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LANCETHE

Weekend Weather

Saturday Sunday42 | 30* F33 | 21* F

Partly Cloudy Sunny

Big Momma’s Coffee offers a

“chill” atmospherePage 4

For a story highlighting orchestra students,

visit us online

Men’s basketball

claimed No. 1 rankingPage 6

Snow brings out the kid in everyoneBY MICHAELA SMITH

News Editor

BY MERRY TUCKERStaff Writer

150 students travel globally

Ozark superintendent joins sta� as coordinatorBY JESSICA NUNLEY

Managing Editor

Snowmen, forts, snowball � ghts emerged on campus as students enjoyed the snow � akes

Amid flurries of snow, students joined together to build snow forts, construct snowmen and have snowball fights during the first significant snowfall of the season.

According to The Weather Channel’s website, Springfield re-ceived two inches of snow from the storm.

Beginning in the morning, stu-dents began building snowmen in front of Trask Hall, and by the afternoon, a snowball fight had broken out between Krause Hall and the student union.

Emily Taylor, freshman, said she participated in the snowball fight. “It was a great time filled with fun, friends, good times and jokes,” Taylor said.

Kyle DeVries, freshman, said it was the perfect snow for a snow-ball fight. “It was packing snow, and I had an awesome time play-ing in it with friends,” he said. Devries also participated in the snowball fight between Krause Hall and the student union.

For some students, snow is not all that common.

Andy Kauffman, freshman, said he is from Georgia, so he has not played in the snow that often. Kauffman said he had a great time playing in Tuesday afternoon’s snowball fight.

On the south side of campus, two students, Kauffman and Dylan Nieman, junior, said they built a snow fort. “It was great snow to build stuff with,” Kauff-

For some educators, retirement means moving to Florida or fly fishing on a river bank, but for ad-junct graduate professor Gordon Pace, retirement is just the begin-ning of a whole new endeavor in education.

Pace, retiring from his job as superintendent of the Ozark pub-lic schools district, will replace Bud Greve this fall as Evangel’s coordinator for the educational leadership master’s program. Matt Stringer, assistant chairperson for

graduate studies in education, said that Pace’s new appointment is befitting considering Pace’s ex-tensive experience as an educator and an administrator.

“[Pace] has a unique skill set, and he’s one that we [Evangel] ac-tively pursued,” Stringer said. “As far as experience and education, he does have experience that is similar to what Dr. Greve had – a lot of public school experience.”

Cameron Pace, Gordon Pace’s brother and Communication De-partment chairperson, said simi-lar things about Gordon’s famil-iarity with working in schools and

administrative positions.“He’s always been involved in

education. He’s a good choice for [the job],” Cameron Pace said, “even if he wasn’t my brother.”

In his new coordinator role, Gordon Pace will oversee the ed-ucational leadership master’s pro-gram, which is moving to a hybrid format, Colleen Hardy, Education Department chairperson, said. Pace will be in contact with prin-cipals and superintendents all over the state to recruit teachers for the program, Hardy said.

The master’s in educational leadership program is a cohort

program, Stringer said, mean-ing around 15 students will go through the 36-credit course se-quence at the same time, taking all of the same classes in the same order - which makes scheduling easier and helps build relation-ships among students.

Masters students will meet in person on Evangel’s campus twice before the end of the program, which Stringer said is the biggest difference in how the program has been conducted.

At the end of the program, Stringer said, students can choose to go through the principal certi-

fication procedures for Missouri or to return to their home states to gain certification.

Stringer said that hybrid pro-grams offer more flexibility and present the freedom of an online class to compliment the schedules of working professionals, and the benefit of the week-long seated classes to build relationships. He also said the new hybrid format allows for students regionally and nationally to learn educational skills. Evangel has a good national reputation, Stringer said, and this program will only serve to widen EU’s influence.

For some students, Spring Break 2013 consists of sun, sand and relaxation. Others, however, are going to be involved in a little more than the typical “break”.

Every year Evangel launches multiple mission and service trips around the world.

Ryan Patty, senior, said he is going to Paris, France, where he and his team will be helping with a local church plant in the city.

“They celebrate Easter early, so

we’ll be helping them with their Easter celebration throughout the week, most likely with kid’s ministries and with community groups within the city,” he said.

Patty said after going on the trip, he hopes at least a couple of people will hear and accept the gospel. Overall, he hopes that they can help the church plant in Paris grow.

Another team member and senior, going out this spring break will travel to Thessaloni-ki, Greece during Spring Break. Shelby Wilson said that the

group will be helping with com-munity outreach, the A21 Cam-paign and working with IHeart Café.

Wilson said she has always wanted to go on a mission trip and she is expecting a life-chang-ing experience.

“I’m expecting God to use me in ways that I never thought pos-sible; and I’m hoping to be able to reach out to people and share God’s message with them,” Wil-son said.

Along with mission’s trips, Evangel also sends students on educational and cultural trips.

Jeremy Crabtree, senior, sai d he is going with a team of stu-dents to Turkey where they will be visiting multiple mosques and several museums, among other informational destinations.

Crabtree said that he chose to go on this trip because it was the only trip offered in the Middle-East.

According to a press release, more than 150 students will trav-el across the world and in Amer-ica to work on service projects.

Among the destinations are

Above: L-R: Jesse Younger, junior, and Becca Clark, senior, work with children in Jamaica. Both of the students went on this trip in March 2012. Left: Students last spring break traveled to Guatemala to help with children and complete service projects during their trip.

PHOTOS COURTESY OF ALLI FONTAINE

Kailea Stancer, sophomore, and Michael Johnson, senior, play in the snow between classes Tuesday afternoon. Because of the snow, many stu-dents participated in spontaneous snow-related activities. The snow that blanketed the campus was about two inches deep.

RYAN VANDERSTEEN | THE LANCE

man, freshman, said he is from Georgia, so he has not played in the snow that often. Kauffman said he had a great time playing in Tuesday afternoon’s snowball fight.

On the south side of campus,

two students, Kauffman and Dylan Nieman, junior, said they built a snow fort. “It was great snow to build stuff with,” Kauff-man said.

Adam Wood, sophomore, said he was a target for snowballs.

“I didn’t get to play in the snow when my other friends did be-cause I was on my way to class,” Wood said. “But when I was on my way to class, they saw me and began to pelt me with snowballs.”

The storm produced over a foot

of snow around Warrensburg and Sedalia, Mo., and caused blizzard conditions over some parts of the state. In Kansas City, over 40,000 people were without power be-cause of the storm, according to Kansas City’s NBC news affiliate.

Brazil, the Canary Is-lands, the Dominican Republic, Chicago, France, Greece, the

LA Dream Center, Whales, Belgium, the LA Film School, Scot-land and Turkey.

Some of the groups are scheduled to re-turn the week after school begins again.

NEWS2 | Friday, March 1, 2013 | The Lance

The Scoop48-Hour Film ChallengeThe Captiv8 Film Challenge is still accepting registration applications. Any Evangel group that registers will be given access to cameras and editing systems. Go to Captiv8’s website for information on the contest.

Blood DriveThe spring blood drive will be held on March 12 from 10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. in the Mabee Center. Ask your professors if they are offering extra credit.

Don’t Be A FAFSA FelonThe floor with the most FAFSA applications filled out by today will win Andy’s gift cards. The winners will also be able to play a song of their choice over the clock tower.

Fashion Fever Evangel will hold its annual fashion show March 14 in the Crusader Hall. Doors open at 8:30 p.m. and the event starts at 9 p.m.

Food Service Hours of OperationCrusader Hall will close tonight after dinner and will reopen on March 11 at 7:15 a.m. The Joust will reopen on March 11 at 10:30 a.m.

Student Wellness ProgramFreshman are required to complete the student wellness program by the end of the 2013 semester. Any freshman who has not signed up yet can do so in the Mabee Center for the weeks of April 8 to 29.

Concert orchestra performs in spring concert

Spring break trip leads students to D.C.

BY BRETT BOSTONStaff Writer

BY MICHAELA SMITHNews Editor

Above: Catlin Wallace, junior, plays the cello, in the orchestra concert.Below: Nicole Bowman, sophomore, plays the violin in the orchestra concert.

PHOTOS BY RUTH HENDERSON | THE LANCE

Housing policy to face changesBY IAN RICHARDSON

Chief Copy Editor

Professors volunteer at local school

BY BROOKE ARMSTRONGStaff Writer

The University Orchestra and Concert Orchestra played a combined concert with the Play and Sing His Praises Home School Orchestras of Springfield, Mo. on Tuesday night. Over Spring Break, the Concert Orchestra will also be playing on a four-state tour.

Larry Dissmore, director of both Evangel orchestras, said he was very pleased with the quality of the performance Tuesday. Dissmore said the orchestra had a full sound and that he noticed many of the homeschoolers enjoying their experience playing with college students. He said the orchestra did especially well considering the combined group had only one official practice, which was the Friday before the concert.

One of the best benefits, Dissmore said, was that several prospective students and families were exposed to Evangel’s music program.

Hannah Beers, sophomore and Concert Orchestra member, said she also thought the concert went well. However, she said the concert orchestra still has a bit of practice to do before it begins its tour over Spring Break. Beers said other than one song, the music the orchestra will play during the

tour will be completely different. The concert orchestra will play

at nine different venues in four separate states, Dissmore said, playing at least eleven concerts over Spring Break. Dissmore said the main goal of the trip is to minister to people through the medium of music.

Dissmore said Spring Break will be a busy week, but he said he is still confident that students will have some time to enjoy themselves.

He said the orchestra should have some down time around Baltimore, Md., and Valley Forge, Pa., so he said he is hoping to do some sightseeing in those two locations.

Dissmore also said one of the great things about trips like these is the opportunity it gives students to see things they have never seen before.

Amber Blaylock, sophomore, said she has never seen a beach before, so she is hoping she will get to cross that off her to-do list after this trip.

Beers said she would like to ask people to pray for the orchestra because she knows things may get tiring and stressful at times.

Dissmore said the tour starts in Ohio, then goes to Pennsylvania, to New Jersey, back to Pennsylvania, to Maryland and, lastly, back to Ohio.

Students in the Washington Studies Program have the opportunity to travel to the District of Columbia for two weeks to tour and complete a short, five-day internship. This trip is available through the Social Sciences Department and led by Bryan Sanders, Social Sciences Department chairperson.

Sanders said there is a lot of preparation for students who go on this trip. Everyone who chooses to go must be enrolled in Washington Studies Program, a three-credit government course. Sanders said before students

leave, the class has many meetings about what it will experience during the trip.

Sanders said during the trip, students will meet congressmen, sit in on think tanks and visit museums and monuments located in the district.

However, Sanders said this trip is more than someone’s typical tourist experience. “Students get to go behind the scenes of the Capitol,” he said. “They will be able to make contacts and work in the office of a congressman.”

Sanders also said the students will be able to see the district’s environment as if they were a part of it on a daily basis.

“This trip is like no other school’s,” Sanders said. “This is a unique program Evangel has that gives students real-world experience, allows them to make contacts and gives them exposure for a possible future

job.”Besides the experiences

students will have on the trip, Sanders said the Washington Studies trip also counts for the lab

portion of Global Connections. Anna Obermesik, trip member

and junior, said she wants to be a part of the government after graduation because of the impact it has on society. She said being a part of the government will allow her to begin to change everyday life for others.

Obermesik said she is looking forward to having experiences and gaining skills she will be able to refer back to after graduation.

One student who went on the trip last spring was able to intern in the district this semester. Brandon Cadwell, senior, said the Washington Studies Program course and trip led him to the internship he has today.

Students get to go behind the scenes of the Capitol.

- Bryan Sanders

In preparation for what could be a significant increase in enrollment next year, the current off-campus housing policy may undergo some one-time changes, Pam Smallwood, housing director, said.

However, Smallwood said no decisions have been made yet and the changes, if any occur, will depend on next year’s enrollment numbers, which will be more predictable around mid-to-late summer.

In an email to students, Smallwood also said students age 24 or above must live off campus next semester.

According to the current off-campus housing information form, a non-married student who is not living with family must be at least 22 years old, be a senior and have a GPA of 3.0 or higher to qualify to live off campus, unless the student meets other criteria, which include being a student teacher or nursing student.

Depending on next year’s enrollment, Smallwood said, Evangel could lower the GPA and classification status criteria

to accommodate the growth in enrollment.

Smallwood said she does not think the exceptions, if implemented, will extend to students with lower than a junior status or a 3.0 GPA.

Smallwood said, “I’m telling non-qualified students who ask that they are welcome to submit off-campus documents now, and I will hold them until mid-to-late summer and will call them at that time, if needed, to find out if they are still interested-if we need the space.”

Smallwood also said students wishing to take advantage of possible exceptions need to be extremely flexible and available to change housing plans at the last minute.

While Smallwood said exceptions to the policy will only be for the upcoming school year, she said students who are approved under the exceptions will not be required to move back on campus the following year, barring behavioral problems.

Gina Rentschler, director of community life, said the current off-campus housing policy is designed to encourage students to live on campus.

“Community and learning from one another is a real value of Evangel,” she said. Rentschler also said living on campus increases the likelihood of students staying on campus for all four years and helps them mature, meet new people and enjoy college life more.

Students wishing to apply for off-campus housing next year must fill out the Off-Campus Questionnaire. Also, single

students under 24 must submit the Parental Endorsement Form.

Both documents are located under the Forms tab in the Housing and Meals section of the student portal. Smallwood said students should be aware that living off campus would likely decrease the amount of financial aid they receive.

Smallwood said she is willing to answer any questions regarding the off-campus housing policy.

In a November event, three Education faculty members volunteered their time to promote literacy among Springfield children.

According to an Evangel press release, Colleen Hardy, Education Department chairperson; Fred Drake, professor of middle school education; and Peggy Reed, associate professor of early childhood education, participated in this literacy event, which took place at Williams Elementary School.

Reed, who has been volunteering at events such as this for over 10 years, said she loves to read to kids.

“We like to be supportive of the literacy events in the public schools,” she said. This was the group’s first time volunteering at an event at William’s Elementary School, Reed said.

“If we can get the kids excited about reading, that’s a good thing,” Reed said. “Kids like to hear different people reading – there were a lot of people there reading.”

Reed said the main focus of this event was to encourage parents to come out to the school and read to their children.

“I loved reading to the students and seeing them benefit from a large number of adults modeling good parenting strategies,” Reed said in a press release.

Drake was also a first-time volunteer at this particular literacy event and said he would be very interested in participating in furute events.

“It’s a lot of fun,” Drake said. “I like to support William’s [Elementary School] because the principle there was a student [at Evangel].” The principal, Jennifer Webb, graduated with a master’s in educational leadership in 2007, according to an Evangel press release.

Drake said variety in teaching methods makes a difference in the students’ education. “Any time that you can vary instruction, it provides greater interest,” he said.

Drake said they plan to be a part of an event every year.

Should the age requirement be lowered? Yes No

Should GPA be a factor? Yes No

Would you live o�-campus if you could? Yes No Maybe Do currently

What prevents you from living o�-campus? * Too young Low GPA On probation Financial issues Don’t want to live o� campus Other

87%12%

53%43%

44%41%13%7%

61%4%0%24%39%5%

*Students could choose more than one answer

Student Opinion on O� Campus Housing

Community and learning from one another is a real value of

Evangel.- Gina

Rentschler

Next semester’s enrollment could affect off-campus eligibility

What do you think are the benefits of living on campus? @evangellance

GRAPHIC BY JORDAN SJOSTROM | THE LANCE

Dancing his way up to the stage in chapel on Tuesday, Robert Berg,

professor of theology, taught the school that “We Are Family,” just as the 1979 Sister Sledge song suggests.

It’s true; the Evangel campus is one large family, composed of students, faculty and staff. We eat together, work together and learn together, day after day. As humans, it is in our nature to desire acceptance, and as Christians, it is our spiritual act of worship to accept one another with hospitality and friendship.

Few would disagree that the new Director of the Food Services Department represents this familial acceptance more visibly than most on campus. Todd Lanning began working for Evangel in the fall semester as the Director of Food Services.

Like his predecessor, Lanning has displayed kindness and attention to student needs. But in a short time, Lanning has surpassed the previously complacent expectations of students and staff by striving to make the cafeteria experience at EU better than it has been in years. He accomplishes this not only by improving the quality, variety and presentation of the food, but by making a conscious effort to meet students on a daily basis where they are most open – in their dining room.

Lanning said he does not expect students to eat in the cafeteria day after day, week after week, month after month, year after year and love it without complaint. He said he understands how students would get sick of eating at their

favorite restaurant in the same quantity, much less the cafeteria at school. This is why he has established a two-hour limit on most foods to ensure a precedent of freshness in every food item he serves. It is why he makes such an effort to create special food days to mix up the menu. And it’s why he walks around the cafeteria every school day talking to students, gaining valuable feedback – both positive and negative – and building relationships.

In the recent snowfall, Lanning took aim under the clock tower, science-class goggles over his eyes, lobbing snowballs at students, as though he was one of the kids. Perhaps Lanning has a job on campus with more opportunities to interact with the whole student body, but in our opinion, there are few faculty or staff members who meet Lanning’s level of effort in connecting with students. In many ways, the students know Lanning better than they know their administrators or campus spiritual leaders.

As a staff of students here at The Lance, we know firsthand what students want – relatable campus leadership who go out of their way to meet students daily on a personal level, just like Todd Lanning.

OPINION The Lance | Friday, March 1, 2013 | 3

Just Sayin’

Letter to the Editor policy: Letters to the editor are open to all and are printed on a first-received basis. The Lance reserves the right to edit for space, libel and clarity. Letters are limited to 250 words and must be typed, include the author’s full name, phone number and classification or position. Anonymous letters will not be printed. All letters must be received by 6 p.m. Tuesdays. Only three submissions from the same author will be published in the same semester.

CORRECTIONS: In the Feb. 15 article “Discipline decoded,” it was incorrectly stated that Austin Crews appeared before the Residence Hall Accountability Panel. The article should have read he appeared before the Community Life Accountability Board.In the Feb. 22 article “Hairstyles through the years,” Tyler Barnes, freshman, was incorrectly identified as saying he has hair similar to Jef Holm, winner of The Bach-elorette. The statement likening his hair to Holm was an observation by the reporter, not a quote from Barnes.The Lance corrects all confirmed errors. Please contact Christine Temple, Editor-in-Chief, at 417.865.2815 ext. 8634 or email evangellance@gmail.com to report a cor-rection. The Lance is committed to fair, accurate and objective journalism.

The Lance is the student voice of Evangel University, published since the college was founded in 1955. Published weekly in print and online during the academic year, The Lance is the primary source of news for its students, faculty and staff. Opinions expressed in The Lance do not necessarily represent the opinions of Evangel University.

The Lance exists to provide relevant and accurate information that informs, entertains, critiques and serves the Evangel University community.

The Lance is published weekly (Fridays) during the school year. First three copies are free; additional copies are $1.

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Christine Temple | Editor-in-ChiefJessica Nunley | Managing Editor

Michaela Smith | News EditorElliott Scott | Assistant News Editor

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Melinda Booze | Adviser

LANCETHE What are your

plans for Spring Break?

Our VoiceThe Lance

“Going to Chicago with my girls.”

Anna McWoods junior

“Going with softball to Texas.”

Katie Tollefsonfreshman

“Going to Supercross in St. Louis and then home.”

Katelyn Tollesenior

“Going to Los Vegas, Nevada, my hometown.”

Brandon Bakersophomore

“Going to Wichita, Kansas.”

Jason Bernal sophomore

“I’m staying here.”

Collin McCagesophmore

Boston’s Brewin’Brett Boston

Brett Boston is a senior studying advertising.

An article surfaced online a few days ago titled “Mischa Barton Accused

of Stiffing Sober Coaches.” Considering that I help

coach basketball for Springfield Catholic, that I don’t drink or do drugs and that I think Mischa Barton’s a pretty good-looking lady, I thought I had a vested interest in the story.

Much to my dismay, however, the “sober coaches” the article refers to are people who help someone abstain from alcohol and drugs, not sports coaches who don’t drink.

But the article is interesting for other reasons. For one, Mischa Barton may not have always been a smart girl, but she’s matured

into a very perceptive woman.Sure, it may be a little unethical

– and illegal – to stiff people out of money, but here’s the thing about “sober coaches”: on the list of most pointless jobs, they’re right behind “life coaches.”

I actually used to know a guy who’s a life coach, and he was one of the most vain, egotistical, conceited people I’ve ever known. And I include myself in that statement.

That made me realize the people who were voluntarily going out of their way to try and emulate him were making a desperate cry for help that needed to be heard by someone who had expertise in areas other than knowing how to squat with proper form, pick

up women and apply the perfect amount of hair gel.

Sure, there are people out there who have legitimate issues that need to be worked on, but getting someone to “coach” you through these issues is impractical for two reasons:

If a person is going to pay someone to be a guide through life, that’s money probably best spent on a professional.

And if somebody’s going to have an amateur to guide him or her through life, it may be best to ask a close friend or family member. That is, unless all your friends and family have disowned you, like mine have.

But here’s the thing that no life coach will tell you: Everything in

life is just a 50-50 gamble. Either you’ll be successful in your career, or you won’t. Either you’ll get married and live happily ever after, or you won’t. Either you’ll win the lottery, or you won’t.

So, yeah, like I said before, people may think Mischa Barton is simply shafting people out of heard-earned money – a phrase I’d use very lightly in this case – and perhaps that’s true.

But even if it is, this story could still be used as some sort of public service announcement or after-school special. I can see it now: “Kids, stay off drugs. They’ll make you do crazy stuff like temporarily lose your mind and give large sums of money to strangers for no apparent reason.”

Talking with Todd - one man’s influence

Life coaches: a money-wasting joke

What do you think about Todd’s attitude and popularity? @evangellance

A group of Evangel and Central Bible College students traveled to Joplin to assist Rebuild Joplin in various construction projects in the Joplin area.

“Approximately 55 students showed up at 7:10 on a cold, sun-ny morning,” said Chelsea Brook-bank, junior.

“The mixed groups of CBC and Evangel students worked together to patch up drywall, spread loads of dirt, demo a house – my favor-ite because I got to use a sledge-hammer – paint ceilings and break up and dispose of concrete.”

She said students worked from about 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and that while the work was hard, stu-dents enjoyed it.

Rebuild Joplin started as a re-sponse team to the tornado that struck Joplin on May 22, 2012.

Austin Crews, junior, said, “Each person is placed in groups, usually consisting of 10 to 15 peo-ple. Depending on the project, you could be working with high school students, college students, adults, grandpas, etc. Each group

has a Rebuild Joplin staff worker, and they oversee the project.”

Paul Bayer, senior, said Rebuild Joplin has a goal to build a certain number of houses for those af-fected by the tornado.

“They are trying to meet a quo-ta for the number of houses built each year, so I’d imagine their biggest need is help from people who are willing to give the time,” he said.

Rebuild Joplin is a nonprofit agency that is partnered with the St. Bernard Project “to provide long-term recovery and rebuild-ing systems.”

Rebuild Joplin exists to make sure that Joplin’s residential re-covery operates as smoothly as possible.

The site said that Rebuild Joplin ensures that tornado-impacted residents have access to afford-able and safe housing, delivered through coordinated, construc-tion systems and partnerships.

Crews said Rebuild Joplin needs anyone who is willing and able to help.

“Anyone who wants to serve with Rebuild Joplin is welcome. If you have experience with con-

struction, power tools, you are more than welcome to volunteer. If not, that’s okay too. Just show up,” he said.

Bayer said, “Students can vol-unteer even if they do not have proper training for whatever they will be doing, they will be trained on the site of where they are working.”

Brookbank said Rebuild Joplin’s largest need right now is man-hours, people who will donate their time and effort. “There is still so much needing to be done,” she said.

Brookbank said there is a cal-endar on Rebuild Joplin’s website that shows when people can vol-unteer.

“The organization can only handle so many people at a time, so it is best to look ahead at the calendar to determine a date,” Brookbank said. “On the volun-teer form, there is an opportunity to indicate certain skills; that is, roofing, trim, etc. However, no skill level is required,” Brookbank said.

According to Rebuild Joplin’s website, the next available work-day is March 30.

I hear the rain crashing into the massive windows outside as I sit in this quaint café and coffee-house called the Brown Egg. This old-fashioned place sits nestled in the middle of a neighborhood one block west of the Missouri State University campus.

Lauren Mc-Creight, senior, said, “I like the Brown Egg because it is a calm, chill atmosphere with great food. My favorite dish is the New York Style Cream Cheese Cinnamon Roll. If you ask, they will heat it up.”

This restaurant serves break-fast and lunch foods throughout the day. Amanda Wuenschel, ca-shier, said most people prefer to order breakfast food. “The most requested dish is the Pancake Sandwich,” Wuenschel said. “This breakfast sandwich has sausage, egg and cheese crushed between two homemade pancakes. This is served with syrup poured all over.”

The service here is excellent. The staff at Brown Egg is always smiling and extremely friendly. I ordered and received my food with a joy that I do not normally notice in people working in the food industry. The food here is made from scratch. Which, from my experience, this makes the food fresher and more enjoyable.

Plus, a vegan section on the menu allows customers to avoid meat and animal by-products.

While I left this café satisfied and wanting to come

back again, I have spoken with others who have not felt the same way. Greta Miller, junior, said, “I have ordered the biscuits and gravy on multiple occasions, but I would recommend not getting this entrée during lunchtime. The biscuits will be hard, and the gra-vy will be extremely thick. It will taste old.”

Overall, Brown Egg is a great place to get some homework done and still eat quality food. It has great food, a relaxed atmosphere and pleasant service.

I walked into “Beautiful Crea-tures” expecting a low-quality movie. I hadn’t liked the trailer or anything else I had heard or seen about the movie before actually seeing it.

But this film was a huge sur-prise, and I’m glad I did take the time to see it. It is by no means an Oscar-worthy movie, but it is an enjoyable story with a surprising-ly good cast. Don’t let the trailer stop you. Just keep an open mind, as this is a very entertaining film.

“Beautiful Creatures” is about a group of casters, who are people who have certain powers to ma-nipulate objects, the environment or even the mind.

This family lives in a fictional town called Gatlin. The youngest daughter, Lena, played by Alice Englert, goes to high school and meets Ethan, her counterpart in the film, played by Alden Ehren-reich. Without giving too much away, I’ll just say that Ethan soon

meets her family, and the drama quickly follows.

The film does throw some mag-ical elements into story, but it’s important to not take these at face value. The real message of the film is that love and sacrifice are more powerful than anything else. The magical powers are not there to establish spells or witches as cen-tral plot elements, but they are rather simple gimmicks to move the story forward – and facilitate the use of eye-grabbing special ef-fects.

This movie is based on a series of books of the same name. I have not personally read the books, so I am not sure how the movie compares. As a stand-alone film, though, the story and characters hold up quite well.

The cast was the main aspect I thought would disappoint me when I went to see “Beautiful Creatures,” but it turns out to be one of the best aspects of the film as a whole.

My only big complaint is that the female lead, Alice Englert, is

not on acting par with the other actors in the film. Though every-one does a great job, the show stealer is definitely Jeremy Irons, who plays the Lena’s uncle.

His character is very entertain-ing, with an over-the-top nature and witty dialogue. The writer of the script definitely paid special attention to Irons’ character’s dia-logue.

This movie also does a fairly good job of combining several dif-ferent genres. Romance, action, comedy and mystery – it seems to be each of these at different points in the film. There are a few mo-ments in which comedic elements feel a bit forced, but overall, it is a good mix.

The film is not perfect; it strug-gles a bit with some over-the-top plot points, plain cinematography and a few cheesy moments, but those are almost expected in this type of movie. Even so, “Beautiful Creatures” still manages to it pull off, like I said, an entertaining movie that will be remembered, at least for a while.

Chill. That is the best word to describe the environment at Big Momma’s. For three hours on Monday nights, the coffee shop on Commercial Street is home to a variety of performances of music, poetry, standup comedy and other forms of live entertain-ment.

Set up in the back room is a stage for the night’s performances and ample tables and chairs to seat a significant number of people. There are also stools, chairs and tables available in the front room for those who prefer to be farther from the stage. The overall atmosphere is relaxed and friendly.

Kevin Lowery, an employee at Big Mom-ma’s, said, “Every Monday night, we have an open mike. It starts at seven, and anyone can come over and play or sing whatever they want. Write your name, and whenever it gets to you, you go up and do your thing.”

Lowery said, “We have a stage, and ob-viously, since it’s a coffee shop, we prefer

acoustic bands.” He said that every now and then, Big Momma’s will have a band that comes through say they want to play there. Lowery said these bands usually get the next available date to play.

Shelby Shepperly, junior, said she started performing at Big Momma’s a year ago and now performs about once a month during the Monday open mike nights.

“It’s just a cool atmosphere. It’s really chill and laid-back, and you don’t really feel any pressure or judged,” Shepperly said. “You can just go up there and play your music. A lot of Evangel people perform, and a lot of Evangel people go, so you have a lot of your friends there. So it’s a cool environ-ment where you can showcase your talent.”

“The first time I ever performed on gui-tar for myself was at Big Momma’s,” Shep-perly said. “It went all right, but it was funny because when I got done playing, I was like, ‘Why was I so nervous? Why was I freaking out?’”

Shepperly also said she’s been able to make connections and build friendships

through Big Momma’s. One of those con-nections has been with Nathan Wallace, who sets up for the open mike nights. Shep-perly said, “Nathan’s heart is to reach the young adult community for Christ through fine arts. He’s trying to find a way for them to connect somehow, and it’s awesome be-cause that’s my passion too. Anything that can grab someone for God, I’m like, ‘Yeah, let’s do it.’ We’ve done worship sets at Big Momma’s before, and no one stopped us. It’s definitely an open environment.”

There are a variety of talents showcased at Big Momma’s. The audience varies from college students to the elderly and most of the music is acoustic.

Shepperly said, “I do a lot of chill indie stuff, usually just an acoustic guitar, some-times a keyboard. Most of the time, it’s just chill and soft for a coffee shop feel.”

Bill Cooper, a Vietnam combat veteran, writes songs about American folklore and plays them at Big Momma’s. Cooper said he likes Big Momma’s and has been playing his guitar and singing there a long time. Coo-

per said he plays every Monday night.Open mike night is every Monday from

7 to 10 p.m.

FEATURES4 | Friday, March 1, 2013 | The Lance

Students serve those hit by disasterStudents help out in Joplin, organization seeks future help with community projects

BY RYAN PETERSStaff Writer

Brown Egg eatery

‘Creatures’ movie surprises

Open mike night draws musicians to Big Momma’sBY HOPE HAMILTON

Staff Writer

BY MIRANDA McCABEContributing Writer

BY MICHAEL MUENCHContributing Writer

Paul Bayer, senior, putting up corner bead in Joplin on Feb. 16.SEAN WHITE | THE LANCE

WARNER BROS. ENTERTAINMENT

Brown Egg restaurant serves homestyle meals in a coffee shop atmosphere. The dining area includes a bookshelf and tables.

JOANNA FORD | THE LANCE

‘Beautiful Creatures’ better than trailer suggests

WHERE: Hollywood TheatersFRIDAY SHOWTIMES: 1 p.m., 7:30 p.m.

WHERE: 607 E. Madison COST: $4-8HOURS: Mon.-Fri. 6 a.m.- 8 p.m.Sat.-Sun. 7 a.m.-4 p.m.

Big Momma’s hosts open mike night every Monday at 7 p.m.

SEAN WHITE | THE LANCE

SPORTS The Lance| Friday, March 1, 2013 |5

Baseball defeated in doubleheaderA� er dropping two games, team expresses goals for rest of season

BY BRANDON HOFFMANContributing Writer

(R-L) Christian Maciel, junior baseman, and Storm Bailey, senior out-fielder, round bases at the series opener against Central Christian Col-lege Feb. 9.

Christian Maciel, junior baseman, catches a pop fly against Central Christian College Feb. 9.

PHOTOS BY BRANDON WILLIS | THE LANCE

Women lose, look to postseasonBY BRIANA GOFORTH

Sports Editor

Emily Akins, sophmore guard, positions the ball for a pass in the block looking to score.

RUTH HENDERSON | THE LANCE

� e Crusaders fell to Heart of America Athletic Conference champion MidAmerica Nazarene on Monday by a score of 63-52.

� e Crusaders were 6-12 in the conference, while MidAmerica had su� ered only one loss with a record of 16-1.

According to a press release, the Pioneers are ranked No. 9 na-tionally and were able to hold the Crusaders to 18 points the � rst half. A� er hal� ime, the Crusad-ers fell behind by as much as 16 points before � ghting back with seven points midway through the second half.

Sierra McSpadden, senior start-ing forward, led the team with 20 points and added 10 rebounds.

“Although our record does not necessarily show it, I feel that we as a team have played very hard this season,” McSpadden said. “� ings have not exactly gone our way in the games, but we have stuck together through all the ups and downs.”

Emily Akins, sophomore guard, added 14 points versus MidAm-erica.

Like McSpadden, Akins contin-ues to remain positive about the team’s season.

“� ere are always those games where you wish you could go back and change a few points to come out on top, but honestly, every moment and every game prepared us for what was ahead,” Akins said. “God put some rough times in our path, but it has only made us come together even more.”

According to a press release, MidAmerica’s win against the Crusaders ensured its 17th win in a row, improving the team to 27-2 with a conference record of 17-1. � e Crusaders concluded their regular season with a record of 7-17, 6-12 in the conference. � e loss against MidAmerica put the Crusaders at No. 7 in the confer-

ence, which will pit them against second-seed Benedictine in the � rst round of play at the HAAC tournament.

“From here on, we win, or we are done,” Akins said. “It really does not matter what our record was or who beat who. We just have to walk into the gym and get the job done so we can move on.”

“If we win the tournament, we will be able to go to the national tournament, and that is our ulti-mate goal,” Akins said. “We just have to be able to do what we do on o� ense and defense, which includes getting up and getting stops, running our stu� and just playing with a kind of intensity that we have not played with yet.”

� e HAAC tournament began � ursday in Atchison, Kan., and the outcome was not available at press time.

God put some rough times in our

path, but it has only made us come

together even more.- Emily Akins

A� er defeat by No. 1 MidAmerica Nazarene, team looks ahead to compete in conference tournament

4 04 0

Calendar

1March

3/1BaseballTrinity International, Madonna(Florida Invitational)

3/2BaseballDavenport (Florida Invita-tional)

3/4BaseballCornerstone (Florida Invita-tional)SoftballCentenary CollegeShreveport, La.4 and 6 p.m.

3/5BaseballPoint Park (Florida Invita-tional)SoftballTexas College (Tyler, Texas)

3/7SoftballUniversity of DallasDallas, Texas5 and 7 p.m.

3/8SoftballTexas WesleyanFt. Worth, Texas5 and 7 p.m.

3/11Women’s TennisMissouri Baptist UniversitySt. Louis, Mo.11 a.m.Lindenwood-BellvilleSt. Louis, Mo.4 p.m.

3/12BaseballHannibal-LaGrangeCrusader Field1 p.m.

3/14SoftballLyon CollegeCrusader Field1 and 3 p.m.

Amy Grossklag is a sophomore from Bonita Springs, Florida. Grossklag was ranked No. 6 in the NAIA and went 3-1 in singles at the Iintercol-legiate Tennis Association Regional Tournament.ATHLETIC SPOTLIGHT

Amy Grossklag Q. College tennis is di� erent from pro tennis in that it is very team-oriented, so what are some of the team’s goals going into this season?

A. College tennis is its own kind of animal. You’re playing as an individual, but at the end of the day, it’s all our e� ort that counts. I would say some of our team goals would be to get a ton of match play. Our team is pretty young, so win or lose, we are focusing on becoming match tough and gaining experience.

Q. What are a few of your goals as an indi-vidual?

A. My personal goal for the season is to win all of my conference singles matches. If I can stay focused on one match at a time, work hard on a consistent basis and stay mentally tough, I think I’ll have a good shot at it.

Q. You are starting out the year ranked as the No. 6 tennis player in the NAIA. Does that add pressure or motivation?

A. Honestly, it only motivates me to do better. I placed fourth at nationals this fall, and my goal for next fall is to place top three. If I work hard enough, hopefully I can do it.

Q. What part of your game have you worked the hardest on improving since last season?

A. My doubles game. I am working on be-coming more aggressive and attacking net a lot more.

� e baseball team dropped both games against No. 10 Okla-homa Baptist University on Sat-urday.

In game one, both teams went scoreless for four innings. Evangel scored a run in the � � h inning on a home run by Shon Valdez, ju-nior third baseman.

However, Oklahoma Baptist scored six runs in the bottom half of the game to go to a 9-3 victory.

Seth Bailey, senior catcher, said the team’s excessive errors caused

the lack of performance. In game two, the Crusaders

jumped to a 1-0 lead a� er the top half of the � rst, only to see the Oklahoma Baptist Bison answer with two of their own in the bot-tom half. Evangel would score its second run in the top half of the second, and the score would re-main tied until Oklahoma Baptist scored two in the bottom half of the sixth to win 4-2.

Black McKnight, senior pitcher, said, “I honestly felt we played really well against Oklahoma Baptist. � ey were by far the best team we’ve played this year. Our

pitching let us down at the end of the � rst game, and the second game was an extremely well-played game by both teams, and we unfortunately didn’t come out on top.”

While the Crusaders and the Bison had the same amount of hits in both games, the Crusaders had a total of three errors while the Bison remained error-free.

� e Crusaders are now 9-3 overall.

McKnight said the team’s goals are to win conference, to break the all-time school wins record and to be nationally ranked in the NAIA top 25.

McKnight also said he has lo� y goals for himself. “My personal goals are to be pitcher of the year for our and conference and All-American,” he said.

� e team was supposed to trav-el to College of the Ozarks for a doubleheader Tuesday; however, the games were postponed.

� e team has traveled to Flori-da for its next game, which is to-day against Trinity International University at the 2013 RussMatt Central Florida Invitational.

I honestly felt we played really well against Oklaho-ma Baptist. They were by far the

best team we’ve played this year.- Blake McKnight

Things have not exactly gone our

way in the games, but we have stuck

together through all the ups and downs.- Sierra McSpadden

SPORTS6 | Friday, March 1, 2013 | The Lance

Team falls to MidAmerica, looks to tournament

Men’s basketball clinches conference

BY CHARLIE WILLIAMSContributing Writer

Super fans dress in crazy costumes supporting the men’s basketball team during its last home game.

Stephen Cotten, senior forward, takes the ball to the hoop, look-ing to score against MidAmerica Nazarene University.

PHOTOS BY JOANNA FORD | THE LANCE

Team sets goals to grab NAIA conference titleBY BRANDON WILLIS

Contributing Writer

With a 5-0 record in hand, the so� ball team is in an all-out sprint for the conference championship.

Jerry Breaux, head coach, said the team has organized a three-tier strategy for the season. “Our plan is to crack the top 20, but to do that we have to win most [18] of the � rst 21 games,” he said. “In conference, our goal is to be 16-2. At the end of the year, the top eight teams in the [Heart of America Athletic Conference] make it to playo� s. From there, we have to win the playo� s to go to the [NAIA] World Series.”

With its last conference cham-pionship win in 2009, Breaux said the team has to play toward its strengths – pitching and hitting – to make it to the championship. Breaux said the team has a strong core of upperclassmen and prom-ising underclassmen whose ath-letic ability is evident on the � eld.

Bethany Bacon, sophomore in-� elder, and Lenzie Boring, senior pitcher, grabbed HAAC player of

the week and pitcher of the week honors respectively on Feb. 25 for their strongest batting and pitching performances so far this season, according to the HAAC website.

With continually strong per-formances since 2009 – yet no conference championship win – Breaux said the so� ball team is poised for an excellent season.

“Starting a season, we haven’t gone 5-0 in a long time,” Breaux said. “We have always produced good winning records, but this should speak to the testimony that this team right now seems on a mission.”

� e team wants to win the con-ference championship because it wants to continue its legacy of be-ing a dominant team in the con-ference.

“We have been a perennial pow-er as a so� ball team in the confer-ence,” Breaux said. “We have the most conference championships of any sport here at Evangel.”

Breaux said the so� ball team dominated the conference with six straight conference wins from

2004 to 2009. “When you have a good tra-

dition that the program is built around, players are con� dent every year that they will win the conference every year, just be-cause of our tradition,” he said.

Shelby Ho� man, junior in� eld-er, said regardless of the team’s season-long goals, every inning matters.

“We score as many points as possible every inning,” Ho� man said. “If we win every inning, we will win the game. � e goal is to take it one inning at a time.”

� e team’s athletic prowess compliments the team’s strong sense of unity. “� e intangible thing about this team is the to-getherness, the unity and the mis-sion the team has,” Breaux said.

� e team’s unity allows up-perclassmen to mentor younger players, Ho� man said. “We have con� dence in every player on the team, and it shows when we step on that � eld. As a team, we con-tinue to build o� each other. We are going to be the team to beat this season,” she said.

So� ball o� to perfect start

Volleyball recruits

Goal 3: Win the playo�s, HAAC Championship - NAIA World Series

Goal 2: 16-2 in HAAC games - Top 8 in HAAC

Goal 1: 18-3 in �rst 21 games - Top 20 in HAAC

GRAPHIC BY JORDAN SJOSTROM | THE LANCE

� is year, the volleyball program has signed girls more quickly than in previous years. According to Mary Whitehead, volleyball head coach, these seven girls will join the volleyball team this this fall:

Fugate is currently a senior at Ozark High School in Ozark, Mo. Fugate was awarded second team all-state in the Class 4 division. Fugate was a four-time partici-pant at state with the varsity team at Ozark, where her team placed � rst once and third three times.

Kensinger is a senior at Fair Grove High School in Fair Grove, Mo. Kensinger received a � rst team all-state award for the Class 3 division.

Smith will be transferring in as a sophomore from Division II Missouri University of Science and Technology in Rolla, Mo., as a defensive specialist.

Glessner is a senior at Repub-lic High School in Republic, Mo. Glessner has won two district championship titles as a varsity player for Republic.

Walters is a senior at Mt. Ver-non High School in Mt. Vernon, Mo. Walters received an all-state honorable mention in the Class 3 division.

Wade is a senior at Lebanon High School in Lebanon, Mo.

Dunton is a senior at Rogers-ville High School in Rogersville, Mo. Dunton is a defensive spe-cialist and has received an all-state honorable mention in the Class 3 division.

� e Crusaders � nished the reg-ular season red-hot, winning nine straight games and 14 of their last 15 heading into Monday’s match-up against rival MidAmerica Naz-arene University.

No. 9 Evangel (22-6), however, had its plans stalled as MidAm-erica beat the Crusaders 99-92 in both teams’ last game of the

regular season. MidAmerica beat the Crusaders for the second time this season, bringing Evan-gel’s conference record to 15-3, a game ahead of MidAmerica and Culver-Stockton University.

“MidAmerica is a great team, and I think it comes down to what we do. Both games, we allowed them to dictate how the game would be played rather than us dictating it,” J.J. Williams, junior guard, said.

Evangel made nine of 17 three-pointers in the game against the Pioneers and shot 53.1 percent from the � oor. However, the Crusaders were unable to make defensive stops against MidAm-erica’s o� ense. � e Pioneers made 63 percent of their shots and went 20-for-30 from the � oor in the second half.

Steve Jenkins, head coach, said, “� ey’ve beat us four straight times, which says a lot about the respect they have for our pro-gram.”

A� er already clinching � rst place in the Heart of America Athletic Conference regular sea-son with MidAmerica’s loss to Culver-Stockton Saturday, the Crusaders receive a bid to the NAIA-I National Tournament and have home-court advantage throughout the conference tour-nament.

“� e � nal rankings for the na-tional tournament will come out next week,” Jenkins said. “We need to win the quarter� nals and semi� nals to get as good of a seed as possible.”

If the Crusaders are able to re-sist another upset like they saw last season in their conference tournament loss to Baker Univer-sity, they are favored for a third shot at MidAmerica this season.

“Before we think about meet-ing them again, we have to focus on Peru State. Generally speak-ing, we have to have better e� ort and focus on the defensive end,” Williams said. “It brings an even larger sense of urgency and focus. We want to build momentum go-

ing into the national tournament.”� e HAAC tournament began

last night, and the top-seed Cru-saders faced eighth-seed Peru State College in the Ashcro� Center. � e winner of last night’s game will face the winner be-tween fourth-seed Central Meth-odist University and � � h-seed Benedictine College.

� e Crusaders are con� dent as

they leave the regular season and head into play in the conference tournament. With the national tournament later this month, the team looks to � nish the season with a high seed in the national tournament.

“Our mentality is, of course, to win,” Williams said. “As a compet-itor, you want to win every time you play.”

Jackie Fugate

Morgan Kensinger

Morgan Smith

Brandy Glessner

Erica Walters

McKenzie Wade

Allie Dunton