11/18/16 Digital Edition

the rocket

Friday November 18, 2016 • Volume 100, Issue Number 4 • An Independent, Student-Run Newspaper

www.theonlinerocket.com

A new era of Rock Basketball

Senior Jordan Marrow

Senior Lexi Carpenter

A Special Sports Edition of The Rocket Rock Runner travels to florida for Nationals

Marshalltown CC Sends Five Players to Rock

junior runner Jeremy Parsons will travel to Florida to compete in his second career naitonal championships.

Five Marshall town Community College basketball splayers tfansfer to Slippery Rock for the 2016-17 season.

See Parsons, PAGE C-3

See MARSHALLTOWN, PAGE D-1

Cover deisgned by: Cody Nespor

2016 sports Special

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November 18, 2016

PICTURE: REBECCA DIETRICH/THE ROCKET GRAPHIC: CODY NESPOR/THE ROCKET

Men's basketball placed at the bottom of the PSAC

By Jordyn Bennett Assistant Sports Editor

With the 2016-2017 men’s basketball season underway, Slippery Rock’s “Rock Rowdies” are transitioning from the gridiron to the hardwood to cheer on a team they will barely even recognize.

Rock head coach Kevin Reynolds brought in 10 new faces to his 12-man roster for the upcoming season. Only one player that Reynolds brought in did not come from a junior college.

Sophomore guard Dwight Whitlock transferred from Mercyhurst University, the 2015-2016 PSAC champions.

Five transfers from Marshalltown Community College (Iowa), one from Potomac state college of West Virginia, another from Community College of Beaver County and two more from Collby Community College (Kan.) and Lehigh-Carbon Community College are the results of Reynolds' non-traditional strategy of recruiting.

“We knew when we took the job what the parameters were,” Reynolds said. “We knew we would have to recruit in an unconventional fashion. They recruited in a conventional fashion for a long time and it wasn’t working, so when we took the job we knew we had to make some changes.”

Senior guards Jordan Marrow and Naquil Jones are the

only returners from the previous season. Neither were impact players.

Marrow averaged 3.4 points per game and grabbed 27 rebounds in the 20 games he played, while Jones put up similar numbers in fewer games, averaging 6.2 points per game and grabbing 22 rebounds in 12 games.

Marrow said he plans to step up in whatever position he is needed this year.

“I’m a senior,” Marrow said. “We got 10 new players, and I’m just trying to lead by example.”

Even though SRU is already two preseason and three regular season games into the season, Reynolds said he has not picked a consistent starting five yet. He said his players earn it in practice and have to step up. Reynolds marks that as one of a couple of factors he will be looking for to see a player find his way to a major role on the court.

After showing up to practice, Reynolds lists three other aspects that he is looking for in his players: buying into the program, developing team chemistry and what he refers to as “grit.”

“You got to be gritty,” Reynolds said. “You got to be able to grind it out when it's not your day.”

As unknown as the team is to themselves, they are even more unknown to the conference. Slippery Rock was placed close to the bottom of the preseason rankings at seventh,

edging out only Clarion and CalU. Reynolds said that they were picked at the bottom because they had one of their weaker seasons during his nine-year tenure.

Reynolds and The Rock went 15-13 last season, its worst since the 2009-2010 season when they went 15-12.

“I think people see that and say, ‘Slippery Rock, that is why we are voting you seventh out of nine’,” Reynolds said.

But with a fresh start and some new faces, Reynolds and his team have a chance to redeem themselves. They have already gotten off to a great start.

After losing their first game to no. 7 Wheeling Jesuit in the PSAC-MEC Challenge, The Rock came back the next day to split the weekend and defeat Shepherd University. They would continue the winning streak at their first home game in a dominating victory over Ohio University (Eastern).

Hoping to keep their winning streak going, The Rock will play their fourth and fifth games this weekend on the road against PSAC East opponents Shippensburg University and Kutztown University.

Though they are off to a good start, it is still very early in the season. Only time will tell if Reynolds' nearly brand new team was a brilliant style of recruiting and will surprise the conference, or if they belong exactly where they were placed in the rankings.

#14 Jordan Marrow

#12 Naquil Jones

#30 George Chase

#15 Khyree Wooten

#11 Amir Maddred

#20 Merdic Green

Transfer players highlight Rock men's star ting line-up

REBECCA DIETRICH AND KENDALL SCOTT/THE ROCKET

By Stephen Cukovich Rocket Contributor

Rock basketball will have four new faces added to their starting lineup as the Green and White looks to improve their 15-13 record of last year.

The new additions to the starting lineup are junior guard Khyree Wooten, senior forward George Chase, junior guard Merdic Green and junior forward Amir Maddred. Green and Maddred both played previously as Marshalltown Community College in Iowa before coming to The Rock.

Returning for the Green and White are senior guard Naquil Jones and senior guard Jordan Marrow, who are the ones

that will rotate in off the bench.

Green, a Levittown, Pa. native, played ball at Harry S. Truman high school and before coming to The Rock, he played at Marshalltown Community College in Iowa. In high school Green played football, basketball and baseball. In Marshalltown, Green started 62 of 63 games and averaged eight points per game with 3.5 on rebounds and was a 76.9 percent free throw shooter.

Maddred is from Camden, N.J. and went to Camden high school. Like Green, Maddred went to Marshalltown before coming to The Rock and started 39 of 62 games. He's a 50 percent of all around shooter with an average of 10.3 points per game last year, with 3.9 rebounds.

Wooten, a Philadelphia native, went to Imhotep Institute Charter School and played college ball at Colby Community College in Kansas. He lettered in basketball and was part of Imhotep's backto-back state championships in 2011 and 2012. At Colby, Wooten started 31 of 31 games and averaged 16.6 points per game and was a 43 percent shooter all around.

The final new face is Chase went to Martinsburg high school and played college ball at Potomac State College of West Virginia University. Chase lettered in basketball in high school and started 19 of 26 games at Potomac. He averaged 11.8 points per game, with 5.7 on rebounds and shot 63 percent from the free throw line last year.

Jones, who is also from Philadelphia, attended West Philadelphia HS. He started three of 12 games last season for The Rock and averaged 6.2 points per game and 1.8 for rebounds. Jones is a 40 percent shooter from the field and a 67.7 percetn shooter from the foul line.

Lastly, Marrow from Cleveland, OH went to John F. Kennedy high school in Ohio. Before The Rock, Marrow also played college at North Carolina Central from 2012 to 2013 and played in six games in those two seasons. For the Green and White last season, he appeared in 20 games off the bench with a 3.4 points per game average and an average of 1.4 rebounds.

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Josh Brown is a junior guard from Allentown, Pa. Brown played basketball for two years at Lehigh Carbon Community College in Schnecksville, Pa. Brown won EPAC Player of the Year in 2014-15. Brown is a business major.

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Dwight Whitlock is a sophomore guard from Harrisburg, Pa. Whitlock transferred from Mercyhurst University.

Guilherme Verardo is a junior forward from Sao Paulo, Brazil. Verardo played basketball for two years at Marshalltown Community College in Marshalltown, Iowa, averaging 8.4 points per game over 61 contests in three seasons.

Amir Maddred is a redshirt junior forward from Camden, N.J. Maddred played basketball for two years at Marshalltown Community College in Marshalltown, Iowa, averaging 9.3 points and 4.5 rebounds per game over 62 contests at MCC.

Naquil Jones is a senior guard from Philadelphia, Pa. Jones averaged 6.2 points, 1.8 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game for The Rock in 2015-16.

Jordan Marrow is a senior guard from Cleveland, Ohio. Marrow appeared in 20 games off the bench in his first season at Slippery Rock, averaging 3.4 points, 1.4 rebounds and 0.9 assists per game.

Khyree Wooten is a redshirt junior from Philadelphia, Pa. Wooten transferred from Colby Community College in Colby, Kan., and is majoring in interdisciplinary studies.

Merdic Green is a redshirt junior guard from Levitown, Pa. Green played basketball at Marshalltown Community College in Marshalltown, Iowa, and is an undecided major.

Christal Malalu is a junior forward from Eindhoven, Netherlands. Malalu played basketball at Marshalltown Community College in Marshalltown, Iowa, starting 25 of 64 games played and averaging 6.3 points and 4.8 rebounds.

Vinny Lasley is a junior forward from Tama, Iowa. Lasley played basketball for two years at Marshalltown Community College in Marshalltown, Iowa, averaging 5.8 points and 6.3 rebounds per game.

Tony Gates is a junior forward from Monaca, Pa. Gates played basketball for a year at the Community College of Beaver County in Beaver, Pa., and is a communications major.

George Chase is a redshirt senior forward from Martinsburg, W.Va. Chase played basketball at Potomac State College of West Virginia University and is majoring in liberal arts.

2016 sports Special

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November 18, 2016

Women enter season with confidence

By Cody Nespor Sports Editor

"It's always good to start a new season 0-0," Slippery Rock head women's basketball coach Bobby McGraw said prior to his team's season opener. "No one has won a game yet so everything's possible.

Conference title's possible, national tournament is possible, national championship's possible."

Following a year in which the team finished with a 13-15 record and missed the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) playoffs, McGrawis looking for improvements from this year's team.

"The defense will be better this year," McGraw said. "Three of our key newcomers can really guard."

McGraw builds his teams with defense in mind and focuses more on stopping the opposing team from scoring than anything else. Last year, the women went 0-13 when giving up 70 or more points to their opponents.

"We won't give up 70 points a game this year," McGraw said. "I don't know if that will equate to any wins, but we will not give up 70 points a game this year."

The Rock will need to replace four of their five starters from a year ago, using a mix of returners, transfers and freshmen.

Projected in the starting five are senior guard Lexi Carpenter, freshman guard Brooke Hinderliter, junior guard/forward Mallory Heinle, junior transfer forward C.C. Dixon and sophomore forward Morgan Henderson.

Carpenter was named to the AllPSAC preseason team after scoring

PICTURE: REBECCA DIETRICH/THE ROCKET GRAPHIC: CODY NESPOR/THE ROCKET

17.5 points per game for The Rock last year, and McGraw does not think the roster turnover from last year will matter much to his team.

"Morgan Henderson played starter minutes last year, Mallory Heinle played starter minutes last year, Dixon started on the national championship team at (California University Pa.)," McGraw said.

"They're ready to go right now. We brought in a good class this year and Mallory and Lexi have done a great job of bringing them together at this point in time."

Expected to get significant minutes of the bench for the Green and White are junior guard Krista Pietropola, senior transfer Cassidy Wright, junior guard Sierra Fordham and freshman forward LeeAnn Gibson.

Also on the team are juniors Kayla Payne and Dawnsha Heath and freshmen Alexis Deyarmin, Samone Rainey, Haylee Heyward, Carly Lutz and Alyssia Heath.

Slippery Rock was picked to finish fifth in the PSAC-West in the coaches preseason poll, the same spot they were picked to finish last year.

McGraw thinks that the combination of talent and chemistry on this team can lead them to big things in 2016-17.

"Our expectations this year are, hands down, if we don't make the conference tournament and make a run at a PSAC title this year, we won't have reached our expectations," McGraw said. "We have all this firepower that has either played at the division one level or had division one offers. We expect to win the conference this year."

#2 C.C. Dixon

#23 Brooke Hinderliter

#11 Krista Pietropola

#35 Morgan Henderson

#14 Mallory Heinle

#15 Lexi Carpenter

Women's starting lineup full of talent

REBECCA DIETRICH AND KENDALL SCOTT/THE ROCKET

By Stephen Cukovich Rocket Contributor

The women's basketball team will have some familiar faces coming back to their starting lineup for the 2016-17 season as The Rock looks to out-perform their 13-15 record from last year.

Those returning are senior guard Lexi Carpenter, junior guard/ forward Mallory Heinle, sophomore forward Morgan Henderson and junior guard Krista Pietropola, who will be the first player off the bench.

The new additions to The Rock starting lineup are freshman guard Brooke Hinderliter and junior forward C.C. Dixon.

Carpenter ranked second in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) last year in points, averaging 17.5 points per game. The Woodbridge, Va. native averaged 4.4 rebounds and 4.4 assists per game last year, while also

ranking fourth in the PSAC last year for free throws. The Rock's top scorer last year started 24 of 27 games and attended Forrest Park HS. Heinle, who switches from guard to forward, is from Natrona Heights, Pa. and attended St. Joseph high school. The junior started 10 of 27 games last season and averaged six points per game, while averaging 5.1 rebounds per game. Heinle's shooting is her strong suit with a 77.1 percent from the free throw line, and a 43 shooting percentage overall.

The sophomore Henderson is from Pittsburgh, Pa. and went to Seton La Salle high school. She started six out of 27 games last season and as a rookie she averaged 3.7 points per game, with an average of 3.3 rebounds. Henderson ranked second on the team in blocks last year and shot 71 percent from the foul line.

Pietropola, The Rock's top reserve off the bench, is also a Pittsburgh native and went to

Plum high school. The guard played in 28 of 28 games last season, with an average of 3.6 points per game and 3.2 on rebounds. Pietropola also played Division I ball at Youngstown State University her freshman year and started 22 games.

New to The Rock is freshman guard Hinderliter, who is from Semonole, Pa. and played high school ball at Redbank Valley. Hinderliter lettered four times in both basketball and track, and finished her prep career with 1,997 points.

Her last year in high school she averaged 22 points per game with 8.3 in rebounds and 2.1 in assists.

Dixon, who is also new to the Green and White, attended Steel Valley high school and is from Munhill, Pa. The junior forward played her first two years at California University o(Pa.) and averaged 2.4 points per game and 2.2 rebounds per game.

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Alexis Deyarmin is a freshman forward from Grove City, Pa. Deyarmin lettered all four years at Grove City High School and is a health and physical education major.

Deyarmin also earned all-region honors twice.

C.C. Dixon is a junior forward from Munhall, Pa. Dixon is a transfer from California University (Pa.) where she averaged 2.3 points and 2.2 rebounds per game last year.

Cassidy Wright is a senior guard from Flint, Mich. Wright played basketball at NCAA Division I Arkansas-Pine Bluff, while earning a bachelor’s degree in rehabilitation and a minor in marketing. She played in 73 games, scoring 8.4 points per game.

Brooke Hinderliter is a freshman guard from Seminole, Pa. Hinderliter lettered four times in both basketball and track at Redbank Valley High School, finished prep career with 1,997 points and was a four-time all-state selection.

Kayla Payne is a junior guard from Pittsburgh, PA. She attended Obama Academy.

Krista Pietropola is a junior guard from Pittsburgh, PA, and a exercise science major. Pietropola averaged 3.6 points and 3.2 rebounds per game and played 15.1 minutes a contest. Pietropola also had 21 assists, 12 steals and seven blocks.

Sierra Fordham is a junior guard from Pittsburgh, Pa. Fordham averaged 0.9 points per game, shooting 27.2 percent from the field, and 37.5 from the foul line. Fordham also had one steal on the defensive end of the floor.

Mallory Heinle is a junior guard/forward.

From Natrona Heights, Pa. Heinle averaged 6.0 points, 5.1 rebounds, 0.9 assists and 0.9 steals over 24.8 minutes per game last year.

Lexi Carpenter is a senior guard from Woodbridge, Va. Last season, Carpenter averaged 17.5 points, 4.4 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 1.3 steals per game, one of just four players in the Atlantic Region to achieve those averages.

LeeAnn Gibson is a freshman forward from Chicora, Pa. Gibson lettered four times in basketball and is a exercise science major.

Gibson was a two-time All-State honoree and earned all-district and All-KSAC honors on three occasions.

Samone Rainey is a freshman guard from Pittsburgh, Pa. Rainey attended Obama Academy.

Haylee Hayward is a freshman guard from Osceola Mills, Pa. She attended PhillipsburgOsceola.

Dawnsha Heath is a junior forward from Beckley, W. Va. Heath is a transfer from Western Wyoming Community College, currently studying recreational therapy.

Carly Lutz is a freshman Center from Pittsburgh, Pa. Lutz lettered four times in basketball at Baldwin High School and was Baldwin’s team leader in both blocks and rebounds during her junior and senior seasons.

Alyssia Heath is a freshman forward from Pittsburgh, Pa. She attended Obama Academy.

Morgan Henderson is a sophomore forward from Pittsburgh, Pa. Henderson had a productive rookie year, averaging 3.7 points and 3.3 rebounds per game over 16.4 minutes per contest.

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OPINION

Our View College athletics play a major role in school pride

OPINION Volume 100, Number 4

220 Eisenberg Classroom Building Slippery Rock University Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania 16057 Phone: Fax: E-mail:

(724) 738-4438 (724) 738-4896 therocketnewspapersru@gmail.com

EDITORIAL BOARD Ryan Barlow

Editor-in-Chief

Daniel DiFabio Megan Bush

News Editor Campus Life Editor

Cody Nespor

Sports Editor

Rebecca Dietrich

Photo Editor GRAPHIC BY KENDALL SCOTT/ THE ROCKET

Victoria Davis

Copy/ Web Editor

Logan Campbell Nina Bracci

Assistant News Editor Assist. Campus Life Editor

Jordyn Bennett Kendall Scott

Assistant Sports Editor Assistant Photo Editor

Amanda Salvia Eric Davies

Assist. Copy/Web Editor Multimedia Reporter

Mark Zeltner

Faculty Adviser

ADVERTISING STAFF Catharyn Burton

Advertising Manager

ABOUT US The Rocket is published by the students of Slippery Rock University every Friday during the academic semester with the exception of holidays, exam periods and vacations. Total weekly circulation is 3,000. No material appearing in The Rocket may be reprinted without the written consent of the Editor-in-Chief.

The Rocket receives approximately 5 percent of its funding from the SGA Student Activity fee paid each semester by students. All other income is provided through the sale of advertising.

Advertising inquiries may be made by calling (724) 7382643 or by emailing rocket.ads@sru.edu.

CORRECTIONS If we make a substantial error, we want to correct it. If you believe an error has been made, call The Rocket newsroom at (724) 738-4438. If a correction is warranted it will be printed in the opinion section.

SUBSCRIPTIONS

While attending college, there are many different experiences that can go down as being memorable. Among those things is showing school spirit, cheering on your school’s athletic programs and attending sporting events.

College athletics, whether you’re an athlete or not, is one of the most important and exciting things that colleges and universities have to offer. College sports attract prospective students, bring money to the university and spark school pride, especially when a major athletic program is making a run toward a conference or national championship.

College athletics give hope to those who didn’t think that they had much of a chance to attend college, and athletic scholarships allow those types of students to earn a secondary education while being rewarded with the opportunity to play a sport that they love. A lot of college athletes, especially at larger athletic programs, are recruited from areas in the country that are notably troubled. It gives these students

the opportunity to escape these surroundings, earn a valuable education and even prepare them to continue playing their sport at a professional level whenever they decided their collegiate career should come to an end. Simply put, it’s the perfect outlet that gives hope to people who didn’t think that they had much going for them beyond high school. Instead, they get to represent a college or university and have the opportunity to earn a degree.

College athletics are also one of the largest money-makers for universities. According to a report from USA Today, Texas A&M earns $192,608,876 in a single year from college athletics.

Further south in Austin, Texas, the University of Texas earns $183,521,028 in yearly revenue, followed by Ohio State in third place with $167,166,065.

Obviously, Slippery Rock University doesn’t make nearly the same amount of money as the premier Division I athletic programs, but SRU athletics does create a sense of school pride that is felt by those who attend the athletic events.

In the Quad

At football and basketball games, fans who regularly attend take pride in banter along with SRU cheerleaders as they perform the famous “R-OC-K” chant in between offensive drives or during timeouts. If one were to attend a Rock football game, they’d take note of the stadium name: MihalikThompson Stadium. Current students and alumni take note of that name, because it’s named after two former Rock football coaches; N. Kerr Thompson and George Mihalik. Mihalik left the program after the 2015 season, having led his squad to three consecutive Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) championships in his final three seasons as head coach.

No matter which way you look at it, it’s obvious that college athletics play a major role in society and elevate school pride among its faculty and students. It’s extremely vital for both its spectators and the administrators who organize it, and it will continue to thrive as long we support our local programs and our alma maters.

This week’s question: How many campus sporting events to do you attend during the year?

In the Quad is a segment in which random students, faculty and staff are asked for their opinions on a specific topic.

Subscriptions to The Rocket are available. Subscriptions are $20 per academic semester and $35 for the full academic year. Inquiries should be directed to the Editor-in-Chief at the address listed here.

EDITORIAL POLICY The Rocket strives to present a diverse range of opinions that are both fair and accurate in its editorials and columns appearing on the Opinion pages. “Our View” is the opinion of the Editorial Board and is written by Rocket editorial board members. It reflects the majority opinion of The Rocket Editorial Board.

“Our View” does not necessarily reflect the views of Slippery Rock University, its employees or its student body. Columns and cartoons are drafted by various individuals and only reflect the opinions of the columnists.

LETTERS POLICY The Rocket welcomes letters to the editor and guest columns, but does not guarantee their publication.

The Rocket retains the right to edit or reject any material submitted. Submitted material becomes the property of The Rocket and cannot be returned. Anonymous submissions will not be published.

Those who submit letters must identify themselves by name, year in school, major and/or group affiliation, if any.

Please limit letters to a maximum of 400 words. Submit all material by noon Wednesday to: The Rocket, 220 ECB, Slippery Rock University, Slippery Rock, Pa. 16057. Or send it via e-mail to: rocket.letters@sru.edu.

Emily Shorr Junior Secondary Education-Social Studies Major Butler, Pennsylvania “I don’t go to any university sporting events but I attend a lot of intmurals to participate and support my friends.”

Tabitha Giacalone Brian Finn Junior Senior Environmental Studies and Safety Management Major Public Health Major McDonald, Pennsylvania Frederick, Maryland “I go to about half of the home football games but that’s about it. I really like the atmosphere and school spirit.”

“I go to as many football games as I can but I mostly go to home basketball games.”

OPINION

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November 18, 2016

QUESTION OF

THE WEEK

Sports figures should use their platform to discuss politics for Donald Trump’s candidacy and presidency. Others, such as Greg Popovich and Steve Kerr, articulated their dissatisfaction with the results of the election.

It can be tempting to summarily dismiss these figures as unfit to speak about topics other sports, however, athletes and coaches are megaphones for larger groups of disenfranchised people.

Therefore, they should use Dylan Vamosi their popularity to express Commentary political opinions because what Dylan Vamosi is a graduate they say resonates with multiple student pursuing a master’s degree audiences who might not have in education - social studies. outlets for these feelings. Coach Popovich from the San Antonio Spurs articulated this best in an Before and after the 2016 general interview as he reflected on the election, numerous athletes and recent election. coaches voiced their opinions Toward the beginning of the regarding the outcome of the inter view, Popovich actually election and the future of this mentioned that his opinion did country. not matter, but was insisted upon Some prominent figures, such by the interviewer that it did, as Tom Brady and Bill Belichick, with the interviewer saying “there openly voiced their support may be people that feel like you

speak for them. That your voice carries weight, even if you guys say the same thing.” Popovich conceded and responded, “...what gets lost in the [election] process are African Americans, and Hispanics, and women and the gay population...I’m a rich white guy, and I’m sick to my stomach thinking about it. I can’t imagine being a Muslim right now, or a woman or an African-American, a Hispanic, a handicapped person, how disenfranchised they might feel.”

These comments might seem trite, but they speak to a broader level of dissatisfaction that many athletes and communities are currently experiencing.

More broadly, politics and sports cannot be separated because both reflect important dynamics with regards to race, socioeconomic status, cultural norms, stereotypes, status, power and values.

Essentially, politics are hard to remove from any medium because

they are reflective of every facet of life.

Thus, when commentators like Will Cain, for example, argue that athletes should not use sports as a mechanism to advocate political opinion and change, it misses the purpose of the obvious intersection between the two.

Athletes are more than just athletes; they are icons, role models, and brands. If an athlete can enlighten audiences by bringing attention to issues facing specific communities, they should do so.

To d e ny t h e i mp or t an c e of athletes and coaches in the context of political advocacy is implicitly regarding them as onedimensional.

Because politics and sports are so closely intertwined, the coaches and athletes themselves should be vocal regarding their opinions because it helps viewers understand politics from a different lens.

Rock “paycheck” games provide both experience and money for the school to scholarships, and expenses that the rest of our budget doesn’t meet,” Lueken said. “The main thing is that it’s a great experience. These games are all exhibitions so they don’t count on our record, so that’s a good thing.”

The women’s game against Pitt next week will provide $8,000 to the program, Lueken said. The men’s game against Tennessee was $20,000, which was paid last year to the school. The game was just delayed a full year, and it does cost a bit to get down there so that figured into the expenses, Lueken said.

The Central Michigan game was $5,000, which isn’t as much as the others, but is still a good experience, Lueken said.

The men’s team lost to both Tennessee (83-48) and Central Michigan (91-74) this year and the women lost to Indiana University (98-33) in an exhibition game last year.

“I definitely think the players enjoy these games,

By Logan Campbell Assistant News Editor

Both the Slippery Rock men’s and women’s basketball teams’ exhibition games this season provide both experience for the student athletes against Division I opponents, as well as guaranteed money to each program.

The men’s team faced the University of Tennessee and Central Michigan University before the season started, and the women’s team will face the University of Pittsburgh on Wednesday.

These games provide two major things for each of the programs. The first is experience the players get by playing in the big arenas. The second is well various amounts of money paid for by those schools to allow the teams to play, said SRU Athletic Director Paul Lueken.

“The money we earn from the games can go

Lueken said. “You get to play in a bigger arena with bigger crowds, and that big-time Division I basketball feel to it. We’ve played at Michigan, Pitt, Penn State, West Virginia and all those are fun places to play at.”

Morrow Field House, where The Rock plays home games, has a maximum capacity listed at 3,000 spectators for a basketball game, while Thompson Boling Arena in Tennessee seats 20,000, McGurik Arena at CMU seats 5,300 and the Petersen Events Center in Pittsburgh seats 12,000.

Lueken said that some years are better than others when it comes to scheduling these games.

The Division I programs work through the area in a cycle, and it all depends on what is available without schedule conflicts.

“Overall it is a great experience for the players, and it brings in that scholarship money which is always nice,” Lueken said.

LETTER TO THE EDITOR The views expressed in the “Letters to the Editor” section are those of the writer(s) alone. The Rocket cannot verify all facts presented in a given letter, but if we are aware of an error or

Statement from Asst. Provost on Main Street pellet gun incident During the evening hours of Nov. 12, a pair of white males driving a red, four-door Hyundai or Kia vehicle reportedly used an Airsoft pellet gun to shoot into a group of seven Slippery Rock University students and alumni walking along Main Street. Two persons in the group were struck by pellets.

While this type of situation in our community is rare, it was a cowardly act of hateful violence that the University finds reprehensible.

This situation should also serve as a reminder that as a community, we should always be vigilant and prepared to respond accordingly in the event of an emergency situation. If you or someone you know becomes a victim of violence, your first reaction should always be to contact the police by calling 911, regardless of where you are. 911 dispatchers will connect you to the appropriate law enforcement agency – University Police, Slippery Rock Borough Police or the Pennsylvania State Police – depending on the location of the crime.

Law enforcement authorities will be able to assess

the situation, ensure that victims have access to any necessary medical treatment, and can immediately begin to investigate the situation while events are fresh in the minds of those involved. Remember, no matter the situation, the police are most concerned about your safety, removing any potential dangers and apprehending the alleged perpetrator(s).

Alternately, if you don’t feel comfortable contacting the police, and the situation doesn’t call for an emergency response, an anonymous report can be filed with University Police via a “Crimestoppers Incident Form” that can be found on the University website at: http://administration. sru.edu/forms/crimestoppers.php.

Students may als o take advantage of a confidential tip line. This confidential tip line is for anyone with information related to criminal or suspicious activities on campus. It can be reached by calling: 724.783.2SRU (2778). Callers may leave information related to a campus crime, including description of the person or persons involved, vehicle involved or other information that may aid

police in their investigation. All caller information is kept confidential.

University Police also offer an escort service that provides safe passage for students, staff, faculty or other visitors to SRU from one area of the campus to another. This service may be provided by a police officer, security officer, or student security and can be arranged by calling University Police at: 724.738.3333.

Finally, if any student feels that their safety concerns have not been properly addressed, I invite them to contact my office.

At the forefront of all we do on this campus, University administration holds the safety of our students, faculty and staff to the highest order. As such, should anyone ever have concerns or require assistance, I invite you to contact my office at 724.738.2727; email me at david.wilmes@sru.edu; or tweet me, @Dr_Dave_SRU. David Wilmes, Associate Provost for Student Success

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C-1

November 18, 2016

Football ends season with wins

REBECCA DIETRICH/THE ROCKET

Sophomore receiver Tavarus Sample lays out to make a catch against the University of New Haven earlier this season.

REBECCA DIETRICH/THE ROCKET

Junior Isiah Neely runs over Edinboro University defenders during a game earlier this season.

Rock football fights through adversity to finish season 7-4 REBECCA DIETRICH/THE ROCKET

Junior receiver Marcus Johnson out runs the East Stroudsburg University defense on senior day this season.

By Cody Nespor Sports Editor

Finishing with a 7-4 record is really disappointingg to a tteam eam th ea tthat at finished 12-2 the yyear ye ar before bef efor ore and had won three stra straight raig ight ht d division ivis iv isio ion titles. ti tles. l Despite Desp pit itee the the final fina fi nall record reco re cord rd however, how owever, spirits sp pirrit itss aree hi ar high gh aaround roun ro und d Sl Slip Slippery ip ppe p ry R Rock ockk football. oc foot fo o ba ot b all ll. l The Th Green Gr ree een n and and White W it Wh itee finished fini fi nish shed d the t he 2016 2 01 0166 season seas se ason on at 7-4 7-4 o overall vera ve rall ll and and d 3-4 3 -4 in i n Pennsylvania Pe State Athletic Athl At hlet let e ic Conference C on nfe fere rence (PSAC) play.

"It "I I t was ver y,ver y different. It was challenging," chal ch all le leng n ing," first year head coach Shawn Shaw wn Lutz Lu utz ssaid. a d. "We faced adversity and I faced ai d it it and an d I feel feel like I've got to do a better job. We've got go ot to really concentrate on not trying to be past p pa ast teams teaams and and n not putting putti t ng so much pressure ti on o n win winning inni ning ng championships championships I think we've ju ust s ggot ott tto o ta take k care of the process." just Th T h his is S li i ppery pp ckk team had to t d eal This Slippery Rock deal wi i th a l ot with lot

of roster turnover from 2015 and the team had to deal with a lot of injuries to key players at different times throughout the season.

In the second half of the season, Slippery Rock lost three straight games to conference opponents, llosing osing to IIndiana ndi diana University Unive ivers rsit ity (Pa.), (Pa.)), (P Edinboro Edin Ed inbo boro ro University Uni nive vers rsit ityy and and Clarion Clar Cl ario ion n University Univ Un iver ersi sity ty in i n cconsecutive o see cu on cuti tive ve weeks. wee eekk s.

Following the season, ei eigh eight ghtt Sl Slip Slippery ippe pery ry R Rock ockk oc players were given post-season accolades.

Junior defensive end Marcus Martin was

named the PSAC-West defensive player of the year and was named to the All-PSAC West first team. Senior defensive lineman Joe Philips, senior linebacker Bob Vernick and junior cornerback Titus Howard all joined Martin Mart Ma rtin in o on n th thee Al AllAll-PSAC l PS PSAC A West first team defense.

Named Name Na m d to the me t he All-PSAC A ll l -P -PSA SAC West W st second We secc ond team te a were wer eree ju jjunior nior ni or rrunning u ni un ning ng b back ackk Isiah ac Isia Is iah h Neely, Neel Ne ely, y, sophomore soph phom omor oree of offensive f fe f ns nsiv ivve ta tack tackle ckle ck le SSteve teve te vvee G Gaviglia, avig av igg li lia, a, junior junii or receiver recei eivve r Marcus Marc Ma rcus us JJohnson ohn oh ns on aand ns nd ssenior nd enio en or linebacker line li neba back cker e Anthony Ant ntho hony ho ny Zappone.

Z ap appo pone po n . ne This i iiss Ma M Martin's art rtt in's in n 's ssecond ecc o on n d co consecutive o ns n ecc ut u iv ivee PSAC-West d defensive efe fens fe n ivv e pl ns play player ayy er o off th the he year award awa ward and and d his h is third d time t im ime being b ein be i ng ing honored hono o red d on o aan n al all-conference l ll-co conf co n err en nf e cee post-season post-ss ea easo on te team team. am m. He ffinished in nis ishe hee d h second seco se c nd iin co n th the he en eentire tii ree PSAC P SA AC in n ttackles a klles ac e ffor or los osss w wi ith 18. .5 loss with 18.5 an n d four ur r t th h i n s a ck k s w wi th h and fourth in sacks with ni nine i n ne .

He l ed d S lipp li p pp e ry nine. led Slipperyy R Ro c ck i n b bo th h ccategories. atteg egor orriees.

Rock in both SEE SRU , PAGE C-2

2016 sports Special

C-2

November 18, 2016

Football lands eight on all-conference teams Football 1.

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California (Pa.) Indiana (Pa.) Edinboro Slippery Rock Clarion Seton Hill Gannon Mercyhurst

10-0 (7-0) 9-1 (6-1) 9-2 (5-2) 7-4 (3-4) 4-7 (3-4) 5-6 (2-5) 5-6 (1-6) 3-8 (1-6)

Men's Basketball 1.

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Edinboro Indiana (pa.)

Califronia (pa.)

Pitt-Johnstown Slippery Rock Mercyhurst Seton Hill Clarion Gannon

2-0 3-0 2-1 2-1 2-1 1-1 1-1 1-2 0-0

Women's basketball 1.

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California (pa.)

Mercyhurst Pitt-Johnstown Slippery Rock Seton Hill Clarion Edinboro Indiana (pa.)

Gannon

3-0 2-0 2-0 2-0 1-1 1-2 1-2 0-2 0-3

Volleyball 1.

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Gannon Edinboro mercyhurst Slippery rock

28-3 (16-2) 23-8 (15-3) 15-14 (7-11) 13-19 (5-13)

Cross-Country Division-II National Championships November 19 Saint Leo, Florida

Standings as of Thurs. Nov. 17 at 6:06 p.m.

KENDALL SCOTT/THE ROCKET

The football team celebrates and shows appreciation to the fans following their 57-15 victory over East Stroudsburg University on senior day.

Continued from Page C 1

Joe Philips totaled nine tackles for loss and five sacks, Vernick finished second on the team in total tackles with 69 to go along with 3.5 tackles for loss and four interceptions and Howard recorded one interception and seven pass break-ups with 1.5 sacks.

Neely filled in for injured senior running back Shamar Greene halfway through the season and rushed for 521 yards and four touchdowns. Gaviglia switched from the defensive line to the offensive line for this season and played in all 11 games this season.

Johnson emerged as the number one receiving threat on the team and had a breakout season with 54 receptions, 898 receiving yards and 13 touchdowns. Zappone transferred to The Rock from division one Eastern Michigan and led SRU in total tackles (88) and interceptions (five) while also recording 10.5 tackles for loss and 5.5 sacks.

"I thought Isiah Nealy was a nice plus for us with Shamar going down," Lutz said. "I think Steve Gavivlia did a really nice job. Marcus Johnson, look at the improvement he had from last year to this year."

Also having solid offensive seasons for The Rock were senior quarterback Don King III (2,668 passing yards, 24 touchdowns), freshman running back Dontez Rash (248 rushing yards, six touchdowns), junior receiver Cornelius Raye (54 receptions, 679 yards, six touchdowns) and senior receiver Drew Scales (50 receptions, 502 yards, five touchdowns).

On defense, senior defensive lineman Mike Kope (4.5 tackles for loss, three sacks), senior defensive lineman Tony Twillie II (five tackles for loss, three sacks), senior defensive end Cody Conway (nine tackles for loss, three sacks), senior safety Derrick Fulmore (57 tackles, three interceptions) and senior cornerback Alfon Cook (three interceptions, 13 pass break-ups) all had stand-out seasons.

Looking ahead to next year, The Rock will have to replace nine of 11 starters on defense and find a new starting quarterback and running back.

"I like our future, I think it shows a sign of how you fight through adversity with the young guys," Lutz said. "We got to have some guys step up and they realize what it takes."

Lutz said that he is looking forward to the offseason and plans to bring a lot of talent to Slippery Rock in next year's recruiting class.

PSAC represented in Division II football playoffs

November 18, 2016

2016 Sports Special

C-3

Parsons ready for second run at national championship

By Justin Kraus Rocket Contributor

The Rocket's October athlete of the month, senior Jeremy Parsons, is gearing up for his second race at the Division II cross-country National Championships, which will be held in Saint Leo, Fla. The Titusville native had a breakout performance at nationals last year, capturing AllAmerican honors and posting a 30:14 time of the 10,000 km (6.2 miles) course in Joplin, Mo. "Now I know how fast it goes out and where to be off the start.

Hopefully, that gets me a good position to place higher this year," Parsons said of his experience at the National Championships last year.

"It's been a while since we've seen someone as special as Jeremy," Rock head coach John Papa said.

Papa's high praise for Parsons is especially meaningful as Papa has seen 30 years of runners at Slippery Rock, but few who have performed as well as Parsons.

B ot h Pap a an d Par s ons commented on how the National race is a different beast than any other.

"The front pack is usually five to 10 guys, now it will be 30 or 4o," Papa said. "The quality of the race is significantly better. There are a lot of very good runners."

Parsons echoed what Papa said about the large groupings.

"With someone always being

byy your side in the race, that will typically ypically push people a little harder."

Parsons' top-25 finish was a huge point in his career, and Papa thinks hinks he can elevate even ven further past that point.

"He wants to be in n the top 25 like he was last year.

He will have to run extremely well to do that.

We're hoping he uns extremely runs wel l. He is physically eady, he has ready, een feeling been well the past hree or four three weeks and workouts have een good. He is been eeling feeling confident that he should bee good to go."

Parsons was open about his preparations for his season finale.

"I've been trying to get enough est rest this week, if I was feeling sore I either took the day off or took itt easier. Whatever needed to be done should have already been done, so this week is just rest."

This Saturday will conclude h t e c ro s s - c ou nt r y s e a s on , ass Parsons and the rest of the distance runners will rest before ndoor track and field starts in indoor December.

KENDALL SCOTT/THE ROCKET

Rock hoops picked to finish middle of the pack in competitive conference

By Ben Matos Rocket Contributor

The Slippery Rock men’s and women’s basketball season has tipped off with both teams picked to finish in the middle of the pack for the pre-season rankings. It is a long season in a tough conference for both teams.

The Rock women have a tough road ahead, but are a team with a lot of experienced players on its roster. Basketball in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) is never a guarantee. Any team can beat its opponent on any given day. Currently, The Rock women are picked to finish fifth in the PSAC-West.

Picked to finish in first place in the PSACWest with eight first place votes was California University (Pa.). After winning the PSAC title last year, CalU returns all-conference players in senior guard Miki Glenn and junior forward Seairra Barrett. Glenn averaged 19.3 points per game with 6.1 assists, 4.5 rebounds last year and 3.3 steals, while Barrett averaged 13.6 points and 10.0 rebounds.

Despite having no preseason all-conference honorees, Indiana University (Pa.) was picked to finish second in the west, receiving one firstplace vote. Edinboro University was picked to finish third, returning all-conference guard senior Katie Fischer, who averaged 16 points and 6.3 assists in 2015-16.

Picked to finish just above Slippery Rock in fourth place was Mercyhurst University. The Lakers will be led by senior all-conference selections Angela Heintz and Natalie Piaggesi.

Heintz averaged 13.3 points with 6.4 rebounds and 4.6 assists per game last season. Piaggesi averaged 14.8 points with 6.6 rebounds and 1.2 blocks.

Last season, Slipper y Rock women’s basketball narrowly missed making the PSAC playoffs and finished seventh with a 13-15 overall record and 9-13 record in league play.

However, SRU looks to be competitive this

season with some of its returning players and some new ones who will look to make an immediate impact.

Some key returners for The Rock women are junior guard/forward Mallory Heinle, junior guard Krista Pietropola, junior guard Sierra Fordham and sophomore forward Morgan Henderson. Perhaps the biggest returner is senior guard Lexi Carpenter, who was also picked as a part of the PSAC preseason allconference team. Carpenter averaged 17.5 points, 4.4 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 1.3 steals per game last season.

A few key newcomers this season are freshmen forward Alexis Deyarmin, freshman guard Haylee Hayward, freshman guard LeeAnn Gibson, freshman guard Samone Rainey, freshman guard Brooke Hinderliter, freshman center Carly Lutz and freshman forward Alyssia Heath.

Hinderliter made an impact when she was named PSAC Western Division Freshman of the Week last week, helping the team to its 2-0 start this season.

Although The Rock is picked fifth, look for another year of improvement out of The Rock women. SRU women’s basketball had won just 25 games from 2009-14, and since then thirdyear head coach Bobby McGraw has sparked 24 victories in his first two seasons.

The Rock men’s basketball team has been slated to finish seventh in the PSAC-West this season. However, the new-look team has been known to turn a few heads over the course of a season. The Rock has won at least 15 games in each of the last eight years under head coach Kevin Reynolds and averages 19 wins per season during that stretch.

With five first-place votes, IUP was picked to finish first in the PSAC-West on the men's side, led by all-conference forward Jacobo Diaz.

Diaz averaged 8.6 points and 6.7 rebounds last season. Mercyhurst received three first-place votes and was picked to finish second.

The University of Pitt-Johnstown got one first-place vote and was picked to finish third.

UPJ returns all-conference selections Dale Clancy and A.J. Leahey. Leahey averaged 17.5 points and 8.1 rebounds, while Clancy averaged 13.3 points, 4.3 assists and 4.0 rebounds.

Fifth-place Edinboro returns Jaymon Mason, who averaged 20.8 points and 6.0 rebounds, while eighth ranked Clarion University returns BJ Andrews, who averaged 12.1 points per game in 2015-16.

PSAC men’s basketball, is a tough conference in which any team can win on any given day.

“Every night it’s a war. It’s as simple as that.

You have to keep your team razor-sharp and you can beat anybody,” Seton Hill men’s head basketball coach Tony Morocco said.

The Rock men returns only two players from last year's squad, including senior guards Naquil Jones and Jordan Marrow. Jones averaged 6.2 points and 1.8 rebounds per game last year and Marrow averaged 3.4 points and 1.4 rebounds per contest last season.

Several new transfer players round out Slippery Rock’s team this season.

The list of newcomers includes sophomore Dwight Whitlock, juniors Josh Brown, Guilherme Verardo, Christal Malalu, Vinny Lasley, Tony Gates, Amir Maddred, Khyree Wooten, Merdic Green and reshirt senior George Chase.

Slippery Rock has been known to not sign freshmen for the upcoming season. This year the group of transfers look to make an immediate impact on the SRU roster.

Both teams look to provide excitement for the upcoming winter sports season. Slippery Rock women’s basketball has started the year 2-0 with wins against Johnson C. Smith University and Fayetteville State University.

The Rock men are off to a 1-1 start with a loss against seventh-ranked Wheeling Jesuit University and a win at Shepherd University.

C-4

November 18, 2016

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2016 SPORTS SPECIAL

D-1

November 18, 2016

Marshalltown becoming a pipeline for Reynolds

By Jordyn Bennett Asst. Sports Editor

Iowa is not one of those states that are on people's radars when they think of places they want to go in the United States. Outside of the history of being very well-known for agriculture, there is not much reason to go to Iowa. But for some, Iowa presents a second a chance.

More specifically, about an hour north of the state’s capital, Des Moines, lies Marshalltown. The city populated by less than 28,000 people is home to Marshalltown Community College. While many of the 2,000 students that attend Marshalltown go there just to get an education, some students like Slippery Rock men’s basketball’s Merdic Green went there to have another opportunity to achieve his dreams.

“We’ve learned that we all need to study,” Green said. “We all should’ve hit the books harder so that we could’ve been at different level then we are now.”

The physical education major from Levittown, Pa. said we because he did not make the 11-hour trip from Marshalltown to Slippery Rock alone.

Green is one of five Marshalltown transfers who came to SRU this year to play for Rock head coach Kevin Reynolds.

Green, who in his two seasons at Marshalltown started 62 out of 63 games where he averaged 11 points, five rebounds and 1.7 assists per game, is credited by some of his Marshalltown teammates as the leader of the group who told them about SRU. Green said that he saw an opportunity for his team to stay together at the The Rock and he wanted to take advantage of it.

“Slippery Rock is a good program,” Green said. “After talking to Coach Reynolds and Coach B. about getting me here and telling me it was a good program, I knew it was a good fit. I knew the guys back at Marshalltown. So I talked to them and they were just like, it’s kind of the same thing so why not come here and all play together just like we were.”

Green is joined by redshirt junior forward Amir Maddred and junior forwards Christal Malalu, Guilherme Verardo and Vinny Lasley as the newest members of The Rock’s program from Marshalltown.

While Reynolds was the one handing out offers, it was Green who pitched the university to his teammates. Players like Maddred said if it wasn’t for Green, he probably would’ve chosen a different path.

“Right after the season we had an open gym and Coach Reynolds came to check us out,” Maddred said. “He offered me right on the spot and I took it. But if Merdic would have told me anything negative, I wouldn’t have come here.”

That is just what Reynolds does. In what

he said is an “unconventional fashion” of recruiting, Reynolds said that going into the JuCos and finding players has been the one of the major keys to his team’s success over the last nine years.

“That first year, what people forget is that we took a lot of players from Cecil Community College and it was really successful,” Reynolds said. “Guys at Cecil had great experience here and sold it to future Slippery Rock players that were at Cecil. The best type of selling your product, is people who use your product.”

For Marshalltown, that great experiences started with Luis Santos. Santos was the 2012-2013 PSAC West defensive player of the year and signed a pro contract in his home country of Brazil with Liga Sorocaba in the Brazilian Professional League in the summer of 2013. Three years later, another Marshalltown transfer, Jamal Gatali, was drafted fifth in the National Basketball League of Canada’s 2016 draft to continue his career after playing two seasons at The Rock.

Those experiences not only gave confidence within the players to come to SRU, but for Marshalltown head coach Brynjar Brynjarrson to send his players to a program that has similar values as his.

Brynjarsson said that he has developed a great relationship with Reynolds over the years and has put his trust in a good reputation on and off the court. Coach B., as his players call him, said it is extremely hard for him to recruit on the budget he is given and feels that Slippery Rock deals with some of the same issues. Though a downfall for any program, he believes it is another reason that makes the programs want to reach the same goals for their kids.

“The Marshalltown faculty and staff are second-to-none and just want to see our kids graduate,” Brynjarrson said. “I think it is very similar to SRU. I want to send my kids somewhere where they can play and graduate.”

While everyone says they are focused on the kids graduating, no one forgets that it is their abilities as players that got them here.

Brynjarrson said that Reynolds has praised the Marshalltown players for being prepared to play for his program.

“Kevin says that when kids come to play from here, they know how to practice,” Reynolds said.

Practice is very important to Reynolds, as it is one of his four factors that he said will get his players on the court, but it is their play in games that will define their legacy.

With all five individuals having two years left of eligibility, they have an opportunity to create legacies like fellow Marshalltownturned-Slippery Rock alum Luis Santos and Jamal Gatali have, but more importantly, they get to do it together.

REBECCA DIETRICH/THE ROCKET Junior guard Merdic Green dribbles the ball during practice earlier this week. Green is one of five junior college transfers to come to The Rock this year from Marshalltown.

Rock basketball's unique recruiting demonstrates successful formula

By Justin Kraus Rocket Contributor

When Slippery Rock University men's head basketball coach Kevin Reynolds was hired in 2008, he brought along with him a unique recruiting strategy that has persisted to this day: he primarily recruits Junior College (JuCo) players, instead of players straight out of high school.

JuCo colleges belong to the NCJAA, a subsidiary of the NCAA, specifically for junior colleges. The purpose of these colleges is for players to develop their talents out of high school, usually while attaining an associate's degree, before transferring to a four-year school where they still have eligibility remaining.

Reynolds says that he established the system "out of necessity" and that "We needed a lot of players and did not have

a lot of recruiting money. We started using our contacts and it worked really well." In his first year, Slippery Rock experienced the biggest turnaround in Division II, going from winning seven games to 21, which led to Reynolds winning the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Western Division coach of the year award.

Reynolds highlighted the fact that player generally love their experience at Slippery Rock, which is how he keeps getting talent to come to SRU. "The players in the program have such a good experience, that they spread the word and we got more recruits that way, especially with players playing overseas professionally. It's great as a coach to hear that players are having that great of an experience."

Slippery Rock's recruiting strategy has been highlighted by groups of players from the same colleges, which Reynolds went in-depth on. "The first

year, we took a bunch of guys from Cecil Community College. That was the start of it. Then a few years later we took guys from Garret Community College."

Reynolds also mentioned specific SRU alumni that played a big part in the success of community college pipelines.

"Luis Santos played great here and now has a professional career in Brazil.

Marshalltown produced him and Jamal, who both had great careers. Now we have four more players from that college who were friends with those guys." Reynolds added that the success of those colleges indivudually spilled over into SRU. "The three community colleges all had two commonalities: the kids all knew each other and they had a winning team. That has been key, having components from those colleges."

Reynolds' first year started with a slew of uncertainty, trying to establish such an unconventional system, but the

success is what allowed him to continue that style of program. "The first year played a huge role in this system, going from seven wins to 21 wins was the biggest turnaround in Division II. If the first year didn't work so well, we may not still be doing it this way."

Reynolds not only brought about a new style of recruiting, but a new style of play as well. As Reynolds recalls "The first year we scored in the 90s and took more threes than anybody in the league. It was a completely different style of basketball. As we got more depth and built success and the roster got deeper, we started to play a different style. We play a lot of players, we want to guard you, out-rebound you and play unselfishly on offense. The players have done a good job of buying into our brand of basketball."

SEE GIVEN, PAGE D-2

2016 SPORTS SPECIAL

D-2

November 18, 2016

Former Division I prospect hopes to lead Slippery Rock to conference title

By Cody Nespor Sports Editor

REBECCA DIETRICH/THE ROCKET Senior guard Lexi Carpenter practices dribbling during practice earlier this week. Carpenter led The Rock in scoring last year with 17.5 points per game.

While only entering into her second year at Slippery Rock, there is not much left that senior guard Lexi Carpenter has to prove to her team. Carpenter led The Rock in points and assists per game in 2015-16 with 17.5 and 4.4.

She also averaged 4.4 rebounds and 1.3 steals, being one of only four players in the entire Atlantic Regional with averages that high.

Out of Forest Park High School in Woodbridge, Va., Carpenter had offers to continue her basketball career at several Division I programs. After initially attending the University of Dayton (Ohio) she then transferred to James Madison University (Va.) after her first semester to be closer to home.

Carpenter then transferred again, this time to SRU's Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) rival Indiana University (Pa.).

After hving to sit out her entire year at IUP, Carpenter transferred to Slippery Rock and finally found the athletic success she had been looking for.

Following the 2015-16 season, Carpenter was named to the AllPSAC first-team roster and was again given the honor in this season's preseason polls.

Carpenter is The Rock's starting point guard and head coach Bobby McGraw runs the offense around her.

"We want to keep the ball in Lexi's hands as much as possible.

Teams are going to have a decision to make, they can either focus

on stopping Lexi with the double team or triple team or they can let us re-break the record for most three-pointers made in a season," McGraw said.

Carpenter is the only returning regular starter from last season's team and with new players coming in and returning players getting expanding roles, she has seen herself become the leader on this team.

"Last year I came in and I had to establish myself and get the respect of my teammates before I could just go out there and control things the way I wanted to," Carpenter said.

"There's only one thing on mind, that's a conference title. I feel like last year was left unfinished."

Last season, the women's team narrowly missed out on making it into the conference playoffs, finishing with a 13-15 record.

McGraw has said that he thinks Carpenter is the "best pure point guard in the nation in Division II basketball," and the numbers hold some truth to that.

Out of all Division II women's basketball players, Carpenter ranked 52 in points per game and 59 in assists per game. In the PSAC, Carpenter was second in scoring and eighth in assists.

This year, Carpenter and McGraw both feel like the team has the potential to make a run at the PSAC Championship and neither of them want to waste this opportunity.

"From the staff, from our starters to every person in this locker room," McGraw said. "We have the best point guard in the country, we expect to win the conference."

PSAC basketball season starts season with PSAC-CIAA challenge added 15 points, while junior Mallory Heinle contributed 14 points and nine rebounds in the Rocket Contributor win.

Also while in Charlotte, Slippery Rock squared off with Fayetteville State in the teams' second Slippery Rock's women's basketball team had and final game in the PSAC-CIAA Challenge. to travel to Charlotte, N.C. to open the season Slippery Rock defeated Fayetteville State 67-58 in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference to end the weekend and starting the season at (PSAC)- Central Intercollegiate Athletic 2-0. Carpenter led the team with 19 points and Association (CIAA) Challenge. Slippery Rock three steals in the win. Sophomore Morgan played host school Johnson C. Smith University Henderson contributed a double- double in the second game in Charlotte after the game with 15 points and 12 rebounds. Junior Sierra that saw Seton Hill defeat Fayetteville State Fordham chipped in 10 points, and junior Krista University 82-72. Seton Hill would be defeated Pietropola added 13 rebounds in the win.

by Johnson C. Smith 78-64 in day two of the While The Rock is 2-0 after the PSAC- CIAA PSAC-CIAA Challenge.

Challenge, three other PSAC-West schools Slippery Rock defeated host school Johnson C. also had undefeated weekends. California, Smith University 80-79 to open up the season Mercyhurst and Pitt-Johnstown (UPJ) also did with a win. Freshman Brooke Hinderliter led not lose during the opening weekend. Cal and the team with 18 points. Senior Lexi Carpenter Mercyhurst both defeated Notre Dame College

By Jake Bartus

and West Liberty University in Erie. UPJ went to Shepherdstown, W. Va. and defeated Shaw University and Winston Salem State University.

Four PSAC teams were not able to record opening weekend victories. Gannon, Edinboro, Clarion and Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP) all went winless to open the season.

Gannon got defeated by Virginia State and The Lincoln University. Edinboro was unable to beat Wheeling Jesuit University, while Clarion came out with a loss against Fairmont State University. IUP lost to Bowie State and UVAWise at Shippensburg in PSAC-CIAA Challenge.

The PSAC-CIAA was just the start to the women's basketball season. Slippery Rock will look to take the amomentum from The Challenge into PSAC play. The next game for the women is Nov. 19 at Shippensburg University.

Shippensburg went 2-0 with wins over UVAWise and Bowie State.

PSAC season starts with PSAC-MEC Challenge

By Jake Bartus Rocket Contributor

After playing two Division I opponents in exhibition games, the Slippery Rock men's basketball team officially opened the season in Shepherdstown, W. Va. for the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC)-Mountain East Conference (MEC) Challenge.

The Rock faced off against no.

7 Wheeling Jesuit and Shepherd University in The Challenge.

The Rock fell to no. 7-ranked Wheeling Jesuit University by a score of 53-71. Junior Christal Malalu led the team with 13

points and four rebounds in the defeat. Redshirt Junior Khyree Wooten added 11 points and four rebounds for Slippery Rock.

Slipper y Rock next played Shepherd University in the team's second game of the PSAC-MEC Challenge and defeated Shepard by a score of 57-55. Wooten led the team with 15 points in the win, including the game winning bucket with 3.6 seconds left in the game. Senior Naquil Jones added 11 points and five rebounds, while redshirt senior George Chase contributed nine points and 12 rebounds in the Slippery Rock victory.

The Rock finished the weekend 1-1, and other PSAC West

schools took the floor on opening weekend.

Edinboro, Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP), Mercyhurst and Seton Hill all finished the weekend unbeaten. Edinboro defeated Thiel College and IUP won against Lincoln University and Urbana University. Mercyhurst was victorious over Mount Aloysius College and Seton Hill took down Salem International University. Joining Slippery Rock at 1-1 is California University of Pennsylvania (CalU) and PittJohnstown (UPJ).

Cal took down St. Augustine's University but fell to Virginia State in Petersburg Va. UPJ defeated Lincoln University but

fell to Urbana University in games played at IUP. Clarion went 0-2 for the weekend with losses to Fairmont State University and West Virginia Wesleyan College while playing in Fairmont W. Va. Gannon was the only PSACWest school to not play a game on opening weekend.

Slippery Rock looks to keep the momentum from the Shepard University win into the team's PSAC opener at Shippensburg University.

Shippensburg went 2-0 during the opening weekend of play. The Rock's home opener was played Nov. 15 against Ohio University (Eastern) at Morrow Field House.

November 18, 2016

2016 SPORTS SPECIAL

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Two key players transfer to rival IUP

KENDALL SCOTT/THE ROCKET Former guard Ciara Patterson plays for Slippery Rock in a game last season. Patterson transferred to Indiana University (Pa.) prior to this year.

By Oscar Matous Rocket Contributor

The Slippery Rock University women’s basketball team is looking to remain competitive in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) even with the transfer of two key contributors.

The Rock, finishing with a 13-15 overall record last season (9-13 in conference play), will have to do without guards Ciara Patterson and Audrey Stapleton. The two women, who combined for 590 of the 1,906 points (roughly 31 percent of the total points scored last year for The Rock), both transferred to PSAC rival Indiana University (Pa.).

Patterson and Stapleton join a competitive Crimson Hawk program who finished with a 20-9 overall record (15-6 in conference play). IUP is currently ranked second in the PSAC preseason rankings, just behind last year’s PSAC Champion California (Pa.) Slippery Rock head coach Bobby McGraw does not believe that IUP’s placement in the preseason rankings has anything to do with the addition of

Patterson and Stapleton.

“Coach (Tom) McConnell has a bunch of returning players at IUP,” McGraw said. “They have a lot of firepower on their team and the only reason why they (IUP) were not picked first was because of California and all the returners they have.”

Last year for the Green and White, Patterson was the second leading scorer with 354 points, behind teammate Lexi Carpenter’s 473 points. Per game, Patterson averaged 12.6 points, 3.1 rebounds and 2.1 assists. IUP will be the third school in a row that Patterson will have played for. For the 20142015 season, before transferring to The Rock, she played for NCAA Division I program Wright State University.

Stapleton will also play for her third collegiate team at IUP. Before spending two seasons at Slippery Rock, she played her freshman season (2013-2014) at East Stroudsburg University.

Beginning the 2014-2015 season at Slippery Rock, Stapleton became known as one of the team’s most accurate shooters. She carried that title into the 2015-2016 season before falling victim to a season-ending knee injury. Up until that injury,

Stapleton was averaging 10.7 points, 2.7 rebounds and one assist per game. Although she was unable to complete the season, she still finished third on the team in points, with 236.

McGraw definitely believes that the departure of Patterson and Stapleton has impacted his team.

“There were two talented players who would have been in the rotation for us,” McGraw said.

“However, the mentality around here is ‘next player up.’ There have been players who have been waiting on the wings ready to step-up and fill in their minutes. So, could it have negatively impacted us?

Yes, but it has not so far.”

Defensively, McGraw said that everyone is going to have to improve if they want to make the PSAC playoffs. McGraw says offensively, players like juniors Mallory Heinle , C.C. Dixon and sophomore Morgan Henderson will have to step up and fill in the shoes of Patterson and Stapleton.

Slippery Rock will open up its 2016-2017 quest for a PSAC Championship this Friday in the PSAC-CIAA tournament against Johnson C. Smith University in Charlotte, N. C. Tip-off is set for 4 p.m.

Given budgetary restrictions, Rock head coach develops new recruiting strategy Continued from Page D-1

Selling that kind of basketball can be difficult, because it makes it harder for one player to take over the game, which Reynolds sees as a strength. "It could be anybody's night on any given night. Anybody on our team can beat you. The chemistry has played a huge part in the success. That is a huge credit to the players who have made those sacrifices."

Reynolds has stated that it is a collaborative effort in selling the brand of "Rock Basketball" that his team plays. "We sell a lot of things: Win a lot of games, make a lot of friends for life, earn a degree, have a chance to play professionally," Reynolds said. "The players, assistant coaches, and GAs do a phenomenal job of selling this program." Slippery Rock itself has also been a huge piece of the puzzle. "When kids get here, they like Slippery Rock. Once they are here , they love it here. Not only the team, but the school and kids in general they love."

The prospect of having the opportunity to play professionally is what every high school player dreams about, and Reynolds stated that SRU's brand of basketball helps give players a great opportunity to do so. "The style we have here helps our players in being able to play professionally. Teams and agents see those qualities: you're a guy who gets along with people and you don't have an ego. That's why our guys have been successful overseas." Reynolds also points to the facts when it comes to production from The Rock "We have more professional players than the rest of the league combined, even with the constraints. We are proud of what we have done to win."

As with any system, success will determine whether or not it lasts in the long run. "In eight years, we have the second-most wins and second-most amount of all-conference players," said Reynolds of the production he has chartered at Slippery Rock. "We know the reason we are good-- we have good players. That is the crux of any team-- you need to have good players to win."

Reynolds remains open about eventually doing some conventional recruiting, while still focusing on the positives of his system. "If you spend a lot of time focusing on the disadvantages, it won't work. We would like to do some more conventional recruiting, but at this time we are not in a position where we are able to do that."

This year, Slippery Rock must endure a massive turnover issue, as only two players from the 2015-2016 team remain. "Last year, we just had a lot of good guys graduate. " commented Reynolds. "If you have a good team, you're going to lose good players. It's the coach's job to replenish that pool and get good players back. It's challenging this year, because we don't have the usual contingency of players back who have played a lot of minutes."

Scheduling has also been a big part of Slippery Rock's success, as they constantly challenge themselves with one of the harder schedules in the conference. "We want to play the best schedule in the PSAC West," said Reynolds of the challenging schedule he loves to play.

"We play the best teams on the first weekend of the season to see where we are; it's a good measuring stick." In a season where SRU has already played against the University of Tennessee, Central Michigan and Wheeling Jesuit, it is no wonder why Slippery Rock has the ability to play as such a high level. "Playing the top teams on the road has helped us make the NCAA tournament in the past, and we hope we will continue to do that."

KENDALL SCOTT/THE ROCKET Ninth-year head coach Kevin Reynolds has developed an unconventional recruiting strategy since coming to The Rock.

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November 18 , 2016