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Oregon women’s club rugby flies to victory over Oregon State, 52-5, in their classic Civil War game at Agnes Stewart Middle School in Springfield, Ore., on Feb. 24, 2024. (Alyssa Garcia/Emerald)

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ON THE COVER Jackson Shelstad (3) runs out after being called out as a starter. The Oregon Ducks men’s basketball team took on the Michigan Wolverines on Dec. 2, 2023, in Eugene, Ore. (Molly McPherson/Emerald)

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ASUO PLANS ON-CAMPUS FOOD PANTRY TO ADDRESS FOOD INSECURITY

ASUO aims to establish an on-campus food pantry to provide students with an accessible basic needs service

On Feb. 8 and Feb. 14, the Associated Students of the University of Oregon spoke with Oregon legislators to advocate for the Student Emergency Needs Package, HB 4162. On Feb 14, ASUO was joined by the Oregon Student Association and OSPIRG Students.

The Student Emergency Needs Package is a bipartisan $6 million emergency fund for public colleges and universities across the state. The package sets aside $5 million that colleges and universities can customize to improve student basic needs programs and infrastructure.

“[ASUO] wanted to advocate for the emergency relief package because there is such high food insecurity in general, resource insecurity with the high cost of attendance, and there’s so many things that students are lacking in their wraparound support,” ASUO’s Secretary of Campus Health and Safety Madison Studer said.

Additionally, according to ASUO it was crucial for them to advocate for the emergency package since obtaining further sources of funding outside of ASUO funds will increase the food insecurity services on campus.

“It’s super important for [ASUO] to obtain funding for students because at the moment, a lot of the basic needs subsidies and all that stuff is funded through ASUO,” Studer said. “It is super important to provide for students that are hungry and with a high cost of attendance, it’s getting to a place where we need to be asking for outside sources of funding other than student dollars being circulated around students.”

ASUO has been in the works of establishing an on-campus food pantry,

BY YSABELLA SOSA • DESIGNED BY RYAN EHRHART

after Studer noticed the lack of service compared to Portland State University and Oregon State University.

“I would say that my passion really sparked for making this on-campus food pantry happened when I started talking to my colleagues from other universities … and understanding we were the only one out of the three big colleges of Portland State [University] [and] Oregon State University, the three big universities in Oregon to not have them [on-campus food pantry],” Studer said.

UO is currently the only university in the Big Ten Conference without an on-campus food pantry.

Currently, the Student Food Pantry provided by the Basic Needs Program, Episcopal Campus Ministries and FOOD for Lane County is located off campus at 710 E. 17th Ave., furthering the desire to establish an on- campus pantry,

according to Studer.

Both Dean of Students Marcus Langford and Associate Dean of Students Jimmy Howard highlighted how the Student Food Pantry has been successfully serving the UO community since 2011.

In the winter of 2023, the Basic Needs Program sent out a survey to UO students to gather data on the rates of food insecurity, housing insecurity, or homelessness among students.

The survey concluded, for instance, that 3% of the 2,781 UO students who responded to the survey reported they didn’t have money to eat for at least 3 days, according to Howard. Three percent is lower than the average number of other Oregon colleges that participated in the survey, which was about 7%.

According to Howard, the Student Food Pantry has served at least 907 UO students in the current 2023-2024 academic year, which roughly matches the number of students who said they were food insecure in the survey.

Howard believes that a benefit to an on-campus food pantry would be the accessibility to basic needs.

“I would say one of the ways that will serve students is that it would be probably closer,” Howard said. “It’s probably something that they [students] could manage to get to while they’re either going to class or leaving class.”

Similarly, UO student Hana Mazur believes an on-campus food pantry will be “more of a dependable source.”

Apart from providing students with more accessible food services, ASUO’s intention with the on-campus food pantry is to assist students with their mental health and with achieving their academic goals.

“[By] bringing additional food resources, ASUO is interested in helping students with their mental health, achieving their academic goals and providing basic needs,” Studer said. “When you are food insecure, those things are in jeopardy.”

The initiative to establish an on-campus food pantry started in the 2024 winter term. As a fairly new project, Studer has been speaking with multiple stakeholders, including the Basic Needs Program, UO administration and other universities

Read the full story online at dailyemerald.com.

Every Tuesday at 2:45 p.m. in the EMU Amphitheater students are able to bring a bag and pick up any produce that they may need at no cost. (Alyssa Garcia/Emerald)

OREGON FRESHMEN ARE BUILDING THE BASKETBALL TEAM’S BASE

BY OWEN MURRAY

DESIGNED BY EVA ANDREWS

In sports, the “band of brothers” is often cited as the reason for a team’s success. The stresses of a full season is said to bring groups together like few other scenarios can. At season’s end, the team is bound together and nearly incapable of separation. For the Oregon Ducks men’s basketball program, there’s an advantage: two of them already have that connection in the bag.

Freshmen Jackson Shelstad and Mookie Cook have a connection that goes back to their childhood in Oregon, where the two attended games at Matthew Knight Arena and dreamt of taking the court in green. Now, that has become a reality — though perhaps not yet the dream that they anticipated.

This year in Eugene, Shelstad and Cook have been reunited as promised, but it hasn’t been rosy. In a perfect world, the two would have had the chance to grow into Oregon’s starting lineup. Instead, the two have taken drastically different paths since arriving at Matthew Knight Arena. The two have rarely spent time on the court together, largely because of Cook’s injuries, but they’ve already become

important parts of the community. It’s been their relationship — built in their childhood — that could power them and their team through what’s been a difficult season.

When the Ducks entered conference play, Shelstad and Cook found themselves in a positive, albeit unforeseen situation. The former, a point guard, had led the team through non-conference play, draining a last-second 3-point shot in overtime against Michigan that would draw comparisons to former Duck Payton Pritchard. The latter,

Once divided, Jackson Shelstad and Mookie Cook are reunited in Eugene and preparing for a Duck future

a small forward, spent conference play on the sidelines, but the 4-star prospect was poised to jump into a team that, while lacking its biggest star in the absent N’Faly Dante, looked ready to compete in a strong Pac-12 conference.

Since then, both their seasons have unraveled as Oregon’s has dissolved. Despite averaging over 30 minutes per game, Shelstad’s output has dropped off as the Ducks struggled through conference play and Cook has remained sidelined with a series of nagging injuries.

Neither has been able to take full advantage of their promise yet — and that goal is something that’s been set for years.

In the age of lucrative NIL deals that lure players away from home, keeping premier talent in-state is an important goal for Oregon and head coach Dana Altman, but ensuring that those players believe in the Ducks from the start is valuable, too. Shelstad and Cook are the start of that, and they’ll likely form the base of the program moving forward alongside freshman forward Kwame Evans Jr.

“We had recruited Jackson since 8th grade and Mookie since he was in 8th grade,” Altman said. “Those are your in-state guys that we’re going to take if we can get them.”

Shelstad and Cook played Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) basketball together in Oregon, and in Shelstad’s words, “We’ve been best friends since we were little.”

As two of the premier prospects in Oregon, their signing was a huge get for Altman and the Ducks.

Fans saw the new recruits earlier than Altman intended. After

The Ducks celebrate with Jackson Shelstad (3) after he makes the game-winning shot. The Oregon Ducks men’s basketball team took on the Michigan Wolverines on Dec. 2, 2023, in Eugene, Ore. (Molly McPherson/Emerald)

Oregon’s win over Oregon State on Feb. 17, the head coach commented on the outsized minutes that his freshman guard faced this season. He didn’t anticipate that he’d play as much as he has.

“If I made a misjudgment, it’s that we have to depend on [Shelstad] too much,” Altman said. But the minutes he has played have been influential. He’s in a category only occupied by himself: in the top three for minutes played, points, field goals and assists on the team.

Shelstad has become Oregon’s rising star, but forced to spend over half an hour on the court each night, he’s struggled with the weight of the program on his shoulders. Compelled to lead a team missing its stars as a freshman, it’s realistic that too much has been asked of him. Meanwhile, Cook has waited in the wings for his debut, but his repeated injury issues have kept

him sidelined bar five January appearances. It’s not the dream for the highly touted prospect, but the promise of a starting spot down the line will likely keep him in Eugene past this offseason.

However, even in a frustrating season, the two have begun to give back to the community that raised them. The two will host and lead the Eugene Youth Basketball Camp in March 2024 at Churchill High School, where they’ll invite young players to step into their shoes for a few days and share the skills that brought the two freshmen back to Matthew Knight Arena.

It’s a relationship that’s grown through their lives: before the season, Shelstad discussed his relationship with Cook, with whom he spent much of his childhood before the two parted ways in high school. Cook left Oregon in high school to attend AZ Compass

Prep School in Chandler, Arizona, a decision that Shelstad says was “obviously a pro” for his friend.

Meanwhile, Shelstad remained in Oregon to attend West Linn High School, where he led the Lions to victory in the Les Schwab Invitational. “I think [staying home] benefited me,” Shelstad said. ”Especially going to play against some national schools in the invitational — if I went to a prep school, I wouldn’t have had that experience.”

Their reunion in Oregon has been short of spectacular so far, but they’ve found a home in Eugene. As has happened in many of the Ducks’ games this year, they were unable to capitalize immediately what looked like an exciting start to their careers — but the promise they bring is what keeps them going. Together, they’ll be faced with the prospect of bringing Oregon back to the NCAA

tournament, a preseason goal that they haven’t yet reached.

The writing is on the wall: Oregon’s freshmen can step up, but they’ll be forced to in order to keep this program relevant. If, as it seems, the Ducks go three years without a NCAA tournament appearance, this will be an offseason filled with questions, and next season will see many of the pieces who are centerpieces in Altman’s system depart: Dante and Jermaine Couisnard among the list.

But those who remain will have an advantage. It hasn’t been an easy season, nor one filled with success. Each victory feels closer to a new handhold out of the pit than a rung on the ladder, and as they ascend, each battle has drained them. Because of that, though, they’re that much closer together — brothers in feathers.

Mookie Cook (11) smiles on the bench as the Ducks maintain their lead. The Oregon men’s basketball team beat Oregon State University 78-71 at Matthew Knight Arena in Eugene, Ore., on Feb. 28, 2024. (Kemper Flood/Emerald)

Oregon guard Jackson Shelstad (3) takes a warm-up shot after coming back onto the court at halftime. After a fast-paced second half, the Oregon men’s basketball team lost 62-56 to the Washington State University Cougars in Matthew Knight Arena on Feb. 10, 2024. (Alex Hernandez/Emerald)

GAMLEN: THE RELEVANCE OF LANGUAGE LEARNING

BY MILLY GAMLEN • DESIGNED BY GABRIELA MARTINEZ

For those of us getting a Bachelor of Arts, passing that 203 language class is a requirement. And unless we’re lucky enough to speak a second language already, there’s no getting around it. That means most of us spend two years fulfilling the language requirement. That’s six classes. That’s 60 weeks. So, is it effective?

According to some teachers, it takes two years to reach the proficient level in a second language, but that only applies when both the students and the teachers are dedicated to the learning and teaching of a new language. Unfortunately, as someone who has sat through five out of six of the required language classes, I can tell you right now that many of the students in those classes are only focused on passing.

Luckily, the focus of students doesn’t matter too much. The intent behind language classes is not just to learn different languages but to help the brain in general. Learning a second language allegedly helps the brain with a multitude of things, including brain function. We improve our attention span by using parts of the brain that we don’t typically use, so even if you hate it, it’s probably still helping a little.

For students, this seems like a good idea; it makes sense that there would be a two-year language requirement, especially when we consider what a Bachelor of Arts degree hints at. A Bachelor of Arts implies many things, one of them being communication. With that in mind, it is logical to need a second language.

Communication is a central part of what we will all be going into in our professional lives. Because of that, we should be focused on absorbing everything to do with communication in as many languages and cultures as possible.

Learning a second language opens the door to a variety of different cultures and ways of life that many of us would struggle to conceptualize without experiencing them.

Anthony Delsanter, a staff member of the linguistics department at UO, explained how having those two years of a second language lays the groundwork to go out and learn more about aspects of cultures that interest you.

“By the 203 mark, you have the skills to make it through conversation,” Delsanter said, referring to the different tenses and grammar we need to use

second languages in casual conversation. He later went on to explain how this is something we do but aren’t aware of in English. So, in taking language classes, we are bringing ourselves to the level of proficiency needed to keep our heads above water in real-life situations despite a lot of the work feeling pointless sometimes.

OPINION: Have you ever sat in a language class questioning why we have to do two years of it? Me too.

As Delsanter said, by the two-year mark in second languages we “know a little about a lot,” and can therefore learn more on the go. So, as much as we might not want to or we might not love the teacher or topic, learning a second language is a good thing, and it’s something that we should value and try at, not just aim to pass.

(Stella Fetherston/Emerald)

WHO CAN BE A JOURNALIST?

BY MADDY MOORE DESIGNED BY ADALEAH CARMAN

OPINION: SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS MAKE PRODUCING AND DISTRIBUTING INFORMATION VERY ACCESSIBLE, BUT THAT DOESN’T MEAN EVERYONE WITH AN ACCOUNT IS A REPORTER

Social media allows anyone and everyone to contribute opinions and information to the world without certification or verification processes. In some cases, this freedom leads to an overwhelming amount of misinformation or hateful speech that discourages people from trusting all of the online content they come across.

Some people dedicate their platforms to providing steady, accurate information online and can even go to the lengths to produce unofficial journalism and post it on social media.

This type of work, done by regular people, qualifies as citizen journalism — which is another form of reporting news to the public that comes outside of professional newsrooms. Whether on X, formerly Twitter, or a personal blog, citizen journalists take on some of journalism’s professional responsibilities while maintaining the liberties of a normal social media user.

“Citizen journalists bring in different types of sources and information that professional journalists don’t use,” Nate Wilson, a co-editor in chief of Ethos Magazine, said. Professional journalists can be restricted by their place of work and a standard of objectivity, but citizens can use a lack of professional rules to their advantage in reporting.

“[Citizen journalists] are people who have specific interests and feel compelled to speak on it,” Wilson said. Citizen journalists have looser standards and personal experiences or interests that guide their reporting process, something professionals may often not be able to do because of their required beats or the potential bias that

comes with experience. The restricting rule of objectivity can prevent professionals from reporting painful realities they care about, but other people step up.

In the spring of 2020, I saw this come to life as the Black Lives Matter protests went on in Portland for weeks. While others watched mainstream TV news, I relied on videos and livestreams on X to get information about what happened in my hometown every night.

The footage of protesters and police came from a mix of people like me: citizens and off-duty journalists who felt passionate about the issue.

In situations like the protests in Portland and, more recently, the war in Gaza, information becomes valuable when mainstream news outlets lack coverage of an issue. According to Wilson, citizen journalism provides information about events like these that “becomes even more available when the mass media doesn’t cover it.”

Citizen journalism, although immensely important in filling in coverage gaps, can get lost or discredited while circulating so much misinformation and other distracting noise online. But as long as it’s “accurate, good information,” it’s beneficial, Wilson said.

To better distinguish citizen journalism from both social media rabbit holes and professional reporting, Wilson recommends Substack, an online platform for newsletter subscriptions of thorough and fair information to reach audiences eager for everyday people’s research.

“The root of journalism is talking to people and reading,” which anyone can do, Wilson said.

The work citizen journalism does is something professionals try but often fall short of due to their responsibility to their publication’s standards. Citizens feel allegiance to personal or social experiences and can learn how to report as they go.

For professional work, go to credible news outlets. For work done by people around you, learn to navigate online platforms and search for reliable citizen journalists who are passionate about giving people the information they need.

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

This week’s picks...

KAYAK POOL SESSIONS (3/6)

Interested in learning how to kayak? Meet some fellow kayakers and practice your moves at the Rec Center pool! Space is limited so call 541-346 4371 to sign up, Wednesday from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Prices: $6 with your own boat, $10 to borrow.

DUCK NEST MEDITATION (3/5)

Winter term can be rough, so Duck Nest is holding a meditation event! On Tuesday from 4 to 4:30 p.m., come explore some meditation practices and improve your overall wellness. It will be held in room 041, see you there!

(Image: Valeria Ushakova/Pexels)

(Carter Killin/Emerald)

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OUR WORLD VINTAGE BRINGS LIFE BACK TO EAST 13TH AVENUE

VINTAGE STORE OWNER TALKS BRINGING BACK A LIVELY ATMOSPHERE TO EAST

13TH AVENUE

BY JOSH BERK

DESIGNED BY RYAN EHRHART

Michael Raasch is the owner of Our World Vintage, a new vintage clothing store on East 13th Avenue. The store’s throwback vibe and atmosphere has already garnered some attention from Eugene residents.

Raasch, 35, started selling vintage clothing five years ago in antique malls throughout Oregon, most recently in Springfield.

Raasch graduated from UO in 2014 with a degree in sociology. As a student, Raasch would frequent thrift stores like St. Vincent de Paul and Goodwill around the Eugene area.

These chain thrift stores were more abundant

back then until they consolidated to just a few locations, he said. Outside of these big thrift stores, Raasch said there were not many vintage stores.

Raasch said East 13th Avenue was the spot to be when he was a student. Now it feels smaller as local businesses try to reinvigorate the strip.

“If you talk to any of us here, we just want East 13th Avenue to be campus again,” Raasch said. “I’ve noticed kind of myself, at least, that it’s been slowly extending and those patches have been filled in with different businesses.”

Raasch said his customer base in the Springfield antique mall was already comprised of mostly UO students, making the decision to open a campus location an easy one.

Some students and community members believe having more community-centered businesses on East 13th Avenue extends campus in a way while also offering relief from tough classes.

“It’s kind of a breath of fresh air from school because there’s a coffee shop and 7-11,” Deven Payne, a community member and Our World Vintage customer, said. “So it’s kind of like a break area.”

An estimated 90% of Raasch’s customer base is new. The remaining 10% has been built up through these last five years in the antique malls.

The community of Eugene and East 13th Avenue — not just UO students — is important to Raasch.

“It’s not just students that come here. To be honest, it’s just a bunch of community people from Eugene, South Eugene and North Eugene,” Raasch said.

Raasch wants to make Our World Vintage a “fun zone.” The store already has a claw machine and will be serving shaved ice in time for the summer, indicating the store’s official hard launch.

“I really wanted a spot here in the summer just

for the life of East 13th Avenue, especially when all the college kids go back home to their place,” Raasch said. “We just need something here on East 13th Avenue that can provide entertainment value.”

Some customers might say Raasch has already done that.

“It’s definitely a good vibe,” Payne said. “I feel comfortable to be myself in there. I don’t feel like I’m being stared at. You know how you walk into a store and you’re like, ‘I feel like I’m being stared at.’”

Raasch also wants to add boutique tables to the store in the future. One boutique — Bubbles’ Boutique — already has their own table at the front of the store.

Our World Vintage’s other merchandise includes vintage Duck gear, Pokemon cards and an assortment of vintage clothing. Cartoons are a large influence on Our World Vintage and Raasch’s style, especially ‘90s cartoons like “The Simpsons” and “Beavis and Butthead.”

Our World Vintage soft launched on Feb. 2 with a hard launch planned pre-summer this year. The store can be found at 304 E 13th Ave.

Michael Raasch, University of Oregon alumnus, owns the new vintage store, Our World Vintage, located at 304 E. 13th Ave. (Kai Kanzer/Emerald)

A shopper visits Our World Vintage before the store’s official opening. (Kai Kanzer/Emerald)

MENTALITY MONSTERS

Oregon acrobatics and tumbling is charging towards the national title, and the team’s mental strength — and the coaches who preach it — could get them there

Oregon acrobatics and tumbling head coach Taylor Susnara knew that she wanted then-All-American athlete Karly Nowak as her assistant, “pretty much when that position opened up.” The two have spent nearly half a decade together in Eugene as athletes and coaches, but 2024 is their first year together as coaches and No. 2 Oregon (1-1) has its eyes on its first national championship since 2014. To get there, it’ll take immense mental strength — something that Susnara and Nowak preach.

This year, Oregon is looking to knock eighttime defending champion Baylor University off its perch, but it’ll take more than 10.00s across the board to beat the Bears. The two former Duck student-athletes are bringing a revitalized culture of mental health to the program, and in the process pressing one of the nation’s best programs one spot further. With a rematch against Baylor looming, Susnara and Nowak are pushing their team to prepare better than ever before — both on and off the mat.

They’ve placed extra emphasis this year on mental preparation — Susnara mentioned after the Ducks’ first meet against Hawaii Pacific University that “I think that we’re going to do a lot of mental training over these next couple of weeks,” and at the half against Baylor on Feb. 25, she said, “We’ve had little things here and there, but overall we’ve been working on our mental strength and I think that showed up today.”

During meets, instead of hammering concepts into their athlete’s brains, they’re focused on keeping them relaxed and confident. Most of the time, less than 10 athletes compete at once (the team lists 40-plus on its roster), but those not on the mat are fully engaged and their teammates’ biggest cheerleaders. The atmosphere inside Matthew Knight Arena is light; the “YMCA” and the Worm are often brought out between events and laughter permeates a venue that might otherwise feel cavernous.

They watch their athletes closely, enveloping them afterward in a big hug and offering the occasional whisper in their ear. That’s because “the mental piece in acrobatics and tumbling is honestly more important than the physical,” Nowak said. “We know that they can do it. They were all the best and that’s why we recruited them. They have the talent, they have the skill set, they have the [physical] strength — I think that training that mental [strength] is just something that’s really important to us, and it’s gonna help us win in the long run.”

In her evaluation of the program, “Oregon has been a powerhouse in acrobatics and tumbling for years now but throughout my time as an athlete, I’ve seen the good, the bad, the highs and the lows with respect to talent and coaching styles,” Susnara said. “I think that coming in as the head coach [in 2021], I really felt like that was an area that we were weakened in and something that we needed to continue to hone in on.”

BY OWEN MURRAY

DESIGNED BY EVA ANDREWS

Nowak has been an integral part of that — as a recent student-athlete grad, she’s “able to give some insight on what the team atmosphere was, how it could change [and] what could be better,” Susnara said. The two are together nearly all the time during meets, on the sidelines and separated only when one crouches in front of the judges’ table to watch their team compete.

That mental strength comes into play for a team that’s trying to break No. 1 Baylor’s eight-year chokehold on the national title. Led by former Oregon head coach Felecia Mulkey, who won four titles with the Ducks between 2011 and 2014, the Bears are the Ducks’ biggest opponent in their quest for a first championship in a decade. Oregon traveled to Waco, Texas, on Feb. 25 and fell to their rivals, 278.935 to 271.835. Baylor hasn’t lost a meet since March 27, 2021 — a visit to Eugene.

“With Baylor being our second meet,” Susnara said, “We expected [the team] to perform well — which I think they did. I told the team post-meet, ‘Thankfully we have the opportunity to see them again: for a chance to beat them before the national championship.’”

The Bears make the return trip to Eugene on April 5, and in the interim, the Ducks will continue to improve — both physically and mentally.

“[We’ll] just keep grinding, keep implementing upgrades in our start values and executing them well,” Susnara said. “Hopefully, by April and then by the national championship, we’ve done what we needed to do to come out on top.”

Coaches from both teams embrace at the end of the meet. The Oregon acrobatics and tumbling team took on Baylor on April 10, 2022, at Matthew Knight Arena. (Molly McPherson/Emerald)

AMID A BREAKOUT SEASON, PHILLIPINA KYEI EXCELS ON AND OFF THE COURT

BY JOE KRASNOWSKI • DESIGNED BY RYAN EHRHART

Phillipina Kyei has always been an outlier. Why would the way she spends her Mondays not be unique?

While most student-athletes would rather be anywhere but a classroom, Kyei is as distinctive as they come. Kyei spends her Mondays shadowing teachers as a part of a UO-led field experience program at Gilham Elementary in Eugene.

It’s quite the contrast. The 6-foot8-inch center can be seen most Sundays dominating the boards and blocking shots, and less than 24 hours later, a calming presence in a hectic classroom of elementary students.

“The first day I went there, they were a little scared, and it took them like 30 minutes to warm up to them, and the next time I went there, this kid hugged me,” Kyei said. “I was like, ‘Wow, this is only the second time I’ve been here.’”

She fit in immediately at Gilham and hopes to learn from her shadowing experience and teach full-time after a lengthy professional career.

“Man, they’re awesome,” Kyei said. “Getting to help them with little stuff like their homework or them asking me questions makes me feel great to be there.”

Although the introduction to basketball was seamless, Kyei — who grew up in Ghana before moving to Calgary, Alberta, Canada, at the age of 13 — had to change countries and learn a new school system immediately. Luckily, Kyei had passionate teachers willing to help with the change.

Speaking English wasn’t an issue for Kyei, but the adjustment to the accent was where she lagged.

“I was struggling with some words and understanding words from other people speaking to me,” Kyei said. “I’d be like, ‘come again’ three

or four times. The transition wasn’t too bad, but it was a little difficult.”

Kyei’s teachers in Calgary were instrumental in her feeling welcome and are some of the biggest inspirations for her participation in the field program today.

“When I first got to Canada, obviously I struggled a bit with the transitions, and my teachers were awesome,” Kyei said. “They helped me out a lot, and they were like, ‘Take your time.’ It’s going to be a lot to adjust.”

After moving to Calgary, Kyei quickly fell in love with basketball and soon realized her hobby was something that could be pursued at the next level. She was recruited to attend Crestwood Prep — one of Canada’s top preparatory schools — where she excelled and was put on head coach Kelly Graves and the Ducks’ radar.

That same passion and connection she shared with her teachers in Canada brought her to Eugene. In November 2020, she signed with Oregon, largely citing her relationship with Graves as a reason for her decision.

Now in her third season in Eugene, 2024 has been the junior’s best season yet. Kyei is averaging 13.1 points and 12.3 rebounds per game on 56% shooting. Kyei leads the Pac-12 in rebounding and is third in the nation, all while matching up with some of the better interior players in the nation. Kyei has dominated the post, tallying 20 double-doubles on the season amid a loaded Pac-12

In the classroom and on the court, Kyei is a born leader.

schedule that featured eight games in a row against top 25 teams.

“Philly’s just had a tremendous, great attitude; she’s working her butt off. It’s not easy doing what she does,” Graves said after Kyei’s 16-point, 18-rebound game against then No. 17 Oregon State.

The Ducks feature a bevy of youth in a rebuilding year, and just like any veteran surrounded by underclassmen, Kyei needs to keep her cool when called upon for help. Luckily, she has plenty of experience with the field program.

“[I thought about teaching] kindergarteners,” Kyei said with a laugh. “But you’ve got to have

A bright spot on an otherwise forgettable year for the Ducks (1116, 2-12 Pac-12). Kyei’s Mondays are spent preparing for life after basketball. Her love for teaching and education hit a new gear with the field program, she said, and it only escalated from there.

From learning English herself to now helping students grasp three-letter words, Kyei hopes to be the same inspiration and aid to students that her teachers were to her years ago.

“I look forward to Mondays every time,” Kyei said. “Getting to see the kids really makes my day.”

Oregon center Phillipina Kyei (15) competes against Beavers forward Raegan Beers (15) for a rebound. After a close second half, the Ducks lost their rivalry matchup 64-60 to the Beavers in Matthew Knight Arena on Feb. 4, 2024. (Alex Hernandez/Emerald)

Phillipina Kyei (15) looks around after play stops. The Oregon Ducks women’s basketball team took on the Santa Clara Broncos on Nov. 18, 2023, in Eugene, Ore. (Molly McPherson/Emerald)