The Optimist Print Edition: 04.13.11

ALUMNI

Aaron Watson, country mu-sic singer, will be honored on April 26 as ACU’s Young Alumnus of the Year.

Samantha Adkins, se-nior alumni relations offi-cer, said the Alumni Advi-sory Board selected Watson out of the group of finalists

because he showed that people can succeed in their career while still balancing a healthy family life.

“He’s doing something that’s pretty visible and he’s doing it in a Christian way,” Adkins said.

Watson travels quite a bit, but Adkins said he is very active in his Abilene con-gregation and considers his

family’s needs when choos-ing to go on the road.

Watson said his music ca-reer started his junior year at ACU. In the 10 years since his graduation, he has released 10 records and played over 1,500 shows, including some festivals with audiences of over 40,000 people.

“I think ACU itself gives students an edge on having

success,” Watson said. “Co-lossians 3:23 says that what-ever you do, work at it with all your heart as if working for the Lord. I think ACU is one of the few places where you can get that education and that’s what makes it special.”

Determining factors in Watson’s future were an

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websitenewsU.S. News and World Report ranked COBA as the No. 1 business graduate school for students attaining employment within months of graduating.

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opinionFind more information on all the candidates in the race for executive officer positions and read who we endorse and why. 89° 63°

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Samantha SutherlandContributing Reporter

Performer named Young Alumnus

Vol. 99, No. 49

Abilene Christian University

PHOTO COURTESY OF AARON WATSON

Aaron Watson, ACU’s Young Alumnus of the Year, performs a song on stage.

Dr. Richard Beck, professor of psychology and chair of the Department of Psy-chology, has written a new book re-flecting on the idea of hating sin, loving sin-ners and m i s s i o n a l failure in the church.

The book is titled, Un-clean: Meditations on Pu-rity, Hospitality, and Mor-tality. Beck’s purpose for writing the book was to describe the effects of the psychology of purity upon the life and mission of the church, according to the description of the book on his blog, Experimental The-ology. Beck describes the effects of becoming “too spiritual,” and the effect it has on people outside the church. The book suggests that the longing for purity and holiness tempts the church into practices of so-cial exclusion, which makes some Christians flee from the world and those in it.

“The church wants pu-rity,” Beck said. “But it comes at the expense of people being excluded.”

Beck blog inspiresbook

see BECK page 4

Students’ Association executive officer can-didates will spend the week campaigning and debating to show students they deserve a chance at campus-wide leadership.

Candidates participated in SA debates Tuesday evening and will speak publicly once more during Chapel on Wednesday. Students can vote Wednesday and Thursday from 11:30 a.m.-5 p.m in the Campus Center.

Connor Best, junior political science ma-jor from Sacramento, Calif., is unopposed for the office of executive president. Best has

served on SA since his freshman year and said he has gained much insight into SA and working with students.

“I think there comes a knowledge of how things work and how administrations have done things. I’ve seen both and can move on

from that without making mistakes but doing some of the things that brought success in pre-vious years,” Best said. “I feel like I really know a lot of the student groups and I can relate to different student groups at ACU, which will help me lead them better.”

Best said he is writing legislation to restruc-ture senator seats into president, vice president and treasurer positions. Best said the plan will help develop more structure, giving student

Zane GoggansContributing Reporter

see WATSON page 4

JOZIE SANDS // Online EditorConnor Best, junior political science major from Sacramento, Calif., sits on stage with the candidates for vice president and treasurer during Tuesday’s debate.

Follow the LeaderFACULTY

Students’ Association candidates compete for cabinet seats

photo galleryCheck out more photos of Rhoden Farm on our website, acuoptimist.com and also our Flickr site, flickr.com/photos/acuoptimist.

see SA page 4

Linda Bailey, Editor in Chief

Scan this QR code to watch candidates answer questions about issues facing students next year.

STUDENTS

Rachel Whittaker, senior biochemistry major from Cartersville, Ga., sent in her acceptance letter to the University of Texas at Austin two weeks ago.

The idea of graduate school still scares her, Whit-

taker said, but she is excited to dig into the years of re-search it will take to get her Ph.D. in organic chemistry.

Whittaker is one of many graduating students who have, will or are cur-rently applying to graduate schools, medical schools or law schools. Although not all students are cer-

tain about their post-grad-uation plans, a good num-ber of ACU graduates are expected to return to ACU

for graduate school said Brandon Lemley, graduate marketing manager.

Dr. Mel Hailey, profes-

sor of political science and pre-law adviser, said that approximately 33 seniors have asked to receive in-formation about going to law school. About 20-30 graduates have gone to law school annually over the past few years, Hailey said, and he expects that num-ber to be similar this year.

The number of seniors pursuing further studies within the departments of biology, chemistry and physics are holding steady as well, said Dr. Cynthia Powell, assistant profes-sor of chemistry and bio-chemistry and adviser of

Christianna LewisSenior Reporter

Some to further education post commencement

see SCHOOL page 4

quick factsSeveral students will continue their studies after completing undergraduate programs. • 20-30 graduates have gone to law school annually over past few years• 15 students from departments of biology, chemistry and physics plan to go to medical or dental schools

Beck

Equine-Assisted Learning Workshop The University Counseling Center is host-ing a workshop on dating and marriage from 2-4 p.m. on April 15. Current students who are either engaged or in a serious relationship are invited to partake in ground activities with horses and learn about the roles, struggles and personalities of intimate relationships. To reserve a spot, contact Steve Eller at [email protected].

Study Abroad Fall 2011 Spaces still are available in the Oxford and Mon-tevideo Study Abroad Programs for Fall 2011. Students can enroll in CORE 120 and CORE 220 in Oxford, and $1,000 scholarships are available for the Montevideo Study Abroad Program. For more information, visit the Study Abroad Office in Room 124 of the Hardin Administration Building.

Team Tatum Walk/Run for a Wish The ACU Student-Athlete Advi-sory Committee is raising funds to help fulfill the wish of Tatum Kate Flam-ing, a local girl who was diagnosed with ALL Leu-kemia in 2009. Students can help support Flaming by participating in the Team Tatum Walk/Run for a Wish 5k on May 7. Pre-registration is $15 and walk-up registration is $20. To learn more about Flaming’s story, visit www.caringbridge.org/visit/tatumkate.

Online Summer Courses Registration for online sum-mer courses now is open. Students can choose from 15 courses, and each course is three weeks long. For more information, visit www.acu.edu/summeronline.

FCA The ACU chapter of Fellowship of Christian Ath-letes meets at 9 p.m. every Thursday in the Campus Center Living Room.

Relay 4 Life The Fresh-man Action Council are selling Relay 4 Life shirts in the Campus Center. Shirts are $10 and are available in four colors: pink in support for breast cancer, blue for prostate cancer, gold for child-hood cancer and purple for general awareness.

Swing Cats The Swing Cats meet every week 7-9 p.m. on Sundays in Cullen Auditorium. No partners or experience are required.

Upward Bound Sum-mer Advisers Students interested in helping disadvantaged high school students can apply now to become an Upward Bound sum-mer adviser from May 29-July 8. Advisers will receive free room and board plus $925. For more information, call 674-2529 or 674-2713.

Relay for Life The American Cancer Soci-ety is organizing Relay for Life to raise funds for cancer research and to honor and celebrate the lives of cancer survivors and fighters. The event is from 7 p.m.-7 a.m. on April 29-30 at Elmer Gray Stadium. To sign up with an Abilene team, click on the Relay for Life myACU log-in ad or visit www.relayforlife.com.

All-school Chapel The Chapel Office encourages students to participate in “Bring Your Professor to Chapel Day” and invite their professors to Chapel as a part of the campus-wide effort to attend Chapel every Monday.

Grief Group The Univer-sity Counseling Center is hosting a grief group onThursdays in April. Each session is from 6:30-8 p.m. in the Hunter Welcome Center conference room. Contact [email protected] for more information.

announcements

15 Friday

Just People, Inc. needs volunteers from 10 a.m.- 2 p.m. for the Abilene Kite Festival on April 16 at Red Bud Park. Volunteers can help facilitate safety mea-sures and assist festival participants. For more in-formation, contact Justina Thompson at 672-2118 or email [email protected].

International Rescue Committee Students can work with refugees who moved to the United States, teaching English, helping with homework and mentoring. Volunteer times are flexible. Call Daina Juryka-Owen at 675-5643 ext. 16 to make an appointment. For more information on the Inter-national Rescue Commit-tee, visit www.theirc.org.

Mesa Springs Healthcare Center needs volunteers 8 a.m.-5 p.m. any day of the week to help with fun activities for the resi-dents, including playing instruments, calling bingo and sitting and talking. All help is appreciated. Contact Laura Reynolds at 692-8080 or [email protected].

Madison Middle School is looking for male volun-teers to participate in a weekly “Boys2Men” lunchtime program for eighth grade boys. Speak-ers will address different aspects of growing up. Contact Jeff Womack at 692-5661 or [email protected].

Abilene Youth Sports Au-thority needs volunteers April 16-17 for a basketball tournament they will host at Abilene High School and Cooper High School. Students can help sell tickets and assist in the concession stand 8 a.m.- 9 p.m. Contact Katie Miller at 692-2972 or email [email protected].

Dyess Youth Center needs help with a Ping Pong Exhibition from 4-6 p.m. every Friday. Vol-unteers will preside over tournaments and help with an exhibition for the students. Transporta-tion will not be provided, and volunteers cannot have any sexual assault charges or charges pend-ing. For more informa-tion, contact Sheri Frisby at 696-4797, or email [email protected].

Windcrest Alzheimer’s Care Center needs volunteers to clean out and organize closets any day Sunday-Friday at any time during the day. Con-tact Chris Stephenson to arrange a time at 692-1533 or [email protected].

National Center for Children’s Illustrated Literature Students can assist with art activities, sell books and welcome visitors from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. or 1-3 p.m., Tues-day-Saturday. For more information, contact Debby Lillick at 673-4586, or visit www.nccil.org.

Ben Richey Boys Ranch is seeking volunteers for its upcoming Annual Clay Shoot on April 30. Volunteers will be pull-ers at stations, help with registration or coordinate raffle ticket sales. Train-ing will be given for both shifts at 8:30 a.m.-12:00 p.m. or 11:30 a.m.-5:00 p.m. Free T-shirts and dinner are included for volunteers. Contact Patty Dunn at 665-4058 for more information.

Abilene Hope Haven is seeking volunteers for childcare any night, Monday-Thursday from 6:45-8:15 p.m. For more information, contact Kathy Reppart at 677-4673.

Aimee’s Art Studio is seek-ing volunteers from 9-10 a.m. or 1:30-2:30 p.m. on Tuesday, to assist with ho-meschool fine arts classes. No formal art skills or train-ing is required. The studio is a five-minute walk from ACU’s campus. For more information, contact Aimee Williams at 672-9633.

Betty Hardwick Center Volunteers are needed in several departments at the Betty Hardwick Center, specializing in mental health. Students can help mentally and physically challenged people play games, run track and go bowling. Students can volunteer from 8 a.m.-2 p.m. on Monday-Friday. Contact Angel Seca at 690-5235 for more information.

GED Tutoring Just People, Inc. needs vol-unteers to tutor adult GED students. Volunteer times are flexible. Con-tact Justina or Alana at 672-2118 for more infor-mation, or email [email protected].

The Salvation Army Volunteers are needed at the 1726 Butternut St. Salvation Army to sort and price items and help with kitchen or yard work. Vol-unteers are welcome any time Monday-Saturday. Contact J.D. Alonzo at 677-1408, or visit www.satruck.com for more information on the program.

Center for Contem-porary Arts needs a gallery assistant to help with exhibit setup and preparation. The work can be done any time from 9 a.m.-5 p.m., Tuesday-Friday. Call 677-8389 or email [email protected].

Meals on Wheels Vol-unteers are needed to deliver meals to seniors and adults with disabili-ties. Routes are available 11 a.m.-12:30 p.m. on Monday-Friday. Volun-teers must be at least 18 years old, with a valid driver’s license, auto insurance and a desire to serve. Training is provided. Students may be exempted from one Chapel per week if deliv-ery time conflicts with Chapel. Contact Saman-tha Barker at 672-5050.

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

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volunteer opportunities

2Campus Day

11 a.m. Students’ Association Executive Officer candidates’ speeches in Moody Coliseum

4 p.m. Baseball vs. St. Mary’s University

11 a.m. Small Group Chapels in various locations around campus

11 a.m. University Scholars Chapel at Chapel on the Hill

7 p.m. Third Annual Culp Professor Reading in the Brown Library Auditorium

7:30 p.m. The Pirates of Penzance in Fulks Theatre

11 a.m. Praise Day in Moody Coliseum

5 p.m. Softball vs. Texas A&M University-Kingsville

5 p.m. Exercise Event at the intramural fields

6 p.m. Baseball at West Texas A&M University



11 a.m. Chapel in Moody Coliseum

9 a.m.-3 p.m. Celebration of Service

10 a.m. Phi Alpha Theta Regional Meeting for History Honors

1 p.m. Baseball at West Texas A&M University



8 p.m. ACU Opera The Consul in Cullen Auditorium

57

Chapel

Credited Chapels to date

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Chapels remaining

about this pageThe Optimist maintains this calendar for the ACU community to keep track of local social, academic and service opportunities. Groups may send announcements directly to [email protected].

To ensure an item will appear on time, the announcement should be sent at least 10 days in advance. The Optimist may edit items for space and style.

Corrections and clarifications of published news articles will be printed on this page in a timely manner.

Wednesday

April 13, 2011 CAMPUS NEWS

COBA grad students find strong job market

ACU’S College of Business Administration is ranked as the No. 1 graduate school for students attaining employ-ment within three months of graduating.

Ninety-seven percent of students graduating from COBA with a mas-ter’s of accounting are employed in accounting-related jobs within three months of graduation. The average among busi-ness graduate schools is 73 percent, which applies to jobs both related and unrelated to the student’s master’s program.

U.S. News & World Report released the rankings March 30. The rankings were pro-duced from the 141 graduate business schools that pro-vided information regarding graduate employment.

Tim Johnston, assistant dean of the College of Busi-ness and School of Infor-mation Technology, credits COBA’s small size and sin-gular focus on accounting for its success.

“This is a very special-ized master’s program and it’s set up at the point and time that the student is in their undergraduate pro-gram,” Johnston said.

A master’s of account-ing, specializing in certi-

fied public accounting, is the only master’s degree that COBA offers.

The ACU undergraduate accounting degree requires approximately 120 hours and an internship. Many COBA students intern at one of the four major accounting firms in the nation and later go on to work for those firms after finishing their mas-ter’s degree. To be a certified public accountant, 150 total

hours of higher education are required in addition to passing the CPA exam.

“We have several students who, as soon as they finish their master’s of accounting, they know who they’re going to work for already because out of their internship, they were already offered a job,” Johnston said.

Caitlin Winegeart, mas-ters of accounting student from Abilene, interned with

Walmart headquarters in Bentonville, Ark. as an un-dergrad. Winegeart is set to graduate in May and will go to work for Walmart in its in-ternal audit department.

“It really increases my confidence level, graduat-ing knowing that I’m com-ing from a reputable pro-gram,” Winegeart said. “I know that they have good placement and they work really hard to make sure that their graduates have a job when they leave. So that’s very comforting.”

COBA is also given a high ranking with respect to stu-dents who, like Winegeart, are employed by graduation with 74.1 percent of its stu-

dents meeting that criterion for the 2011 ranking year.

Although COBA is No. 1 in the job market, U.S. News & World Report ranks it 107th out of 437 business master’s programs in the magazine’s 2011 Best Busi-ness Schools rankings.

Johnston said this rank-ing is lower because it in-cludes not only the graduate school, but the undergradu-ate school. ACT and SAT scores of incoming under-graduate business students can have an adverse effect on the rankings of the busi-ness school as a whole.

Bailey GriffithCopy Editor

GRADUATE SCHOOL

contact Griffith [email protected]

Dry spring forecasted

Sunday evening rains brought a break from the above-average tempera-tures, but wet weather may be a rare commodity this spring.

Christopher Daniels, meteorologist at the Na-tional Weather Service in San Angelo, said dry con-ditions could be expected this spring.

“We expect below-av-erage precipitation and to have above-normal tem-peratures for the next three months,” Daniels said.

The National Weather Service forecast indicates a drought for the southern United States in the sum-mer months.

“Most of the state will

be in a drought and unusu-ally hot in the upcoming months” Daniels said.

However, Daniels said this week will be cooler than the past with temper-atures in the high 80s and lows in the 50s.

Some students look for-ward to the prospect of spring rains.

Tiffany Steinkamp is a senior nursing major from Fredricksburg. For her, the spring rains are reminis-cent of her years spent in Penang, Malaysia.

“I went to high school in Malaysia where it rains just a little everyday this time of year. The warm Texas storms remind me of Malaysia,” Steinkamp said.

The weather in the next few weeks will continue to vary in temperature.

“I guess the thing about Texas is that you never know what to expect from the weather. One day it’s cold and the next is 80 de-grees outside. I’m just going to enjoy the nice weather we’re having this week,” Steinkamp said.

However as the summer approaches students pre-pare to stay indoors.

“I can only imagine how hot and humid Houston will be this summer. I plan on staying inside with lots of fans,” Spencer Fox, senior environmental science ma-jor from Houston, said.

April temperatures will stay relatively in the mid-to-high 80s before climbing up to the 90s and above in May.

Eyrah QuashieContributing Reporter

WEATHER

contact Quashie [email protected]

Abilene High to perform at ACU percussion concert

ACU’s Department of Music will present the Percussion Ensemble and Steel Band Spring Con-cert at 8 p.m. on April 18 in Cullen Auditorium

Admission is free for everyone and the per-formance will feature a wide variety of musical styles, including jazz-in-spired music for marim-ba quartet, steel band music from Trinidad and Samba Reggae music from Salvador, Brazil.

“This style of music (Samba Reggae) has an in-credibly infectious groove,” said Allen Teel, percussion and world music professor.

The concert will feature 20 ACU student percus-sionists and guest perform-er Dr. Julie Hill, director of percussion studies at the University of Tennessee at Martin. The Abilene High School Steel Band will also make a guest appearance during the concert.

“We just got a full set of Brazilian instruments a few weeks ago, and we are very excited to present this music to our audience for the first time,” Teel said.

Teel said the Abilene High School Steel Band will perform with the ACU Steel Band on two selections. They also will join ACU for the concert finale, “Rudi’s Batuque,” written by Hill.

“It will be a blast to have

40 percussionists playing at once,” Teel said. “It should bring the house down.”

Teel said his musicians began preparing for this concert in January.

“I appreciate the ensem-ble members’ willingness to put in extra rehearsal time,” Teel said. “They have fantastic attitudes, and they’re motivated to perform this music to the best of their ability.”

Jake Hall, freshman music education major from Springtown, said he enjoys the concerts.

“I like playing music because it’s stress free and upbeat,” Hall said

Kristin GoodspeedContributing Reporter

PERFORMING ARTS

contact Goodspeed [email protected]

...they work really hard to make sure that their graduates have a job when they leave.

CAITLIN WINEGEART // graduate student in accounting from Abilene‘‘ ’’

April 13, 2011FROM THE FRONT

Beck’s book was an in-spired from his blog where he writes “thought bal-loons” and “what-ifs.” He says the name comes from the idea of integrating ex-perimental theology with the Christian faith.

Beck started the blog in 2006, after talking with Al Haley, associate professor of English and Elmer Kelton prize win-ning writer-in-residence at ACU. Beck said after discussing book ideas,

Haley suggested starting a blog to get Beck’s ideas published, making it easy for a publisher to see the blog. Haley teaches ENGL 320, a blog creation class.

“The advice I gave Rich-ard (Beck) wasn’t unique to me. I had begun to read elsewhere that the 21st- century writer needs to take advantage of the Web to get his or her words out there,” Haley said. “The advantage of the blog is that it allows you to keep showcasing fresh writing to the world.”

Haley said that he did not remember recom-mending a blog, but said Beck would have started his own anyway.

In his blog, Beck pub-lished a paper called, Spiri-tual Pollution: The Dilem-ma of Sociomoral Disgust and the Ethic of Love, which later would be the inspira-tion for his book. Charlie Collier, editor of Wipf and Stock Publishers, read the blog and contacted Beck about writing a book.

“If I was going to do a book, it was going to be an

expansion on that paper,” Beck said.

The Macbeth Effect, a psychological phenomenon in which the physical act of people washing their hands seems to free them from guilt according to The Span-ish Journal of Psychology, is largely discussed in Unclean. Beck relates the Macbeth Ef-

fect to the missional failure of excluding others from the church. Beck describes a scene out of Matthew 9:10-11, when the Pharisees ridi-cule Jesus for eating with tax collectors and sinners.

“People used to ob-tain purity from abstain-ing from unclean peo-ple,” Beck said. “We [the

church] fail because we see Matthew 9 replay it-self over and over again.”

Beck had some doubts when writing Unclean, saying sometimes he got paranoid about the content of his work; but he said he enjoyed the process of writing his book.

“Overall it was a lot of fun,” Beck said. “I had a ball.”

Beck’s book can be pur-chased online at Amazon.com and on the Wipf and Stock Publishers website.

early end to his baseball career and enrollment in guitar lessons with Dan Mitchell, music teacher at ACU. He said Mitchell never doubted him and never chuckled at the fact that he came in with little experience and had a de-sire to play professionally.

Instead, he told Watson he was ready to work hard to get Watson where he needed to be.

“He became one of my heroes,” Watson said. “ACU has a diamond with Mitchell.”

Watson said he and his band played shows in every possible venue that was available to them, sometimes driving as far as Houston to play shows on Thursday nights after class got out. He recalled times when he would return to his University

Park apartment at 6 or 7 o’ clock in the morning and change clothes and go to class to take a test run-ning on no sleep.

“It was a crazy experi-ence, but not half as crazy as now,” Watson said. “I have a full tour schedule and I get to come home to three kids.”

Watson reflected back on his college days when he would sell CDs out of his backpack on campus and spend class time writ-ing lyrics in his class notes while living and practic-ing with his band in an empty building next to a Shell gas station.

“It’s tough for a college guy to get a date when he lives at a gas station and drives a van,” Watson said. “I’ve had some defi-nite challenges, but all of the struggles I’ve experi-enced have refined me in so many ways.”

Watson said that 10 years ago he was just like any 20-year-old young man who was chasing after dreams of being a rock star and pursuing fortune, fame and girls. Yet, somewhere along the way, he realized that God had blessed him with a platform to glorify God in front of the masses and he realized exactly what his calling in life was.

“The music industry is a pretty nasty business and I really try to keep myself separate from the entire industry; you can’t serve both money and God and that’s the truth. Somewhere along the way I had to make the decision about what I was going to stand for and what I was going to be remembered for,” Watson said. “Our society is often cramming their beliefs down our throats; don’t be afraid to return the favor, but in a

gentle and loving way.”Watson said conversa-

tions with professors helped him realize his career was an opportunity to be a wit-ness in some of the darkest places in this country. Sup-port from his ACU profes-sors made a big impact dur-ing that crucial time in his life when he was second-guessing his occupation.

“God used a lot of peo-ple in the ACU circle to help develop my skills mu-sically and help encourage me and push me toward my goals as a singer/song-writer,” Watson said.

Watson will be recog-nized on April 26 at 6 p.m. in the Hunter Welcome Center. Tickets are avail-able for $20 and can be pur-chased by contacting the Alumni Association office at 674-2622.

Overall it was a lot of fun. I had a ball.

DR. RICHARD BECK // chair of the Department of Psychology‘‘ ’’

Continued from page 1

contact Goggans [email protected]

Beck: Professor’s book examines psychology, purityFACULTY


contact Craig [email protected]

Watson: Singer values time at ACUALUMNI

School: Studentscontinue learning

the medicine preprofes-sional program. As of the be-ginning of April, 16 students from these departments were going to graduate schools in traditional science fields, 15 students were going to medical or dental schools and eight students were go-ing to graduate programs in allied health fields.

Powell said she was pleased that ACU stu-dents were further pre-paring themselves for careers in fields like med-icine, green technology and higher education.

“ACU has a long history of preparing students to serve as medical professionals and as professional scientists,” Powell said. “As we look to-ward a world that has ever-advancing technology, it is

important that Christians play a part in every part of our society so we can be salt and light in our world.”

Blaine Gilbert, senior bio-chemistry major from Azle, wants to use the knowledge he’s gained at ACU in the medicinal field. He took the MCAT on Saturday, and plans to apply to most of the medical schools in Texas.

Gilbert is not sure yet what kind of doctor he wants to be, but is confi-dent he’ll find the right fo-cus for him as he continues his studies.

“I’ve wanted to do medi-cine for six or seven years now,” Gilbert said. “I like how you can incorporate some problem solving into a scientific field.”

STUDENTS


contact Lewis [email protected]

leaders clear responsibilities.Best also plans to carry

over ideas from this se-mester such as revising the dance policy and bringing chalk back on campus for student advertising.

The four women run-ning for executive vice president are Rebecca Dial, junior political science and history major from Lex-ington, S.C.; Natalie Fleet, junior management major from Abilene; Katherine Handy, junior English ma-jor from Plano; and Juli-anne Hart, junior political science major from Austin.

All four women said they recognize SA needs to increase its presence on campus, but they have dif-ferent ideas on a solution.

According to the recent SA survey, only 25 percent of students know who their SA representatives are, and Handy said that’s not the students’ fault, but SA’s fault. She plans to organize more events on campus next se-mester to help SA make their presence known.

Along the same lines, Fleet said it’s easier to ac-complish things through relationships and said she would look for large student gatherings like intramural games, and the Campus Center be-fore and after Chapel to talk to the students.

“I feel like the commu-nication between students and SA can be a lot stron-ger,” Fleet said. “I would like to see more students become involved. I feel like the more students get in-volved, the easier the word of mouth about SA is going to get out.”

Dial said she wants to increase awareness of SA productivity by doing service projects together, meeting students and hold-ing members accountable for participating in meet-ings and being productive with office hours.

“It’s overwhelming how many people don’t come to meetings or put in ef-fort other than that hour. This is something that we can actually affect change on campus to better stu-dent life,” Dial said. “Office hours aren’t that efficient. So, really it comes to in-stilling in the constituents that in order to get things done, you have to show up and be committed.”

Hart wants people to know about SA so they also know who to talk to about problems on cam-pus or changes they want to see happen.

“I really want SA to be a force that gets students connected and involved at ACU. Because ACU really is about the community,” Hart said. “Academics are important things, but what really makes or breaks your experience here is whether you get involved here in some smaller community. That’s something I really want to promote.”

Beyond spreading the word about SA, each can-didate has plans to better student life at ACU.

Dial has worked with recy-cling in Sikes for a while, and is looking into how to best boost recycling around cam-pus. She also has talked to ad-ministrators about solutions to the parking problem.

If elected, Fleet said she would use connections and relationships to get

things done and facilitate communication between students and SA, and SA and administration.

Having never served on SA in previous years, Fleet said she has made con-nections and relationships through other organiza-tions such as the First Year Program, Intramurals and the Alumni Association.

“I feel like I bring a differ-ent experience to the table besides just SA experience.” Fleet said. “I feel like I bring a new student perspective that has been unbiased by participating in SA.”

Handy also said her ex-periences in other areas will help her if she’s elected. Handy works as an intern for Legal Services giving her more experience in draft-

ing proposals. Also, Handy said she would like to see changes made next year to the visitation policy be-tween dorms and hopes to get another day per week for students in dorms to spend time with the opposite sex.

Hart already has begun work on revising the dance policy and next year she plans to continue with that project while adding large, campus-wide events that would get more students involved on campus.

Heath Bracken, sopho-more marketing major from Salado; and Carson Henley, junior biochemistry major from Colleyville will run for executive treasurer.

The big responsibility of the treasurer is allocating funds to student groups at

the beginning of the semes-ter. Both candidates said the process can be tricky.

Bracken said many stu-dents had questions about how to get funds last year that weren’t always an-swered. Bracken said, if elected, he would do more explaining to create a better understanding among stu-dent groups.

“I’d like to see more stu-dent involvement with SA and better allocation of re-sources throughout organi-zations,” Bracken said.

As chief financial offi-cer, Henley worked directly with current treasurer Chris Shim, throughout the year. Henley said they began a Financial Handbook and a presentation to clarify the process for students. They

also met with each student group requesting money to talk about funding. How-ever, Henley said he noticed some areas that could use greater detail and attention.

“Over the past year I’ve learned a lot,” Henley said. “So I know how to do it; I know how to get stuff done because I have a lot of connections. Making those connections has al-ready happened this past year, but making sure this process goes quicker, to make sure the right peo-ple get the money – that is something I want to work on. It’s something I can work on and I will work on as treasurer.”

SA: Officer election polls to close ThursdaySTUDENTS’ ASSOCIATION


JOZIE SANDS // Online Editor

Carson Henley, junior biochemistry major from Colleyville, sits besides Heath Bracken, sophomore marketing major from Salado, during the debate in Moody Coliseum on Tuesday night.

contact Bailey [email protected]

FocusApril 13, 2011

ACU’s Rhoden Farm enriches learning experiences for involved students

MAKE HAYPassing the Super Walmart, as subdivisions begin to dwindle, Ambler becomes Texas State Highway 351 East and shrinks to two lanes. Mesquite trees dot the grassy plains and urban life slowly gives way to rural West Texas, with farmhouses keeping watch over grazing cattle and horses, all under the revolving arms of the wind turbines towering above.

After seven miles or so, four red brick pillars, remnants of some fence long gone, sit on the right as senti-nels, marking a left turn onto a country gravel road. If you drive slowly enough, the dust clears, and you might see the tumbleweeds snagged on barbed wire fences or a cautious coyote darting back into brush cover. You’ll pass more farmhouses and may have to squeeze onto the road’s nonexistent shoulder to let a lumbering truck and trailer pass, but you’re still not there.

A purple and white sign marks the final left turn. Its arrow points toward “The Rhoden,” as its friends know it, otherwise called Clifford Rhoden Farm or simply Rhoden Farm. And if you drive just a little farther, one of ACU’s premier research facilities sits on 400 acres of West Texas wilderness. Now, you’re there.

Functioning FacilitiesThe property contains a horse barn, facilities for goats,

a chicken coup, a warehouse for large machinery and projects, a farmhouse, the Allen Events Center – a house frequently used as a retreat location for ACU groups and offices – and a working feedlot, leased out.

The Rhoden is surrounded by native pasture, im-proved pasture, areas cultivated for small grains and some research plots. Its residents include about 120 goats, 50 laying hens – which soon may be supplying eggs for undergraduate research – some 25 head of cattle, eight horses, four Anatolian shepherds and Farm Manager Ellice Pierce, who has been living at Rhoden since she accepted the position of farm manager in the summer of 2008.

“I learn something new everyday,” Pierce said of her job as manager.

As a student in the Department of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, class of 2008, Pierce remem-bers benefitting from the resources Rhoden provides ACU students, especially after becoming employed as the teaching assistant for the Horses and Horseman-ship lab, one of several that meets on the farm.

Now, as farm manager, Pierce lives at Rhoden and takes care of the day-to-day chores of running a farm, seeing to general maintenance and keeping all animals fed and safe. She’s not the only one learning. Her job en-sures ACU students have an orderly, functional facility for undergraduate research ranging from soil experi-mentation to legume alterations to animal husbandry.

“They’re out here all the time,” Pierce said. “They work really hard.”

Tiffany Lutz, junior animal science major from Har-mony, Pa., spent her summer working with goats, re-searching whether tropical forest legumes could en-hance a grain-based diet. Lutz also works at Rhoden, helping with general maintenance like mowing grass and cleaning pens. She is relieved to have found a stu-dent worker job that’s not confined to a desk.

“I would so much rather be out in the open than be in an office; it’s just who I am,” she said.

Rare OpportunitiesRhoden gives undergraduate students the chance to

get their hands dirty, to really experience agricultural and environmental sciences. And Lutz said she was thankful for the chance to get experience for future graduate school endeavors, calling Rhoden a valuable resource for ACU students.

It reflects positively on ACU’s program, especially con-sidering the department’s relatively small size, she said.

Department Chair Foy Mills, professor of animal science, said few other programs of this size offer such a hands-on education, as ACU does. And the university’s status as a private institution, combined with Abilene’s unique, arid environment, makes the program truly unique.

Dr. Ed Brokaw, professor of animal science, said the opportunities offered at Rhoden would be much harder to attain at a larger university, like Texas A&M.

“Because of our size, individual students have more opportunity to be involved,” Brokaw said. “Sheer num-bers prevent everybody from doing it in a big program. Out here, we are smaller, so every student has the op-portunity to come out and participate.”

Those opportunities even extend to tailoring re-search and activities to students’ specific interest dur-ing their time at ACU, contributing to a more unique overall experience, Brokaw said.

“Based on their interest, we also have the opportuni-ty to be a little more flexible in terms of what we might do in this program or that program.”

In addition to research opportunities, Lutz said she appreciated the chance to get to know her advising pro-fessor, Dr. Florah Mhlanga, professor of animal science, on a more professional, yet personable, level outside the classroom.

“I was harvesting legumes with Dr. Mhlanga, work-ing side-by-side, bending over and pulling out plants,” she said. “And doing that, I got to hear stories about when she lived in Africa, how she grew up. I just really appreciate that. It’s just been really good.”

An Evolving HistoryAcquired in 1980 as a gift from the Anderson Clayton

Company, Rhoden became ACU’s primary farm in the early 2000s, as more animals and equipment moved to the property and more facilities were developed, Mills said.

Although initial plans for the property included a more commercial purpose with academic benefits, Mills said focus eventually shifted, by consideration of risk and educational necessity. Now the property func-tions primarily as an educational laboratory, with some commercial output.

For instance, surplus goats are sent to market. Also, in addition to paying lease, the feedlot on the property employs several ACU students, offering them valuable work experience in addition to a paycheck, Mills said.

Brokaw has been with the department since before Rhoden’s acquisition, able to watch its evolving func-tion and level of importance. He hopes the farm will continue to serve as a resource for more and more stu-dents and says with incoming students’ levels of ag-ricultural and environmental experience seeming to lessen in recent years, the facility serves a more crucial role than ever.

“Our students are coming from very different back-grounds and have very different perceptions of the lev-el of care and treatment that animals ought to have or what animals ought to be used for,” Brokaw said.

Mills said some students, coming to college intend-ing to become veterinarians, don’t realize they would be required to operate on animals, and their experience with “livestock” consists solely of family cats or dogs. Rhoden gives those students a chance to taste the grit and reality of agricultural and environmental sciences in raw application.

For Lutz, the hands-on experience has been one she suspects is largely unique to ACU.

“I don’t know that I would get this at a larger univer-sity,” Lutz said. “You wouldn’t get to work one-on-one with the professors and, being from a smaller university, having a small department and having this resource – just given the opportunity of doing research – it’s really nice.”

Despite its distance from campus, Pierce said the students who utilize the Rhoden receive hands-on re-search experience and, beyond that, the chance to im-merse themselves in the grittier sides of their future careers. For some, it becomes an escape.

“Most students like to come out and get away from town for a while,” she said.

story by Laura Acuff

contact Acuff [email protected]

Top: One of the gates on the Rhoden Field Laboratory displays the old ACC as part of the original name of ACU, Abilene Christian College. Bottom Left: A curious kid eyes the camera at the Rhoden Field Laboratory. Many animals are so used to human contact that it becomes second nature to seek constant affection. Bottom Center: Clifford Rhoden Farm, one of ACU’s premier research facilities, sits on over 400 acres of West Texas chaparral just seven miles outside of Abilene. Bottom Right: Sierra, one of the female therapy horses, rolls in the hay after going on a trail ride with “patients.” Sierra is one of the many horses used as companion to assist with dating and marriage therapy treatment.

photos by DANIEL GOMEZ // Chief Photographer

Connor Best will run unopposed for SA ex-ecutive president, and although we’d like to

see more competition, we think Connor really is the ‘Best’ candi-date for the position.

Best has served in SA Con-gress for three years and spent the last year as Chief Planning Officer and Parliamentarian, working closely with the execu-tive cabinet to write legislation and pass bills.

Best said he plans to carry over projects to next year that weren’t completed this year, such as changing the advertising policy

to bring chalk back on campus and revising the dancing policy.

Best also has new plans in mind for a stronger SA presence on cam-pus. He said he envisions spending lunches meeting with students and getting more students together in large group settings to build com-munity and serve others. He also is writing a bill that would restruc-ture SA by giving president, vice president and treasurer positions to class senators to develop a sys-tem with more structure that gives students clear responsibilities.

If Best continues the hard work he’s put in over the past three years, he will accomplish a lot for the stu-

dents and quite possibly change the face and reputation of SA.

“It’s the president’s job, one, to be kind of the visionary to look for a long-term vision, to see what the major goals are over the year. And to not let himself or herself get caught up in the details and lose sight of the big picture and the track of things,” Best said. “I think it’s really important for the president to spend time before the school year starts, really planning out things that need to be accom-plished. and planning out what, really, the long term interests are and making sure he really sticks to those things throughout the year.”

Laura AcuffCopy Editor

Bailey GriffithCopy Editor

Morgan DavisCartoonist

Opinion April 13, 2011

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Optimistthe

Endorsement: SA executive officesConnor Best

Junior political science major from Sacramento, Calif.

SA ExperienceFreshman: Mabee Rep.Sophomore: Sophomore Rep.Junior: Chief Development Officer and Parliamentarian

Rebecca Dial’s experience, enthusiasm and proven re-cord of accomplishment make her the best choice for the vice presidency.

Dial has been involved in SA for two years, serving first as Gardner representative her freshman year while serving on the Internal Affairs Committee and this year as Sikes rep. and a member of the Finance Committee.

She has proven her commitment by attending meetings con-sistently throughout the year, and if elected SA vice president, she said she would expect the rest of SA to do the same.

“It’s overwhelming how many people don’t come to meetings, and don’t put any effort in other than that one hour,” Dial said. “I really just want to increase the accountability.”

Dial has a strong platform and has voiced reasonable plans to be-gin working toward a solution and continue work started this year.

She has already begun conversations with Dr. Schubert about how SA might go about fixing the parking issues that students face, especially with the current construction of the Student Health and Wellness Center.

“Even when the construction is done, we will get 75 spots back, which may be a stop-gap issue but we’re still going to have to deal with the main issue,” Dial said.

Dial has had a hand in multiple accomplishments this year. In March, she presented a bill to SA that allocated $1,500 to be put toward a sound system that student groups can check out throughout the semester. She is also a vocal advocate of a better recycling program on campus.

Dial has the drive and the experience to get the work done and realistic goals that can be accomplished.

Carson Henley’s ex-perience, drive and a realistic approach make him the best

candidate for Students’ Asso-ciation Treasurer.

After working as SA Chief Financial Officer this year, Henley worked directly under SA Treasurer Chris Shim and watched how the budget pro-cess was reformatted to better fit the needs of the students. He watched closely how the job was done, assessing what could be done better and what should stay the same.

“Over the past year I’ve learned a lot. So I know how to do it, I know how to get stuff done because I have a lot of connections. Mak-ing those connections has already happened this past year,” Henely said.

“But making sure this process goes quicker, to make sure the right people get the money – that is some-thing I want to work on, it’s something I can work on and I will work on as treasurer.”

Henley also wants to make sure student groups use mon-ey allocated to them. In the past, Henley said many stu-dent groups have money left in their budgets at the end of the year, and, if elected, he plans to work with the groups, help-ing them to find other ways to spend allocated funds.

“There’s no point to have the money allocated to you and not spend it,” Henley said. “There have been groups in the past that have planned on an event and that not come

to fruition because a certain author might get sick, which happens, and they can’t really spend SA money towards that. They might have to change their goals of, ‘How are we going to spend that money,’ or, ‘How are we going to use these funds for something else we asked for but we didn’t get fully funded for.”

Henley has the experience of working with the treasurer this year, the drive to get things done and a realistic approach to funding groups and keep-ing them accountable for their funds. With these tools, he is the right fit for SA treasurer.

President

Vice President

Rebecca Dial

Junior political science and history major from Lexington, S.C.

SA ExperienceFreshman: Gardner Rep., Internal Affairs CommitteeJunior: Sikes Rep., member of the Financial Committee

Carson Henley

Junior biochemistry major from Colleyville

SA ExperienceFreshman: Freshman SenatorSophomore: Sophomore SenatorJunior: Chief Financial Officer

Treasurer

Katherine HandyJunior English major from Plano

SA ExperienceFreshman: Freshman SenatorJunior: Sophomore Senator

Julianne HartJunior political science and international business major from Austin

SA ExperienceFreshman: Gardner Rep.Sophomore: Barret Rep.Junior: Junior Senator

Natalie FleetJunior management major from Abilene

SA ExperienceNone

Heath BrackenSophomore marketing and finance major from Salado

SA ExperienceFreshman: Freshman SenatorSophomore: Sophomore Senator, member of the Financial Committee

Scan this QR code to watch a short excerpt of all SA candidate interviews

Handy said she believes SA officers need to be held to a higher standard than they have been in the past. She also said she would like officers to become more in-volved on campus and get to know their constituents better.

One of her main goals is to add an extra visitation day for dormi-tories and see more done with SA survey results. She said she desires to be a Christian leader by serving ACU students and communicating their wants to administration.

Hart said she knows the ins and outs of SA and would like to use her knowl-edge as vice president next year.

She would like to see SA work on bigger projects and have closer con-nections with other student groups. She also said she thinks SA can become a more powerful force on campus and help groups achieve their goals.

This year she worked toward get-ting the ACU dance policy changed and would like to continue that proj-ect next year in a higher position.

Even though Fleet has no previous SA experience, she said the experience she has accrued over the past years give her the knowledge she needs to be an effective leader.

Her relationships with current administration and student groups on campus will help her do well in this post, Fleet said. Also, She would like to apply her strong work ethic and passion for people to the stu-dent body by making sure everyone has a strong ACU experience.

Bracken said his time on the Financial Committee has given him in-sight into the way the treasurer’s position works. Knowledge gained over the last two years will be used to help decide where funds need to be allocated, he said. If elected, he said he look for ways to insure unspent money in the budget would be used, have more student in-volvement and help clarify where funds are being spent.

The Wildcats dropped two of three to Texas Woman’s University this weekend. ACU won the first game Friday 8-6, before dropping the next two 8-0 and 9-4.

“We didn’t play well enough this weekend to win. We didn’t hit very well and we didn’t pitch very well,” Head Coach Bobby Reeves said. “I felt we were pretty fortunate to win one of three, so it puts our backs against the wall and now we have to take care of business this weekend.”

The Wildcats would split a doubleheader on Friday with the Pioneers taking the first game 8-6. Peyton Mosley came in and pitched four scoreless innings in relief to help the Wildcats pick up the win. Mosley picked up her fifth win of the season as she allowed only three hits and was able to strike out two. Mosley now has a 5-2 record on the season.

The Wildcats also had great offensive efforts in the first game as freshman Lyndi Smith blasted two home runs, finishing with four RBIs. Candice Miller

also had a solid afternoon at the plate going 3-4 and also recording four RBIs, including what would be the game-winning single in the sixth.

In the second game the bats went cold for the Wildcats as Lizzy Kelly pitched a five-hit shutout for TWU. The Pioneers scored eight runs on 14 hits in the second game as TWU cruised to an 8-0 victory in five innings.

In the third game on Saturday TWU would take the rubber game and the series, outscoring the Wildcats 9-4.

The Wildcats pitching struggled with its com-mand giving up eight walks that allowed nine runs to come across. The Wildcats also committed two errors defensively in the game.

“We had our chances,” freshman Kara Stutesman said. “We need to capi-talize when the situation presents itself and contin-

ue to improve defensively. If we do those things, we will be fine.”

ACU falls to 22-22 over-all this season, and 7-5 in the LSC South. ACU re-mains tied for third place in the division with one game separating them from second place. The Pioneers improved to 6-6 in the division and sit one

game back of ACU and West Texas A&M.

The Wildcats will be back in action Friday at home against Texas A&M-Kingsville. The Wildcats will play a doubleheader Friday starting at 5:05 p.m.

“Kingsville is a good team. They have only won three conference games, but they have played ev-eryone well,” Reeves said. “We will be looking to get the bats going against them and playing at home should help us.”

April 13, 2011 FROM SPORTS

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For Rent:Two nice 1 bedroom apartments on same property as our home.Available June 1Also, one large 4 bedroom/2 bath house.All listings located 1/2 block from campus on College DriveNo Smoking/No petsCall 672-9633 or 370-5122 if interested.

CLASSIFIED

Losses force ’Cats to buckle down for KingsvilleRyan Cantrell

Sports Multimedia Editor

SOFTBALL

contact Cantrell [email protected]

Woods: Augusta spurs memories

African golfer named Charl Schwartzel took the coveted jacket and won the tourna-ment handily by shooting under par on each of the last four holes.

Schwartzel wasn’t the sto-ry though. The story was tied for fourth. After a year and a half of average play – medi-ocrity by Tiger’s standards – the most exciting golfer in the world was playing the way we all remember. On Sunday, Tiger made it OK to watch golf again. He made it OK to jump off your sofa and imitate a Tiger Woods fist pump after a birdie.

I haven’t wanted to watch golf for the last year and a half. What’s the point? My fa-vorite golfer has been mired in a slump. This weekend, however, something felt dif-ferent. Maybe that some-thing is what caused young-ster Rory McIlroy to implode with a triple-bogey on 10 going from first to seventh. Maybe that something was

what forced me to turn on CBS and watch every minute of coverage.

Tiger may not have won the major, but he made it worth watching. He still hasn’t won since the media broke the story of his extra-marital affairs, but he will sooner rather than later. Ti-ger will still break Jack Nick-laus’ major wins record. He will still go down as the all-time greatest golfer ever, if he isn’t already.

Regardless, the fans had something to cheer about on Sunday. The roar from the crowd at Augusta was unmistakable. You couldn’t miss it after every Tiger Woods birdie. It signaled one thing – the champ is back.

Tiger’s swing might have changed, his personal life may have taken a hit, but his ability to capture the atten-tion of a nation on a Sunday afternoon will always remain a tradition unlike any other.

COLUMN

contact Gwin [email protected]

Series: Clutch pitching persiststhird on a wild pitch and being brought home with a single by Duncan Blades. Blades stole second and was brought home by Sky Valenzuela, who was back playing shortstop in the absence of Aaron Oliver who is recovering from an injury to his shoulder.

Valenzuela went two for three at the plate and-launched his second home run of the season.

Reliever Zach Sneed came on to finish off the Greyhounds, picking up his third save of the season.

In the rubber match, Ro-driguez had one of his best outings of the season holding the Greyounds to just three

runs, two of them earned, on eight hits while striking out two in 6-1/3 innings.

Abe Williams was on fire from the plate going four for four including two doubles. Williams brought in two Wildcat runs and scored twice on his own.

Sneed came in to close out the game for ACU but left with a blown save. Thanks

to four Wildcat runs in the eighth, Sneed picked up the win instead to close out the series for the Wildcats.

ACU will be back in ac-tion on Wednesday against No. 10 St. Mary’s Rattlers at Crutcher Scott Field. Pitch is slated for 4:05 p.m.

contact Tripp [email protected]

BASEBALL

DANIEL GOMEZ // Chief Photographer

Sky Valenzuela pitches last weekend against Eastern New Mexico University. Valenzuela also hit a home run in the series.



Relays: Top-5 finishes highlightRobertson and McDowell, finished fifth with a time of 40.33 in the college di-vision. That time was the team’s best of the season and ranks third in the lat-est national rankings. Robertson’s time of 10.50 in the 100-meter dash was good for sixth place in the college division.

“I was very impressed with the men’s relay team. They put up a solid time, but there is still much room for improvement. Our goal is

for them to be highly com-petitive at nationals, as that event is critical for our team’s success at nationals,” Head Coach Roosevelt Lofton said.

Anais Belledant, Lauren Atkinson, Chloe Susset and Alyse Goldsmith made up the women’s distance med-ley, which placed fifth in the combined university/college division with a time of 12 minutes and 9.02 seconds.

“Their performance re-ally impressed me,” Lofton said. “They haven’t even been practicing together for very long, and they

placed at one of the big-gest meets in the nation.”

Thrower Nick Jones placed ninth in the shot put with a throw of 56-8.5, while All-American long distance runner Amos Sang was 10th in the Jerry Thompson Mile Race.

Wind gusts exceeding 30 miles per hour put a damp-er on several events at the meet. The NCAA uses a wind scale to judge wind speed, and if the reading is above four, those com-peting cannot qualify for nationals because of the

effect the wind has dur-ing competition. The cage steadily read 4.5 through-out the meet.

The men’s outdoor team still sits atop the latest NCAA national poll while the wom-en’s team sits in seventh in their respective poll.

The Wildcats will com-pete next weekend at the Mt. San Anotonio College Relays in Walnut, Calif., before the LSC Conference Meet on May 6-8.

TRACK AND FIELD

contact Shake [email protected]


Split: Sunday sweeps muster momentum

both East Central Uni-versity and Southeastern Oklahoma State by a score of 9-0 in each match.

“We took care of busi-ness,” Jones said. “This is a job, and we need to take care of our matches in a business-like manner in order to be ready for the post-season.”

Sweeping all 18 points against both schools collec-tively on Sunday was a good end to the weekend that be-gan with a tough competition against a school that, accord-ing to Jones, is “usually ranked

in the top 25 in Division I.” The strong showing against conference rivals should set up the ’Cats well for Wednes-day, when ACU hosts Cam-eron University at 3 p.m.

“That’s a big match,” said Hach. “If we win, we will host regionals; we need people to come out.”

The match against Cam-eron will be at ACU’s Eager

Tennis Center. Free hot dogs and Dr Pepper will be avail-able for ACU students.

“We have to come to work,” Jones said. “If we want something handed to us, there’s a good chance we won’t get it. We have to go take it.”

TENNIS

contact Smith [email protected]


If we win, we will host regionals; we need people to come out.

HANS HACH // sophomore tennis player for the ACU Wildcats‘‘ ’’

We need to capitalize when the situation presents itself and continue to improve defensively.

KARA STUTESMAN // freshman catcher for the ACU Wildcats‘‘ ’’

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Hurdler Andrew McDow-ell and triple jumper Ramon Sparks ignited a strong showing by the ACU track and field team that included five top five finishes Saturday at the Texas Relays in Austin.

McDowell, a redshirt senior from Kansas City, Mo., finished second in the college division of the 110 hurdles in a blazing 14.17 seconds. That time is a mere millisecond off of the NCAA Division II leading time of 14.16 that he ran earlier in the season.

Sparks improved his No. 2 national ranking in the triple jump, boasting a leap of 52-10.75, good for fourth in the university-college men’s triple jump. Texas A&M’s Julian Reid won the triple jump with a leap of 54-8.75.

“Getting to compete at the Texas Relays is al-ways a great experience,” Sparks said. “I’m focus-ing on winning the battle against myself. That’s the only thing I can control. You are your own tough-est competition. As long as I give my best perfor-mance and perform to the best of my abilities, the results will take care of themselves. I’m going to maintain that mindset

until nationals.”McDowell’s team-

mate Kevin Johnson, a junior from Midland, had a strong showing as well, finishing fourth in the 110 hurdles with a time of 14.49. Junior College National Champion Aleec Harris of Barton Coun-ty Community College

was the story of the race, though, as he posted a blazing time of 13.55.

Both Sparks and Mc-Dowell continued to add to their list of accolades, as Mc-Dowell is a former national champion in the 60 hurdles and Sparks is the owner of three NCAA Division II titles in the triple jump.

Two relay teams, the men’s 400 meter and the women’s distance med-ley team, combined for ACU’s other top five per-formances in Austin.

The men’s 400-re-lay team, composed of, Desmond Jackson, Paris

SportsStandings

Briefs

n The intramural office is putting together a dodgeball tournament for interested stu-dents. Today is the last day to register for the tournament. Registra-tion cost is $20 per team. The tournament will be held in Bennett Gym on April 18-20. Contact ACU Intramu-ral Sports at 674-2555 for more information.

n The intramural office also is organizing a golf scramble. The scramble will be a four-person, nine-hole format during the week of April 25-29 at Maxwell Golf Course. You must call the golf course at 692-2737 to sign up. If you sched-ule a tee time after 3 p.m., it will be $18 per person with a cart and $10 without a cart. If your tee time is after 5 p.m., the cost is $9 per person with a cart and $5 without a cart. All payments should be made directly to the golf course.

April 13, 2011

n The baseball team will host St. Mary’s on Wednesday at 4:05 p.m. at Crutcher Scott Field.

n Softball will host TAMU-K in a double-header Friday at 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. and then play Saturday starting at 1 p.m.

n The men’s and women’s tennis teams will host Cameron Uni-versity Wednesday.

Upcoming

BASEBALL

Team Div. Ovrl.

Tarleton St.SE OK St.SW OK St.CameronUIWWTAMUACUTAMU-K

18-617-718-916-816-814-1014-1015-12

28-721-1327-1223-1122-1225-1321-1519-16

SOFTBALL

Team Div. Ovrl.

ASUUIW

ACUWTAMU

TWUTarleton St.

7-5

8-410-2

7-5

6-65-7

22-22

23-1833-5

30-11

23-1817-19

TAMU-K 3-9 22-22ENMU 2-10 10-31

PlayerProfile

Bryce Gerhardt, sophomore outfielder from Oakdale, Calif., went 4-7 from the

plate this weekend in the ’Cats’ series against Eastern

New Mexico. Ger-hardt was 3-5 and scored one run. The sophomore is hitting .348 for the ’Cats, which is good for fourth on the team. He also has scored 14 runs and has 23 hits and 12 RBIs.

Gerhardt

Another series win

The Wildcats stayed alive in the hunt for the LSC Cham-pionship series after tak-ing two of three from the conference’s second worst team, Eastern New Mexico.

“We finally have been doing the things we need to do to win these last few series,” said senior Cam-eron Bankston.

ACU dropped the first of three games on Friday after the bullpen and some shaky defensive play allowed the Greyhounds to pull away in the later innings after the score was tied heading into the sixth.

Will Calhoun pitched well in a no decision after giving up just two earned runs in five innings while striking out two.

Cameron Watten brought the Wildcats back even with Eastern New Mexico at 3-3 with a safe-ty squeeze that brought

home Bryce Gerhardt.It all came apart for

ACU in the sixth when an error by catcher Ian Tom-kins resulted in two un-earned runs for the Grey-hounds in the bottom half of the sixth, the error was one of five committed by the Wildcats in the game.

In the Saturday double-header, Coach Bonneau’s team fared much bet-ter outscoring the Grey-hounds 13-6 between the two games. Pitchers Brent Bray and Brady Rodriguez put on a show with out-standing performances on the mound.

“They have had some good outings in relief and got some spot starts for us this year,” said Bonneau. “We just needed to get some guys out there that could last more than three innings.”

A three-run bottom of the fifth helped Bray when the Wildcats plated all three runs with two outs in the inning.

Catcher Ian Tomkins turned his lead-off single into a run after moving to

Brandon Tripp Sports Director

BASEBALL


The Wildcat infield turns a double play on Saturday against Eastern New Mexico University. ACU won both games on Saturday to take the series and keep them alive in the playoff race. see SERIES page 7

Week yields mixed results with win, loss

The ACU men’s tennis team comes off a mixed weekend into the last home stand of the season.

On Saturday, they took on Division I team Okla-homa State University, a Big 12 school, falling with a score of 5-2. OSU edged the Wildcats out in dou-bles play to assume a 1-0

lead, and won four con-secutive singles matches to secure the win. Sopho-more Hans Hach and ju-nior Bryan Joiner pulled out the only points for ACU on Saturday.

“We have to assume whatever role we have, whether that’s underdog or favorite,” said Head Coach Hutton Jones. “When we’re the underdog, we have nothing to lose; all the

pressure’s on them. We’re not better than them, but we definitely had chances to pull an upset if a couple things went our way.”

In doubles play, the Wildcats split the first two matchups, leaving the No. 1 teams from both schools to determine who would win one point entering singles play. ACU’s team of Hach and Joiner kept the match close against

Aleksey Bessonov and Rifat Bityakov, the 18th-ranked doubles team in the nation in Division I. The score reached 6-6 un-til the OSU team finally pulled out the victory of

9-8(6), giving the Cowboys the one-point lead.

On Sunday, the men faced two Lone Star Confer-ence opponents, defeating

Mark Smith Sports Reporter

TENNIS

see SPLIT page 7


Thrower Nick Jones practices the shot put at Elmer Gray Stadium. Jones finished ninth in the shot put at the Texas Relays in Austin with a throw of 56-8 1/2.

Texas Relays confirm rankingsTRACK AND FIELD

Woods excites againThe Sports JediAustin Gwin

It was a thrilling Sunday. A 21-year-old who had led the Masters for three full rounds had fallen apart. Birdies were abundant, as 10 golfers had a shot at the lead. More

exciting than all of that though was one familiar face among all the rest – Eldrick “Ti-ger” Woods.

Woods had an unbe-lievable front nine in the final round of the Masters totaling six birdies, offset by only one bogey. He had come from seven strokes back and had a share of the lead. A seemingly im-possible deficit had been erased. Tiger was on top.

The back nine didn’t quite go the way the front nine did for the four-time green jack-et winner. Only one birdie on the easier nine holes of the famous course at Augusta National was not enough to secure an improbable vic-tory. An unknown South

COLUMN

Bryson ShakeAssistant Sports Editor

see RELAYS page 7

Wildcats win fourth straight series to stay in LSC conversation

Gwin

see WOODS page 7

We’re not better than them, but we definitely had chances to pull an upset ...

HUTTON JONES // Head Coach of ACU tennis‘‘ ’’

The Optimist Print Edition: 04.13.11

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Transcript of The Optimist Print Edition: 04.13.11