REACCREDITATION

Connor Best will run uncontested in the Students’ Association presidential race.

Best, junior political science major from Sacramento, Calif. and chief devel-opment officer and parliamentarian for SA, said even though he doesn’t have an opponent in the election, he would still

campaign and inform students of his goals for next year.

“To be honest, I kind of wish there had been another person running, because it would help with discussion of SA and effec-tiveness of it,” Best said. “But I am excited about four people running for vice presi-dent and the discussion it will bring.”

Best said multiple people running for the vice president spot, would increase

the amount of ideas presented and create better advocacy for the student body.

Candidates for vice president include: n Katherine Handy, sophomore English major from Plano,

The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools accepted ACU’s plan to increase research literacy across campus as a part of the university’s reac-creditation process.

Members of the SACS visited ACU on Monday

through Wednesday to complete the on-site evalu-ation, the last phase of the reaccreditation process. They gave their recommen-dations to Dr. Phil Schubert, president of the university, and a committee of faculty members representing ACU on Wednesday.

SACS will give its of-ficial report at its annual

meeting in December, but Dr. Phyllis Bolin, associate professor of mathematics, said the informal review was encouraging.

“The SACS Onsite Com-mittee was very complimen-tary about their visit to ACU,” Bolin said in an email. “We are thrilled with the results.”

While the SACS re-viewed ACU’s progress over the last 10 years, the university’s greatest chal-lenge was demonstrating its plans for the future, Bolin said. The SACS has recently required colleges and universities to put to-gether a Quality Enhance-ment Plan to meet reac-creditation standards.

Bolin served as the chair of the QEP Development Team. The team produced a plan called “Pursuit,” which centers on increas-ing students’ research lit-eracy. The QEP will use the CORE curriculum to introduce underclassmen to the basics of research,

Optimistthe

Friday, April 8, 2011

acuoptimist.com

1 section, 8 pages

weatherinside

page 5

websitefeatureACU’s last theatre production of the semester, The Pirates of Penzance, will provide energy and laughs.

page 8

sportsWildcat baseball goes for its fourth-straight LSC series win against Eastern New Mexico this weekend at home. 96° 66°

Fri. Sun.Sat.

94° 66° 76° 52°

Pirates of Penzance, page 5

Christianna LewisSenior Reporter

Accrediting board visits campus, approves QEP

Vol. 99, No. 48

Abilene Christian University

see ELECTION page 4

Aspiring entrepreneurs with top mini-business plans were awarded at the Spring-board Ideas Challenge awards dinner Thursday.

Cash and in-kind priz-es were granted to select business ideas under the Student Division, the Community Pre-Revenue Division, the Community Post-Revenue Division, the Most Fundable Award and the Social Entrepre-neurship Award.

The winners were rec-ognized and awarded at the Springboard Ideas Challenge awards dinner, where several businesses featured exhibits. The keynote speaker for the evening was Jessica Jack-ley, co-founder of Kiva, a nonprofit organization that helps struggling en-trepreneurs allocate fund-ing to support their busi-ness ambitions.

Jim Litton, J.D., direc-tor of the Griggs Center for Entrepreneurship & Philanthropy, said he was excited about participa-tion from ACU students this year and that he looks forward to helping those interested in launching their new ventures.

Contest winners to fund ventures

see BUSINESS page 4

ACU students had a chance to break out of the mid-semes-ter doldrums with Post Break Jam, three days of outdoor ac-tivities designed to build com-munity and decrease stress.

The social clubs, Students’ Association and Campus Activities Board worked together to sponsor the event.

Tyler Allen, senior exercise science major from San Antonio, worked on the committee to make PBJ a reality. He said the event was the

creation of some social clubs who saw a need for a campus-wide event after spring break.

“It started with clubs just wanting to work together to unite students, regardless of whether they are in a social club,” Allen said. “We now have this event where we can all get

together and get to know each other.”PBJ began Monday with a concert featuring

four campus bands. Tuesday, students could get free ice cream and watch a movie outside on the wall of the Campus Center. Thursday, a beach bash was held on the campus mall with free food, T-shirts and bounce houses.

Allen said PBJ never would have happened without the cooperation of the social clubs and support from SA.

Christina BurchPage 2 Editor

see QEP page 4

Jammin’ Out

Linda BaileyEditor in Chief

DANIEL GOMEZ // Chief PhotographerEmily Schuster, freshman animal science major from Red Oak, tries to knock down Nick Tatum, sophomore family studies major from Lubbock, at the Post Break Jam Summer Beach Bash on the Campus Mall outside Moody Coliseum on Thursday.

Presidential race left uncontestedSTUDENTS’ ASSOCIATION

SPRINGBOARD

TANNER FREEMAN // Staff Photographer

Connor Best, junior political science major from Sacramento, Calif., and Jared Elk, senior political science major from Savoy, address questions during the weekly SA meeting.

Social Clubs, Students’ Association provide post-break entertainment

New rules for employee endorsements, Page 4

newsThe men of Galaxy will conduct their annual Kirk Goodwin 5K this weekend. All proceeds from the event will go toward Samantha Bahl and her family.

see PBJ page 4

The SACS Onsite Committee was very complimentary about their visit to ACU. We are thrilled with the results.

DR. PHYLLIS BOLIN // chair of the QEP development team‘‘ ’’

Jeff Craig, Managing Editor

Find more photos of the fun by visiting our website or scanning this QR code.

Equine-Assisted Learn-ing Workshop The Uni-versity Counseling Cen-ter is hosting a workshop on dating and marriage. Current students who are either engaged or in a serious relationship are invited to partake in ground activities with horses and learn about the roles, struggles and personalities of intimate relationships. To reserve a spot, contact Steve Eller at steve.eller@acu.edu.

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

Relay 4 Life The Fresh-man Action Council are selling Relay 4 Life shirts in the Campus Center. Shirts are $10 and are available in four colors: pink in support for Breast Cancer, blue for Prostate Cancer, gold for Child-hood Cancer and purple for General Awareness.

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

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

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

announcements

10 Sunday

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

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

Mesa Springs Healthcare Center needs volunteers 8 a.m.-5 p.m. any day of the week to help with fun activities for the residents, including playing in-struments, calling bingo and sitting and talking. All help is appreciated. Contact Laura Reynolds at 692-8080 or lgreynolds@sears-methodist.com.

Dyess Youth Center needs help with a Ping Pong Exhibition from 4-6 p.m. every Friday. Vol-unteers will preside over tournaments and help with an exhibition for the students. Transportation will not be provided, and volunteers cannot have any sexual assault charg-es or charges pending. For more information, contact Sheri Frisby at 696-4797, or email sheri.frisby@dyess.af.mil.

Windcrest Alzheimer’s Care Center needs volunteers to clean out and organize closets any day Sunday-Friday at any time during the day. Con-tact Chris Stephenson to arrange a time at 692-1533 or clstephenson@sears-methodist.com.

Abilene Youth Sports Authority needs volunteers April 16-17 for a basketball tournament they will host at Abilene High School and Cooper High School. Students can help sell tickets and assist in the concession stand 8 a.m.- 9 p.m. Contact Katie Miller at 692-2972 or email khower-ton@abileneysa.org.

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

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

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

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

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

Just People, Inc. Volun-teers are needed to tutor adult GED students. Vol-unteer times are flexible. Contact Justina or Alana at 672-2118 for more infor-mation, or email jthomp-son@justpeopleinc.org.

The Salvation Army Volunteers are needed at the 1726 Butternut St. Salvation Army to sort and price items and help with kitchen or yard work. Volunteers are wel-come any time Monday-Saturday. Contact J.D. Alonzo at 677-1408, or visit www.satruck.com

for more information on the program.

Center for Contempo-rary Arts needs a gal-lery assistant to help with exhibit setup and preparation. The work can be done any time from 9 a.m.-5 p.m., Tuesday-Friday. Call 677-8389 or email info@center-arts.com.

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

Friday, April 08, 2011

calendar & events08 Saturday09 11 Monday

follow us on Twitter: @acuoptimist // become a fan on Facebook: The Optimist

volunteer opportunities

A log of the ACU Police De-partment’s daily activities will be printed on this page of the Optimist. The first Police Log will appear Friday.

2Campus Day

11 a.m. Praise Day in Moody Coliseum

8 a.m. Texas Christian Schools Interscholastic Tournament at various locations across campus

6 p.m. Softball at Texas Woman’s University

7 p.m. Baseball vs. Eastern New Mexico University

7:30 p.m. SHADES show in Cullen Auditorium

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

10 p.m. The Pirates of Penzance talk-back in Fulks Theatre

7:30 a.m. Texas Christian Schools Interscholastic Tournament at various locations across campus

8 a.m. Kirk Goodwin 5K Run starts at the Hardin Administration Building

2 p.m. Baseball vs. Eastern New Mexico University

7:30 p.m. Abilene Adult Chorus Concert at the Williams Performing Arts Center Recital Hall

7:30 p.m. SHADES show in Cullen Auditorium

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

2 p.m. The Roads to Home in the Van Ellis Theatre at Hardin-Simmons University

2 p.m. The Children’s Performing Arts Series presents Pippi Longstocking at the Paramount Theatre

11 a.m. Chapel in Moody Coliseum

54

Chapel

Credited Chapels to date

Checkup19 Credited

Chapels remaining

ACU Police Tip of the WeekAvoid financial scams. If you receive any kind of offer where a subject asks you to cash their check, keep a portion of the cash as your payment and then mail the remainder back to the company, this is likely a scam. Do not cash the check and report this to police.

Police LogEdited for space

Tuesday, March 296:25 p.m. The ACU Po-lice Department was notified of a hit-and-run crash in the 1300 block of Cedar Crest. Officers located the vehicle and identified the driver, an ACU student. Officers issued the student a citation for his involve-ment and for leaving the scene. Wednesday, March 304 p.m. The ACU Police Department received a report of a 20-to-30-year-old man asking for money door-to-door. The subject was report-edly becoming angry and yelling at residents who denied him money. Officers located the suspect, who claimed to be a door-to-door salesman. The suspect did not have a vendor’s permit with the City of Abilene, and officers asked him to leave the area.

Saturday, April 21:15 a.m. The Abilene Police Department as-signed the ACU Police Department to respond to a noise violation in the 700 block of EN 13th Street. Officers issued a warning, and the subject complied.1:20 a.m. The ACU Po-lice Department received a report of a very loud noise violation in the 2100 block of Campus Court. Officers issued a warning, and the subject complied. Sunday, April 311:48 a.m. An ACU ad-ministrator notified the ACU Police Department that someone had stolen a statue from the front of the Education Build-ing and then placed the statue in the GATA Foun-tain. Officers retrieved the statue and notified Physical Resources to return and secure the statue. Report all suspicious ac-tivity to the ACU Police Department at 674-2305.

Weekly StatsMarch 29-April 5

AccidentAdministrative ActivityAlarmAssistBoot/Unboot VehicleBuilding Lock/UnlockCheck BuildingCitation IssuanceCriminal MischiefFingerprinting Service

Noise ViolationOther Parking ViolationPatrol Vehicle: MaintenancePatrol Vehicle: RefuelReport WritingSuspicious ActivityTheftTraffic StopTrainingTresspasser

5444

8

64

1222

16

252

10

34121

DisturbanceFoot PropertyHit and runIndecent exposureInvestigation follow upMonitor facilityMotorist Assist: Jumpstart Motorist Assist: OtherMotorist Assist: Unlock

1122

8

27

1

10

Friday

April 8, 2011 Page 3CAMPUS NEWS

University names Who’s Who top scholars

ACU has nominated 108 of its top students to be listed in the 2011 Who’s Who Among Students in American Univer-sities and Colleges directory. Who’s Who lists top scholars who have demonstrated lead-ership on campuses across the nation and offers scholar-ships for these students.

Students eligible for nomi-nation must meet a minimum grad point average require-

ment, have senior stand-ing with the university, have completed at least 90 hours of coursework and demon-strated leadership ability, said Tina Fleet, administrative as-sistant to the vice president of student life and dean of students and associate vice president of student life.

“ACU sends a list of all eligible seniors to colleges and departments across campus and asks depart-ments to nominate a given number of their students

based on the size of the de-partment,” Fleet said.

The Office of Student Life also sends a copy of eligible students to offices that are directly connected to student life such as Service-Learning and Volunteer Resources, the Center for Christian Service and Leadership, Students’ As-sociation, Leadership Camps and others, Fleet said.

“Students can be dually nominated by their college and another office on cam-pus. Often, nominated stu-

dents stand out in multiple areas,” Fleet said.

;ACU has developed guidelines for its departments and colleges to use when se-lecting students in addition to the national standards, Fleet said. The university asks departments and colleges to nominate students who dem-onstrate scholarship ability, participate in academic and extracurricular activities, demonstrate service and leadership, potential for fu-ture achievement, leadership,

honesty, service, integrity and dependability.

The national list of Who’s Who Among Students in American Universities & Col-leges is published once a year in book format and is avail-able for purchase. Scholar-ships are also available for students on the list.

Bethany Bradshaw, se-nior English major from Henderson, is on the 2011 Who’s Who list.

“Although I do not plan to purchase the book, because

I am a college student with limited resources, it is still an honor to be included,” Brad-shaw said.

In 2010, three scholar-ships were awarded nation-wide. The largest was $5,000 in value and the least was $2,000. The scholarships are awarded at random, not based on merit as the entire list is assumed to demon-strate merit.

Laura GasvodaStaff Reporter

STUDENTS

contact Gasvoda atlag08a@acu.edu

Design students win awards

Three ACU students were honored for their creation in hotel design for the 25th annual Brass Ring design competition for interior designers.

Ashley Ohlhausen, se-nior interior design major from Abilene, received the bronze award for her de-sign, “Mareas Vivas Hotel.” Alex Potess, senior interior design major from Lub-bock, and Lisha Cottrill, junior interior design ma-jor from Cedar Hill, both received honorable men-tions for their work as well.

With more than 1,600 entries, ACU was the only private university that earned awards.

Kitty Wasemiller, profes-sor of art and design, said that students had many cat-egories to choose from en-tering this year, and that any material designed through-out the year was permitted for submission.

“The projects the stu-dents chose to enter in this time were all nonresidential and commercial,” Wase-miller said. “They were fu-turistic hotel designs for 20 years in the future, so that was interesting. The compe-tition simply required that it be a commercial project, so their work was in there competing with hospitals, restaurants and a wide array of other things.”

The background for the revolutionary designs were based off hospitality.

“Our goal was to find technology that would be different than anything we know now,” Cottrill said. “Since it’s set 20 years in the future, I had to imagine what kind of things would be invented by then.”

The biggest obstacle in designing the art, Cottrill said, was trying to create an establishment that met the needs of a futuristic society.

“The most difficult part was trying to imagine what kind of needs people would

have in the future that could be settled with technology,” she said. “For example, a lot of the stuff that I came up with had to do with self-ser-vice and individualization, like walls that would change colors depending on what person was staying in that room for that weekend.”

Wasemiller said the de-sign competition boosts student drive, in both extra-curricular aspects as well as possible careers.

“Any time you have a winning entry, it definitely gives you a level of confi-dence confirming how you are in competition against your peers,” Wasemiller said. “That is always a big plus I will usually see in a student’s drive knowing that they have competed successfully. It makes them more bold and more capable in doing their next assignment to a greater degree just because of that confidence level.”

Marissa FergusonStaff Reporter

STUDENTS

contact Ferguson atmlf10a@acu.edu

Spring musical debutsimproved technology

This spring’s musical com-edy follows a group of mis-fit pirates with a soft spot for orphans who continu-ously loot their buccaneer benefactors.

The Pirates of Penzance, originally written by Gil-bert and Sullivan in 1879, will be performed at Fulks Theatre in the Williams Performing Arts Center on Friday, Saturday and April 14-16 at 7:30 p.m.

Kari Hatfield, assistant professor in the Depart-ment of Theatre, is direct-ing the production.

“It’s a very ridiculous plotline with very fun mu-sic and a lot of comedic elements,” Hatfield said. “We’re using the whole space. Audience members need to be OK with possi-bly having their personal space invaded at times.”

Amy Simpson, admin-istrative coordinator of the Department of Theatre, said the actors will move in and out of the audience throughout the produc-tion. Simpson also said the department is building an entire pirate ship to sit on-stage for the production.

In addition the ship, the production is using a new line of technology that al-lows the music conductor to conduct recorded tracks using a Wii remote.

“Normally, when you’re using recorded music, you’re kind of tied to what they re-cord,” Hatfield said. “The system that we’re using is called Right On Cue Systems. They created these perfor-mance tracks that were con-duct-able and sound like you’re singing with an actual live orchestra.”

Hatfield said she chose this specific production for its capacity to further train

the department’s students in more classical elements of theatre.

“We wanted to do it be-cause it’s really an iconic piece of musical theatre. I wanted it to be a techni-cal challenge for (the stu-dents),” Hatfield said. “It has a huge cast, and that is also a bonus for us. It’s a very fun family show.”

Hatfield said the play has a focus on different types of beauty in life, in-cluding art and poetry.

“We find out that’s why the pirates go into this line anyway; it’s more about the poetry of it than the piracy of it,” Hatfield said. “That’s something that really resonates with us – the importance of beauty and art and how that en-hances quality of life and relationships.”

Bailey GriffithCopy Editor

PERFORMING ARTS

contact Griffith atbng10a@acu.edu

SANDRA AMSTUTZ // Arts editor

Pirates invade the stage during The Pirates of Penzance, showing Friday and Saturday.

nJulianne Hart, junior political science major from Austin, nRebecca Dial, junior po-litical science major from Lexington, SC,nNatalie Fleet, junior manage-ment major from Abilene.

Heath Bracken, sopho-

more marketing major from Salado; and Carson Henley, junior biochemis-try major from Colleyville will run for treasurer.

SA vice president Jared Elk, senior political science major from Savoy, said al-though he thinks other stu-dents on campus could prob-ably challenge Best in the race for president, he thinks Best will pull SA forward.

“If possible, I would like to see someone run just to make sure he stays focused, works hard and stays humble,” Elk said. “But I’ve worked with him for the past year and I, personally, would have a hard time justifying anyone could do a better job.”

Elk said the thinks Best’s visions, desires and teamwork this year will transfer over to next year, along with some plans and goals they didn’t have time to accomplish during this year’s administration.

Best agreed, saying he plans to complete many projects next year that will

be left unfinished at the end of the spring semester.

Campaigning for exec-utive offices began Thurs-day and will run through next week. Candidate de-bates will begin at 8 p.m. on Tuesday and students can receive two Chapel credits for attending.

Elk said students could get involved with the debate early by leaving comments in the form of questions on videos of the candidates at acustudents.com. Also, Elk said students will be able to text and email questions to the candidates during the debate.

The candidates will ad-dress campus at 11 a.m. dur-ing Wednesday’s Chapel and voting will begin at 11:30 a.m. through 5 p.m. Wednes-day through Thursday.

Page 4 April 8, 2011FROM THE FRONT

and then give students a chance to participate in research as they go deeper into their ma-jors, Bolin said.

“There will be oppor-tunities outside of the classroom and in the classroom for students to do research with a faculty member,” Bolin said. “To facilitate that, we’ve helped to set up grants professors can apply for that provides stipends for professors and students to cover their extra work.”

Grants for students and faculty to perform and present research will be available in the fall, Bolin said. Each major is encouraged to develop or revise a cap-stone project students can perform before graduation.

“Pursuit” is designed to allow students to un-derstand and experi-ence how research is preformed in their field of study, Bolin said. The research will allow students to find their unique passions with-in their fields of study and open doors for em-ployment and graduate school, Bolin said.

Students have had positive reactions to the QEP, especially to the grants it provided, said Jeremy Foo, sophomore

political science and public relations major from Kuala Lumpur, Ma-laysia. He was one of sev-eral students Bolin asked to represent the QEP to students at the Campus Center last week.

Many science stu-dents Foo spoke to said they were already in-volved in research, and other students were in programs that enabled them to perform re-search. Foo said he be-lieved “Pursuit” would be most beneficial to freshmen and students who didn’t understand the value of undergrad-uate research.

“I saw this as an op-portunity for students to take ownership of their degree,” Foo said. “Research allows you to become an expert in your field.”

Foo said he believes that the QEP will work together with ACU’s 21st-century vision to enable students to be outstanding world lead-ers. However, to be most effective, both students and professors will have to take the time neces-sary to produce quality research.

“I really hope every-one takes this opportu-nity,” Foo said.

“The process helps par-ticipants move one step closer to making their idea a reality, provides valuable feedback from judges and a chance to win significant cash prizes,” Litton said.

Litton said he encour-ages students with an idea or an interest in entrepre-neurship to compete in next year’s competition.

Joey Hatton, freshman youth and family ministry major from Sugar Land, is a fan of the Springboard Ideas Challenge on Face-book, where he won a res-taurant coupon for “lik-ing” the contest’s page.

“Students who are passionate about their business ideas are able to share them and are given support,” Hatton said. “Whether it’s from professors or other pro-fessionals around them, they are encouraged to continue in their busi-

ness endeavors. I don’t know if any other univer-sity gives students that opportunity.”

Hatton said that he would consider entering the contest if he had a busi-ness idea that he believed could be successful.

“This contest shows that ACU really cares about their students and their future outside of ACU,” Hatton said.

Hatton said that he was excited at the possi-bility of being involved in or hearing about the next big business idea.

“I’m more supportive of the competition know-ing that it’s happening here on the same campus I’m attending,” Hatton said. “Knowing students are already successful-ly thinking and maybe starting businesses here is pretty cool.”

quick factsSpringboard announced winners of the competition in three divisions, and also handed out two individual awards to entrants.

Student Divisionn 1st Place – Scholar Sphere: Asa Kusuma and Tim Johnstonn 2nd Place – iMedical Online: Clayton Selby and Seth Thomasn Honorable Mentions – The Cellular Trap: Tyler Nolan, John Stevens and Derek Zimmerman; Droppage.com: Chas Quisenberry; Super TwinBEAR: David Galaz, Chen Gong and Patrick Yan; and WalkThru: Joshua Archer, Chase Cobern and Justin Durko

Community Pre-Revenue Divisionn 1st Place – Landman IO: Chad Hutchinsn 2nd Place – Knox City Hometown Variety: Sheri Baty, Ezekial Duke, Marla Hawkins and Steve Peppern Honorable Mentions – Carter Eyewear: Dr. Troy Carter and Tyler Lewis; and Cordell’s: Jason Beard and Joy Beard

Community Post-Revenue Divisionn 1st Place – Indivijual Custom Eyewear: Randy Barnettn 2nd Place – Advantage Cubed: Coty Woolfn Honorable Mentions – Enchilada Express: Chris Norton; Urban Male Salon: Lindsey Soria; and Dream Spectrum Design: Charles Caddell and Shawn Altman

Most Fundable Awardn Landman IO: Chad Hutchins

Social Entrepreneurship Awardn Suffer Not the Children: Christina Batten and Kevin Batten

SA adds new regulations to endorsements After years of gray areas in the subject of endorsements, SA Vice President Jared Elk said student employees of the university cannot publicly endorse or disparage a candidate of the SA executive office election.

Elk said the new rule mostly pertains to individuals or groups who have a lot of influence over large blocks of students such as SA officers and Residence Life employees.

All SA officers and ResLife employees were notified of the changes, Elk said and RAs will only be allowed to put signs in lobby areas of dorms with RD permission. The rule also limits SA officers from publicly stating support or opposition of any candidate.

The election committee will enforce the new regulations, and candidates are responsible for informing their supporters of the changes.

Election: Four to run for vice PresidentSTUDENTS’ ASSOCIATION

contact Bailey atljb07a@acu.edu

Continued from page 1

Win: Contest urges innovationSPRINGBOARD

Continued from page 1

contact Burch atclb10b@acu.edu

“It came about because the social clubs worked to create a committee,” Allen said. “Without SA this never would have happened.”

SA Chief Development Officer Connor Best said SA allocated $4,400 to fund the event, which he called an overall great success.

“It’s been a great chance to come out and have a good time with lots of people you may not know,” Best said. “Any-time we can do things like that it’s a good thing. Ideally, this will become an annual tradition.”

Jessica Brown, sopho-more marketing major from Arlington, attended Thursday’s event with the bounce houses. She said she enjoyed the op-portunity to get outside for an afternoon.

“I wish we had stuff like this more often,” Brown said. “It was a great

chance to hang out.”Genise Burnett, soph-

omore speech pathol-ogy major from Long Is-land, N.Y., also attended Thursday’s event. She said she was impressed

at the feeling of com-munity generated by the event. She would also like to see more events like it.

“It was just a very relaxing community

event,” Burnett said. “It’s great to see ACU students together like this.”

QEP: Programto encouragefield research

REACCREDITATION

Continued from page 1

contact Lewis atcll09a@acu.edu

PBJ: SA funds week of eventsCAMPUS

DANIEL GOMEZ // Chief Photographer

Brenna Jefferies, freshman communication major from Bartonville, plays in a bounce house Thursday at the Post Break Jam. Three inflatable games were set up on campus.

Continued from page 1

contact Craig atjrc07d@acu.edu

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ArtsApril 8, 2011 Page 5

Apr. 8

Apr. 8

Apr. 8

Apr. 12

New Releases

Hanna(Focus Features)

Arthur(Warner Bros.)

Your Highness(Universal)

The Paranoids(Oscilloscope)

Abilene Events

FRIDAYAaron Gillespie, Timothy Palmer, & Confession Booth7 p.m.Monks Coffee Shop

IntoNowSocial Net-workingHHHHHIntoNow is

somewhat of a hybrid be-tween Shaazam and IMDB. Simply hold the microphone of the device up to a television and the app will identify what show and episode is playing. IntoNow can identify any epi-sode that has aired in the past five years. Once an episode is indentified the user is provided with links to its IMDB, Netflix and iTunes pages. IntoNow is a free app available for devic-es with at least iOS 4.0.

The Consul2 p.m.Cullen Auditorium

TUESDAY

SHADES show7:30 p.m.Cullen Auditorium

FRIDAY & SATURDAY

App of the Week

Apr. 12Heartless(IFC Films)

Apr. 12Country Strong(Sony Pictures)

IN THEATERS

DVD

MUSIC

Apr. 12Foo FightersWasted Light

Apr. 12White Material(IFC Films)

Apr. 12LowC’mon

Apr. 8Soul Surfer(FiilmDistrict)

Apr. 8

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader(Summit Entertainment)

Apr. 8Born to Be Wild(Warner Bros.)

Apr. 12Bell X1Bloodless Coup

Apr. 12Crystal StiltsIn Love With Oblivion

Apr. 12Brett DennenLoverboy

Apr. 12The FeeliesHere Before

Apr. 12Holy Ghost!Holy Ghost!

Apr. 12AtmosphereThe Family Sign

Apr. 12Meat PuppetsLollipop

The Bright Light Social Hour, Hunters & Gatherers, and Hungry, Mother7:30 p.m.Play Faire Family Fun Center

THURSDAY

ACU Events

Apr. 12Agnes ObelPhilharmonics

Apr. 8

Apr. 8

Ceremony(Magnolia Pictures)

Exodus Fall(Oakhurst Pictures)

Apr. 12Panda BearTomboy

Apr. 12The Pretty RecklessLight Me Up

SATURDAYBee Butler feat. Isaac Wright8 p.m.Monks Coffee Shop

Top left: The actresses playing the daughters of Major-General Stanley look on with concern. Bottom left: Caleb Robinson (center), junior theatre major from Abilene, portrays Major-General Stanley among a group of pirates and daughters during his feature musical number. Right: Andrew Lang, freshman theater major from Abilene, portrays one of the many dynamic pirates in The Pirates of Penzance.

Energetic cast works hard for laughs

On Thursday night, the ACU Department of Theatre pre-miered its final production of the academic year. The Pirates of Penzance, directed by Kari Hatfield, assistant professor of theatre, weaves a tale of tender-hearted pirates, an incompetent police force, a major general, a bustling group of sisters and a young man trying to find his place among them all. The play, written in 1879 by Arthur Sul-livan and W.S. Gilbert, makes use of a very large cast and is filled with constant comedy

and music that will make you want to join the dance num-bers on stage.

Jace Reinhard, freshman theatre major from Green-ville, Ill., holds the role of Frederic, the naive pirate ap-prentice that longs for love and a civilized life. Reinhard fills his performance with charm and remains fresh faced throughout fast-paced musical numbers and a plot that requires him to interact with almost every cast mem-ber. Frederic’s nurse, Ruth, is played by Kelley Barker, ju-nior theatre major from Mes-quite, who really comes alive in the second act.

Providing the play with its most operatic moments is Brynn Smith, sophomore the-ater major from Fort Worth,

who plays Frederic’s beloved, Mabel. Smith beautifully pro-cures the show’s most chal-lenging notes and provides calm moments among the craziness. Mabel’s father is Major-General Stanley and is nobly portrayed by Caleb Robinson, junior theater ma-jor from Abilene. Robinson doesn’t break a sweat when he takes on the iconic and ri-diculously rapid song, “I Am the Very Model of a Modern Major-General.”

In addition to these lead characters are the pirates, Ma-jor-General Stanley’s daugh-ters and policemen that aren’t afraid to fill the theater and interact with the audience. The daughters maintain a balance of fear and flirtation while the policemen create an air of uniformed inepti-tude. Having the most obvi-ous fun on stage are the pi-

rates. These men fill the show with weapons, dancing and acrobatics. While all the cast members work well in the various groups, two stand out because of their excellent co-medic timing. Andrew Lang, freshman theatre major from Abilene, and Brittany Taylor, senior theatre major from Saginaw, never miss an op-portunity to provide a laugh.

Amid this large cast, the character that will constantly grab your attention is the Pi-rate King. Peter Hargrave, ju-nior theatre major from Ama-rillo, performs this role with never-ending energy. In con-trast to Frederic, the Pirate King has no qualms about his profession and relishes be-ing as rakish and audacious as possible. Hargrave’s affec-tion for this character shows as he excitedly milks his ev-ery move for comedic effect. In addition to his abound-ing body language, Hargrave improvises great pieces of dialogue during hectic scenes that are worth paying extra attention to.

Tying together all of these performances are an amazing set of songs. The music of The Pirates of Penzance maintains relevance despite being over 130 years old. Many of these numbers will most likely be recognizable because they continue to be sampled and parodied to this day.

The Pirates of Penzance is a classic that almost should be required viewing for any cultured individual. However, more important than its his-tory, is its ability to provide plenty of laughter. Shows will continue Friday, Saturday and April 14-16 at 7:30 p.m. in Fulks Theater. Tickets are $15 and can purchased at the Wil-liams Performing Arts Center box office or online at www.acu.edu/theatre.

Peter Hargrave, junior theatre major from Amarillo, raucously portrays the Pirate King.Photos by SANDRA AMSTUTZ // Arts Editor

Pirates Aplenty

Sandra AmstutzArts Editor

contact Amstutz atsla07a@acu.edu

Rounding the BasesBy Brandon Tripp

Litigation is now the buzzword in regards to the NFL and the NFLPA’s labor dispute. That is be-cause nei-ther side has been able to work at the ne-gotiating part of ne-gotiations that were taking place a few short weeks ago.

Now most fans have beef with both sides most-ly because they threaten to ruin many a fall season for NFL fans, but DeMaurice Smith has been the most baffling and un-believable nego-tiator ever seen in a labor dispute since most of us have been alive. He has the play-ers convinced that they are indeed hurting for cash, which they are not. In reality if the players had their way, they would be mak-ing more money than the owners. But, I have never known a business where the employee makes more money than the employer. It’s just not a good business idea.

The players are claiming that NFL own-ers are low-balling them on projections for rev-enue over the next four years. Here is the deal: The owners are project-ing those numbers, yes, but as we have seen in the last couple of years those projections are not always met. When those projections are not met the owners have to eat the money they fall short on. So in essence, the players want the NFL to take all the risk without being rewarded.

Smith and the rest of the players have also asked that the top 17

draft prospects, who are normally invited to New York to be at the draft, not attend because how could they possibly want to shake the hand of the man that is keeping them from playing. This is just one more reason that the more this thing drags out, the more we see fans jumping from the play-ers’ side and into the owners’ corner. Thank-fully, at least one of the top prospects, Von Miller of Texas A&M, has already come out and said regardless of the NFLPA, which tech-nically doesn’t exist, he will attend the draft and

will shake the commis-sioners hand.

It’s high time that Smith be shown that just because he is a lawyer, doesn’t mean everything needs to be solved in front of a judge. The more we look at the day the NFLPA decertified the more it becomes clear that Smith had no intention of agree-ing to any terms with the NFL because the NFL came in during the early afternoon and offered the players a deal which, for all intents and purposes, is what they wanted.

Smith shot it down and basically told the NFL to shove off and he wanted this to go down in court.

So until both sides wise up, especially the nonex-istent NFLPA, NFL fans across America and the world will have to prepare to sit down on Sundays and watch bowling on ESPN.

Conscientious ConjectureBy Laura Acuff

On June 6, 1944, many thousands of men thun-dered up heavily fortified beaches in France during the Allies’ O p e r a t i o n Overlord ef-fort to turn the tide of World War II.

While the D-Day In-vasion suc-ceeded, thousands of men lost their lives. Some sank to the depths immediately, cut down as soon as they hit the roaring surf. Oth-ers made it to the beaches only to fall in combat with Axis soldiers.

Perhaps a more harrow-ing fate belonged to those caught in between – the ones whose feet felt the sandy shore before suffer-ing wounds that left them gasping for breath as the rising tide approached, drawing nearer with each heave of the ocean.

Fallen com-rades, wound-ed farther up the beach, watched help-lessly as their brothers in arms drowned in the tide, devoured slowly by the on-coming waves.

I’ve seen death. I’ve watched it snatch children from their parents, friends from their loved ones and would-be survivors from their intending rescuers. But I’ve never faced it.

So I can’t say with any certainty which of the wounded soldiers’ posi-tions was actually the worst, in examination of their situation on that D-Day Invasion. But I do know which soldier I envy least, which fate I would dread most: the wound-ed warrior cut down, lis-tening helplessly as his friends drowned nearby, crying for help he could not administer.

As a goal-oriented indi-vidual, I develop a plan A, B

and C for almost every sce-nario. A former Girl Scout, I’m always prepared.

Any workload seems manageable, no task looms too daunting and no curve ball careens too crazily, as long as one has a plan.

When I began planning for life after ACU, those plans became scarily am-biguous. When people asked where I would go and what I would do after graduation, I wasn’t even sure which continent to tell them.

As a planner, the mul-titude of variables began to tie my insides in a knot of nerves.

An evening with friends finally calmed me down. They reminded me that wherever I went, life could

be good — whatever I did, I could be fulfilled.

And then I remembered the most crucial aspect of any of my plans: God. And the way I see it, no matter how detailed my plans, I’m not big enough to derail his.

Heaven forbid, we ever find ourselves actually stranded on a beach, of-fering our mortality for the safety and peace of man.

But the sacrifice of those who did, serves as a con-stant reminder that at some point in life, we all will feel helpless to some extent.

And when the waves roll in and I find myself or those I love floundering, I’m glad my plans aren’t the last defense.

Laura AcuffCopy Editor

Bailey GriffithCopy Editor

Morgan DavisCartoonist

What can the AT&T Learn-ing Studio and its 8-foot screen do for you?

More than you might expect.

The studio offers stu-dents and faculty $1.8 mil-lion dollars of revolution-ary technology, a friendly staff and spacious work areas found in no other location on campus.

Computers in the Learn-ing Studio come equipped with a host of design and editing programs such as Photoshop, Flash, Illustra-tor and Final Cut Express.

Students and faculty who don’t own all the necessary tools can still complete multimedia projects by using the Learning Studio during library hours.

The studio also provides convenient and spacious work areas. Students can reserve small group meet-ing rooms and studios to record podcasts, practice speeches and interviews and use other audio and video equipment. Stu-dents can use these areas to map out group projects and display laptop or mo-

bile phone content onto bigger screens.

But the Brown Library’s third floor center does not stop at providing top-of-the-line equipment and group workspaces. Dr. Kyle Dickson, director of the studio, said they will offer tutorial classes, focus groups and media spe-cialists to answer all users’ technology questions. These experts will transform ideas into realities and eliminate the over-used excuse, “I don’t know how to do that.”

When students and fac-ulty need to work off cam-

pus, they can check out au-dio and video equipment to create personal, course and campus projects with-out shelling out hundreds of dollars on equipment.

Students have already used the studio to edit FilmFest submissions and personal videos. They’ve filled dry erase boards with words, phrases and pictures in collaboration rooms. They’ve used the large iMac screens to de-sign graphics and post-ers. The Learning Studio has checked out cameras,

batteries and recorders to students working on me-dia projects for classes.

Although some students and faculty may perceive the Learning Studio as just a new room on campus with color-ful walls and a multitude of Apple products, in reality, the center fosters creative learn-ing across disciplines.

Students and faculty should take AT&T’s advice to “Rethink Possible,” by taking advantage of the available equipment, open workspac-es and media specialists to generate a multitude of well-crafted projects.

OpinionPage 4 April 8, 2011

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 letters to the editor but reserves the right to limit frequent contributors or to refuse to print

letters containing personal attacks, obscenity, defamation, erroneous information or invasion of privacy.

Please limit letters to 350 words or fewer. A name and phone number must be included for verification purposes. Phone numbers will not be published.

Address letters to: ACU Box 27892 Abilene, TX 79699

E-mail letters to: optimist@acu.edu

editorial and letter policy

By Morgan DavisThe Funny Funnies

AT&T Learning Studio benefits studentsEDITORIAL

League, players should negotiate

COLUMN

It’s high time that Smith be shown that just because he is a lawyer, doesn’t mean everything needs to be solved in front of a judge.

contact the Optimist atjmcnetwork@acu.edu

the issueWith a new Learning Studio in the library many students and faculty are not aware of services offered.

our takeStudents now have the facilities, equipment and instruction to develop both recreational and class multimedia projects.

contact Acuff atlka06a@acu.edu

Faith alleviates fallibility of plansCOLUMN

And then I remembered the most crucial aspect of any of my plans: God. And the way I see it, no matter how detailed my plans, I’m not big enough to derail his.

contact Tripp atbjt07a@acu.edu

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Optimistthe

Acuff

Tripp

The ACU men’s tennis team will be in Oklahoma over the weekend for three matches against three dif-ferent schools, including one Division I team.

The men will take on Oklahoma State Univer-sity, part of the Big 12 Conference, at 2 p.m. on Saturday. The Cowboys will host the Wildcats in Stillwater, bringing a 3-9 record into the match with the Wildcats. OSU has lost five straight matches to Division I opponents.

“It’s always fun for the team when we go up against Division I teams,” said junior Eldad Camp-bell. “But we try to play every match with the same level of discipline and in-tensity, whether we’re up against Division I or Divi-sion III. We always com-pete with a high level of professionalism.”

The Wildcats will have no time to rest after fac-ing OSU, as the men have a doubleheader Sunday, taking on East Central University and South-eastern Oklahoma State. Both Sunday matches are

against Lone Star Confer-ence rivals.

“We can’t control the outcomes,” Campbell said. “We can control our effort, and I guarantee everyone on the team will be giving 110 percent every day.”

Campbell is ranked among the top 10 singles players in the Lone Star Conference, but is not let-ting that distract his focus. “When I go out on the court, my No. 8 ranking won’t de-termine whether or not I win the match; how I com-pete is what’s important.”

Sophomore Hans Hach is the No. 1 ranked singles

player in the conference, and he and his doubles partner, junior Jake Hen-drie, are the No. 3 team in the nation.

“I’m proud of my rank-ings but this is all about the team,” Hach said. “We are ranked ‘nothing.’ We need to keep getting tougher in order to win regionals, and then nationals.”

The men are coming off a weekend in the South-east U.S., losing a match against Auburn University-Montgomery last Saturday and defeating Columbus State University the next day, moving their record

to 13-8 on the season.After the weekend,

the No. 7 Wildcats have a short break before taking on Cameron University on Wednesday at 3 p.m. The matches will take place on the ACU campus at Eager Tennis Center, where ACU students can get free hot dogs and Dr Pepper. “It’s

a big match,” added Hach. “If we win we will host re-gionals; we need people to come out.”

This weekend’s match will be the last match for the men’s tennis team to host this season.

April 8, 2011 Page 7FROM SPORTS

‘Team first’ mind-set critical for tennis successMark Smith

Sports Reporter

TENNIS

contact Smith atmds10a@acu.edu

For Rent:3 -1 bedroom/1bath unfurnished apts.$300/mo. (no pets & no smoking)utilities not included, located within walking distance to ACU, available June 1649 ½ E.N. 15th649 ½ E.N. 16th1233 ½ WashingtonCall 325-677-1943 if interested.

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

CLASSIFIED

Wind: Wildcats finish second

for the 12th time this year as senior Bouniol led the tournament after the opening two rounds were marred by strong gusts that toyed with other golfers. Bouniol hung tough though and played consistently enough for a high finish.

Bouniol and Carpenter were joined in the top 10 by junior Tyler Sheppard. Sheppard shot the same as Carpenter and finished alongside him in ninth.

Next week the Wildcats will take a much-needed break after having tour-naments in the past two weekends. The break will also provide the ’Cats an opportunity to prepare for the Lone Star Conference Championships in San

Antonio on April 18-19.The Wildcats are one of

the favorites in the event along with the other two teams from the top of the leaderboard last weekend, UCO and Cameron.

Last year at the con-ference championships,

the Wildcats made a late rally and won their first conference champion-ship since 1995. Not only did the Wildcats have suc-cess at the team level, but Bouniol and Carpenter shared the individual title after Carpenter birdied the 18th hole of the final round to force a tie.

GOLF

contact Gwin atagg07a@acu.edu

Continued from page 8

Lockout: Fans feel pain when game is business

the lockout is a huge problem because it is not just billionaires arguing with millionaires; this is something that will affect the entire sports world and the American economy as a whole.

I personally believe that an agreement will even-tually be made between

the owners and players. However, considering where both parties stand right now, it seems like an agreement is still a long ways off.

Lockouts are the worst things that can happen to a serious fan of any sport in one. The NFL is in a lockout and one with the NBA is looming on the ho-rizon as well.

I plead to you athletes and owners that you re-member the game that you love, and stop being self-ish and come to an agree-ment. If not for yourselves and your well being, do it for the fans because the fans need this more than you do.

COLUMN

contact Cantrell atjrc07f@acu.edu

Continued from page 8

Reeves: Schedule will toughen up

and should not be taken lightly no matter their re-cent history.

“Texas Woman’s is go-ing to show up and play like they always do. They do the little things right and have a way of getting wins,” Reeves said.

The Texas Woman’s of-fense runs through leadoff hitter Bailey Vrazel. The freshman leads the team in four major offensive categories, including bat-ting average, runs, hits and stolen bases.

“She is what makes that team so dangerous. Her ability to get on base and make opposing teams pay is something we’ve been focusing on in practice this week,” Reeves said. “We have to limit her when we’re on defense.”

Vrazel is TWU’s offensive catalyst due to her abil-ity to make things happen on the basepath. She leads the LSC in stolen bases (49) and is second in Division II in stolen base efficiency.

This is something that ACU catcher Erin Gilliland will try to limit, and she is ready for that challenge.

“They are a very sound team on the basepaths. They take advantage of every op-portunity to run and will no doubt challenge me. We’ve really been working on lim-iting bad throws and having clean exchanges in practice so we can keep the damage to a minimum. It’s our goal to keep Vrazel off the base-paths,” Gilliland said.

The Wildcats enter Fri-day’s game on a three-game losing streak, but are hopeful that things will go accord-ingly against TWU if they get back on track offensively hitting the ball and continue to improve defensively.

“You know, every team goes through small hitting droughts like we did last weekend. It’s part of the game. But we’ve been focusing on hitting this week in practice and I feel like we’ll be ready for this series,” Reeves said.

Abby Burns, a TWU soft-ball player, was recently di-agnosed with leukemia. To allow her teammates to at-tend an event in support of Burns, the teams will play two games Friday and one game Saturday.

SOFTBALL

contact Shake atbxs09a@acu.edu

Continued from page 8

Preview: Runs will spark wins

from Southeastern Oklaho-ma, ENMU managed to plate just 10 runs in three games.

ACU’s bats should not find runs difficult to come by against the sec-ond worst pitching staff in the LSC. The Greyhounds have allowed double-digit run totals in eight of their 19 conference games this season, second worst in the conference.

ACU will also rely on a newfound pitching prod-uct on their staff. Sky Va-

lenzuela has become one of Bonneau’s go-to relievers since he made the transi-tion to the mound just two weeks ago. During those two weeks, Valenzuela has an ERA of 1.23 allowing just one earned run in his 7.1 innings of work, striking out six during that time.

“Having him on the mound has been wonder-ful,” said Bonneau. “He is such a smart player and he has good stuff.”

If the last four season series between these two teams is any indication, the

Wildcats should be well on their way to moving into the top six in the conference. ACU is 12-4 over the last four seasons, nearly dou-bling up the Greyhounds in runs scored with an average of 8.8 runs per contest.

The Wildcats and Grey-hounds will open their se-ries Friday at 7:05 p.m. at

Crutcher Scott Field. The series will conclude with a doubleheader Saturday. The first pitch for the first game of the day is scheduled for 2:05 p.m., and the second game is scheduled to start at 4:35 p.m.

BASEBALL

contact Tripp atbjt07a@acu.edu

Continued from page 8

DANIEL GOMEZ // Chief Photographer

Jason Harris winds up to pitch against Delta State. The Wildcats play at home Friday and Saturday against Northeastern State.

Having him (Valenzuela) on the mound has been wonderful.

BRITT BONNEAU // Head Coach of ACU baseball‘‘ ’’

Everybody gave his best. We just got beat by a UCO team that played an unreal round Tuesday.

CYRIL BOUNIOL // senior golfer for the ACU Wildcats‘‘ ’’

We are ranked ‘nothing.’ We need to keep getting tougher in order to win regionals, and then nationals.

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

Just a Bit OutsideRyan Cantrell

When millionaires argue with billionaires, who wins? I do not know which side wins, but I do know

who loses and that is the fans.

On the surface, the NFL lockout is between the play-

ers and the owners. Both sides are arguing over sal-aries and contracts. They quarrel over how many games will be played and how much money rookies should be receiving as a signing bonus.

I know the NFL is a business, first and fore-most, just as all profes-sional sports are business-es. I am not here to argue that players should not get paid or that owners should not make money. The main problem with this is that the lockout is big-ger than just the dispute between the owners and players. The fans are the ones that truly get locked out in this situation.

Just think about Fantasy Football next year. Besides all of the companies that make money from this selling magazines or man-aging leagues, NFL Fantasy Football is a huge industry that will be directly locked out next season. Some-thing interesting to think about is if the NFL will use replacement players. This would actually make Fan-tasy Football very interest-ing, but not as fun because nobody would know who to draft. This possibility in-trigues me, but personally I would rather have Peyton Manning as my quarter-back than Shane Falco.

Jobs have been affect-ed, considering everyone who works with an NFL team or with a stadium is currently not needed. The economy will take a huge hit, considering people will not be spending mon-ey on tickets or games. This is not just about the players or owners; the NFL lockout affects peo-ple and families all across the country.

America needs profes-sional football. America needs the NFL. Even if you are not an NFL fan,

SportsStandings

Briefs

n The women’s soc-cer team defeated Hardin-Simmons Uni-versity on Wednedsay in a shootout at the HSU Soccer Com-plex. Andrea Carpen-ter scored the Wild-cats’ lone goal. This is the third time the teams have scrim-maged each other, and ACU has won each contest over the defending Division III national champions.

n The Lone Star Conference partnered with Texas Woman’s University in support of TWU’s Abby Burns, who has leukemia. Through merchandise sales, the LSC raised $2,200 in support of Burns last weekend at the LSC Crossover Tournament.

April 8, 2011Page 8

n The baseball team will host Eastern New Mexico on Friday at 7:05 p.m. The team will then play a dou-bleheader Saturday starting at 2 p.m at Crutcher Scott Field.

n Softball will travel to Dallas to play Texas Woman’s University Friday at 5 p.m. and then play a double-header Saturday start-ing at 1 p.m.

Upcoming

BASEBALL

Team Div. Ovrl.

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

15-615-617-716-813-813-812-913-11

25-719-1226-1019-1224-1120-1119-1417-15

SOFTBALL

Team Div. Ovrl.

ASUACU

Tarleton St.UIW

WTAMUTWU

5-4

6-37-2

5-4

4-54-5

17-16

21-2030-5

20-18

27-1121-17

TAMU-K 3-6 22-19ENMU 2-7 10-28

PlayerProfile

J.R. Roland, outfielder from Renton, Wash., has had a productive

season for the Wildcats. The ju-nior is in the top five for the Wild-

cats in 10 different offensive categories. Roland ranks third in batting average (.357), second in slugging percentage, second in on-base percentage, third in hits, fourth in RBIs and third in total bases. He is a transfer from Salt Lake Com-munity College, where he led the team in batting average, home runs and doubles as a freshman. He was also a first team all-region pick as a sophomore for the Bruins.

Roland

Bouniol carries ’Cats despite weather

It seems as though since no other golfers have been able to stop Alex Carpen-ter, the weather had to step in. High winds and colder temperatures halt-ed Carpenter’s hot streak for a week, at least at the UCO/Kickingbird Classic in Edmond, Okla. Car-penter finished in ninth, shooting 11 over par for the tournament.

“It was pretty rough trying to control your golf ball when the Weather Channel said to secure your patio furniture and that it was hazardous for people to drive small ve-hicles,” Carpenter said. “But for the conditions, I was proud of how our team hung in there.”

Defending Division II national champion Cyril Bouniol led the Wildcats, finishing in a tie for third behind three consecutive

rounds at two over par.“It was tough playing

such extreme conditions,” Bouniol said. “It showed us that no matter what the conditions are we are a very competitive team.”

The Wildcats finished second as a team but they were nowhere close to host Central Oklahoma Univer-sity. UCO was easily the best team on the second day of the tournament and

ran off with the victory beating the second-place ’Cats by 19 strokes. Camer-on University rounded out the top three, four strokes behind ACU.

“Everybody gave his best,” Bouniol said. “We just got beat by a UCO team that played an un-real round Tuesday.”

It looked as if the Wild-cats would put a player at the top of the podium

Austin GwinSports Editor

GOLF

see WIND page 7

It was pretty rough trying to control your golf ball when the Weather Channel said to secure your patio furniture ...

ALEX CARPENTER // sophomore golfer for the ACU Wildcats‘‘ ’’

In the playoff hunt

The Wildcats look to con-tinue their recent roll in the Lone Star Conference this weekend against an Eastern New Mexico team that has struggled to score runs this season sitting in

last place in runs scored for the year.

ACU has managed to stay relevant in the con-versation for the LSC Championship Tourna-ment field. The Wildcats, currently in seventh, have won seven of their last nine LSC games to put them just one game out of the sixth and final spot in the LSC tournament field.

“We all know what we have to do,” said ACU Head

Coach Britt Bonneau. “We know if we don’t win, we don’t go to the tourna-ment, and these guys have been great.”

With the recent surge the Wildcats have moved into the top five in the con-ference in batting average and runs scored in confer-ence. However, Bonneau’s squad is still struggling on the mound. ACU pitching is allowing an average of 7.77 runs per game during

their stretch of seven wins in nine games.

Pitching may not present too big of a problem for ACU since the Wildcats will face the third worst batting team by average in the LSC. The Greyhounds come into the weekend batting just .288 as a team, well below the LSC average of .311. In a week-end series with the LSC’s leading team, Savage Storm

Brandon Tripp Sports Director

BASEBALL

see LOCKOUT page 7

Lockout goes far beyond players

COLUMN

Cantrell

DANIEL GOMEZ // Chief Photographer

Cameron Bankston makes a catch in the outfield. The Wildcats have won their last three conference series to continue to hang around in the race for the sixth and final playoff seed. ACU will need to keep winning in order to clinch a spot in the LSC playoffs.

ACU maintains second in LSC

The ACU softball team is looking to rebound off a 1-4 weekend at the Lone Star Conference Crossover Tournament last weekend as they head to Denton to take on Texas Woman’s on Friday and Saturday.

The Wildcats (21-20, 6-3) had a subpar show-ing at the LSC Crossover Tournament, yet are still second in the LSC South standings behind No. 10 Angelo State.

As the conference schedule progresses, ev-ery game for the Wild-cats from here on out is critical as the conference postseason tournament looms on the horizon.

“Our schedule is dwin-dling down, meaning that

every series from here un-til the end of our confer-ence schedule is crucial. We have to bring our ‘A’ game to every game and play to the best of our abil-ity in order to be where we

want to be,” Head Coach Bobby Reeves said.

Texas Woman’s (4-5, 21-17) will be a formi-dable opponent for the ’Cats. The LSC Crossover Tournament proved to be

unwelcoming to the Pio-neers too, as they are on a five-game losing skid.

But Reeves knows that they are a dangerous team

Bryson ShakeAssistant Sports Editor

SOFTBALL

see REEVES page 7

DANIEL GOMEZ // Chief Photographer

Melissa Mendoza hits against the University of the Incarnate Word earlier this season.

see PREVIEW page 7

The Wildcats have won to stay alive in the playoff picture