WEDNESDAY Sep. 28, 2016 Vol. 100 • No. 9
www.therambler.org
OPINION
Does Wesleyan love Trump? Shaydi Paramore
ssparamore@txwes.edu
Registration is harder than it should be. Wesleyan’s registration’s process sends some students in circles as they try to register for their next round of classes.
NEWS
Trump is popular with Wesleyan students. An online survey concludes that Wesleyan students show more interest in Trump than student at other Texas universities.
CAMPUS
It’s no secret that sexual assault happens. Wesleyan might be ranked as one of the safest colleges in Texas, but what’s it doing for students that are victims of sexual assault?
A&E
Donald Trump trumps Hillary Clinton in the minds of Texas Wesleyan University students. In June, uCribs, a national website that focuses on helping college students find housing, targeted 18-22-year-olds with advertising that mentions Trump; by clicking, students showed interest in the politician. Wesleyan students were more interested in Trump than all but eight of the 300 American universities that were targeted with the ads, according to uCribs.com. Kentucky’s Centre College topped the list; at number six on the list, Sherman’s Austin College was the only Texas school that showed more interest in Trump than Wesleyan. “It’s hard to judge the full sentiment from this limited data, but overall we thought the findings were pretty interesting,” Tyler Hakes, uCribs’ director of marketing, wrote in an email. “They were really pretty scattered, with some private, religious schools having a big base of Trump supporters and some West Coast liberal arts schools showing up near the top.” Some Wesleyan students told about the results of the uCribs’ data survey like to think otherwise. “Why would I vote for Trump? He’s an idiot that will run our country to the ground,” said mass communication junior April Suarez Olvera. Students and teachers feel Trump isn’t qualified to become president or is a contradictory candidate spreading lies to make himself look good. “He constantly contradicts himself and states he knows more about ISIS than our government and makes
Photo Illustration by Dalise DeVos A Wesleyan faculty member “Dons” a Trump mask to illustrate the university’s interest in the presidential candidate.
comments that Vladimir Putin is a better leader than President Obama,” said Dr. Ibrahim Salih, professor of political science. “I don’t believe a candidate wanting to run our country should make disrespectful remarks just to make his image look better than his opponents.” With his terrible candidacy and backwardness in politics, a lot of students aren’t interested in voting for Trump, Salih said. “When I ask my students if they are interested in voting for Trump, most of them state the opposite or
that they’re not voting,” said Salih. Like baby boomers, millennials, people between the ages of 18 and 35, are 31 percent of the American public likely to vote in November, according to npr.org. “The high percentage is all potential, not actual political influence. In the 2012 election, voters between the ages of 18-29 made up just 19 percent of the electorate — that’s HALF the share of the Baby Boomer voting block (who were 38 percent of the electorate),” according to npr.org. But millennials don’t vote; their
Theatre Wesleyan’s new show has fans pouring in. When the Rain Stops Falling tells the story of the York family’s stuggles and dark secrets.
SPORTS
Women’s lacrosse is coming to Wesleyan.
ONLINE
Photo by Hannah Onder Freshman John Traxler (right) plays chess and eats ice cream with his fellow students in the Stella lobby, a popular hang-out spot for students.
See the plethora of pooch pictures at therambler.org!
Junior finance major Tres Underwood and freshman business communications major Muhammed Amir share a storage room that has been newly repurposed as their dorm room. The men share a closet with no bar, a room with no Wi-Fi and a TV with only 10 channels. Underwood was just glad to get a dorm room. “I was transferring out of my old school, and I didn’t know where I was going to go,” Underwood said. “I applied late, and they told me they had barely any room left. Honestly, as long as I got into a dorm I was going to be happy.” Underwood and Amir’s experiences reflect Wesleyan’s housing situation, which is now at 101 percent capacity, according to Jerri Jones, coordinator of residence life. The school’s on-campus living capacity is 522 students, but Wesleyan currently has 526.
“We have exhausted every extra space,” Jones said. “We’ve turned storage rooms back into bedrooms for students. If anymore were to come on move in day, I was getting a little fearful of what we may have to do.” Housing for the male students is at full capacity in all dorms, while for female students there’s a few empty beds, said Stella Russell Hall director Jeremy Hunt. Hunt has his own theories for the increase in housing residents. “I think we’ve recruited from a lot of the surrounding areas,” Hunt said. “Our admissions and recruiting team did a wonderful job.” While Hunt shares Jones’ feeling of being overwhelmed by the influx of students, he believes it is a good thing that they’re sharing in the oncampus living experience. “It is a little bit overwhelming, but at the same time from a professional standpoint it’s good,” Hunt said. “We are inviting a lot of students to get
HOUSING. page 3
SGA looks to successful semester Nicholas Acosta nacosta4@txwes.edu
K9 Karnival kills it with “kuteness.”
TRUMP. page 3
Housing packs in the students Hannah Onder hlonder@txwes.edu
The university will add the sport to its roster in the spring of 2018.
turnout is the lowest of any age group. Only 46 percent, for example, voted in the 2012 presidential election, compared to 72 percent of people 71 and older, according to npr. org. “There’s not really a reason why young adults choose to not vote,” Salih said. “We can constantly tell them to vote doesn’t mean their minds will change. Many say their vote won’t count. Maybe their just want-
The members of the Student Government Association have united this semester with the common goal of improving the lives of Texas Wesleyan students. Last year’s SGA elections were controversial due to divided voters,
organization President Zahraa Saheb said. But Saheb, a junior political science and English major, stresses that there is more unity in SGA than before. “If we are divided we are not going to achieve our main goals and we are not going to have good results,” Saheb said. “I am very proud of this group of leaders. The main reason
we are here is to serve the student body.” Saheb, who came to America seven years ago as a political refugee from Iraq, has been involved with SGA since she was a freshman and served as vice president last semester. “One of my main goals for this year is to promote SGA,” Saheb said. “I would like more students to know
we are there.” Saheb believes leading SGA provides her with the opportunity to make a difference in the experiences of students on campus. “SGA is a chance to mold how they want their college experience to
SGA. page 3
2 | Wednesday | September 28, 2016
Opinion
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End sexual violence on campuses EDITORIAL
Sexual assaults on college campuses have become an epidemic. According to RAINN.org, a nonprofit dedicated to fighting sexual violence, 11.2 percent of all students’ experience rape or sexual assault through physical force, violence, or incapacitation, and 90 percent of college victims feel so ashamed that they never file a report. Lawmakers in California hope to prevent another case like Brock Turner’s. Turner, you recall, is the former Stanford University student who was convicted of three counts of felony sexual assault, but only served three months of a six-month sentence. California lawmakers hope to end this epidemic by approving a bill that requires a minimum prison sentence and bans probation for anyone convicted of sexually assaulting an unconscious or intoxicated person. AB 2888 passed California’s assembly 66-0 on Aug. 29 and is waiting for Gov. Jerry Brown’s signature. According to leginfo.legislative. ca.gov, the new measure would “prohibit a court from granting probation or suspending the execution or imposition of a sentence if a person is convicted of rape, sodomy, penetration with a foreign object, or oral copulation if the victim was either
unconscious or incapable of giving consent due to intoxication.” California hopes that felons convicted of such crimes will not have the chance to “get away” with their actions and fewer survivors will be discouraged from coming forward to report such actions, according to an article published in August by the Los Angeles Times. But some college feminist groups believe the law doesn’t address problems such as how prospectors handle sexual assault reports and how minimum sentences will lead to more prison overcrowding, according to the Times article. Even if states focused on refusal of probation or a minimum sentence, a suspected rape perpetrator is 60 percent more likely to be arrested within three years of their released date, according to RAINN.org. The California bill is a big step in the right direction, but the way to actually stop sexual assaults on campuses is continuing education through the college years. This is happening at some universities. In January 2015, Dartmouth College announced mandatory education on sexual violence prevention, according to dartmouth. edu. Prospective students at North Carolina’s Elon College must take an online course on alcohol’s effects on behaviors before they can even start their studies, according to elon.edu.
But what should college students be taught about sexual assaults on campus? Education shouldn’t be only prevention-focused or teaching women how to defend themselves. By allowing education to focus primarily on teaching women how to protect themselves or on abstinence from alcohol, drugs and sexual activity, we are telling people to attack the “weaklings” and that women should feel shameful for wanting to consent to sexual activities. Instead of wasting money on essentials for inmates and overcrowded prisons, states should focus on creating more sex education programs that teach students what consent is. Silence, body movements, moans and grinding on the dance floor are not signs of consent. Students need to learn that if their partner doesn’t say yes and go through with their actions that it can lead to serious jail time. The focus should be on teaching men and women what consent is and the hazards of binge-drinking in unfamiliar places, as well as promote bystander intervention. To prevent sexual assaults on campuses, campuses must focus on continuing education throughout the years, empower the 90 percent of men who do not want to rape to intervene and create a safer environment for the victims who want to speak up.
Infographic by Shaydi Paramore The statistics on sexual assault on college campuses are horrific.
Wesleyan registration is a frustration Cheyan Fite Content Producer cjfite@txwes.edu
Texas Wesleyan’s admission and registration process sends students in circles. Taking a new step in life can be a stressful process, but today’s resources should make the process easier. Students are able to apply online. They fill out their paperwork, transfer their documents to administration, apply for financial aid and set up an appointment with an advisor. It all sounds simple - until they arrive at the university. New, returning, and transfer students are sent on what seems like an endless trail of visiting buildings and offices located on different parts of the campus. They arrive at one destination to only find that they need paperwork from another first. It is a frustrating and disorganized process, and different from what seemed like a hopeful and promising future online. Wesleyan’s registration process does not seem to match up to other institutions. You spend hours trekking across campus getting signatures for classes that you have already registered for online, filling out forms, and being redirected to different offices for paperwork. For example, I transferred from
the Dallas County Community College District and had a pleasant experience with the overall academic process there from start to finish. DCCCD has eight colleges to choose from, six of which have athletic programs. I chose the one that best fit my academic and athletic needs for future transfer. The online process to the DCCCD administration system was well-organized and easily accessible. I was able to get admitted, speak to advisors, register, take test assessments, and pay for school all in one building. The buildings were well-labeled, the process was organized and the employees were helpful. This is something Wesleyan could learn from and strive to provide for their students. Several of my fellow students in the Athletic Department, many of whom also transferred to Wesleyan from other institutions, have had a major issue with lack of information or notification when it comes to credits transfers and tuition increases. I have had a similar experience; I had to retake several courses that I was originally told would transfer from DCCCD, and therefore spent double the money. This fall alone, the university’s tuition rose about $200 per credit hour with little or no notification from the institution. That’s quite an amount for a university that advertises itself as “affordable top-tier education.”
Photo Illustration by Cheyan Fite Texas Wesleyan’s admission and registration process leaves students feeling confused, lost and frustrated.
If a university wants to produce a successful student body, it will need to provide a positive learning environment. Starting off on the wrong foot at an institution could possibly make or break the experience for that student, leading the student to
transfer to another institution or drop out entirely. Students who enjoy their environment and overall experience tend to perform better and recommend academic programs to others.Wesleyan seems to focus on upgrading build-
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ings, roads, and athletic programs, but crucial areas of the administration process are getting lost in the shuffle, leaving students like me confused and frustrated.
Rams up Thumbs up to waffle night at Stella on Mondays. Thumbs up to the Harambe craze. Thumbs up to intramurals returning. Thumbs up to When the Rain Stops Falling.
Rams down Thumbs down to no coffee in the library. Thumbs down to no Quidditch in intramurals. Thumbs down to Pati Alexander resigning. Thumbs down to Robyn Bone leaving Wesleyan.
Wednesday | September 28, 2016|3
News
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TRUMP
continued from page 1 ing some type of freebie like a can of Coke or a sandwich, but I believe it’s because they don’t have a candidate to relate to and that’s why they choose not to vote.” Millennials, Salih said, want a candidate they can relate to and, other than Bernie Sanders, the last time someone fit that bill was John F. Kennedy in 1960 “because he was young and wanted to make a difference for the younger citizens.” An analysis of state exit polls shows Sanders captured more than two million raw votes from 18-30-year-olds, and Clinton needs to find a way to mobilize the younger generation or Trump will, according to npr.org. “The race is so close you can’t really say who’s going to win,” Salih said “I guess we’re just go-
“Voting gives students the opportunity to select a trustworthy leader to represent us and let our voices be heard.” - Zahraa Saheb
“Students that are not from the Fort Worth area or plan to vote in their hometown must hurry and file this crazy amount of paperwork to have the opportunity to vote,” Salih said. “That’s one reason why students choose not to vote, because they don’t want to file tons of paperwork.” SGA President Zahraa Saheb hopes to impact her fellow students by encouraging them to vote or assisting them in voter registration. “I believe that it is crucial for us, as students and citizens of this nation, to vote in the elections. whether local or national,” Saheb said. “Voting gives students the opportunity to select a trustworthy leader to represent us and let our voices be heard.”
ing to have wait for the debate and listen closely to what the candidates have to say.” Students need to realize they have the power to choose the next president and that their vote does count, especially in such a close race, Salih said. “I try to persuade my students as much as possible to vote and participate in the election,”
Salih said. “Maybe if the election was changed to a Sunday instead of the second Tuesday in November more students will be interested in using their ‘lazy’ Sunday to impact the presidential race.” According to Salih, non-residents of the Fort Worth area must hurry and apply for absentee voting by late October to vote on Nov. 8.
school, which only gives $2,055 per semester – just enough to stay in Stella,” Jimenez said. “When I actually applied for housing, I applied late and ended up getting a room in OC Hall. I wouldn’t say it’s a straight move up, but I do get my own restroom which is a pretty good perk for applying late.” Jimenez wasn’t required to pay the difference in dorm prices since he originally applied to Stella, and he wasn’t the only student to gain benefits after applying late.
Underwood and Amir gained a personal bathroom in their revamped dorm, a nice amenity compared to the community showers that the rest of Stella residents have to use. “We got our own showers,” Underwood said. “We’re kind of happy about that.” Amir believes the room to be golden except for the lack of internet. “It’s not that bad,” Amir said. “We’ve both seemed to work with the space we’ve had.” Hunt appreciates the pair’s patience as he
works to make adjustments. He believes that building a new on-campus living facility would be a step in the right direction. “In my mind, I think the numbers show, especially from this recent move, that building more dorms is something we should highly consider,” Hunt said. “I think that over time we’ll definitely try to get there.”
charge of the participation program.” The participation program encourages students to attend SGA meetings in exchange for monetary rewards for their organizations, Coker said. “I think it’s a really good way for students to reach out to us,” Coker said. “It is a way for us to give back to the students.” Many new faces can also be seen sitting around the table of the Student Government Chamber, such as Treasurer William Wick. The senior criminal justice and psychology major admits that this is his first time doing anything like this, but that doesn’t stop him from having some big goals for the future of the organization. “We are literally employees of the student body,” Wick said. “We got $54,000 from this
semester just from the incoming students, that’s like $22 per person, and for us to take that money and throw it away would be wildly inappropriate.” Wick says Wesleyan is the fifth university he has attended. “My background is in the military,” Wick said, “I did some stuff with intelligence, and I like everyone to have the whole picture.” Wick has been working on making SGA more transparent to the student body by allowing students to view the organization’s budget online. This is the first semester that this information has been available in this way. Wick describes student government as controlled chaos, but says he loves doing it. “I would do this professionally if I could,”
Wick said. “It’s a chance to serve the student body.”
HOUSING
continued from page 1 that on-campus living experience where they meet different people, different cultures and different backgrounds. For me, that is good, but I’m still learning how to supervise students – now a bit more students.” All the new students living on campus has created the need for adjustments, Hunt said. Freshman biological chemistry major and music minor Jonathan Jimenez has experienced those adjustments first-hand. “I was given a room grant through the music
SGA
continued from page 1 be like,” Saheb said. “If they knew about SGA, the kind of events they want to see, or things they don’t like, this is the place to change those, this is the place to make things happen.” SGA Vice President Kelsea Coker, a junior sociology major and Fort Worth native, shares Saheb’s love for the campus. Coker came to Wesleyan for cheerleading, then joined SGA in the fall of 2015 as the School of Business Representative and served as Representative at Large in the spring. She continues to take on many roles within the organization this semester. “I am the head of the building and grounds committees, so we have weekly meetings, weekly executive meetings and general business meetings,” Coker said. “I am the head of the travel abroad scholarship, and I am in
Photo by Nicholas Acosta The SGA meets every week on Friday at 2:30 p.m. in the Brown-Lupton Campus Center.
4 |Wednesday | September 28, 2016
Campus
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Texas Wesleyan University has been named one of the safest colleges in
study conducted by backgroundchecks.org. The site released its 2016 annual “Saf
report in June, which ranked Wesleyan number 32 in a list of the 50 safest colleges The report ranked colleges based on combined data from recent Department of Ed
reports, natural language analysis and social media sentiment analysis. But, while
is certainly something to be proud of, are Wesleyan students truly “safe” when it
One in five college students experiences sexual assa
sexual assault?
year, according to a report released by The White House Task Force to Protect Stud
sault in 2014. And according to survey results published by RAINN, nearly 60 perc
assaulted will not go to the police. The statistics show that, ranking or no ran
sexual assault happens here too – it’s ju Wesleyan’s Prevention and Response brochure outlines what to do if sexually as
First, seek medical attention immediately. Local hospitals include John Pete Texas Health Harris Methodist Fort Worth. Second, report to campus or local
Worth Police Department offers victim assistance at 817-392-4390. The Wome
County has a general helpline, as well as a 24-hour rape crisis hotline (817-927
campus resources are available to assist in reporting to the police: Vice Preside
Student Services (Title IX Coordinator), 817-531-4214; Dean of Students, 817-531
Get engaged with the news on Oct. 4 as the Mass Communications Department celebrates
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Wednesday | September 28, 2016
|5
Campus
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Arts&Entertainment
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Rain asks, answers multiple questions Shaydi Paramore ssparamore@txwes.edu
Fans will be streaming in to watch Theatre Wesleyan’s first production of the 2016-17 season, When the Rain Stops Falling, which opened on Thursday. Rain, written by Andrew Bovell and directed by Bryan Stevenson, is an extraordinary play with a gloomy forecast that gives the audience the opportunity to travel through time and learn the past and future of Gabriel York’s family. The year is 2039, and York (played by Dean Phillips II) is irrationally worrying about the arrival of his son, Andrew Price (played by Trey Cardona), who he abandoned at the age of seven. York begins to freak out about lunch and the questions his son will ask. “I know what he wants,” York frets. “He wants what all young men want from their fathers. He wants to know who he is. Where he comes from. Where he belongs. And for the life of me, I don’t know what to tell him.” A fish falls from the sky to answer York’s question of what he will make for lunch. Looks like he is cooking fish. This begins a compelling saga that propels the audience into the York family’s problems, starting with York’s grandparents Henry and Elizabeth Law (played by Richard Hunter Givans and Kim Owen), who have learned some exciting yet nerve-wracking news: Elizabeth is pregnant. Audience members are later transferred into the future to find that the baby was born. He is an adolescent male named Gabriel Law (Raied Makhamreh). We find Gabriel in search of his father, Henry, who left him at the age of seven. Gabriel decides to search through Australia for the truth of his father’s disappearance and instead finds the love of his life, Gabrielle (Abbie Hancock), a waitress at a roadhouse cafe.
Photo courtsey of Jacob Sanchez Actors Abbie Hancock and Raied Makhamreh perform in Andrew Bovell’s When the Rain Stops Falling, which runs through Oct. 2.
With her help, Gabriel continues his journey and learns a dark family secret. With a focus on broken marriages, suicide, accidental deaths, missing fathers and children, and a twisted secret, Rain had fans on the edge of their seats with tears in their eyes and constant questions just waiting to be answered. With the level of skillfulness put into lighting, sound and projection designs, fans were able to feel as if they were falling in love under
a snowfall or terrified of a thunderous storm. Through careful staging and creativity in design aspects in the play, fans were able to watch a jigsaw puzzle of emotions get pieced together into a masterful treat. People say that when it rains it pours and I’m sure Theatre Wesleyan will have fans pouring into the auditorium to watch this complex yet exciting tale. When the Rain Stops Falling runs through
Oct. 2. Shows are at 7:30 p.m. except for Oct. 2, when there will be a 2 p.m. matinee. All shows are at the Thad Smotherman Theatre. Tickets are $10 general admission and $5 for Wesleyan faculty and staff, as well as seniors, and available at 817-531-4211 or via the Theatre Wesleyan website. All Texas Wesleyan students can receive free tickets through the Student Theatrical Experience Fund (STEF).
Music Department enrollment soars Nicholas acosta
nacosta4@txwes.edu
Texas Wesleyan’s Department of Music has grown rapidly in recent semesters and is expected to grow even larger. The increase includes more than 20 new majors since last spring, and along with more students there are more opportunities, including the establishment of a pep band and an orchestral band. “If you walk into a wind ensemble room right now, they pretty much fill up the stage,” department chairman Dr. Jerome Bierschenk said. “When I first came here there were six or seven students in that ensemble. To have a healthy music department you need a healthy band department, choral department, orchestral department, and piano department.” Department coordinator Janna McKinley said music has 57 majors, up from 37 last fall and 34 last spring. There are also 10 music minors and non-minors who play in the department’s ensembles. Both Bierschenk and McKinley claim the short term goal of the department is to have 100 music majors. “We are already halfway there,” Bierschenk said. McKinley said that while the rapid growth has put some strain on the aging Ann Waggoner Fine Arts Building, the new students coming in is wonderful, as is seeing older students come in and act as mentors to the younger students. “If we continue growing eventually we will need a larger facility,” McKinley said. “We do our best to make sure that people are working together to get their practice and classes in.” McKinley and Bierschenk believe the quality of music education at Wesleyan has contributed to the increase in students. “Schools around here are asking to hire Wesleyan graduates for their music education programs,” McKinley said. “I feel like our reputation is just growing in the community.”
Dr. John Fisher teaches a Music Theory 1 class. The number of music majors has grown from 34 last spring to 57 this fall.
Bierschenk also said that the establishment of a pep band, which would play at Wesleyan football games, could also be contributing to the increase in students. He said the band could begin playing as soon as next spring in preparation for the football team’s games next fall. Nicholas Squares, a senior music major, said that the music department definitely needs a new building. “This building has at least been on fire twice,” Squares said. “It’s a pretty old building, but to
me that’s what makes Wesleyan special, the old buildings.” Squares says that Wesleyan is very uplifting and allows students to learn in a positive environment. Junior music education major Rachel Tomlinson says it is great that the department is growing. “Practice rooms are sometimes really full, but that is a good thing,” Tomlinson said. Bierschenk acknowledges that challenges may come up such as classroom space, re-
Photo by Nicholas Acosta
hearsal space, and instrument storage space. “What we do here at Wesleyan is that if we have a problem we figure out a way to solve it,” Bierschenk said. Bierschenk believes that the department is prepared for any upcoming influxes of students due to a fantastic faculty that really pays attention to students’ needs. “Any student that wants to come here that’s considering music as a major regardless of their backgrounds, they will find a spot here,” Bierschenk said.
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Sports
Women’s lacrosse coming in 2018 Karan Muns
kemuns@txwes.edu
With the new football team revving up on campus, students and faculty are wondering about the status of women’s lacrosse. Women’s lacrosse will begin practicing in the fall of 2017, Athletic Director Steve Trachier said. “We’ll do a candidate search this fall and hire a head coach around January to start the recruitment process for the team for 2017-2018,” Trachier said. The team is expected to start playing in the spring of 2018, Trachier said. The women’s lacrosse team will practice and play at Martin Field where the men’s and women’s soccer teams also practice and play, but there shouldn’t be any conflict, Trachier said. “Their seasons don’t overlap,” Trachier said. “Soccer is a fall sport, and lacrosse is a spring sport.” When the team starts practicing in fall 2017, they can condition and weight lift until their season starts, Trachier said. It is still too early to tell when their season will officially begin. University President Frederick Slabach is excited about the growth the addition of the sport will bring to Wesleyan as well. “We’re excited about the student-athletes it will attract to Texas Wesleyan,” Slabach wrote in an email. The university has continued expanding its women’s athletic program throughout the years, Slabach wrote. “Lacrosse is our next step in creating more opportunities for female athletes at Texas Wesleyan,” Slabach wrote. Women’s lacrosse had been added to Texas Wesleyan’s roster of sports after the return of the football program in order to keep the university in compliance with Title IX, Trachier said. According to ww2.ed.gov, Title IX states that “no person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance.” Women’s lacrosse is a large team sport similar in size to a soccer team so offering it as a varsity sport will help meet Title IX requirements, Trachier said. “Any time that you show that you’re trying to create more opportunity in sport for women it
does help out,” Trachier said. “We think we’ll get around 25 [players], so that’s our target.” Men’s and women’s lacrosse are common on the East Coast and around the Great Lakes, but are growing in popularity, Trachier said. “It’s the fastest growing women’s sport in America,” Trachier said. The NAIA is offering women’s lacrosse as an invitational sport, meaning all NAIA teams fielding the sport have the option to play each other, as opposed to just playing teams in their conference. “There’s really not many opportunities in Texas or even in some of the surrounding states,” Trachier said. “We wanted to get out in front of it because since it is growing in popularity, we wanted to have that sport here in Texas.” There are very few opportunities for lacrosse players in Texas; some schools offer clubs, but not scholarships, Trachier said. Since the teams are not all located in one general area, the team will have to travel a lot to play. “Some of the NAIA schools that are participating are pretty far out,” Trachier said, “but we believe that it’s going to continue to grow in our direction.” Lacrosse requires a lot of practice and commitment to create a good team, freshman Notre Dame lacrosse player Jacob Kanak wrote in an email. “Our team practices five days a week in season for about two hours a day,” Kanak wrote. “We also have film sessions, positional work and team lifts. In the off-season, we practice three days a week, and lift and condition three days a week.” The player decides how much time to dedicate to lacrosse, though, since most athletes use their own time to work on stick skills and endurance, Kanak wrote. Using personal time to practice in addition to team practices, he wrote, is important for players who want to excel in the sport. “Equipment on the guys’ side includes sticks, gloves, shoulder pads, elbow pads and a helmet,” Kanak wrote. “On the girls’ side it is very simple, a stick and a pair of eye goggles.” The men’s team requires more equipment than women’s lacrosse because women’s lacrosse is not a contact sport, Kanak wrote. Kanak thinks it’s awesome that Wesleyan is adding women’s lacrosse to its athletic program. “It’s always great to see the sport expand,” he wrote.
Sources: naia.org, Jocob Kanak
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Shoppach brings MLB experience Shelby Reddington
sgreddington@txwes.edu
Kelly Shoppach chose family over being a Major League catcher. In 2013, Shoppach, who had been in the majors nine years, decided to leave the Cleveland Indians to stay home to be there for his kids, and specifically his daughter Alex. “I had some opportunities to play, but my oldest daughter was going into high school and they weren’t going to travel with me anymore,” said Shoppach, a Fort Worth native, “and we thought that was important for her to stay here, so basically before the 2014 season I limited all my options to just the Rangers.” That opportunity didn’t pan out, and Shoppach coached high school and summer league baseball before becoming a Rams assistant coach this summer, thanks to an informal meeting with head coach Mike Jeffcoat at Sycamore Park. “Really it was just by chance that we happened to be playing a summer league game at Sycamore Park, and coach Jeffcoat was there and we just got to talking,” Shoppach said. In addition to the Indians, Shoppach, 36, played for the Boston Red Sox, New York Mets, Seattle Mariners and Tampa Bay Rays. His career batting average was .223, with 70 home runs. His nine years in the majors, combined with Jeffcoat’s decade, means Rams baseball coaches have 19 years of Major League experience. Shoppach said jokingly that his expectation for the year is to learn everyone’s names, due to the large number of players on the team. On a more serious note, he feels he can bring life experiences to any of the players. This is especially true, he said, of athletes “with aspirations of going to college, graduating college, what they miss out if they don’t graduate college and the experience that I had in life playing professional baseball to translate more than just baseball.” New graduate assistant and former Rams right fielder Erick Quesada speaks very highly of Shoppach, calling him a “great and knowledgeable coach.” “He has a ton of experience and knows so much about the game, seems like he will bring a lot to the program and help us win a lot of ball games,” Quesada said. As an aspiring coach, Quesada said he wants to learn how Shoppach studies the game and how he approaches the game and players. “I feel with all his expertise he will help me as
Photo by Josh Lacy Rams assistant baseball coach Kelly Shoppach played for five teams in the Major Leagues; the last team was the Cleveland Indians.
a coach and our team as players propel to the next level,” Quesada said. Senior left fielder Blake Seaton is eager to see what MLB experience Shoppach brings to the pitchers and catchers of the program. Seaton hit .328 last year and wants to do better this year. He said he is excited to see what Shoppach can bring to the batter’s box and his perspective on hitting.
“I hope to learn what the right way is to approach different situations on the field and off, because he has that MLB experience he’s been there and done that,” Seaton said. Seaton believes with the experience in the coaching staff and returning players this year the Rams can go deep into the post-season and win a championship. “As far as the returners and how well we
mesh and the experience from the coaching staff I feel the experience will help us go far,” Seaton said. Shoppach is glad to be anchored in the Metroplex. “I don’t want to move any more,” Shoppach said. “I moved for too many years. This just kinda seems like a fit for me and what I want to do and what they want from me.”
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