the paisano volume 51 issue 14

10
Independent Student Newspaper for the University of Texas at San Antonio Volume 51 Issue 14 {www.Paisano-Online.com} {SINCE 1981} High hopes for UTSA Men’s Tennis page 9 Summer 2015 UTSA For the seventh consecutive year, UTSA’s under- graduate archi- tecture program ranks first in the nation for award- ing degrees to Hispanic students, according to Hispanic Outlook in Higher Edu- cation’s annual report. San Antonio San Antonio Botanical Garden plans $16.7 mil- lion, 8-acre ex- pansion, breaking ground this sum- mer to emphasize environmental stewardship, health and well- ness. World Ireland approved same-sex mar- riage in a May 22 referendum by a majority. Science e opah, or moonfish, a large colorful fish living across the world’s oceans, has been found to have a warm heart and maintain a high body temperature according to a re- port in the journal Science. Sports Two Roadrunners were selected in the 2015 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft. Junior pitcher Brock Hart- son was selected by the Cleveland Indians, and senior center John Bor- mann was selected by the Pittsburgh Pirates. 2014 Columbia Scholastic Press Gold Medalist Don’t miss anything at UTSA. Add us on social media today! @ThePaisano /thepaisano @paisanomedia Shabazz I. Dawkins Sports Editor @PaisanoSports1 [email protected] Of the athletes in atten- dance at the 2015 X Games, Austin, was legendary skateboarder Bob Burn- quist. Burnquist is the only athlete to have competed in every single X Games event, dating back to the inaugural event during the summer of 1995 in Newport, Rhode Island. Born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Burnquist started skating competitively at the age of 16 and quickly found that he had talent in the sport. He won his first X Games medal at the age of 20 while competing in the 1997 X Games, San Diego. e medal he won in 1997 is just one of the 30 he know boasts, an X Games record. “It’s been a crazy ride and I’ve enjoyed every second of it,” said Burnquist. Photo Courtesy of Bryce Kanights Fall for new colorful traditions: UTSA monu ment SPORTS - Weight lifting San Antonio is becoming the hot, new city for bands and artists. ARTS - Local music UTSA’s weight lifting club wins a national championship. Please recycle this newspaper! OPINION - Commentary Point-counter-point: Would body cameras on on-duty police officers stunt unneces- sary acts of violence? page 4 page 6 page 5 Continued on page 8 Bryant Andrade Meza Contributing Writer @ThePaisano [email protected] UTSA will welcome a new tradition to campus this fall: the Lights at the Monuments. Passersby who enter UTSA Main Campus through John Peace Bou- levard and have grown ac- customed to the marker that welcomes them will now be welcomed in a whole new light. Spectacular lights of vary- ing color schemes will rec- ognize accomplishments important to the university. Different color schemes will commemorate different types of university achieve- ment. Blue base lights and a white translucent tower will indicate academic achieve- ments, such as commence- ment and steps towards Tier One status. Orange lights (with blue light accents) will mark athletic accomplish- ments and fluctuate depend- ing on the achievement. e color schemes for solemn occasions will be recognized with a “Candle” lighting of the monument – a soft white base and bright- ening light on a translucent tower. Special occasions are giv- en their own color schemes. During Fiesta, the monu- ment will be lit in hues of orange, blue, green, pink, purple and yellow. Home- coming will be celebrated by an orange and blue color scheme. A red, white and blue translucent box will serve as the color scheme during Military Apprecia- tion week. e Lights at the Monu- ments was spearheaded through the efforts of sev- eral student organizations — SGA, Rowdy Crew and Honors Alliance — and was managed by UTSA lead electrician Matt May. David Oliver, assistant vice president of facilities and a facilitator for the new project, began the project with a clear goal. “e inspiration and hope was to create a unique and welcoming gateway to the campus, a place that creates a statement for our univer- sity,” Oliver said. “Dr. Romo’s commitment to promoting school spirit and creating school traditions was vital to making this project happen.” Senior biology major Tab- bi Austin believes the initia- tive, equipped with a full- spectrum LED display, will foster campuscommunity. “I think the lights are a great way to reflect school spirit. It’s eye catching and adds a fun flair to the cam- pus. I think both the stu- dents and the community love the new tradition,” Aus- tin said. e lights may not stop at the university entrance, though. “LED lighting projects are also being considered at the UC Tower, DTC/ITC, and at the new Ximenez Campus entry,” Oliver said. Skate legend leads by example Caroline Traylor, The Paisano

Upload: the-paisano

Post on 22-Jul-2016

219 views

Category:

Documents


1 download

DESCRIPTION

 

TRANSCRIPT

Page 1: The Paisano Volume 51 Issue 14

Independent Student Newspaper for the University of Texas at San Antonio

Volume 51 Issue 14

{www.Paisano-Online.com}

{SINCE 1981}

High hopes for UTSA Men’s Tennis

page 9

Summer 2015

UTSAFor the seventh

consecutive year, UTSA’s under-graduate archi-

tecture program ranks first in the nation for award-

ing degrees to Hispanic students,

according to Hispanic Outlook

in Higher Edu-cation’s annual

report.

San AntonioSan Antonio

Botanical Garden plans $16.7 mil-lion, 8-acre ex-

pansion, breaking ground this sum-mer to emphasize

environmental stewardship,

health and well-ness.

WorldIreland approved

same-sex mar-riage in a May 22 referendum by a

majority.

ScienceThe opah, or

moonfish, a large colorful fish living across the world’s oceans, has been found to have a warm heart and maintain a high

body temperature according to a re-port in the journal

Science.

Sports Two Roadrunners

were selected in the 2015 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft. Junior pitcher Brock Hart-

son was selected by the Cleveland

Indians, and senior center John Bor-

mann was selected by the Pittsburgh

Pirates.

2014Columbia

Scholastic PressGold Medalist

Don’t miss anything at UTSA.Add us on social media today!

@ThePaisano /thepaisano

@paisanomedia

Shabazz I. DawkinsSports Editor@[email protected]

Of the athletes in atten-dance at the 2015 X Games, Austin, was legendary skateboarder Bob Burn-quist. Burnquist is the only athlete to have competed in every single X Games event,

dating back to the inaugural event during the summer of 1995 in Newport, Rhode Island.

Born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Burnquist started skating competitively at

the age of 16 and quickly found that he had talent in the sport. He won his first X Games medal at the age of 20 while competing in the 1997 X Games, San Diego.

The medal he won in 1997

is just one of the 30 he know boasts, an X Games record.

“It’s been a crazy ride and I’ve enjoyed every second of it,” said Burnquist.

Photo Courtesy of Bryce Kanights

Fall for new colorful traditions: UTSA monument

SPORTS - Weight lifting San Antonio is becoming the hot, new city for bands and artists.

ARTS - Local musicUTSA’s weight lifting club wins a national championship.

Please recycle this newspaper!

OPINION - CommentaryPoint-counter-point: Would body cameras on on-duty police officers stunt unneces-sary acts of violence?

page 4 page 6page 5

Continued on page 8

Bryant Andrade MezaContributing Writer@[email protected]

UTSA will welcome a new tradition to campus this fall: the Lights at the Monuments. Passersby who enter UTSA Main Campus through John Peace Bou-levard and have grown ac-customed to the marker that welcomes them will now be welcomed in a whole new light.

Spectacular lights of vary-ing color schemes will rec-ognize accomplishments important to the university. Different color schemes will commemorate different types of university achieve-ment.

Blue base lights and a white translucent tower will indicate academic achieve-ments, such as commence-ment and steps towards Tier One status. Orange lights (with blue light accents) will mark athletic accomplish-ments and fluctuate depend-ing on the achievement.

The color schemes for solemn occasions will be recognized with a “Candle”

lighting of the monument – a soft white base and bright-ening light on a translucent tower.

Special occasions are giv-en their own color schemes. During Fiesta, the monu-ment will be lit in hues of orange, blue, green, pink, purple and yellow. Home-coming will be celebrated by an orange and blue color scheme. A red, white and blue translucent box will serve as the color scheme during Military Apprecia-tion week.

The Lights at the Monu-ments was spearheaded through the efforts of sev-eral student organizations — SGA, Rowdy Crew and Honors Alliance — and was managed by UTSA lead electrician Matt May.

David Oliver, assistant vice president of facilities and a facilitator for the new project, began the project with a clear goal.

“The inspiration and hope was to create a unique and welcoming gateway to the campus, a place that creates a statement for our univer-sity,” Oliver said. “Dr. Romo’s commitment to promoting

school spirit and creating school traditions was vital to making this project happen.”

Senior biology major Tab-bi Austin believes the initia-tive, equipped with a full-spectrum LED display, will foster campuscommunity.

“I think the lights are a great way to reflect school

spirit. It’s eye catching and adds a fun flair to the cam-pus. I think both the stu-dents and the community love the new tradition,” Aus-tin said.

The lights may not stop at the university entrance, though.

“LED lighting projects are also being considered at the UC Tower, DTC/ITC, and at the new Ximenez Campus entry,” Oliver said.

Skate legend leads by example

Caroline Traylor, The Paisano

Page 2: The Paisano Volume 51 Issue 14

2 NEWSSummer 2015

Insta

3 phases — and many different ways — to provide input on the City’s Budget this year:

Tell Us your priority services with a video clip on social media.

Post a clip to Twitter, Facebook or Instagram answering the question: “Which City service do you love and why?” Don’t forget to hashtag it #SASpeakUp! This is the start of a conversation about balancing the cost of the services we love.

Rather not take a video or use social media? Take a picture and caption it with your answer OR share via the website SASpeakUp.com.

SPEAK UP!

Too busy to MeetUp? Learn about the budget and submit ideas at:SASpeakUp.com.

Learn about City services & budget — we come to you!

MeetUps will take place where residents are already gathering — at their neighborhood, community, church and work meetings. Residents will learn about City services and budget and we’ll learn about your priorities and ideas! Visit SASpeakUp.com or call 311 for details on MeetUps.

MEET UP!

Follow Us @SASpeakUp • #SASpeakUp SASpeakUp.com

Departments will look to highlight your innovative and low cost ideas to Council!

Connect your innovative ideas to City service providers.

Ideas submitted via social media, online at SASpeakUp.com or at a MeetUp will be sent to department staff to consider for their budget this year or for future budgets. We’ll be joining up your ideas directly with the staff that provide those services!

JOIN UP!

Matthew DuarteContributing Writer@[email protected]

B-cycle’s bike-sharing network at UTSA has fallen short of expectations, de-spite support from students, administrators and the City of San Antonio.

UTSA students, according to the San Antonio Current, checked out a total of only 65 bikes during the first four months of the program.

The B-cycle stations — one next to Alvarez Hall and the other adjacent to the Ap-plied Engineering and Tech-nology Building — provide students with opportunities to borrow a bicycle for up to half an hour at no charge if they purchase a discounted $25 pass. The passes are good for a full semester.

“We were given this gift so we took it,” said senior anthropology major Cole Whitmore about the bike sharing. “And then when we put in student input they didn’t take it.”

The stations are part of a pilot program to gauge stu-dent interest in a bike shar-ing system. Many had hoped that the two stations on campus would be the first of a satellite system that would grow and eventually connect to other attractions around UTSA, such as neighboring apartment complexes and the Leon Creek Greenbelt.

B-cycle operates in more than two dozen cities around the country; San Antonio’s downtown network of over

75 stations and growing is the company’s largest and most-used system. San An-tonio’s City Council recently approved over $120,000 in funding to keep B-cycle op-erating in San Antonio.

The two stations at UTSA did not cost the university a cent to build. Rather, District 8 City Councilman Ron Ni-renberg, who represents the university at City Hall, se-cured funding for the proj-ect.

“The addition of B-cycle at the Main Campus is another step in our collective efforts to make UTSA a more ac-cessible, liable community,” Nirenberg told UTSA To-day in January when the an-nouncement was first made. “By doing more cycling than driving, I hope students will take advantage of the oppor-tunity to save money, burn some calories and enjoy the beautiful UTSA campus.”

Albert Carrisalez, direc-tor of external affairs for UTSA, has asked students for their input to determine any potential locations for a future of expansion of UT-SA’s B-cycle system. How-ever, many students who responded believe that the pilot stations’ locations were impractical or ineffective.

“I feel like they’d prob-ably get more use by the far parking lots,” said a junior geology major who wished to remain anonymous. “The only real advantage to hav-ing them on campus is if someone forgot something and needed to go to one of the nearby apartments,” the student said.

The overwhelming major-ity of students interviewed, however, were not even aware of B-cycle’s presence on campus.

“I knew there was a bike share downtown,” said un-declared sophomore Isaiah Slaughter, “but didn’t even know there was a program

at main campus.”“I’ve seen them on cam-

pus and around the city, but I don’t know a lot of people who use it,” said junior soci-

ology major Samantha Lo-pez.

The two stations were merely a pilot program to gauge interest in a bike shar-ing system on campus. Rid-ership at the first two sta-tions would have to show promise before any expan-sion of the system would be considered.

The low ridership num-bers are not the only con-cern for a B-cycle expansion at UTSA, however.

“The thing is, we’d have to find a lot of the financial support,” said Gus Sullivan, B-cycle San Antonio’s for-mer business development director.

The grants B-cycle used to build its downtown network would not apply for a satel-lite system at UTSA’s main campus, Sullivan explained, meaning that the money would likely have to come from private investors.

Additionally, the two sta-tions at UTSA are not nec-essarily permanent and may not be on campus much lon-ger. According to Sullivan, the stations needed to be moved from downtown to accommodate construction around the San Antonio Ar-senal. Because far fewer stu-dents than expected partook in B-cycles pilot program at UTSA, the stations may be returned to their original home downtown.

“I think the bottom line is that it was offered ahead of its time,” Whitmore said. “With a little time and rec-ognition, it could be a great program. Students just need to know about it.”

Bike sharing program hits speed bumps

With disappointing reception on Main Campus, UTSA’s two B-cycle stations are at risk of being moved downtown.

Caroline Traylor, The Paisano

Page 3: The Paisano Volume 51 Issue 14

Expansion of UTSA student project receives FDA approval

NEWS 3

Caroline TraylorNews Editor@[email protected]

Coming soon to the Business Building near you: frozen yogurt will be avail-able for UTSA students to

purchase in fall 2015.’The Market or Market-

place — the name of the new Main Campus dining option has not yet been released — will serve frozen yogurt, burgers and “grab-n-go” snacks.

The new frozen yogurt shop will replace EX-

TREME Pita, which has been one of the healthiest dining options on campus. When learning about up-coming changes in campus dining, students’ reactions range from excitement to indifference. A common concern among students is the removal of healthful

food options. “I like the idea of frozen

yogurt, but EXTREME Pita is the only healthy option on campus,” said junior psychology major Maxine Wilson.

Frozen yogurt shop comes to campus, replaces UTSA’s ‘healthiest dining option’

March 31 - April 7, 2015

Summer 2015

Caroline TraylorNews Editor@[email protected]

A casual conversation with a neonatal intensive care nurse inspired Daniel Mendez to start thinking about how he could play a role in developing medical technology.

The nurse told the UTSA alumnus that part of her routine included rotating the heads of premature ba-bies every hour to prevent deformation.

In the age of booming medical technology, Mendez was astounded that a better solution did not exist. So with the help of fellow UTSA mechanical engineering ma-jors Israel Cruz and Nicho-las Flores, Mendez set out to create one: GELShield.

GELShield, a headband-like protection device con-taining an aqueous gel, distributes the weight of newborn babies’ heads and reduces pressure points in

their skulls.Five years later, GELShield

has received FDA approval, and the student-led team has evolved into a full-fledged San Antonio company: In-victus Medical.

The three teammates, whose project received an A, addressed the need to pre-vent head molding

“It wasn’t until we had a nurse ask us when she could purchase the device that we realized we had stumbled upon something that could really change the medical landscape for preemies,” Mendez says.

After that, the team — under the company name Invictus — decided to enter its prototype of GELShield ™ into the Center for In-novation and Technology Entrepreneurship’s (CITE) $100,000 competition. “The rest is history,” says Mendez.

Many winners of the CITE competition execute Micro-Exits, a website that con-nects entrepreneurs looking to fund their startup compa-nies with relevant investors

based on social connections and matching algorithms. The winners sell their tech-nologies and companies af-ter the competition.

CITE is an interdisciplin-ary center in UTSA’s colleges of Business and Engineering. The center hosts a biennial Student Technology Venture Competition in which se-nior business and engineer-ing students collaborate to develop an innovative tech-nology along with a business plan to successfully develop a new company. The top three teams compete for the $100,000 prize pool in fund-ing and services to launch their company.

Not one of the three origi-nal members of Invictus was able to remain with Invic-tus Medical too long after the company formed. “Over time the company demand-ed more and more expertise and experience in different facets of the commercializa-tion of medical devices,” says Mendez. “Eventually we had all ended up replacing our-selves with individuals who

had spent their entire ca-reers doing what we were having to learn on the fly.”

“We were solving a problem that had no cur-rent solution. We really took the time to under-stand both the consumer and the marketplace, and our solution seemed so obvious, it was easy to get people on board,” explains Mendez who attributes his team’s success at the CITE competition to the team’s ability to address an unmet need.

Establishing cognitive development as its top priority, Invictus Medical has been approved for $1 million in grants through the National Science Foundation to bring other forms of innovation to the forefront of medicine.

Mendez characterizes this decision as risk manage-ment, because as a startup with investors depending on them, “you quite literally cannot afford to make learn-ing mistakes.” He believes that the ability to communi-

cate with potential investors so that they have the utmost confidence in the team’s plan is integral to winning the Student Technology Venture Competition.

“Coming up with a great solution to a real problem is a feat in itself,” explains Men-

dez. “Being able to convince people to give you millions of dollars is another.”

Mendez offers advice for future competitor hopefuls: “communicate the problem, your solution and properly incentivize people to invest.”

DRURY INN & SUITES NEAR LA CANTERA PARKWAY

1 Mile from the UTSA campusUTSA discounted rates, use rate code 316909

15806 IH-10 West | San Antonio, TX 78249 | 210-696-0800

| DruryHotels.com | 1-800-DRURYINN

• Free Hot Breakfast• Free Hot Food & Cold Beverages at the 5:30 Kickback®

• Free WiFi Throughout the Hotel• Free Parking During Stay• 24-Hour Business Center• 24-Hour Fitness Center • Indoor Pool & Whirlpool• Guest Laundry & Pantry Available• Microwave & Refrigerator in Every Room• Drury Gold Key Club Loyalty Program®

THE EXTRAS AREN’T EXTRA!®

To finish reading, visit paisano-online.com

Photo Courtesy of Daniel Mendez

Page 4: The Paisano Volume 51 Issue 14

The PaisanoSummer 2015

4 OPINION

The American Freshman Survey, a cooperative insti-tutional research program at UCLA, reported the college freshmen who began uni-versity in 2014 had the low-est level of emotional health measured by the survey — just 50.7 percent reported above-average emotional health.

For UTSA’s 5,000 incoming freshmen, the fall semester may seem both exciting and daunting. UTSA has steadily increased its admissions stan-dards over the past several years to encourage academic

excellence and four-year graduation. Pressure to com-plete a degree in four years requires students complete a heavy course load each se-mester. Furthermore, adapt-ing to a new environment and being away from home may cause the pressure to swell.

Sometimes these strains cause freshmen to retreat to their dorm rooms and apart-ments.

According to the Ameri-can Freshman Survey, col-lege freshmen spend less time socializing and more time studying and interacting on

social networks. The survey showed that 38.8 percent of these students spend less than five hours each week with friends; 18 percent spend more than 16 hours weekly with friends.

Compared to previous data, these figures represent a decrease in social interaction. In 1987, more than half of the students surveyed said they spent 16 hours or more per week socializing with friends.

While a decreased level of social interaction does not directly result in depression or academic decline, it may

be a harbinger of poor mental health.

Face-to-face social interac-tions benefit students greater than face-to-screen virtual interactions. Socializing with friends helps freshmen cope with these new stresses in their lives, and the act of building friendships is often mentally and emotionally stimulating; these engage-ments, as a result, may have a positive impact on emotional health.

College does not need to be stressful. The university is a place where students can dis-

cover who they are and forge their career paths to where they wish to go.

College gives freshmen the opportunity to explore, make new friends, and em-brace their new environment. They are better equipped to face these challenges with a little help from their friends. They cultivate these friend-ships through face-to-face interaction. What better way to combat stress and improve emotional health?

{The Paisano}

Editor-in-Chief: Jakob Lopez

Managing Editor:Mia Cabello

News Editor:Caroline Traylor

Arts Editor:Brayden Boren

Sports Editor:Shabazz I. Dawkins

Web Editor:Michael Turnini

Special Issues Editor:Jade Cuevas

Business Manager:Lizzette Rocha

Senior Copy Editor:Kate Kramer

{Staff Writers}Patrick Martinez, Robert Avila, Pavela Bambakova, Savin Weerasinghe, Chris-topher Breakell, Julian Gonzales

{Staff Photographers}Fabian De Soto

{Contributing Writers}Matthew Trevino, Darryl Sherrod, Oliver Belmarc, Bryant Meza

{Adviser} Diane Abdo

{Advisory Board}Steven Kellman, Jack Himelblau, Sandy Nor-man, Stefanie Arias, Diane Abdo

The Paisano is published by the Paisano Educa-tional Trust, a non-profit, tax exempt, educational organization. The Paisano is operated by members of the Student Newspa-per Association, a regis-tered student organiza-tion. The Paisano is NOT sponsored, financed or endorsed by UTSA. New issues are published ev-ery Tuesday during the fall and spring semesters, excluding holidays and exam periods. The Pai-sano is distributed on all three UTSA campuses — Main, Downtown and the Institute of Texan Cultures. Additionally, Paisano pub-lications are distributed at a variety of off-campus lo-cations, including Tri-point and a variety of apart-ment complexes near the UTSA Main Campus. All revenues are generated through advertising and donations. Advertising inquiries and donations should be directed to:

14526 Roadrunner Way

Suite 101

San Antonio, TX 78249

Phone: (210)-690-9301

{Letters to the Editor}Letters must be fewer than 400 words and include the writer’s name, classification or title and telephone num-ber. The Paisano reserves the right to edit all submis-sions.Send letters to:[email protected]

© 2015, The Paisano

Judging Caitlyn Jenner

College stress flies, with a little help from friends

Commentary

A dis-trust in law en-forcement, stemming from the videos cap-

tured of the victims of police brutality, specifically against black males, have sparked outrage and created a na-tional call for officers to be re-quired to wear body cameras.

Proponents for this change argue that cameras will de-crease police brutality, pro-tect citizens, and hold officers more accountable for their actions; however, I do not be-lieve the speculative benefits outweigh the cost of body cameras.

The obvious issue is mon-ey: the cost of the cameras for over a million American cops, training, storing all of the re-corded data and the cost of placing these items on over a million officers can be expen-sive. President Barack Obama requested $75 million from Congress to help communi-ties buy 50,000 more body cameras. For a small town like Ferguson with 54 offi-cers, the cost of each officer carrying a camera would be around $19,000. Considering the police department’s bud-get for the police department is about $5.2 million a year, this would be a relatively easy endeavor to accomplish.

The big cost comes from storing all the data recorded by the officers, which would cost some cities millions. San Diego’s five-year contract with Taser for 1,000 cam-eras would cost $267,000 for the devices and another $3.6 million for storage contracts, software licenses, mainte-nance, warranties and equip-ment.

The largest cost that arises when discussing body cam-eras is the cost of privacy: the cost of living your life with

fear that you must be on your “best behavior.”

I believe that body cameras will cause police brutality to lessen; police will become more accountable and, as a result, more officers will be charged for their crimes.

The social cost is greater than the physical costs of cameras. It is trading one fear for another, the fear of being mistreated and abused for the fear of having our every acci-dent, mistake, illegal terrible thing we do recorded for the rest of our lives; the fear of a moment of abuse for a life-time of being on our toes, ex-tremely careful of our actions; and the fear of being caught doing something wrong on the cameras we asked for. If the biggest issue is trust be-tween the public and law en-forcement, what does that say about society? A society that would opt to, instead of ad-dressing an issue, place cam-eras to watch everyone.

What is needed to fix the tension in these communities is clear communication and perception. Much like these cameras we want to place on officers, we only get one view of an issue that doesn’t always show the whole truth.

What we need is law en-forcement to be clear about their mission to protect us and clear in addressing their issues. We need to hear that we can trust officers. And we need to witness it.

If that cannot be provided, then maybe we’ll have t resort to body camera to record all of our actions.

Robert Avila Staff Writer

In the last year or so, the media has paid more attention to police v i o l e n c e

against black males. Why? Multiple instances of police brutality involving Eric Gar-ner, Phillip Crawford and Walter Scott as well as others were caught on tape, some taken on the police officers’ dashboard camera and others from bystanders using their cellphones.

The government should re-quire on-duty police officers to wear body cameras. With a camera recording everything they do, acts of unnecessary force may decrease signifi-cantly. Instead of relying on the accounts of witnesses and police officers, investigators will have tapes of what trans-pired.

With public awareness and media attention focused on police brutality actions, there may never be a better time to take action against police brutality than now.

Police Chief William A. Farrar from Rialto, Califor-nia conducted a 12-month study in which half of his po-lice force wore body cameras while on duty.

The number of complaints against Rialto officers de-creased 88 percent from the previous year. The officers chose to use force in 60 per-cent fewer instances. When force was used, it was twice as likely to be used by an offi-cer without camera. More so, the study does not report any instances of violence towards officers.

This example shows that officers may taper their ag-gression when there is a cam-era rolling. On camera, offi-cers would not be able to act recklessly and claim their acts were justified. As of now, po-lice brutality cases place the burden of proof on a victim, who, more rather than not, is deceased. With a camera, the evidence is there for all to see.

Cameras do not just bene-fit the civilians; body cameras protect the officers as well. Similar to the camera’s effect on an officer’s behaviors, a civilian who sees a body cam-era recording an interaction may be more likely to prop-erly cooperate.

Conspiracy theorists and traditionalists have some valid objections: Some say it’s another way for the gov-ernment to watch us, others claim they don’t want to be on camera for privacy reasons and some will ask where the

funding will come from. However, if the govern-

ment wants to watch us, it will — whether or not police-men wear cameras. Everyone deserves his or her privacy and footage should only be looked at if it’s a part of an in-vestigation. Granted, cameras aren’t cheap, but tax dollars and funds should be spent on drastically increasing public safety.

The murders of Michael Brown, Freddie Grey and many others like them may have been prevented by man-dated police body cameras. Police brutality, especially brutality towards minorities and specifically by white offi-cers towards black minorities — must be stopped.

The first step towards curbing police brutality is to require cameras for on-duty officers. With a body camera, officers may have less aggres-sive altercations with per-petrators and suspects, and criminals will likely respond with less hostility.

And maybe, just maybe, one day a white officer killing an innocent black man will result in a conviction.

Darryl Sherrod Staff Writer

Editorial

Point-counter-point: Mandatory police body cameras

CommentaryThere ’s

this idea out there that the ex-istence of a transgen-der person is incom-

patible with the existence of a perfect God. One variation of this argument, which I have encountered goes roughly as follows (1) God is all-power-ful, loving and unable to make mistakes (2) creating a wom-an with a male body would be a mistake (3) therefore, Cait-lyn Jenner wasn’t a woman with a male body, but just a delusional man who wanted a new name and cosmetic sur-gery. Although it may be one of many, this particular argu-ment doesn’t hold up.

Most Christians will agree that we cannot know or claim to understand the workings of an infinitely complex God. “God works in mysterious ways” is often cited when there is no clear explana-tion for an event. The humil-ity required by the Christian faith is one of its advantages — theologians have used it to respond to a range of issues, including the problem of evil

(“Is God compatible with the existence of evil?”) and the problem of divine silence (“Why isn’t God’s existence evident to all believers?”).

This humility — combined with the rationale of a re-demptive account of suffering — provides members of faith with a way to make sense of what may seem inconsis-tent with an all-powerful and loving God. Proponents of redemptive accounts of suffering state that God al-lows suffering as a means for people to develop virtue, for “soul-making” or to enter into communion with God. For example, an athlete’s handi-cap may serve as a means to develop incredible self-discipline, dedication and appreciation for capabilities most people take for granted. Generalized quite a bit and in the simplest terms, a handi-capped athlete’s situation is similar to a transgender per-son’s; both have limitations which cause them some de-gree of suffering, suffering that gives them an opportu-nity for moral improvement. Caitlyn Jenner had to dem-onstrate courage to handle her gender dysphoria, just

as many other transgender persons have had to when informing friends and fami-lies of their gender identity. It seems arbitrary to draw the line for what God might allow at gender dysphoria, denying the legitimacy of a transgen-der person, especially consid-ering the world’s atrocities.

Now, it is not my intent to convince you of a redemptive account of suffering. I am not denying that there are other reasons some Christians are uncomfortable with Caitlyn Jenner and transgender per-sons in general. The dilemma is false: It isn’t the case that either a perfect God made mistakes or that Caitlyn Jen-ner merely prefers having a female body and feminine name. Instead, we have to consider a third option: A man born into a female body and vice-versa isn’t a mistake, but God allowing somebody an opportunity for moral im-provement or future commu-nion.

Matthew TrevinoContributing Writer

Join the team! The Paisano is looking for

innovative writers, photographers, videographers, social media marketers and graphic artists.

Email [email protected] for more information

Body cameras are necessary to curb police brutality Cameras are not cost efficient and not necessary for public safety

Page 5: The Paisano Volume 51 Issue 14

ARTS & LIFE 5Summer 2015

Going Grande: San Antonio’s expanding music scene

Brayden BorenArts Editor@[email protected]

It can be said that San Antonio’s musical growth has stemmed from the cre-ative underground bubbling beneath the city’s urban sprawl, with people getting exhausted from driving an hour from San Antonio to Austin to see a good show.

Venues like the Freeman Coliseum and the AT&T Center have accommodated big-name performers and national acts alike, though this group leaves out the small man who cannot sell-out arena-sized locales.

Just a few years ago, San Antonio was one of the largest cities in the United States with a dedicated met-al fanbase, though strangely devoid of other growing genres like hip-hop, elec-tronic and pop music.

In the time since, with the inclusion of new music venues and a new attitude towards music curation around the Alamo City, San Antonio has separated from its big brother Austin as a new mecca for live music experiences.

Maverick Music Festival was the first development in the city to really push for a new experience for music lovers.

Coordinated by Blayne Tucker, who organized the festival in 2013, the festival’s goal was to bring national and local bands and record-ing artists to San Antonio.

More importantly, the festival allowed San Anto-nio to showcase the city’s concert-going public, that which supports acts that of-ten bypass San Antonio.

Known largely for its met-al scene throughout the 70s and 80s, San Antonio began to expand to accommodate a larger swathe of recording acts, including a variety of garage rock, pop-punk and jazz musicians.

Iconic residences, such as Backstage Live in 2010 and the White Rabbit in 1996, popped up around popu-lated areas near the shops and locales of downtown for young music lovers and adults alike to join and rage on into the night.

Matt Stieb, music editor for the San Antonio Cur-rent, knows that San An-tonio has evolved past its roots in metal into a much broader group of tastes.

“If you’re looking at what is popular around young kids, it’s really psych-rock and garage revival,” Stieb told Texas Public Radio’s The Source. “It’s all sorts of different things beyond that, too: hip-hop, elec-tronic dance music. There’s always going to be a metal crowd. Metal will always be a draw, but that stuff is just part of what’s to offer now.”

Locations that have been around San Antonio for some time, including Ko-rova and Sam’s Burger Joint, have reached outside of the city to bring more types of music into the city.

Taking advantage of the SXSW spillover effect from Austin to San Antonio, Los Angeles’ garage rock ’n’ roll label Burger Records has held its annual Burger Hangover at the two lo-cations for the past three years, bringing nationally and critically recognized bands like Thee Oh Sees and JEFF The Brotherhood to San Antonio and contrib-uting to the city’s exploding garage scene.

As San Antonio has grown into the bustling cultural boiling pot it is to-day, change has sprung up around the city at a rapid pace.

The White Rabbit closed in 2014, sold by owner Rick Sciaraffa to restaurant own-er and real estate developer Chad Carey.

Likewise, Backstage Live, renamed the Alamo City Music Hall, partnered with ScoreMore Shows to bring a variety of national hip-hop and rap acts into San Anto-nio’s growing metropolis.

Carey has already fin-ished rebranding the once-charcoal painted White Rabbit, with the rejuvenat-ed Paper Tiger — the venue is painted in bright flashes of unmistakable white and orange.

Partnering with Austin-based Transmission Events, which has booked shows in coordination with Austin’s Fun Fun Fun Fest and in popular nightclubs around the Capital and Dallas, Pa-per Tiger will be one of the leading torchbearers in the fight to bring more national touring acts to San Antonio.

Having already brought in internationally popular bands and artists, including Danish punks Iceage, chill-wave spearhead Washed Out and rock icon Courtney Love, it’s a far cry from the redundant metal and pop-punk scene that dominated San Antonio years ago.

Of course, none of these shows would be possible without ticket sales, which haven’t been a problem, ac-cording to Keith Howerton, director of entertainment at the Aztec Theater on the Riverwalk and co-owner of Sam’s Burger Joint.

“One of the things I’ve seen that’s pretty positive is advanced ticket sales,” stated Howerton. “When you’re trying to lure bands from Austin that are on routes from Dallas to Hous-ton, they need certain data points so they say, ‘Hey, let’s put San Antonio on that route as well.’ Otherwise, we get looped into the Aus-tin market.”

This past April marked the third annual Maverick Music Festival, San Anto-nio’s only music festival. Selling out its two-day festi-val tickets before the festival even started, the crowded event was hosted at the Alamo City’s La Villita Park and featured a variety of lo-cal and national acts, from rappers Cypress Hill to in-die band Best Coast to lots of local San Antonio talent.

San Antonio still has a way to go before it becomes the next “Live Music Capi-tal of the world” like Austin or until it has the big name stars that Houston draws, such as Beyonce and Drake.

“The one thing I think we’re sorely lacking still is a triple-AAA radio station to cultivate that younger de-mographic further,” stated Tucker.

“Contrast that with

Austin, who has two tri-ple-AAA radio stations in KGSR and KUT, and we have none. We are getting there; I think alternative stations like The App 103.3 are an improvement, but we still have a ways to go.”

Though music stations like FM 103.3 and events like Maverick Music have brought more national acts to San Antonio, Tucker knows that the goal is to re-tain the city’s culture while also building momentum for bigger acts and larger crowds.

“I think that the way you reach a younger demo-graphic, particularly indie-alternative leaning bands, is a thing that hasn’t been cul-tivated thus far until now in the city,” Tucker states.

“I think there is a lot of social media influence that promoters like myself can use to bring more bands to San Antonio than ever be-fore. It’s an exciting time to be in the music business.”

“There’s always going to be a metal crowd, metal will always be a draw, but that stuff is just part of what’s to offer now.”Matt StiebMusic Editor at the San Antonio Current

 

 

 

 

Elevated College Living

 

APARMENT:  -­‐individual  leases  -­‐fully  furnished  -­‐full-­‐sized  washer  &  dryer  -­‐private  baths  -­‐internet  and  cable  included  -­‐walk  in  closets  available  -­‐9  foot  ceilings    COMMUNITY  AMENETIES:  

-­‐gym  with  precore                equipment  free  weights,  cable  cross  system  -­‐computer  lab  &  conference  center  -­‐state  of  the  art  7.1  theater  -­‐arcade  &  lounge  -­‐private  shuttle      

 

TOUR  TODAY!  

Madera redefines the student housing experience, combining everything you could want with everything you

need in your off-campus home.

210.690.8872        -­        www.maderautsa.com  

8102  W.  Hausman  Rd  San  Antonio,  TX  78249  

“I think alternate stations like 103.3 are an improvement, but we still have a ways to go.”Blayne TuckerMaverick Music founder and organizer

As San Antonio’s music scene has expanded past it’s metal roots in the 70’s and 80’s, the venues across town have changed to signify a new era in the Alamo City and its vision for bringing new genres and artists to San Antonio. Paper Tiger, formerly the White Rabbit, is one of the new venues that has already brought in dozens of international and local acts from around the country, from Danish punks Iceage to rockstar Courtney Love.

Brayden Boren, The Paisano

Page 6: The Paisano Volume 51 Issue 14

Oliver BelmarcsContributing Writer@[email protected]

At midnight after the kids have gone to bed, cable network Cartoon Network switches over from its series of family-friendly cartoons to their more adult counter-part Adult Swim.

Since its inception, Adult Swim has been a breeding ground for all types of ma-ture animation and bizarre content, and if you tune in on certain nights, you will see the work of UTSA graduate Brett Noll right on your TV screen.

Once a fine arts major, Noll now lives and works in Los Angeles as an animator for the critically-acclaimed animated series “Rick and Morty.” The show follows the adventures of Rick San-chez, an alcoholic scientist with a knack for interstellar travel and misanthropy, and his grandson Morty Smith, a distressed but good-heart-ed 14-year-old.

The show can be as darkly creepy as it is side-splitting-ly hilarious, but the anima-tion is what really brings

the worlds Rick and Morty explore to life. Whether the two get trapped in a neth-erworld composed entirely of women or visit anatomy themed amusement parks that take place inside the decayed body of a dead homeless man, Noll and his team of animators have their work cut out for them.

Born in San Antonio, Brett only spent a year at UTSA before transferring to Texas State. “The art pro-gram wasn’t challenging enough,” noted Brett, who also described college for an artist as “a holding pen to keep you until you fin-ish, only to receive a piece of paper.”

Though Brett’s insecuri-ties about the Texas edu-cation system remain, he attributes his love for writ-ing and drawing to his time spent writing for The Pai-sano during his tenure at UTSA.

“I knew originally before going to UTSA that I should write for The Paisano,” Brett stated. Brett’s parents were both writers for the paper when they were students, which piqued his interest in joining the organization.

Though Brett wasn’t an

experienced writer, he knew he could draw. After talking to members of the paper, Noll immediately knew this was what he wanted to do.

“This is it. This is going to be the club. This is going to be the thing in college that I do,” exclaimed Noll. “I’m going to make some friends and I’m going to do art. This is how I’m going to fit in here.”

Although Noll spent his whole life in Texas, he knew that the place to make his dreams come true was in Los Angeles. “I was diehard driven to move to Los An-geles,” Noll said. “Los Ange-

les is where animation was and I knew that.”

As Brett’s portfolio of drawings increased, so did his vocal presence on so-cial media about his art. He would show off his talents anywhere he could, espe-cially on his Facebook page where other animators be-gan to take notice.

Before “Rick and Morty” had even started, creators Dan Harmon and Justin Roiland began scouting for talent to help put the show together and create the ini-tial pilot that would become the first episode of the se-ries.

After one animator work-ing for the show at the time was forced to leave, Brett received a call one night and was asked to fill in the missing position on the ani-mation team. “I showed up at the office, they liked my stuff and I was hired the next week,” recounts Brett on the call of a lifetime. “It’s been amazing ever since.”

Now living and working in Los Angeles, Noll has been enjoying his time at his dream job as an anima-tor on “Rick and Morty.” One of the new projects he is currently excited about is a crossover gag where the

titular characters invade the living room of fellow animated family “The Simp-sons” during the infamous couch gag of each episode.

Brett still thanks The Pai-sano for all the skills he has acquired. “I didn’t realize it was this self-run organiza-tion by students who found advertisers to fund their writings,” Brett stated. “It had this legacy behind it. I really respected that.”

Brett wants his newfound accomplishments to be a sign to any student that you can find that thing that makes you special within the walls of any institution.

6 ARTS & LIFE ARTS & LIFE

Art becomes reality for UTSA alumnus

Photo Courtesy of Brett Noll

Summer 2015

“I showed up at the office, they liked my stuff and I was hired the next week. It’s been amazing ever since. Brett NollCartoonist for “Rick and Morty”

C a r t o o n i s t B r e t t N o l l f i n d s n i c h e a t C a r t o o n N e t w o r k

Page 7: The Paisano Volume 51 Issue 14

Brayden BorenArts Editor@[email protected]

Many notable, award-winning faculty and stu-dents have been a part of UTSA since its inception in 1969.

Some examples include journalists Michelle Beadle (NBC Sports and ESPN), Dayna Devon (Extra); busi-ness leaders Roxanne Aus-tin, former president and chief operating officer of DirecTV; and William E. Morrow, founder of Grande Communications.

Accomplished author and associate professor for the

UTSA College of Education and Human Development Carmen Tafolla joins the ranks of UTSA’s greats as she serves as the 2015 Texas State Poet Laureate.

Tafolla was inducted at the Texas State Capitol in Austin May 7 at a special resolution ceremony for the induction of all Texas State Artists. She joined the ranks of Pulitzer Prize win-ning authors and writers that have merited the title of State Poet Laureate.

Unlike national poet laureates, who receive a $35,000 stipend with the honor, state poet laureates are not paid. Instead, they serve a similar task: to seek to raise the national con-

sciousness to a greater ap-preciation of the reading and writing of poetry and the arts.

Since 1932, the state of Texas has appointed a State Poet Laureate for a one-year

term. The city of San Anto-nio has created a similar distinction.

In April 2012, Tafolla was appointed to be the city’s first poet laureate. She served a two-year term

from 2012 to 2014.Twice honored by the

U.S. Library of Congress, Tafolla, a native San Anto-nian, grew up on the city’s west side. While attending junior high school, her prin-cipal told her that she had the potential to get to high school, though not to finish. However, Tafolla completed high school, earned a B.A. in 1972, an M.A. in 1973 and a Ph.D. from the Uni-versity of Texas in Austin in 1982.

As an associate professor in UTSA’s Department of Bicultural-Bilingual Stud-ies, Tafolla published more than 20 acclaimed books of literature and poetry.

Her works have made their way into high school and university textbooks, newspapers and magazines across the world.

Her book “The Holy Tor-tilla and a Pot of Beans,” won the Tomás Rivera Chil-dren’s Book Award in 2009 and has been published in English, German, French and Bengali.

“Whenever you receive an honor or professional opportunity, you also re-ceive a responsibility to turn that creative energy into a positive recharging of the community,” said Tafolla in an interview with UTSA Today.

“I accept the honor not for me, but for what it can do for others,” Tafolla stat-ed.

Tafolla currently teaches at UTSA as associate pro-fessor for Transformative Children’s Literature while also working on the biog-raphy of Emma Tenayuca, a noted 1930s civil rights organizer.

ARTS & LIFE 7Arts & Life Events Calendar:Thurs. - Sun. 6/11-6/142 p.m. & 8 p.m.“Mamma Mia!” is coming to the Majestic Theatre (224 E Houston St) this weekend only! Clap along to disco mainstays and even dance in the aisles to the story of a young bride-to-be who in-vites three of her mother’s ex-lovers to her wedding in hopes of determining which one is her father. For more info or to buy tickets, visit majesticem-pire.com or buy your tickets at the door.

Friday 7/311 p.m. The Rockstar Energy Drink Mayhem Festival is an all day festival that features some of the top acts in metal’s storied history of music. From Slayer to King Diamond, metal’s biggest festival brings a sight to see and the music to bang your head to. Due to a set of unfore-seen circumstances, this year’s Mayhem Festival has been relocated to Alamo City Music Hall (1305 E Houston St) right here in San Antonio! For tickets, visit rockstarmay-hemfest.com.

Tuesday 8/18All DayWith the end of sum-mer comes the start of a new semester at UTSA! Roadrunner days will be going on this week to cel-ebrate the return of new and returning students to campus and bring in the new semester in spirit and style.

UTSA professor becomes 2015 Texas State Poet LaureateSummer 2015

Attendees were treated to a variety of activities on the Sol Festival grounds. A festival-goer checks out some of the custom pieces that SAC students Austin Farar and Aaron Snyder have drawn up at their Live Art table.

Photo Courtesy of Victoria Ramos

ALPIN PARK APARTMENTS

SPECIAL STUDENT PRICING!!! RESERVE YOURS NOW!!NO APP FEE!! NO DEPOSIT!!

FURNISHED APARTMENTS AVAILABLE -SHUTTLE SERVICE AVAILABLE ON CHASE HILLVisit alpinparksa.com– Or stop by

15726 Chase Hill Blvd San Antonio, TX. 78256

856 SQ FT

1,150 SQ FT

1,050 SQ FT

542 SQ FT

$695

$795$895

$595

Pricing for the whole unit!!!!!! 210-691-5746

Prices are subject to change at anytime.

LOCATED JUST ONE BLOCK FROM UTSA & LA CANTERA MALL

THE MOST SPACIOUS MOST AFFORDABLEAPARTMENTS NEAR CAMPUS

Photo Courtesy of Carmen Tafolla

“Whenever you receive an honor or professional op-portunity, you also receive a responsibility to turn that creative energy into a positive recharging of the community.”

Carmen Tafolla2015-16 Texas State Poet Laureate

Page 8: The Paisano Volume 51 Issue 14

8 SPORTSSummer 2015

UTSA weightlifting boasts strong 2015 campaignJulian GonzalesSports Assistant @[email protected]

In 2007, UTSA gradu-ate student Wes Zunker helped establish the UTSA weightlifting club. Now, in 2015, Zunker maintains his position as head coach and sponsor for the club, which has amassed 40 members this season.

The weightlifting club prides itself on diversity; both males and females who study a variety of different majors make up the highly decorated team.

“Our president is sopho-more Jaelynn Clark. We have a few world champi-ons, too: me, Jaelynn, and Molly Zunker, who is mar-ried to Wes, and graduated this spring,” senior Allegra Hudson said.

The club splits its training sessions between The Rec-reation Center at UTSA and the gym at Southside High School because Zunker trains high school athletes at that school as well.

“We have team practices

three times a week, usually Sunday, Tuesday and Thurs-day. They start at five o’clock and end around nine, de-pending if we’re in our suits or not,” Hudson said.

The team competes against schools from across the country and has experi-enced major success. This success gives UTSA signifi-cantly more publicity and attracts a stronger recruit-ing class for the future, as the team has exponentially grown every year since it originated.

“The women’s team won its second national champi-onship and the men’s team placed third for the second consecutive year,” said Hud-son. “This year was one of the biggest at the collegiate nationals with over 300 lift-ers competing, too,” Hudson added. She credited team manager Enrique Lugo and former member Rob Garza as key components to their success.

The team’s camaraderie is undeniable; the squad regu-larly helps each other stay in shape with year-round training and dieting.

“We are pretty close and

hang out all the time — not just on weekends. We’re es-pecially close when it comes to eating; we have to get those gains in!” Hudson ex-plained with a laugh.

The UTSA Weightlifting Club begins its training in the fall to prepare for a “raw meet” they host every Sep-tember at Southside High School. These raw com-petitions consist of lifting with only wrist wraps, knee sleeves, a belt and a singlet.

The team will amp up its training for the Texas Re-gional Championships in December, followed by a meet in March.

The squad concludes their competitions with the annual Collegiate Nationals in April where the women’s team will look to win con-secutive titles for the first time in club history, and the men’s team will look to secure the elusive national title.

Shabazz I. DawkinsSports Editor@[email protected]

The X Games celebrated its 20th anniversary as the extreme sporting event in-vaded Austin, Texas for the 2015 chapter. The four-day event featured the world’s greatest skaters, BMX bik-ers, rally-car racers and mo-tocross riders.

Australian born Vince B y r o n made his-tory on the sec-ond day

of the event af-

ter taking gold in the BMX Vert Final, unseating BMX legend and defending gold medalist Jamie Bestwick in the process. Byron’s gold medal win broke Bestwick’s X Games record of nine consecutive gold medal wins.

“I knew Jamie (Bestwick) was still going to bring the heat and he wasn’t going to go down without a fight,” said Byron. “To put it all together is my dream. It’s what I’ve been working to-ward all year.”

Byron received his first ever X Games gold medal with the win, posting a phenomenal score of 92.00 while becoming the first BMX biker to land a 540 flair in competition.

“To win, I knew I had to do a lot more than just

a couple of good tricks,” said Byron. “I knew I had to be

butter; I had to be flaw-less.”

In a sport dominated by Americans, Byron’s medal counted as one of the six that the Aussies collected during the events, plac-ing Australia second in the medal count standings be-hind the United States (40) and in front of Brazil (5).

Fellow BMX biker and Australian, Kyle Baldock, picked up a gold medal in the BMX Dirt event with a score of 90.00. With the win, Baldock secured his third consecutive BMX Dirt gold medal.

Canadian skateboarder Pierre-Luc Gagnon took home gold in the Skate-board Vert finals. The win marked the 21st overall medal and 9th gold medal for the phenomenal skate-boarder.

“Skateboarding is an art form to me,” said Gagnon. “It’s not just about the com-petition and tricks, it’s been my passion my whole life.”

On the final day of com-

petition, former child prod-igy Nyjah Huston dominat-ed in the Monster Energy Skateboard Street contest, posting a 94.00 with the nearest competitor — Chaz Ortiz — placing a score of 83.00.

Nyjah Huston made headlines in 2005 after competing as a professional at the age of 11. Now at the age of 20, Huston has been absolutely dominant in X Games Street events, win-ning five of the last seven gold medals for the events.

“Every win takes a lot of hard work and practice on the course and a lot of preparation,” said Huston. “I’m stoked that I was able to put down those first two runs and not put too much pressure on myself.”

The event was the sec-ond consecutive X Games hosted by Austin. With the proper support, it is likely the X Games will return to the capital in 2016.

Photo courtesy of Allegra Hudson

UTSA CLUB SPORTS

2015 X Games takes over Austin

Continued from page 1

Burnquist has always been defined by his tena-cious work ethic and inno-vative approach to skating. The Brazilian was the first person to ever land a fakie 900 making him one of just five different people to land a 900.

In 2001, Burnquist earned one of the highest scores in X Games history after post-ing a near-perfect score of 98.00 in the vert competi-tion. He landed three pre-viously unperformed tricks during the run and, to this day, the set is considered by many to be the greatest vert performance of all time.

Now at the age of 38, Burnquist is in a unique po-sition that has allowed him to watch the progression of the sport since its genesis.

“I remember when I was just a kid doing this,” re-flected Burnquist. “Now you’ve got young guys like Nyjah (Huston), Tommy (Tom Schaar) and (Ryan) Sheckler absolutely shred-ding it. All those guys, man. I’m really lucky to get to watch it.”

“All those guys will be better than me,” said Burn-quist. “They already are,” he finished with a laugh.

Always the competitor, Burnquist proved at the 2015 X Games that he is

just as dominant as he’s ever been.

Despite his age, the leg-endary Brazilian took home three medals — two golds and one silver — all while nursing a fractured fore-arm that he sustained the Wednesday before the com-petitions began.

“During the practice runs I just landed bad,” said Burnquist. “Honest-ly, I knew right away that something was wrong, but I didn’t doubt for one second that I’d be out here compet-ing. I live for this.”

Burnquist took gold in the America’s Navy Skate-board Big Air after securing a score of 93.33. He received his second gold medal on the final day of competition in a new event called Skate-board/BMX Big Air Dou-bles. Burnquist teamed up with BMX biker and Tyler, Texas native Morgan Wade.

The duo dominated the newly minted event, pulling in a score of 90.00 to take the gold.

Burnquist is the vision of perseverance on the course and is highly respected by both fans and competitors alike. He’s shown no signs of slowing and will likely continue to deliver amaz-ing moments for a few more years before hanging up the board.

Burnquist takes three medals

Photo by Kaitlyn Egan

Bryce Kanights, ESPN Images

Page 9: The Paisano Volume 51 Issue 14

Summer 2015

SPORTS 9

Darryl E. Sherrod IIContributing Writer@[email protected]

The 2014-15 UTSA men’s tennis team enjoyed its best season to date under Head Coach Jeff Kader. The for-mer William & Mary stand-out coached the team to a strong campaign, which in-cluded winning the Confer-ence USA (C-USA) tourna-ment and competing in the NCAA Tournament.

The exceptional season followed what was a rather disappointing 2013-14 cam-paign.

“We were struggling to pick up wins,” Kader said bluntly. “This year we were picking up wins from a bunch of different spots. We had a couple guys transfer in that really helped us out, both singles and doubles.”

The poor form from the previous season carried over slightly, with the team experiencing a slow start that saw it drop four of its first six outings.

“For the first little bit of the season, some guys were playing for themselves,” Kader explained. “We had a ‘come-to-Jesus’ talk. We said if we want anything to happen, we have to be the best team out there.”

Despite the lackluster start, the team rallied en route to the conference tournament, winning 12 of its final 16 matches. The momentum carried through the tournament, as

they won their three games 4-3, 4-2 and 4-2, taking the championship in impressive fashion. The win earned them a bid to play LSU in the NCAA National Tour-nament.

“Everyone was fighting together,” said Kader, speak-ing on the team’s impressive C-USA tournament play. “There were 15 of us out there, including coaches, and we were all on the same page. Guys were out there saying, ‘we are better,’ we are a better team.”

The team fell to LSU in round one 0-4, but the loss did not negate the success the team accomplished to-gether. The game was the last contest for all of the se-nior Roadrunners, with the exception of team standout, Tomas Stillman.

Stillman — a transfer from Toledo University — played well enough individu-ally to qualify for the NCAA National S i n g l e s Tourna-ment. De-spite losing in the round of 64 to Soren Hess-Olesen of Texas, Stillman has not let the loss stop his goal to go professional.

“He has won a few matches; he has a profes-sional ranking,” said Kader. “There’s quite a few tourna-ments this summer for him to improve his ranking.”

The other seniors on

UTSA’s roster — Yannick Junger and Joel Rubio — are both graduating. Junger has plans on becoming an in-tern and Rubio plans on be-coming a graduate assistant.

Kader is confident that between current players and incoming recruits, the team will have enough to repeat and do even more next year.

“The hardest part is main-taining and improving,” said Kader. “It’s hard; we lost three out of the top six, but we have guys who got ex-perience this year and are ready to take over. We see what we can do; it’s good. We just need the r i g h t players com-

ing in to fill holes.” Kader is hoping this

year’s experience will lead the returning players to be hungry for more. “Doing it again next year and com-ing back not satisfied,” said Kader. “Hopefully our guys don’t come back saying ‘Oh, that was fun.’ Hope-fully they say, ‘Let’s do bet-ter. Let’s win that opening round next year.’”

Coach Kader will lead the team back into action start-ing with matches in the fall. He hopes to build on prior success and take the pro-gram to new heights.

Kader serves opinion on men’s tennis season UTSA TENNIS

Photo courtesy of UTSA Athletics

Photo courtesy of UTSA Athletics

Photo courtesy of UTSA AthleticsJunior Diogo Casa (left) and senior Yannick Junger (right) congratulate eachother after one of their many double matches. Both are international students; Casa hails from Brazil while Junger is a native of Germany.

Tomas Stillman (pictured) goes for the ball during his singles match in the NCAA tournament. Stillman, a native of Harlingen, Texas, was an immedi-ate impact for the Roadrunners after transfering. He picked up C-USA Newcomer of the Year honors for the work in his junior campaign.

Page 10: The Paisano Volume 51 Issue 14

10 ADVERTISEMENTSummer 2015

your journey

UTSA Bookstore has everything you need from orientation to graduation

TACKLE YOUR COURSELOAD

YOUR TEXTBOOKS, YOUR CHOICE.

PRINT or DIGITAL

NEW or USED

BUY or RENT

TACKLE COLLEGE LIFE

YOUR STYLE, YOUR CHOICE.

LANYARD or KEYCHAIN

PEN or PENCIL

HOODIE or T SHIRT

University Centerutsa-shop.com | /UTSABookstore

@UTSA_Bookstore