destiny hagood staff Photographer

Above: Students participate in a free yoga class in the Dr. Royce and Pam Money Recreation and Wellness Center Tuesday. Below: Jenni Schaefer shares self-image advice dur-ing Monday’s Chapel forum in Moody Coliseum.

inside

Page 8 page 6 page 3

Women’s basketball coach fired after two seasons

The new dancing policy does not change much

Interior design minor added to 2012 catalog

Abilene Christian University

Featurespage 5

sports opinion news

acuoptimist.com

Watch this week’s JMC Network Newscast

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vol. 100, no. 40 wednesday, february 29, 2012 1 SECTION, 8 PAGES

KEEPING CAMPUSCONFIDENT

Fresh FareLocal restaurant offers quality

dining experience

Campus entities have part-nered to sponsor “Love Your Body Week” from Feb. 26-Mar. 2.

The Students’ Associa-tion, the Counseling Cen-ter, the Office of Student Life, the Chapel Office and Residence Life part-nered to bring campus this week’s events. This week is also National Eating Dis-

order Awareness Week, so the purpose of the event is to discuss healthy living habits and to direct stu-dents on how to live a full life. Numerous events are scheduled, including fo-rums on eating disorders and a session providing free nutrition tips.

Julianne Hart, SA exec-utive vice president and se-nior political science major from Austin, came up with the idea, organized the events and pulled together

the speakers for the week.“It was an idea I had

at the beginning of the semester,” Hart said. “It came from a friend who was dealing with an eating disorder. I started to ask myself what the university has done in the past to ad-dress this issue. We wanted something that could be relatable to everyone.”

Connor Best, SA president and senior political science major from Sacramento, Ca-lif., said the week could be very beneficial to students.

“These things don’t get talked about in public,” Best said. “Emphasizing it all week is a neat way to get the issue out there.”

Love Your Body Week started on Monday with

a Chapel forum in Moody Coliseum from 8-9 p.m. called “Goodbye Ed, Hello Me.” Jenni Schaefer, author and speaker, led the forum. and talked about her battle with an eating disorder and how she recovered.

“Jenni has written two books,” Hart said. “Those books have changed the way people have viewed eating disorders.”

A free yoga class was offered Tuesday in the Student Recreation and Wellness Center. The class normally costs $60 each semester to attend.

Nutrition specialist Jor-dana Haught will provide free nutrition tips and coun-seling in the Campus Center Living Room from 11:30-1:30

p.m. Wednesday. Any stu-dent who wishes to learn how to take care of their body is encouraged to attend.

“Haught will talk about how to eat healthy in The Bean and in the dorm,” Hart said.

Thursday at 6:15 a.m., a free WhollyFit Yoga class will be available in the Rec Center. A small group Cha-pel, “The Psychological Side of Eating Disorders,” will meet in Nelson Lobby at 11 a.m. The group will be led by Cara Flanders, counselor at the Medical and Counseling Care Center , and Beyond 31.

Another free yoga class will be provided in the Rec Center at 12:15 p.m. on Thursday. The day will end with an informal talk with

freshman girls about eat-ing disorders. The student to student session will be located in East Gardner Lobby at 10:30 p.m.

Love Your Body Week will wrap up on Friday with a free psychology clinic in the Campus Center Living Room from 9 a.m.-2 p.m. The clinic, ran by graduate and psychology students, will have confidential screenings for eating disorders.

“Body weight and self-image are big issues with the students,” Hart said. “Many people are unaware of the correct way to treat their body.”

Edward IsaacsSports co editor

contact isaacs atjei08a@acu.edu

The Student’s Association and the Campus Activ-ity Board are planning the first sponsored dance par-ty in ACU history for next month. The costume dance party will be March 20 in the Hunter Welcome Center from 8:30-11:30 p.m.

The university an-nounced its revised dancing policy on Feb. 21, which now allows university and offi-cial organization-sponsored events to include approved forms of dancing. Julianne Hart, vice president of the SA, met with Student Life the day the announcement was made to schedule the

first ACU-sponsored dance. The senior political science major from Austin said the planning for this dance be-gan long before the revision was made official.

“The results of last spring’s student survey showed the overwhelming majority of students re-ally wanted social dance,” Hart said. “We’ve been in conversation with the Board of Trustees since August about the possi-bility of a revised policy. Once we got it officially approved we wanted to get the first dance started immediately.”

The dance, themed “A Dance in Disguise,” will be on the Tuesday night after Spring Break and will in-

clude a costume contest, a DJ and free food and drinks.

Tom Craig, director of student activities, said the decision to make the event on a weeknight was so stu-dents would have fewer po-tential schedule conflicts.

“A lot of students al-ready have things planned for the weekends so it’ll be a sort of weeknight de-stressor,” Craig said. “It’s also scheduled so people can come after their Tues-day night classes.”

The biggest difference in planning this event will be the dance floor, Craig said. While most of the other components of plan-ning the dance are similar to other events, the floor surface has to be taken into

consideration.“We’ve never had to

make sure the surface is necessary for dancing,” he said. “We’ll be looking at bringing in portable floor-ing. This dance will be in the McCaleb Conference Center, which is carpet, so we’ll bring in some wood flooring.”

Hart said having the dance two days after Spring Break will make marketing

the event a challenge. The Students’ Association and Campus Activities Board will advertise the dance heavily, before and after the break.

“We’ll be working to-gether on an ad campaign that is all encompassing,” Hart said. “We’ll be trying to flood the media scene and making sure that ev-eryone knows this is hap-pening. We want everyone

who would want to go to know about it.”

Hart said the dance was scheduled as soon as the dance policy was revised to get students excited about the opportunities it opens up.

“We really wanted stu-dents to see immediate re-sults after the policy was changed, and we want this to be a kickoff event for the campus to celebrate the first dance,” she said. “This is a monumental event in ACU’s history, and we want students to be able to come out and be a part of history.”

university

Themed dance party to be first on campus mark smith

managing editor

contact smith atmds10a@acu.edu

julianne hartsenior political science

major from austin

This is a monumental event in ACU’s history, and we want students to be able to come out and be a part of history.”“

Week of activities focused on promoting healthy self-image on campus

adrian patenaude staff Photographer

29

32 41

01 02 03Wednesday Thursday friday saturday

1 p.m. ACU Softball vs. Incarnate Word @ ACU

4 p.m. ACU Men’s Ten-nis @ Texas A&M

12 p.m. ACU Tennis vs. UIW, Tarleton and McMurry @ ACU

4 p.m. ACU Softball vs. UIW @ Incarnate Word

11 a.m. Matt Robinson’s real life testimony @ Moody Coliseum

7:30 ACU Theater Defiance

Police Log

Chapel checkup

@acuoptimist

The Optimist

optimist@acu.edu

Wednesday 02.29.12 2

Announcements

Around Abilene

Feb. 29

10 a.m. The exhibition, Friends and Neighbors: The Art of Photographing People, is showing at the Grace Mu-seum. It is a study in varying approaches to photographing people including formal por-traiture, documentary, fine art and avant-garde photography. Admission is $8.

Mar. 01

7:30 p.m. ACU theater presents the play “Defi-ance” at Fulks Theater. Tickets are available for $12 at 325-674-2787 and www.acu.edu/theatre.

Mar. 02

7:30 p.m. A dance will be held at the Grand Ole Oplin, Oplin Community Center. Admission is $5 per person. For more information visit www.grandoleoplin.com.

8 p.m. The Abilene Opera Association and guest artists present Puccini’s Tosca at the Paramount theater. Call 325-676-7372 for tickets.

Mar. 03

10 a.m. The 2nd Annual Outlaws and Legend Music Fest comes to Abilene at the Abilene Speedway, 6825W. Hwy 80. Various Texas bands will play until 1 a.m. General admission is $35 and Tailgate Party Passes are $400. Buy tickets online at www.out-housetickets.com.

A free psychology clinic with a confiden-tial screening for eating disorders is be-ing offered in the Campus Center Living Room on Friday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

A small group chapel, “The Psychology Side of Eating Disorders” will be offered in the Nelson lobby as part of of Love Your Body Week.

The ACU Music Department presents Eu-genia Zukerman in a flute recital as a part of the Guest Artist Series on Sunday at 7:30 p.m. in the WPAC.

ACU is in the process of creating a full-service salon and spa and needs stu-dents’ help in selecting a name. Check your e-mail and take the survey to give your feedback.

The Agriculture and Environmental Sci-ences department is conducting the Anabel Reid Run for Water. It will be a 24 hour fund raiser at the ACU track on March 23-24. For more information, con-tact the A&E department at 674-2401 or Many Scudder at scudderm@acu.edu.

The Counseling Center is conducting “Life’s Obstacles”, a free horse workshop to navigate life’s obstacles using horses on March 2 from 3-4 p.m. Contact steve.eller@acu.edu for questions.

Students interested in participating in a Spring Break Campaign can sign up in the SBC office in Room 31 in the lower level of the Campus Center. For more information on campaigns that still need members, or to sign up, contact jls07e@acu.edu.

The ACU Upward Bound Program is now hiring for Summer 2012. Call 325-674-2713 or e-mail lmo03a@acu.edu for more information. Submit your applica-tion at the Brown Library, first floor. Ap-plication deadline is March 16.

The 2012 Springboard Ideas Challenge is now open for registration. Students can submit a mini-business plan for a chance to win up to $10,000. Early registration deadline is March 1. Visit www.acu.edu/academics/coba/griggscenter/spring-board to learn more about the competi-tion.

The Black Student Association presents A Walk Through Time, a black history pro-duction, on March 3 on 12:30 p.m. and 7:30 and March 4 at 2:30 p.m. Tickets are on sale for $5 and $7 at the door.

Join the multicultural student groups on March 1 for a combined multicultural chapel that will include a time of wor-ship and a sneak peek of the Black His-tory Production in Bible Building 117.

Sign-ups for a soccer tournament will be from March 2-4 in the Campus Cen-ter. To join, you must have a minimum of 10 players. Registration is $7 per per-son. Funds will go to send soccer balls to children in Honduras. Spots are limited. Free classes of yoga are being offered on Thursday at 6:15 a.m. and 11 a.m. at the Rec Center.

Receive free nutrition tips from special-ist Jordana Haught on Wednesday from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

Volunteer Opp0rtunities

Volunteers are needed to serve as judges for STAR Event competitions on Friday, March 2, between the hours of 9:30 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. at ACU. You will sit and listen to student presentations and rank them using a rubric and score sheet. Contact Rebecca Self at 940-507-1695 or e-mail rebecca.region2fc-cla@yahoo.com

ACU’s Agriculture and Environmental Sciences De-partment needs volunteers to help with the Anabel Reid Run for Water fundraiser on March 23 and 24. Many volunteers are needed a variety of ways during the event. Contact Mandy Scudder at 325-674-2401 or e-mail scudderm@acu.edu.

Abilene Hope Haven Inc. needs volunteers to provide childcare while parents are in class, any evening Monday-Thursday from 6:45 - 8:15 p.m. Abilene Hope Haven is located at 801 S. Treadaway Blvd. For more information contact Kathy Reppart at 325-677-4673 or visit www.abilenehopehaven.com/volunteer.

Volunteers are needed to enjoy a free lunch with students at Bonham Elementary School on a weekly basis. This would be sometime between 10:00 a.m. and 1:15 p.m., and would involve spending lunch time with students and having a positive impact on their lives. Contact Jason Shaw at 325-639-3745 or e-mail jason.shaw@abileneisd.org.

Meals on Wheels Plus needs volunteer drivers to deliver afternoon meals to seniors and adults with disabilities Monday-Friday between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. Drivers must be at least 18 years old and have a valid driver’s license. Training is provided. A Chapel exemp-tion is available if delivery time conflicts with Chapel. Contact Jessica Stewart at 325-672-5050 or email volunteer@mealsonwheelsplus.com.

The Big Brothers Big Sisters program is looking for volunteers to participate in Lunch Buddies. Bigs and Littles will enjoy lunch together at the child’s school once a week. Students can earn Chapel credit for each visit. Big Brothers Big Sisters is also looking for volunteers for its Community Based program. Bigs are matched with Littles in a one-on-one relation-ship and spend four to six hours per month together in the community. To sign up or learn more visit www.bbbstx.org or call 325-674-3113.

The Minter Lane Church of Christ is looking for volun-teers Wednesday nights from 6-8 p.m. Volunteers will eat with children from kindergarten to 12th grade and help during class time. Contact youth minister Joshua Alkire at 325-201-5342 or e-mail jga05c@acu.edu.

New Life Alliance is looking for volunteers to help with their after school program on Monday through Friday from 3 to 6 p.m. You will help with snacks, homework, crafts, games and other activities in ad-dition to mentoring and building relationships with youth. Contact Ashley Kee at 325-672-1636 or e-mail akee@newlifehousing.com. The House That Kerry Built is looking for volunteers to assist in the day care of medically fragile children any day Monday through Friday from 8:45 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. Contact Dave Kraly at 325-676-3104 or e-mail medi-calmoose@sbcglobal.net for more information.

Rescue The Animals is looking for volunteers any-time between 1 p.m. and 5 p.m., Monday-Friday. They need help around the adoption center with general cleaning, socialization of the animals, helping poten-tial adopters and other tasks. Contact Mindi Qualls at 325-698-7722 or email rescuetheanimalsvolunteers@yahoo.com. The center is located at 5933 S. 1st St.

Young Life Ministries needs volunteers Mondays, Tuesdays and weekends from 6-9 p.m. Volunteers will hang out with kids, experience leadership roles, serve others and introduce students to Christ. Young Life is located at 1917 S. 6th St. For more information contact Chuck Rodgers at 325-676-1211 or email clrodg@wrproperties.com.

The Betty Hardwick Center needs volunteers to par-ticipate in Special Olympics by helping mentally/physi-cally challenged people play games such as basketball, track, and/or bowling Monday - Friday from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. The Center is located at 801 Cypress St. Contact Angel Seca at 325-690-5235 for more information.

HERO, Hendrick Equine Rehabilitation Opportuni-ties, is looking for volunteers to help with their spring program by assisting their clients as they ride horses for therapy. No experience with horses is necessary. Help is needed Tuesdays and Thursdays from Mar. 20 to May 3. Volunteers can help anywhere from one to six hours per week for the duration of the program. Volunteers must attend training on either Mar. 6 or 8. Contact Beth Byerly at 325-660-3465 or e-mail hero-coord@netzero.com.

Disability Resources, Inc. is looking for volunteers to as-sist developmentally disabled residence. Help is needed with activities, art projects, reading books, exercise activities, assisting with vocational training needs and other interactions Monday through Friday from 9 a.m-4 p.m. For more information contact Becky Moody at 325-677-6815 or e-mail bmoody@driabilene.org.

Volunteers are needed to read to Taylor Elemen-tary School students Monday through Thursday afternoons at UCC from 3:15-4:30 p.m. Enter through the south entrance. Contact C.G. Grey 325-668-2842.

Da’ Cipher 360, a program for at risk children, is looking for volunteers on Monday evenings from 5-8 p.m. at the Rose Park Activity Center, 2625 S. 7th St. Volunteers can help in a variety of ways including helping with set up, learning activities for kindergarten-3rd graders, tutoring 4th-8th graders, and assisting with clean up. Contact Alvina Scott at 847-333-7026 or e-mail ams07b@acu.edu.

The Salvation Army is looking for volunteers for a variety of needs including sorting and pricing items in the thrift store, helping in the kitchen and/or doing yard work. Times are flexible. Volunteers are needed throughout the week Monday-Saturday. The Salvation Army is located at 1726 Butternut St. For more information contact J.D. Alonzo at 325-677-1408 or visit www.satruck.com.

Access Learning Center is looking for volunteers to help elementary school kids with homework, read-ing, computers and games. The center is located at 2102 Ambler Ave. For more information contact Bret Hines at 325-670-9727. Call ahead to sched-ule a time to volunteer.

Habitat for Humanity needs volunteers to help with various construction tasks including carpentry, painting, cleaning up, installing cabinets and other tasks. Volunteers are needed any day Monday-Sat-urday between 9 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. Contact Steven Legget at 325-670-0489 or e-mail sleggett@abile-nehabitat.org.

The Food Bank of West Central Texas needs volun-teers to help sort and stock food and other items any weekday Monday-Friday from 8 a.m. - 3 p.m. The Food Bank is located at 5505 N. 1st St. For more information contact Janice Serrault at 325-695-6311 or abfoodbk@camalott.com.

The Abilene Boys and Girls Club needs help any weekday between 3:30 - 6 p.m. helping children of all ages with games, art, gym time, reading and computer skills. Locations are 4610 N. 10th St. or 1902 Shelton St. Contact Mark Denman at 325-672-1712 for more information.

For additional volunteer opportunities visit: www.acu.edu/campusoffices/slvr/vol_opps/

wednesday 02.29.123 campus news

Interior Design to add minor

The Department of Art and Design will offer an interior design minor beginning in the fall.

Students have been able to major in interior design since 1984, but an interior design minor hasn’t been available.

The interior design mi-nor will provide opportunity for completion across four semesters. It will require 21 hours through a variety of courses. The minor will al-low students to choose mul-tiple classes to help create a specialized minor. Three full-time professors and one adjunct professor teach in the Interior Design program within the Department of Art and Design. Kitty Wase-miller, professor of interior design and pre-architecture, teaches multiple classes in the program.

“The market is chang-ing; there is a lot going on in design. The market is ready for academic preparation for students interested in

the commitment of a minor. I think that what we teach will give someone substance in their knowledge. Interior design effects people in very positive ways, and in mul-tiple ways,” Wasemiller said. “Because it has a menu of choices for a number of the classes I think it fits more di-rectly a diverse application and helps someone build knowledge.”

Accredited by the Coun-cil for Interior Design Ac-creditation, ACU’s interior design program prepares students with unique prob-lem-solving techniques to creatively plan and design environments that protect the health, safety and wel-fare of building occupants.

By adding the option of interior design as a minor, more students will be able to

gain the art and design ex-perience they hope for, said Gracia Ferreyro, sophomore interior design major from San Antonio. She thinks the program will be helpful for many students.

“I know that many people go into the interior design program their freshmen year and though they love interior design, they quickly change their major due to the difficulty level in all the courses. Adding the option of interior design as a minor will allow students that may not want to do the full inte-rior design program, learn the basics of interior design and major in another field of interest,” Ferreyro said.

interior design

mark smithmanaging editor

Students, faculty sweep local ADDY awards

More than 50 advertis-ing and design students and groups from ACU took home awards from the 2012 ADDYs Banquet Thursday. The local level of the na-tional advertising competi-tion featured winners from three universities and other organizations and groups in and around Abilene.

The American Advertising Federation coordinates the annual awards ceremonies that starts on the local level and winners move up to the district and national levels.

Mike Wiggins, chair of the Department of Art and Design, said the 53 awards won by ACU-affiliated groups, students and facul-ty indicate how well the par-ticipants are doing based on outside evaluation.

“We do this so people outside our area look at our work and decide if it’s good

or bad,” Wiggins said. “It’s a matter of understanding how we are doing.”

Wiggins said participat-ing in the competition and doing well improves the uni-versity’s name in the field.

“This put our name out in front of judges from major design firms in other markets who can give our students jobs,” he said. “It looks good for all of our students, not just the ones who enter and do well, because if employers in the field see a resume from an ACU alum, they’ll have a good impression.”

Preston Watkins, senior advertising and public rela-tions major from Manassas, Virg., won a Student Bronze Addy for his print adver-tisement for Haagen Dazs, called “Haagen-Does.” Wat-kins said he was excited to win an award in his first en-try into the competition.

“I feel honored to have received the award and to have created something my professor thought was

worth of entering,” Watkins said. “Now I’m looking for-ward to getting into the field because I could be a part of a team that could enter into the competition later on.”

Wiggins said the gold award winners will be en-tered into the next level of competitions.

“We don’t just want to win at a local level but to compete at the next level,” Wiggins said. “Gold winners are entered into district lev-el competitions for free, so it’s also a cost-effective way to compete there.”

awards

contact galle atblg09c@acu.edu

brookelee gallestudent reporter

contact smith atmds10a@acu.edu

mike wigginschair of the department

of art and design

We don’t just want to win at a local level but to compete at the next

level.”“

‘The Help’ opens discussion on campus

The Office of Multicultur-al Enrichment partnered with the Campus Activities Board for a viewing of The Help on Saturday in Cullen Auditorium, followed by a conversation about race relations.

The Academy Award nominee for Best Picture was free for all students and faculty with their ID and open to the public for a $1 admission. A forum after

the movie allowed those in attendance to voice their opinions about the issue of racial equality.

The Campus Activities Board (CAB) is a student-run event planning orga-nization that works with Student Life and sponsors various events through-out the year including free concerts, hypnotists, mov-ies, Sadie’s Week and Casa-nova Week.

“This month, CAB de-cided to incorporate Black History Month into our free movie, The Help, said

Ana Rodriguez, sopho-more psychology major from Plano.

Based on Kathryn Stock-ett’s No. 1 New York Times’ bestseller, The Help, brings to life a story of women in the South who forge a friendship around a se-cret writing project that breaks societal norms in the 1960s.

“Not only did we want to show a movie that was funny and entertaining, but we also wanted to em-power and discuss real is-sues still facing today’s so-

ciety,” Rodriguez said.“That is why the Office

of Multicultural Enrich-ment and CAB joined ef-forts in having an open discussion after the movie to talk about issues such as race, society, and equality,” Rodriguez said.

For some on campus, the opportunity for dia-logue about important is-sues is a crucial part of be-ing a college student.

“I believe discussions like this are important be-cause I think that individu-ally we all have opinions on

those subjects and these forums give students an opportunity to share those opinions with others,” said Keegan Kinder, sophomore marketing major from Round Rock.

Kinder said dialogue is vital for opening minds.

“Through the shar-ing of opinions, some students begin to widen their view on things like race and equality as well as gain understanding on the viewpoints of others,” Kinder said.

The Office of Multicul-

tural Enrichment spon-sors many programs and events that promote cul-tural diversity on campus and oversees multicul-tural student-led groups such as Black Students’ Association, Hispanos Unidos, SHADES and Virtuous Sisterhood. For more information about any of these groups, email ome@acu.edu.

campus

erin coldeweystudent reporter

contact coldewey atemc07a@acu.edu

kitty wasemillerprofessor of interior design and pre-

architecture

The market is changing; there is a lot going on in design. The market is ready for academic prepa-

ration for students interested in the commitment of a minor.”“

brittany williams Staff Photographer

The International Students Association hosts a pancake night in Gardner Hall. Read more about it at acuoptimist.com.

Interior Design courses available as part of the minor degree plan:

• Historic Preservation

• Sustainability and Environmental Design

• Environmental Psychology

• Interior Retail Sales, Merchandising and Business Entrepreneurs

• Building Contractors and Developers

• City Building Code officials

• Facilities Management and Tenant Management

• Real Estate Agents

• Manufacturer’s Product Reps: furnishings, flooring, interior finishes, interior products, etc.

• Product Design for the Interiors Industry: furnishings, flooring, interior finishes, interior products, etc.

wednesday 02.29.12 4news

March deadline for federal loans and grants approaches

The Student Financial Aid office is encouraging stu-dents to begin renewing and submitting their financial aid applications by March 1.

“This gives ACU the time to sort out scholar-ships and begin awarding financial aid letters at the beginning of April,” said Ed Kerestly, director of student financial services.

The Free Application for Federal Student Aid deter-mines the need for financial assistance, giving students the opportunity to receive federal grants.

Each year, current and prospective students may complete this financial aid form that consists of nu-merous questions indicat-ing his or her family’s finan-cial ability to pay for school. ACU grants require stu-dents to complete a FASFA, and are needed to renew

scholarships funded by the school, Kerestly said.

“ACU uses this form, in addition to student’s academic performance throughout the year to make decisions about scholarship renewals,” Kerestly said.

According to the FAS-FA website, students who meet the eligible criteria, such as being a U.S. citizen with a valid Social Security Number, may complete the free application online or through the Student Finan-cial Services office.

“By submitting applica-tions by Mar. 1, students are able to begin sorting out their finances in April and will be able to apply the grant mon-ey towards their fall financial statements which ACU is-sues in June,” Kerestly said.

Linda Mullings, with stu-dent financial services, said ACU uses the form to gauge the amount of assistance students need.

“Without this form, ACU would have no way of de-termining students’ finan-cial needs, and how we can meet them,” she said.

While the FASFA and scholarship funds are pri-marily determined on a stu-dent’s family’s income, Mull-ings said other factors are considered, each student’s situation is personalized.

“This is the benefit of a small school, such as ACU,” Mullings said. “Where state schools have set strict dead-lines, we try to help students throughout the year to do as much as we can.”

For more information and to access the free, on-line FASFA form, visit www.fafsa.ed.gov.

financial aid

gabi powellstudent reporter

contact powell atgmp10b@acu.edu

Cycling Club fills schedule, adds members

The ACU Cycling Club is greeting its second semester on campus with a full sched-ule of races and fun rides. Its numbers have increased to about 15 members.

“We train pretty much every day, whether it’s on road or mountain bikes. We also do a lot of just-for-fun rides or will work with individual people that want to learn specific techniques,” Jacob Lue-decke (’11) said.

The club was started by Luedecke as a way to get people together that enjoy riding. Individuals do not need a specific type of bike

or need to pay member-ship dues, they only need to show up.

“We accept any level of rider, from someone that wants to cruise around cam-pus, to people that want to race” Luedecke said.

Liz Lurz, sophomore business major from San Antonio, is the current pres-ident. She is eager to share her love for cycling with the rest of ACU. Lurz followed

the direction of her father, who shares her passion for mountain biking.

“I got started in moun-tain biking when I was 8 years old and started rac-ing when I was 10. My fa-ther had raced for a few years before I got into it,” Lurz said.

The Cycling Club cur-rently has four members that travel all over Texas to compete on a regular basis in both road and mountain biking categories.

The club also became registered with the USA Cycling Collegiate Racing, which means that in ad-dition to racing in Texas, they also represent Texas when they are in other states. Together they com-

pete with roughly 22 col-leges from Texas, Louisi-ana, and Oklahoma for an overall score.

“We like having a team for ACU so that we can race around the state represent-ing ACU, not just as a racer, but also keeping true to our faith on and off the bike,” Lurz said.

The biggest races on their schedule include Pace Bend, a 24-mile race in Aus-tin from Apr. 4-5 and Wal-burg, a 28-mile race near Austin this weekend.

For more information or to become a member, email Liz Lurz at elv09a@acu.edu

organizations

carole-marie wiserstudent reporter

contact wiser atcxw08a@acu.edu

Facebook page highlights talent

Move over, Simon Cowell. ACU now has a Facebook page dedicated to discov-ering students’ various tal-ents ranging from bowling to painting called ACU’s Got Talent.

ACU’s Got Talent is a forum where students are able to post their ACU ap-propriate tricks and skills and receive feedback from fellow students.

Business students Jenni-fer Guerrero, Mireya Reyes, Stephen Prather, Taylor Truitt and Riley Smith were urged by Dr. Brad Crisp, as-sociate professor of man-

agement sciences, to create a webpage for their Man-agement Information Sys-tems class. Jennifer Guer-rero, business marketing major from Abilene, was the brains behind the website with the support and help of her team.

“I wouldn’t have gone through with it if my team didn’t give me the reaction that they had. They were intrigued and excited about it just as I had hoped other students would respond,” Guerrero said. “After ruling out other options, we all de-cided to implement this idea into a Facebook page where we could interact with and be available to a large group of ACU students.”

Jordan Smith, junior his-tory major from Escondido, California, has posted sev-eral links to the ACU’s Got Talent page.

“I recently self-produced and recorded my own al-bum. I want to expose my music to the Abilene com-munity and encourage oth-ers with the gift of music,” Smith said. “My hope is that it helps ACU students with extraordinary talents put themselves out there by celebrating the diver-sity and gifts of the student population.”

Smith said he appreci-ates the page but feels it needs to be managed more actively and to garner more attention. Guerrero agreed

that the page needs more exposure, and she hopes more students will begin to participate on it.

“Ultimately, we hope that the word will catch on and more students will be eager and brave enough to post their talents on our page,” Guerrero said. “We want this to be something per-sonalized and only for stu-dents at ACU, a place where we can share ourselves and our God given talents with each other. Hopefully, more and more students will be-gin like our page and view it regularly.”

campus

marissa jonespage 2 editor

contact jones atmnj10a@acu.edu

leslie lewisT Staff Photographer

Joshua Bonnett, sophomore English major from Converse, performs at the poetry slam in Edwards Hall lobby Mon-day night. Go to acuoptimist.com for the full story.

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• Have a valid Social Security Number;

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• Are registered with the U.S. Selective Service (if you are a male ages 18 to 25);

• Complete a FAFSA promising to use any federal aid for educational purposes;

• Do not owe refunds on any federal student grants;

• Are not in default on any student loans; and

• Have not been found guilty of the sale or possession of illegal drugs during a period when you received federal student aid.

ed kerestlydirector of student

financial services

Without this form, ACU would have no way of

determining students’ financial need.”“

jacob luedecke‘11 alum

We accept any level of rider, from someone that wants

to cruise around campus, to people that want to race.”“

destiny hagood Staff Photographer

Members of the new ACU Bicycle Club, pictured from left to right: John Freemire, junior finance major from Bettendorf, Iowa; Jonathan Martin, sophomore pre-med major from San Antonio; Liz Lurz, sophomore business marketing major from San Antonio and Asa Kusuma, senior computer science major from Annandale, Virg.

wednesday 02.29.125 featureS

hef Joel Trueblood says his mission in life is to change the way people think about food, and he is starting right in his own backyard: Clyde, Texas.

“This is where we live and we couldn’t find the things we wanted,” Trueblood said. “So we thought, why don’t we just stop complaining and create it?”

This realization resulted in Bonterra Blu. Serving up a gourmet blend of Tex-an and Cajun flavors, Bonterra Blu lives up to its motto of “life, food, wine and art.” It it more than just a restaurant, however, it also serves as an art gallery, music venue and cooking school.

“A meal should be an experience. From the taste to the atmosphere,” Trueblood said.

One look around Bonterra Blu and it is obvious that Trueblood takes the ex-perience seriously.

Exquisite local artwork adorns ev-ery crevice of the tiny restaurant. Each piece is available for sale.

“Where else can local artists display their work?” Trueblood said. “There should be no such thing as a starving artist.”

Trueblood supports local musicians as well. Every few weeks the small res-taurant is filled with the sounds of an eclectic blend of music, ranging from jazz to acoustic.

The aesthetics may be pleasing, but the food still demands the most atten-tion.

While Trueblood believes in the im-portance of art and music, he is most passionate about cooking.

“I feel the strongest about the cooking school,” Trueblood said. “Cooking is a lost art. It’s silly that it ever got lost.”

Trueblood decided to offer cooking classes at Bonterra Blu to help spread

the word about the importance of cook-ing.

“My goal is to change the way people think about food and realize how im-portant it is to cook your own food,” Trueblood said.

Each class is taught by Trueblood and focuses on a certain topic. Last month’s topic was titled: “Oil, Vinegar and Spic-es.”

“Everyone should know how to cook. I mean, people have to eat everyday,” Trueblood said.

Another aspect that sets Bonterra Blu apart is the quality of the ingredients.

“Shopping local should be the stan-dard,” Trueblood said. “I have my own personal farmer; but he isn’t just my farmer, he’s my friend.”

Trueblood believes that having a con-nection with the ingredients is vital to making great food.

“I can see where it comes from and know that is the freshest product,” True-blood said.

The passion Trueblood has for food is evident in every meal he prepares for the patrons of Bonterra Blu. His menu chang-es with each dinner service depending on the ingredients available to him. Each dinner service he offers up a diverse menu, such as chicken fried quail, lamb chops and salmon enchiladas.

“Food, art and music brings people together,” Trueblood said. “That is my goal.”

For more information on Bonterra Blu’s hours, events and reservations, visit the website at www.bonterrablu.com.

Bonterra Blu introduces new flavors to the Abilene area

C

Top: The interior of Bonterra Blu features pieces of local artist’s work that are for sale. Middle Right: Chef Joel Trueblood prepares Left: Chef Joel Trueblood and Chef Steve Howard mix up a zesty Cajun dish in the restaurant’s kitchen. Above: Cast iron railing surrounds a decorative patio in front of the restaurant located 20 miles east of Abilene in Clyde, Texas.

Clyde

Cajungoes

Story by Meagan freemanmkh05a@acu.edu

Courtesy OF David Ruiz

ACU struck down its long standing no dancing pol-icy causing a stir across Abilene. Many students celebrated, but many people didn’t really see much of a change hap-pen.

A cynic would point out that the Churches of Christ are behind the Baptists, citing Baylor’s repeal of its no-dancing policy 20 years ago. In-deed, many have picked out ACU’s insistence on a no dancing policy as a point of contention against the university, blowing out of proportion into something seeming-

ly draconian and severe. (See Footloose)

The truth is, many stu-dents knew the dancing policy as something that was more talked about than enforced, except for the women’s social clubs. This is a far cry from the days when ACU chaperones were ru-mored to be stationed at the bars around town to make sure that no ACU students were partaking in the dancing regularly featured at such estab-lishments. At least that’s what we hear.

Dancing has gradu-ally crept its way onto

the ACU campus. Many dance groups have formed on campus and have become mainstays in campus events. Just think of how many times you’ve seen Shades per-form at an event you’ve gone to. Sing Song 2012 featured probably the most dancing of any be-fore it, and even a couple of last year’s social club formals featured danc-ing, though they were punished for it.

In the typical student’s life, dancing is more of a regular, natural thing. That, combined with the abundance of dance and

dance-centered events on and off ACU’s campus shows that striking down this policy was the next logical step. It adheres more to the third pillar of ACU’s three-word man-tra: real.

Since dancing is a real part of the average stu-dent’s life, from having fun to a form of court-ship, the campus’ poli-cies should change to re-f lect this; in other words, to be more real. Though since it has already in-vaded most of campus life, this change is almost ineffective.

The only real change

we’ll see is that the pol-icy won’t be enforced at all anymore, rather than rarely before. We proba-bly won’t see a spontane-ous explosion of choreo-graphic synchronization take place around the GATA fountain, or a sud-den uptick in the number

of f lash mobs. Life will stay pretty much the same for ACU students, except now you can dance if you feel like it.

The Oscars always come as a welcome illusion.

Once a year, biggest names in Hollywood dress up and pass out awards to the people a bunch of old white men deem appro-priate. It isn’t exactly a vi-tal part of our culture, and the best films don’t always end up with awards; but it is fun.

The tabloid lives of stars are forgotten for the night, and we trick our-selves into believing that the golden age of film was really f lawless. We let ourselves think tuxedos, dresses and updos will bring us back to a time when nostalgia reigned.

But the illusion is stretched thin. The hype around the Academy Awards has grown so big that it seems like it can’t be sustained. In recent years we have started to see through it.

This year, networks started airing red carpet coverage as early as 10:30 a.m. Broadcast school dropouts spent hours interviewing the actors who didn’t have any-thing better to do before the Oscars than show up early.

Even within the show the magic is transparent. Audio mixing problems, mic feedback during the speeches, and graphics that looked like they were made in Microsoft Word left viewers unenchant-ed.

It’s been years since the host was actually enter-taining. The majority of the recent hosts have been – at best – mildly amus-ing, while some were just painful to watch. This year Billy Crystal skirted racism in a couple of in-stances and laughed at his jokes longer than the audience did.

The Oscars are going through a rough patch, but we shouldn’t write them off. The ceremony is a nice break from reality, and it is nice to see people win an award for doing their job well. That is something that isn’t usually done so publically. In the grand scheme it doesn’t mean much to receive a gold tro-phy, but on some level it is nice to see a person hon-ored in front of his peers.

Minimally decentJozie SandS

Oh Dear, Christian College Ben miller

the issueThe Dancing policy was recently changed and now allows more dancing on campus.

our takeThe policy changed in practice years ago, and the official policy is just now catching up.

Hannah barneseditor in chief

Mark smithmanaging editor

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Unsigned editorials are the opinions of the Optimist and may not necessarily reflect the views of the university or its administration.

Signed columns, cartoons and letters are the opinions of their creators and may not necessarily reflect the viewpoints of the Optimist or the university.

The Optimist encourages reader response through let-ters to the editor but reserves the right to limit frequent contributors or to refuse to print letters containing

personal attacks, obscen-ity, defamation, erroneous information or invasion of privacy. Please limit letters to 350 words or fewer. A name and phone number must be included for verification purposes. Phone numbers will not be published.

Address letters to: ACU Box 27892Abilene, TX 79609

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WHOA! IS MEdaVid SinGeR

editorial

Academy Awards leave room for improvement

Ink in exchange for scholarship money

Dancing: Only the policy changed

There are so many things I would do to my body if it meant no student loans.

That may sound a little sadistic, but hear me out. One hundred thousand dollars. There’s not a lot of things I wouldn’t do for that kind of money. And if it means no more financial strain, I am willing to put up with quite a bit.

So alumni, donors to the university and rich people in general, listen

up. I’ve got an exciting new way for your wealth to sponsor my education.

I know how you old peo-ple love to put your name on campus buildings (I’m looking at you Royce and Pam). And I know how much you are willing to pay as long as your name-sake is forged in iron and placed on the wall.

But why would you want to put your name on some-thing fickle and fleeting like a building. Eventually

the stone will be rubble and the steel will sit dor-mant in some junkyard.

Instead, I suggest you forgo stone and steel in favor of ink.

That’s right. For a four time payment of $35,000 (subject to 20 percent in-crease next semester) you can erect an inky epider-mal monument to your greatness.

The tattoo design is completely up to you. Keep it classy with an inky plaque that com-memorates your “contri-butions.” Or maybe your a funny guy. I’m open to back consuming murals of dogs playing poker or Lady Gaga fishing with Pope John Paul II.

If you prefer to embar-rass me, I’m sure I can handle becoming less of a person with the addi-tion of a tribal band or Chinese character.

Maybe you are looking for a high traffic location. In that case, I recommend a spot on my oft displayed lower back.

No matter where and what you prefer to tattoo on me, the only thing I expect in return is your full responsibility of my collegiate costs.

Besides, it won’t hurt a bit. At least not as much as a lifetime of debt.

column

column

contacT SANDS atJGS07a@acu.edu

wednesday 02.29.12 6opinion

The tabloid lives of stars are forgotten for the night, and we trick ourselves into

believing that the golden age of film was really

flawless.”

“

I always check my email in the morning praying my class got cancelled... #acuproblems @over-heardACU

Sometimes I like to think that the bean is just preparing me for the mission field #ACU

@_imma_boss@Rebecca_McQueen @makenleemoore@wyattoden @MorganLR24@miss_phipps

8:38 p.m. Feb. 2710:51 a.m. Feb. 22

12:18 p.m. Feb. 2811:12 a.m. Feb. 22 7:11 a.m. Feb. 28

6:48 p.m. Feb. 26This chapel is about eatin disorders, and I’m sittin over here HUNGRY wishin whataburger had honey butter chicken buscuits at 9 :/ #hurry11

Just when I thought CORE couldn’t get any worse, they decide to take it to a whole new level and break out the Nicolas Cage movies. #ACU

#thatawkwardmoment when you get knocked over by the wind so no one knows why you fell. #AbileneProblems

Chapel quote of the day: “what chapel is this again? Come to the dark side?” #marquita-bugg #ACU

hashtagaCU

Gonna try and impress these freshmen on the Lunsford by doing some stuntz on my bike on my way home from class. Update coming soon.

Pink starbursts in the depot. My day has been made!

@claygreenwalt @beardsleysm @connarjoyohyeahitsmorgan @TheYoungSheeion@stefanienm27

8:32 p.m. Feb. 27

1:26 p.m. Feb. 285:07 p.m. Feb. 282:29 p.m. Feb. 28

can’t believe leap day is on wednesday. it always comes every 4 years and i’m never ready for it.

One morning I’m going to park in the president’s parking space just for fun #ACU #OD

Caution: Don’t blow bubbles with your gum when it’s windy outside. #guminhaircatastrophe

contact the optimist atjmcnetwork@acu.edu

11:49 a.m. Feb. 27

1:25 p.m. Feb. 28

Now that our dear Chris-tian college is finally al-lowing dancing at social events, someone help me get @Skrillex to DJ our formal. Please? <>

contact SINGER atDIS08a@acu.edu

wednesday 02.29.127 sports Jumps

End: Win streak stops at 12 games Megan Brigance had two RBI’s, and Madison Buck-ley, Keanna Winkfield, Kim-berly Briggs and Courtney Flanary each drove in a run for ACU.

Hall (3-0) came back in dramatic fashion after giv-ing up three runs in the first to allowing just two hits over the final six innings.

“It’s a great feeling know-ing that the girls behind you work so hard, because that takes lots of pressure off as a pitcher,” Hall said.

Against St. Edwards, Caitlyn Crain only allowed seven singles over the sev-en-inning game and struck out five to earn the win and improve her record to 5-0.

“This was our sec-ond time to play St. Ed’s,” Reeves said. “And we have shut them down both

times. Caitlyn threw a great game and we were very fundamentally sound in that one.”

Briggs had four RBI’s in the game, and Winkfield scored three runs.

Friday, the Wildcats reigned supreme against Central Missouri (8-0) and Texas-Permian Basin (2-1).

The game against the Falcons remained score-less until the eighth when the Falcons scored against Crain. But in the bottom half of the inning, ACU an-swered with a Sarah Marti-nez double that scored the tying run.

ACU blanked the Fal-cons in the top of the ninth, and keen base running ability by Winkfield on a throw brought ACU the 2-1 win in extras.

“Caitlyn dominated against UTPB,” Reeves

said. “And Keanna’s aware-ness on the bases is what gave us the win.”

ACU took care of busi-ness against Central Mis-souri to begin the tour-nament Friday. The team scored four runs in the first, two in the third, and two in the fifth to end the game via mercy rule.

Vaughn had two RBI’s and three more Wildcats had one RBI in the game.

Mosley was dominant on the mound, throwing a com-plete game, two-hit shutout.

ACU will begin confer-ence play Friday in San Antonio with a three-game series against Incar-nate Word.

contact shake atbxs09a@acu.edu

softball

from page 8

ACHS to make state run for the first time in 30 years

Three ACU students have coached the Abilene Chris-tian High School boy’s bas-ketball team to the TAPPS State Tournament for the first time in 30 years.

Michael Bacon, Col-by Carr and Nick Smith, all seniors, make up the coaching staff for the 23-5 Panthers who are hoping to capture their first state title since the early ‘80s.

“In a lot of ways, this has been a dream come true,” Bacon, the head coach, said. “Two be able to coach with two of my best friends, who are like brothers to me, has been pretty special.”

This is the first year that the trio have coached together at ACHS, but none are inexperienced to coaching.

Last year was Bacon’s first year on the bench

for the Panthers. A for-mer player, Bacon was an assistant coach in the 2010-11 season, but after former head coach Mike Speraggins left, Bacon was chosen to take over.

“Being a basketball coach is the only job I have ever wanted to have,” Ba-con said. “It’s been so spe-cial to be a coach where I played, a place that I hold near and dear.”

Carr has run basketball camps with his father for years in his hometown of White Oak, but is coach-ing the Panthers as an in-ternship for his exercise science health promo-tions major.

According to Bacon, Carr is the most basketball savvy of the three and is in charge of the defense.

“I’m blessed to have a full size concrete basket-ball court in my backyard. The camps were a vision first developed by my dad to have annual summer basketball camps empha-sizing skills and mental toughness,” Carr said. “I’ve been doing it every summer since 2005.”

Smith, who is the Ju-nior Varsity head coach for ACHS, has served as a student assistant coach on the ACU football team for two years.

“Nick and Colby have been unreal,” Bacon said. “They have both put in hours that they didn’t have to. We all kind of have a niche and it has worked out pretty well so far.”

Pretty well is an un-derstatement. ACHS is now one of four teams left in the TAPPS 2A State

Tournament. The Pan-thers earned a trip to the tournament after beating Waco Vanguard 54-47.

The team only has 11 players, but the state tournament stage is not new to most of them.

Eight of the 11 won a football state champion-ship with the ACHS foot-ball team in the fall.

“Basketball-wise this is unchartered territory,” Ba-con said. “They are excited though. We have played good teams all year, and they are ready for this.”

They play Sugarland Lo-gos on Friday at Mansfield High School at 7:30 p.m.

If they win, the Panthers will play the winner of Dal-las Covenant and Kerrville Our Lady of the Hills on Saturday at 2 p.m.

Austin Gwinsports director

contact GWIN atAGG07d@acu.edu

high school

Stranded base-runners, errors cost ACUbaseball

Stranded base-runners hindered the Wildcats from clinching its third-straight series this past weekend.

The baseball team split a four-game set with the East Central University Ti-gers on Sunday.

Game one of the series resulted in a dramatic 6-5 victory for the ‘Cats.

A doubleheader was played on Saturday. East Central took both seven-inning games winning, 5-3 then 11-6.

Sunday, the Wildcats managed to earn a 5-2 win, salvaging the series.

ACU has improved its season record to 10-5, while ECU dropped to 10-8. The ‘Cats have won or split every series this year.

Head coach Britt Bon-neau said he was unhappy with the team’s overall play.

“We didn’t hit the ball as well as we’ve been hitting it,” Bonneau said.

First baseman Mark Bai-ley was the difference in the opening game. He hit a two-out, two-run single in the bottom of the eighth inning, pushing the Wildcats from a 5-4 deficit to a 6-5 lead.

Bonneau said Bailey had the best chance, in that situation, at tying or giving the team the lead.

ACU was ahead 2-0 at Crutcher Scott Field until the Tigers put up two runs in the fifth and three in the sixth.

The ‘Cats answered with two of its own in the bot-tom of the sixth to make it 5-4. Senior Duncan Blades reached base on a hit by pitch and advanced to third on a Chuck Duarte single. Emmett Niland would

bring in Blades and Duarte with a single to right field.

The bullpen kept it a one-run contest by not allowing ECU to cross the plate in the seventh and eighth. Abilene Christian closer Josh Stone danced out of trouble in the ninth after a leadoff single and a wild pitch. He also earned his third save of the season.

“I was happy with our bullpen and how it per-formed this weekend,” Bonneau said. “They did what they needed to do.”

Sophomore relief pitcher Brady Rodriguez said the bullpen did its designed job.

“The bullpen came in throwing strikes,” Rodri-guez said. “We’re confi-dent in our defense. It’s good when our relievers can come in and throw strikes and get guys out.”

Starting pitcher Aaron Lambrix went 5 2/3 in-nings, allowing five runs on four hits and striking out six. Rodriguez nabbed the win in relief (2-0).

Saturday was a day to forget for the Wildcats. In game one the team came from behind twice. Bailey was involved in both plays as he smacked an RBI single in the second inning to knot it up at 1-1, then he tied it 3-3 on a pitcher’s throwing error in the fourth.

The ‘Cats seemed to lose its focus in the top half of the fifth. Two rou-tine fly balls were dropped in the outfield, resulting in two runs for the Tigers.

ECU starter Erik Fredrick (3-0) cruised the rest of the way, allowing just two hits in the final 3.0 innings. ACU had a great opportunity in the sixth to score when pinch hitter Ryan Luckie tri-pled with one-out however, he was left stranded at third.

East Central jumped ahead 5-0 in the nightcap and as a result, the Wildcats could never fully recover.

The closest the team came was being down 5-4 after a four-run fifth but the Tigers would score seven more runs over the last three innings, smash-ing any hopes of victory.

“The bullpen struggled in that game,” Rodriguez said. “In a game like that walks and errors are the most dan-gerous part of innings.”

The ‘Cats stranded 14 runners total on Saturday.

“We’ve got to do a bet-ter job of hitting with guys in scoring position,” Bon-neau said.

The final game of the se-ries was a thriller in the late innings. With a 3-2 Abilene Christian lead in the top of the seventh, ECU managed to put runners on second and third with no outs. But Stone struck Greg Hamrock out on a high fastball and then got Josh Schmidt to fly out to right.

Bonneau brought in Rodriguez to retire the fi-nal batter of the inning.

Rodriguez came out in the eighth and allowed two two-out singles, however an inning-ending ground ball to short stopped the threat.

In the ninth, down 5-2, East Central again brought the tying run (Rick Hep-worth) to the plate. Junior Michael Curtis put out the fire though as he struck him out to end the game.

ACU’s Austin Palmer had a good showing for his third start of the season. He pitched 5.0 innings allowing just one run on five hits.

edward isaacssports editor

contact isaacs atjei08a@acu.edu

Michael Baconhead coach

AC High school boy’s basketball

Being a basketball coach is the only job I have

ever wanted to have.”“

matt sewell staff Photographer

Junior right-fielder Rodge Macy slides into second base against the East Central Tigers at Crutcher Scott Field. The Wildcats split the four-game series with ECU. ACU has now won or tied every series this season.

wednesday 02.29.12 8sports

TeamMSUTSUWTAMUUIWCameronENMUTAMU-KCommerceACUASU

Div.15-315-312-611-710-87-117-115-134-144-14

Ovrl.23-324-418-716-1014-1014-1312-1510-1612-1611-17

TeamTSUWTAMUMSUCameronASUUIWTWUENMUTAMU-KACUCommerce

Div.17-316-415-511-910-109-118-128-128-127-131-19

Ovrl.20-818-819-715-1012-1414-1213-1310-169-1712-142-24

Ben Warton is the only senior on the men’s basketball team to log

all four years of his eligibility playing for the ‘Cats. The heart and effort that Warton displayed on the court during his career at ACU was a huge motivator not only for the players on his team, but for the fans. Head coach Joe Golding called him the heart of the 2011-2012 squad. Warton finished his career with over 400 points and 300 boards. Warton plans to continue his playing career after college. He has said he is going to try and find a team overseas to play for.

Softball plays LSC foe Incarnate Word in San Antonio on Friday and Saturday. The series begins at 4 p.m.

The baseball team will compete in the Whitten Inn Classic starting Friday at 6:05 p.m. against Eastern New Mexico. The ‘Cats will also face Cameron and Tarleton.

Golf will travel to the Grey Rock Golf Club in Austin for the St. Edward’s Invitational on Monday and Tuesday.

women’s basketball

standings

briefings

Player Profile

Upcoming

Junior Parker Petty qualified for the NCAA Championships in the heptathlon. He won the heptathlon title at the LSC Invitational with a personal record of 5,174 points.

Peyton Mosley was named the LSC’s Co-Pitcher of the Week. She is the second Wildcat to earn the honor.

Senior Nick Jones set a personal record in the shot put at the U.S. national indoor track and field championships on Sunday. He missed advancing to the finals by two places.

men’s basketball

Baseball

TeamASUWTAMUTAMU-KACUCameron ENMUTSUUIW

Div.0-00-00-00-00-00-00-00-0

Ovrl.13-28-27-210-59-56-44-53-4

Wildcats finish 4-1 in tournament

The ACU softball team’s 12-game winning streak came to an end Sunday at the Best Western Premier Spring Fling tournament in Denton.

The 8-3 loss was ACU’s first of the three-day tour-nament and the team’s first since Feb. 2.

“We knew it was going to come, but it’s still hard to see something like that end,” head coach bobby

Reeves said. “One loss does not define our season or our team, and it’s something we just need to throw under the bus and forgot about. There are bigger things ahead for this team.”

Against the Falcons, ACU (12-2) came out of the gates strong. The team jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the third thanks to RBI’s by Sarah Martinez and Megan Brigance. But the Gorillas responded with a five-run fourth inning, where three extra base hits and two fielding errors caused the

Gorillas to take the lead.“That was a tough inning

for us,” Reeves said. “Errors like that are uncharacteristic and things we haven’t really had to deal with so far this season. Every girl out there is human. They were all working hard, and that’s all I can ask of them.”

Amanda Castro started off the fifth with a homer-un, followed by three more Gorillas loading the bases because of an error, double and walk. Peyton Mosley, the starter, seemed to be out of harm’s way after inducing a

double play, but she walked a batter and then gave up a two-run double.

In the fifth, PSU extended its lead to 6-2 with an un-earned run against Shelby Hall. The Gorillas then added two more unearned runs in the sixth off of Caitlyn Crain.

“When you give up six unearned runs and have four errors, you won’t win a ballgame,” Reeves said. “We learned that the hard way.”

Brigance hit her second homerun of the year in the sixth for the Wildcats’ final run of the game.

ACU knocked off Texas A&M-International 6-3 and St. Edwards 6-0 on Saturday.

Against TAMI, the Wild-cats overcame a 3-0 deficit. ACU scored two runs in the third, tied the game with one run in the fourth, and closed out the game with three runs in the fifth.

“It seems like we are never out of a game,” Reeves said. “Scoring that first run provid-ed the spark that we needed to get the ball rolling. That was a great win for our girls.”

bryson shakesports reporter

softball

see end page 7

Lavender out as head coach

Two days following the end of a disappointing year, Shawna Lavender was re-moved from the women’s basketball head coaching position. This ends her 15 year ACU career.

ACU Director of Athlet-ics Jared Mosley announced Monday evening that Lav-ender’s contract will not be renewed, and that she is immediately relieved of her duties as head coach.

“It was obviously a very disappointing year for us, and did not end the way we wanted it to,” Lavender said.

Mosley said that a search for a new head coach will begin immediately.

The Wildcats went into the season with high hopes, picked to finish fifth out of the 11 confer-ence teams. However, af-ter a rough season marred with poor play, ACU fin-ished in 10th place.

Following four huge conference wins in the past two weeks, the ‘Cats had a chance on Satur-day at Tarleton State to redeem their 7-12 confer-ence season. With a vic-tory, ACU would have had a chance to qualify for the Lone Star Conference post-season tournament.

Despite the lead going back and forth in the early minutes of the game, the TexAnns were able to pull away on a 10-2 run, mak-ing the score 29-18 mid-way through the first half.

Top-ranked TSU though ended up being too much for the obvi-ously weaker Wildcats, as ACU fell short 85-71.

The loss prevented ACU from continuing post-sea-son play, leaving their final record at 7-13 in the LSC and 12-14 overall.

Despite the disappoint-ing season, Lavender’s body of work spoke for itself. Since coming to ACU in July 1997, she has made a major impact on the program and on all of her players.

Lavender leaves ACU with an overall record of 149-111, and seven post-season tournament ap-pearances in nine seasons.

In the 2004-05 season, Lavender’s Wildcats were victorious 20 times, the

most wins the Wildcats have had since 1999. In the same year, the ‘Cats reached the Lone Star Conference Tour-nament semifinals for a sec-ond consecutive year, and were invited to the NCAA Regional Tournament.

Senior center Sarah Reno reflected on her years as a Wildcat.

“Being on this team has been an amazing ex-perience,” Reno said. “I have become so much closer to God because of

our coaches. God is al-ways the priority, even on the court.”

Natalie Goinsports Editor

contact goin atnsg10b@acu.edu

men’s basketball

daniel gomez stafF Photographer

After a disappointing season, Shawna Lavender was removed as the head coach of the women’s basketball team when her contract was not renewed. Picked to finish 5th in the Lone Star Conference pre-season rank-ings, the Wildcats finished in 10th place out of 11 teams.

Texans corral tournament dreams

Saturday night, the men’s basketball team travelled to Stephenville with their sea-son on the line.

The Wildcats fell to Tar-leton 62-74.

With an ACU win, the Wildcats would have clinched their first Lone-Star Conference birth since 2008. However, winning in Stephenville is a tough task in the LSC, and the Wildcats knew that it was a tall order.

The last time that ACU beat Tarleton on the road was 1998, when head coach Joe Golding was the starting point guard for the Wildcats.

Yet after the first 20 min-utes, the Wildcats were giv-ing TSU all they could han-dle, and had the game tied at 34-34 behind a huge first half performance by Senior Zach Williams.

“I thought Zach was great in the first half,”

Golding said. “He got us back in the game, and you know he is feeling it when he is hitting a three from the corner off the glass.”

Once the second half started, the Texans came out of the gates firing and built a double-digit lead within the first five minutes. From then on the Wildcats were never able to close the gap.

The Wildcats fell victim to severe foul trouble down the stretch, having Antonio Bell foul out of the game and a host of other ACU players nearly reach their limit, fin-ishing with four fouls.

Meanwhile, TSU’s tough defensive effort wore down the Wildcats, and ACU was not able to keep up with the Texans offense after a forty point second half by the home team.

“They are tough defen-sively.” Golding said. “We did not get a lot of second chance opportunities, we had some good looks though, and we just couldn’t knock them

down.”A couple of Wildcats were

able to succeed against the suffocating Texan defense, including Marc Little who had nineteen points. Wil-liams also poured in 17 points including three shots from behind the arc.

“We were just down too many points early.” Wil-liams said. “I was just trying my best to make something happen and take what the defense gave me.”

Although this loss ends the season for the Wildcats, ACU won four times as many con-ference games as they had in the previous two years.

“I think we took a step in the right direction this year.” Golding said. “Obviously we want to get up and compete for championships, but I am really proud of our guys fight all year.”

matthew sloansports reporter

contact sloan atmes10a@acu.edu

mandy lambright CHIEF Photographer

Junior guard Kendall Durant drives to basket at Tarleton.

WOmen’s BAsketball