THURSDAY, APRIL 22, 2021 VOLUME 95 ■ ISSUE 27
LA VIDA
SPORTS
Tech student receives Goldwater Scholarship.
Adams rakes in new commits for next season.
PG 3A
OPINIONS
PG 5A
To x i c w o r k c u l t u r e c r u s h e s aspirations.
PG 4A
AND THE WINNERS ARE... Check out the results of the 2021 Raiders’ Choice Awards.
SECTION B
INDEX LA VIDA SPORTS OPINIONS CROSSWORD CLASSIFIEDS SUDOKU
3A 5A 4A 2A 5A 3A
COMMUNITY
Lubbock to revitalize downtown By HANNAH ISOM News Editor
RYAN MCCULLAR/The Daily Toreador
TOP: The Midnight Shift is described as an “authentic Downtown Lubbock dining experience.” It is located on the same property as the Cotton Court Hotel at 1610 Broadway, Lubbock, TX. BOTTOM: The Brewery LBK, part of the West Family Hospitality Group, looks to attract Lubbock residents to the downtown area. Both of these are a part of Lubbock’s Downtown Revitilization plan.
As Downtown Lubbock revitalization efforts continue, leaders of organizations involved in the efforts discuss the focus of revitalization and how Texas Tech students can benefit from it. Mont McClendon, general counsel and chief operating officer of McDougal Companies has worked downtown for about 25 years and is deeply involved in the master redevelopment efforts in Downtown Lubbock. McClendon said some of the original recommendations concerned public space infrastructure, like moving utilities underground. A method that was successful in the Overton Hotel area. Additionally, McClendon said they focused on harmonizing the various constituent documents related to downtown. “There were lots of opinions about downtown from a lot of different sources,” McClendon said. “And we welcome that, because you know, a diversity of opinion, a diversity of ideas, a diversity of viewpoints, all of these sorts of things. But at some point, they just started to clash.” Due to the clashes in opinion, a couple years ago the city council asked for an updated master plan for Downtown Lubbock revitalizations, McClendon said. This master plan harmonized the various opinions. Current revitalization efforts continue to focus on infrastructure, as well as vertical development, which is new buildings being constructed, McClendon said. Some of these vertical development projects include Buddy Holly Hall, the Cotton Court Hotel, and the new City Hall. Additionally, there is a focus on renovating buildings downtown,
McClendon said. For example, the old City Hall building is being converted into a South Plains College location and the McDougal Companies building is undergoing renovations as well. “All of those things are more visible and sort of readily available,” McClendon said. “But there’s a whole lot of effort that goes into horizontal development, just getting the thing ready, getting the city ready for what we need in order to spur development.” John Osborne, president and chief executive officer of the Lubbock Economic Development Alliance, said five years ago, LEDA’s sister company, Market Lubbock, saw a need to get Downtown Lubbock revitalized quicker to help try and stimulate the effort in investment and encourage residents to live downtown. “We were looking at a lot of data that describe millennials and Gen Zers as really wanting a revitalized downtown in whatever community they live in,” Osborne said, “and they choose where they want to live before they choose where they want to work.” So, in an effort to retain students from local colleges and attract individuals from other places they pushed to revitalize downtown quicker. The focus on revitalizing buildings downtown will attract more people, Osborne said, and it will encourage others to revitalize their own buildings downtown. Additionally, revitalizing buildings encourages businesses to move downtown, creating an opportunity to build the economy. “It’s kind of taken off, and we have seen a lot of new projects that have taken place,” Osborne said.
SEE DOWNTOWN, PG. 2
BASEBALL
Red Raiders resilient in wake of injuries By NICO SANCHEZ Staff Writer
The No. 5 Red Raiders, who currently boast a 26-8 record, have continued to thrive as of late in the midst of injury concerns to both the pitching staff and the team’s position players. After losing sophomore and junior pitchers Hunter Dobbins and Jacob Brustoski for the year in the preseason, the weekend rotation received another big blow last weekend as sophomore RHP Brandon Birdsell was ruled out for the rest of the 2021 season with a rotator cuff injury. Birdsell had been working as the Red Raiders’ No. 1 weekend starter when he went down. He had a 4-1 record, 3.06 ERA, 1.019 WHIP, and 36 strikeouts in 35.1 innings of work on the season, according to Tech Athletics. Furthermore, junior outfielder Dylan Neuse was also ruled out for the rest of the season this past week with a back injury. Neuse, the Big 12’s preseason player of the
year, had been an everyday starter for Tech as their leadoff hitter and center fielder. He had been slashing a .281/.440/.427 line to go along with his one home run and 16 RBIs when he went down. Junior utility man Kurt Wilson also will miss significant time of his own with a broken thumb. Wilson had been doing it all for Tech this season, making 13 starts each at third base and right field and five starts in left. Wilson also had two home runs and 11 RBIs for Tech this year while batting .261. He is expected to miss at least six weeks. “I trust the guys behind me no matter what,” sophomore RHP Micah Dallas said on the changing defensive group. “I trust, you know, everybody the same. You know, we’re a tight knit group, and we kind of just lean on each other, so I have full confidence in them.”. With these blows to the outfield, junior and freshman outfielders Easton Murrell and Dillon Carter
have stepped up and become everyday starters in right and center field. Murrell has even been batting leadoff in place of Neuse. The lone constant in the outfield has been sophomore Dru Baker in left field, who recently returned to the field after missing a few games with a lower body injury. Baker, freshman second baseman Jace Jung, and freshman shortstop Cal Conley have continued to headline the explosive Red Raider offense without Neuse and Wilson. Baker and Jung are the team’s one and two leaders in batting average, batting .405 and .386 percent, respectively. Jung also leads the team in home runs with 15 and RBIs with 50. He has even homered three different times in one contest twice this year already. His dominant play even resulted in him being a midseason addition to the Bragan Slugger Award Watch List.
SEE INJURIES, PG. 6
FILE PHOTO/The Daily Toreador
Junior centerfielder Dylan Neuse swings his bat during game one against Baylor on April 18, 2019 at Dan Law Field at Rip Griffin Park. Neuse and four other players are out indefinitely with injuries for the 2021 season. Junior outfielder Easton Murrell has been filling in as the leadoff hitter and starting centerfielder and will continue for the rest of the season.
2A APRIL 22, 2021
NEWS
WWW.DAILYTOREADOR.COM
SEXUAL ASSAULT
Experts discuss effects of sexual assault By JAVIER BACA Staff Writer
Sexual assault can have numerous effects on a person, including harm to a person’s mental health. There are numerous behavioral effects that occur from sexual assault as well. Greg Johnston, senior staff member at the Student Counseling Center at Texas Tech, said he considers himself to be a trauma therapist, and he shared what the psychological effects that this type of trauma can have on a person. “You can have any range of reactions to a sexual assault,” Johnston said. “The problems I see the most are post-traumatic stress disorder, also known as PTSD. This includes disassociation, hyperarousal, feelings of isolation and not feeling safe in your environment.” Dissociation is a person disconnecting from reality, Johnston said. It is similar to how someone could be driving for five minutes and the person zones out and does not realize that it has been five minutes. Dissociation is the brain’s way of protecting
DOWNTOWN
CONTINUED FROM PG. 1 LEDA and Market Lubbock are not the only organizations
a person to what is perceived to be a dangerous situation. If a person who has experienced sexual assault is dealing with a more stressful situation in the present, it can often trigger similar emotions that were experienced during sexual assault in the past, Johnston said. It can be that “fight or flight” response, or a person’s survival instinct can kick in as well. “Negative beliefs about ourselves can occur,” Johnston said. “Saying something like, ‘If I made a different choice things could have been different’ and other negative beliefs such as feeling unworthy of life or love.” Johnston said that trauma is different for every person. Trauma can last entire lifetimes and sometimes trauma can get confused with remembering an experience. “If I asked you what you ate for lunch last week you may say you had lunch with a friend and you had a good time,” Johnston said. “You remember eating lunch, but you aren’t reliving that experience. Trauma has the way of causing us to relive those experiences over and over again which is obviously distressing,”
Johnston said. If trauma goes untreated, those traumatic experiences can last for years, Johnston said. There is a type of therapy done by the counseling center called EMDR which stands for Eye Movement, Desensitization and Reprocessing. It helps the brain heal from an event that felt overwhelming. This includes sexual assault, but it also includes relationship trauma as well. Esmeralda Aguilera, a junior psychology major from El Paso, is a peer educator and student assistant with RISE, and she discussed some signs a person can look for if they believe their friend has been assaulted. “There are definitely some red flags that can be similar to depression, anxiety and things like that,” Aguilera said. “Pulling away from friendships and isolating yourself, talking to your friends less, not going out much anymore and maybe not doing the things that you love.” If an individual’s friend is acting less like themselves, that person should go and ask their friend what is wrong and if anything happened, Aguilera
said. Additionally, there are signs to look for in a person’s relationship that should be looked out for because it could lead to something worse. “Some unhealthy signs in a relationship include, jealousy, your partner belittling you, making you feel bad about yourself, trying to hold power over you and having really extreme feelings,” Aguilera said. “If you have a friend and they are in a relationship and you notice your friend’s partner is having insanely extreme feelings for them, you should check in and ask if it is a healthy relationship.” Aguilera said the biggest sign to look for when dealing with sexual assault or an unhealthy relationship, would be if that friend is acting differently socially. Mathew Mahomey is a junior English major from Fort Worth and shared his thoughts on sexual assault and the resources that are provided by Tech. “Sexual assault is bad,” Mahomey said, “but I think that Tech provides good resources for students to take legal action if they so please to.” @JavierBacaDT .
putting effort into revitalizing downtown. Lubbock Entertainment and Performing Arts Associates has built Buddy Holly Hall and the City of Lubbock acquired Citizen’s Tower and plans to
revitalize it, Osborne said. One concern some citizens may have regarding Downtown Lubbock is the homelessness population in the area. However, Osborne said LEDA has worked with the City of Lubbock and has helped fund extra police officers downtown. Additionally, the Lubbock Police Department has put together a Homeless Outreach Team, who work with the homeless population and enable them to get to the resources in place to help their situation. Osborne said it has been exciting to see how quickly efforts to revitalize downtown have taken off. “I think that our downtown is in an improving state for businesses and for residents,” Osborne said. Tech students can benefit from downtown revitalization efforts as well, McClendon said. Downtown Lubbock offers entertainment options, such as the Art and Depot Districts.
Additionally, McClendon said having things to do is a large part of the decision-making process when students decide on a college and where they decide to start their career. This typically finds the place where the people are. With First Friday Art Trail to make its full return in May, McClendon said he thinks this will help draw students downtown. There are restaurants in Downtown Lubbock that could appeal to Tech students as well. Some of these businesses discussed what they have to offer Tech students and how they contribute to Downtown Lubbock revitalization efforts. Finn Walter, owner and chef of The Nicolett, has worked in San Francisco, Austin, Paris and other cities where a food scene was beginning to emerge. “I feel there’s a very similar energy here,” Walter said. People are embracing local business, Walter said.
The Nicolett plans to begin opening for brunch in May, and Walter said he believes this will be the most cost-effective time for students to come experience the restaurant. Students can enjoy a glass of wine and a meal from around $20 to $25. Making his restaurant accessible to everyone and not just a certain crowd is something Walter said has always been important to him. Mike Nghiem, director of operations for the West Family Hospitality Group, which includes The Brewery LBK, Dirk’s and The West Table, said he enjoys being a part of a culinary scheme drawing people in from all over Lubbock and contributing to the growth and liveliness downtown. Specifically, Nghiem said he has witnessed a lot of growth in the last six to seven years, with The West Table opening almost six years ago. “That was kind of the begin-
ning of what we’re seeing as just a lot of tremendous growth,” Nghiem said. The West Table is a fine dining establishment with entrée prices between $25 to $50 a plate, which may be a little out of some college students price range. However, Dirk’s is a little bit more economical, Nghiem said, with platters starting at $13. The differentiations in pricing help draw different demographics downtown, Nghiem said. Nghiem said it has been exciting to be a part of the downtown movement and see the level of support people from Lubbock have shown in creating a beautiful, vibrant downtown. “We’re starting to see what, hopefully, is a tipping point for growth downtown over the next decade where we can become a really great, vibrant scene that will beget growth,” Nghiem said. @HannahIsomDT
@DailyToreador www.dailytoreador.com
PROFILE
LA VIDA
Page 3A thursday, april 22, 2021
Tech student receives Goldwater Scholarship By MADELEINE HALL Staff Writer
Liane Vásquez-Weber, a Texas Tech junior computer science major from Seguin, was named as one of the 2021 Goldwater Scholarship recipients, making her the 38thRed Raider to receive the award. The Goldwater Scholarship is one of the most prestigious national awards in science, engineering and mathematics. Founded in 1986, the Goldwater Scholarship supports undergraduate students who show strong commitment and potential for continuous research as well as an “effective display of intellectual intensity,” according to the Goldwater Foundation website. “My first introduction to STEM was at home during my childhood because my mom is a teacher,” Vásquez-Weber said. “She really created a foundation of critical thinking and problem solving growing up.” Vásquez-Weber said she became involved in research at Tech through the Center for the Inte-
gration of STEM Education and Research, and has spent most of her undergraduate career researching the gut-brainaxis and the role of the vagus nerve in supporting the transit of signals from the gut to the brain. “The gut and the brain are the two poles of the body, and I’m building a computer model and using programming to conduct literature reviews to find and create biological hubs or stations where physiological interactions happen,” Vásquez-Weber said. Vásquez-Weber said she was initially introduced to the Goldwater Scholarship by Dominick Casadonte, a Minnie Stevens Piper Professor for the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at Tech, after telling him about her research. This research was highlighted in her Goldwater Scholarship application and ultimately led her to receiving the award, Wendoli Flores, director of the Department of Prestigious External Student Awards, said. “I worked closely with Liane in the application process along with
research mentors who made sure her science was accurate when applying,” Flores said. “And she really stood out as an amazing candidate for the Goldwater.” Each university is only allowed to nominate five students for the Goldwater Scholarship, Flores said, and Vásquez-Weber’s applications shined both in the internal competition for Tech’s nomination as well as the actual scholarship award. “Receiving the Goldwater Scholarship is such a big honor and really speaks to Liane’s ability to conduct research,” Flores said. “It also brings a lot of honor to Tech as she continues the legacy of the Goldwater that has been established here over the years.” The Goldwater Scholarship has been awarded to 37 other Red Raiders in past years, Flores said. “Liane represents the best of where science is going today in the sense that she melds together very effectively both computer and biological sciences,” Casadonte said. “These days science is so complex and so multi and
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Congress ready to review policing laws WASHINGTON (AP) — Bolstered with new momentum, Congress is ready to try again to change the nation’s policing laws, heeding President Joe Biden’s admonition that the guilty verdict in George Floyd’s death is “not enough” for a nation confronting a legacy of police violence. Legislation that was once stalled on Capitol Hill is now closer than ever to consensus, lawmakers of both parties said Wednesday, a day after a Minneapolis jury found former officer Derek Chauvin guilty of murder and manslaughter in Floyd’s death. Behind the scenes, negotiations are narrowing on a compromise for a sweeping overhaul, though passage remains uncertain. Tu e s d a y ’ s v e r d i c t launches “a new phase of a long struggle to bring justice to America,” declared Rep. Karen Bass, D-Calif., in urging passage of the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act. “This is the human rights issue in the United States of America.” The revived effort, led by Black lawmakers including Republican Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina, comes at a pivotal moment. The nation is on edge over the Floyd case, the deaths of other Black Americans — including a 16-year-old girl brandishing a knife about the time the Minneapolis verdict was announced — and almost a year of protests accusing police of brutal actions that often go unseen. The guilty verdict for Chauvin was a rare occurrence, not least because in this case an officer ’s actions were recorded by a bystander and shown to the jury in court. That followed months of the video being played repeatedly on TV, imprinted in the minds of Americans everywhere. With political pressure
mounting on all sides, Biden is urging Congress to plunge back into policing legislation. “We can’t stop here,” he said Tuesday after the verdict. In private, Scott briefed key Republican senators on Wednesday, updating his colleagues on quiet negotiations that have been underway with Democrats for nearly two months. He told reporters he ex-
pected to wrap up those talks with the Democrats within two weeks. “We’ve made tremendous progress,” Scott said on Capitol Hill. Democrats say they are ready. “This has to come to a stop,” said Rep. James Clyburn, D-S.C., the highest ranking Black elected official in Congress, after the Chauvin verdict.
transdisciplinary that finding a young person capable of mastering multiple skills in the sciences is somewhat rare.” Vásquez-Weber said it feels surreal to have won the Goldwater Scholarship and it brought a lot of pride to her family as it is a fulfillment of generations of perseverance and continuing education. “My mom has been a single mother and has always worked so hard for me and my three siblings, so winning this award is so rewarding and inspiring as it’s kind of a culmination of everything our family has worked toward,” Vásquez-Weber said. Vásquez-Weber hopes to pursue research in neurodegenerative diseases and biomedical data science in the future, and said she plans to go to graduate school and earn a PhD after graduation. “One of the essay prompts for the scholarship was, ‘what do you want to do in the next 30 years that’s meaningful,’ and I realized there’s an intersection of my passions for computational science and language,” Vásquez-Weber said. “My
Photo Courtesy of Liane Vásquez-Weber
Liane Vásquez-Weber, a junior computer science major from Seguin, is the 38th Texas Tech student to receive the Goldwater Scholarship. The scholarship is an award for science, engineering and mathematics, and is given to students who show potential for continuous research. grandparents had dementia, so I witnessed their language deterioration over time and was inspired to go into research for that.” She said she is excited to continue her research. “I’m so thankful for the
Goldwater Scholarship and the opportunities it will provide for my future,” Vásquez-Weber said. “It still doesn’t feel real to have won, but I’m excited to continue research and follow my passions.” @MadeleineHallDT
OPINIONS
Page 4A thursday, April 22, 2021
COLUMN
@DailyToreador www.dailytoreador.com
Toxic work culture crushes aspirations I
don’t remember what age adults began asking me what my dream job was, but it was quite early on. This generation, in our growing awareness of and dissatisfaction with the dark realities of late-stage capitalism, has made a meme of a phrase that sums this sentiment up well: I do not dream of labor. As many of us prepare for graduation and beyond, we should understand that the idea of a dream job has not and will never serve us — and that’s OK. The pressure of being head-over-heels in love with your job does a disservice to the joys of life outside of work. Young people are always being compelled to find their “thing;” their passion. If they’re lucky enough, this
Toluwani Osibamowo is a junior journalism major from Plano.
passion is easily monetizable and that dream can be achieved — making money while doing what they love. Speaking from a personal perspective, the idea of pursuing my ultimate passion, if I even truly have one anymore, seems draining. Work is draining, and the idea that doing what you love means you never have to work a day in your life sounds more like a coping mechanism than a fact. Ideally, we wouldn’t have to cope with everyday stresses if it wasn’t societally ac-
ceptable for suffering to be a constant state of living. Yes, such is the nature of life, but why remind ourselves to rely on a dream instead of finding ways as a society to make the day-to-day less insufferable? I remember stories from the adults in my life about how they’d started their careers decades ago starryeyed and eager about their fields: law, medicine, real estate. Thirty years later, it has worn them down, but that one career is where all their expertise lies. What younger generations are starting to realize is this is no way to live. If you don’t stay at the same job for years and years, you get called lazy and it looks bad on your resume, and it isn’t fair.
Surely we all must understand that people are multifaceted and that it’s OK to get bored; to change careers; to not follow the traditional path. The push to limit ourselves for the sake
It’s OK to not have a “purpose,” especially if that purpose is just to generate an income. of money and security is what makes us the saddest. Instead of glorifying the hustle and pushing people to make every passion a stream of income, we should have our hobbies, our treasured activities that provide
relief from the pressure of life. To adore one’s job is a great privilege, but it’s fine if a job is less than ideal; we’re all just getting by. We should learn instead to prioritize jobs with a healthy work-life balance, that provide a positive working environment or fulfill whatever needs people have. Perhaps it’s not “the dream,” but it could be a career that somewhat lessens the anxieties of working life. There’s a lot of privilege in being able to muse about these things; I’m young and pursuing a college education. I don’t have to support a family or pay nearly as many bills as I will have to later on. Who am I to tell anyone the outlook they should have on their career? What’s clear
is that any path of living that strays from the norm is condemned because of collective fear, the very real fears of being financially unstable, homeless, hungry or just severely lacking in any way. The more we begin to let go of the rigidity of work culture, the better off we’ll all come to be. It’s OK to not have a “purpose,” especially if that purpose is just to generate an income. The toxic ideas we are fed about labor and careers start from a young age and pervade our identities until we believe we are our jobs. Given the growing mental health crisis in this country, if we can’t change the systems that control us, we should at least try to change our mindsets. @TOsibamowoDT
CARTOON
COLUMN
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Marvel show raises social awareness Chyna Vargas is a freshman journalism major from San Antonio.
Let it be first said that there are spoilers in this column. After phase four of the marvel cinematic universe, I was skeptical about what else could the franchise do without their iconic characters. Captain America, Iron Man and Black Widow were a part of the original Avengers and now they are gone. Immediately, though, after “Endgame,” the franchise continues with teasers, trailers and now, television shows. My words were eaten. The Marvel Cinematic Universe is still going to thrive and that is because of their Disney Plus TV shows. The shows are a great addition to the blueprint of the next marvel phase, however, what makes a particular show greater is that you do not technically have to be a super fan to embrace
the creativity. “The Falcon and Winter Soldier” is an action-packed story where two mutual friends have to team up to stop a rebellion. The show unveils so much more. There is a more meaningful message to the story than superheroes versus bad guys. It is about superheroes and the society they live in. For example, focusing on the life of a black superhero. Sam Wilson, who is The Falcon, begins the series by declining the offer to be the next Captain America. He does this by symbolically giving up the iconic shield that was given to him. The dilemma he faces is that he is not just The Falcon, he is a black man in America. The way that the directors did not explicitly imply that is creative. Sam is a superhero so he should still feel superior, but deep down he knows that is not the case. He was denied a loan that was needed to save his family from bankruptcy. He still was antagonized by the police even when he was not
doing anything wrong. He is still in America. It was not until people realized his superhero alter ego when he was treated slightly nicer. It was a reminder that his mask and suit cannot cover his skin color.
That tends to be a question many Americans wonder about, “How can you support a place that does not support you?” He then encounters another super soldier like Captain America, Isaiah Bradley. Isaiah and other African Americans were used as test subjects to replicate the super-soldier serum. In the show, Isaiah talked about how they were poked, prodded and cut to see if they could replicate the same serum that created Captain America. It was inhumane, but also not that far from reality. In 1932, there was the “Tuskegee Study of Untreat-
ed Syphilis in the Negro Male” where 600 black men were told they were going to be treated for bad blood, but the men were never given adequate treatment. The comic takes place in the 1950s, so the concept of African Americans being tested on is not completely made up. Sam then takes in the information from Isaiah and does not know if he should wear the American flag as a symbol of hope, especially after finding out that it was the American government committing these heinous crimes. Isaiah continued in further episodes and said, “They will never let a black man be Captain America, and even if they did, no self-respecting black man would ever want to be.” This adds greater weight to Sam’s dilemma as he was asked by Captain America to continue his legacy. I have heard that the show is a behind-the-scenes of the previous “Captain America” movies, and I could not agree more. The story goes in-depth as to why it is not simple for Sam to just be
the next Captain America. Even as a superhero, he has no perks and definitely not the same ones as his other white superhero colleagues. If anything, Sam gets the short end of the stick, as being a black man comes before his superhero identity. The story makes the audience question whether Sam will continue his service for the America that does not treat him or his community right. That tends to be a question many Americans wonder about, “How can you support a place that does not support you?” It is not uncommon for comics to mirror real-life social issues. Adaptations from comics to TV shows have begun showcasing that there is only a fine line between fiction and real life. The directors of “The Falcon and Winter Solider” creatively tell the story of injustices in America. This is what makes the show an entertaining Marvel show – the franchise using its platform to display an important message. @ChynaVargasDT
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Silence, then cheers: Relief washes over George Floyd Square There was quiet, just for a moment, as hundreds of people standing in the intersection at 38th Street and Chicago Avenue crowded in to listen to the news. “They’re announcing the verdict!” someone shouted, calling for silence. Then thunderous cheering filled the place where George Floyd was pinned beneath a police officer's knee nearly a year ago, begging for air. Many people wept.
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Some sobbed. They were cheering the first guilty verdict for the fired officer, Derek Chauvin, who was charged with murder and manslaughter. Moments later, another wave of cheers swept the crowd as the other two verdicts — both guilty — were announced. Moments after that, Chauvin put his hands behind his back and was led out of the courtroom in handcuffs. In the place now known
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as George Floyd Square, a spot that millions around the world have seen in videos shot by bystanders during Floyd's arrest, there was relief. Venisha Johnson jumped for joy when she heard the verdicts. Minutes later she could barely speak, she was weeping so hard. “It means so much to me,” said Johnson, who was wearing a mask that memorialized some of Floyd’s final
words: “I can’t breathe.” “I’ve been praying for George every day, every morning at 6 a.m. I’m just so happy. The way he was murdered was terrible, but thank you, Jesus,” she said. Some 300 people gathered in the intersection, home to Cup Foods, the corner convenience store where employees had called police on the evening of May 25, saying Floyd had paid for cigarettes with a counterfeit $20 bill. It
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was Memorial Day. Since then, thousands have come to lay flowers, poems, photos and letters at the site where Floyd had the air choked out of him. They came to stand beside the sculpture that now fills the middle of the street, a huge metal fist raised as a cry for justice. They came to look at the now-closed gas station, where the sign had been covered long ago with a demand: “Justice for George Floyd.”
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SPORTS
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MENS’S BASKETBALL
Page 5A Thursday, April 22, 2021
Adams rakes in new commits for next season By ZACH RICHARDS & BISHOP VAN BUREN DT Sports Staff
Just one month into his tenure as Tech’s new head basketball coach, Mark Adams has already garnered three signees in Kaelen J. (K.J.) Allen, Ethan Duncan and Chandler Jacobs. Below is a look into all three. Kaelen J. (K.J.) Allen Allen was the very first signee in the Adams era, and a high profile one at that, after starring in a Last Chance U, a Netflix series that documented his former school’s most recent season. Allen, former University of South California commit and top Junior College basketball prospect out of East Los Angeles College, made his announcement to become a Red Raider in April. In Allen’s only season at East Los Angeles, he averaged 19 points, nine rebounds, two assists and two steals per game while shooting 67 percent from the field, according to Tech Athletics. Shortly after his signing, Tech Athletics made it official, and along with the announcement came a statement from Adams about his first signee. “KJ is an explosive and physical player,” Adams said. “He’s a great competitor who was his team’s leading scorer. We’re excited about what he can bring to our team.” Allen was named the Los Angeles High School Player of the year, an award that names like Kawhi Leonard, James Harden, Baron Davis and many other past and current NBA Stars have earned. However, Allen was unable to play Division I basketball due to a 2.2 accumulated GPA in high school, when a 2.3 GPA is the minimum for eligibility. After his season in JUCO, Allen raised his GPA to be eligible for Division I schools, gaining interest by teams such
a s Wa s h i n g t o n S t a t e , Western Kentucky, Oregon State, Texas Christian University, Southern Methodist, New Mexico, New Mexico State, Loyola Marymount, Fresno State and the University of South California, according to the release. Allen ultimately chose to commit to USC after lifting them in his top six along with Rutgers, Nevada, Fresno State, Western Kentucky and Loyola Marymount. Allen, however, decided to decommit from USC on April 13 and instead commit to Tech. Allen’s 6-foot-6-inch, 225-pound frame is one that would ideally work well alongside Tech’s senior big man Marcus Santos Silva, who was Tech’s tallest starter last season at 6’7”, and has a strong and physical play style, similar to that of Allen’s. Allen’s struggles also resemble Santos-Silva’s in their inconsistencies shooting from the perimeter. In his lone season at East Los Angeles, Allen only attempted only five threepoint attempts, failing to make one of them. However, Allen has shown his ability to shoot mid-range jumpers with solid form. Allen is the first of many necessary incoming players to the Red Raiders’ program, as he joined, at the right time, with just five other players already at Tech. Ethan Duncan Trinity Christian’s senior guard Ethan Duncan has committed to playing college basketball at Tech, according an announcement via his Instagram earlier in the week. Duncan is in the process of leaving Trinity Christian as their all-time leading scorer in school history. He also has family roots in Lubbock; Duncan’s father, Todd, is a former Tech basketball player who has the highest three-point percentage in program history. Todd Duncan is now
the head men’s basketball coach at Lubbock Christian University, while Ethan Duncan’s older sister is a starter for the women’s team at LCU. Duncan was a fouryear starter in high school, where he averaged 26 points per game while shooting 44 percent from three over his career. In his senior season, he led Trinity Christian to the TAPPS 4A state championship game. Duncan is the second prospect to commit to Tech after the hiring of Adams, behind Allen. Allen and Duncan are high profile signings for Adams as he will continue to look to build a roster after the departure of former head coach Chris Beard and several key players
NEW COMMITS •
• •
Kaelen J. Allen — Former forward Univerity of South Carolina commit Ethan Duncan — Senior guard from Trinity Christian Chandler Jacobs —Guard from Dallas Baptist University
as well. Duncan will look to develop and become a solid ball handler for the Red Raiders, who have seen their starting back-court move on from Lubbock. Junior guard Mac McClung, Tech’s leading scorer last season, announced he would be both declaring for the NBA Draft as well as entering the transfer portal. Junior guard Kyler Edwards led the Red Raiders in assists last season, but entered the transfer portal and recently announced he was signing with Houston after they reached the Final Four in the 2021 NCAA Tournament. Edwards (56) and McClung (47) also led Tech in three pointers made last season, and Duncan will look to be a step toward filling some of the stats McClung and Edwards left
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Chandler Jacobs The third acquisition for Adams and his staff was Division II All-American Chandler Jacobs, who committed to play at Tech as a graduate student after spending four years at Dallas Baptist University. Jacobs made it official that he has committed to play basketball at Tech on Monday, April 19, when he told ESPN. He also told ESPN he chose Tech over schools such as California, Vanderbilt, Wyoming and Colorado State. After going to Elkins High School near Houston, Jacobs was rated the No. 19 player from the Houston area in the class of 2017 by Vype before enrolling at Dallas Baptist. Jacobs had a decorated career at DBU, being named the Heartland Conference Freshman of the Year in 2018 and then making First Team All-Heartland Conference in 2019. Following a conference change, he then made First Team All-Lone Star Conference in 2020. In his most recent season playing as a senior, Jacobs was named the Lone Star Conference defensive player of the year. In his four years at DBU, Jacobs became the school’s leading scorer by shooting over 43 percent from three. In his most recent season, he averaged 20.8 points, 2.7 assists, 7.4 rebounds and 2.5 steals per game. In his senior year Jacobs led DBU in each of the following categories: points (458), made threepoint shots (57), made free throws (87), rebounds (162) and steals (54). Jacobs’ total in points, free throws, rebounds and steals were all at least 33 percent more than the player with the second most on the team. Jacobs will look to be an integral piece in Tech’s backcourt next season, alongside Tech’s second commit in Ethan Duncan. @TheDT_Sports
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TOP: Men’s head basketball coach Mark Adams holds his guns up at a press conference that took place on April 6, 2021, in the United Supermarkets Arena. Adams signed three new players for the Fall 2021 basketball season. BOTTOM: Ethan Duncan, a senior guard from Trinity Christian in Lubbock, committed to Texas Tech on Friday, April 16. Photo Courtesy of Hub City Preps.
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SOFTBALL
Zoch, Whaley fuel softball to first series win By BISHOP VAN BUREN Staff Writer
Te x a s Te c h S o f t b a l l gained their first Big 12 series win against Kansas on April 19, when they won the first and last game of a three-day series on the road in Lawrence, Kansas. The first win of the series against Kansas was Tech’s first win over a Big 12 opponent this season, ending a nine-game losing skid. In that skid, Tech had been swept by Baylor, Texas and Oklahoma State in three straight series. Now, Tech will now look to win their second straight road series when they take on No. 1 Oklahoma for a threegame weekend series kicking off on Friday, April 23. Oklahoma currently boasts a 33-1 overall record and has yet to lose to a Big 12 opponent. However, their sole loss this season came in their most recent day of action, as they fell to No. 21 Georgia in the first half of a double header on Tuesday, April 20. Just a day after the loss, Tech’s head softball coach Sami Ward spoke in a news conference to preview their upcoming series against Oklahoma.
INJURIES
CONTINUED FROM PG. 1 This national award is given out yearly with each player ’s performance at the plate, academics and personal integrity all taken into account. Prior to Jung’s addition to the watch list, Neuse was the only player from Tech on it. Jace’s brother, former Red Raider Josh Jung, won the award in 2019, the same year he was selected eighth overall in the MLB Draft by the Texas Rangers. The year Josh won the award he batted .343 percent with 15 home runs and 58 RBIs in 64 games. This year,
“The reality is the ball doesn’t know who’s supposed to win, the game doesn’t know who is supposed to win,” she said. “So if we can just stay present and give ourselves an opportunity … I mean they did lose yesterday so they’re not perfect anymore.” Both of Tech’s wins in their last series against Kansas featured a complete game by senior pitcher Missy Zoch, who threw a career high 16 strikeouts (also a program record) in the series opener and followed with seven in the finale. Zoch’s 23 total strikeouts in the series while only allowing 13 hits was enough for her to be named the Big 12 Pitcher of the Week, the conference announced Tuesday. When Ward was asked about where she has seen Zoch develop, she gave a quick answer. “One hundred percent the mental game,” Ward said. “Me and her actually talked about that, and she said that last year she put a lot of pressure on herself, and she said something kind of clicked with her this year and she sees it as more of a ‘get to’ rather than ‘have to’
… So, she’s freed herself up to be total honest.” Despite Zoch’s performance on the mound, both wins of the weekend were extended to extra innings. The first win of the game came to a close after five straight singles and a sacrifice fly in the top of the eighth for the Red Raiders, with Zoch keeping Kansas scoreless in the bottom of the inning by throwing three strikeouts. Junior outfielder Yvonne Whaley was responsible for one of those singles, bringing home two runs and advancing to second on the throw. In the series finale, Whaley came up to bat in the top of the eighth inning yet again, this time with two outs and freshman infielder Riley Love in scoring position on second base. Whaley shrugged off the pressure and hit an RBI double to score Love, picking up right where she left off from the series opener and giving Tech a one run lead over Kansas entering the bottom of the eighth. After her performance in the series against Kansas in which she was responsible for two extra-inning RBI
hits, Whaley was named Big 12 Co-Player of the Week alongside Oklahoma’s Tiare Jennings. “Yvonne’s confidence is always up there, and it should be. She works hard, she prepares well in practice and she’s earned the right to be confident in my opinion,” Ward said. “Players like Yvonne like to play against top opponents like Oklahoma.” In the series opener, Zoch entered the eighth inning with a four run lead. In the finale though, she was tasked with putting away Kansas when Tech was only winning by a score of 5-4 in the bottom of the eighth.. Like Whaley had done in the top of the inning, Zoch also kept up her momentum from her outing in the series opener that went to extra innings, ending the eighth after facing only three batters. Zoch’s success over the weekend did, however, come at a price, as her 344 total pitches thrown over the weekend were the most she’s thrown in a series all weekend. Despite the high volume though, Zoch maintained her efficiency throwing 181 strikes (52%).
Jace has batted .386 with 15 home runs and 50 RBIs in 34 games so far. Jung and Conley are the only two Red Raiders to have suited up for all of Tech’s 34 games so far this season. Conley is tied for second on the team in home runs with seven and is in sole possession of second in RBIs with 34. Conley was named The College Baseball Foundation Shortstop of the Week this week after going 8-20 from the plate and homering from each side of the plate in one game in Tech’s series versus West Virginia. On the defensive side of the ball, sophomore pitchers Micah Dallas and Mason
Montgomery were thrust back into weekend starter roles after the loss of Birdsell. Before April, Dallas had not started a weekend game since the team’s opening weekend when they were swept in Arlington. Since then, he had been operating as a swiss army knife for head coach Tim Tadlock’s squad, starting and relieving whenever need be. He currently has 1-2 record, one save, a 3.66 ERA, 1.250 WHIP and 35 strikeouts in 32.0 innings pitched. “I definitely prefer, you know, the start,” Dallas said earlier in the season. “The high leverage situations, I live for that. I feel like there’s no one...else in the
world that, you know, our team would rather have up there when I’m up there in a high leverage situation...that may not be the case but that’s what my mentality is”. That being said, Dallas did allow six runs in 4.0 innings pitched against TCU in the first weekend start of the month against TCU and allowed four runs in 5.1 innings of work this past weekend against West Virginia. Tech lost both of those games, but Dallas only received the decision in the former. M o n t g o m e r y, o n t h e other hand, was bumped from the weekend rotation briefly after a couple of rough starts but has since bounced back nicely.
FILE PHOTO/The Daily Toreador
Senior Missy Zoch pitches for the Lady Raiders at Rocky Johnson Field. Tech will next play Oklahoma at 6 p.m. on April 23 in Norman. After such a high workload for Zoch in the series against Kansas, it is likely that her pitches will be monitored and the rest of the pitching staff may see more action than usual. In Wednesday’s news conference, Ward spoke on how Zoch’s success and energy despite her workload has affected the rest of the staff. “They’re growing in that way where they are in a position to be able to count on each other a little bit more, but I think there’s something to be learned from each and every one of them on the
staff,” Ward said. “Right now the thing to be learned from Missy is her composure, she’s someone who, you know, the bases could be loaded multiple times a game and we have confidence that she’s going to go and attack batters and get us out of it.” Tech will now look to win their second straight road series against a Big 12 opponent when they take on top ranked Oklahoma (33-1) for a three-game weekend series kicking off on Friday, April 23.
He was even named both the Big 12 and The College Baseball Foundation Pitcher of the Week this week for his efforts against West Virginia. In that game, he struck out 12 batters in 6.2 innings of one-run work. The Red Raiders have currently won five of their last six contests and will play next this weekend when they face the Baylor Bears in a three-game set. Te c h w a s s c h e d u l e d to play a midweek game against Oklahoma this past Tuesday, but it was postponed due to inclement weather in Amarillo. The Red Raiders will now play the sooners at HODGETOWN Stadium at
6 p.m. on May 4. Tickets for the April 20 game will still be valid remain valid, per release. But now, Tech baseball will look toward their next series. It will be an important one in the Big 12 standings. At 7-5, the Red Raiders are currently third in the conference. Baylor is tied with West Virginia for fifth at 5-7. They are a full three games back on Texas and TCU, who are both 10-2, so they will need to show out at home this weekend to stay firmly in the race. Each game of the series between Tech and Baylor will be streamed on ESPN+.
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