SRU Rocket 12-2-11

Sports

B-1

Men's Basketball:

Rock prepares for conference crossover match ups

The Rocket www.theonlinerocket.com

Friday, December 2, 2011

Slippery Rock University Student Newspaper

Est. 1934

Volume 94, Number 11

SRU professors work without contract, talks continue

By Johnathan Janasik Assistant News Editor

Two important guest speakers f rom t h e As s o c i at i on of Pennsylvania State College and University Facilities (APSCUF), President Dr. Steve Hicks and labor attorney Stuart Davison came to Slippery Rock Tuesday, Nov. 22 to discuss details on the new contract for APSCUF

and the budget for education in Pennsylvania.

APSCUF is a teachers’ union made up of the 14 state colleges and universities in Pennsylvania.

These individual universities are referred to as chapters of the organization.

The one contract that APSCUF is currently working on stands for all 14 chapters.

APSCUF’s old contract with

the state expired July 1, and they are now negotiating with the state system in order to make a new one.

They met with members of Slippery Rock University in order to report the current status of the new contract.

The current topics of negotiation include salaries, benefits, grievance and the curriculum.

President of Slippery Rock University’s chapter Dr. Jace Condravy stated that because it was a closed meeting, the details of these topics are confidential.

Negotiations are currently going very slowly, admitted Condravy.

There is no estimation about when an agreement will be reached.

Until a contract is agreed on,

the terms of the last contract are still active.

The length of the contract has yet to be determined, said Condravy.

The contract that just expired lasted for four years.

A new contract could last three years, or it could last six SEE BUDGET PAGE A-2

r o Strong online identity f n i a , e p r s u a must for job seeking s Hi a e l p g r n

By Will Deshong i u h o t y y n a g n i h o g d u a l a for Rocket Staff Reporter

"The fact that Jackass is everincreasingly popular is an indicator that society is going down the toilet."

- STEVE-O ALEX MOWREY/THE ROCKET

The first two parts of this series examined how nearly all universities now use social media to recruit and interact with students, as well as the positive impacts the technology can actually have on students’ academic status.

But social media isn’t only prevalent in the academic community for prospective students and current undergraduates, it is also gaining importance for students post-graduation, ranging from a potentially harmful look at personal behavior to a vital professional tool.

Perhaps the most well-known way in which social media comes into play post-graduation is in job seeking, as it gives employers the opportunity to screen applicants before hiring them.

A sur vey conducted earlier this year by the social network monitoring service Reppler, of Palo Alto, Ca., found that 91 percent of hiring employers screen prospective candidates’ social networking accounts.

That number has been growing rapidly over the past half decade, meaning graduates fighting a tough job market need to watch and monitor their digital image to avoid any unnecessary hindrances.

Erin Lewis, the assistant director of career services at Clarion University, advises students on the importance of making smart choices on websites like Facebook and Twitter.

“Your online identity is critical even before seeking employment,” Lewis said. “Once a photo or status update is made available on the World Wide Web, it is very hard to remove and can leave the potential for ‘digital dirt.’”

In addition to obviously not posting crude and offensive content, Lewis warns against making remarks about past employers on a social media page, as well as making sure there are no questionable photos that can lead to an employer wondering more about your personal character than your professional abilities.

“Avoid positing anything that you may not want an

SEE CAMPUS LIFE, PAGE D-1

SEE SOCIAL, PAGE A-2

Campus police depar tment offers safe storage for students' hunting weapons

By Kaitlyn Yeager Rocket Contributor

Rif le s e as on b egan Monday in Pennsylvania, and students at Slippery Rock University need to keep safety and the university’s policies in mind, according to Zachariah Dornisch, a 21-year-old political science major and community assistant.

For those hunters looking to get their first deer in of the season, the university community offers some solutions on how you can keep your firearms safe, while abiding by the university’s policies.

Slippery Rock University campus does not allow guns on campus, but students are able to take their rifles and bows to the firearm storage center, located in the University Police Station.

Assistant Chief Windy Stafford says the storage center is valuable to hunters and competition shooters who are looking for someplace safe to store their weapons.

“Any student, faculty or staff member may bring in a firearm for storage,” Stafford said. “The owner and weapon information is taken, and all weapons are checked through the National Crime Intelligence Center to ensure that the weapons are not stolen.”

The firearm storage is free for all students and safely secures and locks rifles and bows in the police station’s possession.

Students must provide a valid license, as well as signed form that includes whether the rifle has ammunition.

If students choose to store their rifles at the university police station, they are required to sign out and then sign in the weapon when they are finished.

The police station is open 24 hours a day, so gun access is available for students at any time.

This makes it accessible for hunters who leave early in the morning, when other

storage centers would be closed.

Stafford believes that this is a great program for a gun-free campus because it demonstrates proper safety issues for those who wish to hunt during rifle season.

“A big concern of storing weapons on campus is the possible theft and the unintentional harm like accidental shootings,” Stafford said. “This program promotes responsible ownership while individuals are on campus and ensures that weapons are stored safely and securely.”

SEE SMART, PAGE A-2

News Budget cuts still a concern for faculty

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ROCK NOTES

Continued from Page A-1

Study Abroad Informational Meetings Interested in traveling to new places, meeting new people, and learning about different cultures? Study Abroad is a great opportunity to do all of these things! To find out more information about Study Abroad come to an Informational Meeting, held weekly on Tuesdays 12:30pm – 1:30pm or Wednesdays 1:00pm – 2:00pm, Carruth Rizza Hall, Room 212.

Contact International Services Graduate Assistant Tess Crispin at tmc0451@sru.edu for any questions.

Fall Dance Showcase The SRU Department of Dance presents its annual fall showcase at Swope Recital Hall. Student choreographers present a variety of modern, jazz, and tap dances. Performances take place at 2pm and 5pm on Saturday, December 3rd, and at 12pm and 3pm on Sunday, December 4th. Tickets are $3 students and $5 general and can be purchased at the University Union Information Desk or by calling (724) 738-4926. For more information, contact the Department of Dance at (724) 738-2036.

Neil Berg's Broadway Holiday Neil Berg’s “Broadway Holiday” comes to Slippery Rock University Dec. 2nd for a one-night performance as part of the University’s Performing Arts Series. The show will be in Miller Auditorium starting at 7:30 p.m. Singers scheduled to appear are Lawrence Clayton, Rita Harvey, Grant Norman, Andrea Rivette and Danny Zolli, all veteran Broadway performers.

Eugene Gwozdz will be the pianist and musical director.

Tickets are $22 for adults; $20 for seniors and youth under age 18; and $8 for SRU students, may be reserved by calling 724.738.2018. AVI, the campus food contract food vendor, is offering a pre-performance dinner at 5:30 p.m. (doors open 5:15 p.m.) in the University Club of North Hall. Reservations, $24, per person, all inclusive, may be made by calling 724.738.4245.

Othello The SRU Theater Department will be performing "Othello" on Dec 5, 6, & 7 at 7:30 in Sheehy Theater (Basement of Maltby). The ticket price will be $3 general admission.

years. The time period is highly variable.

A n ot h e r topi c t hat w a s discussed at the meeting was the budget.

Philosophy professor and APSCUF member Dr. Bradley Wilson said that last year, the new governor of Pennsylvania, Tom Corbett, proposed a 54 percent cut in funding to education.

Legislation decided to cut the education budget by 18 percent instead.

The organization is now waiting for Corbett’s new budget proposal before settling on a contract.

Wilson admits that although the organization cannot physically change the universities' funding, just showing that there is an interest in education can help inf luence the government’s decision.

“Our concern is not about pay,” said Wilson. “It’s about cuts.

There is an increase of students per classroom, the number of temporary faculty, and more distance learning. These all affect the quality of education.”

While the individual professors cannot directly change what is on the contract, they do have an influence on what should be changed.

According to Condravy, last year, each professor in the organization was polled about

what they thought were the important issues.

Professors were also pulled into small groups in order to voice their opinions and concerns.

“There is a democratic structure in APSCUF,” said philosophy professor and APSCUF member Dr. Andrew Colvin. “The people who work in APSCUF are faculty members they know the needs of the students and faculty,and they can represent those needs.”

Economics professor and APSCUF member Dr. David Culp said that the organization has never gone on strike.

He said that the professors care too much about their student’s education to do that.

“What we do now will affect what happens within the next 30 years,” Culp said.

APSCUF will meet with the state again today in Harrisburg to exchange and discuss their revised proposals.

After each meeting, a conference call is given to each chapter president to report the results of the meeting.

The chapter president of Slippery Rock, Condravy, said that she emails the important details of the conference call to each of the members.

Condravy also writes a monthly newsletter that discusses what is new with the organization.

If you would like to find out more information about the organization, it can be found at www.apscuf.com.

December 2, 2011

Smart storage, safer campus Continued from Page A-1

With SRU being located in a mainly rural area, hunting is a very popular activity for SRU students.

Aaron Gies, a 22-year-old safety major with a business minor, went hunting for the first time of the season Monday in Volant, Pa., only a short distance away from Slippery Rock.

When Gies is not hunting, he stores his rifle in a gun case inside his home on Elm Street.

“My gun is always secured in the case, and I make sure it’s unloaded before I put it in there,” Gies said. “It’s easy access for people to get to, but if there’s no ammunition, they won’t be able to do anything with it.”

Dornisch also sees the importance of this program and realizes the dangers that could be prevalent without it.

“Well, it increases the possibility of violence and could be life threatening to a large number of students,” Dornisch said. “Especially when you consider the possibility of anger and tempers.”

Dornisch went on to talk about how roommate conflicts are common with students living in the dorms and often times, escalate to concerning levels.

“Students tend to get caught up in the heat of the moment and end up doing and saying things they regret,” Dornisch said.

“I’ve seen some situations that start off over something very small, but then get blown way out of proportion.

Imagining what could happen if there were firearms available kind of scares me.”

Students can stop by the University Police Station or call 724-738-3333 for more information concerning the firearm storage program.

Social media becoming valuable job seeking resource for college grads Continued from Page A-1

employer to see,” Lewis said. “If you’re in doubt about whether or not something might be appropriate---always steer on the side of caution and avoid posting it.”

Lewis also said students should “lock down their privacy settings like Fort Knox” and to watch who they are "friending" online as employers often times will pose as a friend to bypass those privacy settings.

But according to Lewis, employers are not just screening candidates to eliminate them from a job.

“They can be looking to see how you would fit in with the culture of the organization,” she said of alternative motives for screenings. “This is a good place to list your hobbies, interests and accomplishments.”

Utilizing social networking correctly is important for individuals seeking employment in addition to the employers hiring.

A study released by Jobvite Inc., a social recruiting software maker in Burlingame, Ca., found that 22 million Americans found work through social networking sites in 2011, nearly seven million more than the previous year.

Facebook, by far the largest and most popular social media site, was the most widely used network for finding a career, with 83 percent of respondents in the survey crediting the online giant to their success.

LinkedIn finished a distant second with a 46 percent mark for what is regarded as the “professional” social network.

Still, Lewis recommends LinkedIn as the go-to tool for graduates seeking work.

“LinkedIn is a very valuable job search resource,” she said. “Since it is based solely on the purpose of professional networking,

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it helps employers to see you’re taking your job search and professional image seriously.”

As a career advisor, Lewis has seen the potential of LinkedIn applied in real world situations. She referenced a story of recently helping students prepare for phone interviews by using the social networking site to research the companies they were interviewing with.

The students were able to find and contact alumni employed with those companies for further information.

“Because of the very specific information these candidates were able to learn, they did very well with their phone interviews and were offered on-site interviews,” Lewis said.

Lewis praised LinkedIn’s unique features compared to other social media sites, giving it a strong recommendation over its competitors.

"There are groups to join, companies to research, articles to read, and an online professional profile to build," Lewis said.

"LinkedIn even helps you search for your school's alumni employed with a company, allowing you to establish a connection with someone you have something in common with. This is great when you're trying to research a company or prepare for interviews."

Ultimately it is these career-oriented features that give LinkedIn the edge in relevance for graduates.

“While Facebook and Twitter are social networking sites, and companies and employers do Tweet and have Facebook pages, LinkedIn is specifically designed for the professional,” she said.

This social media series has shown the impact the technology has had in changing the college experience for students and universities alike.

Contact us Newsroom: (724) 738-4438 Advertising: (724) 738-2643 Fax: (724) 738-4896

220 Eisenberg Building Slippery Rock University Slippery Rock, PA 16057 Email: rocket.letters@sru.edu

2011 Runner-up most Outstading Newspaper, Society of Collegiate Journalists.

News

December 2, 2011

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Police Blotter Magistrate Nov. 23- Aaron Christopher Johnson, 21, of Grove City, was seen for two counts of DUI. He was released on his own recognizance.

Nov. 23- Mathew Andrew Durso, 23, of Slippery Rock, was seen for two counts of DUI. He was released on his own recognizance.

Nov. 23- Staci Lynn Gallagher, 25, of Slippery Rock, was seen for use and possession of drug paraphernalia. She was released on her own recognizance.

Nov. 23- Denise C. Rettig, 47, of Pittsburgh, was seen for two counts of DUI. She was released on her own recognizance.

Nov. 23- Daniel Craig Bac, 26, of Cheswick, Pa., was seen for two counts of DUI. He was released on his own recognizance.

Nov. 23- Alexander Gaudino, 21, of Freedom, Pa., was seen for use and possession of drug paraphernalia. He was released on his own recognizance.

Nov. 18- Andrew J. Lacey, 22, was cited for disorderly conduct.

Nov. 23- Maurice Holland, 20, of Norristown, Pa., was seen for two counts of DUI. He was released on his own recognizance.

Nov. 20- Richard Joshua Buzas, 25, was cited for possession of an open container of alcohol.

Nov. 23- Matthew William Farward, 21, of Sewickley, Pa., was seen for two counts of DUI. He was released on his own recognizance.

Nov. 23- Corbin Joseph Harkins, 20, of Freedom, Pa., was seen for a DUI. He was released on his own recognizance.

Borough Nov. 13- Blaze Foster, 22, was cited for public drunkenness.

Nov. 16- Matthew Cumberledge, 23, was arrested for a DUI after a traffic accident on State Route 8.

Nov. 20- Nicholas A. Cardamone, 22, was cited for disorderly house.

Nov. 26- Nathan Rockwell Braun Jr., 25, was arrested for a DUI. Campus Nov. 16- There was a report of harassment at North Hall. The case is still under investigation.

Nov. 16- There was a report of a parked vehicle hit by another vehicle in the BSB Commuter Lot. Nov. 16- There was a report of disorderly individuals on campus.

The individuals were instructed to leave and the incident was referred to judicial.

Nov. 17- There was a possible drug violation at Watson Hall.

Charges are pending.

Nov. 19- Tyler Pullium, 18; Amber Sanfelice, 18; James Smith, 18, and Lexy Spencer, 19, were cited for underage consumption of alcohol after a report of intoxicated individuals at Building A. Nov. 20- Abigail Toth, 18, was cited for underage consumption of alcohol after a report of intoxicated individuals at Building A. Nov. 20- There was a report of an intoxicated individual at the health center. Charges are pending.

Nov. 29- There was a nonreportable traffic accident in the McKay Commuter Lot. Information was exchanged and no further action was taken.

Nov. 29- There was a report of theft of money out of a lost wallet on campus. The case is still under investigation.

Nov. 30- Corbin Harkins, 20, was cited for possession of a small amount of drugs and drug paraphernalia after report of a drug violation at Building E. Criminal charges were filed.

Nov. 30- There was a report of theft of clothes at Morrow Field House. The case is still under investigation.

Compiled by Stephanie Holsinger

New benches expected to be environmentally friendly, last longer

By Steph Holsinger Assistant News Editor

Slippery Rock University has recently received a grant to replace the benches on campus with newer, more environmentally friendly “green” benches.

According to Jim Henry, SGA vice president of student affairs, he has been working on this project since September.

He had originally looked into cheap ways to replace the current benches on campus,

but eventually decided that rebuilding the benches altogether would be more sustainable. This also would open up the option of using recycled material due to leaving a smaller environmental footprint, cost, and minimal wear over time.

“The project will consist of taking the old lumber off of the existing benches and fixing the frames they currently sit on,” Henry said. “Once the frames are reconstructed with new concrete and paint, we will put

the new 90 percent recycled material 'green' lumber on.”

According to Henry, this “green lumber” is expected to last 40 plus years, as opposed to regular wood, which can rot and warp after about 20 years.

“This results in a 20-year savings gap because we will not have to purchase more benches over that time,” he said.

The grant was made possible by the Green Fund, who has approximately $30,000 set aside for green projects this year, according to Henry.

“Not only are the savings over time cheaper, but the cost for this individual project is cheaper,” Henry said.

If regular wood were to be used to build the new benches, the cost would be about $71.50 per bench, compared to the “green material” which will cost about $42.50 per bench, according to Henry.

“This project will gain us one more LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification along with the Robert M. Smith Student

Center, and The MacCoskey Center,” he said. “This is a large step in making our institution a 'greener' campus.”

Henry believes that these new benches will not only be environmentally friendly and more sustainable, but will also have a positive impact on the students on campus.

“I think these [benches] will affect students because they will be more presentable and approachable to sit on compared to the prior benches,” he said. “The current wooden

benches are somewhat rotted, painted red, crooked, and broken, and do not make our paths look very clean.”

“This is one positive step forward in SRU’s green initiative and will continue to let students know that SGA is making our campus a better place.”

Henry initially estimated the cost of the project to be about $1,700, but the Green Fund has since contributed an additional $2,000 to the project.

The benches are expected to be finished in summer 2012.

OPINION

The Rocket

A-4

December 2, 2011

The Rocket

Our View

Volume 94, Number 11

220 Eisenberg Classroom Building Slippery Rock University Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania 16057 Phone: (724) 738-4438 Fax: (724) 738-4896 E-mail: rocket.letters@sru.edu

Editorial Board Courtney Nickle Editor-in-Chief Brian Brodeur News Editor Andy Treese Campus Life Editor Tim Durr Sports Editor Lexi Kovski Photo Editor Stephanie Martincsek Copy Editor James Intile Web Editor Stephanie Holsinger Assistant News Editor James Meyer Assistant Campus Life Editor Madeline Williams Assistant Sports Editor Liana Pittman Assistant Photo Editor Will Deshong News Reporter Mark Zeltner Faculty Adviser

Advertising Staff Emily Hunter 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 first copy of The Rocket is provided free of charge. Additional copies may be purchased for 50 cents each.

The Rocket receives approximately five percent of its funding from the SGA General Service fee paid each semester by students.

All other income is provided through the sale of advertising.

Advertising inquiries may be made by calling (724) 738-2643 or by e-mailing 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 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 Editorin-Chief at the address listed here.

GRAPHIC BY LIANA PITTMAN

SRU professors put students’ interests first Were you aware that your professors have been working without a contract since the summer?

Well, they have.

The Association of Pennsylvania State College and University Faculties (APSCUF)’s contract with the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PASSHE) expired in July and a new contract hasn’t been agreed upon, largely due to the financial difficulties the state is facing.

PASSHE’s budget was cut for the 2011-12 academic year by 18 percent, far from Governor Tom Corbett’s proposed 54 percent, but still a rather large blow.

Even now, Slippery Rock is feeling the effects of the budget cuts.

The Masters of Science in Sustainable Systems has already been cut for next year.

While there hasn’t been any faculty being let go or laid off, there are a number of positions that weren’t filled for the 2011-12 year after retirements.

With the 2012-13 budget still up in the air, APSCUF contract talks are progressing slowly.

APSCUF President Dr. Steve Hicks and labor attorney Stuart Davison were on hand at Slippery Rock University Nov. 22 to meet with APSCUF members.

Unfortunately, most of the conversation can’t be commented on because the meeting was closed-door. However, several SRU A P S C U F m e mb e rs commented on the talks.

And the comments prove just how lucky we are to have some of the professors we do.

Dr. Bradley Wilson said that the main concern isn’t about pay.

It’s about the potential increase

of students per classroom, temporary faculty and distance learning, all of which could lead to lower educational standards.

And, even better than that, Dr. David Culp noted that APSCUF has never gone on strike.

That’s pretty impressive if you think about it.

Imagine working for five months without a contract for next year, with everything up in the air.

In most unions, a strike wouldn’t even be a question. It would be a given.

However, the members of APSCUF seem to truly believe that a strike isn’t the answer.

A strike at the college level would not only bring classes to a screeching halt, but would also destroy the reputation of the state university system.

Think about it.

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

Go back to your senior year of high school when you were sifting through the massive number of colleges you could attend.

Would you go to a college where the professors recently had a strike?

Of course you wouldn’t. Because it’s an unstable environment.

We can also look at it from the view of a current student, working hard to get his or her degree.

If our professors went on strike, it would put a black mark on your degree.

That degree you worked so hard for. It would mean just a little bit less.

As fed up as we get with our professors sometimes, it’s important to remember all they do for us, and that they often put our best interests at the top of their priority lists.

This week’s question: Do you sell your books back to the Bookstore or the van? Why?

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 Fall 2011 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.

Bill Whitaker Sophomore safety management major Hometown: Mount Lebanon, Pa.

Kristy McKee Sophomore art education major Hometown: Ford City, Pa.

“I usually see who’s buying at the best price. I check the Bookstore first, then Amazon.com and then the van as a last resort.”

“I always sell them back to the Bookstore. I keep some books for my major, but I sell at the Bookstore to keep books I don’t need off my shelf.”

Matt Howryla Senior history and philosophy major Hometown: Butler, Pa. “I actually do a combo of both. I check prices online, in the Bookstore and at the van. I keep the books for my major but I try and get the best deal on any books I don’t need.”

Opinion LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Procrastination hurts finals

December 2, 2011

A-5

What SRU students need to do to survive finals week

Jake Olson Introspection It’s hard to believe that finals week is almost here.

Finals are invaluable, and could be a make-orbreak moment for many students’ grades.

While procrastination is usually an acceptable practice, this is one time that I would suggest trying to break out of that habit.

For starters, classes still require you to work until that week actually starts.

It’s no secret that many professors fall behind on their scheduled coursework, leaving much to be covered in these last few weeks.

This could involve having multiple papers, projects or even other tests within this period that could pile up through all of the classes you have.

D e p e n d i ng on t h e courses, this could lead to a ridiculous amount of work packed into this short period of time.

There really is no question of fairness here, as other professors do not keep track of their colleague’s assignment schedule.

This trend does begin to suck for us once we have a full regular schedule

paired with a larger volume of assignments and studying out of nowhere.

Secondly, cumulative finals are like the ninja of finals, they will sneak up on you if you’re not careful.

The almost-full notebook that you’ve shown friends in disbelief throughout the semester is now w hat st ands between you and studying for everything on that final.

Having done well on tests throughout the year may make it seem less ominous, but don’t forget that there has been a significant passing of time in which the brain has played its tricks and forgotten things along the way.

E x e rc i s i n g on c e a month can’t train you for a triathlon, so don’t expect taking tests once a month to be able to get you through finals.

Further, Thanksgiving break was a taste of freedom that some of us are longing for after the long grind of the semester.

It felt short, yet at the same time was long enough to lull the mind into a state of relaxation.

This is far from the truth, unfortunately, as this time period will undoubtedly stress many people out from preparation alone.

Focusing on school is much harder with a mont h’s bre a k on the horizon, but it is something that ever y college student needs to learn.

Finally, waiting until the last minute to cram for exams is in no way advisable.

Wh i l e c of fe e s a l e s p otent ia l ly skyro cket at campuses across the c ou nt r y du r i ng t h i s period, it should not be an automatic go-to for a study aid.

Yes, caffeine can help keep you awake enough to pour over hundreds of p a ge s , ke e p you focused, and even help you proofread sentence structure, according to the Journal of Experimental Psychology.

However, it tends to increase anxiety, digestive issues (already naturally sparked by increases in anxiety), and dehydration.

Without taking in other liquids, you might do more damage than good.

As obvious as these statements are, I know I took some of them at face value in the past.

Cumulative finals can be brutal, sometimes they can be forgiving, but either way they definitely require you to actually put time into preparing for them.

This is not to mention the ludicrous amount of work left in the penultimate week.

Let it be a testament to your work ethic in this last part of the semester, and let the first day of Christmas break be an early Christmas present to yourself.

Jake Olson is a junior secondary education English major from Grove City, Pa.

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 omission, we reserve the right to include an editorial note for accuracy’s sake.

‘Ask Ana’ should act more like a role model As an active member/ executive board m e mb e r of v ar i ous student organizations o n c a mp u s , I a m disappointed with the lack of an appropriate display of role models to Slipper y Rock University’s student body.

SRU’s campus student leaders are supposed to be role models to the rest of the student body, but lately I have been realizing that many of our “leaders” have been failing us.

As a frequent c ont r ibutor to T h e Rocket, I have noticed that many of the Ask Ana pieces have been less than tasteful and less than tactful.

Many people have told me that this piece is just a “joke,” and like anyone ,I can take a joke.

But frankly, the articles and displays on the Ask Ana Facebook page are offensive and not how I,

The journey from fierce individuality to Twilight obsession

Nicole Crevar Dare and Share I was always taught that caving into peer pressure was a bad thing.

You know, listening to what others tell you, following the crowd, jumping off a bridge, etc.

So I rebelled against this ideal to be like everyone else in order to fit in.

Never did I dream to be considered another clone.

I decided at a young age that in order to be a true individual, I must alienate myself from the fashion trends, media hype and personality traits that every other girl around me possessed.

I ultimately avoided complying to the habits of my peers, such as, poppin’ ya colla, owning a Coach purse, posting pictures of oneself at ridiculous angles, dumbing oneself down to attract male attention, fasting before prom, watching “Jersey

but you get my point.

I’ve never been so infatuated with something before. I mean, Edward’s skin glistens for God’s sake!

My entire grip on reality has loosened its hold. “ Twilig ht” has inexplicably touched my life.

By showing through a compelling love story that vampires and werewolves could live amongst us, I no longer fear such daunting creatures.

And after venturing to the theatre to watch “Breaking Dawn” this past Monday, I never want this escape from reality to end.

However, life is real, and “Twilight” is not.

I must let go of the suspension wires dangling me above the moon and become grounded again.

Through this whole experience, I’ve learned that it’s ok to hop on the bandwagon.

Who cares if you’re a “Twilight” freak just like everyone else?

In the end, you never know what wondrous adventures you could be missing out on.

Nicole Crevar is a sophomore journalism major with a minor in Spanish from Mercer, Pa.

As well as demeaning a real leader, Ask Ana posts many inappropriate and less than classy public Facebook statuses.

Many of these statuses have mentioned topics such as drugs, alcohol and immoral behavior.

These statuses are what potential students, other schools, faculty, parents and the world see as a representation of the “student leaders” of this campus.

There are real questions and issues that this campus has and that should be addressed by the Ask Ana column should tackle.

I think that an advice column as an idea is a great one. I just think that there are better ways to answer the questions asked or to select questions that are not ridiculous.

Student leaders of Slippery Rock University should be inspiring role models to the rest of the student body and by having a very negative “s t u d e n t leader” represent SRU, it makes SRU look horrible.

Jeanene Jones Juni o r p ar k s an d recreation major Public relations chair, FMLA

Opinion stories differ from news

Following the crowd can be good Shore,” and of course becoming a “Twilight” fan. It always seemed that if I fell into these trends, I’d be just like everyone else.

And along came Edward.

Upon procrastinating class work, I decided this past weekend to watch “Twilight.”

I’ve been hearing so much hype and applaud towards the movie, let alone the books.

Out of pure curiosity and optimism, I let the characters into my life.

And with one look into those golden eyes, I fell in love.

In fact, I became so infatuated with the first movie that I watched the second, “New Moon.”

Followed by the third, “Eclipse.”

It was as if my entire world had been invaded by possibility.

The intense passion and connection between Bella and Edward made me believe that anything is possible.

Now, I want a vampire boyfriend.

I want an eternal love.

I want to know what it’s like to enjoy penetrating human flesh with my teeth.

Ok, well maybe that’s taking it a little too far,

a fellow student leader, would like Slippery Rock University to be viewed by the outside world.

The outright disregard for appre ci at ion of t he divers e student population that SRU encompasses is a moral outrage.

Ask Ana’s response to the question from Forever Alone in the Nov. 18 issue of The Rocket, was the definition of s e x i s t , h e te ro s e x i s t , a nt i - f e m i n i s t , a nt i humanist and just plain insensitive.

Perhaps the person asking this question is a female who is a lesbian, and then, clearly, your response would not be adequate to their sexual orientation.

As well as assuming a heterosexist attitude, she also adhered to the stereotype that all women are good for is to make sandwiches for their male counterparts.

As well as embarrassing the image of a “student leader” through the newspaper column, Ask Ana’s public Facebook page is a disgrace, as well.

As k A n a’s “ab out me” section has a not so politically correct poem about the current president of the United States of America.

Courtney Nickle Editor commentary It has come to my attention in recent weeks that some of our opinion columns have caused some concern within the campus community.

I think it’s important for me to explain why the opinion columns are written the way they are.

Journalism is a bit different from any other form of writing. It’s meant to appeal to the masses. And above all, it’s meant to be objective.

However, there is an exception to the objectivity rule – and that is opinion columns.

Many people unfamiliar

with the rules of journalism aren’t aware of the difference between a news story and an opinion piece, so I would like to clear that up.

In The Rocket, you can tell an opinion piece from the other stories by the headshot of the writer. Regular stories don’t feature headshots.

Obviously, the Opinion pages that you’re looking at right now are filled with only opinion columns. In addition, there are sometimes other opinion pieces sprinkled into the Sports and Campus Life sections.

‘Ask Ana,’ for instance, is an opinion piece. The advice given is from ‘Ana’ herself, and it is just that – advice.

Take it or leave it.

Likewise, sports editor Tim Durr’s column in the Nov. 18 issue of The Rocket was his opinion. He attended the game and wrote a story based on what he observed.

No opinion piece reflects the views of the entire Rocket staff, with the exception of

the staff editorial on the first page of the Opinion section.

The purpose of an opinion column is to do exactly what these pieces have done, stir up emotions and a response from readers. As the editorin-chief, I fully stand behind all of our writers. They are entitled to express their opinions in a well thought out article, and our readers are entitled to respond with their own opinions in a well thought out Letter to the Editor.

I hope this was able to clear up a few things. I would also like to remind all of our readers that we would love to hear from you. If you’re upset about something in The Rocket, let us know. Letters to the Editor can be emailed to rocket.letters@sru.edu or sent to our office in 220 Eisenberg Classroom Building.

Courtney Nickle is a junior journalism major from Butler and Editor in Chief for The Rocket.

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E-mail rocket.ads@sru.edu

A-6

December 2, 2011

COMICS

The Rocket

A-7

December 2, 2011

MoreOn TV

By Jay Schiller and Greg Cravens

Blundergrads

Life in Hell

By Phil Flickinger

That Monkey Tune

Welcome to Falling Rock National Park

By Michael Mepham

Horoscopes

Tribune Media Services (MCT)

To d a y ' s B i r t h d a y (12/02/11). Carve out some special time for yourself today, with peace and quiet. Find a beautiful spot and pamper yourself.

Your loved ones encourage you to take on a new challenge. Go for substance over symbolism.

To get the advantage, check the day's rating: 10 is the easiest day, 0 the most challenging.

Aries (March 21-April 19) -- Today is a 5 -- Greek philosopher Democritus said, "Nothing exists except atoms and empty space.

Everything else is opinion."

Focus on the space to avoid confrontations.

Taurus (April 20-May 20) -- Today is a 7 -- Don't get distracted trying to make sense of everything.

Your friends and your instincts help keep you on track. You can always connect the dots later.

Gemini (May 21-June 21) -- Today is a 6 -Nobody told you whether the road to success was

paved or straight. There are detours, and sometimes you may have to backtrack.

Follow your heart. Use your artistry.

Cancer (June 22-July 22) -- Today is a 7 -- It's not a great day for travel, romance or spending money. Therefore, a quiet, productive day suits you just fine. Keep to your principles. Revise your routine.

Leo (July 23-Aug. 22) -- Today is a 7 -- Don't overspend or flash your money; it could lead to a clash of wills. Postpone an outing, and be patient.

Quiet time sorting out the plan gets you farther.

Virgo (Aug. 23-Sept. 22) -- Today is a 7 -- Don't let the turkeys get you down. Your imagination could trick you. Misunderstandings are possible, so listen for love and ignore the rest.

Libra (Sept. 23-Oct. 22) -- Today is an 8 -- Your busy schedule may lead to romantic problems. Don't stress about it. Everything works out. Be gracious to a hothead. There's no hurry.

S cor pi o (Oc t . 23Nov. 21) -- Today is a 7

By Michael A. Kandalafti

By Josh Shalek

Sudoku

By Nancy Black

By Matt Groening

-- Problems are smaller than they seem. Tr y not to alienate the boss.

Obligations force a delay.

Don't forget an important detail. It's getting busy.

Sagittarius (Nov. 22Dec. 21) -- Today is an 8 -- You feel pushed to take action. Find a family member or friend who understands, and get their advice. Don't spring your idea on an elder yet.

Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) -- Today is a 7 -- Follow your highest ideals. Keep to basic routines without fuss or controversy. Don't lend, spend or travel. Go slow. Relax with a walk and good food.

Aquarius (Jan. 20Feb. 18) -- Today is an 8 -- Consider new options.

Only accept cost-effective ones. Strive for balance and fairness. Things don't go according to plan, so be adaptable and flexible.

Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20) -- Today is a 6 -- Travel and spending money could be chaotic today ... better avoid both. Pay attention to other people's arguments.

They could have some real pointers.

Solution

A-8

December 2, 2011

SPORTS

The Rocket

B-1

December 2, 2011

ANDREW LACEY/THE ROCKET

Senior guard John Valeriano defends a Westminster College player on Nov. 11. Valeriano converted two key free throws in the final seconds of the Seton Hill game on Saturday to secure the win. He averages 8.8 points per game on the year.

SRU defeats Seton Hill by five

By Madeline Williams

Assistant Sports Editor

The Slipp er y Ro ck University men’s basketball team defeated Seton Hill University 77-72 in nonconference action last Saturday at Morrow Field House.

The Rock (3-1) was led by the trio made up of senior forward Devin Taylor, junior guard John Bayardelle, and junior guard Aubin Reeves.

Taylor recorded his

second double-double of the season, tallying 22 points and 11 rebounds against the Griffons.

Bayardelle added 14 points and seven rebounds, while Reeves contributed 13 points and four assists.

The Green and White ended the game with a 28 of 62 (45 percent) shooting effort, 6 of 15 (40 percent) of 3-pointers, and 15 of 18 (83 percent) free throws.

The game was tied on eight different occasions, including a 72-72 deadlock

with 1:40 left in the game.

The Rock drained five of six free throws, and Seton Hill went zero for two from the foul line during the last stretch to secure the victory.

SRU never trailed during the game except an early first half 5-4 Seton Hill lead.

Taylor scored a layup that gave the Rock a 6-5 edge over the Griffons and sparked a 12-4 run that put the Rock up 16-9 halfway through the first half. Seton Hill fought back and tied the score 29-29 with 6:17 left in the first half.

The Rock went on a 10-4 run and headed into the half up by a score of 43-37.

To start the second half, SRU scored the first five points in the first 30 seconds to take the largest lead of the game, 48-37. With 16 minutes left, Seton Hill scored six unanswered points to close the gap to 52-49.

SRU extended the lead back to eight points on three occasions in the next six minutes of the game. With 2:23 left in the game, Seton Hill tied the score 70-70.

Reeves scored on a layup to put the Rock up 72-70, but Seton Hill answered with another basket to tie the score at 72-72.

Free throws proved to be the game winner for the Rock, when Taylor hit one of two with 0:41 left on the clock.

Senior guard Jon Valeriano and Taylor each made both their free throw attempts in the final 30 seconds to lock up the win for the Rock.

The Rock has had a full week off to recover as they prepare to host East

Stroudsburg University (3-3 overall, 1-1 PSAC) tomorrow.

This weekend serves as the first crucial back-to-back PSAC games for the team.

On Sunday, the Rock will host Kutztown University (2-2 overall, 1-1 PSAC). Both games will tip off at 3 p.m. at Morrow Field House.

He a d c o a ch Ke v i n Reynolds says his team has been preparing all week in practice for this weekend’s games against East SEE ROCK, PAGE B-2

Women's basketball opens conference play against ESU

ALEX MOWREY/THE ROCKET

Junior guard Paris Thomas dribbles down the court against Ursuline College on Nov. 16. Thomas averages 6.6 points per game and 6 assists per game.

By D.J. Vasil Rocket Contributor

Slippery Rock University Women’s basketball will open

up home Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference play this weekend with a pair of games against East Stroudsburg University (11-3), and Kutztown University (11-4).

East Stroudsburg (2-2, 0-2), enters Saturdays game on a two game winning streak.

Cyara Woodridge for ESU, who has scored 60 total points on the year and, average’s 15

points per game.

The Rock women (1-3, 0-2) will also have to contend with Andrea Veras, 49 points per game, and Jessica Martin who is averaging 40 points per game.

Head coach Tanya Longo said that the team has to focus on what they can do “East Stroudsburg has very talented young ladies who have had success putting up points early in the season,” Longo said. “However, our focus is on our team and making defensive improvements within our defense, not on stopping specific players.”

Martin leads the way on defense for the Warriors as she has 10 blocks on the year and, seven steals.

Longo reiterated that the team doesn’t plan for specific players but did make a point to note the shot blocking ability that Martin has.

“Martin is certainly a talented young lady with proven shot blocking abilities,” Longo said. “We face shot blockers on a regular basis

and our preparation in not about making adjustments for particular players.”

Along with being offensive weap ons, Veras and Woodridge are a combined 18-for-23 from the free throw line.

Sunday’s game against Kutztown University (2-5, 1-1), will cap off the Rock women’s weekend home stand of PSAC crossover matches.

The Golden Bears are led offensively by Ashley Wood.

Wood has scored 111 total points on the year, 18.5 points per game. Along with being the top threat offensively, Wood is 28-30 from the free throw line.

Defensively for the Golden Bears, Avery Hodgson has 76 total points on the year so far but, leads the team defensively with seven blocks and, five steals.

Danielle Smith leads the Rock women offensively with 58 total points on the year, averaging 14.5 points per game. She will need to play a big role if the Rock hopes to win this weekend’s games.

“I expect the same thing from Danielle Smith every game,” Longo said. “I expect her to play as hard as she can and to execute our game plan with as much precision as possible. We don’t focus on getting a certain number of points each game for her.”

Jasmine Cooper has come on strong since the start of the year as she has 57 total points, 14.5 averaged per game.

Cooper will look to take some pressure off of Smith as they enter this weekend’s games.

“She plays hard and is extremely coachable,” Longo said. “When you combine that together, you’re going to have success on the court. We work to get all of our scorers' touches in the game. Jasmine is one of those players who will have opportunities to put the ball in the basket in every game.”

The Rock women have started out the year 1-3, 0-2 in conference play. Both conference losses have come against undefeated teams in West Chester University and Millersville University.

Sports

B-2

December 2, 2011

SRU exits from national tournament

ANDREW LACEY/THE ROCKET

Freshman forward Lucy Hannon dribbles the ball during a home game earlier in the season. Hannon had nine goals and five assists during her first season at the Rock.

which stands as the second

By Madeline Williams highest season win total Assistant Sports Editor

T h e S l ipp e r y R o c k University women's soccer team finished the banner season Nov. 18 with a 2-0 loss to #2 California University of Pa. in the third round of the NCAA tournament.

The Rock closed the 2011 s e as on wit h an overall record of 16-5-2,

in school history. This was the 16th consecutive winning season with 10 or more wins for the Rock.

This winning streak ranks as eighth best in Division II history.

A season to surely never forget, this was the team's first appearance in the third round of the NCAA tournament. The Rock had 11 consecutive shutouts

during a long stretch in the middle of the season, ranking as fifth best in Division II history.

In addition to the team's success, junior defender Emer Flatley was named to Daktronics Honorable Me nt i on A l l - A m e r i c a honors on Tuesday. The All-America teams are nominated and voted on by the nation's sports information directors.

Flatley was named to first team All-Region and first team All-PSAC earlier in the season.

Head coach Noreen Herlihy is extremely pleased with the team's efforts this year.

"I think the team played ver y admirably this season," Herlihy said.

"During crunch time, these young ladies really dug deep and represented Slippery Rock very well. I couldn't be more proud of them."

The Green and White will say goodbye to senior goalie Lisa Rodgers and senior midfielder Alyssa Barrett. Rodgers will take on the role as graduate assistant coach for the fall 2012 season.

Coach Herlihy said the team will miss Rodgers' experience and positive attitude on and off the field.

"Coming in as a transfer this year, Lisa brought knowledge and skill to the team that will be missed greatly," Herlihy said.

"She was a real positive influence on the young squad."

Herlihy commended Barrett on an incredible career at SRU. "Alyssa has been a fantastic player to have on the team for the last fou r ye ars , " He r l i hy said. "Her athleticism an d c om m it m e nt to the program has been a m ot iv at or t o h e r teammates."

Rodgers had a great senior year with the team, and is looking forward to sticking around next year as graduate assistant.

"The season turned out fantastic," Rodgers said.

"It was really great to get to know the girls and be able to end my collegiate career by making it to the Sweet 16. I'm so happy to have the opportunity to help out with the girls next year. I will miss being on the team and bonding with them, but I'll still be around to help get the team to the next level."

Losing only two players, the 2012 season is looking promising for the Green and White.

"It was a very positive season for the young te am , " He r l i hy s ai d.

"We'll have four strong senior leaders back on the team next year. This season, a lot of freshmen and sophomores gained tremendous experience, and I'm eager to see what we're capable of next year."

ANDREW LACEY/THE ROCKET

Senior guard Tommy Kelly stops to set up the offense just outside the three-point line against Westminster College on Nov. 11.

Rock prepares for home battle against PSAC-East Continued from Page B-1

Stroudsburg and Kutztown.

“This coming weekend will probably be the toughest weekend of the season,” Reynolds said. “East Stroudsburg and Kutztown are two of the best teams we’ll have to play this season, and both games are imperative to help improve our league record.”

Reynolds said the game plan for this weekend is to take it one game at a time.

“Our primary focus for this weekend is to focus on the East Stroudsburg game first, and then worry about the Kutztown game when it comes,” Reynolds said.

Bayardelle is pleased with how the season is going so far.

"I think we're making great strides towards where we want to be as a team," Bayardelle said. "We have a lot of enthusiastic players that want to get better as the season goes on."

On Monday, Taylor was named the Pennsylvania State Athletic ConferenceWestern Division Player of the Week for his doubledouble in the Seton Hill game on Saturday.

Taylor leads the Rock in scoring with 14.5 points per game and rebounding with 11 per game so far this season.

Sports

December 2, 2011

B-3

Another year of the BCS failing us

COURTESY OF MCT CAMPUS

LSU sophomore defensive tackle Michael Brockers sacks University of Kentucky quarterback Morgan Newton on Oct. 1. LSU is currently ranked No. 1 in the BCS standings and if they win the SEC championship game, they will play for the BCS title.

Tim Durr Sports Editor Year after year, the debate continues about college football at the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) level about the lack of a playoff system to determine the champion.

Every couple of years, something happens that leaves

a few teams wondering why they weren’t given a shot at the championship game.

In the 2004-2005 season, Auburn, Boise State and Utah all finished undefeated, and none were given a shot for the BCS Championship.

Instead, USC demolished Oklahoma in the championship game 55-19. Now, I’m not saying that Utah, Boise State or Auburn would have played a better game, but at the end of the season they still had zeros in the loss column.

In fact, controversy comes up so much that Wikipedia has its own page dedicated to BCS controversies, which details what dilemmas sprung up each year in the BCS.

Once again, in 2011, nothing has changed. This year, I see even more issues than in the past. Currently, LSU and Houston are the only two unbeaten teams remaining.

Based off of the current system, Houston will never get a chance to accurately gauge how competitive of a team they are. With quarterback Case Keenum, who owns most Division I passing records and an explosive offense, Houston could possibly hang with any other team if the game turned into a shootout.

In the current system, LSU has done everything right.

They’ve won the games they were supposed to win by big margins, defeated Alabama in

an overtime thriller, and they head into the South Eastern Conference championship game undefeated.

The real issue in the BCS lies between No. 2 Alabama and No. 7 Boise State. Other than Houston, which is ranked No. 6, every team between two and seven has one loss. Alabama’s was a 9-6 overtime loss to LSU, and that’s why they are now ranked second.

Oklahoma State is third and also has one loss which came against Iowa State the day after members of the women’s basketball team at OSU died in a plane crash. Now, I’m not saying that should be factored into the standings, but it definitely played a part in the

loss.

Next, you have Stanford, Virginia Tech and Boise State.

I’ll start this one off with Boise State. They’ll never be taken seriously until they move to a more powerful conference.

Even though Boise State beat Georgia, who will play LSU in the SEC championship game, that won’t factor into giving Boise State a shot at a title, even if Georgia upsets LSU. The next two teams are Stanford and Virginia Tech.

Both lost to other ranked opponents, and Virginia Tech gets a rematch with Clemson in the ACC title to prove that they’ve improved from the 23-3 loss in October to the Tigers. Stanford lost its only game of the season to Oregon, 53-30.

With all of these one loss teams and a ton of competitive two loss teams, why does Division I college football continue to have a bowl system that doesn’t give an equal chance for teams to beat each other on the field?

Is it the revenue gained from all of the bowls? Maybe it could be all of the controversy stirred up by the media about what the rankings should be and who should play in what game.

Well, here is my solution on how to keep making money from the bowl games and how to keep the media interested.

Cut one non-conference game from every teams schedule and have a 16-team playoff.

You can take the top 16 teams in the BCS standings and have them play out until a champion is crowned. Have each game take place in the setting of one of the bowl

games and keep the sponsors on for the game.

Have the Rose Bowl as the championship game, the Sugar Bowl and Fiesta Bowl could be venues for the semifinals matchups and so on.

With this system, you are able to keep the sponsors and venues happy with still having big ticket games take place in their stadiums under their sponsorship, and you also have a playoff system that will allow you to truly crown a champion.

It will give teams like Boise State and Houston a chance to matchup against Alabama and Stanford to truly see how they can hang with the power conference teams.

You also still keep the argument about who will make it into the 16-team field. It will be great for ESPN because they can have a four-hour-long special to unveil the field like they do for March Madness.

In my eyes it’s a win-win situation for everyone. You actually give every team a chance, you still have people talking about rankings and the sponsors for bowl games are happy about having big-ticket matchups in the bowl games.

So if you’re a fan of Virginia Tech, Stanford, Oklahoma State or Houston, you should be angry that Alabama is currently in position to rematch the LSU team that beat them. It just doesn’t make sense that we leave it up to polls and a computer system to select which two teams deserve to play each other in the championship game instead of doing what every other sport does, let the players sort it out on the field.

B-4

December 4, 2011

ROCKETBOOK

2011-2012 Men's and Women's Basketball Preview

About them: The women's program won the PSAC championship under Kathy Walton in 1985-86 and looks to return in the future.

Interested in: scoring bucket after bucket, playing solid defense, getting a ton of rebounds and dominating oppoents.

Goals: Winning the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference and making it back to the national tournament.

Senior looks to make PSAC run HEAD COACH: TANYA LONGO 3-23 Overall Record Second Year Head Coach at SRU Picked to finish Seventh in PSAC 15 Players on Roster Danielle Smith Profile on C-6 D'Asia Chambers Profile on C-8

Women's Schedule

PHOTO COURTESY OF SPORTS INFORMATION

Junior center Luiz Santos moved to America in 2009 and transferred this past season from Marshalltown Community College to SRU. At 6 foot 10 inches, Santos is one of the tallest players SRU has ever had on its team.

By Tyler Nalesnik Rocket Contributor

It's been nearly a decade since the word "winning" has been associated with the women's basketball team at Slippery Rock University.

Following the departure of former head coach Darcie Vincent in 2000, the women's basketball team has had losing season after losing season, and hasn't won a PSAC title since 1984.

Most recently, the program hired Tanya Longo to turn things around.

However, Longo was strapped with a severrly shortened recruiting period because of her late hiring. One recruit she

was able to land was Danielle Smith, a 6 foot, 1 inch forward from Brown Mackie College (Kan.).

Smith, a senior professional studies major, who was recruited to play at Brown Mackie, is from LaGrange, Georgia and attended Troup High School. In addition to playing basketball, she also ran track in high school, and lettered 3 times in each sport.

She began playing basketball in the 6th grade and attributes running track, and her family to her getting involved in the sport.

“I ran track so that kind of set the bar for basketball,” Smith said. “My brother played, it’s a family sport, and I just love the game.”

Throughout high school, she focused on becoming a better player individually, as

she worked through the troubles of playing with a young team.

Upon graduating from Troup, she committed to play basketball at Brown Mackie College for two years, where she played in 20 games as a freshman, scoring 165 points.

The following season, she was a much larger contributor, playing in 29 games.

She scored 378 points on the season and grabbed 231 rebounds, averaging 13.0 points per game and 8 rebounds per game.

Smith was receiving several offers from other schools at the start of her sophomore year, but those offers diminished as the season wore on. There was a great deal of uncertainty surrounding her future until she received a phone call from Longo.

“I had a couple of schools looking at me at the beginning of the year, but towards the end of the year I didn’t have offers,” Smith said. “I didn’t know which way to go and then coach Longo called me up towards the end of summer.”

Her first year at Slippery Rock proved to be a rocky season, but, she has no regrets about her choice to play for the Rock, praising coach Longo’s stability of the team.

“We have a good coach, she’s very professional,” Smith said. “I’ve had coaches that weren’t professional, but coach Longo really believes in what she’s doing as a coach.”

Despite posting a team record of 3-23 last season, Smith found some success in her new home. She started all 26 games, leading the team in points in 14 of those games and in rebounds 12 games. She scored a season high 22 points against East Stroudsburg on January 3, 2011.

Smith had her best all-around game against Notre Dame College (OH) when she scored 17 points, had 13 rebounds, and added 5 steals in a 67-64 win.

She would go on to have 3 doubledoubles for the season.

“I learned and grew individually,” Smith said of the overall disappointing season last year. “This year we need to be a smarter team.”

At the season’s end, she led the team in scoring, rebounding, field goals made, free throws made, field goal percentage, and steals, she ranked 21st in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference in scoring, and 16th in rebounding.

But, according to Smith, none of these accomplishments were the most memorable of her basketball career.

“When they told me I got Pre-season All PSAC,” Smith said. “I wasn’t expecting that.

It was exciting. That was a good way to start my senior year.”

However, as she begins her senior season, Smith is looking at herself in a more “leadby example” type of role.

Basketball isn’t all that is going on in this student/athlete’s life. Smith admits it can be difficult to juggle school and basketball, but she says it’s all about the mentality of it.

“It’s hard getting up at 5am every day, trying to balance social life and school work,” Smith said. “It’s more of a mental thing, physically its easy, but mentally you have to think that you can get through it.”

Her willingness to help her team to victory and aspirations for life after school, are what keep Smith going.

“I really want to graduate and travel the world”, Smith said.

But, before Smith graduates and sets off on her travels, she’ll look to put the Rock women’s basketball team back on the map with a winning season.

“We need to have a good year, and finish the season strong,” Smith said. “We have to do whatever it takes to win.”

Basketball

C-2

December 2, 2011

First-year guard looks to contribute to Rock's future success

By LeVar Howell Rocket Contributor

D'Asia Chambers was born on August 2, 1992, in Pittsburgh, Pa. to Maril Williams and Vaughnela Chambers.

In her e arly ye ars, D’Asia resided in Warren Ohio were she attended McGuffey Elementary and Turner Middle School.

Since kindergarten, basketball was always in D’Asia’s life.

“I d i d n’ t choose b a s ke t b a l l, b a s ke t b a l l chose me” Chambers said., “When I was younger, I would act like silverware was a basketball and shoot it in the sink. I would shoot clothes into the laundry bag, and I would ball up toilet paper and shoot it in the toilet. I was always shooting something like a basketball in a hoop.”

When she was seven years old, she started asking her cousins if she could go and play with them at the basketball court.

When she stepped onto the basketball court with her older cousin, she wanted to show everyone what she could do.

“I got on the court and just did what I always did, which was shoot” Chambers said. After her nice performance at the

basketball court, her cousin took her with him every time he went.

In fourth grade, her height was above average compared to some of the other girls in her grade.

At that time, she was also taller than some of the boys in her grade.

“I played basketball games against some of the boys in fourth grade,” Chambers said.”When I would jump up for a rebound against one of them, I would always have possession of the ball when I came down.”

She moved to Farrell, Pa in 2005 and began her eighth grade academic year at Farrell High School.

It was at Farrell where she would put her skills to the test. Her recognition in The Sharon Herald captured the attention of upperclassmen as well as the Farrell community.

She enjoyed playing basketball, but, she knew that education was first.

“Basketball can get taken away any day,” Chambers said. “But, I will always have my education”.

She enjoyed Farrell High School, claiming that the teachers made learning fun.

“My favorite subject in high school was Government,” Chambers said “It was taught by

my favorite teacher Mr. Cardamon.”

In 2006 and 2007, she moved up to the varsity level.

“Freshmen and sophomore year playing basketball were the best years I had playing in Farrell,” Chambers said.

Those were the years at Farrell High were she played with Chloe Stewart, Keveeda Myers, and Tieshia Stubbs, a trio of dominant girls on the court.

“Playing beside those three girls in Farrell taught me how to be a team player,” Chambers said. “It taught me to be confident in myself, and not to be afraid to rely on the team for help.”

Another attribute that the three upperclassmen taught her was how to step up and be a leader. “ T he re we re g ame s where the upperclassmen had a hard time getting in the grove of the game” Chambers said.

Her leadership skills allowed her to take control of the game.

In a playoff game against Monessen High School in 2008, She scored 33 points, leading the team to a 77-52 victory.Compared to her sophomore year, her junior year at Farrell was rough.

The Farrell Steelerettes

we nt 4 - 1 8 . A lt hou g h the record was nowhere near her previous year, it was a lesson learned for Chambers.

After going through a losing season, she was determined to have a better season her senior year.

“My s e n i or ye ar I was ready to takeover games like Kobe Bryant,” Chambers said. “I wanted to do whatever it took to have a better season” said D’Asia She ended her high school career by scoring a total of 1,443 points. Adding on to her accomplishments, she went in the Farrell basketball record book her senior year for scoring a high of 50 points in a single game.

On June 6th, 2010 she graduated from Farrell.

She graduated with a 3.2 grade point average and, was on the verge of picking an institution to purse a degree and continue playing basketball.

With the talent and the skill that she possessed in basketball her offers to play for colleges were almost limitless.

She decided to go to St. Bonaventure University, located in New York. St. Bonaventure is a Division I team that competes in the Atlantic 10 Conference.

After a couple weeks in her first semester, she instantly acknowledged the difference between college basketball and high school basketball.

“College basketball is more time consuming,” Chambers said. “But, my love for the sport made that transition easy.”

After one semester at St. Bonaventure, she decided to transfer to another institution. “ S t . B o n a v e n t u r e’s basketball was good,” Chambers said. “But, I didn’t like the environment and felt that I should leave.”

She then transferred to Slippery Rock University in the spring semester of 2011.

“I like it here at SRU,” Chambers said. “ The environment feels good, there are just enough people, and it is closer to home.”

Her relationship with her teammates has strengthened since she arrived in the spring. During the spring semester, Chambers was on the sidelines helping her teammates.

“I was basically a coach,” Chambers said. “Now that I can help the team on the court, I plan to be an effective communicator in practices and games”.

Chambers believes that

communication is one of the keys to help a team be successful.

Senior Sherita Stanley has grown to be more than just a teammate to her, but also a friend. Stanley has enjoyed Chamber’s presence here at Slippery Rock.

“It’s been good having her skill of play with us,” Stanley said. “She is a player that will try her best to do exactly what you want and more. She brings a lot of energy to the team.”

While Chambers has big plans on the court, she also is very focused in the classroom. She has decided to pursue a degree in communications.

Her future goal outside of basketball is to work for BET (Black Entertainment Television) where she wants to work behind the scenes.

She is now in process of her future goal already.

She has joined the television club on campus and, has her sights set on interning with a radio station, 101.9.

“I plan on earning a degree,” Chambers said.

“And, in the process of, do whatever I have to do to help us win a championship.”

Chambers is eligible to begin play to begin playing with the team in late December.

2011-2012 Slippery Rock University Women's Basketball

Bridget McClure Position: Guard Height: 5-foot-8

Year: Freshman Hometown: Indiana, Pa.

Christa Wodarczyk Position: Guard Year: Junior Height: 5-foot-8 Hometown: Columbia Station,

D'Asia Chambers Position: Guard Height: 5-foot-10

Year: Freshman Hometown: Farrell, Pa.

Danielle Garroutte Position: Forward Year: Freshman Height: 6-foot-0 Hometown: Darnstown, Md.

Ohio

Bridget was selected to play in the Indiana Optimist All-Star game in high school. She also led her team to a Heritage Conference championship game as a senior and as a junior and senior she led her team to back-to-back District 6 titles. Bridget’s goals for the season are to improve defensively.

She also wants her team to play to their highest potential this season. Bridget loves to travel and she has been to almost every state in the country. She has also been to major cities in Italy and France.

Kara Lazauskas Position: Guard Year: Junior Height: 5-foot-6 Hometown: Neshanick Station, N.J.

She has had three knee surgeries in less than one year, but that does not keep her from doing the activities she enjoys. Lazauskas is hoping to continue to become more active and maintain the valued dynamics both inside and outside her major as well. She is striving to be more than just a typical teammate on the SRU team this year in hopes of making a difference.

Christa Wodarczky is a 20-year-old, exercise science major from Columbia High School in Ohio. Before attending Slippery Rock University Wodarczky, was a student at a junior college. She attended Lorain County Community College, where she led her team in points two years in a row. Now, she is currently looking to maintain a 3.0 while playing college basketball here at the Rock.

Katie Ratham Position: Guard Year: Sophomore Height: 5-foot-5 Hometown: Stevens, Pa.

During her high school athletic career Katie lettered three times in both soccer and basketball.

Katie is also a member of the National Honor Society. Last year during her freshman season with the basketball team she appeared in two games.

Katie scored two points and got two rebounds in SRU’s game with Pitt-Johnstown last year. Katie’s goal for this season is to do all that she can to improve her skills and help the team improve.

During high school D’Asia was a standout player.

She averaged 22.8 points per game as a senior and earned first-team Associated Press Class A all-state honors. During her high school career she scored 1,445 points and played in the PIAA Western finals in 2008. D’Asia ended her career at Farrell with a 70-31 record. D’Asia’s goals for the season for her team are to have a winning season and get an NCAA berth. After college D’Asia hopes to be able to play basketball overseas.

She is a freshman business major who goes by the nickname "Dani". She lettered twice while going to Northwest High School. As a senior, she averaged 11.6 points per game and brought down 6.7 rebounds per game.

She had a career-high this season with seven points per game against West Chester University of Pennsylvania. She's averaging 3.9 points per game in her freshman season at SRU.

Natalie Carroll Position: Guard Year: Senior Height: 5-foot-9 Hometown: Worthington, Ohio

During her high school basketball career Natalie earned All-Ohio Capital Conference and honorable mention All-Columbus Metropolitan area. Natalie’s personal goal is to improve on her quickness on defense. Natalie says that the team has a great defensive coach and that her skills are already improving. She hopes to get a job in law enforcement, perhaps with the FBI. As a minor in Spanish, she hopes that will help her to get a job in the FBI.

Nicole Smith Position: Guard Height: 5-foot-5

Year: Junior Hometown: Blairsville, Pa.

Nicole played in both North vs. South Heritage and Indiana Optimist All-Star games during high school. Nicole also earned third team All-Indiana Gazette honors during high school. Nicole wasn’t recruited for the women’s team she actually walked on. Nicole says that sometimes it is difficult to be a student athlete because it can be tough to manage her time. Nicole hopes to get a job and settle down back in Maryland because that is where she is originally from.

December 2, 2011

Basketball

C-3

2011-2012 PSAC West Analysis

Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania Last season: 3-23 Overall, 1-13 PSAC Outlook: SRU’s new players include D’Asia Chambers, a 5-foot-10 forward, Jasmine Cooper, a 6-foot forward, Erinne Cunningham, a 5-foot-7 combination guard, and Paris Thomas, a 5-foot7 point guard. Slippery Rock’s standout player, Danielle Smith, was named to Preseason AllConference honors when the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference released its preseason coaches’ poll in October. The women’s basketball team was picked to finish seventh in the PSAC Western Division preseason poll.

Edinboro University of Pennsylvania Last season: 26-4 Overall, 13-1 PSAC Outlook: Edinboro University women’s basketball program has high hopes this season, as they were picked to finish first in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference West Division by eight votes. The team has five returning All-PSAC West selections and four returning starters to the team.

Edinboro’s standout player will be Renee Brown, a first team All-PSAC West choice. She enters this year season with 1,002 career points. The women are ranked in USA Today/ESPN Division II Top 25 Coach’s poll at No. 23.

California University of Pennsylvania Last season: 23-8 Overall, 11-3 PSAC Outlook: The Lady Vulcan’s are picked to finish second in the PSAC-West. The Vulcan’s have four returning starters this season; one includes standout Amy Johns. Johns is a senior forward and was selected to the preseason All-PSAC West team after finishing second in scoring, rebounding and minutes last season. The Vulcan’s start their season with a 1-1 record in preseason play. They fell to Minnesota State on November 13 with a score of 57-45. The game was for the championship at Hamer Hall.

Gannon University Last season: 13-13 Overall, 5-9 PSAC Outlook: The Lady Knights were picked to finish fifth in the PSAC-West this season.

The head coach for the Lady Knights is Cleve Wright, who has had nine seasons with the women’s basketball program. He has led Gannon to a .500 record or better for the seventh time in his career at this university.

Gannon’s returning lead scorer is senior Caitlyn Lowe, from Gettysburg Pennsylvania, who averaged 11.2 points as a junior last season.

Indiana University of Pennsylvania Last season: 19-8 Overall, 11-3 PSAC Outlook: The Crimson Hawk’s have one starter returning to the team, but are hopeful in four incoming transfers and also a talented group of freshman to put them on the right track. IUP have been picked to finish third in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference West division preseason coaches’ poll. The sole returning starter, junior Sarah Pastorek, was a preseason first team all-PSAC West selection. The Crimson Hawks have gone to three consecutive PSAC tournament appearances in the past four years.

Mercyhurst College Last season: 15-15 Overall 7-7 PSAC Outlook: Mercyhurst University’s head coach Deanna Richard, has improved the Laker’s record over the past four seasons and hopes to go over .500 for the first time since 1999-2000. Mercyhurst is picked to finish sixth in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference West Division this season, ahead of Slippery Rock and Clarion. The Lady Laker’s return 13 players from last season and add new players to the roster as well. They return Dana Banda as point guard, as she has started all 56 games of her career.

Clarion University of Pennsylvania Last season: 7-19 Overall, 4-10 PSAC Outlook: Clarion University is picked to finish in last place in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference West Division this season, after going 7-19 overall last season and 4-10 in the PSAC West. Four freshmen started last year, with three of those being true freshman. The team will rely on sophomore shooting guard Emma Fickel, from Carlisle, Pennsylvania, for their outside game. Fickel started in all 26 games as a true freshman in 2011 and led all NCAA freshman in 3-pointers made per game.

Lock Haven University of Pennsylvania Last season: 11-14 Overall, 4-10 PSAC Outlook: Lock Haven University will bring back six returning starters and five seniors from last season. The Lady Eagles finished sixth in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference West Division in 2011.

The PSAC picked Lock Haven’s women’s basketball program to finish fifth this season, one place ahead of where they finished one year ago. Lock Haven’s head coach Jennifer Smith enters her fifth season behind the Lady Eagles.

2011-2012 Slippery Rock University Women's Basketball

Danielle Smith Position: Forward Year: Junior Height: 6-foot-1 Hometown: LaGrange, Ga.

She is currently looking to graduate from Slippery Rock University and have a successful basketball season this year. After her career here at the Rock comes to a conclusion, Smith is gearing for a job in the professional world. She is also looking to travel the world and explore new places. Aside from the game she plays and talent she displays on the court, Smith also wants to pursue a career in modeling someday.

She averaged 11.8 points per game last year.

Paris Thomas Position: Guard Year: Junior Height: 5-foot-7 Hometown: Muskegon, Mich.

Paris was also selected to play the O-K Red Conference All-Star game as a senior.

Paris’ goal for the season is for her team to compete as hard as they can in every contest this season. She also wants them to win all of their games out of the PSAC and she wants to go to the playoffs. Paris’ goal for the future is to complete her degree in Communication.

Paris said that next to her love for basketball is a love for shoes.

Emilee Vitez Position: Forward Year: Junior Height: 6-foot-0 Hometown: Copley, Ohio

Vitez, who had 16 rebounds, a personal best against Urbana University, hopes that the team makes the playoffs and improves their record from last season. She also is looking forward to growing as a team and in turn, performing to the best of their ability. As far as education goes, she is looking forward to finishing her degree.

Vitez would like to stay here in Pennsylvania and teach as well as pursuing her Master’s degree in sign language.

Erinne Cunningham Position: Guard Year: Junior Height: 5-foot-7 Hometown: Jamestown, NY

Erinne led her high school to four Erie County Interscholastic Championships and three section six titles. Erinne scored 1,150 points during her high school career. Erinne’s goal for the team is to become a powerhouse in the division and make Slippery Rock University a well-known basketball program. Erinne says that she is known to shoot from the three-point line but she wants to go to the basket a lot more this season.

Shannon Lee Position: Guard Year: Senior Height: 5-foot-7 Hometown: Mukwonago, Wisc.

A psych major from Mukwonago High School in Wisconsin and she was born on Christmas day.

Her current goals for this season with the women’s basketball team are to win the PSAC as well as still be playing come March for the Championship game. Her current goal as an individual for this season is to make it back onto the court and back into the game. Not only is she concerned with how her basketball career flourishes, but with her academics as well.

Sherita Stanley Position: Guard Height: 5-foot-8

Year: Senior Hometown: Minden, La.

She is a sport management major with a coaching minor. Stanley is planning on graduating in the spring of 2013 from Slippery Rock University with her bachelors and pursuing her masters in communication. In that time frame she is also hoping to win the Western Basketball Division as well as a Championship with her fellow teammates. With hopes set high, she also would enjoy being the director of basketball operations or an event manager for the WMBA or the NBA as well as coaching a basketball team.

Jasmine Cooper Position: Small Forward Year: Sophomore Height: 6-foot-0 Hometown: Canal, Ohio

She is a social work and dance major, who attended Pickerington Central High School. Coming in as a transfer student this year, she attended the University of Vermont last year, where she traveled to 18 of the 50 states during her basketball season. Cooper said that she never saw herself doing anything like that and actually enjoyed it. She has only played

Over 100 years of basketball history

PHOTO COURTESY OF SPORTS INFORMATION

Hank Baierl led the 1962-1963 men’s basketball team to its first and only Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference state championship. The Rock had a 16-7 record in that season and Baierl, who coached for 12 seasons at SRU, had a 144-122 record at SRU.

By Madeline Williams Assistant Sports Editor

Over one hundred years ago, the first basketball team was created at what was back then called Slippery Rock State Normal School. In 1909, Emil Miller became the first coach for the men’s basketball team. That year, his team had a record of 3-5. Coach Miller left in 1912 and was succeeded by Arthur Gaut. Gaut coached from 1912-1918, having great success in his first season by going 12-3.

Gaut stayed six seasons before leaving in 1918.

Loyal Marshall coached one season in 1918 and went 9-6 before being replaced

by N. Kerr Thompson. He coached the Rock for seven seasons and took a 4 year leave. He was succeeded by Elmer Cottrell from 1926-1930. Thompson then resumed coaching from 1930-1947. There was no team from 1942-1944 because of World War II. Not only did Thompson coach basketball, but he also is one of the school’s original football coaches. He guided The Rock football team from 1920-45 and produced twelve divisional championships and eight state championship teams. He also coached baseball from 1948-1955. The old football field adjacent to Morrow Field House and the current football stadium are named in his honor.

William “Pop” Storer replaced Thompson and coached the Rock from 1948-1952, before handing off the team to Bob Smiley until 1958.

Hank Baierl took over in 1958 and coached until 1970. Baierl is the second all-time winning coach in SRU men’s basketball history, posting a 143-127 career record. In his 12 seasons at the head of the team, SRU won three division titles and the state championship in 1962-63, which stands as SRU’s last state championship. In addition, Baierl was an associate professor in SRU’s physical education department.

Mel Hankinson replaced Baierl and coached from 1970 until 1973. Cliff Wetting stepped in for two years after Hankinson and went 15-8 in his first

season and 18-9 in the second.

Doug Zimmerman came in for 4 years and coached between 1975 and 1979. He earned NAIA All-American honors after leading the Rock basketball team to the PSAC Western Division championship.

He coached SRU to its first-ever NCAA playoff appearance. Zimmerman was also a standout baseball player and was drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates. Unfortunately, he suffered a career-ending knee injury after only one season.

Dave Rooney coached from 1979 until 1985 and was able to bring the team above .500 in two seasons after having a 2-21 first season as coach. He coached Troy Mild, the Rock’s second leading career scorer.

Bob Barlett coached for nine seasons between 1985 and 1995. He had a 23 win season in 1990-91, his best season.

That was the most recent Rock men’s squad to compete in the NCAA regional tournament. Barlett coached the Rock’s all-time leading scorer, Myron Brown who

had a career total of 2,619 points.

Bob “Posey” Rhoads coached for one season and went 6-19 in 1995. As a high school athlete, Rhoads helped bring Mercer High School to back-to-back state titles in 1966 and 1967, scoring 1,516 career points. He went on to a brilliant basketball career at Wake Forest University where he was a three year starter and played professional basketball from 1973-77 in the Australian National Club League in Melbourne, Australia.

Anthony Jones took over as coach after Rhoads and coached from 1995 to 2002.

He went 2-24 his first season and only had one winning season as coach in 19992000.

John Marhefka coached from 2002 until 2006.

Jamal Palmer followed as head coach after Marhefka and coached for 2 seasons before current coach Kevin Reynolds took over in 2008.

The men’s program has a total of 1041 wins to 928 losses for a 52.57 overall win

percentage.

The first Slippery Rock women’s basketball coach was physical education teacher Anne Griffiths in 1970. She was here for nine seasons and an overall record of 111-56. She was succeeded by JoAnn Reis who coached for one season in 1979.

Judy Battles came after Reis and stayed for 2 seasons from 1980-1982 with a record of 30-22.

Kathy Walton was at the head of the women’s program from 1982-1988. She was the first African American coach for the Rock Basketball program. She was also a strong recruiter of African American players.

From 1988-1993, Cheryl Kennedy was the coach and had a record of 52-72.

Laura Williges coached for three seasons until 1996. Darcie Vincent coached from 1996-2000 before being replaced by Laurel Heilman.

Heilman was the head coach for 10 years, posting a record of 110-149, before handing off the team to current head

PHOTO COURTESY OF SPORTS INFORMATION

Kathy Walton led the women’s basketball team to its first 1985-1986 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference championship. Walton was the first AfricanAmerican coach for the program and won 81 games in six years of coaching.

Men look to keep up success from last year

By D.J. Vasil Rocket Contributor

The 2010 Rock men’s team set the bar high for success for the 2011 team after 2111, 9-5 in the west, and, earned their first NCAA Division II tournament birth since the 1991 season.

He a d c o a c h Ke v i n Reynolds is in his fourth year. Reynolds is expecting to finish better than fifth where the preseason coach’s poll predicts them to finish.

“We are looking to get better everyday,” Reynolds said. “We want to build on the past three seasons.”

Leading the way for the Rock men will be Senior Devin Taylor, who returns after last season saw him average 11.8 points and 6.3 rebounds per game.

“I’m expecting Devin to help the team win more games this year,” Reynolds said. “He needs to become more of a vocal leader.”

J o i n i n g Ta y l o r a s returning starters are guards junior John Bayardelle and senior Jon Valeriano.

Valeriano was averaging 5.1 points and 3.5 assists before his season was altered due to injury.

“I expect Valeriano to build on last year’s success,”

Reynolds said. “He was playing very well until he got injured.”

Reynolds also expects Valeriano to join Tommy Kelly as the team leaders this season.

Junior Tabari Perr y played and started in the first four games last year before injury sidelined him for the rest of the year. In those four games Perry averaged 7.5 points and 4.56 rebounds. Reynolds is expecting Perry to rebound after last year and be the surprise player on the year.

M a r s h a l l t o w n Community College transfer Luiz Santos stands at 6’10.

The 6’10 center is from Brazil. That kind of height could cause problems inside the paint for the other PSAC West schools.

“We’re expecting Luiz to provide an inside presence,” Reynolds said. “He needs to play within himself.”

Chaquille Pratt will lead the freshman class this season. Pratt, out of Lincoln Park high school was named to the Pittsburgh Post Gazettes “Fab Five” as a senior. Reynolds will look to Pratt to make a significant impact right away.

Reynolds is looking forward to the start of

Improvement is key for women’s team in 2011

By D.J. Vasil Rocket Contributor

After finishing 3-23 last year, the Rock women’s basketball team will look to rebound under second-year head coach Tanya Longo.

The Rock is predicted to finish seventh out of eight teams in the preseason Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference West polls. Despite those expectations, Longo believes the team will do better than expected.

“We are going to have a successful season,” Longo said.

“The young ladies on this team are hard working, competitive and fun. We all have the same vision for our program and we look forward to our continued progress through the season.”

Slippery Rock will be returning four starters from last season, seniors Danielle Smith, Sherita Stanley, Shannon Lee and, junior Emilee Vitez.

Smith received preseason All PSAC West honors and will look improve off of last season that saw Smith average 11.8 points per game along with 6.7 rebounds.

“Danielle Smith may be our most improved player,” Longo said. “She has worked diligently since last season ended to improve her game and we are excited to have that progress show up on the court come game time this season.”

Lee returns after averaging 6.7 points, 4.7 assists and 3.1 rebounds. She led the Rock in

assists with 121.

“Shannon Lee did a great job running the team as a point guard last season and we look forward to her picking up where she left off,” Longo said. “She understands what we need to do and has proven she can execute.”

Stanley was the Rock’s second leading scorer, averaging 7.7 points. She also averaged 5.3 rebounds a game.

“Sherita Stanley was a strong contributor last season and has put a lot of time into improving her game since last March,” Longo said. “We look forward to her continued progress and contributions as one of our senior leaders.”

The Rock women will have ten new faces on the roster.

Despite all the new players, Longo is expecting good things and won’t be surprised by any of their success.

“I don’t think anyone on our roster who flourishes this season will be a surprise,” Longo said. “I’ve recruited these young ladies because they have the abilities to be strong contributors to a successful team here at The Rock.”

D’Asia Chambers, a freshman, is one of the new players. Chambers, a star at Farrell High School, will look to contribute right away.

“D’Asia Chambers is a very talented young lady,” Longo said. “She is a freshman and is learning and growing every day. We expect she will be an impact player for us once she becomes eligible to compete in late December.”

Basketball

C-6

December 2, 2011

Transfer from Brazil adds size to Rock line-up

By Tim Durr Sports Editor

Slippery Rock’s men’s basketball team looked to get bigger this season according to head coach Kevin Reynolds.

They’ve done just that with the addition of junior Luiz Santos, who transferred from Marshalltown Community College in Marshalltown, Iowa.

Santos adds plenty of height to the center of the Green and White’s offense and defense as he stands at 6 feet 10 inches tall.

Reynolds said that he first started looking into Santos because a close friend of his, and head coach at Santos’ junior college Brynjar Brynjarsson told him that he had a big center for him to look at.

“Brynjar is a good guy and gave me a heads up about Luiz,” Reynolds said. “We don’t have the money at this level to travel around and scout players in person so we have to go off of referrals for finding players.”

Santos moved from his homeland of Sao Paulo, Brazil to the United States in 2009 to play basketball and that is when he headed to Marshalltown Community College.

“It was an interesting transition when I moved over because I had to adjust how I played the game,” Santos said. “We play a different style of basketball overseas. Everyone is much more physical here and I had to learn a new style of play and change my game.”

Santos added that working on learning English and fitting in with how people in the U.S. live were two

ANDREW LACEY/THE ROCKET

Junior center Luiz Santos moved to America in 2009 and transferred this past season from Marshalltown Community College to SRU. At 6 foot 10 inches, Santos is one of the tallest players SRU has ever had on its team.

other challenges that he faced.

“I had to work hard to learn English when I moved over here,” he said. “I feel that I have improved and the guys here at SRU have continued to help me since I got here.”

At almost seven feet tall, Santos originally didn’t start with playing the sport of basketball. He was raised playing soccer in Brazil.

“I played soccer for about 5 years when I was younger,” Santos said.

“It wasn’t until 2000 that I started to play basketball.”

Reynolds believes that the key to success for Santos will be his size and that having a big center like that is something SRU hasn’t had in a while.

“Santos’ size is something that we have never had here at SRU before,” Reynolds said. “He also brings other good factors to the team. He has good hands and touch with the ball and also gives us a good addition for our defense in the paint.”

Santos gave credit to his former coach at Marshalltown Community

College for getting him interested in coming to SRU. “My former coach had a connection with Coach Reynolds and he told me Slippery Rock was interested in getting someone my size to play here,” Santos said.

“Coach Reynolds saw me play and talked to me about coming here.”

In 21 games at Marshalltown Community College, Santos averaged 3.3 points, 3.2 rebounds and 0.6 blocks per game, along with shooting 48.3 percent (29-for-60)

from the floor. He had seven points and four rebounds in the season opener against Westminster, along with two points and four rebounds in the exhibition match against Penn State University.

Santos said that he hopes to contribute to the team this season and help them to be a championship contender this season.

“I work hard to do the best I can for the team,” Santos said. “I will do whatever I can to help this team get better and get a championship.”

2011-2012 Slippery Rock University Men’s Basketball

Aubin Reeves Position: Guard Year: Junior Height: 5-foot-10 Weight: 150 Hometown: Waldorf, Md.

Aubin Reeves, also known as RJ, is a junior professional study major, and a 5’10”, 152 lb. guard for Slippery Rock men’s basketball team. Reeves, is originally from Waldorf, Maryland where he attended Thomas Stone High School. In his senior year of high school, Reeves was a second team all conference selection. He earned an honorable mention in the Washington Post All-Metro team status.

Luiz Santos Position: Center Year: Junior Height: 6-foot-10 Weight: 230 Hometown: Sao Paulo, Brazil

He transferred from Marshalltown Community College this season and looks to be a big threat in the post for SRU. He is originally from Brazil and moved to America in 2009. He said that learning English was one of the most difficult things for him to do when he came to the U.S. When Santos was younger, he played soccer, but then moved to basketball when he grew older.

Brett Young Position: Forward Year: Junior Height: 6-foot-6 Weight: 230 Hometown: Pittsburgh, Pa.

Junior Brett Young will enter his first season at Slippery Rock after transferring from the Community College of Allegheny County. After going to CCAC for a year, he transferred to Lourdes College and averaged 8.5 points and 5.5 rebounds. He is a professional study major. His plans after college are to be a Young Men’s Christian Association manager or coach a high school or college basketball team.

Maxx Rynd Position: Guard Year: Freshman Height: 6-foot-0 Weight: 175 Hometown: Oil City, Pa.

His nickname is "Ice." He is a freshman sports management major and guard for Slippery Rock men’s basketball team. Rynd is originally from Oil City where he attended Venango Catholic High School. Rynd lettered four times in basketball. He was named District 9 rookie of the year in 20082009. He was the District 9 leading scorer for three consecutive seasons. He ended his high school career scoring a total of 1,749 points.

Chaquille Pratt Position: Forward Year: Freshman Height: 6-foot-4 Weight: 215 Hometown: Philadelphia, Pa.

Chaquille Pratt, also known as ‘Shaq’ is a new face to college basketball. Pratt is a 6’2’’ and 216 lb. freshman, forward. Pratt is from Aliquippa, Pennsylvania where he attended Aliquippa High School and transferred to Lincoln Park Performing Arts High School. Pratt’s, recorded career high was 46 points, 11 rebounds and 7 assists his junior season (2010) at Lincoln Park verse Penn Manor High School. In 2010-2011 his senior season he averaged a total of 29 points and eight rpg.

Tabari Perry Position: Forward Year: Junior Height: 6-foot-8 Weight: 200 Hometown: Cambridge, Md.

Standing at 6’7” and 205 lbs. Tabari Perry, is a junior professional studies major and small forward, on Slippery Rock men’s basketball team.

Perry is originally from Cambridge, Maryland where he attended Cambridge-South Dorchester high school. While at Cambridge, he earned “Player of the Year”, all-district and all-league honors. Before Slippery Rock, Perry attended Cecil Community College in North East, Maryland.

Devin Taylor Position: Guard Year: Senior Height: 6-foot-6 Weight: 205 Hometown: New Castle, Pa.

Nicknamed “Logo”, Taylor said his most memorable moment playing basketball was when he played against LeBron James in high school. Taylor was a junior and James was a senior. He said he was shocked because Jay-Z and Plaxico Burress were at the game. Taylor feels good about the team and is looking for SRU to have a successful season. Off court, he is focusing on his son and getting his degree.

Tommy Kelly Position: Guard Year: Senior Height: 6-foot-3 Weight: 180 Hometown: Washington, Pa.

He plans to fulfill his leadership duties and help the team win a championship this season through his communication skills on the court.

He looks to bring excitement and enthusiasm to the floor, as well. Kelly is studying for a Health and Safety Management degree and looks to attend grad school after finishing up at SRU. His favorite basketball player is New York Knicks star Carmelo Anthony.

Basketball

December 2, 2011

C-7

2011-2012 PSAC West Analysis

Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania Last season: 21-11 overall, 9-5 PSAC Outlook: The Rock is selected to finish fifth in this season’s Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference West preseason poll. SRU looks to return to the Division II tournament this season after finishing 21-11 overall, 9-5 PSAC. All-conference candidate Devin Taylor will be crucial for SRU this season. Taylor finished the 2010-2011 season averaging just under 12 points a game and 6 rebounds. SRU will be looking for big season from sophomore forward Tabari Perry, after he missed the majority of last season with a knee injury.

Indiana University of Pennsylvania Last season: 26-6 overall, 12-2 PSAC Outlook: IUP comes into this season picked to finish first in the PSAC-West. After coming off a season in which the Crimson Hawks finished first in the PSAC-West and advanced all the way to the Atlantic Regional, IUP is looking to make a run to the Division II National Championship for the second time in three years. The Crimson Hawks will be relying on two key players this season, seniors Ashton Smith and Julian Sanders, who were both selected to the PSAC West preseason all-conference.

California University of Pennsylvania Last season: 15-12 overall, 8-6 PSAC Outlook: The Vulcans come into this season picked to finish second in the PSAC-West. After finishing last season fourth in the PSAC West and clinching its first post-season berth since 2008.

Preseason All-PSAC West team selection Steve Swiech will be the key for the Vulcan’s success this season. The senior forward, who led Cal U in scoring with an average of 12.2 ppg, will be looking for an even bigger year for the Vulcans.

The Vulcans look for a big year from redshirt junior Travon Vann, who missed all of last season.

Gannon University Last season: 15-11 overall, 6-8 PSAC Outlook: The Golden Knights have been picked to finish third in the PSAC-West, after finishing last season fifth in the conference. Gannon will be looking for a big season from Stephen Battle. The sophomore forward, who was last season’s PSAC Western Freshman of the Year, is coming of a season in which he averaged 12.6 points per game.

Gannon will also be looking for big seasons from their other two returning starters Tanner Furno and Steve Piotrowicz. The Golden Knights will add 11 new players for this year’s squad.

Mercyhurst College Last season: 20-7 Overall, 11-3 PSAC Outlook: The Lakers will be making a push for its first appearance in the NCAA Tournament in school history. Mercyhurst is picked to finish fourth this season in PSACWest and will be led by PSAC West First Team selection Luis Leao. As a redshirt freshman last season, Leao averaged 17.5 points per game along with 8.3 rebounds. The Lakers will also be looking for another big year from senior point guard Jamal Turner, who averaged 5.7 assists per game last season.

Edinboro University of Pennsylvania Last season: 13-15 Overall, 5-9 PSAC Outlook: The Fighting Scots are selected to finish seventh in the PSAC-West. Edinboro will come into the season having missed the PSAC playoffs the last two years, after making it the previous nine seasons. The Fighting Scots will be looking for big years from returners Clint Nicholson and Cory Somerville. The senior guard Nicholson returns after finishing last season as the team’s leading scorer (13.3 ppg). The senior forward Somerville finished last year averaging 11.2 ppg and 6.1 rpg.

Clarion University of Pennsylvania Last season: 15-11 Overall, 5-9 PSAC Outlook: The Golden Eagles will be looking to bounce back from a disappointing season after starting last season 9-0. Clarion is picked to finish sixth in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Western Division preseason poll this year. Clarion will need a big year from senior Quintus “Bud” Teer, who finished last season as the PSAC’s leading rebounder (10.5 rpg), while also averaging 11.8 ppg. Clarion will also be hoping for another strong season from senior forward Paul McQueen.

Lock Haven University of Pennsylvania Last season: 1-24 Overall, 0-14 PSAC Outlook: With the arrival of new head coach Mike Nestor, the Bald Eagles will be looking forward to a major turnaround after a nightmarish one win season from last year. The Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference has Lock Haven finishing eighth in this year’s PSAC Western Division preseason poll. Lock Haven hopes to have a big season from last year’s leading scorer (9.8 ppg) sophomore Anthony Baker. Lock Haven will also be looking for a big year from sophomore guard Jace Keller.

2011-2012 Slippery Rock University Men’s Basketball

John Bayardelle Position: Guard Year: Junior Height: 6-foot-2 Weight: 170 Hometown: New York, N.Y.

He attended Ramapo High School in Spring Valley, New York. While at Ramapo, Bayardelle earned all district honors. Bayardelle’s college basketball career started at Northern Virginia Community College, where he played for one season (2008-2009). It was there, that Bayardelle recorded his career best of 35-points in a game against Howard Community College. In Bayardelle’s first season at Slippery Rock (201011), he averaged a total of 3.6 points per game.

John Bossle Position: Guard Year: Senior Height: 5-foot-11 Weight: 175 Hometown: New Park, Pa.

Bossle began his college basketball career at Cecil Community College in North East, Maryland, in which he played there for two seasons (2008-2009 and 2009-2010). While at Cecil, he received the Hustle Award and Ironman Award (2008-2009). In his first season (2010-11) at Slippery Rock Bossle, averaged a total of 1.6 points, 0.5 rebounds and 0.4 assists. Bossle believes his biggest attribution to the team is his communication on and off the court, high energy level and team spirit.

John Valeriano Position: Guard Year: Senior Height: 5-foot-11 Weight: 175 Hometown: Pittsburgh, Pa.

He earned a National Junior College Athletic Association Division III honorable mention All-American Award while at CCAC. He averaged 12.7 points per game and shot 43 percent from the field. He is majoring in Health and Physical Education.

Last season he started in 23 of 26 games and averaged 5.1 points per game. He looks to improve on his numbers this season and help the team to be successful.

Kenny Moore Position: Guard Year: Freshman Height: 5-foot-10 Weight: 155 Hometown: Deptford, N.J.

From Woodbury High School, Freshman Kenny Moore led his team to the conference championship his s enior ye ar. He averaged a double double that year. He is a communications major. His plans after college are to play basketball overseas or to be a sports anchor on ESPN. Moore goes by the nickname "K.Dot." He said it was a dream come true to have the opportunity to play college basketball.

Basketball Preview Section Advisor Mark Zeltner Editor D.J. Vasil Torrance Timothy Position: Guard Year: Senior Height: 6-foot-5 Weight: 205 Hometown: Yeadon, Pa.

His nickname is ‘T-Smoove’ and he brings versatility on the court. Timothy believes his best attribute to the team is his ability to transition and play multiple positions on the court. Timothy started out his college basketball career in 2007 at Howard University in Washington, DC. His current goals are to help his team win the PSACWest championship title and compete in another NCAA tournament.

Wes Kirkland Position: Forward Year: Junior Height: 6-foot-5 Weight: 195 Hometown: Philadelphia, Pa.

His most memorable moment from his basketball career was when he played at Roman Catholic High School and his team won the PCL championship in 2007-2008 and was ranked in the Top-15 nationally. Kirkland transferred from Shippingsburg University and will look to help SRU win games with his attributions on the court.

Kirkland would like to play professional basketball but is just taking each day as it comes. His future goals are to graduate and attend grad school.

Will Kirkland Position: Forward Year: Junior Height: 6-foot-6 Weight: 205 Hometown: Philadelphia, Pa.

Redshirt Junior Will Kirkland transfers after spending the last three seasons at Shippensburg University. He averaged 7.5 points and 2.9 rebounds in the 16 games he appeared in as a sophomore. He is a Communications major and twin brother of teammate Wes Kirkland. His career-high was this season for SRU when he scored 10 points in a game this season against Westminster College.

Lead Reporter

Madeline Williams Design Editor Tim Durr Photo Editor Matt Howard

Staff writers

Tyler Nalesnik

Nick Cardamone LeVar Howell Kaitlyn Yeager Nicola Lucaine Ronaldo CookMartin Will DeShong Stephanie Clark

Special Contributors

Lexi Kovski Alex Mowrey

ROCKETBOOK

Men's and Women's 2011-2012 Basketball Preview

About them: men's basketball won its first state championship in 1982 under coach Hank Baierl, it was SRU's only in history.

Interested in: scoring bucket after bucket, playing solid defense, getting a ton of rebounds and dominating opponents.

Goals: Rolling through the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference and winning the conference title for the first time since 1963.

Senior guard ready to fulfill duties of star at SRU HEAD COACH: KEVIN REYNOLDS

By Will Deshong Rocket Reporter

60-32 Overall Record Fourth Year Head Coach at SRU Picked to finish Fifth in PSAC 15 Players on Roster Devin Taylor Profile on C-1 Luiz Santos Profile on C-2

Men's Schedule

The Slippery Rock University men’s basketball team is expecting a lot out of senior forward Devin Taylor this season.

Standing 6 foot 6 and weighing 205 pounds, the New Castle native is the leading scorer returning from a season ago and is expected to carry an even bigger role for the Rock this year.

“He is one of the more underrated players in the PSAC,” Rock head coach Kevin Reynolds said of Taylor. “He has had many big games at SRU and we are counting on him to have a big year for us.”

But even with heavy expectations upon his shoulders, Taylor doesn’t see himself as the star basketball player at the Rock.

“I don’t look at it like that,” Taylor said. “I’m here to contribute and get the team a ‘W’ and push the program in the right direction.”

Taylor brings both skill and leadership to a Slippery Rock team that he thinks can return to the conference championship this season.

“Devin is a versatile player,” Reynolds said. “He has the ability to score inside and outside. He is a tough player too.

He played hurt for the last eight games of 2010-11 season.”

He is also respected by his teammates, as senior guard Jonathan Valeriano praised Taylor as a teammate.

“Dev is a great teammate,” Valeriano said. “He’s really unselfish.”

Taylor has a lot more on his plate this season than just leading the Rock on the court, however.

“I’m about to have my first child in about 2-3 weeks,” Taylor said with a noticeable look of joy on his face. “I’m very excited.”

There already seems to be little doubt about whether or not his soon-to-be son will be following in his father’s footsteps as a basketball player.

“He better be,” Taylor said with a large grin.

His son will have a lot to live up to as Taylor has had quite the successful and memorable basketball career dating back to his high school days.

When he was a sophomore at New Castle High School, Taylor helped his team win 27 consecutive games before losing in the WPIAL Finals. The following season, in 2002, he got to play against perhaps the greatest basketball player in the world.

“When I was a junior, I got to guard against LeBron James,” Taylor said.

“We played at the Mellon Arena in Pittsburgh. Since we went 30-2 the year before, they knew a lot of fans would show up.”

James scored 31 points in that game as his high school team, St. Vincent-St. Mary of Akron, Ohio, beat New Castle 82-48. Despite the expected loss to the nation’s best player, Taylor still fondly recalls the game.

“It was an amazing experience that I’ll never forget,” Taylor said.

Following high school, he played two seasons for La Roche College, a Division III basketball program. He earned All-Conference Newcomer of the Year honors during his freshman season for the Redhawks in 2004-05.

He wasn’t happy after two seasons of college though, and opted to leave La Roche and return home.

PHOTO COURTESY OF SPORTS INFORMATION

Senior guard Devin Taylor showed that he was ready for the 2011-2012 season when he came out and scored 25 points in an exhibition match against Penn State University on Nov. 5.

“I wasn’t satisfied,” Taylor said of his time at LaRoche. "I thought I could do more, and I was disappointed in how the season went.”

He took a couple years off from college and worked a few different jobs, ranging from factory work, and being a salesman at Lids Hatworld at the Prime Outlets in Grove City.

Finally in 2010, he returned to school to play basketball, choosing to follow his in his uncle’s footsteps and attend SRU. His uncle, Michael Hambrick, was a track and field star at the Rock and was inducted into the SRU Athletic Hall of Fame in 2010.

It was a decision he hasn’t regretted, as he feels satisfied with the selection that he says his uncle helped him decide on.

“He actually told me in high school that I should come here,” Taylor said.

“He has a couple kids that just graduated from here as well.”

In his first season with the Rock, Taylor posted an impressive 11.8 points-per-game and 6.3 rebounds-

per-game averages, and, led the team with 30 blocked shots. He also had one particular moment that stood out to his coaches and teammates alike.

“He had a great dunk to beat Mercyhurst in PSAC quarterfinals,” Reynolds said, referencing a threepoint play Taylor had with 42 seconds left in the playoff game last March.

“I remember that game against Mercyhurst,” Valeriano said. “He dunked on someone pretty bad.”

Taylor hopes to continue his basketball career after his time at Slippery Rock by playing overseas, but emphasized the importance of getting a college education, as well.

“Anything can happen,” Taylor said.

“I could get injured or something, and the degree is nice to have if that happens.”

But at this time, he wants to play basketball. And, with the new addition to his family coming in the near future, he has someone to play for.

“It’s going to motivate me to push even harder,” Taylor said. “I’m doing it for more than just myself now.”

The Rocket

CAMPUS LIFE D-1 December 2, 2011

Wild boy

ALEX MOWREY/THE ROCKET

Steve-O, one of the stars of the reality stunt-based television show "Jackass," performs in the MPR. Steve-O's stunts included breaking a lightbulb on his head and then painting himself with blood from his own tongue after cutting it with a piece of the broken lightbulb.

"Jackass" star Steve-O performs stand-up, stunts in MPR

By Andy Treese Campus Life Editor

With his eyes burning from exposure to lemon juice and his tongue bleeding from cutting himself with a piece of a broken light bulb, “Jackass” star Steve-O painted the blood from his tongue onto his face like tribal war paint before a cheering audience of 735 people at the end of his performance in the MPR Tuesday evening.

Roughly thirty minutes before dancing his way to the stage and starting the show at 8:06 p.m., Steve-O sat relaxed at a conference table, eating soup and a salad as he reflected on the events leading to him becoming a stand-up comedian.

“Around the time that ‘Jackass’ really first started to take off, if you were to have booked me for a live comedy performance, I would have thought you did that because you hated me or something,” Steve-O said with a chuckle. “Now, I would be completely excited for that opportunity.”

Presently on a North American tour to perform stand-up comedy, as well as stunts and bar tricks, Steve-O said the new path his career has taken, despite being nerve-racking for him at first, is more to his liking.

Though he’s been sober since March of 2008, Steve-O said his life has almost always been about the pursuit of chaos, between his work for “Jackass” and life outside of his career.

“I was always drawn to drugs and alcohol, going back to high school,” he said. “My life was all about the pursuit of sex, drugs and mayhem.”

After graduating from high school in London, Steve-O attended the University of Miami for a year before dropping out and enrolling in Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Clown College to pursue becoming a professional stuntman. Upon finishing clown college, he began submitting tapes to TV producers until producer Jeff Tremaine recruited him to co-star on the first season of “Jackass.”

According to Steve-O, the inspiration for himself and his fellow co-stars, such as Bam Margera and Johnny Knoxville, to perform various stunts came from a mutual dislike for traditional ways of life.

“It all stemmed from intense dislike for work and school,” he said. “I think we all had that in common, that we couldn’t really bring ourselves to go to class and that we couldn’t really keep a job.”

Steve-O explained that when he chose to drop out of college to

pursue a career as a stuntman, he had low expectations for himself and where his life might lead.

“Being that I couldn’t keep a job or go to school, I felt like I lacked the survival skills to make it on any level in the real world, so I had a kind of built-in expectation of dying young [and] having failed at life,” he said.

After the first season of “Jackass” aired on MTV in 2000, the series ended in 2002. After the show’s ending, Steve-O and fellow co-star Chris Pontius starred together on the spinoff show, “Wildboyz,” which lasted for four seasons from 2003 to 2006. In addition, three motion picture adaptations of “Jackass” were released to the box office in 2002, 2006 and 2010.

With the show’s franchise becoming internationally known, Steve-O began going on world tours to perform stunts as a live comedic act. It was during this time especially, according to Steve-O, that drug and alcohol addiction became a very big problem and began to take control of his life and career.

“With drugs and alcohol, I really got away from being impressive, clever or fascinating to my fans, and it’s just like I de-evolved to the point where I’m just like, ‘Oh, I’m [expletive] on the red carpet,’

or ‘I’m smoking grass here,’” he said. “That was just my shtick. I just wasn’t impressive anymore, it wasn’t funny, and it was just … really pitiful in a way.”

At one point during his stand-up routine Tuesday evening, Steve-O told the audience about his drug use being so bad that he “had five interventions, the first four being hallucinations.” He then proceeded to describe to the audience about the intervention that co-star and close friend Johnny Knoxville put together with the rest of the stars from “Jackass.”

“You know you have a serious [expletive] problem when Johnny Knoxville’s your interventionist,” he said onstage, almost immediately erupting into a high-pitched fit of laughter along with the audience.

To become clean, Steve-O was committed to a mental hospital for 14 days in 2008. After his release, he began rehabilitation for his drug and alcohol abuse.

Since he became sober in 2008, Steve-O filmed “Jackass 3D” and began to tour for his stand-up performances, which also involved him doing some stunt work night after night.

Steve-O said the momentum came to a halt with the death of “Jackass” co-star and friend Ryan Dunn over the summer.

“Any time you lose a loved one, it’s devastating,” he said. “Obviously, we all came together when Ryan died.

Of course it brought us together.”

Months after Dunn’s death, Steve-O began on another North American tour, in which SRU was one of the stops. After Tuesday’s show, the next stop for Steve-O was Washington, D.C. on Thursday, with continuing performances in the city until Sunday.

For the closing portion of his act each night, Steve-O said he does different stunts of varying intensities for audiences. During Tuesday’s performance, those stunts included balancing a chef ’s knife on his nose, squirting lemon juice into his eyes, and cutting his tongue with a piece of glass from a broken light bulb.

With various members of the audience looking on with widened eyes and shocked reactions, the audience cheered and applauded Steve-O as he conducted each stunt.

Reflecting on his career as a comedic stunt man, Steve-O described the increasing popularity of “Jackass” in society as a morbid interest.

“The fact that ‘Jackass’ is everincreasingly popular is an indicator that society is going down the toilet,” he said. “The way I see it, I’m grateful for that.”

Campus Life

D-2

December 2, 2011

Shopping later in the holiday season can yield excellent gift options at reasonable prices

Katie Ellis "ROCK'n Fashion" It’s the holiday season, and you know what that means Slippery Rock students - it’s time to start your holiday shopping. Whether you’re shopping for Christmas, Hanukah or Kwanzaa, shopping season is in session, and now is the perfect time to start planning what you want to get your friends and family members, if you haven’t already.

In the aftermath of the Black Friday madness, you can now go to your local mall and calmly shop for the hottest presents of the 2011 holiday season with this shopping guide in hand.

If you’re looking for a keepsake item or special piece of jewelry for an affordable price, Things Remembered is a good place to shop for anyone on your list.

A great present for any friend or member of your family is a picture frame with a treasured photo from the past year. With a vast selection of frames to choose from, you’re sure to find the perfect one for that special someone.

A beautiful frame for your grandmother would be the Silver Beaded Frame, starting at just $25.

This frame has a sophisticated

look with a double mat and shiny beads that outline its edges.

When picking out a photo for such an elegant frame, choose one with special significance for both of you, like one from your high school graduation or her birthday party.

The Star Key Chain is a wonderful keepsake gift for your best friend. She will be able to put the keys to her car on it and carry it wherever she goes. Like most items from Things Remembered, the Star Key Chain can be engraved with a special saying or her initials. This is a gift that your best friend is sure to cherish not only because of its sparkly design, but also because it was given to her by someone special.

Shopping for your brother or your boyfriend is always a difficult task, but why not make the task a little less difficult by heading over to Dick’s Sporting Goods. They have sports equipment, footwear and clothing options for every guy on your list.

When looking for a gift for your boyfriend, head over to the Under Armour section to look at their selection of sweatshirts. A sweatshirt is an essential item that every guy needs, and choosing one from this athletic brand is sure to impress him this holiday season. The Under Armour Men’s Fleece Big Logo Hoodie is a top seller at the sporting goods store and with a variety of colors to choose from like black and white, you will be able to find him the perfect sweatshirt for around $55.

With hockey season being in full swing, a perfect gift for your brother would be a t-shirt from

Ask Ana "Ana Graham"

Question: Dear Ana, A couple years ago, I joined a sorority. I got along with the girls well, but I couldn’t afford it, so I had to quit. It was all friendly and when I asked, I was told that I could keep the stuff that I had been given while I was a sister.

It has been a year now, and I haven’t talked to any of them since. I received a text today from my former big asking for a blanket that she had given me back. I’m offended and can’t believe that she asked me after so long. I think I spent more money on all the gifts I gave her, and I didn’t ask for any of them back. I don’t want them either.

I don’t know if I should give it back, not give it back, or even reply to her text.

What should I do?

Ex Greek

Answer: Dear Ex Greek, There are many horrible suggestions I can give you for what you could do with that blanket before you’d return it (if you

so chose to), but I won’t because that wouldn’t be fair to the poor blanket.

It’s odd that she wants it back after such a long time.

It would have been much more appropriate for her to have asked for it back immediately when you asked her.

You have no obligation to return it to her now, and I suggest that you don’t. Even if she no longer considers it a gift, it is at the very least an insufficient trade for what you had given her.

It is up to you whether or not you text her back.

If you don’t text her, she will probably figure out that you do not intend to give her back the gift.

Sometimes, no response is a response in itself.

Question: Dear Ana, I’ve been dating my boyfriend for a year now, and though I know I should know by now what he likes, I have no idea what to give him for Christmas. I try to suggest to him to give me suggestions, but instead, he just talks about all the expensive computer and tech-y items he wishes he could get. What should I get him that will show that I know him well?

Bad Girlfriend

Answer: Dear Bad Girlfriend, There’s nothing wrong with asking his close friends what he likes, or what he’s told them about that he wants. Also, listen closely

ALEX MOWREY/THE ROCKET

One popular Christmas gift idea for this season is various merchandise for the Pittsburgh Penguins. With Sidney Crosby's recent return to the ice, merchandise bearing his name and number is especially popular amongst the fanbase.

his favorite team. On the heels of Sidney Crosby’s triumphant return to the ice, pick up the “Howitzer” Long Sleeve Name and Number T-Shirt with his name and number on the back for just $30.

When it comes to finding the perfect gift for your mother, head over to Shutterfly.com to make her a personalized photo book. There are a variety of sizes to choose, like 5x7 to 12x12, in a number of patterns such as “Happiness Is,” “Words of Faith” and “Confetti Splash.”

These books also come in either a hard or soft cover. Take your favorite photos from when you were a child until now and put them into your photo book for

in casual conversation because at some point, he is probably going to talk about something that he really likes or wants that isn’t a computer.

A safe bet would also be to buy something related to his hobbies and interests.

For example, if he really likes “Star Wars,” you could buy him one of those snazzy light sabers that are built to scale with a display holder.

If he likes “The Godfather,” buy him the box set if he doesn’t have it.

I don’t think you have to worry about him thinking that you don’t know him well enough to buy a gift.

Question: Dear Ana, How does one recover from Thanksgiving?

Stop Asking Me Dumb Questions

Answer: Dear Stop, Stop asking me dumb questions.

Also, one does not simply recover from Thanksgiving - it’s a process. This process will not end until after New Year’s Day, when the holiday season finally comes to a close. Expect to be lethargic for at least another month until the depression and reality of a new semester sets in.

In the meantime, just don’t sleep through your finals - consume caffeine and do calisthenics or something to keep yourself awake and aware during this time of the year.

"Ana Graham" is a senior public relations major and a regular contributor to The Rocket.

the ultimate keepsake gift for your mother that she will cherish for a lifetime. Although this gift is made of priceless memories, it will cost you anywhere from $13-$55.

Last, but certainly not least, on your holiday shopping list is a gift for dad.

Even if your dad isn’t a do-ityourself kind of guy, there are a few tools that he could use around the house for minor emergencies.

Head over to Home Depot to get the Sheffield 14-in-1 Hammer Multi Tool for only $12.

This all-in-one tool includes a hammer, pliers and even a can opener. With this tool in hand, your dad will be able to fix any household problems that he

comes across with ease.

Another great gift for dad is the Great Neck Saw 111-Piece Tool Set. For the low price of $29, you can get your dad a full tool kit. It includes a hammer, a screwdriver and a tape measure among the 111 tools included in the kit. Your dad will love either of these gifts and is sure to use them around the house long after the holidays.

With these suggestions, you should be able to find the perfect gift for the people on your holiday shopping list. Have fun shopping, Slippery Rock students!

Katie Ellis is a freshman journalism major and a regular contributor to The Rocket.

December 2, 2011

Campus Life

D-3

Slam poetry brings emotion, passion, and diversity to poetry readings

By Rebecca Marcucci Rocket Contributor

Slam poetry is not a beret-wearing and bongodrumming style of poetry reading where the audience snaps for applause, according to the fellow founders of the Slam Poetry organization on campus.

The organization held a slam poetry reading event Thursday evening on the second floor of Bailey Library.

Junior creative writing major and co-president of Slam Poetry Ariel Wall, 20, said she believes slam poetry holds so much more to its name than what people imagine the term to mean.

“It’s poetry with passion,” Wall said. “It’s not specifically one style of poetry over another. It’s differing based on the poet. People just really share poetry about something they’re passionate about.”

Wall explained how club members formed poems of their own and prepared themselves to read them out loud for fellow students on campus.

“We perform each semester,” Wall said. “We’re

a very diverse group. We all come from different backgrounds and have different things we are interested in.”

Wall explained how she liked the concept of other universities’ slam poetry readings and hoped the Slam Poetry organization at SRU would one day present their writings in a similar way.

“I’ve researched a lot about slam poetry battles,” Wall said. “Each individual delivers their poem and is judged upon it. The winner at the end then goes on to battle again at a national slam poetry competition or goes on to compete in an even more competitive level of poetry presentation.”

Junior fine arts major and former president and co-founder of Slam Poetry Adam Wagerman, 20, gave insights on the origination of the club on campus and how it came to be.

“Slam Poetry began first semester last year,” Wagerman said. “The group started out with club members writing their own poetry and then we decided to perform it for others to hear.”

Wagerman explained how the poems were more than feelings written on paper specifically

connected to the writer alone.

“Slam poetry is geared away from the page,” Wagerman said. “It is a spoken passion.”

Wagerman said how he thought the concept of reading the poems aloud is not only therapeutic for the author, but some audiences can relate, and if not, then they can understand the true, raw emotion.

“This is our fourth slam poetry event that we have put on,” Wagerman said. “It’s part of an intense history involving many people.”

Senior creative writing major, co-president and co-founder of Slam Poetry Molly Kuhn, 21, had many words of encouragement to add to the organization.

“During my sophomore year, I really became interested in slam poets,” Kuhn said. “Adam and I looked up a lot of poets’ works and we became really excited about them. We talked about starting an organization and it was kind of a joke at first, but then we looked at each other and said, ‘Let’s do this!’”

Kuhn said she believed the members had great

potential and said she could see it in the way the group members write and present their poetry.

“We have a really amazing group,” Kuhn said.

“We have five new freshmen this year and they are really zealous kids. They all have their own voices and their own styles and they really show.”

Kuhn also explained how private poets should proceed into the club if they are interested.

“We have many closet poets in the club who just write out poems in their journals and then read them out loud,” Kuhn said. “We tell newcomers to show up to one of our meetings held Tuesdays during common hour to see what we do. We encourage anyone to come and share their poetry.”

Kuhn explained what the organization has done in past years with advertising their slam poetry event and the students’ hopeful reactions.

“Our first year, we held the readings in the quad as an introduction to Slam Poetry,” Kuhn said. “We always hope that most are inspired and influenced by what we’re saying. We hope they can hopefully relate to the poetry and not think we’re not complete hippies.”

Sexually explicit text messages may have unforeseen consequences on social life, career

By Courtney Tietje Rocket Contributor

In recent years, sexting has become popular as a means of expressing attraction, especially among teenagers and young adults.

But as popular of a trend as it has become on college campuses today, it’s still a taboo subject, according to 18-year-old freshman secondary English education major, Katie Roncaglione.

“It’s been hushed for so long. It’s like health class - everyone sits there awkwardly, and later on, you just don’t talk about it,” Roncaglione said.

Roncaglione said she also believes that it’s given a bad reputation.

“When people do talk about sex or sexting, it’s automatically a scandal,” she said. “The word that you’re sending naked pictures of yourself to others is all over the place.”

While Roncaglione and others define sexting as sending naked pictures of oneself to others via text message, some, like Alyssa Mosley, 19, a sophomore marketing major, define sexting as, “any kind of texting in a sexual way,” which includes

not only sending naked or graphic pictures, but also sending graphic or sexual words.

According to a study conducted by the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy, as many as one in five teens have sent sexually suggestive photos of themselves to someone else.

Dr. Jennifer Santfner, professor of psychology at SRU, believes that sexting is often psychologically problematic for both the sender and receiver.

Dr. Emily Keener, also an instructor of psychology at SRU, also does not see a positive side to sexting.

“Sexting often reflects sexualization, which has negative consequences,” she said. “It can cause someone to value only how they look and [to feel like] the only way to be sexy is to basically be naked, revealing and provocative, and to feel that that’s all they have to offer.”

She adds to that a list of external consequences, as well.

“What if the person [receiving the text message] doesn’t want to receive the message,” she asked.

“And once you send it, it’s out there. What is your ex-boyfriend or -girlfriend going to do with that

picture? There have been cases of harassment and bullying that have resulted from situations like that. [Plus, it can be hard] when you’re on the job market, or even trying to get into schools, or if you want to go into politics, especially.”

David Miller, 19, a freshman emerging technology major, said he doesn’t see anything wrong with sexting, but he acknowledges the power behind it.

“It’s like putting a picture on Google, anyone can see and use it,” he said.

David Turnbull, 20, a junior physical education major and coaching minor, disagrees with Miller and sees sexting as an issue of morals.

He defines sexting as “sending pictures and texts about sexual desires and emotions that you would not talk to your parents about.”

But how did sexting even come about?

Dr. Sanftner said she believes that sexting can be just another phase in human nature and communication.

“I think it can be an extension of people’s desire to connect socially, and I think it can be a lowering of inhibitions that people have had about expressing

themselves sexually, which is not necessarily a bad thing and not necessarily a good thing,” she said.

Dr. Keener said she believes the arising of sext messaging reflects a larger cultural problem with the oversexualization of both men and women, but particularly women.

“It’s not so much that sending that one picture is a problem, it’s the thoughts and feelings and attitudes behind it that reflect a problem,” she said.

Dr. Sanftner said the oversexualization of women by the media has also contributed to the increased popularity of sexting.

Despite their views on sexting, students and adults both recognize the consequences caused by the careless passing of information and photographs.

Dr. Sanftner advises students to be careful.

“I believe you have to never put something down on paper or send it through the internet or text message that you don’t want people to see,” she said. “I would hope that [people] really, really think about when they’re sending stuff, ‘is this something that I would be okay with being distributed to other people?’”

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December 2, 2011