Issue 4-27-17

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THURSDAY, APRIL 27, 2017

TheSouthTexan

SOUTHTEXANNEWS.COM

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VOLUME 91, ISSUE 25

Something Borrowed, Something New Work of engineering students, professor contributes to city revitalization plans

Kailtin Ruiz Contributor Leaves are still underfoot in April, the hand-me-downs from evergreens. Like them, a collection of hardcovers condensed on a Friday in McNeil Engineering rest.

More neatly than the work of anything deciduous, a heap of books collected in the corridor outside Dr. Stephan Nix’s office awaits someone to flutter through their pages. Volumes with titles like “Engineering Fundamentals” and “Environmental Science” rested beneath a note that invited anyone to partake.

A good book opens to worlds as much as a treehouse; in the same way,

according to Nix, a city can be a laboratory for engineering students. A professor of Environmental Engineering at Texas A&M University-Kingsville, Nix has led teams of engineering students in three projects for the City of Kingsville.

Their work has landed on ready soil. The first of these projects laid the groundwork for the city’s Downtown Vision Plan—an outline for the redevelopment of infrastructure on Kleberg Avenue.

Nix, who served as dean of the Frank H. Dotterweich College of Engineering from 2010-2016, saw the city as a natural place that students could contribute to and learn from.

Left: Benjamin Chi and Ahkil Mankala, two Student Government members help out digging

In 2011, Nix and the student team proposed to create design work for the city that would refresh infrastructure on Kleberg Avenue, looking

to the City Commission in 2013.

Like literature and live oaks, the worth of that project lasted for more than

“As part of my duties as dean, I took it upon myself to make contact with the city because I wanted the college to be more involved.”

-Dr. Stephan Nix at the street bed, utilities and sidewalks. Their price was $30,000—one tenth of what would typically be charged for such engineering fees. In collaboration with the city, construction drawings were completed and presented

a season; it gives shape and substance to the recent Downtown Vision Plan.

“The work done for the Kleberg Avenue project is actually coming in very handy right now. The design concept that was developed Photos by Ahkil Mankala, Bigger Event Chair from The Studen Government Association

Right: Jennifer Islas from Kappa Delta Chi helps dig Bottom: Organizations help out for the last day of Bigger Event

Bigger Small Events

The Student Government Association hosted its annual Bigger Event over three days this year. The deaths of two SGA members— Ebenezer “Tosin” Oloba and Oscar Felipe Fuentes—on Feb. 26 delayed the annual community clean up. SGA instead broke up the event, hosting activities earlier this month and on April 22, Earth Day. Akhil Mankala, Bigger Event Committee chair and SGA member, contacted every organization that signed up for the Bigger Event and asked if they wanted to participate in the smaller events to plant trees/flowers, pick up trash, etc. “Bigger Event gave us an opportunity to learn what the Kingsville community needs from the students and I hope this way we have a chance to make a difference and maintain a long-term relation with the city,” said Mankala.

by the team of students is going to be used as part of a proposal that the city will be submitting in hopes of getting federal funding to implement the Downtown Vision Plan,” said Sharam Santillan, capital improvements project manager for the City of Kingsville.

Santillan can speak to what the work of students has paved; a TAMUK alumnus, he was leader of the Kleberg Avenue project’s team. That experience, he noted, “was what kick-started my engineering career.”

The value of collaboration between the city and students stands out to others. Speaking before TAMUK’s Student Government Association on April 12, City Manager Jesús Garza

acknowledged the record of quality between the city and TAMUK engineering students.

“I think that not only the quality of the work that they provide is great, but the partnership allows them to get a real world sort of exposure to how things would work…what we get out of it is mutual,” Garza said.

That symbiosis would not catch Nix by surprise.

With the sound of Morse code, chalk struck against a green board as he illustrated points—apologizing for the shape of handwritten A’s one moment, and elucidating from a makeshift diagram the next. After all, good engineering, like books and evergreens, never really goes out of style.

Q&A

Students air concerns about iTech, safety Crystal Zamarron Editor-in-Chief

Students came prepared with questions last week when the university’s administration held its biannual President’s Roundtable.

Topics for discussion included campus lighting, updating labs, reporting to iTech, quality teaching and more.

Unfortunately, President Steven Tallant wasn’t able to attend the event at the Memorial Student Union Building. Senior Vice President for Student Affairs and Administration Terisa Riley was there in his place. Also present was Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Dr. Heidi M. Anderson.

The provost answered questions about the quality of teaching on campus.

“Our job as educators is to help motivate students to learn so if you don’t teach a certain way the students can’t retain and carry the

information forward, which is something we have to work on with our faculty,” the provost answered when a student raised a question about retaining information through multiple science courses.

Lonnie Nagel, associate chief information officer, urged students to be proactive in seeking redress from administrators over any concerns. He referred students to the library help desk for information about technology questions.

“I really do need to hear from you guys if anyone is having problems, which by the way, going straight to us if you have even a general question about technology, the library help desk is the way to go,” he said.

If students, faculty & staff need immediate assistance with technical issues, administrators urged them to contact iTech Support Services at 361-593-4357 or submit a help desk ticket at iTech’s web page.

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THURSDAY, APRIL 27, 2017 SOUTHTEXANNEWS.COM

Entertainment

Author shares his unique perspective on the Latino experience

Clarissa Madrigal Reporter

Lucille Kruse Reading Series Presented writer Dagoberto Gilb, Tuesday Apr. 18.

Gilb is the author of Before the End, After the Beginning, The Flowers, Woodcuts of Women, Gritos, The Last Known Residence of Mickey Acuña and The Magic of Blood.

The Language and Literature Department hosted the Reading Series held at the Blue Room in Same Fore Hall.

The audience listened to Gilb’s stories and were able to ask questions that Gilb responded to with a personal touch.

Faculty and students learned more about this Chicano author and his stories that are published in different books.

Cassidy Sanchez a Political Sciences major said,“ I think this event is important for the students because I mean just anybody in this particular field, this is some-

thing that he wanted to do and by attending this event it really helped to do that.”

Henna Patel a Sociology Major commented, “I think this event was very informative, it let you know much more of Mexican Heritage; things like that and like they say his literature is composed really well so anyone who wants to go to the English field they should listen to him more often.”

She continued “For sure I think the department should organize more of these events in the future.”

Araceli Reyes a Landscape Architecture major said that “In my opinion the event was very interesting knowing other authors that I did not knew are other Latino authors as well.”

She followed, “It’s very important for other students to learn about other authors and expand their knowledge in their topics."

For the students and faculty who had bought one of his books, there was a book signing held just outside the Blue Room after the event.

Dagoberto Gilb poses for a photo with students after a presentation and book signing.

Photo by Clarissa Madrigal

Revamped Mystery Science Theater 3000 brings riffs, low-fi charm to YouTube generation

The Netflix reboot of the seminal movie riffing series features a brand new cast

Robert Breedlove Entertainment Critic

2017 has been the year of the pop culture revival.

We’re not even a third of the way through the year and theaters have already seen nostalgia-driven reboots of Power Rangers, King Kong, and even CHiPs, with Baywatch, the Mummy, and a Blade Runner sequel set to release later in the year.

On TV, the Lethal Weapon series wrapped up its first season, Samurai Jack fans finally get a conclusion after 13 years of waiting, and Bates Motel finishes up its five-season run with a retelling of Psycho.

Netflix, perhaps the originator of this current trend of resurrecting dead properties, has kept the pace, first rebooting A Series of Unfortunate Events in January and now the much-anticipated return of Mystery Science Theater 3000.

The original series ran from 1988 until 1999, snappily riffing on the worst films ever made while gaining a cult following among movie buffs with its offbeat sense of humor and charming DIY production values.

In many ways MST3K was the progenitor of YouTube movie riffers such as

the Nostalgia Critic, CinemaSins, and Honest Trailers, as well as influencing video game let’s play commentaries like the Game Grumps and Rooster Teeth.

Even after a wildly successful Kickstarter campaign in 2015,there were still questions if Mystery Science Theater has a place in the post-YouTube landscape.

18 years since the last episode aired on the then Sci-Fi Channel, Mystery Science Theater 3000 has been reborn on Netflix in a series dubbed “The Return”, maintaining much of the original’s charm and wit, while being the most newbie-friendly season to date.

The premise of the show has changed very little as explained in the title song: a blue collar schlub named Jonah Heston (played by Jonah Ray) is baited and captured by a couple of mad scientists (also known as “the Mads”) to be used in a diabolical experiment to test the outer limits of human sanity.

Their method?

Force him to watch the worst of the worst, the schlockiest of schlock exploitation and b-movies until his mind melts into madness.

Luckily for him he has two robot companions, Crow T. Robot and Tom Servo to

riff on the movies with him and ward off insanity.

I love the conception of the Mads’ moon base as an evil TV station that literally broadcasts in liquid television and even has its own house band that plays during “commercial” bumps.

Even then there are constant references to Netflix and the other shows on the streaming service.

If the 90s series broke the fourth wall, The Return has a complete disregard for it One of the biggest concerns from MST3K fans (or MSTies) during the new show’s production was the casting of already established comedians and actors from the LA comedy/ podcast circuit to replace the original roles.

Part of the charm of the original run was that the writing staff and cast were exclusively made up of local talent, virtually unknown outside of the Minneapolis-St. Paul area.

The result was a production that had a sense of authenticity as the unknown cast, cheap sets, and kitschy writing resembled the very movies they were riffing.

Felcia Day and Patton Oswalt are the most recognizable faces of the cast and have fantastic chemistry as

Screencapped from Netflix

Korean knockoff Godzilla, Yongary performs jig for the entertainment of a small child as well as Jonah and the bots Kinga Forrester and TV’s Baron Vaughn as the new reference contemporary or Son of TV’s Frank, the chilvoices of Crow T. Robot and obscure pop culture that dren of the original Mads.

Tom Servo, but they easily either sounds dated or just Day brings a bit of a meta slide into their roles once the flies right over the head of element to her character, riffing finds its groove. anyone under the age of 30. less interested in the actual They have a nice chemThe Return gives MST3K scientific progress of the existry with Ray, who handa refresh on the pop culture periment itself and more in picked them for the show clock, updating it with riffs the personal financial benefit from their time on the that are more contemporary it could bring (she wants to Nerdist. to the streaming generation: sell the rights to Disney).

It’s a very talented cast the Walking Dead, Game of Her lackey Patton would and they each get their time Thrones, and the new Star like nothing more to continto shine, but the goofy MidWars trilogy. ue the spirit of his namesake west charm of the original When I get the question by trying desperately to win MST3K is missing with such of where someone should the affections of his boss, an L.A.-Centric cast. start if they want to get into mostly through lame villainUltimately the casting is a Mystery Science Theater, I ous one-liners. very minor point compared finally have an answer.

Ray is best known as a to the meat and potatoes Mystery Science Theater co-host for the Nerdist Podof MST3K: the riffs, which 3000: The Return is the best cast strikes a nice balance might be even better here entry point into the world of between the soft friendliness than they were in the 90s the bots and Mads of Gizof series creator Joel Hodgseries. monic institute for any age. son and the snark of Mike While most of the riffs in Though with 14 episodes, Nelson in the host role. the original series still hold clocking in at 90 minutes Initially it’s a little jarring up very well, oftentimes each, be sure to pace yourto hear Hampton Yount and the host and the bots would self.

Felicia Day and Patton Oswalt are deliciously corny as the new Mads

Photo courtesy of IGN

Campus

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THURSDAY, APRIL 27, 2017

SGA Elections

SOUTHTEXANNEWS.COM

31 students have applied for a certain Student Government Association position (positions listed under their name).

Those who are Sophomores can ONLY vote for their Sophomore Class Senator and Juniors Class Senators for Juniors

Ajinka R. Pawar Senator-At-Large

Amalu Raphael College of Engineering

Arielle Williams Senator-At-Large

Carle Straube Sophomore Class Senator

Crystal Zamarron Senator-At-Large

Edmund Nnana Graduate Studies Senator

Chimenum Glory Elenwo Senator Pro Tempore

Erik Perez Renovato Sophomore Class Senator

Fatou Salla Sophomore Class Senator

Glynna Nickle Treasurer

Graham Castor College of Arts & Sciences

Hanisha Singh Roa Graduate Studies Senator

Humberto Jay Garcia Graduate Studies Senator

Jared Smith College of Agriculture

Jocelyn Gonzalez College of Arts & Sciences

Kaley Dodd President

Katrina Sanchez College of Engineering

Kumar Kurapati College of Business

Kyra Kurapati Senior Class Senator

Lelyn Adams College of Business

Lori Ramos Junior Class Senator

Monica Hysquierdo Vice-President

Ricardo Cruz College of Arts & Sciences

Robert Ray Benavides Junior Class Senator

Ruben Martinez Vice-President

Sarah Bennett Sophomore Class Senator

Sarjina Niraula Graduate Studies Senator

Olanrewaju Sheriff Oseni Vice-President

Sofia Peña College of Agriculture

Sushmita K Gopalakrishnan Senator-At-Large

Tanishka Guduru Senator-At-Large

Voting will be Monday, May 1 and Tuesday, May 2

at the Memorial Student Union Building from 12 p.m.- 5 p.m.

Vote on Collegiate Link individually

Ha

The life of a water bottle doesn’t end when it is placed in the trash can. Used water bottles will either become permanent landfill occupants or be remade into recycled items. It is up to an individual to choose whether they want to recycle their bottles or have them pollute the environment.

In hopes of raising awareness about recycling, reusing, and reducing trash, Texas A&M University-Kingsville was the site Earth Week. The event was hosted by TAMUK’s Office of Campus Sustainability, who collaborated with Aramark and University Housing and Residence Life to promote green alternatives.

From April 17-21, students participated in events that were themed after green jobs and green spaces.

The week kicked-off with the plantation of the newly certified Monarch Waystation-The Javelina Monarch Kingdom. Containing milkweeds and nectar plants, the Waystation promotes monarch conservation. Participants and volunteers also installed a new xeriscape garden in front of the Javelina House.

Festivities continued on April 18 at the Student Union Building, where Executive Chef Craig Prestero showcased dishes made from fresh ingredients from the Javelina Pallet Garden.

Prestero used the garden ingredient to create a classic quiche and pickled radishes.

After the lunch, students participated in the Amazing Hoggie Race, an event that

had cycling teams travel around campus solving riddles and competing for prizes.

The next day, students were treated to a dine-in-thedark lunch at Turner-Bishop and the Javelina Dining Hall.

The event showcased the importance of conserving energy throughout campus.

Later in the day, Lucio Hall had an outdoor movie event, where students brought their own bowls and cups to prevent waste.

Thursday events had students going behind the scenes of Tunrer-Bishop and the Javelina Dining Hall.

Students saw first-hand the amount of food they waste per day and calculated how much is accumulated throughout a week. At Gross Hall, engineering students were invited to a symposium entitled Environment Sustainability and the 21st Century Students.

The week-long event came to an end on April 21 with the Earth Day Fair. Various organizations, including the Office of Campus Sustainability, Energy Management, and the National Society of Black Engineers had booths that presented information on green practices while having students

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These 3 R’s are reason to reflect

engage in activities.

When it comes to recycling, many students agree that it is an important habit students should exercise. Vanessa Guerra, a sophomore majoring in mathematics, and Chelsea Peralez, a freshman majoring in education, state that they often recycle their plastic bottles and bags.

Director of the Office of Campus Sustainability, Kellie-mae Goddard-Sobers, thinks students should try to make recycling a continuous habit, however, she admits that some things need to change.

“There are things we (the Office of Campus Sustainability) can improve. We want students to embrace recycling, but there are often issues with putting liquids in recycling bins. Students should know that bottles that still have liquid contaminate the entire bin,” Goddard-Sobers explained.

Recently, the landfill belonging to Kingsville and the surrounding areas had to get a new approval because it was running out of room.

Such situations highlight the importance of choosing to recycle and pursue green alternatives.

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THURSDAY, APRIL 27, 2017 SOUTHTEXANNEWS.COM

Opinion

Exams, Stress, and the Abstract Dakota Roberts Editorial Editor These last few weeks of class usually bring with them a lot of nerves. Assignments are due, final exams are right around the corner, and for some, graduation means liberation from the sameness of student life.

We all know the feeling of stress, but it often possesses people in different ways. Some people overeat, some people under eat.

Some people panic, some people develop headaches.

Some people try to party the feeling away, and others try to think it through; perhaps in a study session. No matter what though, the abstract of stress seems the same; something seems ultimately wrong.

What I really wish to bring up though is something different, something just as abstract and yet familiar. It’s hard to describe because it isn’t really tangible: there are no germs to test, no viruses to investigate.

The thing that we all experience and yet try to ignore is absolute abstract thought, it is our mental health.

I compare the two different ideas because often times abstract thought is how we interpret the symptoms of mental health disorders.

Become caught up in the notion of thought itself, that is you let your mind race

long enough, you may overthink yourself into a stress induced trance. Push that a little further maybe you have a headache. Take one more step, maybe you have a panic attack.

This isn’t exactly what mental health is. The field consists of disorders, theories, behavioral sciences. I figured maybe this article could be about the perception of mental health, or maybe, the failure of the American Health system to keep up with the need for mental relief. I could go into the statistics of people who can’t get mental healthcare or talk about the dialectic of a population that doesn’t take this kind of problem seriously—the “just stop thinking” crowd or the “not in my backyard” shtick. However, I am not one of those people who can go into that directly. What I can do is tell you what I know, the microcosm of my life; the hypothetical, indefinite feeling that reality isn’t exactly as tangible as I’d like it to be.

The objective nature of reality is ever prevalent in my mind but sometimes it seems far more surreal then I give it credit for. This is the slippery slope of mental health, the part where reality can seem overwhelming just by the simple, automatic act of just being; whatever that means.

Let me put it like this, when you eventually go in

PARTICIPATE IN THIS WEEK’S SOUTH TEXAN POLL!

Visit our Twitter to vote!

Do you or someone you know suffer from a

mental health disorder?

Last week’s poll results!

Do you approve of the recent US activities in Syria?

No

55%

Yes

45%

Cartoon by Siddharth Tuplondhe

to take this test, you aren’t afraid of the tangible, concrete piece of paper in front of you. You fear the impact this exam will have on your recondite, abstract future.

You may even create a map of it out in your head: I fail this test, fail the class, GPA falls, stay longer in school,

fall behind, the rest follows.

The fear of the things that aren’t really there, do certainly have a stigma in society. A lot of life is not taking life very seriously.

The underlying idea of success is become so successful that the things that stress you out can go away. People

want to get so successful they don’t really have to think. I’d posit that these invisible things are the most important; confronting the horrific nature of life that we like to ignore, but also the smaller stuff. The concepts that people could eventually comprehend if only some-

thing pushed them to stand in front of these feelings and beat them instead of simply ignoring them.

What I am saying is: concepts play a bigger part in who we are then we would like to believe. At some point, those ideas cross into how our minds touch reality.

do, focused attention, open monitoring and effortless presence.

According to live and dare blog by Giovanni Diestmann, “I’m passionate about helping people develop greater self-awareness and mastery over their mind and life. This is the motivation behind this blog”. I think it’s a great source if you are just beginning your spiritual journey. This site offers general knowledge of meditation in a variety of practices learned from masters and

teachers alike overtime.

This blog offers help if you need more guidance while experimenting with these practices. One of the practices that worked for me were Metta meditation, or the loving kindness meditation this comes from Buddhist traditions, more specifically Tibetan and Theravada lineages. Mettā means benevolence, loving-kindness, friendliness, amity, good will, and active interest in others. It is the first of the four sublime states, and one

of the ten pāramīs from the Theravāda school of Buddhism. To practice this form of meditation you must relax preferably in a meditation position. Close your eyes and imagine whole hearted feelings of kindness and benevolence. First to one’s self, then towards others, and finally to the universe.

By practicing this form of meditation Mathieu Richards’s has reached the largest capacity for happiness ever recorded. According to the Daily mail “Neuroscientist

Richard Davidson wired up the monk’s skull with 256 sensors at the University of Wisconsin as part of research on hundreds of advanced practitioners of meditation. The scans showed that when meditating on compassion, Ricard’s brain produces a level of gamma waves, linked to consciousness, attention, learning and memory. According to Davidson “The scans also showed excessive activity in his brain’s left prefrontal cortex compared to its right

counterpart, giving him an abnormally large capacity for happiness and a reduced propensity towards negativity, researchers believe.”

Meditation is one way you can escape all your problems and be peaceful in that moment. Through these practices I have grown spiritually and mentally healthy. I also learned to take the time needed to focus on what is important in life rather than the petty little things that often consume your thoughts.

the risen Lord, and a word: rejoice.

When I joined my church two Sundays ago to celebrate the Resurrection, “rejoice” still seemed an odd word, or at least one that rolled less easily than before. The American church as I knew it had been a site for discord.

In deciding what to render to Caesar, it seemed to have lost something during the 2016 presidential election: credibility.

The often-publicized 81 percent of evangelical Christian votes that Donald Trump received was not dissimilar from support shown to GOP candidates in past elections. PEW Research

Center gave it a further caveat; the 81 percent accounted only for self-identified white evangelicals, a statistic that only tells the story of one sort-of-group of people who more-or-less look alike and hold onto a term that many no longer believe is useful distinguishing what exactly one’s brand of faith might be.

I knew all of this as I stepped into the foyer with a wearing Bible and obligatory pink cardigan. And still, something felt different— stung. In a post-election analysis, Christianity Today pinned that discomfort, explaining: “Among evangelicals, some speculated that

Trump’s shaky background on pro-life issues, awkward articulation of his personal faith, and reputation around women would turn away conservative Christians. But party loyalty outweighed those concerns.”

The settled sense that we were of one accord in faith and practice (even if it was mainly out of wishful thinking) was gone. As a Christian woman, I saw my theology traded by evangelical “celebrities” (Billy Graham’s son, or a radio host that everyone’s parents vaguely remembered) for what seemed like the sake of supporting the GOP. I heard my vocabulary—of

belief, salvation, and sanctification—discounted and applied to a man who previously noted he did not need to ask God for forgiveness. I read transcripts of a candidate’s remarks about grabbing women, and waited for him to sink; he did not.

Whatever one’s base of support might have been in the election, evangelicals must grapple with different narratives. The first was laid out during the Republican primaries: take what seems the least harmful to you (or what might benefit you) and run with it.

Or the church can do the things that is was meant to do well. To respect the gov-

ernment’s authority without adulating it; to identify what is evil, even when it packs favoritism that benefits us; to be known for goodness in public life, so that the authority of Christ is not put to shame.

That kind of action might sound sepulchral in comparison to making America great again, and to being bedecked with legitimacy from the White House or Mar-a-Lago. Resisting might be hard for the 81 percent, and anyone else besides.

Yet, empty things have always bespoken hope for the church; in particular, one gives me reason to rejoice.

Meditation and Preparing for Final Exams David Munigia Contributing Writer

Meditation is practiced by almost every religion in the world. Many people meditate in the mornings to clear their mind before going to work. Meditation only works if you truly believe in it without a doubt. There are different types of meditation and can be split into 3 categories. These categories are determined by the way you choose to meditate or the type of meditation you

Easter in Review: The Election’s Shadow

Kaitlyn Ruiz Contributing Writer

The Gospel of Matthew records a Sunday morning exchange. A group of women wended to a tomb, prepared to make amends for a dead body; Jesus of Nazareth had died. They had followed him in life: that itinerant, strangely glorious three years of teaching and healing.

Now, as the 11 remaining apostles hid, the women meant to wash and tend to his body according to custom. However, there was no corpse. Instead, they received the pulsing reality of The South Texan is a student publication produced by Texas A&M University- Kingsville students. The views, opinions and commentary do not necessarily reflect the views of the Texas A&M University system. The South Texan uses student fees in part to publish.

The South Texan is part of the Art, Communications, and Theatre Department (ACT), The Javelina Broadcast Network (JBN), and the Texas Intercollegiate Press Association (TIPA).

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Crystal Zamarron- Editor-in-Chief Frankie Cardenas - Managing Editor/Reporter Sebastyon Spencer- Advertising Manager Bobby Puentes- Circulation Manager Travis Demas- Sports Editor Dakota Roberts- Editorial Editor Siddharth Tuplondhe- Cartoonist Alex Guerra- Campus News &

Editor/Chief Reporter Robert Breedlove- Entertainment Editor America Quintero- Reporter Clarissa Madrigal- Reporter Ashley Gonzalez- Online Editor Pablo Villanueva- Online Editor Dr. Manuel Flores- Adviser Matthew Ward- Adviser

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Sports

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THURSDAY, APRIL 27, 2017 SOUTHTEXANNEWS.COM

Spring Football, and what to expect in the Fall Frank Cardenas Managing Editor @FrankieJ_Suckaa It’s year number three for Javelinas head football coach Daren Wilkinson, and it seems he doesn’t have such a huge weight on his shoulders after a successful 9-3 sophomore season.

However, where one season ends, the other begins with the inevitable passing of the torch from talent come and gone.

The Make-A-Wish Spring game took place last Saturday at Javelina Stadium and Wilkinson had plenty to address before and after the showcase at Javelina Stadium.

The offense is taking obvious hits losing the likes of Anthony Autry, Myles Carr, and Bo Villareal, on offense, but their replacements aren’t too farfetched from their predecessors.

More than 4,900 yards will need to be met to match or exceed the performance of the 2016 season, a daunting feat to achieve to say the least.

Coach Wilkinson has kept an eye out for his starting offensive play caller, and with four notable names on the roster at the moment, the task at hand is difficult and will require time and a half to finally come to a decision.

Admittedly for Coach “Wilk,” the quarterbacks did

show some potential on the field.

“Our quarterbacks were up and down all spring,” he said.

“They had a few good practices followed by a few really bad practices and a couple of things diced in there. The last two practices our three guys that are really getting the bulk of the reps -- [Cade Dyal, Casey Rosellini], add Beu Reilly into the mix -- really started to make some plays and look a little bit more confident and comfortable in the pocket. That was good to see.”

Does that leave room for a quarterback battle for the top of the depth chart? Too soon to tell says Wilkinson.

“To say one guy’s got a leg up on the others? It’s way too early to say because they’re still making more mistakes than they need to be making to be called the starter. I’m glad we got some good competition there and I think we’re going to be okay at that position.”

In the process, Coach Wilk is also stuck with the growing pains of inexperienced talent that he hopes to fix come the fall, admitting that his team is flawed to a point in many parts of his offense; which was evident during the Spring game.

“There’s still a lot of sloppy play,” acknowledged Wilkinson.

“We had penalties today

Photo by: Frankie Cardenas

Offense goes aginst the defense in the Make-A-Wish Spring Game, gearing up for the 2017 season. with false starts, and even had a couple plays where we had 10 guys on the field on offense. So we need to clean up those things, and stop making those little detailed mistakes, and we’ll get that.

Fall camp, we’ll have 22 practices basically before our first game, so we’ll have plenty of time to clean that stuff up. Our guys just need to get their minds right to do that.”

Trevor Moses, DeMarcus Spurlock, and Caleb Valentine are just a few names returning with a vengeance and ready to hold true to the defenses newfound

reputation, being the No. 1 ranked defense in the Lone Star Conference for 2016 in total defense. Coach Wilkinson said his stout defense is on the bottom of the list of priorities to address this offseason, seeing is how his team performed well in preventing his offense from scoring during the scrimmage on Saturday.

“We lost a couple of guys on defense, but for the most part all of our key contributors are back,” said Coach Wilkinson.

“Then, the guys we lost I think we’ve replaced with as good, if not better, play-

ers. We are expecting great things out of our defense, which is a good thing for our offense with a little bit of inexperience. We can rely on the defense to be as great as I think they have the potential to be.”

When all was said and done late Saturday afternoon, the showcase of the Blue and Gold for next season was only the team at max capacity for what is allowed until the Fall Semester at TAMUK is well in rhythm.

Above all else, Wilkinson is just hoping the Javelinas can be treated to their long awaited 35th Conference

title, which sadly slipped through their hands on account of a measly five points.

That said, he just wants his team to be at the top of their game week in and week out, always to be the topic of conversation all autumn long.

“I hope we’re playing well enough deep in the season that [we] are what everybody’s talking about.

This team, the last two years, the way they’ve worked and set themselves up to be contributors and contenders in this conference; that’s what we expect to do now.”

Inaugural season comes to an end Beach Volleyball team has their last matches of the season Travis Demas Sports Editor @travisdemas The Javelina Beach Volleyball team had its last series of the inaugural season this past weekend as they traveled down the road to Dugan Stadium in Corpus Christi.

The Javelinas would take on Texas Christian University (18-8), and Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi (1-16).

The series would begin against the 14th ranked TCU in which Lexi Wick and Kelby Sprinkles would start flight No.1 for the Javelinas. The two would lose

the flight in two sets 21-17, 21-10. The Javelinas would continue to lose until flight No.3 in which they would get their first win of the set

by Gabby Atchley, and Kyra Henderson, 19-21. TCU would respond by winning the next two sets of the flight 21-13, 21-19, as well as the rest of the flights in the match up to win 5-0.

In game two of the series the Javelinas would take on the Islanders of A&M Corpus Christi in what would be the last match of the season. The Javelinas would trail early in the match, with Wick and Morgan Broussard losing flight No.1 21-15, 2113. However the Javelinas would fight back in flight

No. 2 with Madison Brabham, and Sprinkles winning in two sets 21-14, and 21-16 to tie the match at 1-1.

Flight No.3 would also go in the Javelinas favor as Atchley and Henderson team up to win the flight 21-15, 21-8 on the Javelinas way to go undefeated for the rest of the match.

Now that the team’s inaugural season has come to an end, head coach Tanya Allen has had time to look back and reflect on their first season.

“I’m very proud to be a part of this inaugural team.

They improved so much over the course of the season and it was a great experience,”Allen said.

Courtesy Photo: Javelina Athletics

Sophmore Haley Hutchinson gets ready to serve. The Javelinas would complete their first beach volleyball season, going 10-17. They would end it winning eight of the ten games they hosted in Javelina Nation, also beating Texas A&M-Corpus Christi in the season finale, 4-1.

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THURSDAY, APRIL 27, 2017 SOUTHTEXANNEWS.COM

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