Spring organization fair, pg. 2
Flamenco performance, pg. 3
Child art prodigy, pg. 3
Wednesday, January 30, 2019
Volume 164, Issue 1
Crusaders clinch national title
Photos courtesy of David Morris
Left: Senior running back Markeith Miller evades the defense as he carries the ball in the Dec. 14 game against Mount Union in Shenandoah, Texas. Right: (L-R) After defeating Mount Union in the Stagg Bowl, the Cru celebrates with the NCAA Division III championship trophy. Free safety Robbie West, defensive end E’Monte Smith, wide receiver T.J. Josey, offensive lineman Lane Smith and running back Marquis Duncan hold up the championship trophy with pride. By Beau Kemp Staff Writer UMHB will be celebrating their second Division III National Championship win Thursday, Jan. 31, after their third consecutive trip to the Stagg Bowl. The UMHB Crusaders met the University of Mount Union from Alliance, Ohio for the second time on Dec. 14, and won back the trophy. The Crusaders spent the majority of the season unmatched by their opponents, winning the majority of their games by a landslide. The closest score gap of the season was Dec. 1’s playoff game against St. John’s University, where the Crusaders achieved a three-point win over the Johnnies. The largest score gap of the season was the very first game on Sept. 15, when the Cru traveled to Reading, Pennsylvania to defeat the Albright College Lions by 84 points.
Crusader fans cheer on their team from the stands. Despite their promising winning streak, the Crusaders still played every game with skill and spirit. This
UMHB’s 10-year transformation
Photos courtesy of Randy Yandell
Above: Construction is in progress on Bawcom Student Union in 2013. Left: The completed building and football field are pictured in 2014.
By Amy Lucas Staff Writer If you have been on the internet or social media recently, then you have probably noticed the new trend called the “10-Year Challenge.” People are posting a photo of themselves from ten years ago next to a current photo to show how their look and personal style have evolved over time. Just like the individuals in these personal compara-
tive photos, the UMHB campus has also seen many changes in the last 10 years. Since 2009, several new buildings have been added to campus to accommodate academics, athletics, visual and performing arts and residence life. There is also a new parking lot. The Baugh Center for the Visual Arts, named after Eula Mae and John Baugh, opened in the fall of 2012. The art department had outgrown its home in the basement of Presser Hall, creating a need for a new building solely for the visual arts. Located across the street from the Mabee Student Success Center, the Baugh Center for the Visual Arts has accommodations for all types of art, including studios for painting, drawing and ceramics, as well as computer design labs and an art gallery. See Transformation, pg. 2
was partially because Mount Union kept a zero on the Crusader scoreboard at the 2017 national championship. This year, UMHB was out to prove that they could defeat this strong rival. The desire to rise to the championship again and redeem themselves seemed to be great motivation for the Cru, as they started off the season with a huge win over Albright College. This motivation carried on throughout the season, and the team was undefeated going into the championship. However, achieving the national title would be no easy feat. The Crusaders were set for a rematch against the Mount Union Purple Raiders in Shenandoah. Michael Carpenter, a former running back for the Crusaders, felt that this year, UMHB had to prove themselves as they headed into the championship. See Champions, pg. 4
New sport and new coach arriving on campus By Emily Mahan Editor-in-Chief
UMHB has chosen its new coach for its new sport: Acrobatics and Tumbling. Head coach Courtney Pate will help build this new program, which will begin in the spring semester of 2020. Pate graduated from Belton High School and Baylor University, where she helped win two team national championships and three individual national championships in the sport. On Thursday, Jan. 3, Vice President for Athletics Randy Mann announced the addition of the sport. “We are very excited to add the sport of Acrobatics and Tumbling to our sport offerings,” he stated in a release on the UMHB website. “We have been studying this opportunity for a couple of years now, and the time is right for us to launch the Acrobatics and Tumbling program at UMHB. We are proud of our success as a department and look forward to having another competitive program. We are anxious to get a head coach in place to begin recruiting talented student-athletes with that goal in mind,” his statement reads. Because the sport is not recognized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the new team will compete as part of the National Collegiate Acrobatics and Tumbling Association (NCATA). According to their website, “the mission of the NCATA is to bring the sport of Acrobatics and Tumbling through NCAA emerging sport status to become a fully sanctioned NCAA championship sport.”
Currently, 26 universities compete as members of the NCATA. Other Texas colleges that participate in the organization are Baylor University, which has earned the NCATA national title for the past four years, and East Texas Baptist University. In an official news release on the NCATA website, NCATA President Dr. Renee Baumgartner said, “We are proud to share the news that the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor has added Acrobatics & Tumbling to their varsity sport offerings… UMHB is an excellent NCAA Division III institution that builds upon recent NCATA expansion in Texas. We are excited by their decision and commitment to new opportunities.” Freshman education major Alena Bellon is excited that there will be a new team that allows students to practice their tumbling skills without being a member of the cheerleading team. “I am excited for the team because the only way in the past to actually tumble was through the cheer team,” Bellon said. “This is a great opportunity for me to work on my skills without the cheer setting.” Senior psychology and criminal justice double major Kelly Taylor thinks that the new team will be a great addition to the school. “I would definitely participate if I had any coordination whatsoever and wasn’t graduating!” Taylor, who is excited to see the new team succeed, said. Students who are interested in joining the team can stay updated by checking out the Cru Athletics website or the NCATA Facebook page.