Mount Hood

Professional Sports’s best playoffs

Lake Larsen | Digital Media Manager

The NFL draft was a few weeks ago, the MLB season just began and the NBA is deep into their playoffs — but there’s one major sport missing from the discussion: hockey. The final three teams left in this year’s Stanley Cup playoffs, the Las Vegas Golden Knights, Washington Capitals and Tampa Bay Lightning, duke it out to hold one of sports’s most historial trophies, the Stanley Cup. While all sports have their fair share of amazing feats of athleticism, hockey takes those highlights to the next level.

Of the four major sport leagues in North America, the National Hockey League seems to be forgotten. But, if you’re a true fan of sports, then there is nothing like the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Seemingly every minute of every game is filled with superhuman-like efforts to win or unbelievable underdog stories. And this year’s Stanley Playoff race is no stranger to such events. Here are a few reasons why hockey playoffs make for the best sports playoffs.

 

Giving everything for the name on your sweater:

Hockey, as with all sports, sees many players fall victim to injuries each season. However, the players in the Stanley Cup Playoffs simply don’t hesitate to put their bodies on the line for their team. Against the advice of doctors, in this year’s playoffs fans saw Sean Couturier of the Philadelphia Flyers suit up for, play in, and score the game winning goal in game five while skating on an MCL he tore less than a week before.

 

An underdog story for the ages:

The brand new Las Vegas Golden Knights are the 29th team added to the NHL. They hosted their first game as a franchise mere days after the Las Vegas shooting. The horrific tragedy led the Golden Knights to retire the number 58, in memory of the 58 lives lost in the shooting. As has happened in the wake of many tragedies, a town in pain looked to their hometown team for hope. The Golden Knights set record after record for new franchises as they stormed their way into the Stanley Cup Playoffs on the backs of players that were picked up after other teams deemed them unworthy of a roster spot.

 

The fans:

Every sport has its fair share of crazy fans, but the fans in hockey adhere to some awesome — if rather strange — traditions. This playoff season has seen some of those traditions carry on into the finals, and some are yet to come. In Winnipeg, home of the Jets, the fans dress head-to-toe in white for a white-out at every home game. The sea of fans throughout the crowd sends a chill down the spine of the teams entering the frosty Winnipeg stadium. But once the winner of “Lord Stanley’s Mug” is announced, one of the strangest traditions takes place; each member of the winning team gets to spend one day with the trophy over the summer.

 

Whether you watch sports just to pass the time or because you’re a true fan, check out the Stanley Cup Finals. You’re sure to see some history in the making.

 

Contact the author at llarsen13@wou.edu

Photo courtesy of: nhl.com

Wolves surge towards three titles

Simson Garcia | Sports Editor

The Wolves garnered three titles in the long jump, 800 and 1500 meters from May 11-12 of the 2018 Track and Field GNAC championships. The women’s and men’s teams played host to nine other conference teams in their final home meet of the outdoor season.

Though each of Western’s teams did not have the highest point total of the event, two title winners in David Ribich, senior, and Alani Troutman, sophomore, helped accumulate points towards a score of 100 for the men.

In day one of the meet, Troutman made his way to Western’s first podium win, after measuring at 22-5 (6.83m) in the long jump.

Ribich started day two with a second podium win in the 1500, placing a time of three minutes and forty-nine point twenty-two seconds. Right behind him were teammates Dustin Nading, junior, and Josh Dempsey, senior, for an all Western finish. Seventy minutes later, Ribich guided his pack to seven out of the top nine finishes in the 800-meter.

Ribich mentioned of the goal to place all of his team members in the top nine of the 800: “We have so many guys on the bubble for Nationals, that I wanted to make sure I could try to help out these guys in the 800 meters. That was kind of our mentality going into this weekend; Dustin (Nading) and I would try and get AJ (Holmberg) and Josh (Dempsey) and them qualifying marks for the national meet.”

Several other athletes reached the podium to help their team score. In the women’s long jump, first-year Darian Wilson landed at 18-0 ½ (5.50m), good for third. Wilson also threw to third place in the javelin to a distance of 154-5 (47.07m), a personal record.

Over the last few years, Western has been a middle distance power house. Multiple All-American winner in the 800-meter, Suzanne Van De Grift, senior, recently moved up a few hundred meters to the 1500 for a third place podium stand. Her timed run in the 1500 of 4:25.85 is a school record.

“I’ve had goals for what I wanted to run, and this was one of my goals of running four twenty-five,” said Van De Grift. “I wanted to run a good time today. My mentality was just to stick with the top people and not let there be a gap created.”

Van De Grift soon paired with junior Olivia Woods, also an accomplished All-American in the middle distances, and the two tagged with sophomore Grayson Burke and senior Megan Rose to run the 1600-meter relay. The team finished in second place, and nabbed a school record time of 3:45.82, just four seconds ahead of the previous mark.

Individually, Western’s runners were all over the board with new personal recorded times, and had several athletes to look forward to. The visiting teams, however, included formidable individuals of their own.

2017 GNAC outdoor champion Alaska-Anchorage, for both men and women’s teams, took to the track with Caroline Kurgat — an outdoor and indoor champion. Kurgat beat out senior Kennedy Rufener for first in the 5000-meter. The Seawolf outpaced all runners by several hundred meters and increased her distance throughout the 13 laps. Rufener was half a bell lap behind Kurgat, but kicked faster in the last 200 meters to push just ahead of Simon Fraser for second place in a time of 17:08.51.

While Western runners made their strides on the track, it was not enough to outscore Concordia and Seattle Pacific for the overall team titles: Concordia’s men’s team laid claim to the sprinting and discus events, and championed to 138 points; the Seattle Pacific women’s teams were number one in events such as sprinting and relays which assisted to the Falcon’s 154.5 points.

Western has nine qualifying athletes who’ll now turn to the NCAA DII Championships, which will be held in Charlotte, North Carolina on May 24-26.

 

Contact the author at journalsports@wou.edu

 

Western’s outstanding leaders

Sam Dunaway | News Editor

Leadership Recognition Night is an annual event that celebrates leadership and service at Western. The Delmer Dewey Outstanding Graduating Student award and the Julia McCulloch Smith Outstanding Graduating Student award are prized to two graduating individuals that show excellence in leadership, academics and contributions to Western.

 

Delmer Dewey Outstanding Graduating Student

The Delmer Dewey Outstanding Graduating Student award was presented to Carter Craig. Craig is a senior history major and member of the honors program. During his four years at Western, Craig was a Resident Assistant for one year, president of the Residence Hall Association for two years, a three-time member of the Incidental Fee Committee and chair of the committee in 2017 and a recent Alternative Break team member for the Costa Rica team. Craig notes that one of his favorite involvements on campus was with the Residence Hall Association.

“I have really enjoyed intentionally programming for my fellow students and the comradery among the other RHA Exec members,” commented Craig. “I think that same sense of community is also one of Western’s huge strengths.”

In his honors thesis, ‘‘To the Dishonor of God’: Religious Roots for Puritan Morality Laws During the Interregnum,’ Craig investigates the influence of religion on laws during the English Interregnum between 1653 and 1659.

“I am grateful to everyone who has supported me,” said Craig.

 

Julia McCulloch Smith Outstanding Graduating Student

 

The Julia McCulloch Smith Outstanding Graduating Student award was presented to Sara Madden. Madden is a senior social science major and member of the honors program. She is a student athlete who has competed in indoor and outdoor track and cross country for four years while sitting on the Student Athletic Advisory Committee. Madden is the president of Western’s chapter of the Phi Alpha Theta National History Honor Society and a member of the Phi Kappa Phi and Chi Alpha Sigma honor societies. Over all else, Madden has enjoyed being a student athlete at Western.

“It has such a family feel to it and has been very rewarding from the time and effort I have put in,” she explained.

Madden’s honors thesis, “The Secret War of WWII: Emmanuel Ringelblum and Jewish Resistance to Nazism in Warsaw 1943,” examines Jewish resistance during the Holocaust.

“I feel incredibly honored to receive this award,” Madden expressed. “Never in my wild dreams did I imagine receiving such an honor at this level; it’s truly remarkable.”

 

Contact the author at journalnews@wou.edu

Photo by: Paul F. Davis

Money management made simple

Lake Larsen | Digital Media Manager

There are a lot of lessons to be learned in college, but one of the most important is how to navigate the world of finances. I’ve laid out five simple things everyone should do to point themselves in the right direction financially.

 

1.Start a checking account

Starting a checking account is as simple as going to the local bank and speaking with a teller about how to start one and what fees are involved. Having an account is practically mandatory in today’s world.

  1. Develop a budget

Every person needs to know how much they should be spending on different bills and other random expenses. There’s no need to be exact on every cost estimate but, a general rule to follow is to always assume the expenses will spend a little more than they normally are. It allows some wiggle room in case something has gone up in price.

  1. Get a credit card

While most people think they don’t need one because they can just use their debit card, it is immensely more difficult to build credit without one. Owning and using a credit card is much easier to grow credit with as opposed to any other options. It’s not so much the card that matters as the credit score that someone develops with the card. An easy way to start and grow a credit score is to get a credit card (there are a lot of cards that have great benefits for students) and use that card to pay a small subscription fee then immediately pay off the balance.

  1. Get a checkbook

This is a simple thing that most young people overlook. While it’s not as common to see people pay for things with checks, everyone still needs a checkbook whether it be for paying rent, setting up direct deposits, a vast array of other reasons. They usually cost around $30 from a bank — and there are fun designs available for them.

  1. Balance your checkbook

This goes hand and hand with developing a budget. When ordering a checkbook, they usually come free with a Check Register, or they can be ordered online. Balancing a checkbook is easy; when something is bought, write down where they money was spent and for how much. Then, at the end of the week or month, add it all up and make sure it matches what your account says. This is an easy way to make sure there are no overcharges on a bill or account overdraws.

Contact the author at llarsen13@wou.edu

Photo by: Paul F. Davis

GNAC champions back again

Simson Garcia | Sports Editor

The Wolves baseball team are champions for a second time consecutively, after downing the Montana State Yellowjackets, 8-4, on May 11 in the GNAC double elimination championship.

GNAC champions for the fourth time in six years, Western had to batter up through three previous tournament games in order to reach the final. The championship run began with them taking down tournament host Central Washington, 4-3, on May 10.

Tied, 3-3, in the bottom of the ninth inning, Griffey Halle, junior outfielder, hit not only a walk-off for the team’s fifth overall, but a home run just over the right side fence. Halle was four-for-four with his at-bats. While the walk-off contributed momentum, pitching was also a game changer; four pitchers were utilized to strikeout Central 11 times.

The Wolves met the Montana State Yellowjackets in the following round of the winner’s bracket, a team they forfeited four seasonal games to due to scheduling conflicts. The forfeits affected who would be seeded first in the GNAC and, by a few games, Montana took over the top spot. Western paid no mind to seeding in a reroute of the ‘Jackets, 14-8.

The games forfeited, although, meant much to players like senior infielder Nyles Nygaard who couldn’t wait for the matchup.

“We wanted to beat them by a lot of runs, so the first game we came out and just handed it to them,” Nygaard said.

Home runs switched hands in the early innings but a more favorable one for the Wolves entered the stands in the fourth. A three-run shot, for an 8-4 lead, was delivered by sophomore infielder Connor McCord. The infielder had the green light for most of the game, hitting four of his five at bats while earning five runs-batted-in. The Wolves put on a hitting clinic, earning 19 on the game.

One more win was needed for Western, but the tone changed when the ‘Jackets returned to edge out Western, in a pivotal 6-4 result. Both teams strategized in their pitching as multiple mound visits occurred. Montana did just enough with one pitcher to hold of their opponents, and keep their tournament in play.

It came around to the final championship game, while neither team couldn’t afford to lose. The Wolves made sure their season didn’t end in the first period. Five consecutive runs started them out. Montana hit two key homers to come within two, but the game was for the Wolves’s taking. Western got their players on bases earning 13 hits and seven walks en route to their title.

Jacob Martinez, senior infielder, was named MVP of the tournament. He went 9-16 in at-bats with a .750 on-base percentage.

The championship win, however, wasn’t enough to get selected into Nationals. The team finished their season at 27-21.

“It would have helped when we went down to California early in the season if we won a couple of those close games … to win back-to-back GNAC championships is the best way to go out,” said Nygaard.

Contact the author at journalsports@wou.edu

Photo by: wouwolves.com

Admiring diversity from around the globe

Caitlyn Nakatsukasa | Staff Writer

Western’s International Night aimed to break culture shocks and express the diversity of students from around the world. The event was hosted on May 11 by the International Club, an organization that promotes cultural awareness and fosters friendships with students from around the world.

“This club helps international and domestic students broaden their horizon and perspectives on cultures, individuality, and life,” said junior and International Club Vice President Berlyn Buncal. Buncal has been a member of the club since her first year at Western. “[Our purpose] is to share and let other students make friends with people they never thought they would click with too.”

Junior Faafili Papalii agreed, stating that, “the club is worldwide. It means that anyone can welcome to join and share with us.”

This is Papalii’s third year participating in the International Night as a dancer. “We help each other and the new students who need friends, directions and education,” said Papalii. “The club thinks that students are away from their families and they are far away from home, so International Club is home away from home.”

This annual event provides the audience with a wide scope of diverse cultures and acknowledges a variety of backgrounds.

“International Night is about sharing different cultures with the university and the community at an evening,” said Buncal. She believes the event helps create visibility of the wide variety of international students attending Western. “It is where people from other parts of the world can feel at home. They get to see that there are other international [students] and share their culture, something that not many have the opportunity to do.”

The event had Arabic entertainment booths such as Henna artwork, samples of tea and treats, displays of handcrafted clothes and a person that wrote guest’s names in Arabic. It gave people the opportunity to explore the lifestyles of people from Saudi Arabia.

The dinner consisted of specialty dishes from around the globe, such as ye’abesha gomen from Ethiopia, beef bulgogi from South Korea, yakisoba noodles from Japan and vanillekipferl from Germany.

The entertainment portion of the event kicked off with a fashion show extravaganza that foreshadowed the upcoming performances. International Club members had the chance to show off traditional clothing from different countries such as Nepal, Bangladesh, Saudi Arabia, Ghana and Thailand. Members had the opportunity to flaunt clothing from their own native countries and demonstrate what they normally wear in their hometowns.

Throughout the night were various performances that represented various cultures and rituals. There was the Yasugi Bushi performance, a famous folk song from Japan that involved two participants dancing while wearing face masks. Another performance was the Bollywood dance, a performance that demonstrated many different Indian dance styles. There was even a Rubik’s Cube performance where Lianhua Zhou solved the puzzle in a matter of minutes. The Rubik’s Cube is a popular puzzle that is well-known in western culture.

The event wrapped up with the emcees thanking the audience for attending and bringing all of the volunteers and performers to the stage.

“[Tonight is] a night that we invite everyone to celebrate and promote the unity of International on campus,” said Papalii. “It doesn’t matter what race, color, or language we are; we believe in equality.”

Contact the author at cnakatsukasa15@wou.edu.

Photo by: Paul F. Davis

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