August 30, 2023

August 30, 2023

HALL OF FAME WORTHY

New bobblehead commemorates Jackrabbits’ football national championship. PAGE 16

One Day for STATE

KENNETH ROBELLO Assistant News Editor

South Dakota State University Foundation is all set to host its 7th annual One Day for STATE on Thursday, Sept. 7.

One Day for STATE is a 24 hour campaign that invites students, faculty and community members to join together and celebrate SDSU and the impact made through philanthropic giving.

“One day for state started seven years ago and the very first time we did it, we had about 1100 donors over a 24 hour period and raised $298,000 and we were thrilled,” said Steve Erpenbach, president and CEO of the SDSU Foundation.

Last year, the campaign had 5,882 donors which raised around $2.4 million from all 50 states and 15 different countries. 6,825 gifts were unlocked, of which 449 students donated $8,657 and 555 faculty and staff members donated $105,425.

“The growth that we’ve had over the last six years has been amazing and a lot of it is just because of our campus partners, students, faculty and staff, athletics and alumni association where everyone rallies together,” said Erin Glidden, director of Pipeline Strategy.

This year, the goal is to achieve 5,000 donors in 24 hours to unlock $700,000 from challenge donors. There are chances to support more than 110 different opportunities, including scholarships, academic programming, athletics and more.

“If you are a current student and make a gift of $5 or $10, you have the opportunity to help us unlock $170,000 in gifts because you potentially become a student challenge,” Glidden said. “So if we get 100 students

to make a gift that unlocks $5000 in scholarships and if you’re a first time donor, you will help unlock $14,000 for scholarships.”

The Jack’s journey will kick off the One Day for STATE campaign on Wednesday, Sept. 6 at 6 p.m. and will continue the following day to spread the word on philanthropy. The Student Patio Party will take place on Thursday, Sept. 7 from 11 a.m.-2 p.m. at the SDSU Student Union west patio to engage students and educate them about philanthropy along with giveaways, music and yard games. The campaign would conclude with the Yellow and Blue Block Party from 5 p.m.-8 p.m. at the Alumni Green with performances by the Pride, Dance, and Cheer teams. Attendees can expect free SDSU icecream, activities, food trucks and more.

“In the school of communication and journalism, our focus this year is raising funds for student organizations within the school like the Collegian, KSDJ and Jackrabbits Forensics,” said Erica Quam, professional adviser at School of Communication and Journalism (COJO).

Funds raised through this campaign help sponsor student costs while traveling for a conference or any matter

that can enrich the lives of students and faculty members.

“It is fun to celebrate SDSU, our school and our programs, and the generosity of people who feel very passionate about it,” said Quam. “If you can’t donate but like and share our posts, people can become social advocates for free where you’re an ambassador and help spread the word about COJO programs and opportunities.”

Students can get involved by signing up as social advocates on onedayforstate.org, where a unique URL would be provided and tracked to see how much social activity brings in donors for the campaign.

Social ambassador toolkits, graphics, and sample post emails would be provided to help spread the message of student experiences that impacted them and their passion to as many people as possible. The more content shared on social media, higher are the chances to climb the leaderboards to earn great prizes.

THE FACTS

When: Thursday, Sept. 7

 Events: Yellow and Blue Block Party from 5 p.m. - 8 p.m. at the Alumni Green  Includes: performances by The Pride, dance, and cheer teams, free SDSU ice cream, activites, food trucks, and more.

 How to Donate: go to givenow.sdsufoundation. org

President Dunn discusses Cyberattack, SA Finance Chair Sworn in

GRETA GOEDE Editor-in-Chief

The Students’ Association had their first meeting Monday night to start off the 2023-24 school year.

The meeting began with President Barry Dunn addressing the senate about a cyberattack that happened last Thursday. The attack happened over night and was the reason students were having problems with D2L.

“One of the stories we heard this morning, the problems students were having last Friday and over the weekend were related that we didn’t pay our D2L bill, that’s not what happened, we pay our bills,” Dunn said. “We got attacked in a very serious cyberattack… our team handled it really well, but I can’t tell you how serious it is.”

The attack was similar to the cyberattack that happened to Montana State

University April 20, 2023, according to Dunn.

The university hired a national cyber security firm after the attack and the attack is currently under investigation. Dunn said to his knowledge, student information did not get accessed but nothing can be confirmed until the investigation is complete.

“We got some help on board Saturday morning from a national firm, cyber security firm and it’s in good hands,” Dunn said.

Dunn also talked about the end of the General Activity Fee Strategic Plan that started in 2018 that is wrapping up this year. A new strategic GAF plan called, “Pathway to Premier” will be starting next year and will continue until 2030.

Dunn discussed the new renovations that came to campus. The grand opening of Lincoln Hall is Tuesday, Sept. 12 and Berg Agricultural Hall was remodeled. There were renovations made over sum-

mer to make the campus more accessible.

“100 doors in the faculty offices are wider than were last spring so we remodeled both of those buildings, major buildings on campus are now fully accessible in terms of restroom and mother’s rooms and doorways and that’s important for you to know about,” Dunn said.

Steve Erpenbach, president and CEO of the SDSU Foundation spoke at the meeting about the Bold and Blue campaign that has now reached 28,000 new donors. The goal for the campaign is to reach $500 million.

“We are well on our way, hoping yet this fall that we’ll probably hit the $500 million goal, but we’re going to continue until April of 2024,” Erpenbach said.

Of what has been raised so far, about $160 million is dedicated to scholarships, Erpenbach said.

Government Affairs Chair Michael Garofalo talked about mental health

resources being the number one priority when lobbying in Pierre this coming school year.

Blake Pulse, chair of the GAF Strategic Plan Steering Committee spoke to SA about the plan for “Pathway to Premier.” Senators will lead five focus groups:

· Mental Health

· Wellness Center

· Transportation

· Student life

· History of GAF

President Trinity Peterson swore in Katie Neuhaus as finance chair after previous elected finance chair, Hayden Bentz was selected to serve as vice president.

There are currently two Senator-at-Large positions still open on the senate.

Collegian photo by Collegian Staff SA President Trinity Peterson swears in Finance Chair Katie Neuhaus

Collegian photo by Hannah Dayaget SA President Trinity Peterson celebrates SDSU President Barry Dunn’s birthday before SA meeting Monday

Excess parking passes sold, University offers solution

SAMANTHA MOSER Reporter

SDSU parking services is looking for 150 students to switch to different permits after the office sold too many for a popular lot on campus.

Students living on campus received an email from parking services last Thursday asking if they want to save $111. The office is looking for 150 volunteers to park in a lot further away so they have enough spaces for those who bought permits to the southeast resident lots.

“We ended up selling 158 excess permits,” said Derek Peterson, assistant vice president of Business Services.

It was a “perfect storm” of events that caused the oversale, Peterson said. When parking services set up permit purchasing for the 2023-2024 school year, the option to buy an economy resident parking pass was not made available. Typically, 150 to 200 students choose this option because it is significantly cheaper than the southeast resident permit.

Also, for the spring semester, parking services increases the capacity of the southeast permit by about 100 to account for the students who do not return at the start of a new semester. But when they opened permit buying for this fall, they did not reduce the number back to original capacity.

The southeast resident lot holds 2,700 cars, which accounts for 85% of the resident capacity on campus, Peterson said. Parking services sold 2,858 permits, so some students who paid the additional $111 to park closer to the residence halls could not find space. Parking services is hoping that 150 students downgrade their permits to save $111 and empty enough spaces for all permit holders.

An email was sent out directing students who could not find a parking spot to search in the south end of the commuter

lot, or in the economy resident lot, located on the opposite end of campus. Some students say that’s unfair before a refund was offered because they paid $161 to park in the southeast lots versus $50 for the economy resident lot.

University officials suggest residents without a parking pass buy one for the economy lot instead of parking on the street.

“SDSU is providing enough spaces for all of the vehicles, but not everyone can park right next to their residence,” Peterson said.

Meanwhile, students took to social media to voice their grievances.

“Do they really think we would give up our parking permits in the big lot,” one student commented on social media. Others joined in, saying there is no way they want to park in the economy lot.

Kyle Hamilton, a sophomore agricul-

tural science major, was late in buying his pass. On the first day of classes, he went online to purchase a pass and was shocked to discover that his only option was the economy lot.

“Buying that permit wouldn’t make any sense for where I’m located on campus, which is Pierson,” he said. Instead, Hamilton now chooses to park four to five blocks off campus, because he thinks it is more convenient than parking in the resident economy lot. He said he is frustrated and is calling for SDSU to do something about the parking situation.

Sophomore animal science major, Alivia Danner, said she is also unhappy with the parking situation.

“We have paid for our passes to park closer to the building, and it is unfair to ask us to park so far away,” she said.

Peterson said Parking Services will re-evaluate parking capacity in October

and he is optimistic they will find a solution.

“We can accommodate almost everybody to where they want to be if they just work with us for the next two or three weeks,” he said.

Home football game parking was also a top concern for students. They are aware part of the southeast resident lot is used for fan parking. Peterson confirmed that for Thursday’s game against Western Oregon, on-campus residents with permits for the southeast lot will not have to move their cars. For future home games on Saturdays, such as the game against Montana State on Sept. 9, permit holders will have the freedom to park in any lot on campus in order to free up the north end of the big southeast residence parking lot.

Collegian photo by EAN WETZEL

The Southeast Resident parking lot on campus.

Lincoln Hall renovated Building to hold grand opening in September

Collegian photo by EAN WENTZEL

A bust of Abraham Lincoln sitting in between two stairwells in the newly renovated Lincoln Hall.

SAM SCHAUER Enterprise Editor

The newly remodeled Lincoln Hall is just about ready to be shown off, and Christi Garst-Santos, director of the School of American and Global Studies, says this building pushes SDSU’s liberal arts firmly into the 21st century.

“I did my PhD at the University of Iowa, and I would say this space is as good, if not better than any of their humanities and liberal arts spaces,” said Garst-Santos.

Dean of the College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences Lynn Sargent says this is a big move for South Dakota State University.

“SDSU has mainly been associated with agriculture and engineering for a long time,” Sargent said. “This is kind of let’s propel ourselves to be state of the art in all fields.”

Lincoln Hall has been completely renovated on the inside from inserting new hallways to adding a mezzanine over pavilions on the second floor. With all these changes, the building still has the

historic outside and feeling, and Sargent said that is credit to Barry Dunn and SDSU.

“They could have inserted new modern lights or new ceiling tiles which would have cost less, but it was important to them to keep the historic feeling of the building,” said Sargent.

The near 100-year-old building now houses the School of American and Global Studies, which before Lincoln, the school was split in half with one half being in Wagner Hall, and the other in West Hall. Garst-Santos is thrilled to finally have a hall for the whole school.

“This is the first time the whole school has been together,” said Garst-Santos. “We became a school in the fall of 2019, and it’s the first time all 23 faculty members have been together, and that’s great. We can easily say, ‘hey, can you come to my class tomorrow?’ without having them walk across campus or sending an email.”

Along with housing the school, the faculty for the College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences will be in Lincoln also.

Garst-Santos said this was not only important for faculty, but also students as they get a space they can call their own for the first time. She also said Lincoln Hall is already becoming popular with many spaces accessible for clubs across the building.

One goal Dean Sargent hopes comes to this building is bringing students to the southern corner of the university.

“A lot of the life of campus has shifted to the interior by the Union, and I think it’s going to reactivate this corner of campus,” said Sargent. “I think we’ll be using Sylvan Theatre more, I think we’ll be using Sylvan Green, I think we’ll have public events here, and I think students will feel this part of campus is just a great part of the SDSU experience.”

The hall has been open for classes since the beginning of the semester, but construction is still happening. The formal opening for Lincoln Hall will be a two-day event on Sept. 12 and Sept. 13.

The Lincoln Hall project started in 2012, and took eight years of planning for funding, repairs and renovations.

Originally, Lincoln Hall was going to be built in three phases, but after bids and donations were more than expected, the university decided to combine phase two and three together.

The total cost for the renovation is $13 million. The Board of Regents reallocated $3 million to SDSU, and $10 million was given in a bonding process to the Board of Regents.

Opening Ceremony

Tuesday, Sept. 12

• 2:30 Ribbon Cutting Ceremony

• 3:30-6 p.m. Tours of Lincoln Hall

Wednesday, Sept 13

• 3-5 p.m. Tours of Lincoln Hall

• 5-6:30 p.m. Reception in Lincoln Hall Reading Room, *Must RSVP to Allison Dahl at (605) 697-7475, or events@sdstatefoundation.org

• 7 p.m., Woster Celebration Hall: Keynote Event: And Evening with Ambassador Laurie Fulton

‘A LONG JOURNEY... BUT I’M GETTING THERE’

Cheerleader who lost leg

By KAYLIN DE ALEMIDA REPORTER

SDSU cheerleader Brianna DeMarais could have quit last October when at age 19 she had part of her right leg amputated.

But those who know the determined junior from Sioux Falls probably knew that wasn’t likely to be DeMarais’ next move.

“No, never,” she said when asked if she thought about quitting after doctors took off part of her leg just below the knee. “I was very determined to get back. I called my coaches immediately and then told them that I would be back.”

DeMarais is working to get back on the field and cheerleading in September. She won’t be cheering at this week’s football game as South Dakota State hosts Western Oregon at Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium on Thursday at 7 p.m. But she will be there, supporting her teammates, just as they have supported her.

“It’s been a long journey since my surgery and certain things I have had to relearn how to do, but I’m getting there,” said DeMarais, an early childhood education major who loves babysitting for her neighbors and her baby niece.

She has attended cheerleading team functions in her wheelchair and participated by doing the motions with her arms. Now that she has her prosthetic, she says it will be easier to get completely back into cheer.

DeMarais’ ordeal began at the end of her freshman year. Injuries to her right foot resulted in her compensating for the pain with her left foot when tumbling during cheerleading practice. Even though she was in pain she still wanted

works to get back on field

to do the thing she loved most -- cheer. So, she pushed through the pain.

Soon enough these injuries seemed healed, but into the second week of her sophomore year, DeMarais’ right foot began to feel cold and numb. She tried various treatments including prescriptions to restore feeling and warmth in her foot but nothing seemed to help much.

With her condition worsening, doctors began doing tests and various procedures to restore blood flow. Eventually, two blood clots were determined as the cause of the numbness and coldness.

An emergency procedure was performed to remove the blood clots but DeMarais was still experiencing the worrisome symptoms. This is when doctors decided to amputate part of her right leg to prevent whatever was happening to spread to the rest of her leg.

DeMarais’ underwent surgery last Oct. 5.

DeMarais’ father, Bob, said he knew the surgery would bring massive change for his daughter. But the family has adapted and he, his wife and Brianna’s siblings have all devoted themselves to helping.

“From the time we found out that there were no other options, the whole family was basically just in shock, kind of disbelief,” Bob said. “But we all knew that we were going to be able to pull together as a family and do whatever we needed to do to make this thing happen.”

The DeMaraises say they are thankful for the support offered to Brianna by friends, coaches, teammates and the wider community. Her cheerleading team at SDSU sent her videos of them praying and rooting for her while she was in the hospital. The team also started

Photos courtesy of the DeMarais family SDSU cheerleader Brianna DeMarais undergoes physical therapy recently. DeMarais, a junior from Sioux Falls, had part of her right leg amputated last October, but hopes to cheer in September.

a gofundme page that helped the family with expenses. The surgery has changed Brianna’s life and daily routine. Most of her setbacks were due to her falling, but she always gets back up. The hardest part, she says, is having to relearn everything she would naturally do, but this time using crutches or a wheelchair. Another issue is that she has to remember that she doesn’t have a right foot.

“After surgery you still have either a phantom pain or phantom limb, which is the way you felt before your leg was amputated,” Brianna said. “So, I was feeling a lot of numbness after my amputation and I still do feel numbness which makes me think my foot is there but it’s actually not.”

Brianna was inspired to start cheerleading by her two older sisters, Kaitlyn and Kristina, who were also Jackrabbit cheerleaders. Brianna said she chose SDSU because many family members attended, but also because she knew wherever she ended up, she was going to be a cheerleader.

“Brianna was the kind of kid who would make up a whole routine with friends and then sit the whole family down to put on a show,” her sister Kaitlyn said. And even though the sisters are several years apart in age, they bonded over cheerleading.

Now, post-operation, Kaitlyn said the family tries to make each day as normal as possible for Brianna.

“But with Brianna’s attitude, she’s almost made it easy for everyone else because she’s been so positive about everything,” Kaitlyn said.

Both Bob and Kaitlyn said they don’t think the events of the past year have changed Brianna as a person. They also say that despite the physical rigors that cheerleading requires, they aren’t too worried about Brianna’s safety.

“The coaching and the safety at the (Division I) level just keep getting better every year,” Bob said. “… I’ve always been pretty confident about that.”

“I think it will be difficult in the beginning, but I think with the team being behind her and supporting her the way they have been, there’s not much to worry about,” Kaitlyn said.

As it is, Brianna has had her prosthetic for only about a week and she has already adjusted well to walking. Bob says that he was “blown away” following her therapy session as she walked by him.

As he reflects on the past year, Bob says he is impressed with how committed his daughter is to her sport.

“For her to have this life-changing experience and still be able to do it at a high level is amazing,” Bob said. “I can’t be more proud of her.”

Brianna’s two older sisters were cheerleaders at SDSU, and she wanted to follow in their footsteps.

JACK MCCARTY Entertainment Editor

A new pizzeria has arrived in Brookings.

Danger Von Dempsey’s opened Today (Aug. 30) in the Brookings Mall by the liquor store. It will offer what the owner says is unique pizzas and handcrafted beer.

“We are really excited to be here,” Sean Dempsey, owner of Danger Von Dempsey’s said. “I’ve always wanted to open a shop here and this location was almost too good to be true when we discovered it.”

Customers can expect a wide variety of unique pizzas with “well thought out ingredients” according to Dempsey.

“We aren’t your normal pepperoni mushroom kind of place, though we do carry those,” Dempsey said.

Some food options at Danger Von Dempsey’s include pizza, calzones, salads and ice cold locally brewed beer to wash it all down. Dempsey said that his pizzas are New York style with “hand crafted dough that’s aged” for around 24-48 hours.

Dempsey said after he took over his dad’s brewery, Dempsey’s Brewery and Pub, he wanted to try his own thing so he created the pizzeria. The concept for his business is “fast casual meets chill seating.” They are trying to be family friendly but also “very very Brookings.” Each store the company opens tries to have its own theme and play homage to the main store.

Erica Quam, a professional adviser at SDSU has been to one of the Watertown locations and she enjoyed the experience.

“The menu had a lot of unique options and the food was delicious,” Quam said. “It felt different to anything that Brookings already has. I am excited to have another place to dine in town.”

Dempsey is an international pizza

New pizza restaurant comes to Brookings

challenge participant and finalist. He’s been in the business for over 23 years, starting as a busboy and dishwasher at his father’s restaurant in 1999.

He took over the family business in 2016 and one year after he joined The United States Pizza Team (USPT), a team of expert pizza artisans coming together with the goal of bringing competition and excitement to the pizza industry.

Dempsey’s USPT achievements include winning 10th overall in 2017, 16th overall in 2018 and the award for the “region” both years in Las Vegas. He also

won awards in Atlantic City and Granada, Spain competitions.

He opened a second Danger Von Dempsey’s in Aberdeen in 2019 and in 2022 he opened another location in the Watertown airport. Now he’s bringing his skills and experience to Brookings.

Richard DeGraw will be the general manager of Danger Von Dempsey’s. He has known the Dempsey family for about two decades, going all the way back to elementary school where the two played hockey together. He has since climbed the corporate ladder, becoming a full-time employee and then

finally the general manager.

“They treat you like family,” DeGraw said.

DeGraw said the biggest obstacle when opening this new location was staffing. They aren’t fully staffed yet and are always looking for new employees that want to express their creativity.

“We look forward to being part of the fabric of Jackrabbit Nation,” DeGraw said. “We’re really excited to join the Brookings community.”

Collegian photo by EAN WETZEL Newly opened Danger Von Dempesey’s Pizza.

VOLLEYBALL TRAVELS TO IOWA

MADELINE REMUND Sports Reporter

The South Dakota State volleyball team is continuing its road stretch this weekend as the Jacks head to Iowa to compete in the Fryfest Invitational over the weekend.

The Jacks are preparing for their second full weekend of non-conference play on the road. They will face off against the Kent State Golden Eagles Friday at 3 p.m. before taking on the Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders Saturday at 3 p.m. To wrap up the tournament, the Jackrabbits will play the Iowa Hawkeyes Sunday at 2 p.m.

Kent State is coming off a rough opening weekend participating in the Bulldog Brawl tournament in Indianapolis, IN. The Golden Eagles went 0-3 competing against Butler, UC San Diego and Fresno State. Returning key players for the Golden Eagles are Mackenzie McGuire and Bryn Roberts. McGuire made the allFreshman Team last season and Roberts is the only four-year member.

Middle Tennessee went 0-2 Aug. 25 and 26 at the Big Orange Bash in Clemson, South Carolina. The Blue Raiders fell short to Clemson on Friday and lost Saturday to Wofford. Standout athlete Laure Jansen received All-Tournament team selection after recording two double-doubles.

The SDSU volleyball team will conclude the Invitational with a matchup versus Iowa. The Hawkeyes kicked off their season going 1-2 last weekend at the Sacramento State Invitational, defeating Cal Poly but dropping a pair to Sacramento State and Nevada. Iowa brought in several new components to advance its team, but lost a star player, Amaya Jones, who led her team in kills during the 2022 season.

At the start of the season South Dakota State went 1-2 the previous weekend in Wyoming at the Rumble of the Rockies tournament. The Jacks suffered a tough loss in game one against Wisconsin-Green Bay. Sophomore Jackrabbit, Katie Van Egdom, totaled 11 kills paired with setter Raegen Reilly’s 18 assists while freshman Sylvie Zgonc added 14 digs. Although a well fought match, the Jacks dropped their first game of the season in three sets. In game two, the Jackrabbits responded strongly against the Winthrop Eagles. Van Egdom recorded a career high 17 kills along with Stella Winterfield’s 15 digs which were both team highs. Freshman Brogen Beck added 10 blocks to an already solid statline for the Jackrabbits. Their performances contributed to an exciting 3-1 victory to split day one.

“It all just started clicking in the third set,” sophomore outside hitter Masa Scheireman said. “The trust and unity really showed.”

On Saturday, the Jackrabbits came back looking to round out the tournament with another win over the Wyoming Cowgirls.

Reilly led the team with 23 assists while Winterfield had 13 digs. Van Egdom and Zgonc combined for 26 of their team’s 47 kills. Despite their valiant efforts, the Jacks weren’t able to overcome the Cowgirls, dropping the match 1-3.

“If we continue to grow match to match and weekend to weekend the same way we did opponents one through three, we’re going to have a great year,” coach Dan Georgalas said.

In spite of a challenging beginning to

the 2023 season, the Jackrabbits experienced some positive takeaways and growth opportunities to build upon throughout the year. Van Egdom landed a position on the All-Tournament team, putting up an incredible individual performance for the return of her second season. While some players are recovering from injuries, several freshmen stepped up to the plate and played valuable minutes for the Jacks, gaining exposure to collegiate level play in the process.

“This is only going to make our team stronger,” said Reilly, about facing adversity. “Making people uncomfortable in different positions, but ultimately better for the team having experience at different positions.”

File Photos by JOCLYN HAVEN

ELLA THOMPSON ELYSE WINTER MASA SCHEIERMAN

HANSEN SECURES WIN

SECOND HALF COMEBACK SENDS CYCLONES HOME

Photos by DAVE EGGEN/INERTIA

BROOKINGS, SD - AUGUST 27: Avery Murdzek #10 of South Dakota State University controls the ball in front of Chloe Broughton #6 of Iowa State soccer at Fischback Soccer Field in Brookings, SD. (Photo by Dave Eggen/Inertia)

BOSTEN MOREHART Assistant Sports Editor

The Jackrabbits women’s soccer team secured two wins this past week and is looking ahead to have a successful season.

The Jacks played Iowa State Aug. 27 where they won the match 2-1.

Trailing 1-0 after the first half of play, the Jacks made a comeback after halftime. They scored two goals in the second half, each by a different player.

The Jacks had the first five shots of the period which were followed by a goal from Avery Murdzek. A pass from Lauren Eckerle was deflected by two Iowa State defenders and Murdzek received the ball, then fired it past the goalkeeper scoring the tie goal.

Maya Hansen scored the go-ahead goal for the Jacks in the 87th minute. This goal would give the Jacks the lead for the rest of the game.

These two goals along with a strong performance by the Jacks’ defenders helped them secure the win. The two defenders, Hayley Lindaman and Kaycee Manding each played 90 minutes in the match and midfielder Reagan Anderson played for 85.

In the game, Murdzek had one of her top performances of the season following her outstanding performance against Drake where she scored the game-winning goal.

Within the games against Drake and Iowa State, she scored four points on two goals made. She played a total of 161 minutes with six shots, three of which were on target.

These performances would prove to be some of the best as she was awarded the Summit League Player of the Week. This would be the first of her career and the first weekly award for the Jackrabbits this season.

After earning the award, she gave credit to the team as a whole for the wins against Drake and Iowa State.

“The closer games are almost the most fun to play and our team just worked really really well together, and it was definitely a team effort to pull out those wins,” said Murdzek.

The two games were very physical and challenging for the Jacks, but head coach Brock Thompson is proud of how his team approaches moments in those games.

“When that’s the case there is going to be combative moments and I’m proud of the way our team handled those moments,” said Thompson.

For their next competitions, the Jacks will hit the road for two away matches.

The first match they will play is against the Utah State Aggies. The Mountain West Conference team has a record of 1-3 to start the season.

The Aggies started out their season with their home opener in which they won 5-1 against Weber State of the Big Sky Conference. This game would be followed by two losses at home.

CHASING RECORDS

 Maya Hansen is hot on the trail of breaking two Summit Leauge women’s soccer records.



 Summit League career goals: (48) Jessica Kellogg of Oral Roberts 2002-05

 Summit League career points: (114) Jessica Kellogg of Oral Roberts 2002-05



 Maya Hansen career goals: (44) 2019-present

 Maya Hansen career points (107) 2019-present

Their first loss was to Saint Louis out of the Atlantic 10 Conference in a match that ended 2-0 in favor of Saint Louis. The following loss was to the Utes of Utah in a tight match ending 1-0 in favor of the Utes.

The Jacks will play Utah State on Sept. 1 at 6 p.m. in Logan, Utah.

Murdzek is excited to play at Utah, not only to be playing soccer but for other reasons too.

“I heard it’s super pretty and my parents are also going so I’m excited,” said Murdzek.

Following their game against Utah State, the Jacks will take on Idaho State on Sept. 3 at 2 p.m. in Pocatello, Idaho.

Their opponents after playing Utah State will be the Idaho State Bengals.

The opponent out of the Big Sky Conference has had a slow start to their season, starting with a record of 0-4.

The Bengals started their season with three road games all of which they were defeated in.

Their first match ended 5-0 in favor of their opponent from UC Davis out of the Big West Conference.

Then, they played St. Mary’s and lost in a tight match 2-1 where the Gaels took the win.

Those two matches were followed by another loss on the road and a loss in their home opener. In the final match of their road games, the Bengals took on Wake Forest in a match where the Demon Deacons won 3-0.

Their home opener at Davis Field was against Utah Valley out of the Western Athletic Conference. The Bengals fell to Utah Valley 6-0 adding another loss to their record.

With this long road trip ahead, Coach Thompson looks at it as a great team bonding experience.

“One of the best parts of being on the road is you’re all on the same schedule and you’re all together, that’s the exciting piece.”

Photos by DAVE EGGEN/INERTIA BROOKINGS, SD - AUGUST 27: Maya Hansen #13 of South Dakota State University makes a move against Iowa State soccer at Fischback Soccer Field in Brookings, SD. (Photo by Dave Eggen/Inertia). CHANGE THIS

RUNNING IT BACK

Western Oregon is first up for the defending National Champs

Collegian Photos by JOCLYN HAVEN

Running back Isaiah Davis carries the ball during Jacks football practice this offseason. Davis is entering his fourth season with the Jacks ninth in program history, with 2,970 career rushing yards. He is tied for sixth in program history with 32 career rushing touchdowns.

MARSHALL MINIHAN Sports Editor

After nearly nine months, the 2022 FCS National Champions will take the field once again for week one of the college football season for a Thursday night matchup against a division II opponent at Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium.

The South Dakota State Jackrabbits are set to start their 2023 football campaign against Western Oregon Wolves on Aug. 31.

This will be the third Jacks-Wolves matchup in the school’s history. South Dakota State is currently 2-0 against Western Oregon with wins in the 2003 and 2004 seasons.

Last season couldn’t have gone any better for the Jacks: beating every FCS opponent, holding the No. 1 ranked spot for multiple weeks and beating arguably their biggest rival in North Dakota State for their first ever FCS National Championship.

Going into the 2023 season, the Jacks sit comfortably at the No. 1 spot of the poll, thanks to the amount of talent they were able to keep on the team for the season.

Out of the starting skill positions on offense, the Jacks only lost Tucker Kraft, who was drafted by the Green Bay Packers. Though that may affect the team early on, backup tight end Zach Heins will be taking up the role as starter.

Heins took the reins last season when Kraft was injured week 1 against Iowa. Though the first couple of games went slow for the Sioux Falls, SD native, Heins thrived in week 4 last season, putting up 127 yards on seven receptions and a touchdown. His production slowed when Kraft returned but he managed to rack up 347 yards and four touchdowns on the season.

Quarterback Mark Gronowski gets his top-2 favorite targets back from last season with the Janke’s. Gronowski put up just under 3,000 yards last season while throwing 26 touchdowns on a 65.3% completion percentage. While ruling the sky, the 2022 FCS National Championship MVP also left his ‘Mark’ on the ground with 408 yards and 12 touchdowns.

“Sky is the limit for that kid,” said Jackrabbit football head coach Jimmy Rogers. “He works his butt off, he’s a great leader in that quarterback group and a great leader on our team so I’m excited to see the step that he can take.”

Jaxon Janke put up 857 yards and nine touchdowns last season, leading SDSU in both categories while his twin brother Jadon followed behind at 774 yards and six touchdowns.

The 1-2 punch of Isaiah Davis and Amar Johnson are returning as well. Davis ran for 1,451 yards and 15 touchdowns while Johnson finished with 776 yards and saw the endzone seven times on the ground. Both backs also put up over 100 receiving yards last season along with a touchdown from Johnson.

The 605 Hogs, led by Garret Greenfield and Mason McCormick are returning as well.

South Dakota State lost a key defensive player in Caleb Sanders last season. The former SDSU defensive tackle joined another South Dakota State Alumni, Dallas Goedert on the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFL.

Though the Jackrabbits have the majority of last season’s dominant defense returning. Jason Freeman led the Jacks last season in tackles with 84 total while Adam Bock followed close behind him with 76 while missing six weeks to injury.

The former Nebraska Cornhusker Isaiah Stalbird saw a drop in production from 2021 to 2022 when Jacks acquired Freeman, but still showed his dominance with 55 tackles on the season in just 12 games.

With the loss of Malik Lofton, both DyShawn Gales and Dalys Beanum will have to step up their coverage even more. Last season, both cornerbacks made their talents known. Gales led the team in interceptions with four while Beanum led the cornerback position in tackles with 37 total on the year.

For Western Oregon, 6 foot 5 inch redshirt junior Gannon Winker will be sitting in the captain’s seat once again. Winker struggled last season throwing for 2,315 yards, 12 touchdowns and 14 interceptions on just over a 50% completion rate.

Running back Dominique Loggins will be getting the start for the Wolves in the backfield, a big change from last season with Western Oregon all-time rushing leader

Omari Dixon-Land graduating. Loggins played in seven games in the 2022 season and only put up 77 yards and was without a touchdown.

Though Western Oregon lost their starting running back, their 2022 leader in receptions and receiving yards will be returning to the gridiron redshirt-senior season. Wide receiver Damon Hickok excelled for the Wolves last season where he racked up 677 yards on 44 catches while bringing two of those in for scores.

WO brought in Brenden Hodge, Juco transfer who will be starting at wide receiver against South Dakota State. In the 2022 season for El Camino College, Hodge brought in 424 receiving yards and led the team in receptions with 43.

The Jackrabbit offense could prove to be a challenge for the Wolves since they lost their top-4 leaders in tackles last season. Outside linebacker Isaiah Abraham is the man to watch on this defense. Though missing last years’ week six game, Abraham pulled in 44 total tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss and an interception.

Joining Abraham at outside linebacker is Malcolm Liufau, another dominant player for this Wolves’ defense. Last season, Liufau had 40 tackles, eight tackles for loss and two sacks.

South Dakota State will be back to the Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium on Sept. 9 for the rematch of the 2021 and 2022 semifinal matchup against Montana State at 6:00 p.m.

Collegian Photos by JOCLYN HAVEN Jadon Janke catches a pass during Jacks football practice this offseason. Janke earned all-Missouri Valley Football conference accolades as a returner and wide receiver. Janke led the team with an average of 15.2 yards per reception and ranked second on the team in receptions (51), receiving yards (774) and receiving touchdowns (6).

BOBBLEHEAD OF CHAMPIONS

National Bobblehead Hall of Fame releases SDSU licensed bobblehead

BRAYDEN BYERS

Managing Editor

The National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum has unveiled a bobblehead to commemorate last season’s first ever national football championship.

The bobblehead, which stands about 8 inches tall, features the Jackrabbit’s mascot, Jack, holding a news paper branded ‘South Dakota State News’. Under the sports section, the headline reads ‘CHAMPIONS!’ with the SDSU athletic logo underneath.

Jack, wearing an SDSU branded blue football jersey along with white pants and a blue hat, is standing on top of a stack of newspapers holding up a ‘number one’ sign with his right hand.

This is the latest installment of officially licensed Jackrabbit merchandise that has been released since SDSU brought home the title in early January winning 45-21 over their arch-rival, North Dakota State.

“Bobbleheads are the perfect way to celebrate a National Championship,” the co-founder and CEO of the museum Phil Sklar said in a news release, “and we think Jackrabbits fans are going to love this one.”

The National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum is located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and opened in 2019. The hall of fame and museum produces many customizable bobbleheads for sale.

Facts

• Bobbleheads can be traced all the way back to China in the 1760s.

• The National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum also lists mascots for North Dakota State, University of Iowa, and many more.

• The National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum first opened its doors Feb. 1, 2019 in Milwaukee, Wiscon-

The Jackrabbit bobblehead is currently available for purchase only on the National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum website. Each bobblehead is $40 each with a flat-rate shipping charge of $8 per order.

The SDSU football team is set to begin their title defense Thursday, Aug. 31, as they host Western Oregon at Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium at 7 p.m.

The South Dakota State athletic department released some updated guidelines prior to Thursday’s game.

In order to accommodate Thursday’s class schedule, parking lots on campus, which include the main tailgating area of the stadium, will open to fans at 4 p.m. In addition, a portion of North Campus Drive, from Jackrabbit Avenue west to the stadium parking lots, will close at 4 p.m.

The stadium gates will open at 5:30 p.m. with alcohol sales beginning at 6 p.m. Pregame ceremonies will begin at 6:55 p.m. and will feature a coin toss conducted by former head coach John Stiegelmeier.

The Jackrabbits will host Montana State next Saturday, Sept. 9, before heading to the Twin Cities to take on Drake at Target Field Sept. 16.

Submitted

Photo by Phil Sklar