6-1-15 by USF Oracle

The Oracle MONDAY, JUNE 1, 2015 I VOL. 52 NO. 122

Inside this Issue

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The Index

News.................................................................1 Lifestyle......................................................4 Opinion.......................................................6

classifieds..............................................7 Crossword.........................................7 sports............................................................8

UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH FLORIDA

To Brighter Bounces and beyond

UP officer honored as hero

LI F E STYLE

Student DJ hits Tampa EDM scene. Page 4

Montage

S PORTS USF golf continues in NCAAs. BACK

UP Officer Richard Curry By Russell Nay A S S T .

USF student Casie Merza plans to jump into world records with pogo stick.

By Grace Hoyte N E W S

E D I T O R

Plenty of people want to break a world record; and a handful actually manage it. But few of those record holders are 20 years old and still in college. Casie Merza’s dedication to pogo jumping may soon land her in the Guinness Book of World Records. At the same time, it will benefit the research efforts at St. Joseph’s Children’s Hospital. The current record for consecutive jumps on a pogo stick, held by James Roumeliotis, is 70,271, according to the Guinness World Records web-

site. Merza plans to break that record Friday in Jacksonville, when she attends one of this year’s two Pogopalooza events. Once she decided to break the record, Merza sought out a collaboration with St. Joseph’s in order to raise money for them. “I wanted to do it for the kids, because I feel like they’re the best group. … They can’t really change their situation,” she said. “I feel like they would definitely get more out of it.” She was met with cooperation from the hospital, and her fundraiser was in the works soon thereafter. “(The hospital) set me up with the online donations website and helped me spread the word so I could get people aware of what’s going on,” she said. “They’ve just been really supportive, helping me wherever they can.” Her website, Casie.info, includes information on her goal, details of the event and

N E W S

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material for those interested in pogo jumping. Merza’s fundraiser is called To Brighter Bounces and she will be pogo jumping at the first of this year’s two Pogopalooza events, which are sponsored by Xpogo LLC, the company responsible for founding the official pogo jumping sport. “For the event that’s coming up in June … I’m going to be pogo-ing by myself to see if I can break the current record,” Merza said. “Then the idea is that I’ll break it and then in July … I’ll be pogo-ing against the current record holder.” This year’s second Pogopalooza will take place July 2 in Philadelphia, and she plans to attend and face off against the current record holder, as well as a pogo jumper from the UK who holds the current record from longest distance traveled on a pogo stick.

For University Police (UP) officer Richard Curry, it’s important for officers to maintain a certain set of values while serving their communities. “First and foremost, you need to have respect — not only for yourself but for your peers, the community you serve and everybody you come in contact with,” Curry said. “You need to … lead by example, (and) you need to be loyal, honest and have integrity.” The other Hillsborough County first responders who were also honored for their exemplary service to their communities at the 21st annual Our Heroes Luncheon at the Tampa Convention Center on Wednesday likely shared these values. Each year, the event planned by the Tampa Police Department recognizes and gives awards to

n See POGO on PAGE 3

n See HERO on PAGE 3

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Fraternity cycles through state, country By Christopher Collier A S S T .

N E W S

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Cycling 800 miles for charity may seem like an extreme undertaking, but it’s exactly what USF Pi Kappa Phi brother Chris Cain did last month for a philanthropic cycling event held each summer. Gear Up Florida is an event within Pi Kappa Phi’s larger philanthropic organization, The Ability Experience. There are two cycling events within the organization, Journey of Hope — a crosscountry cycling expedition from the West Coast to the District of Columbia — and Gear Up Florida, an 800-mile ride throughout the state that starts in Miami and ending in Tallahassee, which Cain participated in. As part of both events, cyclists go from city to city interacting with people from facilities and helping to improve their quality of life. “The physical part of it was obviously very hard,” Cain said. “I guess for me the hardest part was actually opening up and kind of seeing people with disabilities.” The goal is to foster awareness and compassion while raising money for those afflicted with a disability. Gear Up Florida raises between $60,000 and $80,000 annually. This year’s contribution totals $70,575, according to the organization’s website. Cain narrowly surpassed his contribution goal of $2,500 by raising a total sum of $2,550 at the end of the trek. “The reason I joined Pi Kappa Phi was because of the philanthropy,” Cain said. “I never really realize how in the dark I was. This trip really opened up my eyes to these

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CORRECTION An article in Thursday’s issue of The Oracle incorrectly stated the Florida Board of Governors discussed keeping in-state tuition the same for next year. Following the May 11th USF Board of Trustees (BOT) Academic and Campus Environment workgroup meeting, which discussed keeping in-state tuition constant for the next school year, the full BOT will meet Thursday to vote on a proposal that would hold tuition at approximately $6,400 for a student taking 30 credits next year.

Members of the Pi Kappa Phi fraternity bike around the country annually to raise funds for those with disabilities through The Ability Experience organization. SPECIAL TO THE ORACLE people.” Cain said the trip lasted 17 days with one day off in Tampa and another in Orlando. He said the heat was an obstacle but his biggest hurdle was overcoming a mental block to people living with disabilities. “Even though it was the hardest part of the trip, I think it was my favorite part too,” he said. “They really opened my eyes to these people and everything they’re going through and how well-off a lot of us are.” This year’s Gear Up Florida team included 23 cyclists, of whom Cain was the only student from USF to participate. USF alumnus Andrew Coet participated in the longer Journey of Hope campaign across the U.S. during his senior year. The event includes three separate courses: TransAmerica, which begins in Seattle; North, which begins

in San Francisco; and South, which Coet rode and begins in Los Angeles. “Probably one of the hardest days would’ve been when we were riding through the desert and it was just brutally hot,” Coet said. “We had to push through that. It was very different than what we are used to in Florida.” Journey of Hope earns a larger sum than Gear Up Florida with an average annual contribution of $500,000; and this year’s contribution was $525,161. Funds are usually gathered through online donations and fundraising drives the fraternity holds in the months leading up to the journey. Journey of Hope also commands a larger fleet of cyclists with an average of 100 fraternity members participating annually. “One of the days when we

were in Las Vegas, Nevada, we partnered with a group and went to Wet N’ Wild waterpark with them,” Coet said. “We each got paired up with a different individual. The individual I got paired up with had ‘cat cry’ syndrome — she was not auditory. I was there communicating through minimalistic sign language. It was really a rewarding experience.” According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, cat cry syndrome (also known as Cri-Du-Chat syndrome) is a genetic disorder that causes infants to have a high-pitched cry resembling a cat, hinders neurological development of the afflicted individual, and can cause the inability to hear or speak. The money from Journey of Hope and Gear Up Florida helps fund research grants. According to The Ability Experience website, 15 per-

Given BOT approval, the plans will go before the Board of Governors (BOG), which will also vote on the plan. Additionally, the BOT workgroup has proposed a cap on required fees, which include the Athletic, Activities & Service and Health fees, among others. Though, the fees are usually not finalized until later in the year. cent of the funds gained are used in administrative fees and 85 percent is applied to grants. The 2015 Journey of Hope teams, which will include USF student Noah Bolin, will ride through the months of June and July and are scheduled to arrive in the District of Columbia on Aug. 8.

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HERO

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public safety officers who have consistently gone above and beyond in their service to the public throughout their careers or who are deemed heroes for specific acts of valor. This year, the luncheon honored 16 Hillsborough County emergency workers from 11 different departments, including firefighters, paramedics and police officers. “I feel privileged and honored because I was recognized by not only my peers but the citizens and the community (of) Hillsborough County,” Curry said. “It is an honor to be able to be recognized for the things you do on a day-to-day basis.” Curry was honored for rescu-

POGO

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Merza said her family had always been supportive of her pogo jumping. “(They support me in) all the weird stuff,” she said. “If it sounds abnormal, they’re like, ‘You know what, let’s do it — sounds good.’” The young pogo-er’s father, Larry Merza, agreed he is supportive. “I back her with it. I guess it’s like a college thing to do, to try to break a world record,” he said. “I think it’s something to go for. She’s always liked extreme pogo-ing and the newer, more extreme pogo stick stuff. So when she saw that there was (Xpogo), this organization that was trying to break all of these world records and saw that the most consecutive pogo was set last year and what it was, she really thought she could beat it.” One problem Merza noticed was with accurately counting

ing a mother and her daughter from a submerged car with the help of two other UP officers last May. He said there was a significant amount of flooding at the time, and this obscured a drainage ditch between a USF parking lot and East Fletcher Avenue, causing the mother and daughter to become trapped in their car after inadvertently driving into the ditch. By the time Curry and the two other officers arrived, the inside of the car was already mostly submerged, and the doors were inoperable. “(The water) was … pretty much up to (the occupants’) chests,” he said. “I took off my duty belt and jumped inside the ditch to try to get them out of the vehicle. … We were able to pull them out through the windows, and we gave them some blankets and our jackets until the jumps. Her father said the bounces are usually tallied with a pedometer, but many pogo-ers struggle to stay within the parameters determined by the event. To remedy this problem, the pair decided to create their own special contraption. Using a raspberry pie and an arduino— two pieces of simple circuitry — they built a small device that detects the vibrations that Merza’s pogo stick will cause each time it bounces. The apparatus, her father said, is simple yet sophisticated. It has a number of features — including a bounce number display, an online component and a speed indicator that will indicate how long it will take her to reach the record. Merza will look to break the record Friday at Hemming Park in Jacksonville, where Pogopalooza is to take place. She is confident she can break the record after a life of pogo jumping for fun. “Just growing up on a pogo stick, I thought, ‘Hey, maybe I can beat the record,’” she said.

medical personnel arrived and were able to transport them to the hospital.” Curry and the other officers were awarded the UP Agency Valor Award for their actions, and Curry received a Crime in Progress Award for preventing the theft of copper wire from a TECO electric facility near USF that same year. He also received the UP’s 2014 Officer of the Year Award after being nominated by his peers and supervisors. UP Sgt. Drew Caffarelli said Curry is a model officer, as he not only gets along with his peers and does his job without complaint but is also great with the USF community. “I’ve known Officer Curry for about five years now,” Caffarelli said. “Personally, he exemplifies what we want here at the agency. He is a good

Casie Merza.

well-rounded officer. He’s level-headed, has good decision making abilities, and when he’s called to do the job, he does it very well and very professionally.” Curry, an officer with UP since August of 2009 and a member of the Florida National Guard, said he wanted to become a police officer to help people living in troubling situations due to his own experiences in his childhood. He said he and his parents moved from state to state when he was growing up in order to escape drug dealers his parents owed money to, and he often had to call the police to remove him from harmful situations. However, he still felt officers were unable to help him as a child. “I felt like … there wasn’t much (police officers) could

do,” he said. “I made the decision to become a police officer and make a difference in people’s lives and … give them the resources they need to succeed in life (because) I don’t feel like I was offered that as a child.” Currently a department Field Training Officer and a member of UP’s Tactical Response Program, Curry said he plans on continuing his career in law enforcement and one day becoming a patrol supervisor over the next 25 to 30 years. He said this position would allow him to further work with his community, as well as lead other officers in their service. “That’s my ultimate goal,” Curry said. “I just want to … help communities, help agencies and help citizens every day for the rest of my life.”

Lifestyle UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH FLORIDA

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USF student makes way in EDM scene

n More information about Christian Alexander

and samples of his music can be found at ChristianAlexanderMusic.com. PHOTO SPECIAL TO THE ORACLE

By Naim Naif C O R R E S P O N D E N T

At 10 p.m., a line formed outside of Ybor’s EDM nightclub, Amphitheatre. The line was jam-packed with people accessorized in light-up rave gear, cat ears and furry boots. By 10:30 p.m., the venue began to fill up with those eagerly waiting for the first DJ. As the night went on, more litup, dancing people filled the venue. The atmosphere had evolved from a show to a rave. By 1 a.m., the crowd had intensified and at 1:15 a.m., Christian Alexander took the stage. Confetti fell from the ceiling, and his set began. Alexander is a junior majoring in biomedical sciences at USF and also happens to be a DJ. During Memorial Day weekend, he shared a stage at the Sunset Music Festival with

EDM’s biggest names. Alexander was first introduced to the world of music mixing when his mother bought him a mixing controller for Christmas one year. He started off producing and then became an open format DJ. He said his father was also a DJ “back in the day,” so it’s possible the talented music-making gene was inherited. He began playing at birthday parties during high school. Eventually, he landed more recognizable gigs at bars and clubs that would later become his gateway to making a name. Most important, he said, he was a staple at CDB’s, just walking distance from USF on Fowler Avenue. Now on his rise to fame and his CDB’s days over, the 21-year-old started promoting for Legacy, a Tampa promo-

tion group, and was able to get his foot in the door by landing performances at nightclubs like The Drynk, AJA, and the Amphitheatre. Alexander

an oncologist, but with the way his music career is moving, he might have to push that idea to the side after graduation. “All I know right now is that music is my passion,” he said. “If it becomes a viable shot as a good career, then so be it.” Alexander said the journey wasn’t easy and it was mostly time consuming. He claims that most of the support he receives comes from his fraternity. Thomas Tarantola, one of Alexander’s brothers from Sigma Phi Epsilon, is glad the fraternity played a large role in Alexander’s support team. “We’ve always been there for him,” Tarantola said. “We go to all his events and even help him promote his work.” He said without Sigma Phi Epsilon, he wouldn’t be where

“All I know right now is that music is my passion, if it becomes a viable shot as a good career, then so be it” Christian Alexander USF student and DJ

said Amp offered him a more permanent spot, closing every Friday night. While his love for mixing music runs deep, but as a student, Alexander said the two careers can conflict. “I can’t imagine leaving USF without a degree,” he said. Alexander wants to become

he is today. His parents are also supportive, but like most parents they are worried about his future and constantly advise him to be cautious and not to make school a lesser priority. Johnny Ovalles, Alexander’s father, isn’t too worried about his son’s music conflicting with his school. “I was worried about him not doing well in school, but he’s been doing great,” Ovalles said. “He likes both of his passions and he seems to be up to the challenge.” Alexander understands that he’s going to need an alternate plan if the music fails him. He hopes that in the future he will be able to go back to medicine. But for right now, he’s just going with the flow with what makes him happy. “EDM doesn’t necessarily make me happy,” he says. “It’s doing what I love that makes me happy.”

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KINGSTON

NCAA

6-4, in Sunday’s elimination game. The Owls tacked on two more insurance runs, ending the Bulls’ season. USF never led in Saturday’s game against Florida and ultimately lost, 8-2. The Gators scored their first five runs on three homers. The Bulls found success in their first game, a 5-3 victory over the Owls behind ace Jimmy Herget (10-3), who allowed two earned runs over seven innings Friday. Senior Kyle Teaf and freshman Kevin Merrell drove in four of the Bulls’ runs with a combined 6-for-10 performance. Veteran players and blossoming talent have carried this team to a regional. USF Baseball will continue to evolve, but like Kingston said, the standard has been set.

with his team following suit. Correa’s birdies on holes 13, 16 and 17 in the final round kept USF from falling too far off the lead, as Koepka had back-to-back double bogeys on the back nine. Sophomore Rigel Fernandes joined in, striking three birdies of his own on the back nine, which he said was the tougher section. “I think the back nine is actually harder,” Fernandes said. “We just need to be playing better. I think it just gets down to crunch time on the back nine. I think we’ve gotten in some tough spots and we just had to respond and this team does that.” Although the Bulls traveled an hour and a half south,

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First year coach Mark Kingston led the Bulls to an NCAA regional for the first time since 2002. ORACLE PHOTO/ADAM MATHIEU

it was far from a road tournament. Friends and family, including Fernandes’ parents, who live in India and have not seen their son play all year, made the trip. As for the Bulls, they came into the tournament with the goal of making the top eight and moving on; now, they have their sights on a grander prize: a national championship. “Our team mindset right now is to win the golf tournament,” Fernandes said. “I think (Koepka) said it yesterday; we enjoy being here, but we’re here to win.” In order to accomplish that feat, USF must finish in the top eight in tomorrow’s 36-hole round before match play begins on Tuesday. From there, the field narrows to two teams who will face off in the championship round on Wednesday.

Opinion

UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH FLORIDA

the Oracle the University of South Florida’s student newspaper since 1966

Alex Rosenthal oracleeditor@gmail.com As technology is pushed into

the everyday lives of people, the Grace Hoyte amount of electricity replacing oraclenewsteam@gmail.com human interaction is a troubling

Sports Editor Vinnie Portell oraclesportseditor@gmail.com

Opinion Editor Isabelle Cavazos oracleopinion@gmail.com

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Advertising Sales Lauren Alford Rachel Carpenter Abby Pereira

The Oracle is published Monday through Thursday during the fall and spring semesters, and twice weekly, Monday and Thursday, during the summer. The Oracle allocates one free issue to each student. Additional copies are $.50 each and available at the Oracle office (SVC 0002).

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LGBT anti-discrimination Online courses don’t laws needed after signal end of lecture halls same-sex marriage case

Editor in Chief

News Editor

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issue, one now appearing in the education field. Yale economics professor Robert J. Shiller painted a future in a recent New York Times article which stated there is a need to craft a human teaching experience that will constantly be able to surpass what technology may offer. For Shiller, a big concern was tackling the reality that Yale had made his course on economics available to the public through the Internet, most recently on the website Coursera, which is a hub of more than 10 million people that can choose from over 1,000 courses offered by 119 schools. Yet, these professors should not be concerned about online courses as taking massive open online courses (MOOCs) does not grant an individual the same benefits of enrolling in an actual course, nor do they offer the same support system as the classroom. With courses offered from schools such as Princeton and Columbia, Coursera allows users to take free courses that have a syllabus similar to one a college student would receive on the first day of class. The payoff of completing a course is simply a statement of accomplishment. For Shiller, as stated in his column, there was a sense of absence of himself as professor now that his course can be taken digitally without the need for a classroom or himself lecturing in the front of the room, a future sounding as if Ray Bradbury had written it himself. The cofounder of Coursera, Daphne Koller, is excited by the prospect raised by her TED Talk, in which she stated MOOCs are

Adam Mathieu

Isabelle Cavazos

COLU M N I ST

growing and boasts that the most popular class, a social psychology course from Wesleyan University, has 259,969 students. While the hook may be amusing that one can take a course simultaneously with over 200,000 students, just how many of those students are on the same page becomes questionable. For Shiller, the answer was to simply update the course by adding what is practical for people and to keep his Coursera class alive by constantly tweaking it. However, making updates that are somehow more useful to students for the long haul seem pointless when 2012 completion rates stood at 7 percent according to MOOCs.com. Shiller and other professors should not worry about online courses or advancing technology terminating their positions. Professors like Shiller need only to consider MOOCs as something to keep an individual brushed up on psychology or math and not a real threat to the education system. It appears MOOCs will evolve into a step below online colleges, as Koller announced in February that Coursera will be working with 19 universities to create a version of a degree, dubbed “Course Specializations,” which will run students about $500 in fees according to the Chronicle of Higher Education. While this is great news for people that cannot attend college, it does not signal extinction of traditional higher education, but rather validates it, as the MOOCs push closer and closer to the equivalent of being yet another online school. For professors such as Shiller, there will always be a place for them in front of students. Adam Mathieu is a senior majoring in studio art.

As the Supreme Court’s decision on the constitutional right to gay marriage approaches this month, what has been a long-awaited legal decision has put conservative businesses and politicians on the defense. In April, Indiana backed out of a stipulation that would have allowed businesses the right to discriminate based on sexual and gender identity, as reported by the New York Times. However, whether businesses can dismiss same-sex couples to protect their religious convictions is still a growing concern. A recent USA Today column argues this shouldn’t be the reality conservatives have to face. Rather than have a “winner-take-all” outcome, a decision in favor of samesex marriage should allow the U.S. to have the best of both worlds — allowing tax-exempt religious institutions such as colleges, hospitals and homeless shelters to have religious protections while allowing same-sex couples the right to marry. While this seems like a fair deal, it’s a reminder of the necessity for nation-wide anti-discrimination laws for same-sex couples. A decision in favor of same-sex marriage would be a huge victory, but that doesn’t mean politicians will stop saying same-sex marriage is the same as polygamy, as Sen. Lindsey Graham suggested, or that Christianity is being criminalized in the country, as Republican presidential nominee Mike Huckabee said, as mentioned in the Times. This conservative pandering falls in line with the fear that an institution or charity’s tax-exempt status will be at stake since they both resist accepting same-sex couples. As mentioned in USA Today, this was a reality acknowledged by U.S. Solicitor General Donald Verrilli,

who pointed out that institutions not recognizing same-sex couples could lose tax-exempt status, which is what happened when a previous case ruled colleges denying interracial marriage and dating were not eligible to be tax-exempt. Despite the religious convictions of an institution, discrimination is discrimination no matter what. It’s crucial for the U.S. to implement protections for the LGBT community so discriminating entities don’t use “do-gooder” reasoning to continue to discriminate. Religious organizations and institutions have a choice to make. They could either continue functioning while respecting difference, or not. Though this sounds like a harsh ultimatum, discrimination isn’t any less real just because one uses religion as a defense. According to the Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders, the LGBT community has no federal civil rights protections. A positive Supreme Court ruling will likely lead to more conversations about the ability for businesses to deny services to same-sex couples. Discrimination in any form shouldn’t be tolerated or anticipated. Opponents of same-sex marriage will likely continue to consider themselves victims, and, as the USA Today column pointed out, religious people defending marriage as they know it have “been sued by their own government” for turning same-sex couples away. Still, recognition for same-sex marriage is progress, as are the hurdles to get others to recognize it. This isn’t to say people can’t hold their own religious values. It simply means that people shouldn’t be subject to different treatment or outright denial because of another’s convictions. Isabelle Cavazos is a senior majoring in English and Spanish.

Classifieds UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH FLORIDA

To place a classified ad go to ANNOUNCEMENTS LAB TECH ASSISTANT Needed. FT/PT positions. Near HCC Brandon Campus. Gain science experience and work around classes. Experience not necessary. Work minimum 20 hours M-F, 8 am - 5 pm. $9/hr. E-mail work schedule availability and resume to hr@randglabs.com.

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Veterinary Technician/Assistant needed for animal hospital close to campus. Part-time or full-time. Experience a plus, but will train. Email resume to acahhiring@gmail.com.

Mother helper Immediate opening for part time Mother helper position in S. Tampa. pick up kids from school, running errands and mild house chores.please email to Yasir@cancerconsult.us Email yasiralhassani@yahoo.com

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Sports

UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH FLORIDA

The Rundown

Men’s Golf

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‘We’re here to win’

Bulls finish tied for seventh, advance in NCAA Championships.

Outside USF It was a busy weekend for NBA teams that have been knocked out of contention. The Orlando Magic, New Orleans Pelicans and Chicago Bulls all hired new head coaches. The Magic and Bulls hired former players in Scott Skiles and Fred Holberg while the Pelicans hired Warriors’ assistant coach Alvin Gentry.

Gainesville Regional scores Friday

USF FAU

5 3

Saturday

Florida USF

8 2

Sunday

USF FAU

4 8

AAC in the NCAAs Like USF, East Carolina has been eliminated from the NCAA Baseball Tournament. The Pirates lost their first two games and became the only AAC team in the tournament to not win a game. Houston and Tulane both sit at 1-1. Track and Field

NCAA Championships When: June 10-13 Where: Eugene, Oregon USF athletes competing:

David Shepherd, Matthew O’Neal

By Jacob Hoag C O R R E S P O N D E N T

With a green-and-gold-clad crowd — ranging from the common fan, family or even USF men’s basketball coach Orlando Antigua — rallying around the 18th green, the USF men’s golf team made program history by advancing to the second leg of the NCAA D-I Championship. It wasn’t a smooth run, with the team dropping as far as 22nd midway through Saturday’s round at The Concession Golf Course (par72) in Bradenton, but the team showed its resiliency by storming back to finish the first leg Sunday in seventh place at 13-over, with the top 15 teams advancing. “I think they’re fighting not only for themselves, but for their teammates,” coach Steven Bradley said following Sunday’s round. “The cool thing for me to see is that even if Chase (Koepka) didn’t play well today, he’s going to

Freshman Claudio Correa led the Bulls to a seventh place finish in the first leg of the NCAA Championship this weekend at The Concession Golf Course in Bradenton. SPECIAL TO THE ORACLE be the one to lead the charge tournament and holds a tie Correa bounced back with a for third place in the indi- 3-under third round to make tomorrow. “They’re playing for each vidual standings. Correa, who his way back into contention. “I knew I had more rounds other and in an individual won the Gator Invitational earsport, that doesn’t happen lier this spring, sat just three to come,” Correa said. “The strokes behind leader Bryson leader wasn’t really too far so very often.” To little surprise, much of Dechambeau of SMU following I just went for it.” Correa held the lead for the weekend’s focus was on Sunday’s round. After shooting a disappoint- much of the first day of play, freshman Claudio Correa, who is currently 4-under for the ing 75 in his second round, n See NCAA on PAGE 5

Baseball

Kingston looks forward after tourney run By Tiana Aument C O R R E S P O N D E N T

Coach Mark Kingston approached his first season at USF with sensible confidence. Before the season started, Kingston said his team was set up to “surprise some people.” “We’re not going to make any bold predictions,” he said in January. “But we are going to say that we will play extremely hard, we’ll be a very smart team and we’re going to maximize our ability.”

Doing just that, the Bulls surprised a lot of people, making their first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2002. Accomplishing that feat almost didn’t happen. The Bulls (34-26-1) were among the last four teams selected into the tournament, but nevertheless, their 13 years of waiting were finally over. Though the Bulls’ tournament run was cut short Sunday when FAU defeated them 8-4 in the Gainesville Regional, the future looks promising.

“The team we had this year set the standard for how baseball should be played at USF in terms of effort, preparation and commitment,” Kingston said Sunday. “The names will change, but the standards that this team set this year is exactly what it will be moving forward.” Kingston has rejuvenated the team’s mindset, and his impact can be seen in the numbers. The team’s stats improved across the board compared to 2014, most drastically with the number of home runs.

Last year, nine were hit. This season, 32. This increase is partly because of flat-seamed baseballs, which were introduced this season to spark offense across the country. “Power is back in the college game, which I think is a major positive,” Kingston said. “Today, we came up on the short end of that. Last night’s game and today’s were very similar in that it was a home run that got us.” A grand slam with no outs in the sixth lifted FAU over USF,

n See KINGSTON on PAGE 5