11/10/17 Digital Edition

the rocket

Friday November 10, 2017 • Volume 101, Issue Number 4 • An Independent, Student-Run Newspaper

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Women's basketball picked sixth in conference

By Oscar Matous Rocket Contributor

Following a 9-19 season last year, the Slippery Rock University women’s Follow basketball basketb team will hope to turn things around this season and make a run in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) playoffs. Rock head coach Bobby McGraw attributed a large part to last year’s downfall to the th loss of their point guard, Lexi Carpenter to injury.

“W “When you lose the tenth leading scorer, not in the conference, in the natio who shoots 90 percent from the free-throw line, who nobody nation, can take tak the ball off, and who nobody can get in front of, that changes everythin everything,” McGraw said.

McGra said he recognizes that last season ended “rough.” The women McGraw don’t shy sh away from talking about last year, he said. Last season, the women gave up a total 2,109 points in the season, allowing 75.3 points per game, ga which was ranked 18th out of 18 teams in the PSAC. “N matter who you have on the floor, if you finish 18 out of 18 in “No poi points allowed per game, you’re not going to win a bunch of games,” Mc McGraw said.

JJunior Ciara Patterson and sophomore Leeann Gibson, who will se serve as the team captains this season, both said this year their team is focusing a lot on the defense.

“We are going to be very defense oriented this year,” Patterson sa said. “We have a lot of quick guards out there that can move their fe feet and get all around the court.”

At the moment, The Rock is ranked to finish sixth in the PSAC, ac according to the preseason coach’s poll. McGraw, entering his fourth se season leading the Green and White, said based off of who The Rock ha has returning and who other teams in the PSAC have returning, that be being ranked sixth “sounds about right.” ““It has to do with us competing in not just the best league, but in th the best conference in the best league in the country,” he said.

SStarting off the season, McGraw said the starting five could vary ffrom game to game. At the moment, McGraw said the five getting the most reps on the court are Patterson, Gibson, sophomore Brooke Hinderliter, sophomore Madison Johnson, who transferred from PICTURE: KENDALL SCOTT/THE ROCKET

SEE NEWCOMERS PAGE A-4

GRAPHIC: CODY NESPOR/THE ROCKET

Men’s hoops seeking PSAC prominence in 2017-18

By Brendan Howe Rocket Contributor

Following a preseason matchup with Pittsburgh in which it held the lead for almost the entire first half, the Slippery Rock University men’s basketball team will open the regular season this weekend.

At the Rock’s forefront will be four returning seniors who eye an improvement over the previous years' Slippery Rock team, which reached the conference tournament but exited in the first round. The team will benefit from a veteran backcourt comprised of guards Khyree Wooten and Merdic Green, the only two players on last year’s team to start all 29 games. In 2016-2017, Wooten, this year’s team captain, played more minutes than any other player and Green averaged 10.8 points per contest, enough to be the team’s leading returning scorer for the approaching season.

The two other returners, center Christal Malalu and forward Tony Gates, also look to contribute to the team’s success. Malalu, a 6’9” center native of the Netherlands, was last season’s top rebounder on both the offensive and defensive ends of the court.

He registered five double-doubles and grabbed a season-high 19 boards in a January matchup with Edinboro. Gates was a key player off the bench for The Rock, averaging almost four points and three rebounds in the 23 games he appeared in.

The four returning seniors were helpful in the process of bringing together a team that added many new members during the offseason. “They’ve done a good job of leading the team, that’s been a strength,” head coach Kevin Reynolds stated.

“They’ve taken good ownership in the team, whether it’s been their day or not their day, whether they’re starting or not starting.”

Malalu considers it a responsibilityy for him and his fellow seniors to help the ty of team coalesce. He said, “The ability the seniors to step up and lead the team een [with so many new players] has been important. I think we got better as a d whole and have kind of now figured out how people play. I’ve seen guyss getting better every day.” rs Though the team lost eight players bly from last season’s roster, most notably sion second-team All-PSAC Western Division welve guard Naquil Jones, it welcomed twelve on. Of new faces throughout the offseason. the dozen additions, nine of so come ome as transfers.

Guard Aaron McDonald and forward Micah Till move to SRU from Harford Community College, where theyy both averaged in the double figures in points while leading the Fighting Owls wls to their second of two straight Region ion 20 championships last season. Third-year d-year sophomore guard De’ Shae Lee comes es from Garrett College averaging 16.8 points nts per game. Center Troidell Carter arrives ves from Henderson State University and forward Ryan Skovranko played as a Westt Chester Golden Ram last season. Brandon Simmons, a forward, previously played for Marshalltown shalltown ol that SRU Community College, the same school ded before mainstays Malalu and Green attended throwing on the green and white. or forward Newcomers Richard Bivens, a senior rnational who comes by way of Florida International SEE ROCK PAGE A-2

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

Men's Hoops Finding Mihalik's Lasting Success With Less Coaching Influence

A Look Back at a Rock Basketball Brings In Transfers Historic Career

The men's basketball has achieved a 98 win turnaround in the past decade.

Page A-2

Senior Marcus Martin has enjoyed one of the most prolific athletic careers in school history.

Page C-5

The Rock's former football coach has inspired a whole generation's worth of coaches.

Page B-2

Two men and one women basketball players transfered to SRU from Harford College.

Page D-2

2017 SPORTS SPECIAL Rock boys picked fourth in competitive PSAC West A-2

November 10, 2017

Continued from Page A-1

University, and Bruce Spruell, a junior guard from American International College, were starters in the exhibition against the Panthers.

Bivens, who is from Bakersfield, California, started six games and shot 56 percent from the field at FIU. Spruell was the only player to start all 28 games for the Yellow Jackets in the previous season and was the team’s secondleading scorer.

The other three recruits, Evan Chandler, Karlyn Garner and Simon Mulaa, are all freshman guards coming from high school.

The trio were all standout performers during their time as high schoolers. Chandler was an all-conference player at Central Dauphin East High School in Harrisburg.

Named to the Fab 15 as a senior at West Mifflin High, Garner also led the WPIAL 3A classification in scoring last season. From Fairfax, Virginia, Mulaa was a first-team AllPatriot League Defense honoree as he led WT Woodson High to the 2017 VHSL 6A state title.

Along with the new talent he has stockpiled, Reynolds stresses the importance of effort in practicing. “The biggest transition to a fouryear level of basketball, whether you’re in high school or junior college or prep school, is the daily grind,” he said. “At that other level, you’re the best guy and whether you bring it every day or not, you’re going to play the majority of the minutes. I think the biggest difference when you come to a winning team like ours is the ability to bring your ‘A’ game on a daily basis.”

The recognition in practice that the players strive to attain will be key in deciding who plays on a given night. Due to the interchangeable parts that this team has, Reynolds plans to play different lineups and make steady use of his reserve players.

The depth on the roster fosters the ability for Reynolds to return to a fast-break offense predicated on speed and spreading the ball.

“We’ve never played a star-studded system here. We’ve always played, whoever’s day it is, it’s their day and it’s their team and we play

CODY NESPOR/THE ROCKET

Senior guard Khyree Wooten looks to pass the ball in the Rock's 71-59 loss to Pittsburgh. Wooten is one of The Rock's four returning players this season.

for the team,” coach said. In his first season at SRU, five players averaged double-figures in scoring. “[In the past], we were able to win a lot of games because teams couldn’t just key on one or two guys and I’m hoping that’s the case again this season.”

The team begins the season on the road on Nov. 11 and 12 for the Jakobi’s Journey Basketball Classic against Glenville State College and West Virginia Wesleyan College.

Reynolds stated, “We’re the only team that’s played the conference challenge on the road each year we’re eligible. A lot of teams play it at home, [but] we feel like it’s a great way to see what our team is made of.”

The team’s following games will be big, early back-to-back home tests against the top two

teams in the PSAC Eastern Division preseason poll. The defending conference champion Shippensburg Raiders, ranked fourth in the DII Bulletin Top-25 preseason poll, will visit Morrow Field House on Nov. 18 and the Kutztown Golden Bears, who reached the Atlantic Region quarterfinals in the NCAA DII tournament last year, will follow the next day.

The Rock will face three teams who won at least 20 games and three teams that made the NCAA tournament last season.

“We’ve got guys who want to win,” said Wooten. “We feel as if we’re the best team in the PSAC. I feel like we can win it all this year.”

Success with less

Slippery Rock men’s basketball has one of the best turnarounds in Division II

By Justin Kraus Sports Editor

For any small college team, branding is important. For the Slippery Rock men’s basketball team, theirs is not only catchy, it’s true-- #SuccessWithLess.

The saying and subsequent hashtag’s creation are credited to graduate assistant, Thomas “Tank” Shiffert.

“The coaches were telling me the scholarship money situation, I thought ‘they’ve been really successful with not as much [funding] as the other schools, so it was success with less,” Shiffert said.

“I thought it was only for certain times, it just kind of sticks now.”

“Social media is such an important way to get your message out there,” Graduate assistant Aaron Kollar said.

“The way to do it is just to hit it hard and they are going to associate those hash tags with our program, it’s going to help us stay around.”

The meaning of the Rock men’s team social media branding stems from the achievements the program has brought with much less financial help available.

Slippery Rock ranks dead last in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) in total scholarship aid available with $114,188, $327,537 dollars less than Merchyhurst who The Rock faced in the first round of the PSAC playoffs last year. “'Success with less' is that we haven’t had for nine years what the other teams have had, but we’ve had success,” Slippery Rock head coach Kevin Reynolds said.

“We don’t make excuses, we knew we had to work harder.”

While financial struggles are common for small-college athletics, the results SRU has churned out while being so financially restricted is outstanding.

Compared to 1998-2008, the Rock has a plus 98 win differential from 20082017; which is the fifth-most in the contry and more than 30 wins better than the second-most in the PSAC. “We used to be that kind of team where the other team could put in their 13th, 14th and 15th guys versus us, and the crowd goes nuts because those guys work hard in practice,” Reynolds said.

“When you play Slippery Rock now, you know that it’s going to be a big game. No matter where we go, it’s the best crowd of the year at their place.”

Reynolds attributes this success to the players that he has had, and his assistant coaching staff.

“The other part of the success with less coach Grady and the GAs,” Reynolds

Scan this QR code to watch a video on theonlinerocket.com

said. “There isn’t a more valuable assistant coach in the PSAC for any sport, that’s just what it is. Look at the wins and look what we’ve done it with.”

Attracting coaches and players to a program that receives weak financial support can’t be easy, but Kollar jumped at the chance to come back to SRU. “Any opportunity to continue my education and continue working in basketball was obvious,” Kollar said.

“Working for Coach Reynolds for two years as a manager was a great

+98

Slippery Rock men's basketball has a +98 win turnaround in the past decade, compared to the previous ten-year period. 98 wins is the fifth-best in Division II, and the best in the PSAC.

experience, so I definitely wanted to stay as a GA.” Reynolds has been at SRU since 2008, meaning his first year was the first of the huge turnaround that the Green and White are in the midst of. While Reynolds is never one to speak on his own behalf, his assistant coaches have a high opinion of his work.

“He’s been very successful out here, so it was a no brainer [to join the program],” Shiffert said.

The branding of the Slippery Rock team, which also includes the social media slogans of #RockBoys and #GlassCleaners (relating to the team’s rebounding proficiency) has done a great job of bringing everyone around the program together. “[The hash tags] mean that we work with what we have and we find ways to break the mold. If you’ve ever watched Moneyball, that’s the kind of mindset we have,” Kollar said. “Everybody else has a lot more than we do, and we need to find a way to stay competitive, even though we aren’t up there with the other teams in terms of funding.”

“Everybody’s got a chip on their shoulder now, knowing that we’re working with less but we’re at the same level as those other teams competing,” Shiffert said. “We’re grinding as coach [Reynolds] would say.”

Even though Slippery Rock has done a tremendous job with their turnaround, they are still hungry to further improve what they’ve done.

“We’re not satisfied. We’re happy with what we’ve done, we’re prideful of what we’ve done, but we’re not done yet,” Reynolds said.

Slippery Rock will look to build even further upon that win differential when they start play on November 11th, versus Glenville State.

This season is Reynolds 10th, which came as a surprise to the coach that he had been at the Rock that long.

“I don’t think if you asked me when I first came that I would [have thought] I’d be here for ten years. It’s been a great ten years and I’ve really enjoyed it,” Reynolds said. “The people inside the buildings at SRU are what have made these ten years good. Time flies when you’re having fun.”

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November 10, 2017

2017-18 Basketball Roster #1

rs.junior

Guard

6’3”

aaron mcdonald Aaron McDonald is a junior guard from Laurel, Md. McDonald played two years at Harford Community College, averaging 12.4 points and 3.3 assists per game in 2016-17.

rs.junior

guard

6’3” 185lbs

#5 junior

guard

6’4” 185lbs

senior forward

6’9” 190lbs

180lbs

#3

#2

de’shae lee De'Shae Lee is a junior guard from Altoona, Pa. Lee played two seasons for Garrett College, averaging 16.3 points per game and shot 41.2 percent from three point range.

bruce spruell Bruce Spruell is a junior guard from Hanover, Md. Spruell was a two year starter at American International where he averaged 12.8 points and 4.7 rebounds per game last season.

#4 rs.junior

guard

5’10” 170lbs

#11 rs. so. forward

6’7” 250lbs

#12

evan chandler

#13

freshman

Evan Chandler is a freshman guard from Harrisbug, Pa. Chandler was an allconference selection at Central Dauphin East High School.

freshman

guard

6’1” 195lbs

#14 freshman

guard

6’2” 170lbs

#20 rs.senior

Guard

6’3”

junior forward

6’9” 200lbs

6’4”

Richard Bivens is a senior forward from Bakersfield, Ca. Bivens played his junior season at Florida International where he shot 56 percent from the field and started six games.

gabe mack Gabe Mack is a junior guard from Harrisburg, Pa. Mack Previously played at Allegany College in Maryland. Mack averaged 13 points, 5 assists and 3.3 rebounds per game in the 2016-17 season.

micah till Micah Till is a sophomore forward from Upper Marlboro, Md. Till played football at NC State as a freshman before transfering to Harford CC for basketball where he averaged 16.3 points per game.

karlyn garner Karlyn Garner is a freshman guard from West Mifflin, Pa. Garner was named the Daily News Player of the Year and to the Fab 15 as a senior at West Mifflin High School.

190lbs

simon mulaa Simon Mulaa is a freshman guard from Fairfax, Va. Mulaa was named a first-team All-Patriot League Defnese honoree, and led W.T. Woodson high school to the 2017 6A state championship.

#15 rs.senior

khyree wooten

190lbs

Kyree Wooten is a senior guard from Philladelphia, Pa. Wooten averaged 8.7 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 2 assists per game last year with SRU. Wooten will serve as the team's captain this season.

merdic green

#22

christal malalu

Merdic Green is a senior guard from Levittown, Pa. In 29 games last year at SRU, Green averaged 10.8 points, 4.8 rebounds and shot 45.3 percent from the field.

senior

Christal Malalu is a senior center from Eindhoven, Netherlands. Malalu averaged 7.7 points and 6.9 rebounds as Slippery Rock's starting center in 2016-17.

guard

6’2”

center

6’9” 240lb s

200lbs

#24

guard

richard bivens

brandon simmons Brandon Simmons is a junior forward from Harlem, N.Y. Simmons averaged 11.7 points, 8.1 rebounds and 2 blocks last year at Marshalltown Community College in Iowa.

#25 senior forward

6’5” 185lbs

tony gates Tony Gates is a senior forward from Monaca, Pa. Gates averaged 3.7 points and 2.3 rebounds while starting five of the 23 games he played in. Gates is one of four returners for The Rock this season.

Page designed by Paris Malone

2017 SPORTS SPECIAL Newcomers to make major contributions November 10, 2017

A-4

KENDALL SCOTT/THE ROCKET

Sophomore Brooke Hinderliter drives to the hoop during a game against Mercyhurst last season. Hinderliter averaged 10.5 points and 4.8 rebounds last season.

Continued from Page A-1

Division I Saint Francis (Pa.), and junior Morgan Henderson. But McGraw said there is also a lineup that consists Hinderliter, Johnson, Patterson and seniors Mallory Heinle and Krista Pietropola that could also start a lot of the games.

With Lexi Carpenter graduated, McGraw said that his team will look to give the ball to Patterson in pressure filled situations.

“Right now, if we had to put the ball in someone’s hands when we are down a point with 15 seconds left, it would be Ciara Patterson,” McGraw said.

Patterson didn’t appear in a game last season, and McGraw said people forget about the damage she did to teams two years ago. During the 2015-2016 season, Patterson recorded 354 points (12.6 per game), 58 assists, and 88 rebounds.

“[Patterson] had 26 points against IUP,” McGraw said. “She had 15 in the first half against Duquesne, who happened to be #22 in the country for Division 1 women’s basketball, and she averaged 13 points per game.

So yeah, if we were down a point with a few seconds, the ball would be in her hands.”

Hinderliter is also expected to improve immensely from her impressive rookie season, McGraw said. McGraw said that Hinderliter was “robbed” by the conference by not winning the “PSAC West Freshman of the Year” award. However, instead of “hanging her head” about it, Hinderliter has worked twice as hard in the offseason, he said. McGraw said Hinderliter will start the season being The Rock’s primary point guard.

McGraw said that Pietropola is expected to continue being a threepoint threat to opponents. She enters the season 15th in program history for three-pointers made with 62. McGraw continued by saying Pietropola had a fantastic summer because she came back this year in the best shape he has seen her in yet.

“Krista Pietropola is hands down one of the best shooters in the PSAC,” McGraw said. “She just needs reminded of that sometimes.

She can really light it up when she gets rolling and we need a big contribution from her this year if we wish to accomplish what we want to accomplish.”

The Rock brings in two transfers to their team this year. Johnson, who was mentioned above as transferring from Saint Francis University, is joined by Kasich Harris from Harford Community College in Maryland. McGraw said that Harris has suffered a knee injury and will likely be out for most of the season.

“We expect all of the transfers to make huge impacts for our team this year in some way,” McGraw said McGraw also introduces four freshmen to The Rock. Aujanane Givner, Lex Perry, Kaylee Young and Skyla O’Conner all bring “unique” talent to SRU, McGraw said. McGraw continued by saying that he expects O’Conner to receive a lot of minutes this season and will be a force on the court for her team this year.

McGraw said one of the biggest positives he sees in his team this year is the senior leadership by the veterans on the team.

“Mallory Heinle has been with me for four years now, Sierra Fordham has been with me for four years, Krista Pietropola has been with me for three years, Patterson has been here for three years,” McGraw said.

“This is the most seasoned team I have had.”

Slippery Rock will open up their 2017-2018 season this weekend when they travel to Richmond, Virginia, to take part in the annual “PSAC-CIAA Challenge.” Last year at this tournament, The Rock won both games they played in. They beat Johnson C. Smith University in a narrow 80-79 final score and took down Fayetteville State University 67-58. The first of the two games will be this Friday against Virginia State University (22-8 last season). Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.

The second game will be the following day against Lincoln University (9-20 last season). Tipoff for game two is scheduled for 1 p.m.

St. Francis transfer looks to make immediate impact

By Stephen Cukovich Assistant Sports Editor

After appearing in 22 games for Division I St. Francis University as a true freshman and redshirting the following year, redshirt sophomore guard Madison Johnson will make her SRU debut when the team kicks off their season Friday at Virginia State University.

“Madison Johnson probably has the chance to make the biggest impact,” SRU women’s basketball head coach Bobby McGraw said regarding first year players on the team.

In the 2015-16 season Johnson recorded 45 points, with 18 coming in her first collegiate contest against the University of Cincinnati to earn her Northeastern Conference (NEC) Rookie of the Week. Johnson was a 38 percent field goal shooter and a 26 percent shooter from three point land during her time at St. Francis. She was able to tally five rebounds, six assists, three steals, two blocks, while compiling a total of 108 minutes during her freshman season. When it comes to differences between SRU and St. Francis, Johnson says she is more personally accountable for getting outside practice and reps with the Green and White than at St. Francis.

“You get out of it what you put in,” Johnson said. “Definitely hard work is needed and getting extra shots off on your own, that’s the main difference.”

The Knox, Pa native attended Keystone High School where she lettered four times in basketball and three times for volleyball with all-state honors for basketball her junior and senior years. She helped lead her team to a District 9 title in 2012, while also earning District 9 Rookie of the Year honors her freshman year, Player of the Year her junior season, and a three time All-Conference honoree.

“She’s a great teammate, which only goes so far if you’re not skilled, but she’s highly skilled,” McGraw said. “She has a tremendous work ethic and she is hands down in the best physical shape on the team.”

The newbie to the team will get immediate playing time alongside fellow sophomore

JACK LINDEY/THE ROCKET

Sophomore Madison Johnson joins The Rock after spending two years at Saint Francis University.

guard Brooke Hinderliter. Over the past few weeks Johnson has been able to become more familiar with her new teammates and coaches which comes with the territory of being a transfer, but Johnson says she has been welcomed nicely to the SRU family.

“It’s been very awesome meeting new teammates and getting a chance to play with them,” Johnson said. “We are really clicking and playing well together. I’m really excited just to see how everything works out.”

For Johnson, transferring to The Rock wasn’t a hard choice being that it is closer to home for her and she still gets that same competitive atmosphere she had during her time in Division I. “Slippery Rock has always been a school I’ve watched throughout the years,” Johnson said. “The PSAC I know is a very competitive conference and so I just thought that Slippery Rock was fitting for me.”

A-5

November 10, 2017 #1

madison johnson

#2

aujanae givner

rs. so.

Madison Johnson is a sophomore guard from Knox, Pa. Johnson played two seasons at St. Francis (Pa.) University. Johnson scored 18 points versus Cincinnati in her freshman year.

freshman

Aujanae Givner is a freshman Guard from Pittsburgh, Pa. Givner averaged 15.4 poins per game for Taylor Allderdice High School in 2016-17.

#2

Kasch Harris

#4

sophomore

Kasch Harris is a sophomore guard from Philladephia, Pa. Harris averaged 4.5 points and 2.4 assists at Harford College in Maryland. Harford went 27-3 in the 2015-16 season.

guard

5’8”

guard

5’5” #5

ciara patterson

5’7”

Ciara Patterson is a junior guard from North Versailles, Pa. Patterson played for The Rock in 2015-16, averaging 12.6 points, 3.1 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.7 steals per game. She will serve as a team captain this season.

#11

krista pietropola

rs.junior

guard

senior guard

Krista Pietropola is a senior guard from Pittsburgh, Pa. Pietropola enters the 201718 season 15th in program history in three pointers made with 62.

6’1” #14 senior g/f

6’2” #20 sophomore

forward

5’10”

#35 junior f o r wa r d

guard

5’7”

rs.freshman

guard

5’5” #10 freshman

guard

5’7” #12 senior guard

lex perry Lex Perry is a freshman guard from Aliquippa, Pa. Perry lettered four times in basketball at Aliquippa High School and graduated third in her class.

kaylee young Kaylee Young is a freshman guard from Fort LeBouf, Pa. Young earned 11 total letters in four different sports in high school and was named all-region in basketball three times.

sierra fordham Sierra Fordham is a senior guard from Pittsburgh Pa. Fordham started seven games last season and averaged 3.3 points and 1.4 rebounds per game.

5’6” mallory heinle Mallory Heinle is a senior guard/forward from Natrona Heights, Pa. Heinle needs 49 points and 161 rebound to become the 15th SRU player to record 500 in each catagory.

leeann gibson LeeAnn Gibson is a sophomore forward from Chicora, Pa. Gibson started 4 games lat year as a true freshman and averaged 4.6 points and 4 rebounds per game.She will serve as a team captain this season.

#15 freshman

guard

skyla 0’connor Skyla O'Connor is a freshman guard from Medford, N.J. O'Connor lettered in basketball and track and field at Lenape High School.

5’8” #23 sophomore

guard

5’9”

brooke hinderliter Brooke Hindleriter is a sophomore guard from Seminole, Pa. Hinderliter led all PSAC freshmen in rebounds and was second in scoring last season. She averaged 10.5 points and 4.8 rebounds per game.

morgan henderson Morgan Henderson is a junior center from Pittsburgh, Pa. Henderson started 26 of 28 games for The Rock last year, averaging 6.9 points and 5.8 rebounds per game.

6’2”

Page designed by Paris Malone

2017 SPORTS SPECIAL

B-1

the rocket The student newspaper of Slippery Rock University since 1934.

Volume 101, 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 Cody Nespor

November 10, 2017

George Mihalik’s George Mihalik Head Coach - SRU (retired) At SRU 1988-2015 197-111-4 Career Record Eight PSAC-West Titles Six Time PSAC Coach of the Year SRU Athletic Hall of Fame (1997)

Editor-in-Chief

Daniel DiFabio

News Editor

Megan Bush

Campus Life Editor

Justin Kraus

Sports Editor

Paris Malone

Photo Editor

Victoria Davis

Copy/ Web Editor

Adam Zook

Assistant News Editor

Megan Majercak Stephen Cukovich

Assist. Campus Life Editor Assistant Sports Editor

Hunter Casilio

Assistant Photo Editor

Heather Donat

Assist. Copy/Web Editor

Eric Davies

Jay Foster HC - Clarion (retired) At SRU 1988-2006

Shawn Lutz Head Coach - SRU At SRU 1996-Current

Rob Keys Head Coach - Findlay At SRU 2006-2009

Dom Razzano DC - SRU At SRU 2014-Current

Jason Makrinos DC - Findlay At SRU 2005-2006

Phil Longo OC - Ole Miss At SRU 2011-2013

Casey Vogt OC - Mercer At SRU 2001-2002

Zack Patterson RB - Sam Houston At SRU 2012-2015

Keith Willis DL - Tennessee Titans At SRU 1995-1998

Eric Thatcher DB - Florida Internatioal At SRU 2013-2014

Al Washinton DL - Cinncinatti At SRU 2012-2015

Quindell Dean DB - Fairmont State At SRU 2015-2016

Josh Bermann GA - New Mexico At SRU 2013, 2015/16

Dwayne Martin DC - WV Wesleyan At SRU 2000-2005

Multimedia Reporter

Brittany Fleming

Faculty Adviser

ADVERTISING STAFF Miranda Morgan

Advertising Manager

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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.

GRAPHIC BY CODY NESPOR/ THE ROCKET

*Not Pictured - Pat Cuba, Freddie Aughtry-Lindsay, Andre Barboza, Raleigh Jackson, Bret Geishauser, Joe Lamenza, Shawn Rohrer, Ricky Porter, Greg Mihalik, JJ Milanovich, Thomas Howard, Brian Radkovich, Tom Herman, Billy Ray Perkins, AJ Hopp, Tony Papley, John Bell, Larry Wilson, Dennis Winston, Matt Gueguen, Jon McCune, Michael Bongivengo

November 10, 2017

2017 SPORTS SPECIAL

B-2

28-year Coaching Tree By creating a culture centered around family and fun, Mihalik inspired a wave of football coaches

By Cody Nespor Editor-in-Chief

Measuring the success of a college football head coach is not an exact science. There are a lot of factors that go into every win or loss, so it is hard to know just how much credit or blame to place on the head coach. However, whatever metric you use, long-time Slippery Rock head coach George Mihalik will likely be near the top of the list.

In 28 years as head coach at SRU, Mihalik totaled a 197111-4 (.638) record with eight Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) West Division championships, six PSAC West Coach of the Year awards and six NCAA national playoffs berths. Mihalik was also inducted into the SRU athletic hall of fame in 1997 and SRU's stadium was renamed to Mihalik-Thompson in his honor in 2011.

By any measure, Mihalik is a legendary college football coach. What is perhaps most telling of his success is the number of other football coaches he inspired. By his own estimation, Mihalik has had 38 assistant coaches in his time at Slippery Rock eventually went on to coach elsewhere. In football circles, this is called the Mihalik coaching tree.

Mihalik said that the greatest pride he feels is when someone he coached with loved it so much that they continued to do it even after they left SRU. "I think the biggest compliment you can have is somebody who coaches with you, who wants to continue to coach, because that means they had a great experience," Mihalik said. "You know people who have jobs and they say, 'I never want that job again' because it was a negative experience. So anyone of these guys that you could mention I'm so proud of them, because at some point during my association with them they got a love for coaching and that love was fostered during our time together."

The roots of Mihalik's coaching tree run deep, and the branches have spread out wide. There are former Mihalik assistants in all four NCAA football divisions across the entire nation. Jay Foster is one of the longest tenured assistant coaches that Mihalik ever had. Foster was SRU's defensive coordinator from 1988 (Mihalik's first year) until 2006. In 2006 he accepted a job as head coach of PSAC-West rival Clarion University. Slippery Rock and Clarion have one of the best rivalries in the PSAC and play each other once a year. Mihalik said it was hard to coach against someone he knew so well.

"That was always a tough game, because we were great friends and you just knew at the end of the day someone's happy and someone is not happy," Mihalik said. "It was always tough to coach against someone who you had a strong personal relationship with. You wanted the best for him every week, but the time you played him, someone wasn't happy."

Foster echoed Mihalik's sentiment, saying that it was more like playing a family member rather than a rival school.

"It's like playing your family, playing against your older brother," Foster said. "You want to beat him so bad. If you win obviously you're happy but at the same time you're bummed because you beat your brother. If you lose you're bummed, but if you're going to lose to somebody you wouldn't want to lose to anyone else."

Foster put together a 29-70 record in nine years as head coach at Clarion before moving on to be the wide receivers coach at the University of Albany.

After two years at Albany, Foster retired from coaching college football and now coaches high school football in Washington. Foster said that one of the best things that

ALEX MOWRY/ THE ROCKET

Mihalik did was not interfere too much with what his assistants were doing.

"I think the biggest thing that I'll always remember Coach for was, he allowed his coaches to coach," Foster said. "He was not a micromanager and I always appreciated that. He let us do our job, he trusted us to do our job. That was one of the things I'll always remember and I'll always appreciate about him, I was pretty young when I became a coordinator for him, and he trusted me."

Beyond Foster, Mihalik's influence can be seen all over the PSAC. Shawn Lutz and Dom Razzano are coaches at SRU, Tom Herman is the offensive line coach at Mercyhurst, Bill Perkins is the strength and conditioning coach at Bloomsburg and Larry Wilson coaches wide receivers at California (Pa.).

Lutz worked on Mihalik's staff for 20 years and eventually succeeded Mihalik as SRU's head coach in 2016 following Mihalik's retirement. Lutz started at The Rock in 1996 as the tight ends coach. He spent time as the defensive line coach, defensive coordinator and associate head coach prior to becoming head coach.

Lutz said that he never expected to spend more than a year or two at Slippery Rock, but stayed because of the culture that Mihalik had created.

"I never realized how long I would be here at Slippery Rock," Lutz said. "I thought this is a place where I'd be here a year or two and then springboard to somewhere in division I. What I figured out was, it's a special place because of what coach Mihalik is all about, about family and it's not all about football."

Mihalik said that he never hired an assistant based on their football knowledge, rather he hired people on what kind of person they were.

"If you have good people, you'll have a good program," Mihalik said. "I was looking at the person. The X's and O's, if you don't have it we can teach you that. But if you're not a good person I can't change you, I can't make you a good person."

In Lutz, Mihalik said that he saw a young man with enthusiasm and a passion for football and coaching and a willingness to work hard and he said he knew Lutz would make a good coach.

Another Mihalik product who went on to be a head coach is Rob Keys. Keys coached with Mihalik from 2006-2009 as the defensive backs coach and has been the head coach at Division II University of Findlay since 2011. Keys is joined at Findlay by Jason Makrinos, who coached at SRU in two stints in 2005-2006 and 2010-2013.

Mihalik's coaching tree reaches all the way into Division I football, with a number of coaches working at college football's highest level.

The fastest rise from Mihalik's staff to Division I was former SRU offensive coordinator Phil Longo. Longo joined The Rock in 2011 as the wide receivers coach, joining his wife Tanya Longo who was head coach of the SRU women's basketball team at the time. Longo then spent 2012 and 2013 as SRU's offensive coordinator, before joining division I Sam Houston State in 2014.

After two years there, Longo is now the offensive coordinator at SEC school Ole Miss University.

Longo's successor at SRU, Zack Patterson, has also made a quick rise into the division I coaching ranks. Patterson started at The Rock in 2012 and replaced Longo as the offensive coordinator in 2015.

In Patterson's only season at the helm of SRU's offense led division in scoring with 45.2 points per game and was fifth in total offense with 490.3 yards per game. After his impressive

season Patterson was hired by Sam Houston State in 2016 where he currently coaches the running backs.

Patterson is the latest in a long line of young coaches who got their start under Mihalik and then went on to coach else where. Quindell Dean (now at Fairmont State), Joe Lamenza (Blackhawk high school), Casey Vogt (Mercer University), Ricky Porter (Jackson State), JJ Milanovich (Emporia State), Brian Radakovich (Waynesburg) and John Bell (St. Vincent) all started their coaching careers at SRU before moving on to other schools.

"I always took great pride in getting that young coach and giving him his first start," Mihalik said. "Giving him  his chance as a [graduate] assistant which then leads to fulltime coaching, either here or elsewhere. I always viewed myself as a mentor."

Mihalik also liked bringing in former players to his staff.

The most successful former players who worked with Mihalik are Eric Thatcher, who played at the University of Pittsburgh from 2004-2008, and Keith Willis, who played in the NFL from 1982-1993.

Thatcher had coached at a few different places after his playing days before coming to SRU in 2013, but he said that the family atmosphere Mihalik had created here was what made Slippery Rock a special place to coach.

"I learned how to manage coaching and family time," Thatcher said. "I learned to get rid of football sometimes and just go be with your wife, your kids."

Thatcher said that there were times with assistant coaches when Mihalik would not want to talk about football. He said Mihalik would just talk about life and how he could help his assistant coaches in their lives. Thatcher said Mihalik helped them all become better men, fathers, husbands and boyfriends just in those times when he would put football to the side and talk to them.

After playing in the NFL, Willis tried working in radio, but ultimately decided he wanted to try his hand at coaching. To start, Willis was just looking to volunteer at any school that would take him. He started his search at Youngstown State, but when he traveled to campus and talked to their coach he realized they did not have a spot for him. On his way back home he decided to stop at Slippery Rock, just to see.

Willis said that from the beginning Mihalik treated him differently. Within 48 hours of his interview, Mihalik had called Willis and offered him a position, but instead of volunteer like he had wanted, Mihalik insisted that Willis be paid. Willis started at SRU in 1995 and after one year he said that he had the opportunity to go elsewhere, but did not want to leave Mihalik.

"Being around these guys was unbelievable," Willis said. "I had an opportunity to go after one year, but I ended up staying for four. I would have paid to coach for (Mihalik)."

Willis stayed at SRU until 1998 and worked his way up through the division I and professional ranks and now serves as a defensive line assistant for the Tennessee Titans in the NFL. "I learned don't be afraid to say that you're wrong," Willis said. "Don't be afraid to apologize to your players, that's how you gain more respect."

Throughout all the years he was at Slippery Rock, all the players he coached and all the assistants he worked with, Mihalik emphasized family and fun above everything else, even football. In doing this he created a culture that people wanted to be a part of. Players wanted to play for him, assistants want to work for him and all the while Mihalik was facilitating a love for football that often lasted beyond their time at Slippery Rock.

Men's

Guard #5 Jr. Bruce Spruell

Guard #15 Sr. Khyree Wooten

B-3

Guard #20 Sr. Merdic Green

Center #22 Sr. Christal Malalu

Guard #23 So. Brooke Henerson

Guard #1 So. Madison Johnson

November 10, 2017

Guard #5 Jr. Ciara Patterson

And now, your Slippery Rock

Forward #2 Sr. Richard Bivens

Forward #20 So. LeeAnn Gibson

Women's

Center #35 Jr. Morgan Henderson

Starting Five

S

November 10, 2017

C-1

INSIDE SPORTS Football player breaks all-time NCAA record

SPORTS

PSAC basketball conference outlooks

Senior defensive end Marcus Martin has had one of the greatest careers in NCAA football history.

SRU is expected to compete in men's and women's basketball in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference.

See Page C-5

See Page C-2

Junior women's soccer player wins October Athlete of the Month

By Karl Ludwig Rocket contributor

Fresh off her first All-PSAC selection and a very strong junior year, women’s soccer player Brooke Testa has been voted the Rocket's Athlete of the Month for October.

Testa had no idea she was the Athlete of the Month until being interviewed by the Rocket, expressing pleasant surprise upon being informed. “Oh, so I did win!” she said with a grin on her face.

Testa led all players on the women’s soccer team with 21 points this season on 6 goals and 9 assists leading to a second team All-PSAC selection. Testa played and started in 17 of the possible 18 games this year helping lead The Rock to a 10-6-2 record on the year and a spot in the PSAC playoffs.

“I think we all just helped each other achieve it, you know we couldn’t have done it without everyone else,” Testa said.

Despite a disappointing first round exit in the PSAC playoffs this season, Testa put up a strong performance in the playoffs with the lone Slippery Rock goal against East Stroudsburg University in the attempted upset.

Testa had an encouraging freshman year on the team after recording seven points on three goals and an assist in eight starts while playing 17 total games. Testa was unable to build upon her freshman year in year two due to an array of injuries leading to only 11 games played with eight starts (tallying four points on two goals). Testa really delivered in her third season, leading The Rock in goals, assists, points, shots, and shots on goal.

“The biggest thing for her, she was finally healthy all season long,” coach Jennifer Griggs said (the statement drawing a chuckle from Testa herself), “so, this is her third season here and in her first two seasons, she was out out of play for a good portion… so she was healthy, and I think that helped her with consistency and everything.”

Moving forward, Testa, a biochemistry major, is hoping to put everything she has gained through the first three years on the women’s soccer team together and have the year she knows she is capable of

PARIS MALONE/THE ROCKET

Junior midfielder Brooke Testa kicks the ball in play in a game earlier this year. Testa led the team in total points with 21, and was voted The Rocket's Athlete of the Month for October.

putting together, individually and as a team.

“Team wise, I would like to make it farther in PSAC play. I do think it was a tough loss… our coming out in the first round but I think we could definitely continue it next year,” Testa said. “Same goal as this year, get an All-PSAC team [nomination], just help contribute to the whole team.”

Rock men's basketball brings in nine total transfers

By Keegan Beard Rocket contributor

Head Coach Kevin Reynolds of the Slippery Rock men's basketball team is no stranger to having a transferladen team. At the beginning of last season, the team only had two returners with almost a full team of transfer players. This season the team will welcome nine transfers to play alongside the four returning players from last season.

The first of the new transfers is a 6'3" guard from Garret College in Maryland. Redshirt-junior De'Shea Lee comes in with impressive stats averaging 16.3 points per game (ppg) on 54 percent shooting from the field and 41.2 percent on three-point field shots. Lee said that Slippery Rock stuck out to him when he was searching for somewhere to continue his career because of how well The Rock stayed in contact with him.

"I was finishing up at my last school and I was in contact with them the most out of any other school," Lee said.

Lee is also making somewhat of a homecoming coming to The Rock as he was a graduate of Altoona Area High School. The Rock's resume and history of sending players to play professionally overseas is what drew in Lee. Lee was confident that the team has prepared well for the season and is doing well to learn to play together.

Lee says that since so many players on the team are in the same situation, it makes it easier for them to play together as a team.

The next transfer is a 5'10" guard coming in from Allegheny College in Cumberland, Maryland. Gabe Mack is

the shortest player on The Rock team, but he's no stranger to playing with guys almost a foot taller than him.

"I've always been the smallest guy on the court so it hasn’t really been too much of an adjustment," Mack said. "I know I just have to be that much more detail-oriented and better at making decisions on the court".

Mack also thinks that the team's chemistry is coming along well so far this season.

"It's actually been good, it's better than I thought it was going to be because we've got a lot of guys that just transferred in here," Mack said. "We used the preseason to just learn how guys are playing in order to get better as the season continues".

Brandon Simmons is the next Rock transfer coming from Marshalltown Community College as a 6'9" forward with 11.7 ppg, 8.1 rebounds per game(rpg), and two blocks per game.

Marshalltown has a history of sending players to The Rock to play basketball; both senior center Christal Malalu and senior guard Merdic Green came to The Rock via Marshalltown. Those are only two of the more than halfdozen players Marshalltown has sent to The Rock since 2012.

"They kept going with [recruiting] consistently, and it's close to home," Simmons said.

Marshalltown is located in Iowa so the move to The Rock brought Simmons closer to his home in Harlem, New York.

Also coming in as transfers to play for The Rock is Bruce Spurrel, a 6'4" guard from American International College in Massachusetts. He averaged 12.8 ppg and 4.7 rpg.

Richard Bevins is a 6'9" forward coming in from Florida International

CODY NESPOR/THE ROCKET

Slippery Rock senior forward Richard Bivens scores on a layup versus Pittsburgh. Bivens came to SRU from Florida International this year, one of The Rock's nine transfers.

with 2.7 ppg and 2.2 rpg with 56 percent from the field overall. Both Bivens and Spruell started the team's exhibition game at Pittsburgh. Both played 20 minutes, and Bivens brought in eight rebounds, while Spruell recorded four points.

The Rock has two additional transfers that cannot play immediately.

Junior center Troidell Carter can play once the fall semester grades are final,

and junior forward Ryan Skovranko will redshirt this year after coming from West Chester.

These transfers will join two other transfers from Harford College, Aaron Mcdonald and Micah Till, and the four returners to make up The Rock men's basketball team. The team will compete next at the Jakobi's Journey Classic November 11 and 12 to start the season.

2017 sports Special Women's PSAC West to feature fierce competition C-2

November 10, 2017

By Steve Cukovich

starters including last season's conference leading scorer, senior forward Seairra The Indiana University (Pa.) Crimson Barrett who was able to earn her team an Hawks and the Warriors of East average of 18.6 points and 6.8 rebounds a Stroudsburg have been picked to finish game.

"We don't talk a lot about offense," Strom number one in their respective divisions in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference said. "Most of our offense comes from our (PSAC) preseason coaches poll with The defense; its the same expectations as last Rock projected to finish sixth in the west. year."

Third in the west brings Edinboro Green and White sophomore guard Brooke Hinderliter was the top PSAC West University behind head coach Stan Swank freshman last season as she averaged 10.5 who finished fourth in the division last year points and 4.8 rebounds per game. Head with a 21-9 overall record. In one of the coach Bobby McGraw led his team to top offenses in the conference, the Fighting a 9-19 overall record last season which Scots lead by senior forward Ciara Rosten landed them eighth in the division, but was able to collect 11.9 points a game, while with additions like St. Francis transfer, the team averaged 70.5 points.

Seton Hill clocks in at number four redshirt sophomore Madison Johnson, McGraw likes what his team has to bring in the west lead by head coach Mark Katarski who lead his team to a 16-13 to the table.

"This is the best team chemistry I've had record last season while he watched senior here in my four years as head coach without guard Jenna Kaufman dominate and a doubt," McGraw said. "This team really rack up 15.2 points a game against their enjoys being around each other. When you opponents.

"I hate talking about individual players," have chemistry and skill you have a chance Katarski said. "It's a one year season, no one to do something pretty special."

Indiana, who defeated California has a head start. What happened last year University 84-79 last season in the PSAC has no effect on this year."

At number five comes Gannon Championship game, lead by head coach Tom McConnell was able to take University who returns all five starters as first place in the west coaches poll after well such as senior guard Maggie Mitchell receiving eight of the nine first place votes. who tallied 17.3 points per game last season All five starters from last year will return which landed her fifth in the conference for including junior Carolyn Appleby who scoring. The Golden Knights ended their posted an average of 14.7 points per game season with a 9-19 record placing seventh and senior guard/forward Megan Smith and missing the PSAC Tournament for the first time in five years. who helped out with 14.1 points a game.

After The Rock, at number seven sits In second would be California who posted a 30-4 record behind the top offense Clarion University who made the playoffs in the PSAC with 80.6 points a game was last season at the number six seed with a able to earn them the top spot coming out 15-14 overall record. Returning starters of the west last year behind head coach include junior guard Jordan Bekelja who Jessica Strom. The team will return three averaged 11 points a game and senior Assistant Sports Editor

guard Amesha Harden-Pullium with 9.8 points per game.

Sliding in at number eight would be the University of Pitt-Johnstown behind head coach Mike Drahos. The Mountain Cats posted an 8-20 record with a team that included seven freshmen players with most of them seeing a lot of court time.

"They made major strides," Drahos said regarding his seven freshmen last year who are now sophomores. "Importantly they got experience and hopefully we are more battle tested coming into this season."

Rounding out the west lands Mercyhurst University who landed a 24-8 record last season putting them in third place in the west, saw many of their starters graduate this off-season and added six freshman to their roster. In fact the Lakers have just one senior and two juniors on their roster, making them one of the most inexperienced teams in the PSAC. Coming out of the east, the Warriors were picked number one receiving seven of the nine first place votes behind head coach Diane Decker. Senior guard Imani Brown and junior guard Noelle Powell who earned first team all-conference honors last season as they combined for 26.3 points per game. They ended with a 19-9 record last season and fell to California in the quarterfinals of the PSAC Tournament.

Second from the east and receiving the other two votes of the possible nine was West Chester University who finished with a 10-17 record behind head coach Kiera Wooden. The teams leading scorer senior guard Porscha Speller averaged 13.7 points and 5.8 rebounds per game last season as she received first team all-conference honors.

Up next Kutztown University comes in at number three lead by head coach Janet

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Malouf posting a 13-18 overall record last season. The reigning PSAC East Freshman of the Year, guard Sierra Taylor, will look to continue her dominance as she averaged 11.2 points per game in her rookie year.

In fourth is Bloomsburg University who is coming off a 11-17 season after a poor start, but then wining 10 of their final 15 games. Junior guard Alyssa Mack lead the team in scoring with 13.2 points per game. Head coach Alison Tagliaferri's team lost in the quarterfinals last season to Shippensburg University.

Shippensburg comes in at number five after finishing number one in the east last season with a 24-7 record which joins East Stroudsburg as the only Eastern teams to finish with a record above .500. Behind head coach Kristy Trn and the Raiders will look to overcome their 67-58 semi-final overtime loss to IUP last season.

At number six is Millersville University is lead by longtime head coach Mary Fleig who earned her 600th career win last season when the team posted a 10-19 record earning them the six spot in the PSAC tournament. Senior guard Alayah Hall lead the team last season in scoring as she registered 13.1 points per contest.

Starting the bottom third of the east comes Lock Haven University who finished with a 10-16 record behind head coach Jennifer Smith. After their leading scorer graduated, junior guard Madison McHale may be the one to fill that roll as she finished second on the team in scoring with 10.3 points per game. Cheyney University comes in next after posting a 6-17 record last season, while Mansfield finishes off the east in ninth after posting a PSAC worst 5-21 record last year.

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IUP Gannon Mercyhurst Slippery Rock California (Pa.) UPJ Seton Hill Edinboro CLarion

IUP California (Pa.) Edinboro seton hill gannon Slippery Rock Clarion UPJ Mercyhurst

PSAC pegged as one of Division II's toughest conferences

By Justin Kraus Sports Editor

With exhibition games in the books, The Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference men's basketball teams will starts non-conference play this weekend, and will start conference play next week.

"There are some quality coaches, there is stability in a lot of places," Indiana (Pa.) head coach Joe Lombardi said.

"Year-to-year, talent may fluctuate, but they will always be well-coached. I think that's one of the biggest reasons the PSAC is one of the strongest conferences in the country year in and year out."

Lombardi along with the other PSAC coaches expect the conference to be even more competitive than it was last year.

"Overall, there are going to be a lot of improved teams in the west," Lombardi said. "One thing I can guarantee is that they will make improvement from one year to the next."

Leading the way for the PSAC-West division will be the Indiana (Pa.) Crimson Hawks, who received eight of the nine first-place votes in the PSAC-West preseason poll. IUP will be following up a stellar 2016-17 campaign, where the team went 21-2 in conference play and 28-4 overall. Indiana (Pa.) lost in the second round of the NCAA tournament last year to the eventual national runner-up, Fairmont State. IUP is also ranked no. 6 in the Division II basketball national preseason rankings.

IUP will be returning four starters, including the 2016 PSAC-West player of the year, junior forward Jacobo Diaz.

"There's general hopes and there are specific hopes [for us]," Lombardi said. "Specific hopes are to make the NCAA tournament, the general goals we try to keep small

to a day-by-day focus. We hope that will lead to success in the future."

Placing second in the PSAC-West preseason poll is the Gannon golden knights, who finished second in the division last year with a 15-7 record in conference.

Gannon's season came to an end last year in the PSAC playoff semifinals, falling to Kutztown 91-85 in overtime.

Gannon returns a full cupboard from last year with three of their top four scorers coming back, including senior guard Zay Jackson, who averaged 17.1 points per year, and made the third-most triple pointers in the PSAC last year.

Reilly himself will have something to look forward to, as he is nine wins shy of 450 on his career.

"Gannon has some very good core players coming back," Lombardi said.

After finishing the regular season 14-14 and 11-11 in conference play last year, the Mercyhurst Lakers fell in the PSAC quarterfinals to the aforementioned crimson hawks. Mercyhurst was selected third in the PSAC-West preseason poll, mostly thanks to returning the bulk of a team that held opponents to 68.8 points per game, namely senior big man Lorenzo Collier, who averaged 13.2 point per game.

Finishing the top half of the PSAC-West preseason poll in fourth place is Slippery Rock. Slippery Rock returns four overall players and three starters, while adding seven transfers that can play immediately. SRU led the PSAC in defense last year, holding opposing teams to 65 points per game. Senior center Christal Malalu is the best two-way returner for the Rock, having averaged 7.7 points and 6.9 rebounds per game last year.

"Slippery Rock added a lot of new talent, and they had a pretty good showing at Pitt," Lombardi said. "That bodes well for them moving forward."

"Our goal every year is to reach the NCAA tournament, and we're going to bring that attitude to practice" Slippery Rock head coach Kevin Reynolds said.

California (Pa.) is coming off of a disappointing 10-18 2016-17 campaign, and was picked fifth in the PSACWest coaches poll. Cal will be looking to build upon their 9.1 three-pointers per game they sank last year.

"The surprise team [in the PSAC west] might be California (Pa.)," Lombardi said. "They were probably the most improved team over the course of the season last year, so I expect them to be even more improved this year."

After a stellar 19-11 overall and 13-9 conference (thirdplace in PSAC-West) record last year which ended in a PSAC tournament quarterfinals loss, the Univeristy of Pittsburgh-Johnstown mountain cats are expected to have a drop off this season. UPJ was selected sixth in the PSAC-West coaches poll, despite returning all-PSAC senior guard Dale Clancy.

Seton Hill, Edinboro, and Clarion were picked seventh, eighth and ninth, respectively to round out the PSACWest.

Expected to lead the PSAC-East this year will be the no. 8 nationally preseason ranked Shippensburg raiders.

Shippesburg won their second ever PSAC title last year, and fell in the second round of the NCAA tournament.

The Raiders return four starters, and the NCAA Atlantic region coach of the year, Chris Fite.

Shippensburg received all but one PSAC-East preseason poll number one vote, the other went to East Stroudsburg, who was ranked third. Kutztown was ranked second in the preseason after losing in the PSAC championship game last year. West Chester, Lock Haven and Mansfield were picked fourth, fifth and sixth respectively in the middle of the pack. Bloomsburg, Millersville and Cheyney rounded out the PSAC-East preseason rankings.

November 10, 2017

2017 Sports Special

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2017 Sports Special

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November 10, 2017

Marcus Martin By the numbers

54.5 Sacks- leads all NCAA divisions all time 90.5 Tackles for loss - leads NCAA Division II all time

PSAC's first ever finalist for William V. Campbell trophy

3

PSAC player of the year awards. Two defensive player of the year awards, one freshman of the year award

3.56 GPA 1

The number of yards Marcus

Touchdown in Martin's career,

Martin has cost opposing

a 74-yard fumble return on

offenses over his career

senior day

November 10, 2017

2017 Sports Special

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Marcus Martin winding down historic career

By Justin Kraus Sports Editor

Slippery Rock senior defensive end Marcus Martin is a man who needs no introduction. He has one of the longest lists of awards for any athlete in history, both academically and athletically.

Martin's career at Slippery Rock almost didn't happen.

Martin was originally committed to The Rock's archrival, Indiana (Pa.). It was thanks to his high school teammates at West Mifflin that he came to SRU. “Shamar [Green] said ‘just come up, hang out we’ll have a good time.’ I went up here, and ended up loving it, everything about it,” Martin said. “Just as a recruit, I felt like I was part of a team already.”

“He visited with Shamar and the rest is history,” Long-time SRU head coach George Mihalik said.

Mihalik is a man who has coached thousands of football players throughout his life, but his recruitment and subsequent coaching of Martin are memories that he holds close to his heart.

“Marcus is the only guy that I did two home visits on,” Mihalik said. “You knew he was going to be all-conference and even all-American, [but] to be the greatest in the history of college football, no. As good as he was, you’re talking about the best ever. It’s to his credit, his work ethic and desire and passion to be the best, and he is.”

Once Martin was here, he was redshirted for reasons out of his control, regarding a college class he took in high school that wasn’t transferred properly.

“The redshirt year was tough on him, because we had a little snag with an academic grade,” Slippery Rock head coach Shawn Lutz said. “Shoot that doesn’t matter, because now he’s an academic all-American.”

“When we heard that [he had to sit out], I was crushed,” Mihalik said. “I remember saying ‘Marcus, five years from now you’ll be happy about this, we don’t see it now, but five years from now you’ll be happy.’ I think he’s glad that an unplanned redshirt came about.”

It’s easy for a coach to say that a player is grateful for sitting out a year, but Martin resonated with both he previous and current coaches sentiments.

“Everybody kept telling me it was a blessing in disguise, when you are fresh out of high school it’s hard to see that,” Martin said. “I think back and I’m so thankful that it happened, it truly was a blessing in disguise.”

Even in his redshirted season, Martin set the tone he would carry off the field for his career by being named a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) scholarathlete. Since then, Martin was named a PSAC scholar athlete three more times and in 2015 was awarded a Division II Athletics Directors Association academic achievement award. Those awards are dwarfed by Martin’s latest academic honor; he was announced as one of 13 finalists for the 2017 William V. Campbell trophy. All 13 finalists receive an $18,000 postgraduate scholarship. This award is presented to the best scholar-athlete football player in the nation, regardless of division.

“Now he’s one of the 13 finalists for the William Campbell award, the Heisman of academics. That’s what I think a lot of people miss, is what a relentless person he is on and off the field.” Lutz said.

“The work you do in the dark brings you into the light,” Martin said. “There was a lot of tears of joy when I first told my parents, my mom was crying at work and everyone was asking her what happened.”

Coming into the 2017 season, one of the big spotlights was on Martin to break the NCAA Division II all-time tackles for loss (TFL) and sack records. Martin made quick work of the TFL record, recording his 78th and record-breaking TFL in week three versus Lock Haven. Martin currently has 90.5 TFLs, 13.5 more than the second-place person, still with at least one game to play.

"He gives everything he’s got. It’s a lot of detail and focus, and every year he’s gotten better,” Lutz said. “That’s what I credit to him as a guy who just always does those little things which have turned into big things.”

The big record was the NCAA all-time all divisions sack record, which Martin was a favorite to break coming into the season. After the longest sackless streak of his career (three games), Martin recorded 4.5 sacks versus Clarion University on Oct. 28. to break the record.

“If you told me Marcus Martin would be the all-time sack leader in college football history, I would have never predicted that.” Lutz said.

Everybody can read the countless accolades that Martin has accrued throughout his career, but that magic is truly felt by his teammates and coaches. Slippery Rock linebackers’ assistant Mike Grata had the unique experience of both being a teammate with Martin and coaching him. Grata played with Martin for his first three years on the team, and has coached him the past two years.

“There is nobody on the team who is going to outwork him,” Grata said. “That was his mindset as a true freshman, and he carried it throughout his four years here. He wants to be the best.”

Playing next to somebody who is quite literally a walking legend is a feeling that only a select few will get, and Slippery Rock’s other defensive lineman know how much that means to them.

“It’s a relief, you know if anything goes wrong he’s always going to be there to correct it. He’s just an amazing athlete.”

Junior defensive lineman Tim Soave said.

“It’s a great experience to be around someone this great, what you can learn from the way he lives and the way he plays,” Sophomore defensive lineman Trey Blandford said.

“It’s not just how he plays, but what he does off the field” Of course, playing with Marcus also gives personal advantages, as other teams will undoubtedly key in on the

PARIS MALONE /THE ROCKET

Senior defensive end Marcus Martin sacks Clarion quarterback Jeff Clemens on senior day. This sack broke the all-time NCAA all-divisions sack record and was Martin's 54th in his career.

NCAA’s all-time sack leader.

“His aspect of the game is trying to get there as fast as possible, as quick as possible to be the first person there, so I gotta live up to that,” Freshman defensive end Garrett De Bien said. “Sometimes I won’t get there faster or quicker, but he’ll be making the plays.”

On the flip side, Martin’s teammates on the opposite side of the ball have a lot to learn from him as well.

“I really knew in the spring going into his first year [how special he was], our offense couldn’t block him,” Lutz said.

“When I saw him go up against three or four year starting tackles like Cory Tucker and he’s beating them like they aren’t even there, I knew we had a special football player.”

2016 all-PSAC selection and Slippery Rock tackle Steve Gaviglia can regularly be seen pancaking opposing defensive lineman during games, but when Gaviglia faces off against Martin during practice, he knows how much that can help him come game time.

“It’s great because he’s the best around and I know that if I can do a decent job against him, then I can block anyone come Saturday.” Gaviglia said.

Conversly, Martin also gave compliments to the offensive players who have helped him over the years.

“Those are the guys I really contribute those sacks to, because they work me every day.”

Among his laundry list of honors, Martin is also one of the team captains for this season.

“When you watch him play, you want to play like him,” Blandford said. “He shows you how to play and what to do.”

A unique part of Martin’s personality is how down-toearth he is; it’s rare to ever hear him boasting about his personal accomplishments. “[My first impression was] how humble he was. For all the achievements he’s been awarded, he’s very humble. I’ve never met a person like him.” De Bien said.

That facet of Martin plays into his leadership style. Martin is not a screaming-at-the-top-of-his-lungs kind of guy; he is a more reserved leader for the Rock.

“He leads by example a lot, he’s a great leader and a great teammate, nothing more you can ask.” De Bien said.

“He’s more of a visual leader, you see him constantly working at his craft and showing us what to do,” Soave said.

“He makes sure everyone is doing everything right.”

“If you just watch him on and off the field, he does all the right things,” Blandford said. “He sets an example for all of us.

He leads our D-Line, and we can take a lot away from that.”

Martin’s influence over his teammates is near limitless; even offensive players get Martin’s leadership qualities rubbed off on them.

“He demonstrates a great work ethic, he’s one of those people where you can see how he does things and model that,” Gaviglia said. “He’s got one of the greatest work ethics I’ve ever seen.”

Many fans, players, coaches and scouts have seen Martin play throughout his career, but Lutz is someone who has seen Martin’s career in its’ entirety in a closer scope than perhaps anyone else. Lutz was an integral part in recruiting Martin and when Martin arrived in 2013 and was redshirted, Lutz was the defensive line coach and defensive coordinator. Lutz stayed in that position for Martin’s first three years at SRU, before being promoted to head coach in 2016.

“He wouldn’t surprise me with anything going forward, because of his work ethic, his determination, he refuses to

lose, refuses to quit,” Lutz said. “I haven’t coached many guys like this in my whole 20 year career at Slippery Rock.

As Martin’s career winds down, it’s easy to look back at his book of accomplishments and focus on his personal greatness, but Martin is never one to do that.

“Everybody has been calling me the GOAT (greatest of all time),” Martin said. “It’s hard to put that in perspective, I just feel like another person whose just playing the game of football.”

Versus Clarion on senior day, Martin was able to finally close out the NCAA all-division, all-time sacks award, recording 4.5 sacks.

“That’s my best memory of Marcus,” Lutz said. “You can’t ask for a better senior day.”

That wasn’t what Martin remembered most about the day, as he also scored his first touchdown, returning a fumble 74 yards for the score.

“Once I saw the ball, I told myself I wasn’t getting caught.

I made it personal after that point,” Martin said.” Earlier in the season, my grandma made me promise her I would get a touchdown by the end of the season.”

Slippery Rock’s only current NFL player, San Francisco 49ers guard Brandon Fusco was drafted in the sixth round of the NFL draft. Fusco is the only NFL drafted player that Mihalik coached, but he sees many similarities between Martin and Fusco.

“Their approach that they had something to prove. They both could definitely play in Division I, I think they were both out to prove a point that you can live your dream by coming to a Division II program, but it’s going to take that commitment,” Mihalik said. “The fact that you are at Division II is that you have to do that much more to get the attention.”

Martin’s personal accomplishments are one’s that have never been seen before at this level, but the team’s accomplishments during his time here are also some of the best SRU has ever had. His senior class holds a 36-11 record, third best in SRU history. This senior class also won back-to-back PSAC championships in 2014 and 2015, the first ever conference titles for SRU. That 2015 season saw the Rock advance to the NCAA quarterfinals and finish 12-2, tied for the most wins in school history. The 2017 Rock football seniors also hold a near-perfect 21-1 record at home over their careers.

The most important part of the experience at SRU for Martin has been the postseason success. Martin has helped lead The Rock to two playoff appearances in his first two seasons, only the fifth and sixth playoff appearances in school history. A win over Kutztown on Saturday will almost assure another playoff birth, which would make Martin and his classmates the third-ever SRU class to make playoffs threeout-of-four years.

Martin’s career is the definition of once-in-a-lifetime. No other player in the history of college football has had the tremendous success that Martin has had, all while being a five-time PSAC scholar athlete and a two-time CoSIDA academic all-american. Among all of his outstanding athletic feats, duality as an excellent student-athlete and leadership for one of the best classes in Rock history, Martin’s personality is the thing that sticks out as the most special.

The thing you got to give Marcus credit for is that he has God-given athleticism, but he is a tireless worker,” Lutz said.

“It could be practice or Friday walkthrough, he never changes his approach.

2017 SPORTS SPECIAL

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November 10, 2017

Men's basketball's trio of freshmen set high goals

PHOTO COURTESY OF ROCK ATHLETICS Rock basketball's three freshman guards Simon Mulaa (left), Evan Chandler (center) and Karlyn Garner (right) are the first true freshmen for The Rock since 2014.

By Karl Ludwig Rocket Contributor

For any first-year athlete to make their respective team is a noteworthy achievement, but for the Slippery Rock men’s basketball team, it is downright rare for a single freshman to be on the team which makes this year’s class of three freshmen even more remarkable.

Since the 2011-2012 season, only three freshmen have been on the men’s basketball team with most of the players being upperclassmen or transfer players. This

year’s team features three freshmen players although it is likely two of the three will be red-shirted.

“I think I’m red-shirting this year, it’ll just be a learning year,” freshman guard Simon Mulaa said when asked about his role in this year’s team, “I just want to play as much as I can as early as possible.”

Mulaa, freshman guard Karlyn Garner and freshman guard Evan Chandler are the players that coach Kevin Reynolds thought could help the program unlike any others from years past.

“We didn’t go in with a plan of what classes we were going to

recruit, we just knew we needed better depth,” Reynolds said. “We just needed more guys, so practices would be more competitive.”

For a team with Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC ) championships hopes, potentially having a freshman guard make an impact in competitive games will be an invaluable experience.

The two who will likely end up red-shirted will contribute more behind the scenes, providing competitions in practice and moral support while also maturing as players and learning the playbook.

Having these three players at The

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Rock as freshmen will help build a foundation unlike any other that has been seen with Reynolds in charge.

“You never really go in with an idea saying we need to bring in this many seniors, this many juniors, and so on, we need to bring in the best players we can get who can help us win and continue to win,” Reynolds added.

With their roles on this year’s squad pretty much cemented only a few days before the official start of the basketball season, Mulaa, Garner and Chandler each have their own specific goals, hopes,

responsibilities and roles. Their individual and team goals and hopes will all likely be the same in getting playing time and winning the PSAC championship, but their roles and responsibilities will all be different and how they adapt and handle the rigors of this season will hopefully lead to growth as people and players.

No matter what happens this season, these three players can and should be proud to say that they are members of the select few who have made the Slippery Rock men’s basketball team as freshmen.

2017 SPORTS SPECIAL

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November 10, 2017

Rock takes in three transfers from Harford

JACK LINDEY/THE ROCKET

Sophomores forward Micah Till (left), guard Kasch Harris (middle) as well as junior guard Aaron McDonals (right) all transferred to Slippery Rock this year from Harford College in Maryland.

By Oscar Matous Rocket Contributor

The Slippery Rock University men’s and women’s basketball welcome three players to their teams this year from Harford Community College in Harford County, Maryland. Junior Aaron McDonald and sophomore Micah Till join the men’s team while sophomore Kasch Harris joins the women’s team.

Women’s basketball head coach Bobby McGraw said that Harris has suffered a knee injury and will “likely” be out for the entirety of the season. Kasich, who McGraw said was unable to comment, averaged 4.5 points per game during the 2015-2016 season but ended up sitting out the 20162017 season. Although Harris will likely be out for a portion of the

season, McGraw said she brings “enthusiasm” to her team and will be a force for The Rock next season, if not later this year.

McGraw, leading a team that is coming off a disappointing 9-19 season last year, said that Harris’ background playing basketball was a main reason to why he tried to get her to play here.

“Harris played on one of the top five community colleges in the nation and on the number one ranked high school team in the nation,” McGraw said.

For the men’s team, McDonald and Till join a team that finished one game below .500 (14-15) last season. Last year, McDonald and Till helped lead the Harford Community College Fighting Owls to a 24-8 record and a trip to the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) District championship, where

they were ultimately defeated by Monroe College by a final score of 55-57. McDonald recorded 396 points (12.4 per game) last season and collected 33 steals and 112 rebounds. Till recorded 504 points (16.3 per game) and shot just over 40 percent from the field.

The duo said that they both had offers from other Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) schools but head coach Kevin Reynolds and assistant coach Ian Grady ultimately “swayed” their decision to come to The Rock.

“Reynolds and Grady both gave me the option to come play here and play through me a little bit,” Till said. “Because they play through the power forward spot, which is the position I play, I thought it was a good option for me.”

McDonald and Till both believe they can bring a lot of talent and dedication to the team this year.

The connection that McDonald and Till already have together will help The Rock this year, Till said.

McDonald and Till both recognize and have experienced the adjustment that comes with transferring to a Division II school like Slippery Rock. But both said they’re prepared.

“Before even going to Harford Community College, I played one season of football at North Carolina State University,” Till said. “I was already kind of use to a bigger campus. Going from football to basketball has honestly been the biggest challenge.”

McDonald said one of the biggest adjustments for him is the fact that he was one of the bigger guards playing in the NJCAA. “Coming to the PSAC, where everyone is bigger or just as big as me will definitely be something I have to get used to,” he said.

McDonald, Till and Harris all know each other, with McDonald and Harris being “good friends,” McDonald explained. But, since Harris sat out last season, McDonald and Till said they didn’t know that she would be transferring to SRU as well, McDonald and Till said.

With the 2017-2018 season about to begin, both the men’s and women’s team will hope to have these transfers have a positive impact on their season.

The men, who have already played in one exhibition game, losing 71-51 against the University of Pittsburgh, will travel to Glenville, West Virginia this weekend to take part in the Jakobi’s Journey Basketball Classic.

Also this weekend, the women will travel to Richmond, Virginia to take part in the PSAC-CIAA Challenge.

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