The Slate 11-7-23

Allyson Ritchey and Morgan Brumbaugh crowned 2023 SU Homecoming Royalty

Elizabeth Peters Editor-in-Chief

Allyson Ritchey and Morgan Brumbaugh were crowned 2023 Shippensburg Homecoming Royalty on the field of Seth Grove Stadium Saturday.

Out of the 12 members of the 2023 Homecoming Court, Ritchey and Brumbaugh were crowned based on the percentage of votes they received, their answers in a personal interview and the amount of money they raised for a selected charity. This year, the entire Homecoming Court raised $9,150 for the SU Student Emergency Fund.

The SU Student Emergency fund offers money and resources to students experiencing financial stresses.

“Almost 75% of college students have experienced financial insecurity and stress, and one-third have considered dropping out because of their finances,” Ritchey said.

“I think it was great because a lot of people did not know that we had the fund,” Brumbaugh said.

“As someone funding her entire undergrad by herself, this is important to me because I know I am not alone and that it is being talked about,” Ritchey added.

Ritchey and Brumbaugh were sponsored by The Slate and the Student Athlete Advisory Committee,

respectively. Ritchey is a senior sociology and communication, journalism and media major and has been a part of The Slate since 2021. She is currently the multimedia director. Brumbaugh is a junior early childhood education major, and she is a catcher and utility player for the softball team.

As an athlete, Brumbaugh said that sometimes athletes feel separated from their peers because of their schedules, practices and stresses. In running for Homecoming, Brumbaugh said “I want to be the representation for

Shippensburg that we are all one.” Ritchey decided to run for Homecoming because she did not in high school, and she liked that the process at SU is merit based. “It allows for students of less advantaged backgrounds to stand up and do something for a public university in a way that is not afforded to many individuals,” Ritchey said. Congratulations to both Ritchey and Brumbaugh for the work they have done and will continue to do for the campus and community.

Fresh Check Day raises mental health awareness

Mason Flowers Asst. Sports Editor

Shippensburg University hosted its annual Fresh Check Day in the CUB Great Hall this past Tuesday, featuring many booths where students could learn about mental health topics.

The event featured over 20 tables, along with food and drink, therapy dogs and giveaways.

Fresh Check Day is a national program from the Jordan Porco Foundation aimed at promoting mental health and suicide prevention in an approachable atmosphere for college students. Both university staff and campus clubs came together to help make the event a success.

Shippensburg University Director of Wellness Kurt Dunkel was the leader in putting this together, and this event has been a successful one on campus for many years. Dunkel noticed the success, saying “We do more booths than most schools. We bring in off-campus resources, and we also work with different faculty members.”

The event covered topics such as positive affirmations, speaking out for others, recognizing drug use, healthy living, exercise and more. Multiple groups from outside the university also had tables, including the Drew Michael Taylor Foundation and the Mental Health Association of Franklin and Fulton Counties.

Multiple clubs on campus had tables at the event, including Multicultural Student Affairs, the Military Science department and the PAGE Center. Other campus organizations were also present, such as the counseling center and the first-year experience program.

Most of the stations were student-led, with Dunkel commending all involved and noted psychology professor Amber Norwood’s group by saying, “Dr. Norwood’s class has six different tables that are all staffed by her students, and they put together the messaging, the resources, the takeaways. That’s a great partnership between academic affairs and student affairs”.

A majority of the tables were interactive for students, and notable booths included making handprints to symbolize reaching out for those in need, as well as students writing negative thoughts and affirmations on paper before immediately putting them in a shredder. Students could also sign up to enter prize giveaways by visiting five interactive booths.

Dunkel believed the theme of the event was working together in a community. “Mental health is best addressed as a community,” he said. “We should take the time throughout the day to actually check in on ourselves and our mental health and to check in on other folks as well.”

The event will continue annually on campus in the future, with Dunkel seeing room to grow. Speaking about current students, he said, “Your generation is more open to talking about mental health. Our campus is more accepting about it and more open, and we have a tightknit campus where folks work on this topic in different ways.”

Elizabeth Peters / The Slate

Allyson Ritchey (left) and Morgan Brumbaugh (right) were crowned 2023 Homecoming Royalty on Nov. 4.

Elizabeth Peters / The Slate Olivia Faenza, 2022 SU Homecoming Royalty, embracing Allyson Ritchey after she was crowned.

Photo Courtesy of @shipuraiders on Instagram Morgan Brumbaugh holding a photo of her childhood self after being crowned.

Adam Beam & Allyson Ritchey / The Slate

A variety of dogs for students to pet at Fresh Check Day.

Did You Vote Today? Your Voice Matters!

SGA moves forward with budget and search for VP of Finance

Ian Thompson Asst. News Editor

The Shippensburg University Student Government Association (SGA) held its fifth meeting of the fall semester this past Thursday.

Vice President Lillian Sellers announced that the Budget and Finance committee is moving forward alongside the Student Groups committee to organize student group training days.

SGA has tentatively scheduled these events for Nov. 14, Nov. 16 and Nov. 20, but these dates are subject to change. Confirmation of dates and times, alongside other information, will be sent to students in the coming days.

President Harun Pacavar announced that the Executive Leadership Committee had made an emergency decision to modify the qualifications for the Vice President of Finance position. The position has been vacant since April. To be eligible to serve in the role, the appointee must have served on the Budget and Finance committee for at least two consecutive semesters.

The removal of this requirement would widen the pool of possible people who could be appointed. SGA currently has an ad-hoc committee tasked with finding an appointee to the position, which is crucial to meeting SGA’s fiscal responsibilities. The committee

will interview three students who expressed interest in the position.

On Oct. 31, Vice President of Student Groups Justin Brajkovich sent an email to students containing information about student group reregistration. Reregistration is an annual process that involves updating student group information. However, the form given to students did not work, causing Brajkovich to send a second email an hour later announcing SGA was working on a solution.

During the meeting, Brajkovich and SGA adviser Kimberely Rockwell gave an update on the issue. Rockwell said that there was a problem on the backend with CampusGroups, and that they had contacted the service to resolve the technical issue.

Student group leaders will receive another email with an updated deadline once things have been fixed.

Panhellenic Senator Lockett reported that Alpha Sigma Tau was no longer an active Greek life organization on campus, due to their headquarters revoking their charter.

A large number of senators being absent, SGA did not meet its quorum of two-thirds of sitting senators in order to vote on any official business. The only motion on the agenda was for approval of the previous meeting’s minutes, which will now be voted on at the Nov. 30 public meeting.

Weather Forecast

Slater of October: Abby Hockenberry

Elizabeth Peters Editor-in-Chief

Finding a way to transform a performance into words is a skill the Slater of October, Abby Hockenberry, definitely has. Hockenberry is a sophomore communication, journalism and media major and joined The Slate last fall. Since joining, Hockenberry has written articles consistently and became an assistant Arts and Entertainment (A&E) editor.

When writing, Hockenberry’s favorite stories to cover are shows and events. This semester, Hockenberry covered “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” and loved every minute of it. Her favorite part of the show were the characters and the outfits.

“It is just so fun to describe an event that I had fun at and making the audience feel the

same way,” Hockenberry said.

As the assistant A&E editor, Hockenberry also helps design the page layouts for D1 and D2, the A&E pages. While she prefers to write, Hockenberry appreciates how rewarding creating pages are. It is hard work, but so nice to look back at, according to Hockenberry. While she is only in her second year of college, Hockenberry is beginning to think about what she wants to do after graduation.

“There are a lot of options, but it has to be something with writing,” Hockenberry said.

The Slate management staff would like to recognize Hockenberry for her quality writing and design work for The Slate. As Slater of the Month, the entire staff congratulates her on her accomplishments and looks forward to her continued involvement.

Your World Today

Commentary: An epidemic of apathy

Managing Editor

My best friends and I like to live by the mantra “If it’s free, it’s for me.”

It has become abundantly clear to me that more and more Shippensburg University students do not share that mindset.

I am genuinely confused by and curious about the widespread lack of engagement and disinterest many students I interact with have had about campus events this semester, including the many Homecoming festivities of the past week.

I am a resident assistant in Seavers Hall, a first-year student building, and we have seen firsthand how this class of students is less engaged in both the community we want to build in our hall and the entire campus community. Events within the building are lucky to have 10 residents show up, our Hall Council has yet to host an event and I nearly weep with joy on the rare occasion I get a response in my floor’s GroupMe.

It is not just first-year students, though. I was shocked when I was recently talking to the president of a large and well-respected campus organization about Homecoming and learned she had not even looked at the

schedule of events. All campus student leaders are role models, whether we want to be or not, so we must be informed and spread the word to students who do not keep themselves in the loop.

Let’s think about Sexy Bingo, which was hosted by the PAGE Center and APB on Oct. 6. I showed up about 20 minutes after the advertised start time, and there were people sitting on the floor because it was so crowded. To me, this is a clear example of how students will show up if they care. Therefore, I believe our student body is suffering from an epidemic of apathy.

This issue is complex and impacted by a plethora of factors. Current first-year students were in their first year of high school when the pandemic began and had a truly unprecedented experience, but I think it is lazy to blame that for our current crisis. If anything, these students should be taking advantage of absolutely everything they can because COVID proved the social bonds we build through academic and social traditions can be eliminated in an instant. Some of the blame must be put on SU. First, I think the decision to remove the wall of flyers in the CUB and replace it with monitors was a grave mistake. Before, students would see an event advertised for days or even a week before it occurred, and you would have to be completely oblivious to not be at least vaguely aware of what was happening around campus. Now, each flyer flashes

for about 10 seconds before moving on, so it is much easier to miss things.

We are also painfully stuck in the age of email. I wish I had a solution to a more effective form of communication, but there is a percentage of our student body and Generation Z that simply will never reliably check their email as a source of information. For example, all resident assistants are now required to create a poster for engagements instead of just a flyer due to so-called “flyer fatigue.” It is about time for us to take a serious look at email fatigue. And the lack of student engagement has already caused at least one casualty. The Red Sea is no longer operating as SU’s student section. It will continue to hold pop-up events and work to celebrate school spirit, but the work its members put in did not make up for the few students who chose to participate.

As we rapidly approach the end of another semester, student affairs professionals across campus must work on ways to get students more engaged, but the ultimate blame is on my fellow students.

There is an expectation you are serving as an active member of our campus community and taking advantage of things your tuition helps pay for. I can guarantee that you are not too cool to show up to things, even if you are one of a handful who do. Campus traditions are not forever. Don’t put us in danger of watching them disappear.

Connor Niszczak

You can fix SGA

If you are a long-time reader of The Slate, you are probably familiar with some of the criticisms that I and others have levied at our Student Government Association. Inaction, a lack of transparency and a lack of engagement with the student body to name a few.

The last three years were difficult for SGA. Like many student organizations, SGA was greatly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and is still recovering. I served in SGA during the height of the pandemic, first as a committee member and later as a senator.

Since the world fell apart in 2020, SGA has had issues filling its ranks through the normal election process. Very few candidates ran for positions, and vacancies were filled by appointees. Unfortunately, SGA also struggled with high turnover rates, making it difficult to perform basic responsibilities.

Obviously, SGA needs to change. Thankfully, it is moving in a positive direction. The current Executive Leadership Committee has made strides toward returning SGA to a working order. They are close to having all positions filled and working on actual business. But there is still more to do.

That is where you, the campus community, come in. At its Sept. 28 meeting, SGA voted to form an ad-

hoc committee to oversee revisions to the organization’s constitution. The current constitution was adopted back in 1962, and while it has seen many revisions over the years, the ad-hoc committee is hoping to do a more comprehensive overhaul.

To do that well, SGA needs your help.

What do you want to see differently from SGA? What sort of changes would you make? What kind of events should they hold? How should it be structured? What parts of campus do not have representation?

Those are the sort of questions I want you to ask yourself.

If you were recreating SGA from the ground up, what would that look like? If you have any thoughts, I encourage you to submit them using the QR code below. Student feedback is key to making this work, and other members of our community are welcome to give their thoughts.

In addition to the QR code, SGA will also be setting up drop boxes in various locations on campus for written feedback.

If you want to see the Student Government Association become an organization that represents and advocates for students, please join me in making that happen. For it to function in that way, there must be involvement and feedback from the student body, and we can make that happen.

Adam Beam/ The Slate

Scan the QR code to provide feedback, concerns and other notes you have for the Student Governement Association before the revision of the constituion.

Where’s your voice?

Shippensburg University students, staff, faculty, administrators and affiliated people are welcome to submit letters to the editor for publication.

• Letters must be no more than 300 words and may not contain derogatory language or messages of hate or discrimination.

The Slate may reject letters for any reason.

• Letters become property of The Slate. Letters without a name and title (affiliation to SU) will not be accepted.

• Letters should be sent to The Slate one week prior to the day of publication. Late letters may be accepted but published the next week.

• The views and opinions expressed in this section are those of the writer and not of The Slate or University.

The unsigned staff editorial, “The Slate Speaks,” represents the views and opinions of The Slate as an organization. Participating editors help shape the staff editorial.

The Slate Speaks: What

makes someone a campus celebrity?

Shippensburg may be thousands of miles from the glamor of Tinsel Town, but that does not mean you have to look far for stars. Our university is home to its own breed of celebrities. You know the ones, They are the faces you see everywhere when walking around campus. The ones who seemingly pop up wherever you go. They are “campus celebrities” and students may be wondering, what makes them so iconic?

Tammy from Dunkin’ is a perfect example of a campus celebrity. She is the most wholesome campus celebrity. She is always warm and welcoming, has a smile on her face and makes you feel loved. She shows this to every one of her customers, whether it be at Dunkin’ or in the Chick-Fil-A dining area, even sometimes remembering your name and/or food order. Tammy brings that sense of home into your daily routine and into life on campus and is an integral part of life at ship. Another shout out to Linda at Reisner, she is an icon. Building off Tammy, a campus celebrity is someone you see all the time that everyone seems to know. Think about, “does seeing this person send me into a state of pure joy and sprinting to my group chat?”

What makes someone a campus celebrity is someone you

see on a regular basis who is always different or stands out — whether they realize it or not. Jeremy Satyawan Putra is the most obvious example of a campus celebrity, but what qualifies him for celebrity status is his willingness to say “hello” to everyone he meets, make them smile and make anyone feel like someone.

Another quality that makes someone a campus celebrity is how a person can impact a student’s life in a small yet effective way. The pizza guy at Reisner is a campus celebrity because when seeing him work, you can count on him to efficiently serve more pizza because he is always working so hard. With that said, in most cases, campus celebrities are not found, they are made. The most exciting campus celebrities are the ones who are cultivated by friend groups through experiences. It could be a guy you met at a party last semester who you have not spoken to since, or someone who gave a memorable presentation and carried you through that one class you really hated.

We love the concept of campus celebrities because to me it means that people can make a difference in students’ everyday lives in mundane ways just by being who they are.

Dear Faculty: Class schedules help ease anxiety

At the start of each semester, I sit down and go through the syllabus for each of my classes. Often, syllabi will be bookended with a schedule for the semester, listing dates for readings, quizzes, exams and projects. At some point in the last few years, I made a stylish spreadsheet template to track all this information.

Last semester, I found this resource indispensable and key to my academic success. Being able to look at one document to find everything I needed to do any given week allowed me to organize my time very effectively. If I had multiple quizzes or an unusual amount of reading to do, I could block out extra time days or weeks in advance.

Unfortunately, I have not been so lucky this semester. Only two of the five courses I am taking provided a detailed schedule for the class. Of the remaining three, one provides a weekly schedule uploaded right before class on Monday, another has an ever-changing and vague outline and the last feels as if it is being planned one class session

at a time.

As someone who struggles with time management, having an outline of what needs done and when is tremendously valuable to me. Without it, I get anxious about assignments and looming deadlines.

Instead of looking in one central place, I must search paper copies of syllabi, sort through endless emails and delve into various tabs on D2L. All that extra effort to find out what I need to do causes unnecessary stress. All of which can be easily avoided.

None of that is intended to disparage my professors, mind you. I sincerely appreciate the dedication and hard work that they put into teaching these courses, some of which they have been teaching for over a decade. I respect our faculty’s academic independence and different teaching styles, and I do not mean to dictate how they teach their courses.

Rather, I would like to offer some constructive criticism for our faculty: adding schedules to your syllabi can help students succeed. Students’ schedules are already a mess. Between classes, extracurriculars and work, it

can be hard to find time to read and study with such little notice. By giving them an idea of what the semester looks like ahead of time, you can help students get more out of the course. I recognize that adding schedules might not work for every class. Some courses are naturally malleable or conversational and might not lend themselves to the rigidity a schedule might imply. But many, if not most courses could benefit from giving students the information they need to organize their time.

Adam Beam/ The Slate Registration for classes ends on Nov. 16

Ian Thompson Asst. News Editor

Ian Thompson Asst. News Editor

Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons/ Edited by Adam Beam

Senior Jeremy Satyawan Putra’s face imposed upon the Statue of Liberty as a symbol for his well known status around campus.

Ship Life

Hippo’s first homecoming

On April 1, 2023, the Shippensburg University community was changed forever. Lives were changed and Raiders everywhere rejoiced as Shippo the Hippo was born.

Shippo has been waiting for their chance to cause mischief across campus since 2005 when they narrowly lost to Big Red to become SU’s mascot. Shippo found their way back seven months ago and has been living it up ever since.

“I don’t like to be bitter, but I waited 17 years while Big Red got to have all the fun,” Shippo said. “It’s my turn to have some fun…and maybe cause a little trouble.”

Shippo and Big Red have a bestfriend rivalry, but they just can’t stay away from each other. Big Red is older and more mature, whereas Shippo loves to explore and be the center of attention, sometimes to the dismay of Big Red.

“Shippo can get on my nerves, but I just can never stay mad at them. We are best friends forever,” Big Red said.

Shippo also has a more youthful spirit than Big Red, and they have been known to bust some moves across campus at events like the Juneteenth celebration and Fall Welcome Week.

“Shippo is like that kid who plays with flowers while everyone else is playing T-ball,” Big Red said.

Journal entries: November 7

Anna Garman PR Director

For me, this semester has had its ups and downs.

One feeling that I have experienced most of all is not feeling good enough for me, for others or for my dreams. I feel as though I am giving my best, and sometimes my best is not good enough for people. This feeling comes along with a lot of doubt and negative self-talk. I’m in a constant cycle of thinking “I should be like this; I am not supposed to feel like I have my life figured out,” and then thinking the total opposite. “I need to have the next five years planned out because the next five years will be here before I know it.” The stress that builds keeps me awake at night. It’s thoughts of what I need to be doing, what I should

be doing, what I could do better, what I need to do tomorrow and the dreaded embarrassing moments of my life.

I don’t want to sugarcoat it, so I won’t: It sucks. When I am feeling like this, I turn to music, which is what I am doing right now as I am writing this. Music allows me to express all of my emotions and put my mind at ease — I could not live my life without it. You never know what someone is truly going through. That is why it is important to remember that everyone is human. We make mistakes, but it’s how you learn and grow from it that makes you a better person. Treat people with kindness, especially if they don’t return the favor. Just remember: You are worthy. You are talented. You believe in yourself. Even if you don’t, I do.

“You know, I just like to have fun and show Big Red how it’s done,” Shippo said. “As I had to show off at the Homecoming pep rally, I can’t resist a good wobble!”

Shippo could not wait to take advantage of their first Homecoming week at SU and even rode in style on a 1920s-themed golf cart with Megan Luft and the admissions team. Shippo loves to chat, but The Slate could barely get our questions out without one of their devoted fans coming up to ask for a picture.

Shippo gave us six short words to sum up their time at SU so far.

“I’m here now. Look at me!”

RHA kicks off Homecoming 2023

Mara Eberle Staff Contributor

The Residence Hall Association (RHA) at Shippensburg University hosted a Homecoming Kickoff in Harley and Naugle MPRs on Wednesday evening at which students enjoyed games, food and music.

On the east side, hot cider, corndogs and soft pretzels were offered in the Naugle MPR as students entered, followed by a popcorn bar.

Free merchandise was also available, including homecoming bucket hats and lots of SU stickers. Out of all the games offered at the kickoff, Just Dance was by far the most popular. Many students danced to top hits from a range of years, encapsulating this year’s homecoming theme, “Ship Through the Decades.”

Others socialized with their fellow residents and played board games. As the event continued into the night, SU student

Natalie Nichols attended on the west side and commented on the later stages of the kickoff.

“Everything seems to have mellowed out a bit,” Nichols said. “Everyone has grouped themselves into more laid-back conversations.”

Multiple members of the SU 2023 homecoming court attended both quads for the RHA kickoff. Skylar Walder, SU senior and member of the homecoming court, made her rounds on the east side in Naugle Hall and

discussed her thoughts on the kickoff event.

“This is a hangout that makes it easy for residents to come down and interact with the ResLife population,” Walder said. “It’s all part of homecoming.”

The kickoff was only the beginning of the homecoming events taking place this week, and one of many events hosted by RHA. Students can follow @rha_raiders on Instagram for information on future ResLife events.

Connor Niszczak Managing Editor

Connor Niszczak / The Slate

Shippo stuns in a flapper dress in honor of the 2023 Homecoming theme: Through the Decades.

Elizabeth Peters / The Slate Shippo the Hippo and Big Red before the homecoming parade.

Adam Beam / The Slate

Slate Managing Editor Connor Niszczak demonstrates a graceful underhand during a game of cornhole.

Jayden Pohlman / The Slate Shippo the Hippo is happy to be back on campus.

Photo

Homecoming 2023: MSA hosts annual Step Show

Dance Co., Urban Flow and Elite Modeling, were set to take the stage.

energy performance hyped the crowd up, filling the auditorium with cheers.

Shippensburg University’s Multicultural Student Affairs (MSA) hosted its annual Step Show Saturday night. The event began at 7:30 p.m. and was hosted by JP Sakpeidah and Tamara Hightower.

Stepping is a series of synchronized movements and chants, demonstrating tradition and pride for fraternities and sororities. It is an expression of African American and Multicultural Greek culture.

SU students were charged $5 for entry and those of the general public were charged $12. Large groups of students gathered in Memorial Auditorium for the show.

Several performance groups, including SU Heritage

Before the show began, a slideshow of several Greek Life organizations was displayed. One of these fraternities includes Alpha Beta Omega, the first local fraternity of color.

The event began with Diane L. Jefferson, director of the Office of Multicultural Student Affairs, stepping on stage and announcing MSA members who were nominated for Homecoming royalty, including Skylar Walder, Jarett Scott and Lyimide Shoyemi. These students made the Top 5 for Homecoming Royalty.

The first group to take the stage was Urban Flow, a creative dance group under MSA. The high

Elite Modeling Troupe followed Urban Flow’s performance, enamoring the crowd as they strutted across the stage. SU Heritage Dance Co. took the stage next, hyping up the crowd even more with their performance.

The final individual to perform was rising rapper Ayo Modd. The rapper encouraged students to join in the performance of his song, “Ayo Modd All love.”

Large portions of the crowd turned on their flashlights, swaying with the song.

Following Ayo Modd, Marquis Lupton, an alumnus of Ship and On-Air Host/Producer for WITF, stepped on stage, initiating

a Greek Life roll call. With each fraternity and sorority that was called, chants rang through the auditorium, earning cheers and applause.

After this, several fraternities and sororities including Alpha Phi Alpha, Omega Psi Phi, Sigma Gamma Rho and Phi Beta Sigma took to the stage, each having a different and unique stepping performance.

The night ended with the hosts encouraging the crowd to come toward the front of the auditorium. Students danced and sang with the hosts and several Greek Life members, ending the event on a particularly high note. The Step Show was one of the last Homecoming 2023 events, bringing students and alumni together for an energetic night.

Raiders think fast for cash prize

A great addition to an activity-filled homecoming weekend, the ThinkFast trivia event was hosted in the Ceddia Union Building on Nov. 2. The brightly decorated MPR stage held four podiums prepared for its contestants. Upon entering, students received a remote control they would later use to answer each trivia question. Teams of two to four students competed in rounds of trivia on various topics, including pop culture, sports, music and science. There were talent competitions such as lipsyncing, debating and dancing, and the winners were determined by the audience. The host and DJ of the competition kept the energy up as the night progressed. SU Homecoming T-shirts and bucket hats were handed out around the MPR in preparation for the weekend.

In the final rounds of the competition, the winners of the four talent competitions went head-to-head in a trivia challenge at the podiums. The winner of this round, Mackenzie Longworth, then went up against representatives from the top three trivia teams. At the end of the competition, student Matt Turner was victorious in the game as the first to reach 1000 points and won a $200 cash prize.

After the game Turner said, “Yeah, the game was so much fun… really nervewracking in the end as the scores kept going up and down, up and down. But it was really fun in the end.”

According to TjohnE, the company that put on the ThinkFast competition, their recipe for success is “a combination of TFI Software, an extremely talented age-relevant host, professional sound and video equipment, and plethora of customized diverse trivia displayed in various media formats.”

Raider Rumble kicks off HOCO weekend

Adam Beam Opinion Editor

With a weekend full of exciting events, there is no better one to kick off the festivities than the annual pep rally in the CUB Amphitheatre.

Dubbed “Raider Rumble”, the event is the culmination of all things SU. The pep rally is the collaboration of multiple facets of campus, all meant to ring in this year’s “Through the Decades” themed celebrations.

The master of ceremonies, HRL Associate Director Jeff Ward, greeted students and alumni with jokes before introducing the individual groups, teams and organizations.

It was Ward’s first time as MC for the pep rally, which in years past had been run by students.

When asked about what he enjoyed about taking on these responsibilities Ward said it was “the opportunity to highlight different athletic team and student group efforts this past year while helping show Ship student pride.”

The first group to kick things off was the Shippensburg University Marching Band (SUMB). Led by drum majors Grace Dykes, Ryann Libor and Michelle Partt, the SUMB played some signature tunes including “Can’t Hold Us” by Macklemore and “The Hey

Song,” also known as “Rock N’ Roll Part 2.”

Songs no doubt familiar to regular attendees of the Raider football team who were also in attendance at the event. The SUMB concluded with a combination of “Rocky’s Groove” and “The Horse” before singing the Shippensburg University alma mater.

The women’s lacrosse team, softball and the men’s basketball team were just some of the teams to speak before the sprawling crowd of students. They each spoke on their seasons so far, as well as throwing shirts and rally towels to the hungry masses. One member of the men’s basketball team, Ty Crespo, reminded those in attendance that their first

home game is Nov. 15 against Wilmington. In-Motion Dance Troupe, ELITE Modeling and Heritage Dance Company also gave electrifying performances for the crowd to move to. Some of the other big dancers included our very own Shippo the Hippo and Big Red. Shippo kept the audience entertained during some technical difficulties by shaking it to “Wobble” by V.I.C.

Vice President of Student Affairs Lorie Davis said her favorite part of Homecoming this year was the Raider Rumble.

“We hope to have the event grow and grow in the following years now that it’s back,” Davis said.

Megan Sawka Staff Contributor

Lydia Elmy Staff Contributor

Jayden Pohlman / The Slate

Shippo the Hippo prepares for this year’s pep rally in the CUB ampitheater.

Jashton Best / The Slate

Dancers take the stage during the 2023 annual Step Show Saturday evening in Memorial Auditorium.

Grace Harbour / The Slate

A contestant lip-syncing during the competition.

‘The Nutcracker’ brings magic back to Luhrs

Dance Academy XIV joined the State

start, the performance was more than worth the wait and this year even had a few surprises along the way.

My first time ever seeing “The Nutcracker” was actually the performance by the State Ballet Theatre of Ukraine at the Luhrs Performing Arts Center in Nov. 2022. I initially went for the sake of getting photos, but found myself enraptured by the magic of the dancing and music. I am always impressed when stories can be told only through the visuals and body movement rather than spoken dialogue. Needless to say, I was thrilled to see this troupe would be returning once again and they have not skipped a beat.

“The Nutcracker” once again dazzles at Luhrs and the Theatre of Ukraine is still the best production I have seen of this ballet thus far. Despite a delayed

The biggest surprise was the inclusion of local young dancers during the performance. Several performers from Dance Academy XIV took to the stage alongside the Ukrainian troupe to perform during multiple numbers. Whether as sugarplum fairies or angels, the crowd in attendance ate it up and they received some of the loudest applause.

Another surprise was the updated sets and costumes for this year’s production. The most noticeable was the rat army and the Rat King. Last year, the rats were simple stuffed head dresses, which did allow for the dancers’ faces to be visible, but admittedly looked a little silly. That was rectified with more of an overhead mask, one that looks far more

intimidating under the darker lighting. I will say though the Nutcracker mask was genuinely nightmarish. I kind of wish they had kept the COVID-style mask from last year.

Of course, the dancing was “on point.” This year in between snapping photos I really took the time to admire the physical aspect of ballet. The core strength, the flexibility, the endurance and so much more that you simply have to applaud everyone on stage for pure commitment alone.

It is sad that with this being my final year at Shippensburg University I may never get to see this performance again. Thankfully, the State Ballet Theatre of Ukraine will return to the Luhrs Performing Arts Center with “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” on Jan. 18, 2024.

Finding my culture in ‘Hidden Figures’

As I watched television as a child, I never really saw African-American representation. This made me feel as if I had no inspiration or even a cartoon with my skin color to look up to when I was a child. When I started seeing characters like Tiana, Jasmine or Doc McStuffins on Disney, it made me feel special and I wanted to be just like them.

Also, it relieved me in a way as I got older because of finally seeing diversity. As I find myself in the movie “Hidden Figures,” I found this important to me because of embracing myself as a proud black woman, being proud to show my intelligence through education and inspiring me to never hide my strengths because of the judgment around me.

“Hidden Figures” was made in 2016 and was directed by Theodore Melfi. The film tells the story of three African-American women who worked as mathematicians for NASA in the 1960s: Katherine G. Johnson, a mathematician; Dorothy Vaughan, a mathematician and supervisor; and Mary Jackson, a mathematician and engineer. They faced racial and gender discrimination, but they overcame the obstacles and contributed to some of the most important space missions in U.S. history.

After I had watched the movie, I recognized who I am as an African-American female involving my education. In school, I had learned about the 1960s and the varieties of how discrimination with race and even gender was changing into a worse environment. I wish I could have learned more about these topics because both influence me heavily as a person and I feel as if this movie really helped a lot. I had felt feelings of anger, sadness and fear because of seeing the reality of discrimination within the film and how it is still affecting African Americans and even me today.

I had grown up in Harrisburg when I was little, and the education was very bad, so I never really had assistance or help from preschool to fourth grade. After that, I had moved to an all-white school district in York County at the end of fourth grade and was very behind everyone else. I was looked at as a dumb black girl who was just going to fail because I did not have their skin color or privileges they had all their life with education.

I eventually caught up and even was ahead of everyone when it had come to education around my high school years. I never missed an assignment, got all A’s on my tests and quizzes and always studied. Fast forward to now and I have graduated with a 4.0 GPA, worked hard on my education and will continue to do so. The reason as to why I am saying all of this is because this film motivated me to strive for success with my education.

This film matters to me because I feel more confident in embracing myself as a proud black woman. “Hidden Figures” ignited a national conversation about the importance of African-American women in STEM careers. I had found interest in mathematics, and I am an accounting major here at Shippensburg University. African-American women are usually underrepresented in STEM fields, and “Hidden Figures” reminds us of what they can achieve.

Katherine Johnson inspired me the most because of the

Grace’s Weekly Record: Boygenius’ EP ‘the rest’

Grace Harbour A&E Editor

Boygenius released their second EP, “the rest,” on Oct. 13, which is a continuation of their fulllength debut album “the record” released in March.

“The rest” was released before Boygenius concluded their fall tour at the Hollywood Bowl on Oct. 31. The EP seems like a farewell gift to the fans, as the future of Boygenius remains unknown. In an interview for Apple Music, Zane Lowe asked Boygenius if the release timing was strategic, as it feels like a “beautiful dot, dot, dot (dot)” to “the record” era.

Lucy Dacus explained that it was about whether or not the songs were ready for “the record.” Phoebe Bridgers said that the three of them are getting really good at recording with each other.

“The rest” consists of four new songs, three of which are individually led by the trio (in typical Boygenius fashion). The EP opens with “Black Hole,” in which they describe the black hole creating stars instead of destroying them — “You can see the stars, the ones/The headlines said this morning/Were

struggles she had fought just for being a black woman and embracing her intelligence. One example could be that she would walk miles to just use the bathroom because of there being no restroom where she worked for black women. Another is having her own coffee cup because of no one else wanting to touch the same coffee pot because of the color of her skin. In one scene, she gets yelled at for leaving her job to use the bathroom and she defends herself.

She yelled with pain in her tone about the way she was treated at her job until they had finally given her both a restroom and shared coffee pot. That showed me as an African American woman that I am just as equal as white people, too, and the judgment I may get for how I look, dress or even just not being the skin color people may wish me to be, is able to be ignored those judgments because of the confidence she had given me throughout this film.

“Hidden Figures” has impacted my importance in finding myself. I was able to embrace myself as a proud black woman through the characters within the film. I am proud to show my intelligence through education because of how the girls strive for success even through struggles of discrimination both gender and race. Finally, I was inspired to never hide my strengths because of the judgment around me. These all were ways that I was never shown as a child through television. It took time for me to find African-American characters like Tiana, Jasmine or even Doc McStuffins to have looked up as a role model or even someone I wanted to become. Overall, I am glad “Hidden Figures” has provided me with a way of finding my true self.

bein’ spat out by what we thought/Was just destroyin’ everything for good.”

Then, it transitions into the Dacus-led “Afraid of Heights.” Dacus describes being friends with someone who is reckless, yet wanting to remain safe — “I wanna live a vibrant life/But I wanna die a violent death.” Bridgers leads the folktale-feeling track “Voyager,” in which she describes drifting away from someone. In Bridgers’ song “Moon Song,” she expresses how she would do anything for this person, even give them the moon — “If I could give you the moon/I would give you the moon.” Now, in “Voyager,” she illustrates how that person took this love from her — “You took it [Earth] from me, but I would’ve given it to you.”

In the Julien Baker-led closer “Powers,” Baker uses comic book tropes and references to destructive scientific reactions to question her own origin story. Bridgers and Dacus join Baker in the outro, as she concludes — “The hum of our contact, the sound of our collisions.” Her voice fades out and horns close out the EP — leaving the listeners to wonder what will come next.

Scholastic 144 exhibit showcases local talent

Truax Staff Contributor

The Scholastic 144 Art Exhibit opened Saturday at 1 p.m. in the Kauffman Gallery at Shippensburg University. The exhibition features 35 entries from high school juniors and seniors from select counties in Pennsylvania and Maryland.

Among the featured artists were two students from Greencastle-Antrim High School, Sam Ernst and Grace Himmellwright, who have been working toward this goal for five years. Himmellwright described their selection for the exhibition as a “full-circle moment.”

Himmellwright submitted a piece called “Trapped in a Glass Box.” The piece was a self-portrait designed with an acrylic underpainting. Colored pencil and white gel pen accents were used to create the illusion that she was behind glass.

Ernst’s piece, a sculpture titled “Control,” was rewarded as an honorable mention. The sculpture depicted a puppet inside a box made of drywall with a wooden base. The theme of feeling trapped was enhanced by shards of glass within the box and wires sewing the walls together.

Ernst’s artwork was inspired by feelings of control, or lack thereof, in life. “No matter how much you try to fight it, you still end up in the box,” said Ernst.

The exhibit’s third place winner was Sterling Feeney, from Shippensburg Area Senior High School, with her multimedia piece, “Sector.”

Feeney’s teacher, Aric Sites, explained that five of the pieces selected for the exhibit, including “Sector,” resulted from the same assignment, in which students had to create non-objective pieces — paintings without a subject.

“That was the first painting class I’ve taken,” said Feeney. She was surprised by her award because, besides this project, she tended to stay within the realms of drawing and realism.

“Graphite Portrait” by Kira Gross, the exhibition’s second place winner, was similarly inspired by a class project. Last year, Gross was assigned a project in which she drew a portrait of one of her friends. The piece she submitted for the exhibit was an extension of that project, this time with a picture she found online.

Gross wanted to focus more on lighting, so she chose a photo with harsh contrast and shadows. “I’ve always loved realism and the intricacy of graphite,” said Gross about her drawing.

The first-place winner of the exhibition stood out at the front of the gallery. Lily Wallace from Cumberland Valley High School won the award with her submission “Series of 3 Human Figure Vases.” The award-winning artwork was a collection of sculptures depicting the human body. The Scholastic 144 Exhibition will remain on display in the Kauffman Gallery until Nov. 11., and an online exhibition will be available from Nov. 15 to March 1 at https:// 2023scholastic144.artcall.org/.

Adam Beam / The Slate

Ballet Theatre of Ukraine to perform “The Nutcracker” on Nov. 5.

Adam Beam Opinion Editor

Rosalyn

Ariana Kershaw Guest Contributor

Photo courtesy of Flickr

“Hidden Figures” is a biographical drama directed by Theodore Melfi that was released in 2016.

Brit Floyd celebrates 50th anniversary of ‘Dark Side of the Moon’

Brit Floyd, a Pink Floyd tribute band, came to Luhrs Performing Arts Center on Nov. 1. Brit Floyd celebrated the 50-year anniversary of Pink Floyd’s most iconic album, “The Dark Side of the Moon.” Brit Floyd, led by vocalist, guitarist and musical director Damien Darlington, played some of the UK-based band’s hits from the ’70s for nearly three hours.

The Luhrs Center is only one of thousands of stages that Brit Floyd has recreated some of Pink Floyds’ most popular songs, such as “Time,” “Great Gig in the Sky” and “Money.” According to the bulletin, Brit Floyd is “widely regarded as the world’s greatest rock tribute show.”

But Brit Floyd did more than just play songs from your grandad’s “That’s what I call music” CD. The band jammed out with fog machines, laser shows and projected visuals inspired by album cover art and the music within. There was not a single song that had the same lights and effects as the others.

Darlington, along with his guitarists and vocalists, honored the band’s music by playing each song note for note. Most guitarists like to shake up their iconic riffs for the audience, but even the saxophone/auxiliary percussion player played exactly how you would hear on the radio.

While Pink Floyd is an older band, we can see its influence on younger audiences through fashion and music, which is an important part of young people’s culture. From influences on bands like Led Zepplin and its iconic pyramid symbol from Dark Side of the Moon seen on T-shirts and hoodies everywhere, Pink Floyd remains relevant in these times.

Pink Floyd impacted generations — especially ones that grew with the band. Despite the Luhrs Center being a seated auditorium, adults obviously not in college got up and danced to enjoy the music. People of all ages were decked out in their Pink Floyd merchandise and even Shippensburg University President Charles Patterson made an appearance at the venue.

Adam Beam / The Slate

Tower of Power brought soul and funk classics to Luhrs on Friday, Nov. 3.

Tower of Power is Soul with a capital ‘S’

Adam Beam Opinion Editor

I will be the first to admit that I am a secret-lover of funk music. Something about the ‘70s soulful sounds just make for the perfect vibe. With that being said, I will be the first to admit that Tower of Power was not a band that ever came across my radar. Even before their performance on Friday, I checked with a resident music lover (my mother) who had never heard of the ensemble group before. So, I went into this performance completely blind.

Tower of Power was formed in 1968 and has been entertaining audiences worldwide for 55 years. The soul and funk group not only has an extensive discography of original hits, but the group has also traveled and backed artists such as Elton John and The Grateful Dead.

Clearly the band’s greatest strengths lie in its individual members and, thankfully, their

performance at the Luhrs Performing Arts Center gave just about all of its 10 performers a chance to shine. The standout members in my opinion were Tom E. Politzer, the band’s lead tenor saxophone, Roger Smith on keyboard, Emilio Castillo with background vocals and Mike Jerel on lead vocals.

Jerel had a perfect soulful voice and truly knew how to work the crowd with each number he performed. Unfortunately, I feel he and the band as a whole were let down by there simply being too many cooks in the kitchen. With 10 members, each seemingly playing a louder and louder instrument, some lyrics and powerhouse moments were drowned out by the more bombastic noise.

Some of the band’s standout numbers from the night included their opener “We Came to Play,” which was then followed up by the excellent “Don’t Change Horses (In the Middle of the Stream),” and their final encore number “Souled Out” brought the roof down in spectacular fashion.

Wicked: A reflection on the last 20 years

Every theater kid has an origin story — a moment where they realized their true passion for the arts. For many, this realization came from the musical “Wicked,” which just celebrated its 20th anniversary on Broadway. Ozians from the show’s past came together for the performance at Gershwin Theatre on Oct. 30, exactly 20 years after its initial performance.

“Wicked” tells the story of Elphaba, the future Wicked Witch of the West, and Glinda, the Good Witch of the North. Initially enemies, the two later become best friends. Their friendship struggles due to their opposite reactions to the corrupt government of Oz and Elphaba’s ultimate fall from grace.

One of the most important musicals of the last two decades, “Wicked” has become a pillar of the theater world. With over 7,700 performances under its belt, the show is the fourth-longest-running show on Broadway.

For a lot of theater fans, “Wicked” resonates with them because of its messaging. At its core, “Wicked” is a story about self-discovery. Both Elphaba and Glinda have to explore and find out who they are. Idina Menzel, the original Elphaba, agreed in a quote to Eyewitness News, “I think the reason why it’s been around forever is because of the themes of the show… about really owning who you are and what makes you different is what makes you extraordinary.”

Happy Homecoming! Here are some of The Slaters’ favorite songs throughout the decades.

For me, “Wicked” represents the transcendental power of theater. As many of us know, often times, the best shows leave us too soon.

“Wicked” has stood the test of time. In a quote to CBS, Kristin Chenoweth, the original Glinda, said, “20 years later, it’s still running. I’m happy that something I did lasted.” It is truly a story that could have been written in any time period. Its messaging is about us — it’s about being who you are, no matter what anyone says. After all, sometimes you have to defy gravity to get to where you want to be.

Grace Harbour / The Slate

Brit Floyd performed Pink Floyd hits at Luhrs Performing Arts Center Nov. 1.

Megan Sawka Staff Contributor

Photo courtesy of Flickr

“Wicked” celebrated its 20th anniversay on Broadway in October.

Men’s cross country qualifies for nationals; women finish fifth at Atlantic Regionals

Nicola Pugge Sports Editor

Shippensburg University’s men’s cross-country team qualified for the NCAA Division II National Championships with a thirdplace finish at the Atlantic Region Championships that were held at Lock Haven University on Saturday.

The women’s team placed fifth at the championship, beating their seventh-place seed and placing third out of all the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) schools participating.

The men’s team placed third in the 10,000-meter run in the Atlantic Region Championship with 63 points. Charleston (W.V.) won and Davis & Elkins placed second with 54 points each, but Charleston had more individual runners place higher than Davis and Elkins to break the tie.

Sophomore Garrett Quinan, PSAC individual campion, once again was the best individual finisher of the PSAC with a fifth-place finish. Senior Aiden Gonder followed closely with a sixthplace finish. The Raiders’ scorers were rounded out by graduate Hayden Hunt,

sophomore Ryan Wolfe and senior Ian Sherlock, who placed 14th, 18th and 21st, respectively.

Graduate Kevin Wagner finished 24th and received, together with the other scorers, Atlantic All-Region honors. Six out of the seven

SU runners finished with AllRegion accolades for the first time since 2016.

Graduate Nathan Harding finished 42nd as the Raiders’ seventh runner, improving on his 2022 performance by four places.

SU stuck to its race plan throughout the entire race, as the Raiders were in third place of the team standings at all seven recorded splits. They started out deliberately with no runner in the top 20 at the first split, but then picked up the pace and started to steadily gain places and ground at the following splits.

The men’s team’s thirdplace finish was their best result since 2018.

The women’s team also impressed with a fifth-place finish as a team, where they beat some PSAC schools that they lost to at the PSAC Championships two weeks ago. For the women, it was their best team result since

2018 as well.

Many of the SU runners heavily improved their 6K personal records on the fast championship course at Lock Haven.

Front-runner for the women’s team was once again Livi Rieck, who finished 19th with a 40-second personal record of 21:51.1. Rieck ran a consistent race and was clocked inside the Top 20 at all times of the race. She improved by one spot from her 20th-place finish last year and achieved All-Region honors for the second year in a row.

The other women started more deliberately but impressed with strong finishes after the first 2,000 meters.

The Raiders’ second scorer was senior Belle Weikert, who finished in 29th place after sitting in 44th place halfway through the race. Weikert missed an AllRegion classification by four spots but improved her PR by 67 seconds to 22:17.5 and her finish from the previous year by 36 places.

Junior Victoria Mattioli made her first appearance at the regional meet for the Raiders, after running there for West Chester in 2021.

Sitting in 78th place after the first 1,600 meters, she picked up the pace and made up ground to finish 39th in 22:36.2. Mattioli demolished her previous PR of 24:17 from 2021.

Redshirt sophomore Kelsey Hull and redshirt freshman Faith Wilson were the final two scorers for SU. Hull finished 53rd with a new PR of 22:54.7, a 34-second improvement, after delivering a consistent race. Wilson finished 68th in her debut at the regional

meet in a time of 23:09.2, a PR by 107 seconds.

Sophomores Katy Todd and Morgan Hess also debuted at the Regional Championship Meet. Both destroyed their previous PRs, with Todd finishing 77th with a 46-second PR and Hess improving her PR by 57 seconds in her 84th-place finish.

The women’s team chose a similar tactic as the men’s team with a deliberate start and strong finish. After the first recorded split of the race

the Raiders sat in 11th place but picked up the pace from there and started to make up places. At the next two splits, SU was already eighth, before being sixth at the final split and passing one more team in the final meters to finish fifth.

The women’s team concluded its season at the Atlantic Regional Championships, while the men now travel to Joplin, Missouri, to compete at the NCAA DII National Championships on Nov. 18.

Field hockey falls short in PSAC finals after winning against Kutztown, 1-0

Shippensburg University’s field hockey team fell short, 2-1, against East Stroudsburg in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Championship game at East Stroudsburg on Sunday afternoon.

In the PSAC semifinals, the Raiders won 1-0 in overtime against Kutztown at East Stroudsburg on Friday afternoon to advance to the PSAC final.

While preparing for PSAC semifinals, the Raiders used the three days they had once they knew who their opponent would be to watch film and gain reps to ensure they could execute the changes they needed to make, according to Head Coach Tara Zollinger. Both teams fought hard on defense and kept the ball out of the goal for all four quarters of the game. Kutztown had 12 shots on goal, while Shippensburg had six. With neither team having scored by the end of the fourth quarter, the game was

moving into overtime. The first team to find the “golden goal” would advance to PSAC finals.

“We trusted their skills, gave them our overtime plan but were so confident in their tough mindset that they were going to go out there and find the golden goal,” Zollinger said going into overtime.

Kutztown had 4 shots and 3 penalty corners within the first four minutes of overtime. Three of the four shots were saved by redshirt-sophomore Emma Albee, Shippensburg’s goalie.

Shippensburg earned a shot at goal by junior Yasmin De Meyer immediately following.

Just seven minutes and 12 seconds into overtime, Shippensburg’s junior Tess Jedeloo scored the “golden goal.” Jedeloo dribbled the ball back-and-forth, creating space for herself to take the shot, which sailed past Kutztown’s goalie and into the net.

Shippensburg raced onto the field to celebrate with Jedeloo.

“These are the moments they plan for,

these are the moments we coach for. To see the pure joy and excitement on our studentathletes faces is just amazing,” said Zollinger.

The team had just one day of rest between the PSAC semifinals and PSAC finals. According to Zollinger, Saturday was a day full of watching film, scoring reports, athlete treatment, relax time and team bonding.

“By the time Sunday comes around the team will be 100 percent ready to compete for the championship,” Zollinger said.

The PSAC final game was set to begin Sunday afternoon at 1 p.m.

In the final, both teams lived up to their No. 1 (ESU) and No. 2 (Shippensburg) rankings from the National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) as they fought for the ball. There were momentum shifts multiple times between the two teams.

With just under six minutes left in the second quarter of the game, Jedeloo scored for the Raiders. This was her second goal of the weekend after her first being the winning goal in PSAC semifinals on Friday afternoon.

Jedeloo scored off a penalty-corner from freshman Hannah White. Shippensburg had a 1-0 lead at halftime.

Starting the third quarter strong, East Stroudsburg had several penalty corners and shots on goal. Shippensburg goalie Albee saved a total of 11 shots throughout the duration of the game.

With about three minutes left in the third quarter, East Stroudsburg scored.

Both teams played aggressively in the fourth quarter with East Stroudsburg having only one shot on goal. Albee stopped this goal sending the game into overtime with a score of 1-1.

For the majority of the first overtime period, Shippensburg had a player advantage due to one of East Stroudsburg’s players being under a 7-minute penalty.

With the score still being tied, the game went into a second overtime period. Shippensburg had one shot on goal in the period, while East Stroudsburg had six shots and six penalty corners.

About eight minutes into the second overtime period, East Stroudsburg’s Jady van Gils scored. East Stroudsburg won the PSAC Championship game, 2-1.

After the game Zollinger said, “While we were all disappointed with the result, we were proud of the toughness, effort and overall will to win we saw demonstrated from our student-athletes.”

Zollinger and the team plan to take the lessons and experiences they learned from the PSAC tournament moving forward.

The team’s sights are now set for the NCAA tournament.

“We are eager and excited to see where we seed in the tournament and are mentally ready for the battles ahead,” Zollinger said.

The NCAA Selection Show is on Monday afternoon at 3 p.m.

Whitney Harshbarger/Lock Haven Sports Info

Garrett Quinan (439) and Aiden Gonder (434) pass a Slippery Rock runner during the Atlantic Regional Championships on Saturday at Lock Haven. They finished fifth and sixth, respectively.

Emma Adams Staff Contributor

Photo courtesy of SU Sports Info

Seniors Mya Kemp and Paige Graber present the PSAC runner-up trophy after the team lost the final in overtime to ESU.

Photo courtesy of SU Sports Info

Junior Tess Jedeloo scoring SU’s goal in the PSAC championship game against East Stroudsburg.

Football suffers loss at Homecoming game

Ben Beck Staff Contributor

The Shippensburg University football team lost its Homecoming game this Saturday against Lock Haven with a final score of 21-7, which puts the Raiders at 2-8 going into the last game of the season. The second quarter of the game was the most eventful. All scoring by both teams was done in the second quarter with the remainder of the game being a back-and-forth battle of possessions where neither team could make progress.

After a fairly uneventful first quarter, Shippensburg started with possession, but Lock Haven took possession at the 20-yard line after a sack and a missed field goal. The Bald Eagles quickly turned the chance into a touchdown when they passed for a 79yard play to the endzone.

Shippensburg’s next possession did not have much traction with a few short rushes for a collective nine yards. The Raiders seemed to create an opportunity when senior Nasir Greer made an interception, but the Lock Haven defense had a lock on freshman quarterback Sam Stoner with back-to-back sacks ending the attempt.

Lock Haven’s next successful drive came from a 65-yard run that broke through the Shippensburg defense and a field goal. The Raiders immediately fired back on the next play after the kickoff with a touchdown pass from Stoner to junior Redd Douglas for 65 yards.

With a score of 14-7, neither team had success for their next possessions, but on Lock Haven’s following drive, the Bald Eagles scored a final touchdown with backto-back passes moving them into the endzone. The half ended with what would be the final score, 21-7 in Lock Haven’s favor.

In the third quarter, Shippensburg seemed to get the best of Lock Haven in yardage, but in the end, it did not amount to any points. Similarly, the fourth quarter passed without a score.

Shippensburg head coach Mark Maciejewski shared his sentiments on the outcome of the game.

Maciejewski said, “This is a heartbreaking loss for us as a program. At homecoming we didn’t play well at all. You know, we let big plays up on defense, which is something we talked about all week not happening, and offensively, we said we need to score points, and we just didn’t do it, so it’s frustrating.”

Looking toward the last game of the season, Maciejewski spoke about what going forward looks like for the team.

“I told them whoever shows up tomorrow are the committed ones, and if you’re not committed, you don’t need to show up,” he said. “And you know, we’ll go from there and work our butts off this week to get a win against Gannon.”

Shippensburg will play its final game of the season against Gannon University next Saturday at 1 p.m. in Seth Grove Stadium.

Swimming drops dual meet at Clarion

The men’s and women’s swimming teams faced several obstacles during their dual meet at Clarion that saw some wins for the Raiders, but also some struggles when taking to the water.

The men’s team had a much more successful outing despite dropping the meet 115-84. Shippensburg secured four major wins in four events. In the 1,000-yard freestyle (40 laps) it was junior David Johnson who took first place in the event with a not too shabby time of 10:22.38. This was the Raiders’ first individual win of the night.

First-year student Robbie Ferlick secured a win in the 50yard freestyle (22.02 seconds) and was then followed up by

Mason Koeth in the 100-yard freestyle (45.57 seconds) who also took home first. Senior Michael Salvatori got the team’s only other solo victory in the 200-yard backstroke with 1:59.90.

The Women’s team had more difficulty at the dual meet, dropping to Clarion at 135-70. The team was able to clutch two individual victories. First-year student Jazz Barry posted a top time of 25.03 seconds in the 50-yard freestyle. All the while, senior Alyssa Tomb took the top spot in the 200-yard breaststroke with a posted time of 2:15.67.

The women’s team currently has a record of 3-5 this season while the men’s team sits at 1-5. The Raiders will swim again at the F&M Invitational in Lancaster on Nov. 17,18,19, which is set to be one of the team’s first big meets of the season. Each day is set to begin at 10 a.m.

Soccer Gallery:

Shippensburg University’s men’s and women’s soccer teams had their home finales on Friday and Tuesday, respectively. The men fell in their last match of the season to Lock Haven, 2-0, on Friday at home. The women lost 4-1 to Shepherd, before they also dropped their season finale on Friday to Bloomsburg, 2-0.

Shippensburg inducts six new members into athletics Hall of Fame

Shippensburg University hosted its 38th annual Athletic Hall of Fame induction ceremony on Friday, welcoming six new inductees to the illustrious group.

The inductees were Matt Gillette ’13, Steve Meissner ’91, Neely Spence Gracey ’12, Kristina Taylor Kulp ’13, Kelley Tiesi Key ’20 and Zach Zulli ’13. The event began with master of ceremonies Jeffrey Michaels welcoming the more than 100 people in attendance before an invocation and lunch. Shippensburg University President Charles Patterson then took the stage to congratulate the class, speaking on how so many different people helped the inductees achieve this great honor.

Neely Spence Gracey, 2012, was the first to be recognized. Gracey was an 11-time All-American in women’s track-and-field and cross-country, winning two national cross-country championships and three national championships as part of the distance medley relay. In her speech, Gracey said how she considered transferring after her freshman year but did not realize how great she had it on this team.

Matt Gillette, class of 2013, was honored next for his accomplishments in men’s track-and-field and cross-country. Gillette finished Top 10 in all four years at the NCAA Atlantic Region cross-country championships, helping the school win its first PSAC championship in the sport in 2010, along with winning two NCAA championships in the distance medley relay. Gillette mostly spoke about the bonds he formed with teammates and coaches, many of which still last today.

Following Gillette was Steve Meissner, class of 1991, a star swimmer at Shippensburg. Messier was the first

swimmer in NCAA Division II history to break 50 seconds in the 100-yard butterfly, with his time of 49.15 seconds still standing as the school record. He was a twotime All-American in the 100-yard butterfly, including as the national runner-up in 1990. Messier thanked the great teammates he had, several of whom were in attendance.

The fourth inductee was Kristina Taylor Kulp, class of 2013, who is one of the best field hockey players in SU history. Kulp was a four-time all PSAC player who finished with 80 career goals, second in Shippensburg history. She was also named NFHCA Division II Field Hockey Player of the Year in 2010. Kulp thanked her head coach Bertie Landes in her speech, mentioning their close relationship both on and off the field.

Kelley Tiesi Key, 2020, was then celebrated for her incredible softball accomplishments. Key is the only player in Raiders’ softball history to be named a fourtime NFCA All-American, as well as winning the 2004 NCAA Division II National Player of the Year award. She still holds many school records, including a career 0.62 ERA, 99 wins and 1,095 strikeouts. Key made her father the centerpiece of her speech, thanking him for all the sacrifices he made along the way.

The last inductee for 2023 was Zach Zulli, 2013. Zulli is the only player in Shippensburg history to win the Harlon Hill Trophy, the NCAA Division II equivalent of the Heisman Trophy. He broke 35 school records in three years at quarterback, totaling 10,988 passing yards and 123 passing touchdowns. Zulli thanked head coach Mark Maciejewski for believing in him, also mentioning that he was going to transfer if Maciejewski was not named head coach for 2011.

Mason Flowers Asst. Sports Editor

Jashton Best/The Slate Nasir Greer catches the ball for an interception in football’s Homecoming loss against Lock Haven.

Adam Beam Opinion Editor

Jayden Pohlman / The Slate

Ryleigh Cook handling the ball against Shepherd.

Jayden Pohlman / The Slate Cam Henry lining up to keep the ball in play against Lock Haven.

Jayden Pohlman / The Slate

Evan Brandt preparing to kick the ball in the game against Lock Haven.

Jayden Pohlman / The Slate Gabrielle Walker kicking the ball in the game against Sheperd.

Homecoming Then

Homecoming at Shippensburg University has been a yearly celebration since its first observance on Oct. 31, 1925. With football games and royalty, homecoming festivities have been highly anticipated by students, alumni and families.

Featured are some fun memories from homecomings past including the crowning of Marva “Chit” Bradley as the first African American queen in 1973 and the first crowning of samesex royalty Eliza Resetar and Quamia Wells in 2020.

Photos courtesy of Slate Staff, Cumberland Yearbooks and Shippensburg University Timeline

Homecoming Now

Photos courtesy of Adam Beam, Jashton Best, Quehanna Coble, Elizabeth Peters and Jayden Pohlman