful

of games, is UK’s goal-leader with six on the year.

Bjorgolfsson is a unique player. Tall and physical, fast and agile and a complete fin isher inside the box, his ability to both create and score goals is what makes the senior one of the most valuable assets that any team would be desperate to have.

While Bjorgolfsson keeps Kentucky’s goal total high, perhaps the most complete player head coach Johan Ced ergren has on his team is senior midfielder Nick Gutmann.

Gutmann’s whopping 13 goal contributions (nine assists, four goals) leads the team, with the German cementing himself as not just a facilitative tacti cian, but a player that can be depended upon week in and week out.

Dominant showings against teams like Belmont, Georgia State, Georgia Southern and James Madison continuously prove how talented this team is, and each game is a step closer to redeeming its loss to even tual national champions Clem son in the Sweet Sixteen of last year’s NCAA Tournament.

Considering the success that this team is relishing, it’s a head-scratcher as to why soccer remains one of the lowest at tended sports at the university.

Of the eight home games, the highest attended match was against then-No. 7 Marshall on Sept. 16, which ultimately end ed in a 1-1 draw. The contest drew in 2,672 spectators per UK Athletics, many of which were students and parents.

The Bell has a maximum ca pacity of 3,368, yet this season, in which the Cats are easily one of the most exciting teams in the nation, the average at tendance for home games is a measly 1,281.

It isn’t for lack of trying on the part of the university either, as the official UK Ath letics Instagram page regularly highlights and praises the team in their posts, many of which receive upwards of 2,000 likes.

Unfortunately, the reception to those posts is still nowhere near the like-total of football and basketball posts which, in some cases, can receive up wards of 20 thousand likes.

Soccer season takes place during a busy time of the year as the school is only tru ly concerned with the suc cess of the football program and the rapidly approaching basketball season.

More could be said about the lack of interest in soccer nationally and the reinforced athletic stereotype claim ing UK to be a basketball

school, but that is a different debate entirely.

Simply put, UK soccer de serves to be in the spotlight.

Unlike football and basket ball, the players aren’t there for the fame, they aren’t there for professional scouts, and they aren’t there for the NIL deals. Soccer, especially at

the university level, is bound in passion. The fight to prove their worth and the chance to lift the championship at the end of the season is the driv ing force behind every moment on the pitch, with each kick of the ball proving critical to success or failure.

See SOCCER on page 19

JACKSON DUNAVANT | STAFF

Kentucky Wildcats midfielder Enzo Mauriz (8) celebrates after scoring a goal during the Kentucky vs. Georgia Southern mens soccer match on Sunday, Oct. 9, 2022, at the Wendell & Vickie Bell Soccer Complex in Lexington, Kentucky.

Kentucky basketball presents 2022 Big Blue Madness event

By Cole Parke sports@kykernel.com

Kentucky basketball kicked off its an nual Big Blue Madness event on Friday, properly introducing UK fans to both the mens and womens basketball teams.

The event kicked off with the “Big Blue Carpet,” a Hollywood red car pet-esque introduction to both teams and many of the NBA talents that returned for the event.

The only active player not to walk the blue carpet was returning consen sus national player of the year Os car Tshiebwe, who was on crutches following a knee surgery before the event.

Before the event could even get start ed fans in attendance were given a treat when news broke that five-star center Aaron Bradshaw committed to Kentucky, providing the Wildcats with the No. 1 overall freshman center for the 20232024 season.

Once the event got going both Brad shaw and his high school teammate and fellow five-star recruit DJ Wagner, who Kentucky is also actively trying to re cruit, were in attendance.

Starting off the event itself, the first hour was dedicated to the womens bas ketball program, which looked rather different from last season with just five out of 15 players having been on the team prior.

During introductions a number of players garnered large crowd reactions including Kentucky native Cassidy Rowe, Oregon transfer Maddie Scherr, returning Kentucky native Emma King and returning veteran Robyn Benton, but no athlete got a larger reaction than re

turning star Blair Green, who missed her senior season last year with an injury.

Head coach Kyra Elzy also garnered a large reaction, riding into the arena on a motorcycle and coming on stage to a live musical performance, both hom ages to former head coach Matthew Mitchell, who retired from Kentucky due to a brain injury.

The women held a 3-point contest, which was won by Green, who scored 16 points and defeated Scherr in the fi nal. King and Benton also participated in the contest but were knocked out in the first round. The women then host ed a blue-white scrimmage, which was ultimately won by the blue team com posed of Zennia Thomas, Jada Walker,

Amiya Jenkins, Nyah Leveretter and Scherr. The white team, composed of Rowe, King, Eniya Russell, Saniah Ty ler and Benton came up short by a final score of 12-10.

“I think (the womens team) will be good,” lifelong Kentucky fan Jimmy Turner (54) said. “They’re young but I think they should do well.”

JACK WEAVER | STAFF Kentucky Wildcats guard Adou Thiero (3) dunks the ball during Big Blue Madness on Friday, Oct. 14, 2022, at Rupp Arena in Lexington, Kentucky.

Following the scrimmage, Kentucky celebrated 50 years of Title IX, the law that prohibits sex-based discrimination and was partially created to ensure equal opportunities in mens and womens sports.

With the celebration Kentucky honored several members of its Title IX Top 50 team, which features 50 of the best female athletes in university history.

After the celebration, both the cheer and dance teams put on performances for the now packed house.

With seats mostly full in the venue, Kentucky showcased a number of its cur rent and former NBA alumni that decided to return for the event. Those in attendance included Brandon Knight, Tyler Ulis, Kev in Knox of the Detroit Pistons, Nick Rich ards of the Charlotte Hornets, Hamidou Diallo of the Pistons, Bam Adebayo of the Miami Heat and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist.

Following the professional guests, it was time for the mens team to make its entrance with much of the returning talent, including Damion Collins, Lance Ware,

Jacob Toppin and Sahvir Wheeler, receiv ing large reactions from the audience. Big Blue Nation also welcomed new prospects such as Ugonna Onyenso, Cason Wallace and Chris Livingston with large amounts of cheers as well.

That said, no player received a louder reaction than Tshiebwe, who hobbled onto the stage with his crutches and introduced head coach John Calipari.

With the team ready to show what it is capable of, the men started similar to the women: with a 3-point contest. Illi nois State transfer Antonio Reeves won the contest with a score of 19, defeating reigning champion CJ Fredrick, Toppin and Livingston.

Next, the men held a dunk contest which, despite the two leading scorers be ing Livingston and Collins, who scored 78, was won by Toppin thanks to votes from the fans and guest judge Diallo.

Moving on from the dunk contest, it was time to close the event with the men’s blue-white scrimmage, similar to how the

women ended their portion of the event.

Ultimately, despite many fans feeling like the men did not take the scrimmage very seriously, the final score finished 2323 between the white team, comprised of Wheeler, Onyenso, Toppin, Reeves, Bren nan Canada and Walker Horn, and the blue team, comprised of Livingston, Adou Thi ero, Fredrick, Collins, Wallace, Kareem Watkins and Grant Darbyshire.

“Honestly I feel like the women had more energy coming out than the mens team,” lifelong Kentucky fan Rachel Simpson said. “The (mens) entrances in the past had more excitement and (more) to do as far as the show aspect and this year seemed to lack that.”

Only Tshiebwe and Ware did not par ticipate in the scrimmage, with Calipari saying Ware’s absence was nothing serious and that he will be ready to go in “three-tofive days.”

Ending the event with a mic-drop, Cali pari spoke to the fans before the seats be gan to clear out and attendees began going

home eager for the basketball season.

“I thought (Big Blue Madness) was really nice,” lifelong Kentucky fan James Simpson (42) said. “It’s nice to see the old er players come back and see the new team every year.”

Turner agreed with Simpson in his anal ysis, saying the event “brings back some great memories” including of the 2012 Na tional Championship.

With fans now properly riled up for the basketball season to begin, the annual blue-white scrimmage is set to take place in Pikeville this Saturday, Oct. 22, before the Cats take on their first exhibition oppo nent, Missouri Western State, on Oct. 30.

The women will also host a blue-white scrimmage this Saturday inside Memori al Coliseum before hosting a scrimmage against Pikeville on Nov. 2.

Both teams kick off their respective regular seasons on Nov. 7, with the men hosting Howard inside Rupp Arena and the women hosting Radford inside Me morial Coliseum.

JACK WEAVER |

STAFF

UK cheerleaders perform during Big Blue Madness.

kentucky

JACK WEAVER |STAFF

Kentucky womens basketball head coach Kyra Elzy is introduced during Big Blue Mad ness.

opinions

As Lexington grows, so does its crime

By Shelby Helton opinions@kykernel.com

Growing up in Mt. Ster ling, Kentucky, was more or less like any other small town across the country: you have your Walmart and Kroger, a couple of Dollar Stores, your typical fast food chain restau rants, a movie theater/bowling alley combo and a JCPenney. That was it.

Out of boredom, we would park our vehicles in front of the local ATV shop and hang out with our friends. Lexington was a treat for small town kids like me. If you were lucky, on the weekends you could dress up a little, get in the car, drive a little bit down the interstate, go to Logan’s Roadhouse or Rafferty’s in Hamburg, go to Target after, then maybe go shopping. Lexington to me was like someone from Lexington looking at Cincin nati or Nashville; it was fan cy, it was nice, it was shinier and brighter.

A lot of kids in Kentucky either dreamed of going to University of Kentucky or University of Louisville; I always dreamed of going to the University of Kentucky. I mean, growing up watching Tayshaun Prince, Randolph Morris and Rajon Rondo in the early 2000s and watching John Wall, Demarcus Cous ins and Anthony Davis was a treat. But moving to Lex ington in 2014 and living here

JACK WEAVER | STAFF

Police work a scene after responding to reports of shots being fired on University Avenue on Thursday, Sept. 8, 2022, in Lexington, Kentucky.

off and on for 8 years has defi nitely changed my perception of what it was like when I was a kid.

We all have noticed it. There have been consistent shootings already this year. It’s only Oc tober and we have already beat last year’s record. The hospi tal’s emergency rooms are ex hausted with gunshot wound victims, and the hospitals are having to go on lockdown be cause of a looming threat of someone coming to finish the job. Why has it gotten this bad and why haven’t we fixed the problem? Has it just been the past two years or has it been a progressing problem?

I wanted answers. So I did some digging.

According to the FBI Crime Data and Kentucky State Po lice Crime Data, over the past 21 years (not including 2022),

Lexington has became increas ingly violent in shootings, homicides, rape, assaults, bur glaries, larceny, vehicle theft and arson.

Between 2000 and 2010, there were 175 homicides in Lexington. From 2011 un til now, there have been 292 homicides in Lexington, nearly double the amount from 2000 to 2010.

As I am writing this, 2022 is tied with 2021 with 37 ho micides; most of those (both years) resulting in shootings.

In 2021, there were 135 shootings (not resulting in ho micide) compared to this year with 103 shootings (not re sulting in homicide), the latest being on Oct. 2. As homicides have gone up, everything else has gone down. But that is nothing to jump up and down about. Lexington has one of

the highest property crime rates in the country, while violent crime is below the national average.

According to data from both the FBI, Kentucky State Police and Lexington Police Department, the rate of homi cides started to spike in 2016 with 28 homicides, compared to 2015 only having 15. Also according to those reports, the amount of rape, robbery, ag grataveted assault, burglary, larceny, motor vehicle theft and arson went up in 2016 but have steadily declined.

Between 2000 and 2010, there were only 175 homicides in Lexington. From 2011 un til now, there have been 292 homicides in Lexington, near ly double the amount from 2000 to 2010.

Carey Holbrook, a recent UK grad and native of Lex

ington, was cyberstalked last year to the extent that she had to file a report with Lexington PD, and she still doesn’t have any answers.

“It’s been over a year since this happened, I have not had any updates from this case, they still don’t know who it is. I am still looking over my shoulder,” Holbrook said.

Holbrook feels like the police brushed over her case. Holbrook also had a friend that was a victim of a random violent attack that left them in the hospital in a coma.

“I have felt relatively safe in Lexington, but my parents have always told me nothing good happens after midnight. My friend was just walking in a parking garage downtown after coming from a wedding and got violently assaulted, resulting in him having mul tiple brain surgeries. They still don’t know the perpetrator ei ther. That has definitely shook me,” Holbrook said.

The rise in crime could be attributed to many reasons including the ongoing reces sion and inflation, shortage of police officers and public of ficers including 911 dispatch ers, the COVID-19 pandem ic and the increase of drugs being trafficked.

Many cities across the country are offering hiring incentives to hire more police and 911 dispatchers. Accord ing to the Lexington Police Department, they currently

opinions

‘Halloween Ends’ - Or does it?

By Delaney McGuire opinions@kykernel.com

As the spooky season commences, horror fans have been taken aback by the as sortment of new releases as horror movies begin to flood theaters once again.

Between the release of the first-rated horror mov ie “Barbarian,” Ti West’s new A24 franchise prequel “Pearl” and Olivia Wilde’s controversial “Don’t Worry Darling,” 2022 has proven to be a crazy year for horror.

The release of “Hallow een Ends,” the 13th film in the epic horror franchise, is one slasher most fans are looking forward to seeing. Or were, anyway.

The “Halloween” series has remained one of the most iconic and long-lasting fran chises in American horror. For over five decades, “Hal loween” has helped define several themes and tropes that are now considered horror classics.

Some of these include the iconic mask used in “Friday the 13th” (1980), “The Purge” (2013) and “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre” (1974).

As a die-hard “Hallow een” fan, I was curious to see how the directors planned to end the sequel.

Throughout the franchise’s many different timelines and takes on Michael My

ers, one question has always remained unsolved among viewers: is Michael Myers a supernatural force, an un touchable human being or something else?

The movie that should’ve taken the nostalgic approach took an entirely different route. “Halloween Ends” missed every mark of the saga in which it was created.

For 40 years, Michael Myers was in a maximum se curity prison. And through out all that time, Laurie Strode lived the life of a par anoid survivalist. She never got over it. All she knew was fear and rage.

David Gordon Green started strong with “Hallow een,” As the sequel began, Michael Myers remained at large after escaping prison. No one knew where he was. Everyone in Haddonfield was supposedly losing their minds out of fear.

Yet, in “Halloween Ends,” Laurie is now cheer ful and carefree. Michael Myers is no longer the main villain, barely introduced until halfway through the movie. Michael is seen as weak, a predecessor to the new villain.

Why did Green base the movie’s focus on a new char acter instead of finishing Laurie and Michael’s story?

While I can appreciate the filmmakers for wanting to try a different approach

with this final entry, “Hal loween Ends” is barely a “Halloween” movie.

Instead of dedicating the film to the 40 years of strife between Michael and Laurie, it introduces a new antagonist, unnecessary ro mance and continuing com ments on the effects of evil in Haddonfield.

Michael Myers, in his final form, was a stalker. It wasn’t his bloody knife or brutality that kindled fear.

It was his hollowness. Film makers attempt to elevate Michael Myers beyond that soulless watcher, alluding to him as a physical manifesta

tion of evil.

Unfortunately, no one can be certain if we’ll be seeing Michael again or if this was his last run.

PROVIDED BY UNIVERSAL PICTURES

Rohan Campbell and Jamie Lee Curtis star in Halloween Ends.

One thing is certain, though – evil did die tonight, along with anything resembling a good story in Haddonfield.

“ ”

opinions

An appreciation for U.S. Poet Laureate Ada Limón ahead of her visit to Lexington

By Karrington Garland opinions@kykernel.com

In preparation for the cur rent U.S. Poet Laureate Ada Limón’s upcoming reading at Transylvania Universi ty on Thursday, Nov. 10, I bought three of her most re cent poetry books, “The Car rying” (2018), “Bright Dead Things” (2015) and her new est collection “The Hurting Kind” (2022).

“The Carrying” won the 2018 National Book Critics Circle Award for Poetry, and “Bright Dead Things” was a finalist for the same award back in 2015. Limón has six poetry collections out so far, and her latest one, “The Hurting Kind,” is my favor ite of her writings.

Limón, though from Sonoma, California, cur rently lives in Lexington, Kentucky, where she hosts her poetry podcast “The Slowdown” and does most of her writing.

Ever since I have got ten into poetry, I have had a varying number of poets that I follow steadily and with a loyalty I am surprised by. I treat them like musicians re ally and when they release their latest chapbooks, it is like an album release I am anxiously anticipating. I must go out and buy their works

and then sit and digest their vernacular whole.

With Limón, however, my following of her work has been different.

I first became aware of Limón’s writing a couple summers ago, back in 2018, when her poem “Late Sum mer after a Panic Attack” made its way around the small poetry Twitter commu nity I follow. Her poem was

eye-catching, intense and spoke to my subconscious and my mental health jour ney more than any poem I had been reading at the time.

Limón has a way of speaking about her own men tal health and her sometimes troubling subconscious in such a beautifully blunt and unapologetic way.

I am very attracted to the writings of women who are

not scared of being seen as crazy, stereotypically emo tionally fragile or bitter for saying how they truly feel about their own life experi ences and the ways in which they process their traumas or everyday things.

Limón does a great job of embracing the complexities of her womanhood and artic ulating them to her audience in her writing through her use

of imagery in connection to nature, horses and the places in which she is present in.

A lot of Limón’s poems are odes to the places she has emotional connections to –Lexington being one of these places and spaces for her to sit with nature and be herself among it.

Limón’s poetry paints the Lexington area as a beauti fully complicated landscape that emphasizes the im portance of it in compari son to her relationship with the people who inhabit it along with her. It is almost as though nature and the outdoors in Lexington has an ethereal presence that makes it more important and all-residing over her intersectionality within the community itself.

Limón was named the 24th U.S. poet laurate in July 2022 and will end her tenure in 2023. During the time she was named the poet laureate, I was home for the summer and went to a local bookstore close to where I lived called Quail Ridge Books and bought “Bright Dead Things” (2015). I had been reading most of her poems on Poetry Founda tion and Poets.org prior to purchasing this book, and I was happy to finally have the opportunity to

MICHAEL CLUBB | LEXINGTON HERALD-LEADER Ada Limón poses for a portrait on Monday, May 16, 2022, at Limón’s house in Lexington, Kentucky.

opinions

Singer-actor duality could be Hollywood’s new phenomenon, but should it?

By Jennifer Sadler opinions@kykernel.com

Harry Styles has been my celebrity crush for as long as I can remember.

From the beginning of my older sister’s One Direction obsession to his extremely successful solo career, I have stuck with my man. Though Styles has largely avoided any big controversies throughout his career, many people (in cluding his own fans) have been critical of his relatively recent foray into acting.

Since Styles’s acting de but in Christopher Nolan’s “Dunkirk” in 2017, spectators have criticized his acting and encouraged him to stick to what he knows best – singing. However, Styles is not alone in this phenomenon.

For the past few years, I have noticed an uptick in peo ple in the entertainment indus try taking on projects unfamil iar to their craft. I have seen actors move into the music industry, namely “Communi ty” and “Atlanta” star Don ald Glover, who has created a successful rap career under the stage name Childish Gambino.

However, I feel the phe nomenon is more common with singers moving into the acting scene. This can be seen in so many hit blockbuster movies, anywhere from Taylor Swift

in the upcoming film “Amster dam” to Beyonce in the live-ac tion “Lion King” movie and, most recently, Styles in “Don’t Worry Darling.”

Though this isn’t neces sarily a bad thing, it’s inter esting to look into why this would occur.

So many of these names are well known around the world.

According to The Times, Styles

alone has an estimated net worth of 100 million pounds ($112 million), is a three-time Grammy winner and was the first man to be on the cover of American Vogue, to name a few of his accomplishments. The man is a definite success story, so why even bother with acting in the first place?

I’m sure there are many reasons behind this, one of

which is just pure name rec ognition. If potential mov ie-goers see big names like “Harry Styles” or “Beyonce” in a movie they might be in terested in, it may pique their interests further. Additionally, these pop stars tend to have cult-like followings/fan bases that will contribute to view ership and promotion of the film at hand.

And, potentially the most pressing issue for movie the aters and production compa nies is recovering lost revenue from the COVID-19 pandemic that hit the entertainment indus try hard. According to Forbes, “(t)he $2.2 billion in box of fice receipts in 2020 marked a 40-year low in domestic box office,” which, combined with a 66% decline in new movie releases from 2019, led to a particularly hard blow to the film industry.

I’m not saying that the integration of pop stars into film is all a marketing ploy on behalf of casting and pro ducing companies, and I’m not implying that all film per formances by these musicians are bad. After all, many of them have been heralded for their acting, and some have re ceived major nominations for their performances.

However, I think it’s im portant to understand the potential backdrop to these casting decisions, and I defi nitely think we should be crit ical of these people, especial ly due to their notoriety and large fan bases.

Recognizing that our favor ite celebrities can have faults or weak spots is important for us to see them as human, and not put them on a pedestal as these imperfect beings we can never be.

PROVIDED BY WARNER BROS. ENTERTAINMENT Florence Pugh and Harry Styles in “Don’t Worry Darling.”

features

The reality of food expenses: Confronting student hunger

By Delaney McGuire features@kykernel.com

Throughout the years, UK has taken steps to address the ongoing issue of food insecurity. However, some members of the campus com munity have noticed that students still struggle.

Camila Pimentel, a sophomore international studies and political sci ence major, said many students have trouble finding an affordable meal on campus.

“I know there are students without meal plans because they simply can not afford it. They are subjected to finding other ways to eat around the area, which are very inconvenient to find,” Pimentel said.

Multiple studies have been con ducted and published showing the prevalence of student hunger on col lege campuses, including UK’s. In 2019, an anonymous survey taken at the University of Kentucky as part of the Basic Needs Campaign showed that of almost 2,000 UK students in terviewed, 43% said they experienced food insecurity on campus, with near ly half of those reporting actual hun ger because they couldn’t afford to buy food.

The report, titled “Meeting Ba sic Needs of Students,” defines food insecurity as “limited or uncertain availability of nutritionally ade quate and safe foods due to lack of financial resources.”

A survey conducted in March 2021 by Temple University’s Hope Center for College, Community and Justice, pursuing a degree has become so ex

pensive that many students have be gun rationing their money to the best of their abilities. This makes it hard for them to afford necessities such as food, clothing and hygiene products.

Additionally, according to Swipe Out Hunger, food insecurity is com mon at colleges and universities across the U.S., harming students’ ability to succeed in classes and de creasing their health and well-being.

Débora Patrus, a freshman psy chology major from Brazil, said that food expenses are a common concern among international students at UK.

“Food here is much more expen sive and of lesser quality compared to Brazil,” Patrus said. “I have a meal

plan, which is 10 swipes a week, but when the weekend approaches I am left without much to eat. I can buy food to cook, but not only is that a time management issue, but it is also very expensive to buy a few ingredi ents. I know many students who expe rience the same issue.”

Sarah Harris, a five-year employ ee at the Wildcat Pantry, believes students are suffering now more than ever.

“Up until this year, Wildcat Pantry had a meal swipe. Students were able to get a piece of fruit, a sandwich or salad and a canned soda without using their Flex or cash,” Harris said. “That option is not provided this year, and

students are upset. It can be hard to find a meal on campus, especially in the later hours.”

The Big Blue Pantry, located in the basement of the White Hall Class room Building, is open to any Univer sity of Kentucky student with a valid UK ID experiencing food insecurity or hunger. The pantry features ba sic food samples (bread, eggs, milk, soups and canned vegetables) as well as personal hygiene products. Stu dents fill out a short intake form, and their information will remain private. According to the Center for Support and Intervention website, there are no qualifications for access to the pantry other than being a UK student.

The Campus Kitchen located in 222 Funkhouser Building, ONE Com munity Cafe located on the second floor of Erickson Hall and the Wildcat Pantry at The 90 are also all resources across campus that assist students in need by offering flexible food options. These on-campus services provide en rolled UK students access to balanced, nutritious meals for little to no cost.

While Wildcat Pantry offers stan dard grocery store fare in both fresh and frozen foods, other services such as the ONE Cafe provide standard meals. The meals typically contain a protein, a vegetable and a starch, typi cally rice or couscous.

While these resources do provide some assistance, students believe more work can still be done.

“There are a few resources on cam pus, which are nice, but the lack of availability makes it hard,” Pimentel said. “For example, the Big Blue Pan try is only open for a select few hours

MORGAN SIMMONS | STAFF Food rests on shelves at the Wildcat Pantry on Sunday, Oct. 2, 2022 at the University of Kentucky in Lexington, Kentucky.

features

Kentuckians help preserve Eastern Kentucky archives after historic flooding

By Amber Chaney features@kykernel.com

Historic flooding in late July and early August devastated many families and people across Eastern Kentucky. People from all around the commonwealth have done their part to help recover lost items and archives.

Carol Street and Kopana Terry of UK’s Special Collections Re search Center (SCRC) are two fac ulty members from the University of Kentucky who helped preserve historic archives and buildings in Eastern Kentucky after the flood ing, such as at Appalshop and the Hindman Settlement School.

Street and Terry both said that the effects of the floods took an emotional toll on everyone in the group that went to help in mid-August.

“It would be very disheartening for anyone who has never experi enced this level of destruction, and even though (Eastern Kentucky) is prone to flooding, even the most seasoned survivors weren’t pre pared for this,” Terry said.

The process to save the archives was tedious and required drastic measures to prevent damage and preserve the quality of the fragile material, Street said.

“We essentially formed a human chain that moved the water-logged materials in plastic tubs from the archives door to freezer trucks,” Street said. “Some people were wearing protective suiting and res pirators inside the archives, eval

uating the situation and making choices on order of removal; some cleaned the tubs as they went back into the archives.”

There were at least 50 archivists, records managers and conservators from around the state who came to help, according to Street.

“There are hundreds of people who have no basic living necessi ties like shelter. Families living in tents with winter coming,” Terry said. “Elderly people living in out buildings just big enough for a pal let to lay on.”

Appalshop’s website says its mission is to “document, dissemi

nate and revitalize the lasting tra ditions and contemporary creativi ty of Appalachia,” as well as “tell stories the commercial cultural in dustries don’t tell, challenging ste reotypes with Appalachian voices and visions.”

This is done by promoting the preservation and development of film and music within the region. During the cleanup, the SCRC collected and preserved materials about the social and cultural history of Kentucky.

Though the Hindman Settle ment School, located in Hindman, Kentucky, also suffered property

damage in the floods, its staff and volunteers had to prioritize help ing the community. The school focuses on furthering education and culture within the Appala chian region, providing community engagement opportunities.

While Hindman School staff were working to support the school’s surrounding commu nity, the SCRC was working to recover academic documents and records. Hindman Settlement School stopped distributing com munity aid on Sept. 10, and it, along with other Knott Coun ty Schools, officially reopened on Sept. 19.

“Buildings can be repaired, but more importantly, our attention now turns to helping our friends, neighbors and community by pro viding meals, shelter, and basic ne cessities,” Executive Director Will Anderson said on the school’s web site. “We have received calls and messages from so many looking for ways to help.”

School officials posted an Amazon wish list and a donation link on their website, as well as pro viding in-person food and shelter.

“The basics of life, those that I have taken for granted, such as a hot meal, running water, bathroom facilities, and a safe, dry place to sleep each night … are all things that are difficult to find in Eastern Kentucky at the moment,” Ander son said on the school’s website.

“Hindman Settlement School is open and welcoming to anyone who has a need.”

PROVIDED BY CAROL STREET

People gather outside of Appalshop to remove archival materials on Tuesday, Aug. 2, 2022, in Whitesburg, Kentucky.

features UK celebrates Latinx/Hispanic Heritage Month

By Courtney Suber features@kykernel.com

Hispanic Heritage Month at the University of Kentucky kicked off on its nationally recognized date, Sept.15.

Sponsored by the Martin Luther King Center, the month included several festivities to celebrate Lat inx culture, history and heritage.

“A lot of students and a lot of Lexingtonians aren’t aware of just how much Hispanic culture is here,” Alan Brown, a professor in UK’s Hispanic Studies department, said. “There’s a lot of stereotypes … about what Hispanic culture is and is not.”

While UK has advertised His panic Heritage Month to students and staff with a multitude of events, the month has much deeper histo ry than the fun events which have been held by the university and oth er institutions.

Hispanic Heritage Month was first observed in 1968 as Hispan ic Heritage Week and was later expanded to encompass an entire month. It was enacted into law on Aug. 17, 1988.

The festival beginning on Sept. 15 is significant because it marks the independence of several Latin American nations, including Costa Rica, Honduras and Nicaragua.

Día de la Raza also falls within this period. Día de la Raza is the al ternative to Columbus Day on Oct. 10 and celebrates the mixed cul tures within Latin America. Along

side the celebrations held for Día de la Raza are those celebrating inde pendence of countries such as Mex ico and Chile.

Students could get involved with Hispanic culture in many different ways, including through cooking classes and dance lessons. Heath er Campbell-Speltz, an assistant professor in UK’s Hispanic Stud ies department, helped organize a salsa lesson and dance night at the Cornerstone Building.

“We had a good turnout. We had students from Hispanic Studies, both undergraduate and graduate, and faculty members,” she said.

Three of the events which UK planned to celebrate the month in clude Malinche’s Refusal, Melodias de Latinoamerica and the Indige nious People’s Day celebration.

Malinche’s Refusal was a semi nar held on Oct. 14 in the William T. Young Library. Gabriel Spears-Ri co, an anthropologist and assistant professor in Chicano Latino Studies and American Indian Studies at the University of Minnesota, delivered the seminar.

The seminar discussed Ma linche, an interpreter to the Spanish during their conquest of Mexico. It also delved into the ideas and con cepts held surrounding Hispanic people in the field of anthropology.

“I thought UK did a great job of offering a lot of different activities in different formats to really high light different aspects of Hispanic culture in the local community,” Campbell-Speltz said. “There was

a great offering of Latinx culture in Kentucky.”

Melodias de Lationamerica, di rectly translating to Melodies of Latin America, was a song festival held in the Singletary Center for the Arts on Oct. 14. The festival was hosted by the University of Ken tucky School of Music and present ed a program of songs which paid tribute to Hispanic Heritage Month as well as cultural music through the decades.

The beginning of the program featured Siete Canciones Populares Espanolas, which is a collection of songs from Manuel de Falla. De Falla was a Spanish composer who is often regarded as one of the best in Spanish history. The collec tion’s direct translation is “Seven Spanish Folksongs,” and the songs were filtered and rearranged by de Falla.

Alicia Helm McCovey sang the collection of songs, alongside Daniel Monroy on guitar. The performance was entirely acoustic, with the two being left to the devices of voice and guitar.

The other songs which were pre sented within the first half of the program featured the pianist Mar tin Neron. Each song had a differ ent origin; some were Venezuelan, some Brazilian, some Argentinian and some Incan.

Each performer at the festival wore bright and expressive cloth ing, which fit the characteristics and emotion of each song present ed. The final song prior to inter

mission featured Neron again and created a performance that drew in listeners.

Aaron Bowling, the technical production manager at UK’s Opera Theatre, said he was “all about” the School of Music being involved in Hispanic Heritage Month.

“I think it was a wonderful move,” he said. “I think it’s a great opportunity to get the students and faculty involved in cultural events.”

Campbell-Speltz said she was better able to notice the impact of the month around campus due to the multiple organizations involved in it.

“It was more noticeable this year than perhaps it has been in previous years,” she said. “I was seeing a lot more adver tisement around the activities being offered.”

Though Brown is happy with the outreach, he said UK can still do more to promote Hispanic culture on campus. He specifically cited a lack of speakers for events and classes focused on Latinx heritage.

“We struggle to get our Spanish for Heritage Learners (classes) ful filled,” Brown said.

However, Brown is still looking toward the future.

“There’s a lot more potential,” he said. “Lexington compared to 1520 years ago has a pretty significant Latinx population.”

UK’s Hispanic Heritage Month celebrations will end Nov. 1 with a celebration of Indigenious People’s Day.

NPHC

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The NPHC was found ed in 1930, when Greek life was exclusively for white people. Carter said Step Show now serves as a commemoration of progress.

“The main goal of the event is to just showcase the hard work and col laborative culture of the NPHC,” Carter said, “...just celebrating our pres ence here, the work that we’ve done within our chapter, and the service we’ve done for the com munity. So the goal is just celebrate, love, and culture. CLC!”

MISSISSIPPI

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Following the bye week the competition doesn’t get any easier, with the Cats traveling to Knox ville to duel current No. 6 Tennessee, who is fresh off a win over No. 3 Alabama.

Kentucky and Tennes see are slated to kick off on Saturday, Oct. 29, inside Neyland Stadium with the start time and airing location to be announced.

WEDNESDAY

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UK has struggled in conference play for years, not winning more than one SEC game in a season since 2017 (3-7).

With former head coach Ian Carry let go after a disappointing 1-0 loss to LSU on senior day last season, current head coach Fabiano was brought in to steer the ship in the right direction.

While Kentucky is unlikely to secure two or more conference wins this season, earning a point in his first year at the helm is a notable accomplish ment, and that all comes back to Jones’s goal on Sunday afternoon.

3. Kentucky womens golf team.

Breaking the rules a little bit, the entire womens golf team earn the final star for UK Athletics.

The team made his tory last week, winning the Illini Women’s In vitational, marking the first time in two years that the team has won any golf tournament.

The following week, the Cats swept the Ruth’s Chris Tarheel Invitational, finish ing first after day one and holding the position to win the event.

The wins mark a poten tially historic turnaround after the womens golf team finished 14th and 9th, po sitions many had gotten used to seeing in the years prior, to start the season, making the two wins even more impressive.

The Tarheel Invita tional wrapped up the fall schedule for the women, meaning fans will have to wait until February to see if the winning ways can be maintained.

The week to come:

With another week in the books, this next week looks to provide even more op portunities for success for Kentucky’s programs.

Starting Oct. 19, the mens soccer program takes on Coastal Carolina at home, seeking a fourth con ference victory and an end to the streak of draws.

Womens soccer plays just one day later on Thurs day, Oct. 20, traveling to Columbia to battle Mis souri, which was the only team the Wildcats managed to beat in conference play last season.

On Friday, the swimming and dive teams return to ac tion after a week off, taking on NC State in Raleigh.

Saturday sees four competitions, with foot ball on a bye week, as the volleyball team starts a two-game series at Texas A&M, the mens and womens basketball teams host their respective blue-white games, with the mens version taking place in Pikeville, and the mens soccer team returning to action on the road in a highly anticipated matchup against No. 20 Indiana.

Sunday sees two more events with the volleyball team wrapping up its se ries against Texas A&M and the womens soccer team hosting Georgia.

With Monday and Tues day being the fall break for the University of Kentucky, the events on Sunday will be the last to count for the next Wednesday Wrap Up, as no other competitions take place prior to Thursday, Oct. 27.

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 9

This group of players see that, and their relent less march towards nation al glory is only as promis ing and strong as the bonds that have defined this team. Whether or not Kentucky will succeed in making a Fi nal Four or even winning a national championship is to be seen, but the real ques tion remains: even if they do win, how many Kentucky fans will even care?

SOCCER CRIME

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have 639 sworn offi cers and nearly 150 ci vilian personnel. But is it enough? Lexington’s pop ulation has been on the rise and people continue to move here.

But will hiring more po lice officers help or make things worse? Will they be trained correctly? Will they be unbiased in their arrests or reports? The tension between civilians and law enforcement is still high; #BlackLivesMat ter is still present and police shootings are still rampant in this country.

Maybe Twitter and Facebook have made us notice what is happening in our communities more. News publications are using Twitter and Facebook to release ongoing news; sheriff, state and local police departments are using so cial media to help track down perpetrators of crimes or ask if civil

ians have any info in any ongoing investigations.

Facebook users are cre ating groups and pages like “Lexington- Fayette County Crime Watch” with over sev en thousand members, “Lex ington, KY Crime News and Missing People” with over three thousand members and smaller Facebook groups for each neighborhood of Lexington like “Black ford Oaks NeighborhoodLexington, Ky.”

Many tips from users have helped solve cases here in Lexington and the surround ing areas. Users from these groups also encourage oth ers with safety tips, places to avoid and report crime activi ty in their area.

Maybe social me dia has created civilian watchdogs; maybe more people care about what’s going on in their commu nity. Many people are tired of having to avoid going out downtown and spend ing time with family and friends because the risk of getting assaulted, robbed or shot is there.

This is just an observation I have made during my time living here in Lexington. It is so much different then when I was a naive kid making week end trips with my family here. Is my hometown innocent? No. Crazy stuff happens there too. But everyone in the world has heard of Lexington, Ken tucky, horse capital of the world, home of the Univer sity of Kentucky Wildcats, Henry Clay and bourbon. We have to take care of the peo ple in this city and keep our communities safe.

features

LIMÓN

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digest an entirety of one of her works.

When I came to Lexing ton this semester, I was sur prised and pleased to discov er from my poetry Professor Julia Johnson that Ada Limón would be doing a reading not too far from our campus in November.

When I heard the news, I immediately reserved a tick et. The chance of getting to see a current U.S. poet lau reate read their work and for her to be a Lexington res ident as well made this an opportunity I did not want to pass up. The event will take place in person at Transylva nia University in the Mitch ell Fine Arts Center from at 5:30 p.m. The event is free if you reserve a ticket and will be livestreamed as well.

I hope that Limón will read from her newest col lection “The Hurting Kind” (2022). It is a beautiful journey through the sea sons of nature as well as the pandemic and the isola tion, anxiousness and long ing for companionship we all universally experienced during it.

It starts off in spring and ends in winter. The poems in it embody the seasons they portray and add layers of self-analysis through the eyes of Limón, her voice and the characters, animals and landscapes she brings to life throughout.

In the book of poems, Limón pays keen attention to the world around her and routinely questions her place

in it as well as how the world itself works and plays out in front of her eyes.

My favorite poems in “The Hurting Kind” are “And, too, the Fox” (page 11), where Limón observes the act of a fox hunting and the lazy candor in which it goes about catching its prey, all the while maintain ing a minimal presence on earth and within the scene Limón sets.

“Fox lives on the edg es,” Limón wrote. “pieces together a living out of left overs and lazy rodents too slow for the telephone pole. / He takes only what he needs and lives a life some might call small.”

Her personification of the fox in this poem makes the reader wonder about their own place in the world in comparison to the ecosys tems they may find them selves in.

“In the Shadow” (page 9) says, “It is what we do in or der to care for things, make them ourselves/ our elders, our beloveds, our unborn. / But perhaps that is a lazy kind of love. Why/ can’t I just love the flower for being a flower? / How many flow ers have I yanked to puppet asif it was easy for the world to make flowers?”

Limón describes the act of loving and caring for a flow er in comparison to the act of loving and caring for those around her in this piece. Her questions throughout the book are earnest and almost childlike in their inquisition.

When Limón’s poems transition into summer, her poem that opens this sec

tion up, “It Begins With the Trees” (page 27-28), pas sionately brings into ques tion the act of kissing and how the intertwining of the act emulates that of the trees and how we are reflections of them and they too are re flections of us.

“Two full cypress trees in the clearing intertwine in a way that almost makes/ them seem like one,” Limón wrote. “Until, at a certain angle/ from the blue blowup pool I bought/ this sum mer to save my life, I see it/ is not only one tree but two, and they are/ kissing. They are kissing so tender ly it feels rude to watch … When did kissing become so dangerous? Or was it al ways so?”

This observation and un apologetic questioning of why the passion of kissing is stifled and the speaker’s yearning for intimacy is a feeling I think we all expe rienced during the pandem ic. The need and desire for closeness, whether roman tic, familial or platonic, Limón does an amazing job of capturing this feeling in this collection.

It is a great collection of pandemic poems that don’t blatantly call COVID-19 into character or question ing and instead focuses on the emotional, physical and relational impacts it had on us universally.

Pick up a copy of her book before her reading on Nov. 10 for a chance to get it signed! I know I will be taking all of the copies of her books that I own to get them signed.

HUNGER

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during the weekday and is closed on the weekend. I am in class most of those times. It’s also first come first serve, so if I can man age to make a trip there, I might not find much at all.”

Lilly Morrison, a fresh man English major, believes the university is lacking in nutritious options for stu dents, which can contribute to the risk of developing health problems. Though UK Dining halls contain allergen-free food at True Balance, salads and plantbased options, they also still feature fried dishes at Bow man’s Grill and Pasture.

“I’ve noticed that all the options here are so un

healthy,” Morrison said. “There are very limited nutritious choices for stu dents. We are all begin ning to develop our healthy routines by ourselves for the first time, and it’s hard to do that with what we’re given.”

Patrus agreed, suggesting multiple routes UK could take to further promote stu dent health.

“Hosting more events with produce and healthi er options would be a great help,” Patrus said. “We don’t have much access to healthy food, so imple menting more of that in the dining halls would be amaz ing. Putting more meal op tions instead of snack foods in the pantries would also be beneficial.”