February 17, 2022

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 17, 2022

MENTORING MATTERS MSU’s defensive tackle Andrew Yogei shares his mentor experience

By JULIA BARTON News Director

Minnesota State University, Mankato student athlete Andrew Yogei gets involved with the Mankato community in a variety of ways, but being part of the YMCA Brother/Sister program is one that stands out to him.

Yogei, who is a junior and defensive tackle on the MSU football team, has been a big brother for the YMCA for a year and a half.

He first heard about this program from one of his fellow teammates while attending a Student Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) meeting.

Soon realizing he wanted to be a part of the program, he described the process to be fairly easy, from filling out the application to undergoing the background checks and matching process.

“For me and my mentee it was really easy to connect, since we both play football, so we always talk about that,” said Yogei.

The YMCA has their mentors fill out a personality test along with their availability to ensure each mentor and their mentee are able to create a bond.

Even with his busy schedule juggling school and sports, Yogei makes an effort to meet with his mentee at least two to three times per month while partaking in a variety of activities.

“This one day I had my mentee come to the football facility and I introduced him to some of the coaches and let him tour and take pictures in the locker room. After he said to me, ‘I want to be like you when I grow up’ and that meant a lot to me.”

With the YMCA having a need for more male mentors in the program, mentees may be waiting for months until a mentor becomes available.

Those who currently participate in this program encourage the parents to be involved as much as possible to be that point of contact when setting up meetings.

“The YMCA does a lot to facilitate our relationship with the mentees. They have programs every month that gather other mentors and their mentees around the area to get together and do stuff,” Yogei shared.

Stemming from childhood, Yogei voiced how the influential people in his life growing up helped shape him into who he is today.

“There was a football player I looked up to in middle school and I remember thinking that one day I’ll be like him, so I think that experience has shaped me into how I am a role model now for my mentee,” Yogei shared. “I give a lot of credit to my role models growing up for teaching me how to act.”

Making a difference in someone else’s life is something he found to be impactful for himself as well as his mentee.

“I always tell my mentee that as much as he thinks he is the one being impacted, I truly cherish the time we get to spend

By RADIT MAHMUD Staff Writer

The Minnesota State University, Mankato Student Government met yesterday to discuss the upcoming budget season as well as present two senator reports.

The senate discussed several projects, including working with the University Dining Center to introduce a food waste project. In this project, the leftover food could be reallocated for students who are in need. This project has met some roadblocks, including food safety concerns, as well as the cost of saving the food.

During the open forum Sam Steiger, Program Coordinator from Maverick Adventures, introduced the new additions to the Campus Recreation. These additions include a phone application that allows students to use their cell phone to check in at the Otto Recreation Center as well as look at upcoming events. He also mentioned the STUGOV on page 4  MADDIE BEHRENS • The Reporter

Andrew Yogei is a junior at MSU who is majoring in accounting and planing to intern at J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. in New York this summer.

together because it reminds me of the little kid I used to be,” said Yogei.

This upcoming summer, however, Yogei will be out of town as he landed an internship out of state, but he hopes to still communicate with his mentee long distance.

The Brother/Sister YMCA program aims to create a unique bridge connecting car-

ing adult mentors to local youth. Being a mentor means you care about building one’s self-confidence, social and communication skills, positive behaviors, and help improve relationships at home and within the community.

For those interested in becoming a mentor, visit the YMCA website.

grams this month is snowshoe yoga, with the next date being Feb. 24.

“We have the wellness and fitness program coordinator with Campus Rec come out and lead some mindfulness

discussions on our hike. We do different yoga poses along the way that you can do while wearing snowshoes, and there’s also a point where we’re gonna stop and people can take off ADVENTURE on page 2 

Staff Writer

Maverick Adventures has wintertime events in full swing, with activities such as snowshoeing fast approaching. The program at Minnesota State University, Mankato is designed for students to learn, stay active, and gain leadership skills in fun and unique ways.

Maverick Adventures offers a wide range of courses in multiple locations, such as the fitness trail on campus, Seven Mile Creek, and Minneopa State Park. They run events

that feature everything from ice fishing, to hiking, to canoeing.

“Our events are beginner friendly, so it doesn’t matter what your level of experience is. We provide all of the guidance, instruction, and material that you need,” says Madison Vandersee, one of the graduate assistants with Maverick Adventures. “If you’re worried that you don’t have enough experience to do it, that’s what we’re there for. We’re there to help you feel comfortable in that and to have a group to go out and explore with.”

One of the upcoming pro-

Courtesy photo

Maverick Adventures takes on the snow

By ALEXANDRA TOSTRUD

Stu Gov. discuss food insecurity

507 gives back with Battle of the Bartenders

By JENNA PETERSON Staff Writer

Giving back to the community has never been easier for those who also enjoy a refreshing cocktail. The 507, a local bar based in downtown Mankato, is in the middle of its second annual Battle of the Bartenders charity event.

This event, beginning Feb. 2, spans over five weeks on every Wednesday night with bartenders from The 507 creating cocktails and battling for the charity of their choice.

Elijah Pitchford, assistant to kitchen manager at The 507, explained what this battle entails and how it functions.

“It’s six of our bartenders.

They all have their drink of choice and every Wednesday we have two of them go against each other,” Pitchford stated. “Basically, you buy a ticket if you’re somebody sitting down and you have a chance to try both drinks.”

From 6 to 9 p.m. the barBATTLE on page 7 

2 • MSU Reporter

News

For high court nominees ‘When’s your birthday?’ matters

Thursday, February 17, 2022

Risk of Ukraine war spreading in Europe rests on unknowns

ALEX BRANDON • Associated Press

President Joe Biden speaks about Ukraine in the East Room of the White House, Tuesday, Feb. 15, 2022, in Washington.

By ROBERT BURNS Associated Press TOM WILLIAMS • Pool via AP

Ketanji Brown Jackson, nominated to be a U.S. Circuit Judge for the District of Columbia Circuit, testifies before a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on pending judicial nominations on Capitol Hill in Washington.

By JESSICA GRESKO Help wanted: Well-respected liberal jurist. Black. Female.

Seniors need not apply.

President Joe Biden’s search for a nominee to the Supreme Court isn’t just limited by credentials, race and gender. The reality for the nation’s oldest president — and for any president — is that for a lifetime appointment on the nation’s highest court, youth is particularly prized.

It’s simple math. The younger Biden’s nominee, the longer she is likely to serve as a justice.

The longer she serves as a justice, the longer liberals can expect to hold a seat on the court now dominated 6-3 by conservatives.

While a nominee’s experience and academic and work credentials may be most important in the selection, how long the person can serve is clearly significant for the 79-year-old Biden in what may well be his only chance to nom-

inate a justice.

“Younger is considered better, but not so young that you don’t have a track record,” said C. Boyden Gray, White House counsel to former President George H.W. Bush. And the age issue extends to nominating federal judges at all levels, he said.

Age may be most significant at the Supreme Court. It is often said that a president’s picks are among his most lasting legacies, with recent justices serving 25 years or more. Retiring Justice Stephen Breyer, nominated by President Bill Clinton at 55, is retiring at 83.

Balancing age and experience, recent presidents have picked nominees in their late 40s and 50s, with 60 generally seen as the very upper end of the range. All three of Biden’s most talked-about potential nominees are in that age window, but there’s also a decade between the youngest and oldest. California Supreme Court Justice Leondra Kruger is 45, while South Carolina feder-

al Judge J. Michelle Childs is 55. In between is Washington, D.C., federal appeals court Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, 51.

On Tuesday the court transparency group Fix the Court tweeted that Republicans are pushing Childs for the seat “in part because she’s the oldest of the potential nominees & more likely to die sooner.” The group then voiced support for 18-year term limits, which would make age less a factor.

Breyer’s fellow Clinton nominee Ruth Bader Ginsburg was nominated at 60 and served until her death in 2020 at 87.

“Some people thought I was too old for the job,” Ginsburg said in 2019 at an event with Clinton. Noting that she was starting her 27th year on the court, she told the former president: “If you worried about my age, it was unnecessary.”

“I did worry about it,” the Democrat acknowledged, describing age as a “serious issue.”

ADVENTURE from page 1 their snowshoes, and we’ll have yoga mats out so people can do different poses if they want to.

It’s just a good way to get outside,” Vandersee explained.

Masaki Hara, MSU senior, has attended past Maverick Adventures events including the winter hikes and ice fishing.

“Ice fishing was very interesting. Sam [the program’s coordinator] taught me how to fish and set up. I wanted to do more outdoor things,” says Hara.

He will also be attending upcoming snowshoe events.

“I’m looking for these kinds of experiences at MSU,” Hara added. “Maverick Adventures is very helpful for me and they

make a lot of interesting events.

I’m excited to join.”

Some programs with Maverick Adventures require students to register beforehand or to pay a small fee, and all require a signed liability form before participating.

Thanks to the MyCampusRecMNSU app and website, these preparatory tasks are all found in one place.

“Students can go on to register and sign the waiver virtually which has all the information for events. When they register, they’ll get an email about where we’ll meet, what to expect, and exact timeframes,” says Vandersee.

Downloading the app and signing the waiver is simple.

Every MSU student has an account, which is connected with their StarID, and the registration process includes the waiver. Students only need to sign once, which then applies for all future events they attend.

Payment, which may cover transportation or equipment maintenance, can also be completed through MyCampusRecMNSU. Scheduled snowshoe events range from $3 to $5.

The app also lists upcoming events, which are currently scheduled out to the end of February for the outdoor events.

Students can also access group exercise events associated with the Otto Rec Center through the app.

Associated Press



A Russian invasion of Ukraine would be devastating and a wider European war even worse.

Whether a larger war happens would depend partly on Russian President Vladimir Putin’s ambitions, partly on the West’s military response and partly on plain luck.

Although U.S. and European officials have said for days that a Russian invasion appeared imminent, Putin’s government on Tuesday publicly welcomed further security talks with the West.

It also announced that some of its forces bracketing Ukraine will be returning to their regular bases, although the United States and its allies said

Wednesday they saw no sign of a promised pullback and it was too early to tell whether the threat had receded.

War by its nature is unpredictable, and the stakes are enormous, not just for an overmatched Ukraine but for Europe and the United States. At risk, arguably, is the European security order established after World War II and then altered peacefully with the reunification of Germany, the demise of communism in Eastern Europe, the collapse of the Soviet Union and the expansion of NATO. President Joe Biden has said he will not fight Russia in Ukraine, nor would America’s NATO allies. So a Russian invasion would not automatically trigger a wider war.

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Thursday, February 17, 2022

News

MSU Reporter • 3

Gas costs from Ukraine threat pose Biden political risk

By JOSH BOAK Associated Press

With the continuing threat of Russia invading Ukraine, a foreign policy crisis is colliding with one of President Joe Biden’s political vulnerabilities: Rising gasoline prices at home.

Americans are already dismayed by Inflation at a 40-year high, and Biden is warning that gas prices could get higher if Russian President Vladimir Putin chooses to invade. It’s a recognition of Biden’s own risks ahead of the 2022 midterm elections: Inflation has become an albatross for Democrats despite the nation’s strong economic growth last year.

“We’re prepared to deploy all the tools and authority at our disposal to provide relief at the gas pump,” the U.S. president declared Tuesday. “We are taking active steps to alleviate the pressure on our own energy markets and offset rising prices.”

The cost of crude oil — and gasoline— began to climb over the past month as Putin massed forces on the Ukrainian border.

The diplomatic back-and-forth has whipsawed financial and commodity markets as investors try to price in what an armed conflict and U.S. sanctions against Russia would mean for the global economy.

DAVID ZALUBOWSKI • Associated Press

A motorist fuels a vehicle at an Exxon station Oct. 27, 2021, in Littleton, Colo. President Joe Biden is warning Americans already exhausted by inflation at a 40-year high that gas prices could get higher.

Even though the broad U.S. economy can absorb higher energy prices, American families have been seeing sharp increases in the price of food, energy and other goods. Forecasts from JPMorgan and other investment firms suggest that crude oil — already at about $95 a barrel

— could exceed $125 a barrel due to tight supplies, which an invasion would intensify.

Biden wants to put the focus on how the Ukraine situation is contributing to higher gasoline prices, but costs at the pump already were dramatically higher from a year ago. Efforts to coax

more oil production in the U.S. and abroad have largely failed.

Republicans most certainly won’t give Biden a pass due to tensions abroad. Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell criticizes the president for higher energy and food prices, contending that “the Biden admin-

istration seems less interested in trying to solve this problem than in trying to persuade families the pain is just in their heads.”

In a December AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll, most Americans -85% -- said they’d experienced higher than usual prices for both groceries and gas in recent months.

And in an open-ended question about top issues for the government to be working on, 10% named gas prices and energy costs, a sign of the political challenge confronting Biden.

“Given the world that we’re in, any increase in prices of commodities, even if that is transitory, even if the Federal Reserve generally tries to look past obvious supply shocks in making its decisions, it adds to the policy conundrum,” said Gerard DiPippo, a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. “It puts the White House in a bind.”

White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Wednesday that National Security Council Middle East Coordinator Brett McGurk and the State Department’s energy envoy, Amos Hochstein, were in Riyadh on Wednesday to meet with Saudi officials. She would not comment on whether they were pressing the Saudis to pump more oil to help stabilize the global oil market.

4 • MSU Reporter

News

Thursday, February 17, 2022

The CDC hints better times ahead

By SARA BURNETT Associated Press

The nation’s leading health officials said Wednesday that the U.S. is moving closer to the point that COVID-19 is no longer a “constant crisis” as more cities, businesses and sports venues began lifting pandemic restrictions around the country.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky said during a White House briefing that the government is contemplating a change to its mask guidance in the coming weeks. Noting recent declines in COVID-19 cases, hospital admissions and deaths, she acknowledged “people are so eager” for health officials to ease masking rules and other measures designed to stop the spread of the coronavirus.

“We all share the same goal – to get to a point where COVID-19 is no longer disrupting our daily lives, a time when it won’t be a constant crisis – rather something we can prevent, protect against, and treat,” Walensky said.

With the omicron variant waning and Americans eager to move beyond the virus, government and business leaders have been out ahead of the CDC in ending virus measures in the last week, including ordering workers back to offices, eliminating mask mandates and no longer requiring proof of vaccine to get into restaurants, bars and sports and entertainment arenas.

The efforts have been gaining more steam each day. Philadelphia officials on Wednesday said the city’s vaccine mandate for restaurants was immediately lifted, though indoor mask mandates remain in place for now. At Disney World, vaccinated guests will no longer have to wear masks at the Florida theme park starting Thursday. Professional sports teams including the Utah Jazz and Washington Wizards and Capitols have stopped requiring proof of vaccine for

STUGOV from page 1 upcoming snowshoeing event.

Cindy Janney, Director of Residential Life, discussed a Peer-to-Peer support program they hope to have funded by a grant to provide academic support for students on campus.

She asked for the support of the senators, which will be used to get the program up and running in MSU within upcoming months.

During their senator report, Senator Joey Novak discussed the new free menstrual products being set up in restrooms around campus for women.

Since the beginning of this project, there are now 50 bathrooms throughout campus that offer free menstrual products.

Novak and Senator Sienne Haq mentioned the food waste project while discussing potential issues in setting up the program. Some of the issues include



MATT ROURKE • Associated Press

Customers eat at the Reading Terminal Market in Philadelphia, Wednesday, Feb. 16, 2022. Philadelphia city officials lifted the city’s vaccine mandate for indoor dining and other establishments that serve food and drinks, but an indoor mask mandate remains in place.

fans.

Health Commissioner Cheryl Bettigole said Philadelphia’s average daily case count had dropped to 189 cases per day in the city of more than 1.5 million people. Bettigole said the plunge in infections has been steeper in Philadelphia than elsewhere in the state or the country, making it easier to lift the vaccine mandate for restaurants and other businesses announced in mid-December and that just fully went into effect this month.

“Our goal has always been to the least restrictive as possible while ensuring safety,” she said.

In Provincetown, Massachusetts, a seaside town that became a COVID hot spot with an early outbreak of the delta variant last summer, officials on Tuesday lifted a mask mandate and vaccine requirement for indoor spaces like restaurants and bars. Town Manager Alex the refrigeration and electricity costs for the food to remain cold enough to donate. If perishable food is not kept at a safe temperature, it could lead to safety concerns for those consuming the donated food.

Novak spoke about the Student Government’s increased messaging to encourage students to apply for scholarships through the scholarship finder.

The College Democrats and Turning Point USA, two political organizations on campus, announced they will be working together next week to write a resolution advocating for change in the emergency preparedness policy for students with disabilities.

This resolution comes after MSU student Valerie Weber was left in her dorm room during a fire alarm, unable to escape due to being confined to a wheelchair.

Morse said the community of about 3,000 recorded zero active cases last week among Provincetown residents — something that hasn’t happened since the surge following last year’s July 4 celebrations.

“We are learning to live with, and mitigate, the impact of the virus on our community,” Morse said.

COVID-19 infections and hospitalizations have fallen sharply in the U.S., with the seven-day rolling average for daily new cases dropping from about 453,000 two weeks ago

to about 136,000 as of Tuesday, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. Hospitalizations are at levels similar to September, when the U.S. was emerging from the delta variant surge. Almost 65% of Americans are fully vaccinated.

“As a result of all this progress and the tools we now have, we are moving to a time where COVID isn’t a crisis but is something we can protect against and treat,” said Jeff Zients, the White House coronavirus response coordinator.

Walensky said the CDC “will

soon put guidance in place that is relevant and encourages prevention measures when they are most needed to protect public health and our hospitals.” She suggested any changes will take into account measures of community transmission, as well as hospitalization rates or other gauges of whether infected people are becoming severely ill.

They also would consider available bed space in hospitals.

Several states with indoor mask mandates announced last week they would be lifted in coming weeks, also citing promising numbers. Two music festivals that draw thousands of people to the California desert town of Indio in April and May, Coachella and Stagecoach, also said this week there will be no vaccination, masking or testing mandates in accordance with local guidelines. Coachella also noted that could change along with COVID conditions.

In Philadelphia, Bettigole said the vaccine mandate helped spur “a very large” increase in pediatric vaccinations, pushing the city way ahead of the national average for first doses among kids ages 5 to 11.

More than 53% of Philadelphia residents in that age group have received a first dose, compared to closer to 30% nationally, she said.

Not all businesses plan to immediately change course.

Philadelphia Irish sports bar and restaurant O’Neals will keep asking to see customers’ vaccination cards for now, said managing partner Greg “Spoonie” Rand, even though the city is lifting its vaccine mandate.

ASK A LIBRARIAN service is available online 24/7 to assist you with your research questions big and small!

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Thursday, February 17, 2022

News

Mexico’s avocados face fallout

By MARK STEVENSON

MSU Reporter • 5

Death toll rises to 78 from mudslides after storm in Brazil

Associated Press

With clever Super Bowl ads, an irresistible fruit and apparently insatiable appetite from U.S. consumers, Mexico’s avocado producers have so far been able to separate avocados from the conflictive landscape that produces them — at least until a threat to a U.S. agricultural inspector essentially shut down their exports last week.

But as producers continue to suffer extortion from organized crime, and loggers continue to chop down pine forests to clear land for avocado orchards, another threat looms: Campaigns for greener competition and perhaps even a boycott.

Most advocates for more sustainable avocados stop short of calling for an outright boycott.

“They (avocados) are a very large portion of either their country or regional economy and, you know, banning them entirely would not be advantageous” for already struggling local farmers, said Gareth Elliott, a New Jersey restaurant manager who runs the Facebook page “Blood Avocados.”

“But if there were more environmental studies and they were grown in a responsible manner, we could solve this together.”

So far, the association of Mexican avocado producers and packers has taken little action to solve the problems, nor has its U.S. promotional arm, Avocados from Mexico, even as growers in Mexico report having to pay thousands of dollars in protection payments to drug gangs for each acre of or-

MARCO UGARTE • Associated Press

Mexico has acknowledged late Saturday, Feb. 13, 2022, that the U.S. government has suspended all imports of Mexican avocados after a U.S. plant safety inspector in Mexico received a threat.

chard. Those who don’t pay are threatened with having their families kidnapped, murdered and returned in pieces.

The producers’ associations have bought multimillion-dollar Super Bowl commercials, but they have never bothered to come up with a serious certification program to assure consumers the avocado they buy has not involved protection money to drug cartels — the same cartels flooding the United States with deadly fentanyl pills counterfeited to look like Xanax, Adderall or Oxycodone.

Nor have they come up with a plan to certify that the avocado sold at a U.S. supermarket wasn’t planted on illegally logged mountainsides that used to hold pine forests, threatening local water supplies.

Neither group responded to requests for comment on the issue. Mexico’s president has

suggested the suspension of avocado imports was part of a conspiracy against his country.

That kind of certification and information program is what many activists want.

“I think it could also help bring up awareness,” said Elliott, who said many people now may not be conscious of the issue. “Bringing it out to the consumer that how they purchase things speaks a lot louder to American policy or even global policy, than sometimes protests will.”

But Elliott’s reluctance to boycott might vanish if illegal logging and planting of avocados reaches into the core of the monarch butterfly reserves in the western state of Michoacan. So far planters have only ni bbled around the buffer zones of the mountaintop pine forests where the butterflies spend the winter before heading back to the United States and Canada.

SILVIA IZQUIERDO • Associated Press

A resident yells during the search for survivors after fatal mudslides in Petropolis, Brazil, Wednesday, Feb. 16, 2022.

By DAVID BILLER Associated Press

The death toll from devastating mudslides and floods that swept through a mountainous region of Rio de Janeiro state has reached 78, Gov. Claudio Castro said Wednesday afternoon.

The city of Petropolis was slammed by a deluge Tuesday, and Castro said almost 400 people were left homeless.

Searchers picked through the wreckage throughout the day and 21 people were recovered alive. Civilians joined official recovery efforts. Among them were Priscila Neves and her siblings, who looked through the mud for any sign of their disappeared parents, but found only clothing.

Neves told The Associated Press she had given up hope of

finding her parents alive.

And Rosilene Virgilio, 49, was in tears as she recalled the desperate pleas from someone she couldn’t save. “There was a woman screaming, ‘Help!

Get me out of here!’ But we couldn’t do anything; the water was gushing out, the mud was gushing out,” Virgilio told The Associated Press. “Our city unfortunately is finished.”

Petropolis is a German-influenced city named for a former Brazilian emperor. Nestled in the mountains above the coastal metropolis, for almost two centuries it has been a refuge for people escaping summer heat and tourists keen to explore the so-called “Imperial City.” Petropolis was among the nation’s first planned cities and features stately homes along its waterways.

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6 • MSU Reporter

Thursday, February 17, 2022

SPRING 2022 EDITOR IN CHIEF:

MAXWELL MAYLEBEN

Why volunteering benefits everyone

maxwell.mayleben@mnsu.edu

MADISON DIEMERT

madison.diemert@mnsu.edu

Editorial Part of the college experience is getting to know the community you live in.

Whether that community is on-campus or around the city, it’s essential for students to bond with those people and form connections.

One of the easiest ways to connect with the community is through volunteer work.

Volunteering allows you to participate in an activity you’re passionate about while also gaining a sense of belonging to the community. If you’re feeling adventurous you can always branch out to an organization that you might otherwise not participate with.

In Mankato, there are various volunteer organizations available for students to participate in, no matter their interest.

Whether you want to work with animals at BENCHS or meet other students on campus through organizations such as Mavs in Action, the options are endless.

Not only does volunteering connect you with the community, it allows you to make work-based connections and opens the door to networking opportunities.

In the growing workforce it seems as if everyone you meet has some sort of connection to another. Having these people as resources can rocket-launch your future career and get you to places you’ve only dreamed of. This guid-

NEWS DIRECTOR: Julia Barton julia.barton@mnsu.edu SPORTS EDITOR: Kole Buelow kole.buelow@mnsu.edu VARIETY EDITOR: Emma Johnson emma.johnson.5@mnsu.edu MEDIA/DESIGN DIRECTOR: Mansoor Ahmad mansoor.ahmad@mnsu.edu

MANSOOR AHMAD • The Reporter

ance can be in the form of references or life long friends.

With the idea of future careers in mind, volunteering also stands out on a resume.

It shows potential bosses that you enjoy getting involved and giving back to the community. It can show that you’re a team leader and that you can work well with others to get tasks accomplished.

These skills, beyond others, will help you not only in your career but with your everyday life as well.

When you volunteer, there’s

a sense of accomplishment you feel during and after the event.

Whether you’re filling water cups for people participating in the Mankato Marathon or spending time mentoring a kid through the YMCA Big Brother/Sister Program, there’s an important role for you to fulfill through volunteer work.

Going out and volunteering is also beneficial for your mental health.

Interacting with other people and completing a task together will allow you to meet others within the community

and bond with them. It’s always intimidating meeting new people in a city you may not know, and volunteering is the perfect way to go about that.

While you may think to yourself that taking the time out of your day to volunteer isn’t worthwhile because it’s free labor, understand that there’s more to work than money. The amount of time it takes to volunteer somewhere can range anywhere from an hour to a full day’s worth of work, but in the end you still gain something from it.

“What volunteer work do you participate in?”

Compiled by Dylan Long

ANDREW YOGEI, JUNIOR “YMCA Big Brother Mentor Program.”

KEVIN ASANTE, JUNIOR

JUSTIN MARCY, SENIOR

JAYDEN FRITZ, SENIOR

AMEENA EYO, FRESHMAN

“Maranatha Christian Fellowship.”

“MSU ROTC.”

“MSU ROTC.”

“YMCA Pen Pal Opportunity.”

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• If you have a complaint, suggestion or would like to point out an error made in the Reporter, contact Editor in Chief Maxwell Mayleben at maxwell.mayleben@mnsu.edu.

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Thursday, February 17, 2022

News

This time, Tibet stands silent as Olympics return to China

MSU Reporter • 7

COLUMN: Tomorrow For Dr. Alan Kern

By JEREMY REDLIEN

Staff Writer

Editorial

DAKE KANG • Associated Press

A house stands in the shadow of snow-capped mountains in predominantly-Tibetan Garze county in southwestern China’s Sichuan province, on Saturday, Feb. 5, 2022.

By DAKE KANG As a speedskating team was winning China’s first Olympic gold medal of the Beijing Games, all seemed quiet in the villages that line the eastern edge of the Tibetan plateau.

A bus flew past gold-roofed monasteries on freshly paved asphalt. Red-robed monks rode motorcycles over windswept plains under snow-capped mountains.

It was a stark difference from 14 years ago, when China hosted its first Olympics.

That summer, foreigners filmed deadly clashes between Tibetans and security forces in Lhasa, the regional capital. News of the violence ricocheted online, fueling protests, hunger strikes and self-immolations across the Tibetan region.

Today, Tibet has fallen quiet.

There are no monks marching on police stations. No over-

turned cars or hurled stones.

Far more international attention and outrage is directed at Xinjiang in China’s far northwest, where some human rights groups and Western governments say the Chinese government has been carrying out a campaign of genocide against the region’s Uyghur population.

The once-relentless waves of protesters setting themselves afire has slowed. No self-immolations have been reported in the past two years; over the prior decade, there were more than 150.

That is, at least as far as the outside world knows. In China, where the government tightly controls information and limits access to areas seen as politically sensitive, it’s always hard to know what’s really happening.

And few areas in China are considered as politically sensitive as Tibet. As the bus carrying an Associated Press journalist traveled through the

rugged borderlands in Sichuan close to Tibet, it suddenly ground to a halt. Police officers filed onboard and ordered him off. Even though he had tested negative for the coronavirus three times in the previous five days, the officers ordered him expelled due to pandemic controls.

“No foreigners are allowed in,” said Jampa, the deputy head of Garze county’s foreign affairs office, before ordering the journalist taken by car to Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan, a 10-hour drive away, where he was released. Why have Tibetans seemingly acceded to Chinese rule after centuries of self-governance and decades of fervent protest and civil disobedience? The answer, based on interviews with more than a dozen Tibetans inside and outside of China, is that in many ways Beijing’s plan to tame Tibet is working.

BATTLE from page 1 tenders dish out their drinks to customers and try to win the most votes. When customers walk through the door and sit down, they’re invited to participate in the event with the two drinks priced at $16 together.

Kody Robinson, a Minnesota State University, Mankato student who graduated in December 2021, attended the first Battle of the Bartender this year and was happy to see them give back to the community in a unique way.

“It was a little difficult [to pick a drink], but knowing if you like sweet [drinks] or not makes it kind of easier. They were both evenly good drinks, but you can always tell which one you like more,” Robinson stated. To keep the competition fair, Pitchford explained how

there are designated rules set in place.

“We give both the drinks to you at the same time. You can drink them at your leisure, and when you’re done with them we’ll ask you which one you thought was better,” Pitchford stated. “We don’t tell you whose charity is whose or what drink’s what, so it’s kind of a blind tasting and you’re not choosing charities based on the bartender.” Robinson pointed out that it’s easy to pick a favorite drink, as the two may be very different from each other.

“They were completely opposite. The whole table tried the drinks and we all voted for the same one because it was the sweeter one,” Robinson commented. When it comes to the bartenders choosing the charity they want to donate the money

to, many pick one they feel a close connection with.

“I know there’s one [bartender] who chose Ronald McDonald House in Minnesota and that’s where they stayed when her son was in the NICU, so that one’s close to her heart,” Pitchford commented. “There’s other people who have different reasons as to why they picked what charity they want. We try to keep it Minnesota based, but any charity is a good charity.”

Once the battle ends with the last competition on March 2, the money collected from the five weeks will be given to the winner’s charity. Last year, BENCHS was the recipient of the money with approximately $700 being donated to them.

“I think it’s a great thing annually to just give back to the community,” Pitchford stated.

Associated Press



When Alan Kern anonymously created the “Tomorrow” column for Minnesota State University, Mankato’s The Reporter in October of 1974, he opened the first column with the line, “When a column for gay people is called ‘Tomorrow’ the implication is that gays are looking forward to a future with more freedom.

But why the hell don’t we have it today?”

In 1974 in Mankato, organized LGBTQ activism was still in a unformed state.

Mankato’s first formally organized gay group, The Mankato Gay Consciousness Group, had only just begun publicly advertising its meetings in 1972 and there was no place in the U.S. where discrimination against LGBTQ individuals had been outlawed.

To write a newspaper column in which one publicly identifies as gay, as Kern did in 1974, carried incredible risk.

Unfortunately, this risk became very real when Kern was nearly fired by MSU in 1975.

Kern claimed that he was harassed by a college dean for being gay and that this harassment had played a role in the decision to fire him.

He said the college initially told him it was not renewing his contract, but Kern was able to have the decision reversed upon appeal.

He left campus soon afterward anyway.

In 1982, he was hit by a car

and left permanently disabled.

On Feb. 23, 2019, he was struck and killed by a drunk driver in Seattle, where he had been living since 1990.

His obituary in the Seattle Times talks about the hobbies he enjoyed, which included gardening, photography and computers.

Kern taught psychology and co-taught courses in human sexuality.

One activity he had his students participate in was wearing gay liberation buttons to help them measure the reactions they got from others.

In his first coming out column, Kern spoke of the joys and liberation that accompanied coming out, the difficulties of connecting with other men, and the weight of expectations he felt were placed upon him after he came out to others.

Between the “Tomorrow” column in The Reporter and the courses he helped teach on human sexuality, Kern helped pave the way for the eventual creation of MSU’s LGBTQ center, which is the second oldest of its kind.

The state has come a long way since Kern first came out almost 50 years ago.

Minnesota became the first to pass legislation banning discrimintion based on sexual orientation and gender identity in the 1990’s.

Unfortunately, incidents of discrimation, harassment and violence against queer individuals are still commonplace.

“Why not today?” indeed.

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10 • MSU Reporter

Maverick Olympians knocked out

Thursday, February 17, 2022

Mavs closing in on 30-win season

By KOLE BUELOW Sports Editor

Our Maverick Olympians Nathan Smith and Mike Hastings began their win or go home segment of the ice hockey tournament in Beijing this past Tuesday against Slovakia.

With the three wins in prelims, the United States claimed the top seed in the remainder of the Olympic tournament that would crown the winner with gold.

After earning the first seed in the elimination rounds, team USA was either going to be met by the winner of the Slovakia-Germany game in the first round.

Slovakia ended up defeating the Germans 4-0 to move on to team USA in the quarterfinal round.

It was the Slovaks who struck first despite a strong start from the Americans, as 17-year-old Juraj Slafkovsky collected the puck in the slot and buried it past U.S. netminder Strauss Mann to go up one.

The Americans responded when down one as they had been used to doing in nearly every game of the Olympics in Beijing, with Nick Abruzzese collecting his first goal of the tournament.

Team USA was the only team to get on the board in the second period, with Sam Hentges collecting the lone goal at the 8:56 mark.

It was a nice tic-tac-toe play for the Americans, as Nathan Smith passed the puck to Nick Perbix on the break who eventually found Hentges who ripped the puck past the Slovak goaltender.

The remainder of the second period ended scoreless and with nearly a scoreless third period in the books, the Slovaks found the puck on a scramble in front of the net to bury the game tying goal with 44 seconds remaining in regulation.

A back and fourth overtime period with several scoring chances ended without a goal as both goaltenders shined. The two teams then headed to a shootout.

The United States won the coin toss and chose to shoot first. Three straight empty handed trips in the shootout led the teams to the fourth round where Minnesota State’s Nate Smith got his chance at the Slovak OLYMPICS on page 11 

MANSOOR AHMAD • The Reporter

Senior netminder Dryden McKay (29) remains the go-to option for the Mavericks between the pipes, racking up an impressive 27-4-0 record and .932 save percentage in 31 starts. McKay and the Mavs are closing in on a 30-win regular season and another MacNaughton Cup.

By KOLE BUELOW Sports Editor

The Minnesota State men’s hockey team returns to action this weekend against in-state Central Collegiate Hockey Association rival Bemidji State.

The Mavericks enjoyed a week off from games this past weekend with the team previously defeating Bowling Green in both games the weekend prior. The Mavericks won 3-1 and 5-0 in the Bowling Green series, and, with a much needed break from the action, returned back to their home ice with a 27-5-0 overall record.

MSU improved to 19-3-0 in conference play with the series sweep and now have a chance at clinching the MacNaughton Cup with a win over Bemidji State on Friday and a Michigan Tech loss in regulation.

The Mavericks currently hold a seven point lead on the Michigan Tech Huskies, and if they are unable to clinch the Cup this weekend the regular season champion will be crowned in the preceding two-game series between the two teams.

The Bemidji State Beavers come into the series ranked third in the CCHA with a conference record of 12-10-0. BSU

has claimed 37 points in their efforts but are followed closely behind by Bowling Green and Lake Superior State, who have 33 and 30 points respectively.

Bemidji falls just short of .500 in overall record at 14-160 but can reclaim the feat with a sweep over MSU this weekend.

Heading into the final two weeks of the season, Minnesota State remains the team to beat. The Mavericks hold an outstanding 101-24 goals for to goals allowed ratio which overshadows the next closest in Michigan Tech who holds a 83-42 ratio.

With the 2022 Winter

Olympics in full effect the past few weeks, it has given leeway for players from across college hockey to catch up in the total points standings for skaters.

MSU’s junior center Nathan Smith led the nation in scoring until this most recent weekend at 41, but was just passed by Denver’s Bobby Brink for the lead.

The Beavers are supported inside the top 10 in the scoring standings by senior forward Owen Silinger, who leads Bemidji in scoring with 36 points on 12 goals and 24 assists. The Mavericks have surely missed HOCKEY on page 12 

Women’s basketball nearing best regular season since 2014

By KARSON BUELOW Staff Writer

The Minnesota State women’s basketball team is set to take on Upper Iowa and Winona State this weekend for their final two games of the regular season. The Upper Iowa Peacocks are 7-17 overall and 4-14 in the NSIC while the Winona State Warriors are 12-12 overall and 9-11 in the NSIC. The Mavericks currently hold the number one spot in the NSIC South division and are one win away from clinching a first-round bye in the NSIC

South division regular season championship. MSU is also two wins shy from reaching the 20 win mark, a feat they haven’t reached since 2014.

Minnesota State is coming off a successful weekend against Wayne State and Augustana, where they outscored their opponents 175-130. Sophomore guard Taylor Theusch shined for the Mavericks by putting up 26 points in the two games.

The Mavs will travel to Fayette for the first time this season to take on the Peacocks at the Dorman Memorial Gymnasium. The two teams met once

EMILY LANSMAN • The Reporter

With a win against Upper Iowa on Thursday the Minnesota State women’s basketball team can clinch a first round bye in the NSIC tournament.

earlier this season in Mankato with the Mavericks taking that game 88-48.

Sophomore guard Joey

Batt led the Mavericks in scoring during that game with 19 points, with freshman Destinee HOOPS on page 11 

Thursday, February 17, 2022 HOOPS from page 10 Bursch following behind with 13. On the other side of the court, junior guard Brooke Evenson led the Peacocks in scoring during the first game with 13 points, while sophomore guard Callista Rochon-Baker followed closely behind with 10.

For Upper Iowa, sophomore guard Lydia Haack leads the team in scoring this season with 300 points in 24 games played. Redshirt sophomore Jessica Musgrave is second on the team in scoring with 283 points in 23 games played.

For MSU, Joey Batt leads the team this season with 352 points in 23 games played. Freshman guard Destinee Bursch follows behind Batt with 273 points in 23 games played.

Tip off for Minnesota State vs. Upper Iowa women’s basketball is set for Feb. 17 at 5:30 p.m.

For the second game, Minnesota State will return home to the Taylor Center to take on the Winona State Warriors. The Mavericks will recognize their five seniors with a special tribute for senior night.

Both teams met earlier this season with MSU taking game one by a score of 7667. Batt shined once again for the Mavericks with 17 points, with Bursch following closely behind with 16.

For the Warriors, sophomore guard led in scoring in game one with 16 points.

Senior forward Taylor Hustad was second in scoring during that game with 11 points.

For Winona State, Hustad leads the team in scoring this season with 291 points in 22 games played. Senior guard Emily Kieck is second on the team in points this season with 272 in 24 games played.

Tip off for Minnesota State vs. Winona State is Feb. 19 at 1:30 p.m. 

OLYMPICS from page 10 goaltender one-on-one.

Smith gained speed down the right side of the ice before eventually making several dekes and taking a shot at the right side of the net.

Smith could not quite lift the puck properly to bury it which led to Slovakia’s chance to break the scoreless fourth.

Peter Cehlarik made the most of his opportunity, burying the one and only goal advancing Slovakia to the semifinals after the Americans could not score a goal in the final round.

Smith completed his Olympic debut with one goal and one assist for two total points in four games.

Coach Hastings earned a 3-1-0 record in his first gig as assistant coach of the Olympic National Team under David Quinn. 

Sports

MSU Reporter • 11

Women’s hockey battles Bemidji State

By KOLE BUELOW • Sports Editor The Minnesota State women’s hockey team returns back home this weekend for their final regular season series versus Bemidji State before the Western Collegiate Hockey Association playoffs. It is a big weekend for both teams, who come into the series back to back in the conference standings.

The Mavericks currently hold the fifth spot in the standings at 26 points with a conference record of 8-17-1 and overall record of 12-17-1. The Beavers follow closely behind with 25 points of their own, which equates to a 8-16-2 conference record and overall record of 11-16-3.

Mavs head coach John Harrington expressed the importance of winning the series this weekend saying, “It’s a big series for us and a chance at fifth place in the league. To have a matchup with the fourth place team in the league instead of the possibility of getting a matchup with Minnesota, Wisconsin, or Ohio State… is going to be really important for us.”

The two teams met up earlier in the season with a series split in Bemidji.

The Beavers took game one of the series in a 2-3 regulation time win.

The Mavs got on the board first on a goal from senior center Brittyn Fleming on the powerplay and added another to their total with a goal from junior winger Kelsey King in the second period.

BSU responded in the third period, however, scoring two goals including one on the

MANSOOR AHMAD • The Reporter Senior center Brittyn Fleming (19) leads the Mavericks in points with 36. Fleming does so behind 14 goals and 22 assists. The Mavs face Bemidji State this weekend to decide WCHA tournament seeding.

powerplay. The Mavericks were never able to tie up the score before the end of regulation.

The two teams then moved onto Saturday where Minnesota State found their first win of the series. The Beavers claimed the first lead of the game in the second period but a goal from sophomore Madison Mashuga tied it up in the third period.

The game proceeded into overtime and eventually a shootout, where the Mavericks’ first shootout attempt from Sydney Langseth found the back of the net. The Beavers were unable to find a goal of their own in the shootout, giving the Mavs a win and a series split.

The chance at fifth place in the WCHA standings is now up for grabs as both teams

will battle for the opportunity to play the fourth seed in the conference during the final tournament.

“This is a huge series for us as a team. It’s a great chance for us to claim two wins going into the playoffs and secure our fifth spot in the standings.” said junior Kelsey King on the Bemidji series.

This weekend’s games also mark the chance to celebrate the Minnesota State seniors who are participating in their final season for the Mavericks this year. The group of seniors on the women’s hockey team include Jessica Kondas, Taylor Wemple, Claire Butorac, Brooke Bryant, Brittyn Fleming and Chantal Burke.

“It will be a great weekend to celebrate BATTLE on page 13 

Men’s basketball takes on Peacocks, Warriors

By KARSON BUELOW • Staff Writer The Minnesota State men’s basketball team is set to close out their regular season this weekend against the Upper Iowa Peacocks and Winona State Warriors. The Mavericks head into this weekend ranked sixth in the NSIC South while sporting a 15-8 overall record and 8-8 in conference play. The Mavericks will look to maintain that final sixth place spot heading into the NSIC/Sanford Health Tournament.

This past weekend, Minnesota State defeated Wayne State 81-76 before dropping their game against Augustana by a score of 85-74 at the Taylor Center. The Mavericks are led by head coach Matt Margenthaler, who is in his 21 season with the program and holds a career record of 435-195.

Sophomore guard Quincy Anderson leads the Mavericks this season in points with 397 in 23 games played. Following behind Anderson is junior guard Devonte Thedford, who has 256 pts in 23 games played this season.

The Mavericks and Peacocks have met once already this season in Mankato with MSU pulling off a 98-96 win in overtime.

Anderson had the hot hand for Minnesota State that game by registering 35 points, his game-high for this season. Graduate student Joe Smoldt led the Peacocks in scoring for that game with 28 pts.

MANSOOR AHMAD • The Reporter

Sophomore guard Quincy Anderson (10) leads all Mavs in scoring with 397 points in 23 games.

Smoldt leads Upper Iowa in points this season with 457 in 26 games played while junior guard Jake Hilmer is second on the team with 431 pts in 26 games played.

This will be the first time Minnesota State

will travel to Fayette this season. The Mavericks boast an 11-4 all-time record in Fayette against the Peacocks that dates back to 2002.

Tip-off for the Minnesota State vs. Upper Iowa is set for Feb. 17 at 7:30 p.m. immediately following the women’s basketball game.

For game two this weekend, Minnesota State will return home to the Taylor Center to take on the Winona State Warriors.

Both teams have met once already this season with the Warriors taking game one by a score of 73-59.

Anderson led MSU in scoring that game with 20 points. For the Warriors, scoring was fairly even across their starting five, with four out of the five registering at least 10 points.

For Winona State, junior guard Alec Rosner leads the team in scoring this season with 416 points in 23 games played, while junior guard Luke Martens is second on the team with 244 points in 23 games played.

The Mavericks hold a slight edge over the Warriors with a 15-12 all-time record at the Taylor Center. However, the last ten matchups have been in favor of Winona, who hold a 6-4 record over the Mavericks.

Tip off for Minnesota State vs. Winona State is set for Feb. 19 at 3:30 p.m. immediately following the women’s basketball game.

12 • MSU Reporter

Sports

Valieva takes Olympic ice once more amid scandal

Thursday, February 17, 2022

Vikings hiring Kevin O’Connell

By DAVE CAMPBELL Associated Press

NATACHA PISARENKO • Associated Press

Kamila Valieva, of the Russian Olympic Committee, trains at the 2022 Winter Olympics, Wednesday, Feb. 16, 2022, in Beijing.

By DAVE SKRETTA Associated Press

Kamila Valieva aims for the top step of a podium she may never see when the Russian figure skating star, now at the center of the latest Olympic doping scandal, concludes her competition Thursday night with the women’s free skate at the Beijing Games.

The International Olympic Committee already has said there will be no flower ceremony if Valieva places among the top three finishers, creating an awkward feeling of open-endedness when the event wraps up. There also will be no medal ceremony for the figure skaters because the IOC fears that Valieva someday could be stripped of hers.

“There will be an asterisk against the results, because they will be preliminary obviously pending the investiga-

HOCKEY from page 11 Smith, who was averaging 1.46 points per game before heading to Beijing to compete in the Olympics.

Maverick assistant coach Todd Knott mentioned in a press conference on Wednesday that Maverick Olympians Nathan Smith and head coach Mike Hastings still have an unknown return date back to the United States. The two are estimated to return to action against Michigan Tech or for the beginning of the CCHA playoffs.

The Mavericks and Beavers played earlier this season in Bemidji, with MSU taking home a series sweep by scores of 5-1 and 3-1. Junior forwards Ryan Sandelin and Brendan Furry both collected two goals in the series and will look to continue their success again this weekend.

Sandelin has been outstanding at finding the back of the net this season and is currently wrapped into a four-way tie for second in goals at 19. The junior winger has nine assists to go along with his 19 goals, which is fifth in total points on the Mavericks.



tion,” IOC spokesman Mark Adams said. “Would we prefer not to have all this going on?

Absolutely.”

The 15-year-old Valieva tested positive for a banned heart medication at the Russian championships in December. But the result wasn’t announced until last week, shortly after she had helped win a team gold medal that is now also in doubt.

She was cleared to compete earlier this week by the Court of Arbitration for Sport, which ruled among other things that she had protected status as a minor and would suffer “irreparable harm” if she was not allowed to perform. But the court did not rule on the full scope of the case, leaving that to a more comprehensive investigation later.

The court’s decision has cast a polarizing shadow over one of the marquee events.

Senior Dryden McKay remains the go-to goaltender for the Mavs. McKay is one of the best netminders in college hockey with a 27-4-0 record and .932 save percentage.

McKay noted in Wednesday’s press conference “Bemidji is always a really tough team. All four years I have been here it has never been an easy game. Their power play is really good this year… they have some great offensive talent and they are really solid on the back end. We have to be ready right away on Friday.”

Saturday night also marks senior night for Minnesota State, where they will be honoring their current fourth and fifth year players on their last season with the Mavericks.

Current seniors on the Mavs include Jack McNeely, Andy Carroll, Wyatt Aamodt, Benton Maass, Julian Napravnik, Reggie Lutz, and Dryden McKay. The only things standing in the Mavericks’ way of a MacNaughton Cup and a 30-win regular season are the Bemidji State Beavers and the Michigan Tech Huskies.

The Minnesota Vikings finalized their hiring of head coach Kevin O’Connell on Wednesday, completing a sharp offseason shift in direction by turning over the team to the 36-year-old offensive coordinator of the Super Bowl champion Los Angeles Rams.

Three days after the Rams beat Cincinnati for the title, O’Connell formally assumed his branch of the Sean McVay tree. He’s now the fourth former assistant under the head coach of the Rams to become an NFL head coach himself.

O’Connell replaces Mike Zimmer, fired last month after eight seasons and only two playoff-game wins, and will be introduced on Thursday at team headquarters as the 10th head coach in Vikings history.

The Rams scheduled their Super Bowl parade on Wednesday.

“One of the most important things as a coach is, ‘Do the players know that you care about them and can you make them a better football player?’”

McVay said before the Super Bowl.

“Kevin checks both of those boxes. He’s got a great way about himself with people. He’s got phenomenal character. I can’t say enough good things about him and how fortunate I’ve been to have gotten to know him the way that I have over these last couple of years.

He’s been vital to our success.”

Drafted in 2008 by the New England Patriots to be Tom Brady’s backup — Brady was already eight years into his sev-

MARK TERRILL • Associated Press

Los Angeles Rams offensive coordinator Kevin O’Connell, left, talks with quarterback Matthew Stafford during practice for an NFL Super Bowl football game Thursday, Feb. 10, 2022, in Pasadena, Calif.

en-time Super Bowl-winning and three-time NFL MVP career — O’Connell remarkably became a head coach in the same offseason that Brady finally retired.

O’Connell attempted only six passes for the Patriots as a rookie, the only regular-season attempts of his career, and he was released the following year.

Claimed by the Detroit Lions, he lasted five days there before a trade to the New York Jets.

After a torn labrum sidelined him for the 2010 season, O’Connell bounced from the Jets to the Miami Dolphins and then back to the Jets in 2011.

He had a preseason stint with the Chargers in his native San Diego in 2012, but that was the end of his time as a player.

During his time buried on those depth charts, O’Connell continually impressed his coaches and teammates with his grasp of the offense, vision

of the field and studious nature.

After dabbling in broadcasting, his first NFL coaching job came with the Cleveland Browns in 2015 as their quarterbacks coach. The following year, he worked on special projects for the San Francisco 49ers, when he befriended Kwesi Adofo-Mensah, the recently appointed general manager of the Vikings who was in research and development for the 49ers.

O’Connell went to Washington in 2017, when he supervised Kirk Cousins as quarterbacks coach and stayed there two more years with the additional passing game coordinator title after Cousins moved on to Minnesota. McVay hired O’Connell in 2020 as his offensive coordinator, and his second season in L.A. ended on the ultimate high note with the 23-20 victory on Sunday over the Bengals.

CORRECTION: Apologies - The Reporter regrets having the wrong expiration date on the River Ridge Chiropractic ad on page 14 of the 2021-2022 Gold Mine couon book. The correct expiration date is July 31, 2022.

The coupon is still valid, and will be accepted.

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(next to Jake’s Pizza) DR. ANTHONY MOLDAN

Thursday, February 17, 2022

Slovaks stun U.S., Americans and Canadians eliminated

Sports

MSU Reporter • 13

No. 18 Buckeyes down Gophers

By JACOB BENGE Associated Press

MATT SLOCUM • Associated Press

Slovakia’s Samuel Knazko (22) jumps onto goalkeeper Patrik Rybar after Rybar blocked the final shoot-out attempt by United States’ Andy Miele, right, during a men’s quarterfinal hockey game.

By STEPHEN WHYNO Minutes after failing to score in the shootout as the Americans’ last chance to stay alive at the Olympics, captain Andy Miele took off his gloves to wipe the tears coming out of his eyes.“I’m just sad it’s over,” he said.

With one bad bounce in the final minute of regulation that became the tying goal and an unsuccessful shootout, the United States is out of the men’s hockey tournament at the Beijing Games after a shocking 3-2 loss to Slovakia in the quarterfinals Wednesday. The previously unbeaten U.S. that earned the top seed in the knockout round and looked poised for a deep run instead was dealt the same result as the 2018 group in the last Olympics without NHL players.

“This one’s going to sting for a little bit,” veteran defenseman Steven Kampfer said.

“I thought we were the better team for a majority of the game. You come up a little bit short.”

Canada exited the tournament hours later with a 2-0 loss to Sweden. It’s the first time since 2006 neither the U.S. nor Canada made the final four at the Olympics.

Slovakia faces Finland, which took care of business against Switzerland with a 5-1 victory, and Sweden plays the Russians, who beat Denmark 3-1. Sweden, Finland and the Russians were also in the semifinals in Turin 16 years ago.

Eight years after T.J. Oshie earned the “T.J. Sochi” nickname for his shootout heroics against Russia, there was no such magic this time around.

Brendan Brisson, Sean Farrell, Matt Knies, Nathan Smith and Miele all came up empty in the shootout.

The U.S. also went 0 for 5 in the shootout loss to the Czech Republic in Pyeongchang four years ago.

BATTLE from page 11 our seniors… to play for our seniors is going to be the motto and I am super excited” said King.

Coach Harrington also

commented saying, “It’s an emotional weekend for us in a good way. I’m excited for those seniors and our team, and I’m looking forward to the series against Bemidji State.”

Associated Press



E.J. Liddell had 16 points and 10 rebounds, leading No. 18 Ohio State to a 70-45 win over Minnesota on Tuesday night.

Malaki Branham added 11 points on 4-for-7 shooting for the Buckeyes (16-6, 9-4 Big Ten).

Luke Loewe scored 12 points to lead Minnesota (1211, 3-11). Jamison Battle added 11 points.

The Buckeyes trailed 25-23 at halftime. Ohio State shot 40.7% in the first half and committed eight turnovers.

“I know people think it was a tale of two halves,” Ohio State coach Chris Holtmann said. “I don’t really look at it like that.”

Jamari Wheeler kickstarted the second half with a 3-pointer that sparked a 16-4 run by Ohio State. He shot 5 of 8 from the field and had three 3-pointers.

Ohio State finished shooting 49.1% from the field, including 57.1% in the second half. The Buckeyes had a 36-29 advantage on the boards, and scored 28 points in the paint.

Minnesota pulled within eight points with 14:25 remaining, but shot 3 of 15 the rest of the way and lost for the sixth time in seven games.

“They really flipped the narrative in terms of their intensity level, their details on both sides of the ball,” Minnesota coach Ben Johnson said. “We just didn’t bring it.”

Ohio State made its first six shots of the second half to reclaim the lead for good.

JAY LAPRETE • Associated Press

Minnesota’s Payton Willis, left, shoots past Ohio State’s Kyle Young during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Tuesday, Feb. 15, 2022, in Columbus, Ohio.

The Buckeyes’ momentum translated to the defensive end as they forced Minnesota to shoot 27.3% in the second half and an overall figure that was Ohio State’s defensive best all season.

“I think it’s such a process for us as a group. It’s a climb that we have to make every day,” Holtmann said. “I think we’re getting a little bit better understanding.”

On just 2 of 4 shooting in the first half, Liddell’s streak of 32 consecutive games in double figure scoring was in jeopardy.

Then, the 6-foot-7 forward turned it up a notch and scored a team-high 12 points on 4-of7 shooting in the second half alone. He also contributed a block at the defensive end.

“I’ve always said God has gifted him with the ability to score the ball,” Holtmann said.

“He can roll out of bed and score the ball. That’s a great

gift.”

After the first 2:20, Wheeler substituted out with a pair of early fouls.

Upon his return over six minutes later, he began to light it up, scoring 13 points for his highest total at home this season. He also had a steal before finishing with four fouls in the game.

“I was hard on myself,” Wheeler said. “I didn’t want to take that away from my aggressiveness on the defensive end because that’s what I do, so I just got to adjust with the game. I just had to stay in there and keep my head in the game.”

The Golden Gophers shot a season-worst 30.8% from the field. They opened the game with four makes in six attempts, and made just one bucket in the final 10:50.

“We had a lot of pieces that were working,” Johnson said.

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14 • MSU Reporter

Thursday, February 17, 2022

Interactive display hits Conkling

By EMMA JOHNSON

Variety Editor

While art is perceived through the eyes of many, to engage those looking on with wonder is truly an unforgettable experience.

Minnesota State University, Mankato graduate student Brittney Wegener has been chosen to display her artwork at the Conkling Gallery in Nelson Hall. Wegener realized around the age of 13 that art largely impacted her personality.

“I think a big thing for getting into art was in the time where I knew it was something that I needed to do for me,” said Wegener.

“It was extremely therapeutic and it was something that I needed to use in order to identify as a person.”

Wegener uses a variety of mediums in her artwork. Her “Assimilating Antiquated Attachments” exhibition will feature pieces that include a series of texts, abstract-like videos, and pieces that are constructed from three-dimensional raw materials. Her art has grown over the years as she recognized that

By LILLY SCHMIDT Staff Writer

Submitted photo

Brittney Wegener’s “Tactile Etherium” is one of the pieces that will be featured in her exhibition “Assimilating Antiquated Attachments” in the Conkling Gallery. Wegener’s art contains abstract-like videos and 3-D raw materials.

mediums are fluid into the terms of what the concept needs.

“I started out by doing

mainly formal [artwork] and just playing around, and now it’s gotten to a place where the

concept tends to inform the materials and overall form. I made GALLERY on page 15 

Koupal, a guiding hand on Serendipity Series

By SYD BERGGREN Staff Writer

It is not unusual for one to enter Minnesota State University, Mankato’s Centennial Student Union early on a Wednesday afternoon and hear the soft sound of live music emanating from the Hearth Lounge.

The Serendipity Music Series, facilitated by Lenny Koupal, invites local musicians to come play for eager MSU students in a calm, street corner-like environment. Serendipity can be defined as the “occurrence of happy events by chance” and this is exactly the feeling Koupal hopes to give with these bi-weekly performances.

“Serendipity Music Series is all about taking that brief moment to make people think something different about their music interests when they happen upon us,” said Koupal.

Koupal, who began working at MSU in 2010, wears many hats as the CSU’s Communications Coordinator.

“I mostly do marketing, but am also in charge of some programming which includes the Serendipity Music Series. We have our therapy dogs program and we are just starting up our Open Mic program,” Koupal stated.

Ope! They’re scotcharoos, don’tcha know?

Submitted photo

The CSU’s Communications Coordinator Lenny Koupal helps facilitate the Serendipity Music Series which perform bi-weekly in the Hearth Lounge.

When Koupal started his career at MSU, the idea of the Serendipity series had already been hatched.

“It was a music series where they brought in some Mankato artists periodically. When I started with the position, the director

was interested in the whole idea of ‘serendipity,’ which means, for us, to have something pleasant and unexpected for students to discover,” said Koupal.

Koupal began to refine the series with director Lori Woodward to help it grow from where

it had originally started.

“The original idea was that you would walk around a corner in the CSU and see someone playing an instrument or singing,” shared Koupal.

“We took that and refined it to more consistent performances focused on Minnesota musicians.”

Many of the musicians for the Serendipity series are sourced from connections that Koupal has made throughout the years.

He met “Smokin” Joe Scarpellino at Southeast Minnesota’s Galactic Get Down music festival, who is a booking agent for a multitude of Minnesota based artists, and through him has been able to book many performances.

Many of the artists featured this semester are black or female, as the program is highlighting Black History Month this month and Women’s History Month in March.

“We’ve had artists cover topics like gay marriage, race, and crossing social boundaries.

On the 23, we have Minneapolis-based artist Sesay coming in.

He does some really interesting stuff mixing percussion and guitar,” shared Koupal.

“We really try to find those different groups that give stuSERENDIPITY on page 15 

Every part of the country has their own special dialect. There are phrases that make sense only in the Midwest, and if they were said aloud anywhere else, people would think they’re weird.

One hot debate is over a sweet cereal treat mixed with peanut butter and topped with chocolate. Is it a Scotcharoo or a Special K Bar? David Miranj is a senior at MSU who is originally from Oregon. To him, they’re Special K Bars.

Senior Ceilia Trembley, a resident of southern Minnesota, says that in her household, the sweet treat’s name changes depending on who’s making them.

“My mom would call them Special K Bars, but everyone else calls them Scotcheroos,” said Trembley. “When my mom makes them, they’re Special K Bars and when anyone else makes them, they’re Scotcheroos.”

However, Microsoft Word fails to recognize “Scotcheroo” as a word, so the Midwest might have to admit defeat for this one.

With such a crushing defeat, everyone else better just be lucky that good ol’ “Minnesota Nice” is a thing; it’s one of the most common Midwest dialects.

“It’s the one I’ve noticed the most. Everyone is pretty nice [in Minnesota],” said Miranj.

Furthermore, MSU Kearney International Center Office Coordinator Blake Litzau also noticed the “Minnesota nice” stereotype.

“I’ve noticed that, compared to other places I’ve visited, a lot more people will hold the door open for you here, or say things like ‘scuse me’ or ‘ope’,” said Litzau.

Litzau claims he commonly encounters the horrifying “Midwestern Goodbye,” a term that describes a goodbye lasting longer than 10 minutes.

“I think it’s just Minnesotans never say goodbye, or they talk a lot so that it’s a 20-minute goodbye DIALECT on page 16 

Thursday, February 17, 2022

Variety

MSU Reporter • 15

Troy Kotsur’s road to making Oscar history

By JAKE COYLE

Associated Press

In his Oscar-nominated performance in “CODA,” Troy Kotsur has one spoken line, but it’s a good one.

Urging his daughter, played

by Emilia Jones, to pursue her dreams of singing and attending college, he says aloud: “Go!” For Kotsur, that one line meant lots of rehearsal plus the courage to, on a film set, speak dialogue he couldn’t himself hear.

But Kotsur had also done it before. Years before, as Stanley Kowalski in a Deaf West Theatre production of “A Streetcar Named Desire,” he exclaimed “Stella!” night after night.

“Sometimes I’ll ask hearing audience members what my voice sounds like,” signs Kotsur.

“One person described it as feeling like being cozy and tucked in bed.”

Kotsur, who does indeed radiate a rumpled warmth, is just the second actor who is deaf to be nominated for an Academy Award. And like that “Go!” the 53-year-old Kotsur hopes his achievement resonates with inspiration.

“I hope that young people who happen to be deaf or hard of hearing can get an increased confidence and be inspired that they can pursue their dreams,” Kotsur says. “I want those kids to not feel limited.”

MATT YORK • Associated Press

Troy Kotsur is nominated for an Oscar for best supporting actor for his role in the film “CODA.” He is the first deaf actor ever nominated individually for a Screen Actors Guild Award. He is also nominated for a BAFTA.

The Apple TV+ release “CODA,” Sian Heder’s best-picture nominee, has elevated Kotsur to Hollywood’s biggest stages while making history for the deaf community.

He’s the first deaf actor ever nominated individually for a Screen Actors Guild award.

The rush of accolades has been discombobulating. When

he was nominated for a BAFTA, he celebrated so much he fell out of his chair.

Accepting the Gotham award for best supporting performance, he told the crowd that he wasn’t speechless but “absolutely handless right now.”

“It’s just overwhelming,” Kotsur says of the acclaim. “It’s awesome. I feel like I can die

Bob Saget’s autopsy records blocked

By MIKE SCHNEIDER Associated Press

A judge in Florida on Wednesday agreed with a request from the family of comedian Bob Saget and temporarily prohibited the release of any photos, video or other records related to the investigation into his death, saying that doing so would cause them irreparable harm.

Saget’s wife, Kelly Rizzo, and his three daughters filed a lawsuit the previous day in Orlando, Florida, asking the state judge for a ruling that would prohibit the release of any records from the local medical examiner’s office and the Orange County Sheriff’s Office involving the probe into Saget’s death.

Circuit Judge Vincent Chiu issued the temporary injunction, saying that Saget’s family would suffer “severe mental pain, anguish, and emotional distress” if

SERENDIPITY from page 14 dents exposure to a variety of different music. We’ve really been lucky to have some of the performers that we’ve had.”

Koupal is proud of where the Serendipity Music Series has grown over the years and how it’s connected people.

“I think that everyone gets 

RICHARD SHOTWELL • Associated Press

Saget’s family has released a statement on the cause of his death last month in Florida, saying the cause of death was an accidental blow to the head.

the request wasn’t granted.

He said the injunction was in the public’s interest as he decides whether the family’s privacy concerns outweigh any claims

for the records to be released.

Saget, 65, was found dead Jan. 9 in a room at the Ritz Carlton in Orlando. He had performed the night before.

so locked into their own music, but what makes you think to expand your horizons? That’s really what we try to do with a series. We give exposure to a lot of different music,” shared Koupal.

“We want students to come in and feel, ‘Wow this is different, I have to go and see what this is.’ They come over to the

railing in the Hearth Lounge to see who’s playing, and I love that we’ve piqued their curiosity.”

The Serendipity Music Series occurs approximately every other Wednesday from 11 a.m -1 pm. The next performance is next Wednesday, Feb. 23 in the CSU Hearth Lounge.

happy, with a smile on my face.”

The only one to ever go through something similar was Kotsur’s “CODA” co-star Marlee Matlin.

In “CODA,” they play the parents of a deaf Gloucester fishing family with a hearing daughter. Kotsur remembers watching Matlin become the first deaf actor to win an Oscar, in 1987 for

GALLERY from page 14 [art] from sheer intuition and now I’m making [art] as an expression of what I want to see in the world,” said Wegener.

“I believe art is a lot more conceptual about me trying to impact others versus something that is self-serving and beautiful.”

Wegener’s favorite piece that will be displayed in the exhibition is an interactive piece that allows people to write down their vice or “poison” into a box that resembles a foggy outline of a human.

As the box fills up, the outline disappears. Wegener designed this piece to show that all the little, individualistic details add up to a greater whole. “[The piece] explains the idea of when we all express authenticity or share our emotions, we all share something. No one’s sore thumb or pimple sticks out if we all have it or express it,” shared Wegener. “It’s not defined by them as an individual.”

Drawing inspirations from artists Sarah Sze, Haegue Yang and Guillermo Gomez-Pena, Wegener bases her work around life, relationships, and how humans function in the world.

By observing these characteristics, it’s allowed Wegener 

“Children of a Lesser God.” “I felt like I could have hope as a deaf actor,” Kotsur remembered in an interview by Zoom from his home in Mesa, Arizona, through an interpreter.

“Of course, I didn’t realize what a tough journey it would be going through show business.”

Kotsur’s long road to the Oscars began, he figures, in elementary school.

With little TV programming accessible to him, Kotsur loved highly visual cartoons like “Tom and Jerry” and would animatedly retell them to his deaf classmates on the bus.

His father, a police chief, would later fondly call Kotsur a “risk taker” for pursuing performing. He studied acting at Gallaudet University, and then toured with the National Theatre of the Deaf.

With few opportunities in television and film available for deaf actors, Kotsur found freedom on the stage.

Beginning with “Of Mice and Men” in 1994, Kotsur has acted in some 20 productions at Deaf West, the nonprofit Los Angeles theater company founded in 1991.

DJ Kurs, director of Deaf West, remembers first being “utterly drawn in by Kotsur’s magnetism” in “Streetcar.”

Many times since, he’s seen Kotsur’s immersive process close up.

to see the world and communicate with others in a new light.

“Art has made me a lot more sensitive to how people present themselves and how they address situations and emotions, but it’s also given me, and taken away, a lot of the innocence of social media and imagery around the world,” shared Wegener.

“Whether it’s color, words, or symbols, the [aspects of art] have opened my eyes as to where and when things are subliminally messaged or whether they are authentic.”

Wegener wants artists to know that if they are hesitant about displaying their works of art to not worry, as no one piece of art is greater or lesser than the other.

“Museums, galleries, and art critics may tell you differently, but it’s not true, especially in this day and age where there are so many types of art that’s been opened past the idea of patronage and worship,” said Wegener.

“It’s moved so much past the realm of just simply being something we pay homage to. It’s going to affect somebody somehow.”

Wegener’s exhibition “Assimilating Antiquated Attachments” opening reception is Feb. 25 from 5-8 p.m. The exhibition will be in the Conkling Gallery until March 4.

16 • MSU Reporter

Variety

Thursday, February 17, 2022

Wallace relives 2020 turmoil in new documentary

By JENNA FRYER Associated Press

“It wasn’t a hoax. It was real.”

That’s what former FBI supervisory agent Stanley Ruffin tells viewers in “RACE: Bubba Wallace,” a Netflix docuseries that chronicles the only Black driver at NASCAR’s top level and his professional rise and personal role in social justice issues.

The series is targeted to a non-NASCAR audience unfamiliar with Wallace’s emergence or the facts surrounding the noose found in his garage stall at an Alabama track.

Wallace had successfully called on NASCAR to ban the Confederate flag at its events in June 2020.

Two weeks later, NASCAR told Wallace a noose had been discovered in his assigned stall at Talladega Superspeedway. The incident occurred at the height of a national racial reckoning following the murders of Black men George Floyd and Ahmaud Arbery. Wallace felt compelled to take a public position for the first time in his life — he was 26 years old, NASCAR’s only fulltime Black driver, and although he drove for icon Richard Petty,

Wallace was an underperformer seeking his first career Cup Series win.

The FBI investigated and determined the noose had been in that garage stall for months, since the unit had last been used. Wallace was not the victim of a hate crime.

He faced national ridicule — then-President Donald Trump accused Wallace of perpetrating a hoax — even though Wallace did not discover the noose or even see it.

Wallace was accused of orchestrating the entire incident to boost his career.

“Mr. Wallace had nothing to do with the placement of that noose,” Ruffin, who led the investigation, says in the docuseries that debuts Tuesday, two days after the season-opening Daytona 500.

The six-episode series directed by Erik Parker documents Wallace’s life and ultimate shift into a change agent willing to use his voice and platform.

Wallace wanted a show — he had asked for Netflix to create something like its “Drive to Survive” behindthe-scenes Formula One show — to chronicle his first year driving for 23XI Racing.

Wallace learned the project had to include his tumultuous 2020.

JOHN RAOUX •Associated Press

Bubba Wallace’s new Netflix docuseries will focus on his social justice role that rose in popularity during his tumultuous year in 2020.

“I just wanted to go race,” Wallace said. He told The Associated Press that “I was a pain in the ass,” to Parker as the director tried to focus on 2020.

Wallace exploded in exposure and pulled in millions of dollars in new sponsorship

during 2020 and he parlayed it into the job of a lifetime.

The funding helped Denny Hamlin and Michael Jordan launch 23XI, and Wallace wanted to chronicle what he believed was his best chance to earn his first career Cup victory.

DIALECT from page 14 when you try to leave somewhere,” said Litzau.

Similarly, Trembley recognized the concept.

“You’re trying to leave your family’s house or you friend’s house, and then you keep talking and you’re like, ‘alright, I gotta go,’ and then you keep talking for another ten minutes,” said Trembley.

Minnesotans don’t stop at their word choices and kind attitudes; some even have an accent of their own. Trembly was able to characterize this accent as “Emphasizing the o’s. Basically what people in [the movie] “Fargo” did. That’s what I think of when I think of stereotypical Minnesota talk. Like, Minnesoota.”

Litzau admitted that he has noticed the change in dialect when he’s visited other states.

“Some words we say and our accent is very noticeable to other people, but I don’t really notice it here,” shared Litzau. “No one comments to me about it in Minnesota.”

Despite the main Minnesota dialect, depending on what region of Minnesota you’re in, even common objects can differ.

Trembley revealed the secret of a southern Minnesota meal, which is the commercial dinner. Dinner entrees depend on what the chef prefers, usually pork or turkey.

“You get two pieces of bread and then you’ll have mashed potatoes, gravy, and beef, like a brisket or a roast beef,” said Trembley.

With all the crazy codes to crack, maybe it’s just best to blend in with the Minnesota nice and “’scuse me” right out of the next awkward debate: hotdish or casserole? 