The echo sept 30, 2015

tHE UNIVErSItY OF CENtrAL ArKANSAS’ StUDENt NEWSpApEr

SINGLE COPY PAID FOR BY STUDENT PUBLICATION FEE

WEDNESDAY

SEptEmbEr 30, 2015 Volume 109 — Issue 6

ucaecho.net 4 TODAY’S FORECAST CONWAY

Campus Life:

Entertainment:

Author’s Fair proves great venue for artists 4 page 4

disaster genre barrier as true epic

Cinema: ‘ Everest’ breaks

Literature: Annual

Pleasant

COUNCIL

82/55

4 page 6

SERVICE

SGA gets Honors underway outreach

4 THE NEWSDESK FROM THE EDITOR

N AT I O N A L

Boehner’s stepping down as Speaker sparks worries John boehner’s resignation from Speaker of the House, the chasm that has plagued America’s bipartisan government has now only widened.

It may become easier to push legislation through Congress from the Democrats without boehner there to oppose. more than anything, his absence sparks fear and paranoia in the populace and with government officials themselves on the future of this nation. With the top three republican candidates having never held office, there is a serious worry of inexperience for the republicans if the current standings hold for the republican nominee. Some middle-leaning republicans blame boehner’s early departure on hardline republicans who have made life as the Speaker tough.

DEA keeps crooked agents despite major misconduct the Drug Enforcement Agency has allowed its employees to stay on the job despite internal investigations that found they had given out drugs, lied to authorities and attended drug and sex parties hosted by the Colombian Cartel. this lack of action spurred the U.S. Department of Justice to launch an investigation on whether the Drug Enforcement Agency is able to adequately investigate through internal affairs.

While going through past records, it was discovered that few of the DEA agents put up for review were fired or seriously punished for their misconduct. Out of the 50 employees since 2010 that were recommended to be fired by the DEA’s board of professional Conduct for termination, only 13 were terminated. Despite these firings, many of those agents were brought back to to litigation from a federal appeals board.

LOCAL

Optometry School put on hold for other big projects the University of Central Arkansas has put its plan to build an optometry school on hold due to funds being too thin. the lack of funds stems from the current construction of the recently topped Donaghey Hall Corridor and Conway Corporationfunded extension to the Lewis Science Center. the major infrastructure costs are to blame, along with the appraisal conducted by tripp Umbach consulting firm last spring. tripp Umbach came to the figure of roughly $42 million in costs for the building-- a sum that does not sit well with the board of trustees for now. the optometry school would be Arkansas’ first and only, providing a more convenient and cheaper option for aspiring optometrists.

Student Government

Psi Chi-‘Hands & Voices’

meets on issues

partnership for the people

by Jordan Johnson

by Calli Morrison

the first meeting of the 2015-16 UCA Student Government Association on Sept. 28 introduced the short- and long-term goals of its committees, as well as upcoming presenters and events.

Committee chairs presented their first reports, which detailed the committee’s mission statement as well as short- and long-term goals. the 2015-16 GOAL committees are Academic Affairs, Senate Advancement and Engagement, Campus resources, Housing and Food Services and Community Engagement.

Academic Affairs Committee chair David beale presented the committee’s goals. Long-term goals include a program which awards honorary degrees to the families of UCA students who have passed away, as well as tackling the problem of printers in the school.

Chair of the Community Engagement Committee mollie Henager outlined the committee’s goals. Short-term goals include establishing a “Day at the Capital” program and leadership summit, as well as open forums and town halls on campus. Other short-term goals are increasing advertisement of student resources offered by UCA and possible safety training for students.

Long-term goals include increasing international and nontraditional student engagement as well as rSO engagement. the Campus resources Committee’s short-term goals as stated by chair Spencer Ward include increasing signage on buildings and parking lots, fixing pot holes and adding recycling bins to residence halls. the committee is looking into funding from the American Federation of Arts (AFA) for campus beautification. the committee also plans to work with the physical plant to ensure that the campus has adequate lighting following comments from students that they felt “unsafe” in certain parts of campus. the committee is also looking into summer pricing and hours at the HpEr for students who will return in the fall but may not attend summer classes, as well as increasing the number of study areas on campus.

UCA’s psi Chi International Honor Society has partnered with the Arkansas chapter of Hands & Voices for community outreach efforts. psi Chi worked during x-period Sept. 22 to help Hands & Voices prepare their mailings for their annual fundraiser in October. “being socially responsible is part of psi Chi’s mission statement,” psi Chi president senior Kelli Wierzbicki said.

“It is a good way to fulfill our duty to the community.”

Arkansas Hands and Voices is the state chapter of a national group used to form a group of parents and professionals to benefit deaf or hard-of-hearing children and their families.

According to the organization’s website, its goal is use its statewide activities, advocacy efforts and parent and professional collaboration to enable these children to reach their fullest potential. the group provides resources, networking and information to improve communication access and educational outcomes for the children.

Clinical Instructor Veda Charlton initiated the partnership between psi Chi and ArH&V. “I serve on the ArH&V board and am a parent of a son who has bilateral hearing loss,” Charlton said. “this group has been a huge benefit for our family and we have seen how much it helps other families.”

Charlton’s ongoing membership on the ArH&V board provided psi Chi direct access to its needs for volunteering. psi Chi has helped ArH&V for a number of years, usually with the ArH&V social it has each December and other small projects. However, psi Chi has begun sponsoring them this year.

“We thought sponsoring would bring more personal meaning to the psi Chi members as they could feel more connected with the families that the organization represents,” Charlton said. psi Chi has collaborated with ArH&V to volunteer at many events. It will help by directing games,

Assistant News Editor

See SGA - page 2

Sports:

bears get big win on road against Northwestern

Football:

BLOOD MOON: CELESTIAL VISTA FOR THE WORLD

Online Editor

See Outreach - page 2

photo courtesy of katv.com

The latest celestial event occurred Sept. 27 with a full “blood moon” accompanied by a lunar eclipse that captivated star-gazers all over the world.

Campus Talks bring new businesses

by Jordan Johnson Assistant News Editor

President Tom Courtway revealed during the Campus Talk Sept. 22 that Marble Slab Ice Cream might be coming to Donaghey Hall.

While there is no signed agreement with the franchise yet, Courtway said he is “confident” that Marble Slab, in conjunction with Great American Cookies, will occupy an available space on the Donaghey Avenue side of the building.

“Keep your fingers crossed,” Courtway said. “We feel pretty good that that will come to fruition as we move ahead.”

Courtway also said there will be meetings with Apple executives in Chicago during the first week of November to discuss plans for an Apple Store.

Another future Donaghey Hall shop was also on the agenda.

Courtway said the university is excited for Blue Sail Coffee to open a store in the multi-use residential building.

Kyle Tabor, owner of Blue Sail Coffee, was featured in Arkansas Business’ 2015 profile of 20 businessmen in their 20s in Arkansas.

Opinion Editor

photo by Makenzie Evans

The last steel beam is placed on top of the new Lewis Science Center structure at the Topping Off Ceremony on Sept. 25. President Courtway and the UCA Board of Trustees gathered with professors and students to watch the event.

Contact Us: 3

4Around Campus

4

See Talks - page 2

by Kendra Beattie

Index: 2

400 students above ASU and 750 above Tech. When looking at full-time equivalency (FTE) numbers, Courtway said, UCA is doing much better than ASU and Tech.

UCA’s graduate enrollment has also increased, and total enrollment is up 6 percent in the last five years.

In the same period, ASU, University of Arkansas—Little Rock, University of Arkansas—Monticello and University of Arkansas—Pine Bluff have seen decreases in enrollment.

“What we are doing, we are doing well, in my opinion,” Courtway said.

Faculty Senate President Ben Rowley briefed the room on the next faculty senate meeting.

One issue on the agenda will be expanding concurrent enrollment at Conway High School.

Courtway said meetings have been set with Conway High School for Oct. 6 to discuss the concurrent credit expansion.

Other issues on the faculty senate agenda will include pay levels, salary and compensation, as well as creating a new strategic

Science center addition topped

IN OUR NEXT ISSUE

4Police Beat 4Opinion

The bulk of Courtway’s address concerned UCA’s enrollment numbers compared to those of other four-year universities in the state, particularly ASU-Jonesboro, Arkansas Tech and University of Arkansas-Little Rock. As far as total enrollment – which includes concurrent, undergraduate and graduate students – UCA is at 11,754 students, approximately 1,500 lower than ASU and approximately 200 lower than Tech.

In terms of concurrent enrollment, Tech and UALR’s numbers are greater than UCA’s.

Tech boasts 2,272 concurrent students and UALR has 1,569, compared to UCA’s current enrollment of 325.

UCA’s concurrent enrollment has decreased by approximately 50 students since last year.

UCA’s concurrent enrollment dropped by 14.2 percent in the last five years, while Tech’s concurrent enrollment has increased by 76.7 percent in the same time period.

However, in undergraduate enrollment, UCA is second in the state, following University of Arkansas—Fayetteville.

UCA’s undergraduate enrollment is approximately

CONSTRUCTION

4 WHAT’S AHEAD Recent legislation that made community college in Oregon free could bring change to Arkansas.

4 page 7

4Campus Life 4Entertainment 4Sports

4 6 7

Phone: 501-499-9822 E-mail: ucaechoeditor@gmail.com

The 12-year planning and development process to expand and improve the Lewis Science Center reached a milestone during the topping out ceremony Sept. 25.

The ceremony honored the placement of the final beam in the 50,000-square-foot expansion’s frame.

Prior to its placement, College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics faculty were invited to sign the beam.

President Tom Courtway,

Social:

Provost Steven Runge and several Board of Trustees members gathered in the skeletal structure of the long-awaited LSC extension to address students, faculty, community members, local elected officials and a few state representatives before the building’s structure was completed.

“We started really [planning] in 2003…and one thing was clear: We needed to expand and we needed to manage our existing spaces,” Runge said to the crowd.

See Science - page 2

Inside: Turning back on misconduct

@ucaecho

The Echo

ucaecho

© 2015 The Echo, Printed by the Jacksonville Patriot, Jacksonville, Ark.

Cultural respect has its boundaries when considering human rights

page 3

2/ September 30, 2015

NEWS

Police Beat

Sgt. Moore enters 10th year with UCAPD, continues multitasking

The following information is compiled from UCAPD incident reports

by News Editor Joe Kramer.

Student presses charges again on repeat harasser over texting apps A UCAPD officer met with a UCA student about a harassment and order of protection violation at roughly 5:24 a.m. Sept. 22.

The student said she received picture messages earlier that morning containing personal photos of herself telling her “she’ll be famous around campus before midnight.”

She said that the day before she had received a number of various calls from numbers with unfamiliar area codes.

Reports said the student believed a nonstudent was behind the phone calls and harassing messages. She suspected that the individual was using an application that generates random numbers to harass her.

She said she had previously filed a report against the individual in Warren, Arkansas. The investigation was still ongoing at publication deadline.

Student rushed to emergency room after allergic reaction Around 10 p.m. Sept. 21, an officer responded to a medical incident at State Hall. A student reported that her roommate was having an allergic reaction to her medication.

Upon arriving, officers said the roommate was splotchy, red and swollen. She had taken her prescription steroid without also taking Benadryl,

which caused her to have a reaction.

Fire department and EMS arrived shortly after and transported the student to Conway Regional Medical Center for treatment.

Trespasser arrested after being banned from campus week prior While doing a security check of the Torreyson Library at approximately 3 p.m. Sept. 21, a UCAPD officer spotted a nonstudent sitting in a study room. The individual had been banned from campus a week prior.

After confirming with the Dean of Student’s Office that the ban was still in effect, UCAPD arrested the nonstudent for criminal trespass.

The individual was issued a citation number and was taken to the Faulkner County Detention Center.

Nonstudent found with 1.5 oz of marijuana arrested, taken to jail UCAPD pulled over Darnell Jones on Donaghey Avenue for expired license plate tags at roughly 1:45 p.m. Sept. 20.

While running the plate, the officer discovered that Jones had a warrant out for his arrest.

During the stop he also discovered that Jones possessed 1.37 ounces of marijuana and that he was driving on a suspended license.

After arrest, Jones was transported to the Faulkner County Detention Center.

JUNK FOOD & RIDES GALORE

Lewis Science Center has its topping ceremony weeks

after Donaghey Hall’s 4 Continued from page 1

“We as an institution can’t thank Conway Corp. and its legacy, enough for that gift. Thank you, from UCA,” Courtway said.

“What [students] did to make this building possible is [agree] to a $3.50 per credit hour fee on themselves, so they essentially taxed themselves to make this building possible. To the student body and the leaders of the student body…we appreciate it.”

Lacy and Reynolds from the BOT emphasized how long this project has been sought after among faculty and trustees alike and how essential it is to developing UCA’s educational strongpoints.

“I remember the first year I went on the Board [and] one of the first things we did was walk through [LSC]…I have to say I was a little shocked at the condition that part of those classes and lab spaces were in,” Lacy said.

“Especially when you think about

the things that we’re so good at here at UCA. We’re good at many of the health sciences [and] this space is…the basis for so many things that we excel at.”

The LSC project broke ground last semester. In addition to the new building, renovations will also be made to the existing building, including fixing classrooms and the roof.

The new building will mainly consist of laboratory space with some “learning, teaching and research areas,” according to uca.edu. It will also include a new digital planetarium.

Many updates are designed to increase energy efficiency and aim to gain the university Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification.

The new space and renovated older building will be completed in January 2017.

Outreach:

Combined effort from Honor Society and Hands & Voices brings service to community 4 Continued from page 1 activities and childcare at the social in December and the annual ArH&V chapter meeting in February.

“We’ve partnered up with them kind of like Greek life does with their philanthropies, so we’ll be doing more with them throughout the year,” Wierzbicki said. psi Chi has also partnered with UCA Food bank by collecting food donations and conducting fundraisers.

A food donation box is located in the psychology department year-round.

UCA’s psi Chi chapter has been in the psychology Department for several years, but only became an rSO last year.

According to its website, its purpose is to encourage, stimulate and maintain excellence in scholarship of the individual members in all fields, particularly in psychology, and to advance the science of psychology.

News Editor

Sgt. Brad Moore has been with UCAPD for almost a decade, with his career beginning in December 2005.

He began as a patrol officer and gradually climbed ranks to patrol sergeant over the course of three years on the job. In 2011, he became staff sergeant and took the title of community policing and special operations, which he currently holds.

Moore’s journey into the police force began before his time as a Bear. He began his career in North Little Rock in 2000, which he later left for personal reasons before making his way to UCA. In his time on campus, Moore has worked all over.

Most recently, he took on responsibilities that previously belonged to former UCA employee Arch Jones, who departed to take a job offer at Arkansas State University in Jonesboro.

Moore’s new tasks include

psi Chi has meetings at x-period every tuesday.

Undergraduate and graduate students must have completed three psychology courses and have a minimum 3.0 GpA to qualify for membership.

For more information on how to get involved with psi Chi, contact associate professor Shawn Charlton at scharlton@uca.edu.

running social media and the UCAPD website, creating events and organizing programs. He is also in charge of organizing security for campus events such as sports games and new faculty and staff orientations.

Moore’s tech savviness has been critical to his position and has helped him tremendously with his new role.

“I have coordinated the police side of all the events that Arch was a part of since his beginning here,” Moore said. “I am very tech savvy and use technology every chance that I can.”

Moore stressed the need to be efficient and find new ways to get his job done.

“If there is a way to streamline how to sign up for events and get volunteer participation, I look for a way to do it,” he said. “I am very open to new ideas from the UCA community on what they need and want to see the police department to bring.”

Moore said he has been using his new role to increase student interaction with UCAPD’s social media. He uses media to promote

events and bring awareness to issues UCAPD fronts, such as “Brake for Bears” and other events that go with September’s National Campus Safety Awareness month.

Moore brought success to these events in recent months with his media outreach.

“Not much has changed, other then I am asking for volunteers for the events,” he said. “The events we currently do are all very successful, I will continue to grow these and create more events for the future.”

Moore hopes to represent UCA and UCAPD in a positive way.

“I want to be able to accurately represent what we stand for here at the UCA Police Department,” Moore said. “We have great leadership here at UCAPD, and I want that to filter through what I do.”

Although Moore has a lot on his plate, he said he enjoys every minute of it.

“I love working with the community,” he said. “It is the reason that I wanted to become an officer.”

C O N WAY

Denying of homeless shelter permit

by City Council puts issue in limbo Online Editor

photo by of Waid Rainey

“Twelve years we’ve been working on this to see this finally coming to fruition, so it’s an exciting time.

We turn out a great product, our students do great things, our faculty do great research, we do great mentoring: all of that in a facility that could be a lot better.”

Before the new building was topped out, Courtway, BOT Chairman Brad Lacy, BOT member Bobby Reynolds, Runge and CEI Contractors representative Will Black briefly spoke about the project. CEI Contractors is the construction management firm overseeing the project.

Speaking first, Courtway was quick to thank both Conway Corporation and “the best student body in America” for their contributions to the project, as well as address how long-awaited the renovation has been.

Conway Corporation pledged to donate $3 million to the project in December 2014.

by Joe Kramer

by Calli Morrison

Late September is that time of year when cool weather is just around the corner and the County Fair comes into town Sept. 22-27 at the Conway Exposition and Fair Grounds with rides, carney games and bukoos of every tasty treat imaginable.

Science:

ucaecho.net F E AT U R E

Homelessness is an issue in almost every community – Conway being no exception.

An official biennial count performed by service groups in 2011 recorded 173 homeless people in Faulkner County.

Homelessness has recently become a larger topic of discussion in Conway, but the city has struggled to combat stigmas surrounding homeless people.

On Aug. 11, the Conway City Council denied a conditional use permit for a homeless shelter requested by the Ministry Center. The Ministry Center is a nonprofit organization located on Harkrider Street, across the street from the downtown area.

During the council’s following meeting on Aug. 25, the council voted that conditional use permits be required before homeless shelters could be constructed in the city.

The city is currently working with the Ministry Center to find a new home for the homeless shelter.

Mayor Tab Townsell said the decision was made for locational

reasons.

“I’m not saying that a homeless shelter of any kind can’t come in here,” he said. “I know the people with the Ministry Center. I trust that they will do a good job. The whole program works to assist people in all stages of life, not just to spend the night. This just adds a measure of protection.”

Conway Planning and Development Director Bryan Patrick said the decision to deny the homeless shelter’s permit downtown was due to the considerable financial reinvestment that has been placed on downtown in recent years.

The conditional use permits were placed as a means of equal landowner rights citywide.

“It doesn’t remove the ability to have a homeless shelter in the downtown area,” Patrick said. “It seemed appropriate to require conditional use permits to put additional controls as needed.”

The proposed location sparked controversy. Advocates argued that because most homeless people lack transportation, they need a central location where resources are easily accessible.

The Ministry Center’s site downtown, advocates argued, would have provided that central location. Townsell said the location that th e city council approves must be within walking distance of various services.

The degree of subjectivity within criteria for a conditional use permit has proved difficult for finding new locations for the homeless shelter.

Ministry Center Case Manager Spring Hunter said the adjacent landowners to whatever property they look at are going to have an issue.

“No one really wants it in his backyard,” Hunter said. “No one wants it close to their kid’s school.

We know that. Any potential property that comes before council will have this issue.”

Townsell said the council has acknowledged that anywhere the shelter is placed will provide opposition, but that the process is necessary for the city.

“I never could understand these people that wanted to have nuclear plants, but didn’t want the waste in their states,” he said.

“If you don’t want the waste, don’t generate it. I’m committed to finding a place for them.”

SGA:

Council gets its semester underway with discussion of speakers, events it will bring to university 4 Continued from page 1 increase safety and promote outdoor activity.

“If we can claim a large portion of [the grant] money… [and some] from the city… then we can provide another safe walkway [and] more space for exercising and biking,” President Tom Courtway said.

The potential overpass would connect a trail coming from the Jewel E. Moore Nature Reserve to another trail across the street, not far from the Dave Ward Drive and Farris Road intersection.

It would provide easy access for students walking or biking from the Bear Village area.

The structure would appear similar to the one crossing Harkrider Street between Hendrix College and Hendrix Village. In a teleconference with the

BOT, Courtway referenced other Arkansas universities with similar biking and walking paths.

Conway City Council approved the city’s grant proposal at its March 24 meeting. However, the potential for completion depends on how much grant money is awarded.

“Our hope is that we both get a grant and put more money into the project,” Chief of Staff for the mayor’s office Jack Bell said. “We won’t get enough to cover the entire cost, but we’re hoping it will cover a large percent of [it].”

The AHTD offers two different grant programs relating to this project. One grant is for pedestrian structures and the other is for nature programs. UCA and the city of Conway will apply for $500,000 under each grant with the stipulation that the university also contributes $100,000 to the project.

“We’re estimating the project will cost around $1.6 million,” Courtway said. “[But] we don’t know what the highway department will give us, if anything.”

If enough grant money is awarded to UCA and Conway combined, then the project will move forward. However, the city of Conway is excited about the project and doesn’t plan to abandon it entirely if not enough grant money comes through.

“Everyone would like to see it happen, but if it’s going to cost us too much [outside a grant], then we’ll have to look at other options,” Bell said.

The grant will be submitted Monday Sept. 28, but the award’s date is unsure. The administration’s estimate for an awards letter from the AHTD is May 1.

Talks:

Campus forum sheds light on possible businesses to be added to Donaghey Corridor upon its completion 4 Continued from page 1 planning taskforce for the next five years.

Faculty senate meetings are open to the public, but “it’s usually nowhere near as interesting as it sounds,” Rowley quipped.

Colin Stanton, coordinator of new student programs, also had a few announcements, including that the budget for professional

development fund increased from $5,000 to $50,000.

The professional development fund is set aside for professional development opportunities for staff members.

This money will be available in the next few quarters.

Stanton also announced the date for this year’s Winter Feast, which will be from 11:30 a.m.

to 1 p.m. Dec. 3 in the Student Center Ballroom. Tickets are now available.

Student Government Association (SGA) Executive President senior Zach Carter also discussed SGA’s Sept. 27-28 retreat, which informed the senators of their duties.

Opinion

ucaechoeditor@gmail.com

3

The Voice

September 30, 2015

WellTrack smart move for counseling center

Military turning blind eye to boys’ sexual assault shameful

The Echo Staff Misti Hollenbaugh Editor

Jared L. Holt Associate Editor

Joe Kramer News Editor

Jordan Johnson Assistant News Editor

Morgan Embry Campus Life Editor

Paige Yutsus

Assistant Campus Life Editor

Kelsey Williams Sports Editor

Malachi Thornton Assistant Sports Editor

Julia Kramer

Entertainment Editor

Kendra Beattie Opinion Editor

Maggie McNeary, Calli Morrison Online Editors

Makenzie Evans Photo Editor

The United States military in Afghanistan has given us, once again, a reason to hang our heads and repeatedly slap ourselves in the face. A world power that is often touted as supreme has been shown to the world as a false idol. Turning a blind eye to the sexual assault of young boys on our military bases in Afghanistan by Afghani commanders has exposed us as cowards on the world stage and as liars in our claim to hold human rights above all.

The 21st century has seen many developments.

Music changed. Art changed. The way we think and act changed. Although change can be repugnant, change is necessary. Always.

The American people have undergone much political change in recent years.

People tend to watch what they say a little bit more and tend to restrict their reactions in an effort to be politically correct, which is good. Political correctness might be a hot-button topic for conservatives today, but it seems straightforward in definition: Don’t be rude.

In this time of political consciousness and discernible effort to be accepting of cultures and traditions — I am being gracious to the U.S. for the sake of this argument, so hang with me — we are walking a fine line.

Where does respecting a culture and that culture’s traditions evolve into turning a blind eye to seedier activities and, more specifically, human rights violations?

I pose this question because of recent events in Afghanistan.

On Sept. 21, The New York Times printed an article on its front page written by Joseph Goldstein. This article discusses the sexual abuse of young boys by Afghani military personnel at American military bases and, more specifically, the order for American military personnel to turn a blind eye to the acts so as not to push Western ideologies on native Afghanis.

Higher-ups told several soldiers to not press the matter of young boys being brought in by Afghani military personnel for the ancient tradition of bacha bazi, which

translates to “boy play.” The bacha bazi tradition comes out of central Asia and made its way to the Middle East long ago. It is deeply engrained into the social fabric of Afghani culture, along with many others.

More astonishing than the act is the fact the American military has claimed this issue is to be resolved by the Afghanis and that it does not require American intervention. This seems contradictory.

The United States has had a military and diplomatic presence in the Middle East since the ’90s.

We’ve played a pivotal role in structuring the Afghani army for years, but when an issue such as this arises, it isn’t our problem. A little too late for that line, isn’t it?

This brings me back to the issue of political correctness regarding cultural respect for traditions. There is a clear line to be drawn. There must be.

The line may appear

by Joe gray, politically, but the Kramer feeling of disgust and anger News Editor toward those military leaders is undoubtedly black and white.

It seems counterintuitive to be defenders of peace and justice while letting things like this happen.

When does the refusal to offend become the refusal to defend?

There are core responsibilities we hold as an international power, and human rights should be high among these responsibilities.

Shrugging off responsibility in this situation is appalling. The leadership behind this act is criminal.

Those U.S. military members who were involved in keeping those soldiers quiet are guilty by association with the Afghani military members abusing those boys.

The refusal to act resulted in the murder of one decorated soldier and steps taken to discharge two men who stood up for those boys.

It is shameful to be an American after events like this.

“Guilty” is the word that continually rings as this story unfolds. Unfortunately, “guilty by association” seems to be a label permanently attached to the tail of the United States.

Freedom of speech: Everyone, every opinion deserves equality

Joe Kramer

Editorial Cartoonist

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Freedom of speech is a fundamental American value; on this, most people would agree.

The freedom to express yourself was the first right outlined in the United States Constitution, and for good reason.

Freedom of speech is an invaluable tool for keeping government and society in check; it is also indispensable to any nation that endeavors to call itself “free.”

Democracy requires citizens and journalists to speak their minds and, in turn, to let others criticize those words. America seems to have remembered only half of the equation.

Even while we tout freedom of speech as our most powerful weapon, Americans seem to think this freedom only applies to “me.”

Every individual is certain his viewpoint is the correct one and, thus, deserves to be heard over every other viewpoint. The concept that everyone’s opinion is equally valuable has been lost, if it ever truly existed.

My favorite example of this phenomenon is the public reaction to Westboro Baptist Church’s funeral protests.

Are the church members hateful and disrespectful? Of course they are. And they have every right to be.

There is no clause in the First Amendment saying only nice speech is protected, nor should there be.

However racist or bigoted they may be, an entire section of the population would effectively lose the right to express its opinions if popular opinion had its way.

Shutting out a group of people just because you don’t agree with them is not how a democracy works; in fact, our limited form of democracy was set up to prevent that.

Dissenting opinions have the right to be represented in our system, and you can’t disqualify dissent simply because you disagree with it.

At the end of the day, you do not have a right not to be offended. This inconvenient fact is what keeps the whole

Have an opinion?

system going.

If you don’t have a right not to be offended, then neither does anyone else, and, therefore, you have the freedom to speak your mind.

If offensive speech wasn’t protected, there would likely be no protected speech, since “offensive” can mean vastly different things to different people.

While I personally think racial slurs are offensive, a great number of people do not. And while I don’t find swearing offensive, some people do.

This is the problem with legislating speech: It effectively kills speech.

I’m not saying you can’t be offended or uncomfortable when you pass a house with a rebel flag or a group of hateful churchgoers; I

by Jordan know I am. But I also know these Johnson people are no different than me Assistant News under the law.

Editor If I get to say that women and minorities are equal citizens, then they must be allowed to say that they aren’t. If I have the opportunity to exercise my full rights as a citizen, then everyone must. I may think I’m special and right, but, so do they, and who decides at the end of the day whose opinion is legitimate?

We need dissenting views, not only to protect our own speech, but to improve our society. We are all trapped in our own narrow worldviews, rarely getting a chance to experience life on the other side of the fence.

If we shut out those with whom we disagree, there can be no positive change, because there won’t be any change. Innovation is important to our rapidly changing cultural landscape, and I can guarantee that ideas that seem foreign to us now will be commonplace in the next decade or two.

History shows us that cultural norms change from generation to generation. We must have as flexible a right of speech as possible if it is to hold up for future generations. To inhibit free speech, even hateful speech, would be to inhibit progress.

Everyone does.

Write a letter to the editor at ucaechoeditor@gmail.com Letters to the editor don’t just have to be about Echo content.

If you’ve noticed something on campus that’s positive or negative, we want to hear about it.

The UCA Counseling Center recently launched WellTrack, a Web page that lets students fill out a mental health evaluation designed to notify students if they should seek professional help.

The application was created so students can evaluate their mental states without facing the stigmas surrounding mental health issues or spending the time or finances to seek counseling.

The counseling center took a wonderful and innovative step toward helping students with mental illnesses feel comfortable enough and confident enough to address their mental well-being.

Mental health issues are seldom talked about openly and can be shrouded in confusion and embarrassment for those living with them. Symptoms often seem like a personal inability to deal with everyday stresses that others appear to handle without fault.

Given that psychiatrists and psychologists say mental illnesses such as bipolar disorder, major depressive disorder and schizophrenia typically emerge in young adults in their early 20s, it makes perfect sense that students be given a program that can help them identify these illnesses early.

Being aware of an illness’s presence could save students from hardships down the road. Like most diseases, mental health illnesses are helped by early awareness.

Taking steps to alter one’s lifestyle before experiencing a bipolar, major depressive or schizophrenic episode could potentially prevent the episodes from being as severe or frequent.

The stress surrounding academic life can play a major role in a student’s experience with often detrimental life-altering mental illness.

The sooner someone realizes the problem, the easier it is to acknowledge and cope with.

The counseling center should be commended for recognizing that mental disorders are a real part of many students’ lives and that college is a crucial time to be alert to predispositions for these illnesses.

UCA has found a way to make care more accessible and less embarrassing for those who suspect they might be struggling with a burgeoning disorder.

The UCA counseling center has taken a wonderful and innovative step toward aiding those with mental illnesses

Letter to the Editor Campus involvement should be required College isn’t just about going to class [and] studying for hours on tests and projects that make you want to pull your hair out; you have to have a little fun to keep students interested.

Undergraduate students ought to be actively engaged in registered student organizations during their four-year undergraduate program studies.

Campus involvement could better prepare students for future jobs and careers and teach them skills necessary to succeed in the future, such as leadership, time management, teamwork and communication skills.

Business Insider said it is important for students to understand and be able to use skills such as communication and problem solving when they are looking for potential jobs.

Through the University of Central Arkansas’ Ambassador program, I learned how to effectively communicate with incoming students and parents and how to work as a group member and not just as an individual.

Students who are actively engaged on campus have a stronger connection to the university in their time there and after. This could mean that dropout rates would lower and retention rates would increase.

A study done by InsideTrack, American Council on Education and NASPA stated that colleges need to do better at retaining students.

Alumni programs and donations could flourish when students graduate if the students create strong ties to the campus.

UCA has almost 200 registered student organizations, such as Government Association, Ambassadors, Greek life and Student Orientation Staff. There are countless options for students with all interests.

Many provide free services to the university through philanthropy or student services. It benefits both the students and the university; therefore, required campus involvement should be considered a graduation requirement at UCA. —Noelle Smith

The Echo is printed weekly at the Log Cabin Democrat in Conway, Ark. Decisions about content are made by the student editors.

The views published are not necessarily those of the University of Central Arkansas. All material is subject to respective copyrights.

Campus Life

4

September 30, 2015

Around Campus: ‘Day of Mindfulness’ UCA will host an inaugural “Day of Mindfulness” all day Oct. 1. The event kicks off Sept. 30 with a lecture, then will continue with events based around mindfulness practices in daily life throughout the following day.

Resumé building workshop UCA Career Services will host a resumé building workshop with the Sociology and Criminology Department during x-period Oct. 1 in Irby Hall 315. Students will be able to build professional resumés or to bring resumés in for department members to revise.

‘Behind Closed Doors’ The Minority Mentorship Program will host “Behind Closed Doors,” an event that educates freshmen about the practices of safe sex, drugs and alcohol, at 6 p.m. Oct. 5 in the Student Center 223/224.

No RSVP is required.

photo by Brandon Cranford

Professors, students and community members gather at the Faulkner County Library for the fourth annual Author’s Fair on Sept. 26.

Professors show off their works at Author’s Fair

by Kayla McCullough Staff Writer

An eclectic group of authors gathered in the Faulkner County Library for the fourth annual Local Author’s Fair on Sept. 26.

The event offered itself as a platform for local authors to discuss their works with the community and potential readers.

Among the trove of authors, a handful of UCA professors were stationed at tables with stacks of books, eager to reveal their talents outside the classroom

setting.

Associate professor of philosophy and religion Jacob Held discussed his books, which attempt to bridge the gap between abstract theory and important world issues.

His collection includes one book titled “Dr. Seuss and Philosophy: Oh, the Thinks You Can Think!”

“You’d call it pop culture and philosophy. The goal of these books is to bring philosophy to a general audience in a way it’s accessible. I see them very much as an extension of my teaching,” Held said. “Philosophy is

notoriously abstract, but if I can teach environmental ethics by talking about ‘The Lorax,’ you can get the ideas across more easily and in a more accessible way.”

Held said he has attended the Author’s Fair for the last few years and that many of the same faculty members and faces show up each year.

Held said he is talking with publishers to further explore the concept of connecting well-known authors to philosophy.

“It’s something I’m continuing to work in,” he said.

“We started a series called ‘Great Authors in Philosophy.’ I’m going to be doing a book on Stephen King.”

UCA associate professor of finance Alex Fayman said he experienced trials and triumphs with his independently published book, “Superhighway,” which is about an 18-year-old who has the power to go inside the Internet.

“He discovers he can fly through the Internet and change data, so in a very short period of time he becomes a billionaire,” he said.

Fayman said there are a lot of

social issues in “Superhighway.”

Fayman published his book seven months ago, and he said getting exposure is difficult.

“I have 28,000 Twitter followers,” he said. “I have a few producers from different new stations, including our PBS station at UCA, reading this book, but it’s very hard to get exposure.”

Fayman said this year was the first time he’s showcased work at the Author’s Fair.

“I was trying to get exposure

See Authors- page 5

FESTIVITIES

Conway ArtsFest unites local, visiting artists with community members

by Jennifer Buckley Staff Writer

Conway will have a week-long celebration of various art media in several locations around the city Sept. 26 through Oct. 3.

The festival’s theme this year is S.T.E.A.M, or science, technology, engineering, art and math.

ArtsFest features local

schools and art organizations including UCA, Hendrix College and other Conway schools, which will be hosting the events.

“Our ninth annual ArtsFest is going to be bigger and better than ever before,” College of Fine Arts and Communication Associate Dean Gayle Seymour said. “We’ve got a lot of exciting events that have to do with art and science, and we hope everyone will come out and see

them.”

There will be several daily events, such as a college student art exhibition in the Faulkner County Library, a gallery and outdoor sculpture on display by artist Dan Steinhilber at UCA’s Baum Gallery, a Painting 360 Group Show in the Hendrix College of Art, charity crafts at the Twisted Purl and an Independent Living Services art exhibit at Bob’s Grill.

See Artsfest- page 5

PEOPLE OF UCA

Journalist shares career stories with students

by Jennifer Buckley Staff Writer

photo courtesy of Facebook

“We are always cooking up schemes to make ourselves big one day,” sophomore Joshua Warren said, speaking of him and his best friend nonstudent Timothy Harder.

The two started their weekly radio show called “The Tim and Josh Show” six months ago. They started by using the website platform Soundcloud and have now expanded their show to 91.3 The Bear and Youtube. The duo also featured a camera crew at Comicon in Kansas City in August.

Their slogan is “the show about nothing and everything,” which feels appropriate given the vast range of conversation topics they cover.

“We talk about Avengers, what it’s like to be a server, silly pop culture stuff,” Warren said.

“We even had a confederate flag episode, talking about the history of the flag.”

The show is beginning to

a Conway school’s art exhibit at 3 p.m. in the American Management Corporation lobby, the Percussion Petting Zoo at 7 p.m. in the Reynolds Performance Hall lobby and Third Coast Percussion in concert at 7:30 p.m. at the Reynolds.

The final day of the festival,

ARTIST IN RESIDENCE

Sophomore Joshua Warren (left) and nonstudent Timothy Harder (right) pose with cosplayers at this year’s Kansas City Comicon in August.

Online Editor

On Oct. 1, the festival will include a Third Coast Percussion lecture and demonstration at 1:40 p.m. in the Snow Fine Arts Hall, an Arkansas Shakespeare Theatre’s fall membership party at 6:30 p.m. at the home of associate professor of English Mary Ruth Marotte and the UCA writing department faculty reading at 7 p.m. at the Faulkner County Library.

On Oct. 2, events include

SPOTLIGHT

Joshua Warren

by Calli Morrison

“We are very proud and happy to be hosting many artists and authors,” Faulkner County Library employee Nancy Allen said.

Although the festival began Saturday, the week has more activities, shows and learning opportunities to offer.

ArtsFest will host Conway High School, UCA and Ceruti string quartet 7 p.m. Sept. 30 in the Reynolds Performance Hall.

incorporate local music artists and live performances each week. Warren said they find local artists on Soundcloud and invite them to join the show.

In the past, they have had live performances by freshman Caleb Patton and will feature guitarist Mikey Carroll and comedian Hannah Malmstrom in upcoming weeks.

“The whole reason we are doing this show in the first place is that Tim and I are completely conceited and our conversations are so important we need to report it so anyone can listen,” Warren joked, but then quickly said, “What we’re really proud of is that we have a platform in which an unknown artist can be seen and heard.”

Currently, the show has two goals: going to Comicon with press passes next year and performing a live episode in front of an audience.

“We know we’re young, but we have the drive and we feel like we’re going to go somewhere with this,” Warren said.

Ultimately, Warren said they hope the show will open career options for them in the future to allow them to travel and collaborate with more artists.

Warren and Harder are both from Kansas City, Missouri.

Warren is currently a business major at UCA, but with his newfound love for broadcast, he is considering changing his major.

“Growing up I was in plays and musicals and they let me be tree number two,” Warren said. “I really enjoy being on the radio and being a presence, that doesn’t scare me I guess.”

Besides working on the show, the 21-year-old enjoys coffee, watching Dr. Who and playing guitar. He also has seven siblings, including a twin brother.

Information about the show can be found at thetimandjoshshow.com.

New episodes are uploaded to their Soundcloud every Tuesday and can be heard on 91.3 from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. on Wednesday afternoons.

Gene Foreman, a former Arkansas journalist who reported the 1957 desegregation of Little Rock Central High School, his insight concerning the racial tension surrounding the event shared with members of the UCA community.

Foreman took part in a panel discussion led by fellow journalist Ernie Dumas Sept. 23 in Buffalo Alumni Hall alongside a few of his former fellow reporters from The Arkansas Gazette including Bill Lewis, Jerry Dhonau, Roy Reed and Jerry McConnell.

“In 1954, I worked [at The Gazette], then I was in the army and, afterward, I came back to The Gazette, and that’s where I was just getting started in my career with Little Rock Central in fall of 1957,” Foreman said. “I had what I call a cameo reporting roll there.”

Dhonau talked about the excitement of working on such a milestone event in the civil rights movement.

“I was especially proud to be working for a newspaper owned and managed by enlightened men who were committed to opposing the law of the land, even at risk of financial cause to the newspaper,” Dhonau said.

One of the Little Rock Nine students, Elizabeth Eckford, and Phyllis Brown, sister of Little Rock Nine students attended.

“Among the nine of us, we didn’t talk about what went on inside the school for 30 years, because to do so is to walk through pain,” Eckford said. “It takes a while to overcome that.”

Brown spoke about the constant threats at the students’ homes.

“Let it be known that the addresses, the parents’ names, their occupations and their phone numbers were listed in

photo by Lauren Swaim

Artist in residence and journalist Gene Foreman recalls memories from his career with fellow reporters to students and faculty attending his lecture Sept. 23 in Buffalo Alumni Hall. the newspaper, which resulted in said. “We did not want anything all kinds of threats and violence,” that we did to be a cause of she said. violence.”

Foreman also talked about As much coverage as the Little Rock Nine received, Foreman how media has evolved since the talked about how important it 1950s.

“We had three TV stations was that the reporters restrained in town, a few different themselves.

“As journalists, we do not newspapers and there were want to influence the action, and we recognized then that Little Rock was a tinder box,” Foreman See Career- page 5

ucaecho.net

CAMPUS LIFE

September 30, 2015 /5

STUDENTS SAY

MUSIC

“

What is your

favorite class this

Professor Jackie Lamar performs a solo recital in honor of playing saxophone for 50 years. Lamar played a solo recital Sept. 22 in the Snow Fine Arts auditorium.

Professor Lamar celebrates 50th year with saxophone

by Joe Kramer News Editor

UCA saxophone professor Jackie Lamar celebrated her 50th year playing saxophone with a solo recital for the public Sept. 22 at Snow Fine Arts auditorium.

Lamar’s performance, accompanied by Coordinator of Accompanying Kazuo Murakami on piano, included Paule Maurice’s “Tableaux de Provence,” Eugene Bozza’s “Aria,” Karel Husa’s “Elegie et Rondeau,” Yi’s “Chinese Dances,” Amy Quate’s “Laguna Madre” and Jacob er Veldhuis’ “Billie.”

Music has permeated through Lamar’s life since she was a child. Her father was the Director of Bands at UCA and her mother played the piano. By age 3, her mother was teaching her easy songs on the piano and by second grade, Lamar was enrolled in formal instruction.

Some kids lose their passion for music at various points in their lives, but Lamar’s love of music never waned.

“Music has always been a part of my life,” she said. “Most people who are musicians will tell you that music is always going on in their heads, sometimes annoying us because we cannot get it to stop.”

Lamar began her saxophone career when she joined the Conway Junior High band in 1965 under the leadership of Russell Langston. She became first chair in the jazz band seven years later as she entered her senior year under Ray Vardamen.

Lamar said she became serious about the piano and saxophone during her high school years, requiring little outside motivation.

“I was very competitive, so my father didn’t have to force me to practice,” she said. “I wanted to win the contests and auditions, so I was motivated to practice.”

After high school, she made her way to UCA and began studying music education, studying under her father. She graduated in 1975 and moved to Louisiana, teaching music at Vernon Parish.

In 1978, she pursued her master’s degree at the University of North Texas. Soon after, she began teaching at East Central Oklahoma State University in Ada in 1982. She returned to UCA in 1986 after earning her doctorate in musical arts in saxophone at UNT. Her career as a musician has taken her all around the world, both teaching and playing music. She has performed in cities including Montreal, Canada; Valencia, Spain; Bangkok, Thailand; Reykjavik, Iceland; Ljubljana, Slovenia; St. Andrews, Scotland; and, most recently, Strasbourg, France.

Despite her many years learning and playing with the best musicians in the world, Lamar recognizes her teachers and fellow musicians as her biggest inspirations.

Lamar said she has been inspired by all of her teachers, each in different ways.

“I was very inspired after I attended my first World Saxophone Congress in 1979,” she said. “I was studying for my master’s degree and, after

hearing the best players in the world, I wanted to achieve that level. I am motivated to continue to practice to upgrade my skills to better serve as a role model for my students.”

One of Lamar’s students, senior Mallory Brooks, attended Lamar’s celebratory performance on Tuesday.

“Lamar does so much for her students,” Brooks said. “There are not many professors so dedicated to their students or the arts that they will travel across the country to help them in a competition. There have been multiple instances where Lamar has been there to encourage me personally and assure me that I have practiced all I could and to just have fun.”

After hitting her 50-year benchmark, Lamar has no plans on slowing down.

“I plan to continue teaching until I reach retirement age, but I plan to keep playing saxophone as long as I am able,” Lamar said.

“I am a member of the Cross Town Trio and the Arkansas Saxophone Quartet. I plan to play with those groups as long as possible.”

”

semester?

photo by Makenzie Evans

story by Paige Yutsus photos by Lauren Swaim

Freshman Oona Anzaldna

Freshman Sunnie Ray

“Human Geography.

It has helped me understand the world and the different cultures in it, and I am more culturally aware now.”

Major: Psychology

“My favorite class this semester is Intro to College Writing with Devin Norris.

He allows us freedom of expression, and the criteria isn’t too hard.”

Major: Nursing

Senior Tenley DeLong

Senior Kelsey Nance

“I like my Nutritional Services Administration class. The material is not that fun, but I love the professor Alicia Landry, she makes the material fun. She’s new this year, but she has really made her presence known, and it’s great to have her in our department.”

Major: Nutrition

“I like having Biology with professor Aeden Custer.

He is funny and tries to include us in the course and not just lecture.”

Major: Biology

Freshman Robert Barker

Freshman Charles Milam

“I like my Psychology course with Jennifer Brinegar. Her teaching is really in-depth and fun.”

Major: KPED

“I like my Biology course with Ben Waggoner. He is an excellent teacher and I find that I pay attention in this class more than I expected.”

Major: Accounting

NATIONAL HAZING PREVENTION WEEK

photo by Makenzie Evans

Freshman Becca Alexander places a handprint on a banner saying “Power With Not Power Over” on Sept. 25 outside the Student Center.

The banner was a project done by Sigma Sigma Sigma sorority as a part of National Hazing Prevention Week.

Career: Authors: Foreman shares negative aspects of modern, opinion-based media 4 Continued from page 4 some radio reporters who would swap news,” Foreman said.

“Today’s social medias are all about opinion; everybody has opinions. As a journalist, I am conditioned not to express my condition on controversy. I don’t think that someone practicing journalism should allow their self to express their opinions through those outlets.”

Foreman has published a textbook filled with his knowledge and experience with ethical situations.

“The Ethical Journalist: Making Responsible Decisions in the Pursuit of News” explores critical issues and ethical questions and provides practices the modern journalist should use in writing and reporting.

While at UCA, Foreman lectured as an artist in residence Sept. 23 and 24 and visited several journalism classes to discuss the relevance of journalism and its future.

Allen discusses fair’s organic growth; began with column

in newspaper; 22 authors registered for this year’s event 4 Continued from page 4 through Twitter,” Fayman said.

“I’ve been trying the last couple weeks to try something new.

This is part of it.”

Adult Services and Reference Librarian Nancy Allen said the Author’s Fair is experiencing exponential growth.

“I think we started with 10 authors,” she said. “We had 22

ArtsFest:

register for this event. My goal is to have up to 50 authors and fill this library.”

Allen said the Author’s Fair has developed throughout the years with different authors and genres.

“The first time I did an Author’s Fair, I put an article in the local paper and asked for

people to register,” Allen said.

“I’ve kept an ongoing list and, as people have learned about the Author’s Fair, they’ve gotten in touch with me. So it’s just sort of growing organically.”

The Faulkner County Library continues to offer events throughout the year, which can be found on its online calendar.

Festival events continue throughout week with tours,

exhibits, hands-on activities; car donated for community members to paint 4 Continued from page 4 Oct. 3, boasts more popular events.

There will be hands-on activities in Simon Park from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., performances at the Kris Allen stage from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. and various events throughout the day.

These events include Blackbird Academy of Arts’ “Open Nest,” Historic Conway Architecture walking tours, Conway Schools Art Exhibit in the American Management Corp. lobby,

Art Market Place Vendors at Simon Park, Light of the Night hands-on activities and a Conway film festival at the District Court Building.

There will also be a car, donated by Crain Automotive, which will be painted by community members at Simon Park.

ArtsFest events and are free unless otherwise specified. The city of Conway is encouraged to participate in the festival and

help support its local businesses, schools and community.

ArtsFest is organized and displayed by the Conway Alliance for the Arts (CAFTA), its board members and community volunteers. CAFTA aims to promote art in Conway and central Arkansas, as well as unify the artists. Information about the times and days of all Artsfest events can be found online at artsinconway.org.

Entertainment

6

September 30, 2015

New This Week Movies

Sept. 30 - The Walk (PG), directed

by Davis Guggenheim, starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Ben Kingsley, Charlotte Le Bon and Ben Schwartz.

October 2- The Martian (PG-13), directed by Ridley Scott, staring Matt Damon, Jessica Chastain, Kristen Wiig, Jeff Daniels and Michael Peña.

October 2 - Freeheld (PG-13), directed

by Peter Sollett, starring Ellen Page, Steve Carell, Julianne Moore, Michael Shannon and Josh Charles.

October 2 - He Named Me Malala (PG-13), directed by Ryan Fleck and Anna Boden, starring Ryan Reynolds and Analeigh Tipton.

Music October 2— V - Wavves October 2— Fools - Wild Child October 2 — In Dream - Editors October 2 —Future Nostalgia - The Sheepdogs October 2 —Self Portrait - Loma Prieta October 2 —New Bermuda - Deafhaven October 2 —Unbreakable- Janet Jackson

Netflix Sept. 30—Midnight’s Children (2012), directed by Deepa Mehta, starring Rajat Kapoor, Vansh Bhardwaj, Anupam Kher and Neha Mahajan.

October 2—Anjelah Johnson: Not Fancy, directed by Jay Karas, starring Anjelah Johnson-Reyes.

Visionary director uses drones to produce captivating visuals of Mt. Everest; breathtakingly stellar film born

by Joe Kramer News Editor

Gargantuan.

This word accurately describes not only Everest the mountain but also the film recently released by director Baltasar Kormákur in his latest cinematic venture “Everest.”

In recent years, disaster movies have become a cliché. The audience knows what is going to happen well before the end of the movie.

There are often special effects galore, as well as beautiful actors and actresses that force the audience to empathize.

This sub-genre of film also features bad acting and loose plot lines often unfounded in reality.

This reality is what was hanging over the heads of Kormákur and his cast, which includes Keira Knightly and Jake Gyllenhaal.

Despite this reality, the film came off beautifully. Honestly, this is the best disaster drama film without the aid of zombies I’ve seen in a long time.

This film excelled because of its sense of reality. That overwhelming feeling of inclusion in the situation—partially due to it being shot in 3D—and a visceral stress accompanies you through every scene.

The story follows mountaineer Rob Hall (played by Jason Clarke) as he leads an expedition toward the summit of Mount Everest, the highest point on Earth.

When an unexpected storm catches the climbers on the mountain, they are challenged by the harshest conditions imaginable.

This movie presents the true story of climbers who achieved one of the greatest feats imaginable, only to find themselves further challenged by Mother Nature. It is a tooth-and-nail fight to make

phtos curtosy of hdwallpapersimages.com and movieinsider.com

(Above) Members of the group are adjusting to the new climate before beginning the trek up Mt. Everest. (Bottom) Adrenaline rises as the group cross a delicate bridge in tough climate conditions. it down the mountain before time runs out.

Before diving into the story line and the performances, let’s dive into the cinematography.

One thing that makes a strong disaster film is destruction: visible destruction.

We see variants of this in many

films.

Most are computer-generated imagery and are easily separated from reality. But in “Everest,” Kormakur spared nothing to make this film as real as possible.

He worked in the mountains, shooting with drones for amazing aerial shots.

He took his most high definition cameras to get massive shots of some of the most beautiful Nepalese scenery and, by working so hard in some of the worst conditions, was able to pull a diamond from the usual CGI rough.

Another bonus of Kormakur’s

hard work was the conditions that he put subjects onto his actors.

When you take actors such as Gyllenhaal and Clarke and put them in a position where acting doesn’t have the opportunity to cross their minds, you get stellar performances.

You never truly meet all of the characters. There is never enough time for that.

There are tidbits of the characters’ lives left behind for us to munch on as we watch their realities unfold.

Some are hated, others are loved and some are just plain respected.

This is the “realness” that accompanies a borderline documentary film.

That is the key to keeping the audience members in their seats and their eyes on the screen.

Each character plays his part to the point where you really feel for him.

You know some of his dreams, you learn his motivations and, by doing so, you form brief connections.

That kind of viewer-actor interaction is key to make a film like this carry the emotional weight a story like this deserves.

This intense connection with the characters and the environment is what makes this film a truly triumphant work.

It was undoubtedly on par with director Alfonso Cuarón’s “Gravity,” which received many Oscar nominations with great performances from Sandra Bullock and George Clooney.

Even without all the glossy shine of a galactic setting, you still feel the weight of nature and the awe-inspiring fear that our very own Mother Earth can produce.

Simply put, it is an engrossing film.

“Everest” is showing at Cinemark Theater in Conway and is rated PG-13 for intense peril and disturbing images.

‘HONEYMOON’

New Lana Del Rey album proves perfect for heartbroken, hopeless

by Calli Morrison Online Editor

Lana Del Rey’s new album “Honeymoon” is another beautiful expression of her perpetual artistic talent.

The album is an experience in itself, with Lana taking you on a ride from “Honeymoon” to “Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood”, captivating you until the end.

Her previous albums, “Ultraviolence” and “Born To Die,” feature a dark love story that “Honeymoon” continues.

She starts her album with the lyrics “We both know that it’s not fashionable to love me, but you don’t go cause truly there’s nobody

for you but me” in “Honeymoon,” pointing to the tragedy that surrounds her love life.

“You’re cold as ice, baby, but when you’re nice, baby, it’s so amazing in every way,” from “Freak” and countless other lyrics continually communicate her infatuation, yet heartbreak from tough characters.

Her songs border a line between dreaming about love and mourning its loss.

Lana lives in the dream world, with previous albums sharing the same grunge, cinematic feel that makes you question her line between dream and reality.

Beyond the intensely passionate lyrics, there are others that point to a darker side of her

love life, which is where reality hangs.

She says in “The Blackest Day:” “Getting darker and darker, looking for love in all the wrong places.”

As in most of her music, her songs in “Honeymoon” hold a counter-culture edge by proposing her love as her religion, being a freak in California and other lyrics that would make traditional thinkers turn their heads.

She also holds a loose grip on life, as shown in her songs “24” and in her lyrics “Nothing gold can stay like love or lemonade or sun or summer days; it’s all a game to me anyway” in “Music To Watch Boys To.” Other songs from the album

include “Terrence Loves You,” “God Knows I Tried,” “High By The Beach,” “Art Deco,” “Burnt Notion (Interlude),” “Religion,” “Salvatore” and “Swan Song.”

Like a true artist, Lana Del Rey is a performer with a style distinct from any other artist in the industry.

She has never taken to the current trends with her albums, instead setting her own with the originality of her music, doomed to make any listener acknowledge the intense passion and talent in her voice and style.

She continually holds true to her image, as her music is autobiographical and a creative outlet.

Each song holds its own

original emotional element with lyrics that will help you relate to times in your life when you have felt similarly.

Her artistic influence has created her as an iconic brand, with others using her as an adjective to describe things as being “so Lana Del Rey.” This influence, if embodied, is so strong that it could make even the most logical person write poetry at sunset and the least musically inclined person perform violin symphonies.

While her music holds complete originality, she draws from successful artists from each music genre, such as Elvis Presley, Frank Sinatra and Amy Winehouse.

Some critics have been speaking of the album’s “lack of glam” compared to previous albums.

Although it does have slower yet similar style of songs that could initially provide distaste, Lana Del Rey as an artist has always featured distinct thematic elements to each of her albums.

The hopeless, heartbroken, careless feel is intentional.

This album is one that would be necessary to listen to while heartbroken and wandering the beach or cruising the roads of some West Coast highway.

Lana Del Rey’s album was released Sep. 18 and can be found on iTunes and Spotify.

MINI-SERIES

‘Heroes Reborn’ offers outlet for original series junkies, lacks character chemistry

by Kendra Beattie Opinion Editor

Die-hard “Heroes” fans were finally eased from a five-year withdrawal Sept. 24 when the first two episodes of the 13-episode miniseries “Heroes Reborn” aired.

“Heroes Reborn” is a follow-up series of the popular four-season show “Heroes” that was canceled in 2010, much to the surprise and disdain of its many fans.

While the sequel will never have the same suspenseful intrigue and character development that

makes you latch on and fall in love, it still had the “Heroes” feel to it and wrapped you up in the comfy blanket of that same, ethereal theme music.

The premiere included the first two episodes of the series. Each one was fast-paced, cramming in as much information as possible to account for the five-year gap.

It begins with a familiar face, Noah Bennet (Jack Coleman), a major character in “Heroes,” enjoying a world where “evos” (evolved humans) attempt to out themselves and openly integrate into society, something unheard of in the previous show.

The pride rally/unity gathering

1. MONDAY: BLEH

Five Days of the Week in College List compiled by Julia Kramer

The harsh sunlight seeps through your blinds and onto your face. Here it is again, Monday morning. Another long week of class, avoided homework, lack of sleep and going to work every other night has arrived. You stumble out of bed, throw on the first articles of clothing you can reach, contemplate your life while brushing your teeth and walk out your apartment door in a morning fog, ruling out any chance of breakfast or coffee.

of regular humans and evos is abruptly ended by an explosion, which later is blamed on supposed evo-terrorist Mohinder Suresh (Sendhil Ramamurthy), another big character from the original series.

While Suresh is only featured in a photograph on the show and it is unsure whether he will appear physically, fans will undoubtedly be holding their breath for even a small cameo.

Flashing forward to a year post-attack, evos are now feared and hated, living underground or trying to hide their powers.

A few main characters begin to pop up, each with different

2. TUESDAY: PROGRESS After spending Monday in a haze of denial and irritation from a freshly packed schedule, you are determined to be at least somewhat functional today.

The snooze button is only hit twice, your classmates see you in something other than careless clothing and you feel like you can tackle the day. After class, you go home and decide to start homework before going to work, but give into Netflix instead and decide the homework can be done later, right?

powers than the previous heroes, but we also meet the villains who are hunting them down.

The new characters are definitely interesting, and the audience is only given brief glimpses of their lives and powers shrouded in mystery in the typical, suspense-building “Heroes” fashion, but the characters ultimately lacked a personal element that first drew me into the show.

Seeing the different abilities is always entertaining, and the technical elements are amazing.

The cinematography is striking, the visual effects are fluid and the music builds the suspense

3. WEDNESDAY : HUMP DAY

You wake up two hours before your first class to knock out the homework you pushed to the side the day before and knock it out in enough time to speed walk from the parking lot, up to the third floor of Irby (or wherever you may be) and slide into a seat right as the clock hand hits the hour. The day passes in a sluggish manner, and all your energy focuses on what you want to get for dinner and the beers you’ll have after clocking out of work.

and tension in an almost perfect way, but there was still something lacking in the chemistry between characters.

Perhaps it was that no matter how interesting they were, they weren’t the characters I wanted to see.

Nevertheless, the show’s writers kept the teasing, mysterious style that made me love the original series.

No matter how much information they give about the characters in an episode, there are numerous hints to something more.

The second episode ends in a way that suggests the plot for the

4. THURSDAY: SO CLOSE Moderately hungover, you roll out of bed and stumble to your fridge to chug some water, maybe grab a Pop-Tart and make your way to campus. You can tell your demeanor reflects the high level of disdain you feel toward the remaining responsibilities left for the week. Skipping your next class and snagging missed notes later seems like a grand idea, and you decide to nap before starting some homework to feel like a decent student before pushing it aside for drinks again.

entire series, and it was intriguing enough to keep me on edge until next Thursday.

So, whether you think “Heroes” ended strong enough to satisfy you, or even if you think you can’t stand to see it blasphemed by a sequel, it is still worth a watch for the new powers and villains that the new series introduces.

The mystery, magic and conflict surrounding the concept of further human evolution is still strong in the new show, and it satisfies that interest more than it downplays the original show.

“Heroes Reborn” airs NBC on Thursdays at 7 p.m.

5. FRIDAY: FINALLY Definitely hungover, you still wake up in plenty of time to get to class in time and get through the day in an almost effortless way. Everyone around you seems to be in a better mood due to the quickly approaching weekend, assignments that you thought were going to definitely be late or MIA somehow get finished in just enough time and, before you know it, the walk to your car is in progress and all you can focus on is what to do before next Monday comes and it all starts again.

Sports

7

September 30, 2015

Editor’s Corner

Women’s tennis finishes fall schedule strong on court The UCA Women’s tennis team finished strong when closing out its fall schedule last weekend in its second tournament of the fall.

The team faced stiff competition hosting Arkansas State, Harding and Louisiana-Monroe, winning two flight matches and the doubles competition.

Freshman Marli Van Heerden won the second flight while freshman Rada Manataweewat won the third flight going undefeated.

Freshman Qi’Li Ma won the consolation bracket in the first flight.

Qi’Li Ma had been fighting through an injury, but still finished impressively, defeating her final two opponents.

Heerden battled to find her second win. She then returned straight to her doubles match alongside partner Xiang. The pair proved to be resilient, winning the doubles crown.

Second season head coach Casey Wharton was confident with the team’s ability to fight through multiple injuries and as the team proved that it was loaded with talent throughout the lineup.

The team had to play without No. 1 singles player Nataly Yoo, who is suffering from a knee injury and Krizia Buck, who is still on the sidelines after her shoulder surgery in the spring.

The tournament this past weekend ended the fall schedule for the Sugar Bears.

The Sugar Bears will open their spring schedule Jan. 29 at Jonesboro against Arkansas State.

The team is pleased with where it is headed going into its spring schedule, even though it has been riddled with obstacles.

The coach and team members understand this is the nature of competition and are equipped for the challenge thanks to a deep talented roster.

Upcoming games Football

Oct. 3rd vs. Abilene Christian University at Conway 6 p.m.

Volleyball

Oct. 1st vs. New Orleans at Conway 7 p.m.

Oct. 3rd vs.

Southeastern Louisiana University at Conway 12 p.m.

Men’s Soccer

Oct. 3rd vs. Southern Illinois University at 7 p.m.

Football defeats NSU, wins first conference game 49-21

by Kelsey Williams Sports Editor

The UCA football team (1-2, 1-0) took to the road Saturday night for its first Southland Conference opponent Northwestern State University.

The Bears defeated the Demons 49-21 at Turpin Stadium.

The Bears were able to score more points in the first half of the game then they had in their previous two games against Samford University and Oklahoma State University in front of a crowd of 10,725.

The Bears came out strong, with freshman punter Matt Cummings kicking a 47-yard field goal to put the Bears up 3-0 within the first five minutes of the game.

Starting senior quarterback Taylor Reed went down with a shoulder injury in the first quarter of the game during a 54-yard run where he was tackled at the 1 yard line.

“The offensive line blocked it up great and I had a lane, but when I hit the ground I could tell I came down on it hard,” Reed said.

The offensive line didn’t

new quarterback as the Bears lead continued to grow.

“Hayden is one of the biggest leaders on our team,” Reed said.

by Joe Kramer News Editor

UCA men’s soccer team (1-7) made its way north to St. Louis to take on the No. 20 ranked Saint Louis University Billikens for their homecoming crowd of over 5,000. Despite the massive crowd and loud fans. The Bears stood unfazed at the fought against the Billikens, ending in a 3-1 loss.

Junior defender Jordan Bates said the environment was loud and unlike anything the Bears had played in yet this season but that the Bears hung with SLU until the end.

“We knew we were facing a really good team, and we tried to prepare the best tactics to beat SLU,” Bates said. “We had some players really step up for that game.”

The Billikens (4-2) came out strong, getting on the board in the 17th minute when freshman forward Anthony Brown and senior midfielder David Graydon hooked up with redshirt sophomore midfielder Max Karcher, who fielded the ball and tapped it in from close to give SLU a 1-0 lead.

The Billikens added another goal in the 28th minute when junior midfielder Joe Saad lofted a cross into the box for junior forward Jair Minors, who blasted a shot from 12 yards out past UCA junior goalkeeper Harrison Veith to push SLU’s lead to 2-0.

UCA clawed its way back in the 36th minute. Junior forward Wes Carson gathered the ball and got to the outside of SLU’s box before firing from 20 yards out.

Carson snuck the ball just inside the left goalpost for his fifth goal of the season, cutting the

Billiken lead to 2-1.

The match then stood at a offensive standstill until the 57th minute, when Saad again found Minors across the pitch, volleying in the cross from 10 yards out into the net to extend the SLU lead to 3-1.

Despite the loss, Bates stressed that for the Bears to win, they will have to keep up their drive and mental sharpness for the entire match.

“We need to be more mentally sharp for the entire game,” he said. “We’re just trying to recover and get healthy as fast as we can so we can beat Memphis.”

On the night, the Bears got shots on goal from Carson, Bates and junior midfielder Alejandro Moquete.

Veith had an impressive match, making nine saves.

Sophomore defender Tyler Ridener said the match against SLU was a great way to get the team ready for the rest of its quickly approaching conference matches.

“It was definitely a fun game to play in with a crazy atmosphere, as well,” Ridener said. “Most of our guys haven’t played in such an environment, and I was impressed with how they reacted to it.”

Despite the game’s outcome, Ridener said the team was able to take away something from its efforts.

“We didn’t get the result we wanted, but we definitely saw improvement for the team as we move down the road and start conference games,” Ridener said.

Carson said the Bears fought a tough opponent.

See Downed - page 8

“He’s proven that in practice and the off season, so when I left the game we didn’t miss a beat on offense. The guys

See Football - page 8

H E AT I N G U P

Men’s soccer downed

by St. Louis Billikens

photo by Makenzie Evans

UCA sophomores Stacia Carroll (21) and Dayna Mounie (9) attempt a shot on goal with a header. The Bears defeated the Lamar University Cardinals 6-1 on Sept. 27.

Women earn two conference wins

by Jared L. Holt Associate Editor

UCA’s women’s soccer team recovered from its Sept. 18 2-1 loss against Sam Houston University, bringing home two boastful wins Sept. 25 and 27.

The UCA Bears (2-1-0) left victorious during their matches against the McNeese State Cowgirls (0-2-0) on Friday and the Lamar University Cardinals (2-1-0) on Sunday, leaving the pitch with their first set of Southland Conference wins.

The Bears won Friday’s match against the Cowgirls in a double overtime.

In the first half, the Bears placed three shots on goal, but failed to land a kick until freshman midfielder Dayna Mounie dribbled across the box and sank a shot from the 20. The goal was her second of the season.

UCA defended Mounie’s point for five shots against the goal. The clock wound down and victory appeared on the horizon.

But at the 84th minute, McNeese State junior forward Kayla Goedicke fired a shot that her teammate sophomore midfielder Gabi D’Alesandro assisted into the net for a goal

against UCA. The Bears were unable to answer the goal before time expired, and the game transitioned into overtime.

Officials tacked 10 minutes to the clock, but neither team was able to score before the end of the first overtime round. A second round began.

At the 104:43 mark, Bears’ freshman forward Camille Bassett, assisted by junior midfielder Shelby Wilson, landed a goal against the Cowgirls, ending the match in a 2-1 victory. The shot was Bassett’s third goal of the season.

After the double overtime victory Friday night, the Bears returned to the field to dominate the Cardinals on Sunday afternoon.

Bassett, assisted by sophomore middle Alex Moore, scored early by tucking the ball in with a corner shot at the 7:24 minute mark.

Just over a minute later, Cardinals sophomore defender Marie Lund answered the point by launching the ball into the box on a free quick, where it was headed in by sophomore midfielder M.J. Eckart.

The game was tied until UCA freshman forward Ashley Smith scored at the 28:19 minute mark,

setting the Bears up at 2-1.

After the half, the Bears returned to score two sets of rapid-fire goals against the Cardinals, with both Bassett and Moore – assisted by Smith – putting shots in between the 52-minute and the 54-minute marks.

In the 71st minute, Mounie collected a deflection and scored a point from the five. Just under five minutes after, freshman midfielder Autum Schwartz landed her first goal with an assist from Mounie.

“We really didn’t do much different [Sunday], except for giving ourselves a better chance to put the ball on goal,” coach Jeremy Bishop told UCASports.com. “It seems like all season long we’ve beaten the player on the outside and played the long cross in, but not gotten a shot out of it. But [Sunday] we did a good job getting to the end line, playing the cross in, but now they have to make a save because we able to get closer to the goal through either one more pass or one more dribble.”

The Bears will be back in action 7 p.m. Oct. 7 against the University of Incarnate Word in San Antonio, Texas.

V I C TO RY

Volleyball prevails over Abilene Christian, Incarnate Word

by Joe Kramer

Oct. 2nd vs. University of Incarnate Word at Edwardsville, Illinois at 7 p.m.

UCA’s volleyball team (6-9) had a successful weekend, beating the Abilene Christian University Wildcats and the Incarnate Word University Cardinals to bring the Sugar Bears to a four-game winning streak.

The Sugar Bears returned to Southland Conference play Sept. 24, taking on the Wildcats at home. UCA rallied after losing the first set, taking the next three sets to win the match 3-1.

Abilene Christian (0-14, 0-1 SLC) and the Sugar Bears went back and forth throughout the second set, but UCA senior outside hitter Heather Schnars contributed eight kills, evening the match at 1-1 with a 26-24 victory for the set.

Despite a tough match, senior setter Amy South was pleased with the team’s overall performance.

“With a slow start against ACU,

Oct. 3rd at University of Arkansas Chilli Pepper Invitational at 10:20 a.m.

appear fazed as redshirt sophomore Hayden Hildebrand propelled into the quarterback position, stepping up to protect its

LOSS

Women’s Soccer

Men’s and Women’s Cross Country

photo courtesy of ucasports.com

Senior wide receiver Blake Veasley rushes the ball through for a touchdown in the Bears’ first conference game on Sept. 26. The Bears defeated the Northwestern State University Demons 49-21.

look up to him and he did a great job,” Hildebrand completed 12 of 16 passes for 201 yards and three touchdowns in his first significant game.

“We started off with positive plays on first downs, in the opening drives” Reed said. “I thought we executed well and took what the defense gave us, which lead to manageable third downs.”

Sophomore runningback Dominque Thomas led the Bears with 98 rushing yards, while senior runningback Blake Veasley ran for a season-high 267 yards.

Veasley was able to convert on two consecutive drives from one and three yards.

Senior wide receiver Blake Gardner and junior wide receiver Jacquez McMillan both had their first career touchdown receptions.

In the first 30 minutes of the game, the Bears were able to score two rushing touchdowns and two field goals, as well as scoring on four other occasions. At halftime the Bears led the Demons 28-7.

News Editor

photo courtesy of ucasports.comr

Freshman middle blocker Nicole Peters celebrates the Bears’ 3-1 win over Abilene Christian University Sept. 24 in Conway. we dropped the first game, but found our rhythm and did what we came to do and took care of them,” South said. “They put up a strong

block, which gave our offense some trouble, but we found ways around it and finished with the ‘W,’ which gave us momentum for

Saturday.”

In the second set, the Sugar Bears forced seven attack errors and five service errors, while

committing three total errors of their own, and cruising to a 25-12 win and a 2-1 lead in the match.

The Sugar Bears managed to control the fourth set too, out-hitting and out-blocking Abilene Christian to take the set 25-17, winning the match 3-1.

Schnars led the Sugar Bears with a match-high 22 kills, while sophomore right-side hitter Megan Nash put up 12 kills and South dished out a match-high 41 assists.

Freshman middle blocker Nicole Peters had a good showing in her first start, tallying six kills and three blocks.

Defensively, freshman defensive specialist Allie Kemp had a match-high 19 digs, and fellow freshman middle blocker Samantha Anderson picked up four blocks.

See Volleyball - page 8

September 30, 2015

ucaecho.net

SPORTS

Football:

RUNNING

Red zone conversions help lead the Bears to their first conference win over Demons 4 Continued from page 7 The Bears held the Demons scoreless until the 13th minute of the 2nd quarter where Northwestern’s sophomore Quaterback J.D Almond threw a 6-yard touchdown pass to senior wide receiver Ed Eagan.

“Northwestern State is a solid team, I think this game is a result of the work we put in during the bye week and the improvements made since week 1,” senior defensive end Jonathan Woodard said. “Specifically, our defensive line did a great job of making negative plays, changing the line of scrimmage and pressuring the quarterback” At the beginning of the second

photo courtesy of Bradley Widding via Facebook

quarter, senior defensive back Bobby Watkins intercepted a pass

by Northwestern’s J.D. Watkins in the red zone.

The Bears were able to put another 21 points on the board in the second half, with the help of McMillan, Gardner and junior wide receiver Jatavious Wilson.

Northwestern State (0-4,0-2) was left scoreless in the first quarter and was only able to score a single touchdown in each other quarter.

UCA held Northwestern to 71 rushing yards, while UCA had 267 yards. The Bears were able to convert on four of five chances in the red zone.

Redshirt sophomore defensive back George Odum led the Bears with 11 tackles and 1.5 tackles for a loss.

“We are hoping to build upon our success against the Demons,” Woodard said. “Our team will definitely play with a chip on our shoulder this week and we will play with that attitude throughout the week in practice.

Defensively, we must continue to stop the run and limit big plays.”

The Bears play their home opener against Abilene Christian University at Estes Stadium against the Huskies at 6 p.m.

Oct. 30.

Volleyball:

Kills from Schnars, Anderson cement 25-23 straight-set victory in week’s matches 4 Continued from page 7

photo via @sophiejune Instagram

The UCA women’s cross country team gathers before competing in the Rhodes College Invitational on Sept. 26 in Memphis, Tennessee.

Cross Country splits team for two meets

by Misti Hollenbaugh Editor

The UCA men’s and women’s cross country teams split their ranks over the weekend, sending groups to participate at the Texas A&M Invitational in College Station, Texas, and at the Rhodes Invitational in Memphis, Tennessee, both on Sept. 26.

At Texas A&M, the men’s team finished 11th and the women’s team placed 14th, both out of 16 teams.

At the Rhodes Invitational, the men’s team finished at sixth place of 25 teams, while the women ‘s team finished in 12th of 22 teams.

Senior Ryan Davidson said both groups ran well.

“We had a really hard week of training, so to be able to have both groups turn in good times was great to see,” he said.

Davidson was among the group that headed to Texas A&M. “We saw a lot of the top teams from both our conference and our regional, so we really got to see where we were compared to some other guys we will see later in the season,” Davidson said. “I think we really took advantage of running as a group through the first few miles, which helped us and will help us again in future meets.”

For the women’s team, the top six women and three freshmen from Texas went to the Texas A&M Invitational, while the rest of the team went to the Rhodes Invitational in Memphis. Senior Abbie Linna was among the women heading to Texas A&M. Linna said despite the team

placing 14th, many of the women set personal best times.

“Team wise, we didn’t place as high as we hoped because we were racing some of the fastest teams in the South, but individually everyone ran well,” Linna said.

“Many personal best times were set, including mine.”

Linna said setting her new personal record of 23:55.3 felt great. “[It was] extremely hard though because we are used to racing a 5K (3.14 miles), and [at the meet] we raced a 6K (3.73 miles),” Linna said. “That extra kilometer really hurts.”

Junior Bridgette Caruthers said Texas A&M has a really fast course, so the weekend’s race was a good preview of what the team will be running at regionals.

“We were competing against some pretty big name schools and we were running at our championship distance, which is a 6K,” Caruthers said.

The Texas A&M Invitational began at 9 a.m. with the temperatures resting in the 70s, a hot and sunny morning with no breeze.

For the men’s 8K course, sophomore Julien Jeandree finished at 60th place with a time of 25:04.9. Sophomore Preston Borg came in at 67th (25:11.3), while freshman Markus Schweikert finished at 74th (25:16.2) and senior Josh Quiroga finished at 75th (25:16.4).

For the women’s 6K course, Caruthers placed 42nd with a time of 21:49.5. Sophomore Abigail Topham finished 73rd (22:36.7), freshman Taylor Dunn finished

82nd (22:46.7), junior Hannah Holstein finished 99th (23:15.4) and freshman Sara Shaw finished 102nd (23:20.3).

At the Rhodes Invitational in Memphis, freshman Austin Salazar finished sixth overall with a time of 26:16.70. Junior Andrew Simpson came in at 24th (26:48.60), with sophomore Noah Freeman at 30th (27:01.70).

Senior Jacob Sanders placed 49th (27:43.00), with freshman Brock Collins at 58th (27:57.30) and sophomore Woodrow Murray at 79th (28:39.40).

For the women, sophomore Layne Sargeson placed 32nd (24:03.76), senior Sophie Clauss placed 70th (25:20.86) and sophomore Madison Sellars placed 79th (25:39.22). Freshman Caroline Daniels finished at 96th (26:11.59) and senior Jordan James finished at 131st (27:53.50).

To prepare for upcoming meets, Linna said the team would work on its endurance.

“We will work really hard to have a tighter pack with closer times,” she said. “That will help our top six girls beat the team we hope to beat.”

Linna said right now the team to beat is McNeese State.

“If we can beat them, we will place better in our conference,” she said.

Caruthers said the team would also continue to work on sharpening its speed for conference and regionals.

UCA’s cross country teams will be back in action Oct. 3, traveling to the University of Arkansas to compete in the Chili Pepper Invitational.

MENTAL TOUGHNESS

The Sugar Bears came out hot against Incarnate Word on Sept. 26, hitting .430 and earning the win 3-0.

Although the Sugar Bears were out-hit in the first set, they were able to take advantage of a pair of service aces and two blocks to take the first set 25-18.

In the second set, Incarnate Word jumped out to a 5-2 lead, but UCA rebounded, tying the match at 10-10.

UCA powered through the rest of the set, ultimately taking it 25-20.

In the third set, UCA was forced to take a timeout after UIW broke out to an 8-4 lead.

The Cardinals pushed their lead to 10-5 before UCA evened the score at 10-10. Both squads traded points back and forth until UIW went on a 4-0 run to take a 20-17 lead and force another UCA timeout.

The Sugar Bears came back and were able to get a 5-1 run out of the break to force a timeout from the Cardinals, before kills from Schnars and Anderson and another ace from Schnars gave UCA the 25-23 win in the set.

The match’s back-and-forth pace proved to be comfortable for the Sugar Bears as they cinched their fourth consecutive win.

“We stayed pretty steady with IWU the entire match,” South said. “They were scrappy, but we were able to put the ball away at a very high percentage. It’s always good to sweep a team after a long week on your home court. That’ll help us carry some momentum into next week against some pretty tough teams.”

Schnars, once again, led the Sugar Bears with a match-high 19 kills, while Nash added 10 of her own and South dished out a match-high 39 assists.

Nash paced the UCA defense with three blocks, and South, Nash, Schnars, and senior defensive specialist Corri Hunt

photo courtesy of Bradley Widding via Facebook

Junior outside hitter Rachel Sharp and sophomore right side setter Megan Nash celebrate after their conference win over the weekend. each tallied five digs.

The Sugar Bears now face a week of home Southland Conference games at the Prince Center, starting with Luau Night against the Houston Baptist University Huskies at 7 p.m.

Sept. 29.

The Sugar Bears will then face the University of New Orleans Privateers at 7 p.m. Oct. 1 for its Dig Pink Match.

UCA players will wear pink during the game, while Dig Pink shirts will be sold and last year’s pink uniforms will be auctioned to benefit local breast cancer organizations.

The Sugar Bears will round out their week against the Southeastern Louisiana University Lions at 12 p.m.

Oct. 3.

Downed:

Men’s soccer looks ahead to conference play as it takes on Southern Illinois University on Oct. 3 4 Continued from page 7

photo courtesy of ucasports.com

Freshman Chulan Xiang defeated University of Lousiana Monroe Warhawks freshman Ioana Popescu 6-3, 4-6, 10-4. Xiang finished third in her bracket at the UCA Fall Tournament on Sept. 26 at the UCA tennis courts.

“It was a tough opponent considering they were Top 25 in the nation, however I think we learned a lot about ourselves and our capabilities,” Carson said.

Carson said although the team’s record is not what the team expected, the record is irrelevant.

“Our conference schedule is the only thing on our minds,” he said. “As long as we continue to improve, by the end of the season we will be lighting it up.”

The Bears return to the pitch at 7 p.m. Sept. 30, making the trip to Memphis, Tennessee, to take on the University of Memphis Tigers in their last pre-conference game.

The Bears will open Missouri Valley Conference play against the Southern Illinois University— Edwardsville Cougars at 7 p.m.

Oct. 3 in Edwardsville, Illinois.

Last season the Bears lost to Southern Illinois UniversityEdwardsville at home 3-1.

The Bears will return home the following week to face Oral Roberts University and Drake University.

photo courtesy of ucasports.com

Junior forward Wes Carson (11) celebrates with teammates after kicking a goal from 20 yards out. The Bears fell 3-1 to No. 20 St Louis Billikens on Sept. 26 in St. Louis, Missouri.