mandy lambright chief Photographer

Many flocked to Abilene Speedway for the 2nd annual Outlaws and Legends Music Festival Saturday. Roger Creager was one of several headlining acts at the event this weekend.

inside

Page 5 page 6 page 3

Psychology professor published his second book

Youthful dreams of high profile occupations prove unrealistic

Paramount Theatre to show documentaries Thursday evening

Abilene Christian University

Sportspage 8

features opinion news

acuoptimist.com

Watch this week’s JMC Network Newscast

video

vol. 100, no. 42 wednesday, march 7, 2012 1 SECTION, 8 PAGES

Broken streakMen’s tennis loses

eight matches at LSC

The provost at Pepperdine University and an associ-ate dean at New Mexico State University have been named finalists for the po-sition of provost. No inter-nal candidates were asked for a final interview.

Dr. Darryl Tippens, pro-

vost at Pepperdine, and Dr. Robert Rhodes, associ-ate dean for students and programs at New Mexico State will visit campus this month. Tippens be on cam-pus this Thursday and Fri-day, and Rhodes will visit the week after spring break.

Dr. Stephen Johnson, dean of the Honors College and chair of the provost search committee, said the

candidates’ interviews will be one of the committee’s final steps in the search for the university’s next chief academic officer.

Johnson said Tippens and Rhodes proved in the initial interviews, conduct-ed through video conver-sations, they were the best candidates for the position.

“We feel like they both possess excellent leader-ship qualities,” he said. “We think they would be a very good fit for ACU and the po-sition of provost.”

Both candidates bring different strengths to the table. Before working at Pepperdine, Tippens taught

English literature at ACU. Johnson said Tippens’ ex-perience as provost at an-other university is valuable and would apply at ACU.

Tippens, who is in his mid-60s, has served as pro-vost at Pepperdine for more than a decade. He also served as chair of the divi-sion of language and litera-

ture at Oklahoma Christian University. He earned mas-ters and doctorate degrees in English literature from Louisiana State University.

“I think he’s demon-strated excellent leadership as provost of that institu-tion and commands a lot of respect and credibility be-cause of the years of expe-

rience and work he’s done there,” Johnson said.

If he were to accept the position, Tippens likely would face a pay cut. The annual salary paid to ACU’s most recent provost was less than half that earned by Tip-pens at Pepperdine in 2010.

Johnson said while Rho-des hasn’t served as a univer-sity provost, his knowledge of and experience in diversi-ty intrigues the committee. Rhodes, 43, earned a Ph.D. in school psychology from the University of Northern Colorado and a bachelor’s degree in psychology from

Mark smithmanaging editor

The Department of Agri-cultural and Environmen-tal Sciences will move from Zona Luce to the Hardin Administration Building after the Fall 2012 semes-ter. The School of Nursing will move into Zona Luce before Fall 2013.

Dr. Greg Straughn, in-terim provost, outlined the location changes in a faculty meeting Monday. Other changes discussed include the merging of the English department with the Department of Foreign Languages, and the Depart-ment of Sociology and Fam-ily Studies will be split up among different colleges.

Straughn said in an email to faculty after the meeting that the changes would help the university to be more efficient.

“This realignment and maximization of our avail-able space helps us become better stewards of our re-sources,” Straughn said.

The Department of Ag-riculture and Environmen-tal Sciences will move to the southwest wing of the Administration Building during the winter break before the Fall 2013 semes-ter. New labs will be built in southwest wing to fulfill their needs.

The new School of Nursing will be housed in the Zona Luce Building.

Dr. Ed Brokaw, chair of the Department of Ag-

riculture and Environ-mental Sciences, said he’d rather not have to relocate the department, but the relocations are in the best interest of the university.

“From the university’s perspective, Zona Luce was the best option for the School of Nursing,” Brokaw said. “There’s no doubt we wish we were staying. We weren’t look-ing for a move.”

Brokaw said the pos-sibility of the move had been talked about for sev-eral months but he wasn’t sure that it would happen until about a week ago.

Dr. Nancy Kehl, head of the School of Nursing, said the move will equip the School of Nursing with good space and potential.

“Zona Luce is an excel-lent space for the school,” Kehl said. “It will provide excellent space for the simulation lab as well as classrooms and faculty offices.”

Kehl said she also un-derstood the move will be beneficial to the univer-sity’s efficiency.

“I think the administra-tion decided it was good for the whole system and the most cost-effective place to put the School of Nursing,” Kehl said. “I know they will be giving new space for the Ag de-partment in the Adminis-tration building.”

The Department of Foreign Languages and English department will merge this summer to be-

come to the Department of Language and Litera-ture, which will be housed in Chambers Hall.

The Department of So-ciology and Family Studies will be dispersed among different departments and schools. Sociology will move to the School of Social Work in the College of Edu-cation and Human Servic-es, the Family Studies will be go to the Department of Marriage and Family Ther-

apy in the College of Biblical Studies and the program in Criminal Justice will move into the Department of Po-litical Science.

Straughn said he knows the changes will affect several departments but he is optimistic the chang-es won’t hinder depart-ments’ growth.

“My hope is that every department moving loca-tions will be able to contin-ue to grow and flourish in its new location,” Straughn said. “I am committed to supporting the depart-ments throughout this move and into the future in any way that I can.”

university

university

New nursing school to replace Ag in Zona Luce

Final provost candidates to visit campus

mark smithmanaging editor

contact smith atmds10a@acu.edu

dr. ed brokawchair of the deparment of agricul-

ture and environmental sciences

There’s no doubt we wish we were staying. We

weren’t looking for a move.”“

Provost Search Committee to interview final two

contenders during March

see provost page 4

dr. stephen johnsondean of the honors college

Both candidates have valuable experience and proven leadership that would bring a new

perspective to campus.”“

07

39 44

08 09 10Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

All day - Broom Colloquium 11 a.m. Small group chapels

Al day - Deadline to sign up for intramural soccer. 11 a.m. Come to the Quiet @ Moody

All day - Indoor Track NCAA Championship @ Manakato

11 a.m. Praise day @ Moody

5 p.m. ACU Softball vs. TWU @ ACU

10 a.m. ACU Tennis vs. St. Edwards @ ACU

Police Log

Chapel checkup

@acuoptimist

The Optimist

optimist@acu.edu

wednesday 03.07.12 2

Mar. 07

1 p.m. The Texas State Techni-cal College will present its fifth annual health fair at 650 E. Highway 80. Health checks and a blood drive will be avail-able and information will be provided on drug and alcohol abuse prevention.

Mar. 08

11:45 a.m. The KACU 25th Anniversary Luncheon will take place at the Civic Center to honor prominent mem-bers of the community who helped bring public radio to West Texas. Tickets are $60.

5 p.m. ArtWalk will take place in downtown Abilene. Admission is free.

Mar. 09

8 a.m. The 54th Annual Sweetwater Rattlesnake Round-up will take place at the Nolan County Coli-seum. Admission is $7 for adults and $4 for children.

Mar. 10

6 p.m. The Abilene Roller Der-by Dames play the San Angelo Soul Sisters at the Civic Cen-ter. Tickets are $10 in advance and $12 at the door.

7:30 p.m. The Paramount is showing the classic movie, The Alamo. Tickets are $6 for adults and $5 for students, seniors, military and children.

Announcements

The Agriculture and Environmental Sciences department is conducting the Anabel Reid Run for Water on March 23-24. It will be a 24 hour fundraiser on the ACU Track. For more informa-tion, contact the A&E department at 674-2401 or Many Scudder at scud-derm@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 application at the Brown Library, first floor. Application deadline is March 16.

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 Student-Athelete Advisory Committee is hosting the 2nd Annual Run for Wishes on May 5 from 8:00 to 9:30 a.m. Participants, area Make-A-Wish kids and families and volunteers will run together to help raise money for children with life-threatening conditions. Regis-tration costs $15.

Registration for the National Women in Ministry Conference for the Churches of Christ begins on March 15. The confer-ence’s theme will be Partnering for Good and will take place on June 29 through July 1 in the Kansas City area. For more informa-tion visit www.womenministrycc.com.

ACU is participating in Recycle Mania in order to become an environmen-tal friendly campus. Cans, paper, plastic and cardboard will be collected in new dumpsters located in front of the Teague building until Mar. 31.

The Women for ACU is currently ac-cepting scholarship applications for the 2012-2013 school year. Scholar-ships up to $2,000 per semester will be awarded. Deadline for applications and reference letters is March 23. Both men and women who are sophomore and junior standings and maintain a 3.0 GPA minimum are eligible. Visit www.acu.edu/wacu for more information.

Spots are available for a Spring Break Campaign to Denver, Colorado. They will be partnering with the organization Dry Bones to work with homeless teen-agers. Drivers 21 years or older are es-pecially needed. Contact ceh08@acu.edu for more information.

Beginning Fall 2012, the Department of Art and Design is now offering a Minor in Interior Design. For more informa-tion call 325-674-2085 ext. 2087.

Register by March 16 for an early- bird discount to IMPACT 2012: Christian Leadership for the Global Marketplace. This one day leadership development conference will take place on April 12 in Arlington. Online registration is available at www.acu.edu.

The Study Abroad Office is accepting applications for all study abroad pro-grams. Several departments will be tak-ing students to locations around the world this summer. English, Psychol-ogy, Art and Design, COBA, Commu-nication, Music, Bible and Pre-Health majors are encouraged to apply. Pro-grams are also open to non-majors. For more information, email the Study Abroad Office at study_abroad@acu.edu, call 325-674-2754, visit www.acu.edu/studyabroad or go to the Study Abroad Office in Room 124 in the Har-din Administration Building.

Volunteer Opp0rtunities

Volunteers are needed for KACU’s 25th Anniversary Celebration Luncheon on Thursday at the Abilene Civic Center. Help is needed from 8 to 9:30 a.m. with set up, table decorations and table seating. Prior to the luncheon help is needed to direct guests as they arrive. Contact Myra Dean at 325-674-2441 or e-mail myra.dean@acu.edu.

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/

Around Abilene

wednesday 03.07.123 campus news

brittany williamsstaff photographer

Students perform in Edwards concert series

The lobby of Edwards Hall was filled with the sounds of acoustic guitars and the voices of three students Friday. Gabe Guerra, Erin Daughtery, and Spencer Goudeau displayed their musical talents as a part of a concert series held in Ed-wards Hall.

“I thought it would be a good way to bring people together on a Friday night,” said Jordan Bunch, resi-dence director for Edwards. “It’s for people who didn’t want to spend money on going to the movies.”

Bunch formed the Ed-wards concert series, in its second semester, after seeing Monk’s packed with ACU students.

“Every student needs to have their voice heard; we’ve provided a safe and

creative environment to do that,” Bunch said.

Bunch thought installing a stage in Edwards would make it more convenient for students to have a con-cert and sell their CDs and have a venue to express their talents.

“We wanted to do some-thing different,” Bunch said. “Something that would give people more options.”

Guerra, a freshman psy-chology major from Ed-inburg, said performing allows him to evolve as a musician.

“Every time I get a chance to perform, I get a chance to grow,” Guerra said. “It’s a stretching experience.”

Guerra covered songs from Coldplay, The Shins, The Avett Brothers, Miike Snow and Ray LaMontagne in his set Friday night.

“I feel like this year has been a chance to figure out what I like in music,”

Guerra said.Guerra’s mother en-

rolled him in piano lessons when he was seven and guitar and voice lessons when he was 12. Although, he credits his uncle for in-fluencing him into music and helping him find his calling.

“What really helped me was I let myself love it,” Guerra said. “Let yourself get passionate about it.”

Later this month, E5 Crew and M.A.Double are scheduled to perform as a part of the series.

To find out about other upcoming concerts and events in Edwards Hall, visit their Facebook page at facebook.com/EdwardsHall or follow them on twitter, @ACU_Edwards.

campus

contact williams atbnw11a@acu.edu

Soccer tournament benefits mission trip

Students from across cam-pus participated in a soc-cer tournament last week-end to benefit Mission Lazarus. The event was conducted as an attempt to help families in poverty-ravaged Honduras, where soccer is a part of the chil-dren’s culture.

“Soccer is what kids love in Honduras,” said Sarah Boleslawski, senior com-munications major from Spring.

Over spring break, 21 ACU students will travel to Honduras to lend a hand to the many families living

there. The students have had to raise their own mon-ey to go on the mission trip, and money they receive for the tournament help them with their project.

The country recently ex-perienced 96 days of flood-ing, damaging many of the families’ homes. Students participating in Mission Lazarus will be rebuilding the destroyed homes. The funds will help those on the trip provide supplies such as building materials, food, clothes and medicine for the refugees.

“It was a really good ex-perience and it was for a good cause,” Boleslawski said. “Those who partici-pated seemed to really en-

joy it.”With more than 60 peo-

ple playing in the tourna-ment, at least $400 was raised. Individuals contrib-uting to the event paid $7 and each team donated a soccer ball.

The tournament started at 5 p.m. Friday and the fi-nal game ended Saturday around 11 a.m. Men’s social club Gamma Sigma Phi won the men’s tournament. The women’s social club GATA captured the women’s title.

“You get a really good feel of how the community is in Honduras with the soccer tournament,” said Shayla Herndon, junior English major from Troy. “The kids play soccer every

day and they don’t have the best equipment. By sending soccer balls it will be a huge blessing to the kids and to the community.”

Herndon, who has trav-elled to Honduras with Mission Lazarus, hopes the tournament becomes an tradition, allowing ACU stu-dents to help those in need in a practical and fun way.

“I hope they continue to do the soccer tournament in the future,” Herndon said.

More information about Mission Lazarus can be found online at www.mis-sionlazarus.org.

missions

Brookelee gallestudent reporter

contact galle atblg09c@acu.edu

BSA marks history production success

The Black Students’ Asso-ciation conducted its 16th Black History Production, titled “A Walk through Time,” Saturday.

This production con-tinued the tradition of celebrating 500 years of African-American his-tory through storytelling, poetry, music and dance. Featuring ACU students, “A Walk through Time” showcased a diverse num-ber of performances, each paying tribute to a signifi-cant movement of black history.

Back from a three-year hiatus, “A Walk through Time” featured a powerful montage of history, poetry, music and dance in an en-ergetic show promoting Black history and its im-pact on American Society and the ACU community.

Melodie Atchison, freshman nursing major from Albuquerque, N.M., participated in the pro-duction as a dancer and also helped backstage. She believes shows like this are important and en-courages other students to take part.

“Events like these allow the opportunity to learn more about where they come from,” Atchison said.

With this year marking the 50-year anniversary since the enrollment of the first black students at ACU, the show marked a signifi-cant reminder of the prog-ress in cultural enrichment and the work still needing to be done.

Though preparation for the production was time consuming, Atchison found it worth the effort and amount of work for the enjoyable experience.

“I loved working with the amazing cast and

crew of the show,” Atchin-son said. “I had reserva-tions about the time com-mitment and the stress involved, but God worked everything out.”

Byron Martin, BHP di-rector, said this year’s show was significant because it’s the first time most current undergrad students have seen a production about black history.

“This year’s production was different because the students involved got to ex-perience it through new and fresh eyes,” Martin said.

Martin thanked every-one who supported the production on campus.

“We especially want to give a shout out to Resi-dence Life who supported us extremely heavily,” Martin said.

diversity

staff report

contact the optimist atoptimist@acu.edu

mandy lambrighT chief Photographer

Chip Moore, junior biology major from Abilene, and Cory Nickodam, sophomore information systems major from Trophy Club, head off against each other during the Mission Lazarus soccer tournament.

destiny hagood Staff Photographer

Students perform in the Black History Production Saturday in Cullen Auditorium.

wednesday 03.07.12 4news

Student IDs take on new look, priced half-off this week only

ACU is taking another step to allow students to create and customize their per-sonal experience at ACU through the introduction of three customized student ID designs.

The idea for the new de-sign came from multiple sources including, students, surveys, University Market-ing and The Depot. Each group observed that the background image on the current ID card appeared washed out, so even when students received a new card, it looked faded.

After receiving feedback from students and con-ducting surveys, the Depot saw that students valued personalization and choice. From the information gath-ered, it was clear students wanted to select the design on their ID card, rather than automatically be given one, said Daren Curry, director of student administrative services.

“ACU values student feedback,” said Curry. “Many of the enhance-ments in services, programs and even facilities are due to feedback the university receives from students.”

Curry said the current administration is focused on improving the student experience, based on stu-dent feedback and desires. The creation of the Student Recreation and Wellness Center, the increased flex-ibility of meal plans and the addition of new degree

plans such as worship min-istry and engineering are several examples he gave.

Students will be given the option of three ID designs to choose from. Two op-tions feature photographs of the Onstead-Packer Bib-lical Studies Building and the third is an image of Ja-cob’s Dream.

“It’s great to give stu-dents h\ rather than giving them one standard option,” said Brandon Monoroe, De-pot student service special-ist. “The new IDs just make it even more of a personal-ized experience. You have different options in choos-ing a meal plan that fits your lifestyle, and you now you can also choose your preferred ID.”

The new student IDs will be half off this week, from March 5-10. In addition to IDs, students can also com-plete academic forms and request transcripts at the Depot.

More information about student IDs and other cam-pus services available in the Depot can be found by vis-iting their website at www.acu.edu/campusoffices/thedepot/.

campus

sarah fathereestudent reporter

contact fatheree atsjf09a@acu.edu

elizabeth weissstudent reporter

Ambler sandwich shop replaces Free Kick

As you walk into the bright yellow building on Ambler Avenue, prepare yourself for one of Abilene’s newest res-taurants: Walker’s Crossing. A native of the Big Country, Tina Walker and her daugh-ter, Courtney, are the dy-namic duo behind Abilene’s newest gourmet sandwich shop.

The shop, which opened on Dec. 26, is located at 542 E. Ambler Ave., in the for-mer Free Kick Soccer loca-tion.

Family is important here, Walker said. Most menu items are inspired

by or actual recipes of Tina Walker’s grandmother. Even the name Walker’s Crossing comes from a homestead that Walker’s grandparents had in Waco.

Walker served as a wait-ress for various restaurant and truck stops such as the Beehive and The Loft for 25 years before going back to school to own her own res-taurant, a longtime dream

of hers.“When you don’t have

someone looking over your shoulder, the job is fun,” Walker said.

Menu options include salads, soups, sandwiches, wraps, and potpies, which happen to be a favorite among the male crowd, Walker said. There are also plenty of options for vege-tarians. Everything is made from scratch and uses fresh ingredients. A small sand-wich with a side of chips is $3.75 and a large pasta with a side of toasted baguettes is only $5.95.

“We serve a variety of healthy and hearty lunch selections,” she said. “I grew up growing my own veg-

etables, so it was important that I bring that into my res-taurant.”

For customers with a sweet tooth, desserts are all made in-house and you can pick up a slice of cheese-cake or a triple-chocolate brownie for only $3.

Walker’s Crossing is open Monday – Saturday from 11 a.m.-2 p.m. to allow Walker, a single mother, to spend time with her four children on evenings and weekends. They are also open by reser-vations for groups such as Bible studies in the morn-ings or afternoons and are

also available to cater for events.

local

carole-marie wiserstudent reporter

contact wiser atcxw08a@acu.edu

Provost: Candidates to visit campusOklahoma Christian Univer-sity. He has served as chair and professor in New Mexi-co State’s school psychology department and worked as a professional school psychol-

ogist before that.“Dr. Rhodes does have

administration experience at New Mexico State, and he’s worked in a multicultur-al environment,” he said. “I think his work with diverse populations built bridges

between different cultures and backgrounds. One of his strengths is he has a good read on the state of higher educa-tion across the landscape.”

Johnson said Rhodes’ work at a university without a Christian background does have its advantages along with some disadvantages.

“Dr. Rhodes brings the perspective of someone from a research institution,” John-son said. “Both candidates possess different strengths, but they’re both excellent leaders with a vision for higher education and for what Christian higher edu-cation can be. We’re excited to learn more about each of them because ultimately this is the next step in discerning who would be the best fit for the university.”

The committee will meet March 24, a few days after Rhodes’ visit to campus, to begin the evaluation pro-cess. It should take about two weeks, Johnson said.

“It may be the first week in April when we should be able to come to a consensus about our recommenda-tion to the president,” he said. “Dr. Schubert will act on our recommendation in his best judgment, but there will be steps along the way so it may be a while be-fore there’s any public an-nouncement made.”

Dr. Greg Straughn, inter-im provost, said he thinks the candidates are both qualified for the position of provost.

“Both candidates have valuable experience and proven leadership that would bring a new perspective to campus,” Straughn said. “I think that would be helpful.”

For more information on the candidates, their visit itineraries or the search committee, visit www.blogs.acu.edu/provostsearch.

university

contact weiss atemw09b@acu.edu

matthew sewell Staff Photographer

Megan Goodsen, junior communication sciences and disorders major from Crandall, participates in a rifle shoot as part of the Miss Frontier Texas! pageant events.

brandon monroedepot student

service specialist

It’s great to give students options rather than

giving them one standard option.”“

Tina walkerowner of walker’s

crossing

I grew up growing my own vegetables, so it was

important that I bring that into my restaurant.”“

leslie lewis Staff Photographer

Walker’s Crossing, a sandwhich & deli shop, opened in December on Ambler Avenue a short distance from campus.

Classified

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VERY NICE & VERY LARGE HOMEAlso 1 bedroom apartmentBoth ½ block from campusAvailable June 1, 2012 -- May 31, 2013Call 672-9633 or 370-5122

Paramount to screen Texas films

The Paramount Theatre will be showing two films about barbecue and breweries on behalf of the Texas Inde-pendent Film Network on Thursday at 7:30 p.m.

The first film is entitled “BBQ: A Texas Love Story” and is a 45-minute docu-mentary about barbecue joints across Texas. It is nar-rated Ann Richards, former Texas governor.

“The second film is ‘Something’s Brewing in Shiner,’ which tells the reac-tions of residents of Shiner, Texas when Shiner Bock

beer created a new flavor,” said Barry Smoot, theatre artistic director of the Para-mount Theatre.

“BBQ: A Texas Love Story” received an Emmy Award Nomination for Best Cultural Documentary. It also won the Farmington Funny Film Festival Au-dience Award and a Telly Award. You can pick up a DVD today at many video stores or order the DVD online.

The Texas Independent Film Network is a program of the Austin Film Society. The network specializes in showing films made by Texas filmmakers and pro-moting them throughout

the state. The Paramount has been one of their stops for the past two years.

The Paramount has been connected with the network for about a year now and shows a film once a month during the art walk down-town. Sometimes the film-makers will even make ap-pearances when their films are showing.

“If you are a college stu-dent that is interested in barbecue or beer, then this event is for you,” said Betty Hukill, executive director of the Paramount Theatre. “We still have tickets left and it’s worth it just to come to the Paramount.”

Tickets are available to

purchase online at www.paramount-abilene.org, at the Paramount in person or at the door. Prices are $6 for adults and $5 for students, children, military and se-nior citizens.

theater

ed kerestlydirector of student

financial services

We still have tickets left and it’s worth it

just to come out to the Paramount.”“

contact smith atmds10a@acu.edu

continued from page 1

wednesday 03.07.125 featureS

r. Richard Beck, chair of the Department of Psychology and professor of psychology, recently released his second book called The Authenticity of Faith: The Varieties and Illusions of Religious Experience.

The book challenges a statement made by Sigmund Freud in the book The Future of an Illu-sion where Freud said religion was just a form of wish-ful thinking and a way for people to escape from what is terrifying about the world. Beck said, as far as he knows, this is the first empirical attempt to put Freud to the test on this claim.

“I think I’ve been wrestling with this question since college – for 25 years,” Beck said. “And it culminated in doing research and studying. The book is my response to Freud’s argument using the research that I’ve con-ducted here over the past two years.”

Beck said he isn’t claiming that Freud is complete-ly wrong, but suggests that Freud is too aggressive in saying wishful thinking is the only motivation behind coming to faith.

“The idea that religion is a form of wishful thinking, is still one of the most widely used arguments among atheists to describe religion,” Beck said. “So not only is it a very old argument but it’s also very contemporary. It’s also really hard to rebut it because it’s calling your unconscious motivations into question.”

This argument has been around since 1927, Beck said, and there was no really good way to assess it before now.

“Atheists could assert the argument and religious leaders can deny it but that kind of left it at a standstill,” Beck said. “So what I think is ground-breaking about the book is that it’s getting out of that counter point and saying ‘What’s the scientific reasoning behind it?”

Beck emphasized the need to push back on critiques of faith while also being open to receiving and consid-ering the criticism. That is where the title of the book came from, it represents an authentic faith that has been challenged and criticized.

“We have to be critical of a person like Freud or any other critic of religion, but we also have to be willing to open ourselves up to criticism and that’s uncomfort-able,” Beck said. “Because it’s not like he’s completely wrong, there are aspects to faith that are shallow and superficial.”

Many of Beck’s other writings have also influenced the field of psychology. He published a book last year

called Unclean and has contributed several journals to the psychology community. He is an experimental psychologist who keeps a daily blog, experimentalthe-ology.blogspot.com, about his findings and thoughts. He said he believes he has a third book in him that may come together in this next year.

Beck has managed to find a balance in his schedule to fit in his teaching, writing and researching. He said, when writing the book, he set aside a block of time ev-ery morning to sit in the back of his house with his dog and write.

“I thanked my dog in my book, Bandit, for keep-ing me company,” Beck said. “It’s good to have a dog around when you’re writing about existentialism.”

Aside from being fascinated with his discipline in gen-eral, Beck said he loves teaching psychology because he really likes explaining complex things in a way that makes people understand. He said he enjoys the challenge and it never gets old to him.

“If I weren’t a professor, I’d be a disease epidemiologist,” Beck said. “I always thought it would be fun to fly around chasing down dangerous viruses; it’d be exciting.”

Beck’s other runner-up job choices include a coffee shop or bookstore owner, a truck driver or a philosoph-ical garbage man. Reflecting back on the jobs he had in college, he said he has fantasized about being a blue collar person who doubles as a philosopher.

“There’s something I enjoyed about infusing those workplaces with that kind of conversation and discus-sion,” Beck said. “Because people are very philosophi-cal but they may not have the kind of conversation that carry those things very far.”

As a teacher, Beck fills his classes with energy and humor. Tina Griego, senior social work major from Austin, said that on the second day of his Intro to Psy-chology class last fall Beck told the class he wanted to play a game with his students using NERF guns as a way to keep the class awake and alert.

“It was just an idea that I shared with the students,” Beck said. “I didn’t think we’d actually do it.”

Griego brought two NERF guns to the next class, leaving one in a box on the desk in front of the class for him with a note that said, “Let the games begin.” As soon as he opened the box, she shot and hit him in the forehead and, after recovering, Griego said he went to the board and wrote “Students: 3, Dr. Beck: 0”

“He was just real fun about it,” Griego said. “And he’s just a good guy in general. I had some issues with tu-ition this semester and I was emailing professors for advice and he was one of the professors I emailed, I felt like I could talk to him about it and he got back to me the next day. He cares about his students and I think that’s a cool thing about him, and he likes to have fun.”

Griego said she could see Beck being a comedian, or something where he gets to talk a lot, because he does like to talk a lot.

“He’s really passionate about teaching, and very knowledgeable,” Griego said. “He makes you really excited about psychology even if you don’t care that much about it.”

Despite promising careers as a comedian and library owner, Beck seems to be right where he needs to be, whether in front of a class or sharing intellect through the keys of his computer.

Copies of The Authenticity of Faith are available through the ACU Press.

Dr. Richard Beck releases new book

Photo courtesy of amazon

The cover of Beck’s book features Sigmund Freud (left) and WIlliam James (right).

D

Story by Samantha Sutherlandsns08a@acu.edu

A mAn of mAny TALENTS

brittany williams staff photographer

Dr. Richard Beck, chair of the Department of Psychology, takes a shot at a Freud bobble head. Beck said if he didn’t teach, he might like to be a philosophical garbage man.

Remember when we were little kids and we all wanted to be superheroes and ballerinas? Here’s why those plans never completely panned out.

Firefighters and po-licemen were the coolest dudes ever. They were the modern, everyday heroes that saved people and ev-eryone loved. They caught thieves, sprayed burning buildings with enormous water hoses and drove through red lights with sirens blasting.

As we matured we re-alized these jobs are ac-tually really dangerous. And while they may be exciting at times, a lot of

the time these occupa-tions are actually kind of boring.

Astronauts? More like astro-NOTS. NASA is be-ing privatized and won’t be making any more launches.

A lot of little kids dreamed of being astro-nauts, f lying in space shuttles up to the moon or even Mars and be-ing celebrities whenever they came back to Earth. Now those dreams are shattered. Thanks a lot Obama.

Many little boys dream of the presidency, and lots of ambitious young girls expect to be the first

female president of the United States.

Most of them will get older though and realize that being president is actually really hard and no one is ever pleased with your work. You have to wait about 200 years before the country looks back at your time favor-ably, but you’ll be dead by then.

Possibly the most com-mon dream jobs were concerned with athletics. Girls wanted to be bal-lerinas and boys wanted to be quarterbacks for the Super Bowl winning team.

The problem lies in the

child’s prolonged athletic ability, or lack thereof. Flexibility, energy and en-durance are usually high in children but deplete as the child gets older. By high school the athletes are running track and playing basketball and everyone else finds their own, un-athletic niche. Then a small, small per-centage of athletes and dancers to go on to live their dreams as ballet performers and World Series winners while the wannabe athletes play intramural soccer and the girls who aspired to be a ballerina turn to a different form of dancing.

The small handful of ath-letes and dancers get old quickly and retire rich at the age of 32. While that may sound like an excel-lent life plan, the physi-cal tolls may turn out to be too much to bear.

One last dream oc-cupation is a ninja, and we can’t find anything wrong with that. We’d to-

tally be ninjas if we knew the right people to get us in. It’s a very exclusive job opportunity.

When I began volunteering with the Mission Church’s college program, I heard stories from the kids I spent time with that blew my mind. Stories that these kids should not have to live out.

While I was taken aback and appalled with the sad circumstances these kids deal with daily, I began to feel bad for feeling bad for them. I did not understand it; why shouldn’t I feel bad for them? They are living in pretty terrible conditions, after all. Still, I could not reconcile the feeling deep within me that told me to

get on their level and have fun with them without the pity party.

Something Jonathan Storment said during his sermon Sunday morning at Highland Church of Christ made me really think about those feelings I had been ignoring, that still, small voice that I had been hear-ing. He mentioned that the danger of churches going into the poor community (or any other rough living situation for that matter) is the attitude ultimately tak-en by the church-goers, as if they are an extraordinary help to everyone around

them. I have to disagree. While I understand that we are contributing when we pass out food to the home-less or mentor kids with a rough home life, it is im-portant to remember that not one person should ever be viewed as our charity case.

When we go out into the world to fulfill God’s min-istry, we are simply shar-ing the generous love that Christ so eagerly shares with us minute by minute. We need to stop thinking we are more important than we actually are. God is the one to be glorified, not us. We are vessels for Him.

In turn, while these peo-ple may not know God, they will feel His love through us. Ultimately, this is our goal. If we want to actually forge relationships with

people that may live in a very different world than we, belittling them will not get us there. After all, no-body wants to feel like they are worth less than some-one else. So we spend time with them, create friend-ships with them.

We get off our white horses, take off our knight-ly armor and just walk with them.

This is how God’s king-dom work is carried out – through relationships and sharing the love of God. Gathering with those that society may cast aside, and looking at them through child-like eyes. Seeing them how God sees them, without pity but with love.

once upon a hannahhannah barnes

Oh Dear, Christian College Ben miller

the issueKids want to live an exciting life, and it is often evident in their employment goals.

our takeWe realize now, that we aren’t as brave or adventurous as we though we were, and we will probably end up working at a desk.

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.

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editorial

Traveling Europe provides great bonding experience

Christians can’t love from white horses

Youthful dream jobs aren’t so dreamy

There are so many interest-ing places to visit in Europe. The main problem is nar-rowing down which places to visit, because there are too many to see in the span of four months.

When I began planning my Study Abroad time in Oxford, I knew there would be many places I would want to go see, such as London, Rome, and Paris. I had the chance to spend time in London, and I finally got to see Paris, which was something I had been dreaming about for years.

While most of my friends studied Spanish in high school, I spent four years learning French. My friends would always joke that I would never get to use that education, since no one speaks French in Texas. I got the chance to prove them wrong when I traveled to Paris.

It was amazing watch-ing the Eiffel Tower sparkle, gazing at the Mona Lisa in the Louvre, strolling down the Champs-Elysees and walking solemnly through Notre Dame. However, the most amazing part of the trip was being able to com-

municate with the French people. I now have a much better understanding of the French culture. I’ve always heard of the stereotype that French people are proud and stuck up. Although I never believed this stereotype in the first place I can safely say it is not true at all.

I am proud to say I can check “Visit Paris” off my bucket list. As exciting as the big cities have been, one of the best trips we took was a day trip to Bath. I had no idea how diverse and beautiful the city would be. Bath fea-tures amazing architecture from the days of the Roman Empire next to streets of de-signer shops. The streets and walls of the buildings rever-berate with the music of the street performers.

Bath is home to the Ro-man Baths (for which the city is named), Bath Abbey, the Fashion Museum, the Royal Crescent and the Jane Austin Centre. The Roman Baths have been dated back to 76 A.D. It’s one thing to hear about places that old. It’s another thing entirely to be able to see them.

The Bath trip was such a great experience because it provided us with an amaz-ing bonding experience. I especially enjoyed the op-portunity to bond with our professor outside the class-room. After our adventures in Paris and Bath, we are ready for our next journey.

Next stop: Stockholm, Sweden.

column

column

hashtagaCU

contacT COX atMKC09B@acu.edu

Wednesday 03.07.12 6opinion

If there was one thing I could eat for dinner it would be the opposite of the Bean Saturday night dinners #starvationor-poverty #ACUproblems

@acuproblems

5:46 p.m. Mar. 3

It was amazing watching the Eiffel Tower sparkle,

gazing at the Mona Lisa in the Louvre, strolling down

the Champs-Elysees and walking solemnly through

Norte Dame.”

“

10 hours of sleep on a school night!? I’ll take it!

I’m going to start blaming things on my roommate

My morning is ruined when Einstein’s is out of Vanilla Hazelnut and I have to drink the Neighborhood Blend.

Just got out of my parks &Rec class. Had our lecture in the pool while floating on tubes. #Acu Innovative, Exceptional, Real!

Nothing quite like hearing Pat Benetar from the Rec while trying to focus on kinesiology @overheardACU #turnitdown

@beardsleysm@notreallyConnor

@Toni_Maisano @TyeCampbell03 @ray_courtney@jakebeatdrum

@MeghanMMorgan @holleycraft @emilyalyssasays@mrebekahdillon

@brandonKahla

9:26 p.m. Mar. 61:24 p.m. Mar. 6

8:37 a.m. Mar. 62:58 p.m. Mar. 5 9:24 a.m. Mar. 5

3:03 a.m. Mar. 3

Shot a 50 caliber gun to-day & saddled uP a horse this afternoon. . Miss Frontier TX competition, good times!

contact the optimist atjmcnetwork@acu.edu

3:55 p.m. Mar. 6

1:23 p.m. Mar. 6

11:36 p.m. Mar. 6

9:52 a.m. Feb. 62:23 p.m. Mar. 6

Starting a “Don’t Mess with #ACU” clean-up campaign. I do my part by kicking at least one cat a day.

Every step I take in Abilene today is a gamble for my life. Will I catch flight or will I stay grounded? #windproblems

My right eye twitching is really interfering with try-ing to write my midterm paper. #overit

In class critiques are like car accidents where you want to walk away but can’t because the car is crushing you and you’re about to die.

Having a hard time reading about family resilience and chronic ill-ness...sorry other people in the library lab for crying...

contact BARNES atHAB07a@acu.edu

Culture shockMeLanY COX

wednesday 03.07.127 sports Jumps

ACU takes finale in Whitten Inn Classic

The Wildcat baseball team came away with one vic-tory in the three-day Whitten Inn Classic this past weekend.

Facing three Lone Star Conference opponents, the ‘Cats lost their first two games 6-2 to Eastern New Mexico University and 9-6 to Cameron University. The final game, the team managed to beat Tarleton State University 6-1.

Infielder Rodge Macy said the team did not come together until Sunday.

“There were spots where we definitely strug-gled,” Macy said. “Not all the aspects of the game came together on Friday and Saturday. (This week-end) showed what were capable of when we play as a unit.”

“We have to start finish-ing out the whole game,” Macy said. “Our intensity and energy must stay high the entire time.”

Friday night’s game against ENMU was settled by two errors and a passed ball in the fourth inning. The Greyhounds took the lead for good on the mis-haps, scoring three runs off of ACU starter Aaron Lambrix (1-2).

Daniel Binz started the inning with a one-out double and Sam Hedrick reached on an error by the third baseman, putting runners at the corners. Lambrix loaded the bases when he hit Dillon Downs.

Lambrix had an op-portunity to escape the inning with a 2-0 lead however, when an ENMU player hit a tapper back to the mound, Lambrix’s throw bounced a foot in front of catcher Emmett

Niland and rolled back to the wall. Eastern tied the game on the play and then scored another run on a passed ball making it a 3-2 ballgame.

The Greyhounds gained a four-run advantage in the sixth with three runs against Lambrix and re-liever Brady Rodriguez.

The Wildcats got to the Greyhounds starter Gabri-el Hemmer (1-1) with sin-gle runs in the second and third to take an early 2-0 lead, but the ‘Cat offense was anemic between the third and eighth innings- tabbing only two hits.

Hemmer went for seven innings, allowed two runs on four hits and struck out three.

ACU could not turn its fortune around Saturday night. Cameron topped off a six-run seventh with a three-run home run by Kevin Lum.

The rally began with re-liever Clint Cooper pitch-ing, one out and the game tied at 3-3. After third baseman Duncan Blades thought a double down the left-field line was foul, both he and head coach Britt Bonneau protested the call. It was to no avail however, as the umpires upheld their decision.

CU then took the lead on a double to right. The next two batters both reached base on outfield singles. When Lum came to bat with two men on, he pro-ceeded to launched a shot over the wall in left giving the Aggies a 9-3 lead.

The Wildcats wouldn’t go down without a fight. The team got two runs back in the eighth thanks to Reed Watson’s triple to right. Watson crossed home plate on Aaron Kleekamp’s wild pitch to make it 9-6. The in-

ning ended prematurely though, after Chuck Du-arte flied out to left, leav-ing two runners stranded.

Clay Vanderlaan (3-0) started on the mound for Cameron. He trudged through 7.0 innings, allow-ing only three runs on four hits and striking out six.

Bonneau said the first two games boiled down to several bad defensive plays and inconsistent pitching and hitting.

The Sunday finale of the Whitten Inn Classic featured a three-hit, 8.0 inning pitching perfor-mance by junior Austin Palmer (1-0).

The 6-1 win snapped a two-game losing streak for ACU and ended their season-opening 18-game home stand at 11-7.

“Game three against Tarleton was probably one of the best games I’ve seen here in a long time,”

Bonneau said.Palmer began the game

with three walks through the first two innings. The first walk scored on a double which was the Texans only run and lead of the night.

Palmer was nearly per-fect after that as he retired the first three batters in four of his last five innings.

“Palmer really took a step forward in his matu-rity as a starting pitcher,” Bonneau said.

The Wildcat offense scored four runs in the first two innings of off TSU starter Joseph Aqui-no (0-2).

ACU hits the road for a doubleheader at Delta State University on March 10.

Edward IsaacsSports Editor

contact Isaacs atjei08a@acu.edu

baseball

Dominance: Men’s and women’s teams tackle ranked opponents

contact shake atbxs09a@acu.edu

tennis

came back to sweep the final two sets 6-4, 6-4.

Gesser also came back to beat Brandon Davis after a 3-6 loss with two wins 0f 6-2.

Michael Morris defeat-ed Luke Trautmann 2-6, 6-1, 6-2, and Borja Cortes took on David Ballenger for 6-2, 7-5 win.

“We all showed some toughness on the court,” Hach said. “We had a few three-setters and we were able to win them all.”

However, the men’s tennis team didn’t see the same success this week-end as they travelled to College Station.

The team’s winning streak was broken Satur-

day as the Wildcats lost five straight singles sets, and three doubles.

Hans Hach was the only successful ‘Cat, de-feating Collin Hoover of Texas A&M in a three-set comeback. (4-6, 6-3, 12-10) The win raises Hach’s season record to 9-2.

“Texas A&M is very tough to beat,” Hach said. “They have six very good players that will not let themselves breakdown.”

Despite the overall sweep, Hach’s win for ACU is still a huge ac-complishment on the Di-vision I level. Texas A&M is currently ranked 15th nationally.

“I was able to win at the No. 1 spot, but it took at lot of effort and hard

work,” Hach said. “I had a good day because I re-mained tough and confi-dent. I don’t think I could have won that day if I didn’t play with the right attitude and perspective.”

The Wildcats record falls 8-5 following the weekend.

Both of the tennis teams will return to action this weekend as they take on St. Edwards at home.

“We are all looking for-ward to our matches this weekend,” said Mongin. “It’s always great to play at home.”

from page 8

contact goin atnsg10b@acu.edu

Series: ‘Cats cage Cardinals to open LSCsoftball

Matt Sewell staff Photographer

Senior infielder Megan Brigance takes a cut at the ball at Poly Wells Field.

from page 8

high school

Three ACU seniors lived out a dream as they led Abilene Christian High School to the Texas As-sociation of Private and Parochial Schools 2A state championship over Beren Academy 46-42 Saturday night. Coaches Michael Bacon, Colby Carr, and Nick Smith gave ACHS its first basketball state championship since 1981.

It was a game that al-most didn’t happen.

Robert M. Beren Acad-emy, a Jewish Orthodox school located in Houston, was fully prepared to not participate in the TAPPS

state tournament due to their religious beliefs.

Their semi-final game against Dallas Covenant Academy was scheduled for Friday at 9 p.m. As is Orthodox Jewish custom, no work can be done on the Sabbath, from sun-down 4Friday to sundown Saturday. They had made the decision as a team to not compete and follow their beliefs.

Team parents filed an injuction against TAPPS, and wanting to avoid legal trouble, their game was rescheduled, a game that Beren won 58-46.

“I went online and read all the articles,” Bacon said. “I also got a chance to talk to their coach and

he couldn’t have been any nicer. Their fans were classy. I’m glad they got to compete, that way no one could question who was the true champions.”

That win set a match-up in the championship game against ACHS and head coach Bacon. Bacon and his assistant coaches, Smith and Carr, were in new territory on Saturday.

Not only were Ba-

con and his boys playing a team they had never played before, but the country was against them. After Beren’s feel good tournament story became national news, writers from CNN to ESPN de-scended on Nolan Catho-lic High School for the championship game.

This played perfectly into Bacon’s hands as he had preached a certain theme all year.

“I have told them all year that we should have an ‘us against the world’ mentality,” Bacon said. “It just added canon fod-der to what I have already been saying.”

Bacon’s team controlled the first half but went into

halftime tied at 19. It was time for necessary half-time adjustments.

“We mainly empha-sized closing out harder after helping on their drive, because their whole team could shoot the three,” Carr said.

The second half was a different story as the ACHS Panthers built up a 12 point lead in the fourth quarter. Beren made a game of it though and even had a shot to tie in the final minute, but ACHS hit two late free throws to seal the championship.

The coaches contribut-ed the win to their team’s good defense.

“They shot 11-52 in that championship game,”

Bacon said. “We won re-bounds by 18. They de-pend a lot on the three ball, and I think defen-sively we put a lot of pres-sure on them.”

After the win, Bacon went home and set the trophy down on his office desk. That moment he said, was the culmination of all of his and his team’s hard work.

“Colby and I just went into my office, and we couldn’t stop looking at the trophy,” Bacon said. “We just stood there and thought, ‘We did it.’”

Bacon brings home state championshipaustin gwin

sports director

contact GWIN atAGG07d@acu.edu

michael baconOfficer blonde

Taylor’s sidekick

I have told them all year that we should

have an ‘us against the world’ mentality.”“

off on the right foot. The team rallied for five runs in their final three at-bats to win the first game of the doubleheader 5-2.

ACU trailed 2-0 until the team scored three runs in the fifth to take the lead. Single runs in the sixth and seventh put the nail in the coffin for the Cardinals.

Madison Buckley hit an RBI single, and then Wink-field doubled in two runs to put ACU in front 3-2 in the fifth. Flanary drove in a run with an RBI single in the sixth and Vaughn hit a solo homerun in the seventh.

Crain went the dis-tance, throwing seven in-nings and giving up only five hits.

In the second game of the doubleheader, the Cardinals scored two runs in the third and two in the fourth, proving to be enough against sopho-

more pitcher Peyton Mos-ley. Mosley (4-3) allowed nine hits over six innings.

UIW outfielder Alex Yarbrough had a two-run homerun in the third, which proved to be the big-gest blow for the Wildcats.

Winkfield finished the series with four hits and four RBI’s.

“That series win is crucial for us as a team,” Winkfield said. “They are a very big threat in con-ference, so it’s nice to

start out with two wins against them.”

ACU will be back in action Friday for a three-game series against Texas Woman’s. The teams will play a doubleheader Fri-day starting at 5 p.m., and play one game at 1 p.m. Saturday.

wednesday 03.07.12 8sports

TeamASUTWUTSUACUMSUUIWENMUWTAMUCameronTAMU-K

Div.3-03-03-02-12-11-21-20-30-30-3

Ovrl.17-315-417-714-312-1010-65-1211-68-118-11

Junior Caitlyn Crain has been a force on the mound and a pest for

opposing hitters this season. She is currently 7-0 with a 1.53 ERA which ranks among the LSC and national leaders. In Crain’s most recent outing at Incarnate Word, she retired the first 11 batters and didn’t allow a hit until there were two outs in the sixth. She ended up pitching the entire game (7.0 innings) with two unearned runs.

Softball plays LSC foe Texas Women’s at Poly Wells Field on Friday and Saturday. The series begins at 5 p.m.

The baseball team will travel to Delta State University in Cleveland, Miss for a two-game series on Saturday and Sunday. Both games start at 1 p.m.

Golf will travel to Hawks Creeks Golf Course in Fort Worth for the UST Mamiya Texas Intercollegiate on Sunday and Monday.

softball

standings

briefings

Player Profile

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Junior pitcher Caitlyn Crain was named the Louisville Slugger DII National Pitcher of the Week by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association. She struck out 13 at the Best Western Premier Spring Fling.

Nick Jones, Dennis Bain, Amanda Ouedraogo, Parker Petty, Levance Williams, Karolyn Palmer, Shennae Steele, Ayesha Rumble and Karla Hope have all advanced to the NCAA DII Indoor Championships in Mankato, Minn. The meet will be March 9-10.

Austin Palmer (1-0) was named the Lone Star Conference Co-Pitcher of the Week on Tuesday. On Sunday versus the Texans, Palmer worked through 8.0 innings giving up three hits and striking out five in the Wildcats 6-1 win.

Six of ACU’s spring sports teams are nationally ranked. Men’s and women’s tennis are both sixth and golf is seventh. Men’s track and field is 11th and women’s is 16th. Softball sits at 25th.

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The No. 6 ranked wom-en’s tennis team remains unbeaten in conference, starting the spring season off with a 3-0 record at the Eager Tennis Center.

This weekend the Wild-cats swept No. 20 Tarleton State, Incarnate Word, and forced a 9-0 win over No. 10 Rollins College.

“We had a great week-

end of tennis, No. 3 ranked Julia Mongin said. “We knew we were going to play good teams, so we went out there and gave 100 percent on every point.”

After three matches, the ‘Cats remained unde-feated in doubles. No. 21 Micah Hermsdorf and and Hannah Kelley beat Lisa Loft and Kayli Ragsdale 9-8, maintaining their win streak, and keeping Rollins out of the singles play.

In singles, Mongin was

easily in first place after a 6-0 and 6-1 win over Loft. Micah Hermsdorf defeat-ed Stefania Tkach 6-1, 6-1. Laura Mongin, Brittney Reed, and Kelley also took over the singles competi-tion, continually winning in straight sets.

“We stayed tough and competitive until the end, and it showed up in the final score,” Mongin said. “We have a great team this year. I’m very happy to be a part of ACU tennis. We

have such good teammates and coaches.”

The men’s team got off to a good start in confer-ence as well, taking No. 28 Incarnate Word 7-2.

The Wildcats won two out of three doubles matches. Top ranked duo Hans Hach and Guilherme Gesser beat Aiden DeLeon and Carlos Overa 8-4, No. 3 Nick and Kyle Plum devas-tated Chris Lawson Leory Arias with an 8-1 set.

In singles, six ‘Cats had

success on the court. After winning his first set 6-1, Hach fell 4-6 against Overa. But he was able to come back in the final set 6-4. Hach is now 9-2 in singles.

“Playing at home is a privilege, Hach said. The scoreboard said we beat UIW 7-2, but it was tougher than it looked.”

Plum was also success-ful against Arias. After losing the first set 2-6, he

natalie goinsports editor

‘Cats dominate in LSCtennis

Brittany Williams Staff Photographer

Sophomore Madelyn Walker smacks a backhand against Incarnate Word on Friday at the Eager Tennis Pavilion. The women’s team blanked UIW 9-0, then went on to beat Tarleton State, 8-1 and No. 10 Rollins College, 9-0. The men also defeated UIW, 7-2, but lost to Texas A&M at College Station, 1-6. Both teams will play here on Saturday versus St. Edward’s.

Wildcats take series against UIW

The No. 25 ACU softball team won its first series in Lone Star Conference play Saturday in San Antonio against Incarnate Word.

The Wildcats (14-3, 2-1) won the final game 4-2 Saturday against the Cardinals (10-6, 1-2), and in the process, took thew-hole series 2-1.

Junior ace Caitlyn Crain improved to 7-0 after al-lowing a mere two hits in the 4-2 win Saturday. Crain is among the nation’s best, sporting a 1.53 earned run

average. Crain retired the first 11 batters she faced and did not allow her first hit – an infield single – un-til the sixth inning. She al-lowed a second hit in the seventh, but that runner was left stranded follow-ing two consecutive outs that ended the game.

“Caitlyn is a great pitcher and she threw very well against Incarnate Word,” head coach Bobby Reeves said. “She loves to compete and loves a chal-lenge, and she excelled last weekend.”

The Cardinals’ two runs were unearned in the sixth inning as two

Incarnate Word batters reached on errors. Kim Hanson advanced to sec-ond on an error, and then a two-base throwing error allowed Hanson to score and Ashley Freeman to advance to third base.

Lea Padilla aided the team by scoring Freeman on a sacrifice fly to cen-terfield that cut the score

down to 4-2.The ACU offense got

the ball rolling early, scor-ing its four runs in the first couple of innings.

Junior Sara Vaughn hit a double, scoring Keanna Winkfield from second base for the game’s first run. Vaughn then scored on a wild pitch.

In the second, Winkfield smoked a two-RBI single that scored Sarah Martinez and Courtney Flanary.

“With the help of my coaches they talked to me about the different ad-justments I could make at the plate just simply go-ing back to the basics and

doing the little things,” Winkfield said.

“Those adjustments re-ally helped me and my ap-proach at the plate.”

Winkfield added to an already impressive game with another hit in the fifth, finishing 3 for 4 with a run, stolen base and two RBI’s.

“Keanna is such a ver-satile player,” Reeves said. “She has so many abili-ties that she shows on the field. She had a great series against Incarnate Word.”

The Wildcats began LSC play Friday against the Cardinals and got

bryson shakesports reporter

softball

see series page 7

Bobby Reeveshead coach

acu softball

Caitlyn is a great pitcher, and she threw

very well against Incarnate Word.”“

see Dominance page 7

Club rivalry week brings intensity

The Intramural basketball regular season ended this week with some nail-bit-ting games. Rivalry week brought in huge crowds of students excited to see their peers fight for play-off spots.

In the Men’s Champ Divi-sion, the game to watch was Gamma Sigma Phi vs. Gal-axy. GSP led the whole game and beat Galaxy 48-45, clos-ing out the season in 2nd place with a 4-0-2 record.

“It was big,” said GSP captain Travis Stevens. “This win boosts our con-fidence heading into play-offs because of the rivalry between us.”

Schubert’s Best, Gamma Sigs, Illuminati, The Fel-lowship of the Ring, and Who’s Next will all start the playoffs with a bye.

Galaxy will face the Fightin’ Peacocks to start the first round of the play-offs, while Triple R looks to stay alive when they face the Trojans.

The all freshmen team, Hickory High, looks to

move on to the second round when they play Milk Men to finish out the opening round.

In the Women’s Champ division the highlight game was Ko Jo Kai’s last minute comeback against Sigma Theta Chi to win 33-32. The Kojies’ ability to draw fouls and get to the free throw line kept them in the game and eventually led to a big run to close out the win.

In the other game, LE-GIT defeated Alpha Kai Omega 75-35 to finish the season 4-2.

Kojies will face Alpha Kai Omega in the first round of the playoffs.

The Kaios will be look-ing for their first win of the season and a big up-set to move past the 5-1 Kojies who are favorites to win the championship.

Siggies will play against LEGIT with the winner battling either the Kojies or Alpha Kai for the championship.

“It’s the little details that can really make a differ-ence in a game,” said KJK captain Katie Cupit. “That’s free throws, rebounds and

hustle plays. Doing the little things but playing our game is important. Execu-tion and defense will get us to the championship and think we have a good chance of that.”

Playoffs begin this week and will continue the week after Spring break. Stay up to date with brackets and final scores by visiting www.imleagues.com.

joey hattonspecial contributor

contact hatton atjrh09e@acu.edu

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