Football team falls to Nebraska-Omaha, 34-13

Quaterback Tyler Eckenrode passes up field Saturday afternoon at Welch Stadium as the Hornets face Nebraska-Omaha. ESU fell to UNO with a final score of 34-13. Kellen Jenkins/The Bulletin.

The Emporia State football team fell to MIAA foe UNO last Saturday, 34-3. Junior running back and business major, Kevin Smart, scored the only two touchdowns for the Hornets with a 14-yard first quarter score and 1-yard third quarter touchdown. Red-shirt freshman quarterback and business major, Tyler Eckenrode, made his first career start for ESU, throwing for 225 yards on 16 of 30 passing attempts. Junior running back and physical education major La’Darrian Page netted a career high 108 receiving yards to go along with 28 rushing yards. The football team will be back in action at 2 p.m. Oct. 10 at Pittsburg State University.

#6 Volleyball team struggles early at Lady Blues Regional Crossover

Brittney Miller spikes the ball against the Angelo State defense Friday afternoon at Topeka during the Lady Blues Regional Crossover hosted by Washburn. The Hornets won the game 3-0. Kellen Jenkins/The Bulletin.

The Emporia State University volleyball team lost a close match, 2-3, to the #6 ranked West Texas A&M Lady Buffs to start the Lady Blues Regional Crossover in Topeka last Friday. ESU is currently 1-4 vs. WTAMU. The Hornets went on to sweep Angelo State, Southwest Oklahoma State and Southeast Oklahoma State 3-0 to round out the tournament. The team will be back on the court on Oct. 9 as they travel to Pittsburg State and on Oct. 10 as they make their way to Joplin, Mo., to face Missouri Southern.

Cross Country: Hornet men, Mona win titles at ESU Invitational

ESU runners lead the pack Friday evening at Jones Park during the ESU Invitational. The Hornets finished well and look forward to the Ollie Isom Invitational on Oct. 16 in El Dorado. Jonathan Elliott/The Bulletin.

Sophomore Katie Mona won her second consecutive women’s individual championship with a time of 18.17.84 last Friday at the ESU Cross Country Invitational. In the men’s division, Adam McGovern and Skyler Delmott finished in third and fourth place with times of 25.36.15 and 25.39.82, respectively. McGovern and Delmott’s performances catapulted the Hornet men’s squad to a team championship. The Ollie Isom Invitational will be on tap next for the Hornets on October 16 starting at 5 p.m. in El Dorado.

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Tennis: Season closer

The Emporia State men’s and women’s tennis seasons came to a close last Saturday, falling to Truman at the Plaza Tennis Center in Kansas City, Mo. in the MIAA Tournament. The men lost 5-3 in their second straight appearance in the NCAA tournament and the women fell 5-1 in their fourth straight appearance.

The men’s team went 8-8 overall, 1-4 in the MIAA, 1-3 in the region and 3-1 at home.

The women’s team went 9-8 overall, 3-5 in the MIAA, 1-4 in the region and 4-1 at home.

Head Coach John Cayton and his current ESU players will host their fourth annual tennis camp presented by Wilson Racket Sports where players ages 8-18 will participate in a five day camp from June 22-26. Players will be staying in the ESU residence halls overnight and full-day campers will dine in the Lakeview Cafeteria.

Baseball on the road

The Emporia State baseball team went one and three on the road against Missouri Southern, winning the first game 5-2 and losing the last two games 11-12 and 7-11.

In game one, ESU was tied with MSSU 2-2 until the top of the eighth inning when catcher Mike Sharp hit a single to right center field to score two runners. Outfielder Caleb Williamson scored one more run with a fly ball out to right field.

In game two, the Hornets were ahead 11-3 in the seven inning game, until the bottom of the sixth inning when the Lions hit nine runs to take the lead.

Pitcher Diego Soto earned the loss in game two and is now 5-2 on the season.

In game three, ESU was down 11-2 until the top of the ninth inning where they made scored five runs but were unable to complete the comeback.

Pitcher Ben Graham lost his third game of the season, throwing 3.2 innings in game three.

The Hornets are now 39-9 overall and 25-6 in the MIAA and are looking to take the league title.

ESU will host their last regular season match up at home against Southwest Baptist.

Game one of the doubleheader will start at 4 p.m. May 1-2 at Trusler Complex.

Provisional Track Qualifiers

The Emporia State track team had five provisionally qualifying marks at the Sooner Invitational in Norman, Okla.

Connie Philips placed second and provisionally qualified with a 140-7 mark in the women’s javelin. Jaclyn Sill ranked fourth in this season’s Division II charts in the women’s 400m with a time of 55.77.

Sam Williams provisionally qualified individually in the 100m with a time of 10.59 and qualified in the 200m with a time of 21.23. William, Derwin Hall, Josh Schuler and Kenton Lonberger are all qualifiers in the 400m relay.

The Hornets competed yesterday and continue competition today in the MIAA Championships in Maryville, Mo. Brooke Kent, Justine Davenport and Kaylea Goff are performing for the women while Tony Granillo and Cole Davis are performing for the men.

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Emporia State should encourage a more student friendly schedule for athletes, leaving them ample time to prepare for homework and exams over weekends. ESU’s economic status should not reflect on the quality of education its student-athletes receive.

In the midst of the impending economic status, President Barack Obama issued an American recovery and investment plan in an effort to create a higher job market. America has fallen into a recession and the American economy has reached the lowest point that most college students can remember.

ESU’s fiscal budget for 2009 dropped $420,000. The university is attempting to curb these costs by lowering costs of sports, reducing athletic scholarships and lowering campus employment.

The Hornets’ baseball team schedule is one instance where ESU is attempting to cut back. Of the 51 games the Hornets have remaining, over 50 percent of them are played one right after the other. Most of the time, they play three or more within the same weekend.

According to Head Coach Bob Fornelli, this year’s schedule was designed in a strong effort to cope with this year’s budget cuts. ESU, along with many other schools, has started to schedule games back to back to cut down on budgeting costs.

This scheduling effort has taken great toll on the teams, however, leaving a short amount of time in between games to prepare for the next.

Last weekend, the Hornets’ baseball team competed in four games against the Colorado School of Mines, all four of which they won. The weekend prior to playing Colorado, the Hornets competed against Regis University and were only given Wednesday to practice before leaving Emporia.

This lack of time and practice can cause a large deficit in time for academic work. Although studies have shown that, in recent years, student-athletes average a slightly higher grade point average, America’s current economic status was not accounted for in these studies.

Because a lot of student-athletes rely on scholarships from sports, these constant travel arrangements can cause dire consequences. Some student-athletes cannot afford to go to college outside of sports scholarships. This could cause student-athletes to focus less on school and more on sports, in turn lowering their GPA.

To resolve this problem there should be a limit on how many games a team can compete in per week. By doing so this, it will limit the time spent participating in sports and help balance sports and academics. This tactic should curb the hits to this year’s budget and also help give athletes an appropriate amount of rest and practice between games.

Cody Grauberger/The Bulletin

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In a time when the economy dictates the decisions of virtually every person and organization, the Emporia State Student Recreation Center is no exception.

The Recreation Center receives its funds through student fees, which are included in tuition. “Our student body pays a student campus privilege fee and that is where we get our operating funds,” said JoLanna Kord, Director of Recreation Services. “The students have access to the recreation center and the swimming pool in HPER because they paid the fees.”

They also receive their funds through intramural leagues that they offer.

“We offer intramural leagues in the fall and spring,” Kord said. “We offer flag football and volleyball in the fall and basketball and slow pitch softball in the spring and they cost $30 to participate in.”

There are three other fitness facilities located in Emporia, which include the Emporia Recreation Center, Walburns and Emporia Fitness.

“I think we have some advantages as well as some disadvantages,” Kord said. “We offer a lot of great services and we open pretty early, however Walburn’s and Emporia fitness do have newer machines.”

The new treadmills at Walburn’s have television screens and the facility has just been remodeled to include a Salon and tanning beds.

“We do plan to replace some of the older machines in the future but due to the current economic situation we have to put that on hold,” Kord said. “We have to pay our workers first and the equipment is still in good condition it is just not as high tech as some of the newer machines available.”

Despite the lack of newer equipment, many students feel that the Recreation Center is sufficient as is.

“I like the equipment they have here and there is always people I know around here,” said sophomore Ben Adams. “I have been to Walburns and Emporia Fitness and I like the equipment here better.”

However some students feel that the Recreation Center gets crowded at times.

“I work out here around four days a week and I like how organized the facility is,” said freshman Nicholas Donovan. “It does seem a little cramped at times but once you get past some minor space issues it is really nice.”

The student recreation center is only open to students and faculty.

“We do not plan to compete against Walburns or Emporia Fitness,” Kord said. “We serve the students and if we were to open to the public that would defeat our purpose.”

Matt Pierce/The Bulletin

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An ESU Old Yellow Rugby Club member runs up field Saturday at the ESU rugby pitch. ESU won the game against Northwest Missouri 84-7./PHOTO BY KELLEN JENKINS

The Emporia State Old Yellow Rugby Club won their first home game against Northwest Missouri 84-7 last Saturday.

In 120 different countries, rugby enthusiasts actively participate in this ever growing popular sport.

The rules of rugby consist of two teams of 15 on field players. The object of the game, is to score the most points by carrying, passing, kicking and grounding the ball to win the game.

Rugby is played much like an end-zone invasion game. Each team focuses on gaining possession of the ball, taking it into the opponent’s territory and placing it in the end zone.

Emporia State has joined the ranks of the rugby community as they look toward to more success.

“We prepared pretty well,” said junior flank Allen Peterson “We went through a lot of game day situations in practice and we have been doing a lot of running and it showed out there.”

Unlike past seasons, this season’s competition schedule includes non-club teams such as Wichita State, Kansas University and many other collegiate teams.

“Right now we are looking pretty strong,” said sophomore outside center Anthony Clemons. “We are planning to win every home game. We have a pretty tough schedule right now but the team is looking pretty good.”

This year, the team consists of only Emporia State students, including new comers as well as veterans from past years.

“This is the best season we have had,” Clemons said. “There are no injuries this season. Everyone is coming back from injuries from last year.”                                      The rugby club hopes to achieve collegiate status by the end of the season, according to rugby head coach Charles Mathew Seimears

“We would like to beat KU,” Peterson said. “We almost beat them last year and we have a lot more experience this year.”

Even though the team last year was not as popular as it is this year the team has been able to fill in the gaps and improve as a team.

“Collectively I think the pack improved immensely,” Peterson said. “After last year, we had real problems getting possession with the pack last year.”

The ESU Old Yellow Rugby Club will play their next home match April 26 against the Salina Men’s Club. The starting time is still to be announced.

Cristian Echeverria/The Bulletin

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Cody Grauberger

In baseball, batting last is considered a home team advantage, but in reality it is not. At the beginning of the game, both teams are aware of who will be batting last, leaving them all eight innings prior to reach an appropriate level. If a lead is not reached, it is due to the ability of the team, not a home team advantage.

For instance, the Emporia State baseball team has started off their season playing eight away games to hold a current record of 6-2. They recently played four away games against the Colorado School of Mines. The Hornets defeated Colorado in all four games 11-0, 18-4, 6-1 and 19-2. Colorado batted last in all four of these games and still ended in deficit regardless of their batting advantage.

The topic of home team advantage has become an issue in college baseball. Outside of any tournament play, college baseball allows the home team to bat last, leaving ample time for them to get a few extra points before the game ends. Some have associated this type of play as an unfair team advantage.

A study by sports analysts Courneya and Carron (1992), states that this theory is true, however not fully. The home team advantage theory is affected by numerous factors such as batting last, the crowd, travel, familiarity and rules that might favor the home team.

In the same study, Courneya and Carron studied the results of over 260 seasons of various home game competitions. Of those, 53.3 percent of baseball home games resulted in a win. Meaning that every time a game is played, the home team has just over 50 percent chance of walking away victorious.

With those factors applied, this is the second time the Hornets have competed against Colorado, so travel and familiarity combined with batting last, the Hornets statistically had over fifty percent chance of loosing each game. This year, Emporia’s fiscal budget was cut by nearly $420,000. In an effort to save money, the Hornets have taken to new methods of sporting transportation. By placing away games against teams back to back rather than traveling more than once, it places the Hornets at a familiarity disadvantage.

However, statistics can not dispute a team’s playing abilities. Last year, the Hornets ended their regular season as MIAA Champions, holding a record of 50-10.

Because baseball is reliant on physical abilities, quick reactions and team contribution, these all play a significant role in winning a game and are affected by home team advantages.

The theory of the home team advantage may be recognized as unfair, and in some aspects may be slightly off set. But the only way to have an equally fair game is for both teams to play on a foreign field.

In most cases, an equally fair game will not happen because any games outside of tournament play are either played home or away. Schools merely cannot afford to be constantly renting public facilities to create an equivalent playing environment.

Cody Grauberger/The Bulletin

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Rugby Competition

Emporia State will hold their first rugby meet Feb 21. The event will last from 2-4 p.m. ESU’s rugby team is called the ESU Old Yellow Rugby Club and will compete against the Northwest Missouri rugby team. The meet will be held at East 18^th street at the ESU Rugby Pitch, located across from the practice football fields on the other side of the one lane tunnel. For more information on the event contact Austin Wagoner at awagoner@emporia.edu.

Baseball on the Road

The 3-2 Hornets will play the Colorado School of Mines at 5 p.m. Feb. 20, plus a 2 p.m. double header Feb. 21 and a noon game Feb. 22. This will the Hornets’ second season competing against Colorado. Last year’s double header game against the Mines resulted in the Hornets winning 17-7 in the first game and 16-7 in the second game.

Due to the worsening economy, the Hornets will play back-to-back games against same schools to cut back on costs. Playing these four games holds no tournament significance but does affect their regular season record.

Colorado has played a total of eight games and currently holds a record of 3-5, in comparison to the Hornets’ record of 3-2 with a total of five games played.

Hornets vs. Ichabods

The Emporia State men’s and women’s basketball teams will compete against Washburn at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 25 in Topeka. This will be the Hornets’ second time playing Washburn this season. Last time, the ESU men’s team won 85-75 and the ESU women’s team won 85-78. This will be the Hornets’ second to last game before the start of the MIAA postseason tournament.

Washburn is commonly known as Emporia’s biggest rival. This will be the 190^th game between the two teams on the men’s side and the 76^th game on the women’s. The Ichabods currently hold a record of 13-11 on the men’s side and 21-3 on the women’s, compared to the Hornets’ current record of 16-9 in overall play and 10-8 in the MIAA on the men’s side and 22-3 in overall play and 17-2 in the MIAA on the women’s.
Track Team Travels

The Emporia State men’s and women’s indoor track and field teams will compete at the Nebraska Tune-up Feb. 20 in Lincoln, Neb. and at the KSU Open Feb. 21 in Manhattan, Kan. This will be the Hornets’ second time competing at the KSU Open prior to the MIAA championships. Last year, six of the seven ESU athletes that attended the meet placed in the top 10. With only two more meets before the MIAA championships, this tournament provides competition and practice in preparation for the championships.

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Most Emporia State students would be surprised at the restrictions they have compared to athletes. For instance, the HPER building on the ESU campus is the headquarters for the athletic department. It contains a 60-yard stretch of indoor track, two fitness centers, and an indoor pool, almost all of which are accessible only to student-athletes, with the exception of the pool that is only open 5 hours each day.

This can affect the students of Emporia greatly because they should be able to access all facilities regardless of athletics. To label something athletics only is to restrict a student of their right to exercise on all campus facilities, not just some.

However, Emporia is not the only school that has such policies. In fact, there are many colleges nationwide that abide by very similar policies.

Nationwide recruitment is based on getting the best players and coaches around, but nearly 60 percent of the students at the University of Oklahoma did not meet admissions requirements and were admitted under the title of special admits.

Why should an athlete be accepted when they did not work as hard as the student that made the admissions requirement? Does throwing a football make one individual excel over another? People agree to disagree, but we live in a society based on equal opportunity, so let equality prevail.

Plato once stated “all men are by nature equal, made all of the same earth by one Workman; and however we deceive ourselves, as dear unto God is the poor peasant as the mighty prince.” So what is it that sets an athlete’s education above that of another student?

For over 50 years, colleges have been at an arms race to recruit athletes and coaches to improve their collegiate athletics. However, the race has gone to new measures where many schools across the nation are building academic centers exclusively for athletes to better their athletes’ education experience.

A majority of these buildings are built with money that is either donated or raised, but not in all cases.

By 2010, the University of Oregon is planning to build a three story, 34,000 square foot facility that is large enough to serve as a fitness center and tutoring facility for athletes. It will have 37 individual tutoring rooms as well as a 112-seat lecture hall and even a reflection pool.

Philip H. Knight, the co-founder of Nike and an Oregon alumnus, is completely funding and designing the facility. However, the school must pay $250,000 annually for maintenance. One might think that is not a bad price for such a nice building, but one would be wrong. An additional $750,000 must be dished out to furnish the building with state of the art equipment, all of which is not allowed to be used by non-athletes.

With such stipulations, one might wonder where this $1 million is coming from, chances are, it is coming out of students’ tuition. Some athletes even receive such large scholarships to play collegiate sports that they end up having thousands of dollars to spend at their leisure.

The very same students that attend games and support their team are also providing their athletes a better education than themselves. Because Knight requires Oregon to completely furnish the new facility and will not allow students to use the facility students are being cheated out of useful, up to date facilities.

Although this is not the case with all schools, an intervention should occur to rid higher education of such ailments. If ESU allows the issue of equal opportunity education for students to go unnoticed, the integrity of athletic and academic programs will be compromised.

Cody Grauberger/The Bulletin

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