RED: 2023 NC State Baseball And Softball — Technician 02/16/23

TECHNICIAN

THE DAILY TAR HELL 2023

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WHAT YOU MISSED:

Therapy goat gets lifesaving surgery at NC State Veterinary Hospital

Therapy goat Bianca underwent emergency surgery at the NC State Veterinary Hospital because she couldn’t stop producing milk, which caused her utters to swell. According to her owner, Bianca will snuggle with people and press her forehead to their cheek and has brought comfort to many people. Donors contributed to pay for the surgery through a GoFundMe, and doctors were able to save Bianca.

SOURCE: WRAL

Raleigh Police Department release footage of tasing death of Darryl Williams

The Raleigh Police Department released body camera footage showing the events that led to the death of Darryl Williams. Officers tased Williams multiple times even after he informed them about his heart issues. Six officers have been placed on administrative leave while investigations are ongoing.

SOURCE: REUTERS

Eggs cost 70% more than they did one year ago

The Bureau of Labor Statistics released inflation data revealing that egg prices rose 8.5% in the month of January compared to the month before. In the year through January, egg prices increased 70%. Contributing factors to the rise in price include the highly contagious avian flu, which has impacted egg supply, as well as higher feed and transportation costs for producers.

SOURCE: CNN

Missing dog takes 100-mile trip in taxi

A three-year-old cavapoo named Ralph made a 100mile round trip in a taxi after he ran away from his owner in England. He jumped in a taxi with a family headed to the Manchester airport, and the taxi driver didn’t want to leave him by himself, so he took the dog along for the ride. Ralph was safely returned to his owner after the trip.

SOURCE: BBC

THE RADAR

Events to keep an eye on for the week of February 16

WELLNESS DAY EVENTS

Thursday, Feb. 16

CAMPUS Free

Use the Wellness Day to recharge by participating in any of the University’s many Wellness Day events. Start your morning at Carmichael Gym with 8 a.m. Yoga Flow and 10 a.m. Relaxation Station featuring aromatherapy and snacks. At noon head to either Stafford Commons to get a poem from the Poetry Fox or Lake Raleigh to hang out in hammocks. Get your heart pumping 1-3 p.m. at Miller Fields with drop-in tailgate games.

FEMINIST FRIDAY

Friday, Feb. 17, 2:30-3:30 p.m.

WOMEN’S CENTER, TALLEY 5210 Free

Head to the Women’s Center for an educational, student-led presentation and discussion through counter-storytelling. Feminist Fridays are an ideal time to find community and discuss issues that are important to you.

GLOBAL FILM SERIES: “MADE IN BANGLADESH”

Tuesday, Feb. 21, 6:30-8:05 p.m. WITHERSPOON STUDENT CENTER Free

Join NC State Global and University Libraries for their next installment of the Global Film Series. “Made in Bangladesh” features a 23-year-old clothing factory worker in Bangladesh who creates a workers union despite the risks posed by management and her husband.

PLAYMAKERS MOBILE: “THE TEMPEST”

Wednesday, Feb. 22, 5-6:15 p.m.

D.H. HILL JR. LIBRARY, NORTH FORUM Free

University Libraries will host PlayMakers Mobile for their one-hour rendition of Shakespeare’s “The Tempest” featuring only six actors performing in one tiny square of space.

How to keep your personal items safe at the gym

At the gym, lockers are a great way to keep personal items safe but are sometimes intimidating for first-time users. Gym staff members break down how to use lockers and give tips for remembering locker combinations and numbers.

Carmichael Gym has two options for keeping visitors’ items safe while they work out: day-use lockers and overnight lockers. Jason Spivey, associate director for Wellness and Recreation, said day-use lockers are free, available in most spaces around the gym and have built in locks, but many people use the lockers without actually locking them, making their items susceptible to being stolen.

“We have an abundance of lockers in almost every space that we have,” Spivey said. “And those lockers come with locks built into them, so you don’t even have to have [your own] lock. … I would encourage everybody to put stuff in lockers and then to actually lock the locker. A lot of times people will just put stuff in lockers but not lock it. And that’s really not doing what it’s supposed to do.”

Spivey said day-use lockers are meant for temporary use and work by allowing users to

set a new lock code each time it gets used. To set a new lock code, users should pick an unlocked locker, while it is unlocked, set a new code using the dials, close the locker and scramble the numbers so it locks.

Leo Jaffe, graduate student in public administration and program assistant facility operations for Wellness and Recreation, said many gym-goers don’t use the lockers because they aren’t sure how to use them.

“A lot of times students, they’re a little hesitant to use lockers only because they may not know how to use them,” Jaffe said. “We do have infographics in our main hallway and I think on [the second] floor as well.”

Jaffe said gym staff are also available to assist users with the lockers.

“Our staff is completely available to teach users how to unlock and lock a locker,” Jaffe said. “And more often than not, for users who do have trouble opening the locker, our staff is more than happy to … open the locker for them. There’s never a bad time to ask our staff for assistance with unlocking a locker.”

Jaffe and Spivey recommend either writing your locker number and combination in your notes app or taking a photo to make finding and unlocking your locker easier.

“Take a photo [with] your phone,” Spivey

said. “I think one of the challenges is that all the lockers look the same, so I think just having an awareness of what bank of lockers you used, and taking a photo of the area, or of the locker specifically just helps.”

Spivey said gym-goers can also rent overnight lockers, which can be more comfortable since users would become familiar with a spe-

cific locker and its lock.

“If students are really hesitant because they don’t want to feel like they don’t know how to use day-use lockers, we also have overnight lockers that they can rent,” Spivey said.

Visit technicianonline.com to view the entire article.

Candy, Condoms and Consent spreads awareness about safe sex, relationships

The Movement Peer Educators held a Candy, Condoms and Consent event for Valentine’s Day in Talley Student Union. The Movement Peer Educators are a group of students trained in interpersonal violence prevention and education who advocate for a safer and more equitable campus community.

Lily Smith, a fourth-year studying applied mathematics and director of events for the Movement Peer Educators, said the group holds the tabling event every Halloween and Valentine’s Day.

“We work to prevent interpersonal violence on campus,” Smith said. “We feel like consent is an important topic that gets raised a lot around those holidays. But it’s important, we’re around and we just really enjoy passing out candy and talking to different people and asking them questions about consent. And we also provide free safe sex supplies. It’s just a good time to do it.”

Katherine Fowler, a first-year studying meteorology and a facilitator in training, said Candy, Condoms and Consent provides students with critical information about consent, access to safe sex materials with candy and other goodies.

“I hope it provides students with access to safe sex materials and provides them with some preventative education and education on consent as well because it’s very important,” Fowler said.

Students visiting the table could spin a wheel with num-

bers and then be asked a question about consent based on the number they landed on.

“We’ll ask them things like, ‘Person A doesn’t consent to sex, but person B forces them into a sexual act. If person A orgasms, does that change their consent?’” Smith said. “Just different scenarios around consent and how that changes the context of the situation. ‘Does consent apply to relationships outside romantic relationships?’ The answer’s yes, of course. You have people thinking about how consent is present in their everyday lives.”

Smith said she hopes the event positively impacts the student body and spreads awareness about consent and sustaining healthy relationships.

“I hope people leave not only with candy and safer sex supplies, but also thinking about consent more throughout their day, thinking about how it impacts them and how they can use it in their relationships,” Smith said. “And also spread awareness about our group and what we do on campus. We also offer workshops and a few other events around interpersonal violence prevention topics, so it just kind of brings more turnout to those and get our name out there on campus.”

Safe sex supplies and stickers for the event are funded by the Women’s Center, Smith said.

“I also actually applied for something called the Condom Collective,” Smith said. “I think it’s through Trojan, it’s through a group called Advocates for Youth. And so I applied for that last semester and this semester and they sent

me 500 free condoms. We use those.”

Fowler said the Movement Peer Educators will also be holding Take Back the Night on April 13 from 5-9 p.m. in Talley Student Union. The group encourages everyone to come.

“Take Back the Night is about raising awareness around sexual assault, and how it affects people’s lives,” Fowler said. “We’ll basically have a speaker, a survivor speak out and then about halfway through we’ll have a march around campus. So I would definitely recommend showing up, you don’t have to sign up or anything. We want as many people there as possible marching with us and speaking out for victims of interpersonal violence.”

Campus radio station WKNC to disallow non-student DJs from hosting radio shows

WKNC 88.1, NC State’s student-run radio station, announced it will begin enforcing a longstanding University policy and disallow non-student DJs from hosting radio shows. Three shows, all of which have been hosted by members of the NC State community for decades, will be affected: Geet Bazaar, Both Kinds Radio and Friday Night Request Rock.

Maddie Jennette, a fifth-year studying computer engineering and general manager at WKNC, said the decision was made to emphasize the station’s focus on students and is in alignment with the existing Academic Progress Policy within Student Media and University Regulation 11.55.07.

“I think that Student Media and WKNC should be for the students, run by the students only, and it just hasn’t been that,” Jennette said. “It’s also an official policy, an NC State policy.”

According to the Academic Progress Policy, Student Media employees must be enrolled as full-time students at NC State, and University Regulation 11.55.07 states that members of student organizations must be enrolled in at least one credit hour. Others can participate as guests but may not exercise the same privileges as members.

Jamie Lynn Gilbert, associate director of Student Media and advisor to WKNC, has worked in this position since 2006. She said having non-student DJs at the station has been something she has questioned for a while since the station is student-run.

“We are part of NC State Student Media,” Gilbert said. “We

are funded in part by student fees that students pay. Our former Vice Chancellor for Academic and Student Affairs Dr. Tom Stafford was very known for his philosophy of ‘students first.’ And so it was always a little strange to me to have non-students at the radio station.”

Jennette said the decision doesn’t mean a student can’t pick up these shows or shows like these, it just gives more students the opportunity to do so.

“We’re not getting rid of these shows,” Jennette said. “We’re not saying no one is ever allowed to play prisoner request heavy metal songs on Friday night, any DJ can do that. We’re not getting rid of these shows, we’re retaining the focus on student DJs.”

Gilbert said there are also some student DJs that host shows or are training to host shows similar to those hosted by nonstudents. Saloon Tunes, which airs Saturdays at 10 a.m., and Western Wednesday, which airs Wednesdays at 8 a.m., play Western and country music akin to Both Kinds Radio.

“Heavy metal programming will continue very likely with student DJs during those time slots,” Gilbert said. “We’re training at least one heavy metal DJ, maybe two, in our current training class.”

Jennette said that ultimately, she thinks this decision is in the best interest of students.

“[There’s] more room for students to DJ and just entirely a focus on student DJs,” Jennette said. “I think that’s how it should be.”

The policy will go into effect Monday, May 8.

College Board’s implication in Florida politics is a critical warning for higher education

Black History Month was first observed on a college campus at Kent State University in February 1970. As we enter February 2023, 53 years since its initial celebration, the institution of higher education that gives breath to Black American history is under siege.

new high school Advanced Placement course on African American Studies. In January, Florida rejected the course, saying it was historically inaccurate and lacking in educational value.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has for months been building a platform based on so-called “culture wars,” with legislation cracking down on LGBTQ and critical race theory content in schools. While his posturing on the culture warrior image is no surprise as he potentially readies a run for president in 2024, the most disturbing development has come from the response of organized education.

DeSantis’ most recent tirade against “woke indoctrination” has been directed at the College Board’s introduction of a

On Feb. 1, College Board delivered the official framework of the course, intending to pay homage to Black History Month. The announcement was blasted with criticism that the course left out material originally in the pilot and accused of letting politics influence their content. The updated version of the course lessens the presence of topics like Black Lives Matter, intersectionality, Black queer studies and reparations.

The College Board and Florida’s Department of Education have since gone back and forth disputing the motivations of the changes — Florida taking a victory lap framed as a culture battle won and the College Board vehemently denying the state’s involvement.

As a student and product of higher education in the United States, the ac-

tions of the presumptive 2024 Republican candidate for president and College Board are not only disheartening but incredibly alarming. AP courses are intended to prepare high school students for the content and norms of a college classroom; shying away from potentially controversial topics certainly does not reflect these values.

Regardless of the College Board’s intentions, the organization’s messy backtracking does not paint it in a flattering light. Merely engaging in this back and forth with the Florida government — who clearly has a politically motivated agenda — has tarnished its image and magnified a radical ideology seeking to suppress the realities of the African American experience. In attempting to walk the line between education and political forces, the College Board has decimated its already faltering reputation.

As for DeSantis, his antics are not just talking points; soon after the rejection

of the AP course, the Florida Governor announced a proposed total overhaul on higher education that would threaten the academic autonomy of collegiate institutions.

Fortunately, NC State offers a major and minor in Africana Studies, as well as a wide variety of classes relating to African American Studies, These courses are an important part of our world and should be available to anyone who wishes to learn.

These attacks on education and the dubious decisions from the College Board should strike fear into the hearts of college students and anyone involved with higher education. These developments have only fed the fire for politics energizing extreme informational intervention. Universities and their communities need to be cognizant and reactive to the political landscape as these brands of politics continue to grow. If they aren’t, the foundational freedoms of academia may very well be on the outs.

It’s time to let go of white feminism and embrace intersectionality in women’s rights

Content Warning: This article has references to sexual violence and rape.

ness in their liberation efforts by saying, “You white women speak here of rights. I speak of wrongs.”

In 1962, Black liberationist and activist Malcolm X said the Black woman is the most disrespected, unprotected and neglected person in America. His words still ring true today as many social justice movements have excluded Black women from their priorities.

Activists have aimed to liberate Black Americans. They’ve aimed to liberate women. But what about liberation for those with intersecting identities?

Second-wave feminism gave birth to Black feminism in the late 1960s because no previous political movements had been simultaneously anti-racist and anti-sexist. Historically, feminism has been reserved for white women alone, leaving behind people of color. When women’s rights efforts were first being made in the late 1800s, Black women recognized the lack of inclusivity. In a speech at the National Women’s Rights Convention in 1866, Frances Ellen Watkins Harper condemned white feminists for their selfish-

Ironically, feminism as a political movement and ideology was a byproduct of abolitionism during the 19th century. White women fighting for gender equality learned their methods in a fight for racial equality, then proceeded to exclude from their activism the people that inspired it.

Today still, women’s rights efforts are not conducive to the needs of women of color. Mainstream modern white feminism doesn’t address the issues that disproportionately affect women of color, such as mass incarceration and gender violence.

White women struggle because of their sex, but they’ve never had to struggle because of their race. And because they’ve never had to struggle because of their race, they’ve never faced the same economic disenfranchisement and violence that Black women face.

For example, at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Black and Latina women’s unemployment rates were 1.8 times and 1.6 times higher than white women’s, respectively.

Another example lies with sexual violence, with 20% of Black women being

raped during their lifetime. This is a larger percentage than women overall, with that average sitting at 15%. Any percentage of women being raped is horrific, but it’s important to note the way in which intersectionality puts Black women at a greater risk for such violence.

The history of sexual violence against Black women is a long one too. The legacy of slavery, which white women don’t have to face, illustrates this. Black girls were the targets of sexual violence from an early age as white slaveholders would rape them for economic purposes. That is, reproduction produced more enslaved people and thus more profit.

I want to be clear that I’m not excluding other women of color from this discussion. Black feminists in the 1977 Combahee River Collective Statement explained that social justice for Black women extends to other disadvantaged groups as well. Because fighting oppression on racial, sexual and economic fronts for Black women requires the dismantling of overall oppressive institutions, other minority groups benefit as well.

It would be hypocritical for any other conclusion to be made because white feminism doesn’t just harm Black women — it disregards the needs of disabled women,

LGBTQ women and women of other racial minority groups.

To know more about intersectionality and how you can address it in your daily life, watch critical race theorist Kimberlé Crenshaw’s TED Talk on intersectional feminism. Sociologist Patricia Hill Collins also explains Black feminism as an ideology and shares how we can change our approaches to women’s rights in “The Social Construction of Black Feminist Thought.”

Beyond educating yourself, you can get involved locally with organizations that acknowledge and advocate against interlocking systems of oppression such as the National Coalition of 100 Black Women and the Black Women’s Health Imperative.

Lastly, considering the prevalence of Black women’s disenfranchisement on an interpersonal level, the NC State Women’s Center has a wide range of resources including survivor services, educational workshops and training, volunteer opportunities and social events.

Feminism was created for middle-class, straight, cisgender white women. Now it’s time to make room for everyone else.

For a full list of resources, visit technicianonline.com

UNC puts feet first with new monument

UNC-Chapel Hill is tearing down its historic Old Well to make room for a giant monument of a foot, calling attention to why the University is so fond of the “Tar Heel” moniker.

The statue will be erected in honor of Hinton James, the first student to ever enroll at UNC — legend has it that James walked all the way from Wilmington to Chapel Hill to enroll. According to Samuel Pedice, a professor in the UNC history department, the experience left James with an appreciation for strong and sculpted feet.

“Hinton James dedicated his whole life to the foot,” Pedice said. “He started the school’s Podiatric Enthusiast Society, which held these coveted ‘foot fanatic’ parties. Feet massages, pedicures, customized sandals,

anything a foot fetishist could dream of happening at these events.”

Pedice said the phrase “tar heel” is said to trace back to North Carolina’s turpentine production industry, eventually becoming a term of pride used by Confederate soldiers during the Civil War.

However, records uncovered by Pedice show the Podiatric Enthusiast Society, now called the Filanthropists Enthusiastic about Every Toe Society (FEETS), using the term in 1797 to refer to an activity in which one’s heels are covered in chocolate and licked clean by a volunteer.

“We’ve been behind the nickname all along,” said an anonymous spokesperson for FEETS. “Our parties are still the wildest and most exclusive events each year, so don’t get any ideas about trying to secure an invite.”

Mr. and Ms. Wuf have romantic getaway, hundreds of wolf pups loose on campus

Hemily Miscreant

After an NC State Athletics intern accidentally left Mr. and Ms. Wuf in the same room overnight, hundreds of wolf pups have descended upon the Triangle and UNC-Chapel Hill’s campus. Orange County Animal Services has issued an emergency warning, advising all students to stay inside until the wolves are captured.

Dr. Pepper, a professor of animal science at UNC, said wolf litters typically consist of four to seven pups. Based on his observations, he said it appears Ms. Wuf gave birth to a litter of 416 pups, which is not only rare, but frightening.

“For an animal to produce that many offspring in one attempt — that’s almost inconceivable,” Pepper said. “The only explanation is that Mr. Wuf has unbelievably strong sperm, which should concern any rival school mascot looking to reproduce.”

Manny Trash, director of UNC Facilities Services, said he’s dispatching squads of janitors to address the frenzied cubs.

“It seems the wolves were born with an innate instinct to defecate on the Old Well,” Trash said. “We have 60 men with Nerf guns perched in trees above the Old Well, but we’re in the midst of developing a more effective method.”

UNC authorities have voiced their concerns regarding campus safety. General William “Willy” Nilly, the nation’s highest-ranking military official, was called immediately after the first wolf pup was spotted.

“We are enlisting the help of ROTC,” Nilly said. “Thank-

fully, UNC has exactly 416 ROTC members, so we are sending one after each wolf. Hopefully, we shouldn’t lose too many soldiers.”

Several students are already missing, and a few have been spotted running on all fours after the wolf pups on campus.

“If the wolf pups want to take a few students to raise as their own, let them,” Nilly said. “I’ve spoken with Pentagon officials, and the Department of Defense is extremely

interested in tagging these individuals for a longitudinal study to develop our military capabilities.”

Kirk Wiggler, a fourth-year studying aviation, said NC State will face consequences for this chaos.

“My dad works for God, and he said NC State is about to get smited,” Wiggler said.

UNC deserves justice over 2022 March Madness loss

Bombastic Brutus Staff Complainer

After last year’s crushing defeat in the NCAA men’s basketball tournament, I found myself a bit dazed, confused and just generally lost. It just didn’t make sense. It seemed as if God himself was wearing Tar Heel blue; I mean, we beat Duke! An NCAA win appeared to be not only the school’s destiny, but my own; the self-worth I attached to this game was astronomical, and suddenly, I was plummeting back to Earth. The Instagram post with my clever manipulation of the GDTBATH slogan would have to remain in my drafts. My bracket was broken and my spirit in shambles.

I began doing my research and looked into this “Kansas University.” I studied for hours, and then there it was, right before me on the Google profile — “Acceptance Rate: 92.5%.”

My mind was racing. That was more than four times the rate of Chapel Hill’s 20.4% acceptance rate –– a number seared into my mind to remind people from out of town and friends back home. I looked into NCAA bylaws, and, to my astounding horror, I found zero regulations about schools’ acceptance rates. The Division I status of the university was only related to the size, not our academic superiority or reputation.

My questions about life deepened, the challenges to my very existence more ingrained. How could a benevolent and virtuous God allow for such an injustice? Where was the outrage?

After almost a year of sleepless nights and agitation, I have decided to put my tar-foot down. Clearly this is my anointed purpose, that divine right which all UNC students come to realize in their time at this holy — but legally, irreligious — institution.

Today I begin my campaign for the establishment of a new basketball tournament

based solely on admission rates, with a maximum threshold of 47.4%. It is unfair for a university as esteemed as ours, with student athletes who might be too busy studying to practice basketball, to be judged on the same standards as other so-called “schools.”

My proposal is as follows:

In this form, UNC will finally receive the roses they deserve; no longer will we have to compete against schools with high acceptance rates, which is in essence a form of “academic doping” and cheating.

Why 47.4%? This number reflects an academic integrity meticulously constructed to represent the best of the best. Coincidentally, the figure would leave out our bitter rivals at NC State who are “technically” having a superior basketball season compared to us. But this only goes to prove the point at hand: clearly the high focus on athletics — that has recently seen the school edge out UNC in most sports — is because of their lesser status as an academic institution,

which the acceptance rate proves beyond a doubt. Moreover, it cannot be ruled out that NC State’s emphasis on STEM has not given them an unfair advantage in a game that is defined by angles and percentages.

Chapel Hill should also be retroactively awarded the 2022 Championship and receive a lengthy apology from the NCAA. This format can not only do justice to the men’s basketball team, but also the women’s team and all of the organized sports at the University.

As Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. once said, injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. It is time to make things right before UNC is further deprived of the highminded, Carolina blue world order. I know the journey ahead will be difficult, but it is one I am willing to take on. Perhaps it is true that God gives his hardest battles to his strongest soldiers, and UNC is ready to go to war.

Public schools are the new craze

Zippity Doo Da Zippity Day

Wonderful Feeling Wonderful Day

Every day, I wake up and smell the roses of our beautiful, resplendent campus. I look outside my stained-glass dorm window and I see shades of wonderful baby blue with no heinous reds or demon blues to haunt us. Here, I am free, here I am proud of my public Ivy.

When I was growing up, I attended Enloe, a local esteemed public school. It’s not that weird, there’s no shame in doing this, in fact, I’m so happy I continued to go public when I traded my green and gold for that angelic Carolina blue. My only other options were submitting myself to a pack of ravenous wolves or that school that rhymes with puke.

My public school life taught me strength and how to cope with not having the same access to resources as my private school buddies. For example, they always got to summer in Venice or Paris. I only got to summer in the Hamptons, where my grandparents own a ton of old houses that are so boring to stay at. They also bribed their way into school, whereas I just took the ACT 6,789,998,212 times and finally got a perfect score to submit — talk about great tutors!

It’s nice I won’t be swarming in debt by the time I get out of here — unlike Dook students, with their faux-Ivy academics and privatized prices. Not for me! I’ll take my good ol’ public school any day over that. I didn’t even try to get into Duke, actually.

Their loss — I would’ve offered so much to that school of dweebs.

Many students who hailed from public schools feel the same way. In fact, I’ve actually started a club for incoming free-range, public-schooled freshman who are die-hard pubbies. The club is coined Scholars Against Private Schools — SAPS, for short. The requirements to become a SAP is quite simple: you just have to have attended a public school and have lots of traumatizing stories about it.

Our newspaper tried to do a feature on us when we first started, but we just had so many members that it was too much work. As the founder and president, it’s hard to keep my young rams in check. SAPS also follows Nietzschean philosophies and discusses the ethics of private schools.

We have actually formed a petition to fully rid the UNC System of privatized universities, our petition currently has four signatures, so be sure to sign if you’re a true pubby.

I got to know a lot of interesting people during my public high school years — unfortunately for them, they ended up at the wretched NC State, and their raw talent will never be utilized there. Shame on their poor, tainted souls. They will all end in the ninth circle of Tarhell. Besides, it’s no secret that Duke and NC State students are practically begging to get in here. In the wise words of my favorite literary icon’s genius son:

“My friends are definitely jealous that I go to UNC,” Archibald Hemingway said.

Even the mascots at that wretched red school are jealous of my time at UNC’s prestigious campus. In fact, when I was wearing my uniform of head-to-toe Carolina gear to the long-awaited UNC vs. NC State football game, Mr. and Ms. Woof pulled me aside. They told me I had to move out of the way of where I was standing because I was so blindingly blue that the referees were confusing me for an athlete. I took this as a compliment since our team has our savior Drake Maye, a certified Heisman candidate and

the best player of all time, who is a pubby himself.

So, the next time you’re thinking of talking down on public schools, think again of what we have to thank for them. We have Chapel Hill, which was handcrafted by the fingertips of God himself, and given to public schools, not private. This is not a coincidence at all, this was predestined.

Be proud of your pubby heritage and join SAPS today! Membership fees are not included with your tuition.

NC State donates bricks amid UNC public safety crisis

Students are of the opinion that UNC’s buildings need a face-lift. They’re becoming more and more outdated every year, and this past month, they’ve also become unsafe.

This past weekend, students gathered to protest outside of Davis Library in light of various students reporting injuries. Crystal Ball, a fifth-year studying astrology, discussed her harrowing experience while holding a sign that read “Student Health > Unranked Athletes.”

“I tripped on, like, a million uneven bricks on the way and I got this bad feeling,” Ball said. “As I was walking up to the entrance, a brick literally fell and hit me on the head.”

Ball described the experience as deeply traumatizing, but she was more worried for other students.

“I saw the warning signs, because Mercury is in retrograde and I didn’t have my crystals on me, but a lot of students aren’t in touch with their horoscopes and won’t be able to harness their inner clairvoyant,” Ball said.

No official statement has been released by the President or the Chancellor, causing many students to feel that the University refuses to spend nearly as much money on the student body’s health and safety as they do on UNC’s failing athletic programs.

As UNC students continued to report injuries, NC State stepped up to provide support. NC State Chancellor Wandy Roodson announced that the Wolfpack will be donating 1

million bricks to UNC.

“We urge our students to think about solutions and do what they can to contribute,” Roodson said. “NC State is a university that believes in being an example of that mindset for our students. When we see a neighbor in need, we’re called to help. It’s the Wolfpack way.”

For many, Roodson’s words struck a chord. At NC State, students who find a loose brick on campus take it home with them as a memento of their college experience. Some students have been adding their personal bricks to the donation pile.

Genny Russ, a second-year studying public affairs at NC State, said she had leaped at the chance to donate to the less fortunate.

“There’s this stereotype that we think UNC is where you go when you can’t get into NC State,” Russ said. “I wanted to give my brick to the cause because at the end of the day, it’s about thinking and doing what’s best for the community.”

In light of UNC’s silence amid this public safety crisis, NC State’s generosity is greatly appreciated. UNC has announced that renovations with the donated bricks will begin next month. In the meantime, NC State has opened up the renowned Hunt Library for use by UNC students to take refuge in whenever they need a safe place to think and do.

Until the repairs are completed, students should highly consider wearing hard hats around campus to avoid head injury. Stay safe out there.

Tiny homes replace UNC’s Old Well

Gentrification has taken a foothold in Chapel Hill as affordable housing diminishes year after year, compounded with a saturated market and no space for new developments.

The problem has become so dire that centuries-old UNC monuments are being replaced with exorbitantly-priced land developments, starting with the Old Well — developers have torn down the beloved UNC spot in favor of North Carolina’s tiniest house to date.

The Old Well has been a staple of campus culture since UNC opened in 1789. Students line up and take a sip in hopes of good luck, one of the few things they can cling onto after the men’s basketball team dropped out of the rankings.

The loss of this landmark has been felt deeply by several students on campus, resulting in a campus-wide depression. Richard Cranium, a second-year studying management and society, said he was greatly saddened by the news.

“It’s really sad because I used to walk by there and feel encouraged, and now with the tiny home there, I just feel small,” Cranium said. “I don’t think it’s a coincidence I got my Kenan-Flagler rejection letter right after they finished

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Though FEETS remains secretive about their actions, other UNC students want to publicly embrace their love of feet. The football team’s helmet designs in 2012 and

construction.”

Resident Kayleyleigh Sparks, who moved into the former Old Well last week, said she noticed the change in attitude right away.

“As an NC State grad, it was a bit of a culture shock moving here,” Sparks said. “The vibes were really depressing at first, which is something I didn’t get in Raleigh. I’m just really grateful to be in a new place, because it seems like a lot of the buildings here are kind of falling apart.”

The culture shock didn’t last long, though, before Sparks decided to take action for the betterment of the entire UNC community.

“I could just tell I needed to do something,” Sparks said. “UNC students just didn’t seem like they had much school pride, what with the Old Well being gone and an unranked basketball team. Men’s basketball is a lost cause, but I knew I could do something about the Old Well.”

Sparks purchased a water fountain and installed it in front of the tiny home, which turned out to be successful with hundreds of students.

“Man, it felt great drinking out of a public water fountain again,” Cranium said. “You don’t get a lot of opportunities to drink unfiltered water these days, and it’s really special

2019 honored the feet of the players before them, and the Department of History added a podiatric studies major last year due to popular demand.

UNC’s most recent display of affection involves getting rid of a focal point and tradition. It is said that a student who drinks from the Old Well water fountain on the first day of classes will receive all As that

to have that magic back.”

Although some students were unhappy with the new development in place of the Old Well, Barmondo Acock, a seventh-year studying business administration, didn’t mind it much at all.

“I think it’s a perfectly good size,” Acock said. “In fact, it might be a little big. Probably an above-average size for a house — I don’t have any complaints. There are definitely, like, smaller houses out there, right? I don’t see a problem with it.”

much.”

semester.

Nonetheless, the replacement is being met with acclaim by students. Alex Digit, a second-year in the new podiatric studies major, said he plans to carry the Old Well tradition over to the statue.

“Without a drink from the Old Well, I’d fail all my classes,” Digit said. “Maybe rubbing the foot for luck will help me just as

Regina Phalange, a graduate student in podiatry, plans to take the tradition a step further.

“I’m definitely kissing the foot every chance I get,” Phalange said. “I might even lick it, really get in there, you know? I’m going to need all the help I can get if I want to graduate.”

ACC continues to screw UNC athletics; football team latest victim

Coach Larry Former Football Coach

In an ever-familiar situation, North Carolina athletics faces its latest difficulty from the ACC offices. Announcing its 2023 football schedule, the conference handed the Tar Heels their toughest slate of games to date. The gauntlet of an ACC stand includes road trips to Clemson, NC State, Pitt and Georgia Tech, while hosting Duke, Miami, Syracuse and Virginia.

In a year where the Tar Heels appear poised to rise to the top of the conference, the ACC is making sure to do everything in its power to keep the team down. Led by the nation’s best quarterback, Drake Maye, and hall of fame head coach Mack Brown, Carolina is the only team in the conference that is equipped to handle a challenge like this. Nevertheless, it is a shame that the ACC is actively working against one of the founding members of the conference.

“It’s really, really difficult,” Brown said. “We start tough, and we finish with an unbelievably tough schedule. So I’m disappointed. I told them I didn’t like it. I didn’t think it was fair.”

Brown’s squad has several tough scheduling dynamics to overcome this season. First, going on the road four times throughout the year will be brutal. The game in Atlanta to face Georgia Tech is particularly daunting since the Heels haven’t beaten the Yellow Jackets since 2019. Fortunately, North Carolina can lean on its star quarterback for leadership on and off the field.

“Drake Maye isn’t exactly one to brag,” On3 writer Steve Samra said. “He’s proving to be one of the most humble quarterbacks in college football along with being one of the best.”

As far as Maye’s performance against NC State goes, he showed out like many Carolina quarterbacks of years past. His most impressive pass was a fourth quarter interception caught by Wolfpack safety Tanner Ingle that proved critical to the outcome of the game. Only throwing one interception and being sacked twice, Maye proved himself against the

Wolfpack. Unfortunately, in typical ACC fashion, biased officiating in favor of NC State led to four Tar Heel penalties and removed a touchdown from the board, leading to a supposed Wolfpack win. Nevertheless, Maye was spectacular during the game.

North Carolina also returns a strong defense to help navigate the schedule. In 2022, the Tar Heels led the conference in several key stats. North Carolina allowed more points per game and touchdowns than any other ACC squad. After a memorable year on defense, North Carolina has a golden opportunity to allow more touchdowns this season after starting cornerbacks Storm Duck and Tony Grimes transferred out.

While the Tar Heels are well prepared for the challenge, the ACC’s continued mistreatment of North Carolina is a major disappointment. College sports fans, especially in the ACC, are familiar with the long history of favoritism in the conference. Without fail, the conference has favored teams like Duke and NC State while giving Carolina the short end of the stick. Unfortunately, this isn’t even the first time when North Carolina has been cheated by the conference in football.

Throughout its 70-year history, the ACC has never respected the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, always dealing out an unfair hand. Giving the Tar Heels an unfairly difficult schedule is just the latest episode in this unfortunate story. It’ll be up to Maye, Brown and the ‘Heels historic defense to lead North Carolina to the top of college football’s premier conference.

Caleb Love’s charity: ‘Brick-by-Brick’

Making headlines as one of the ACC’s premier shotmissers, junior guard Caleb Love opened up to the local press about his inadequacies in the shooting game, standing for something far bigger than expected.

Right before North Carolina went on its storied NCAA tournament run — that eventually ended in an on-brand humiliation of the Tar Heels — Love was urged by his agent, Terry Watson, to capitalize on his incredibly inefficient scoring prowess through charity work. Heeding that advice, Love opened up the Brick-by-Brick foundation — a charity committed to improving the condition of the homeless population in Chapel Hill. Since March 2022, the fund has raised over $3.45 — with Love contributing $0.01 for every missed shot.

Yes, he’s actually missed nearly 350 attempts since the foundation’s conception.

“It’s just extremely important to me to give back to my community,” Love said. “It means a lot to me to know that when I go out there and stink it up, someone on top of the other team is benefiting from it. Just truly grateful to be in this position.”

The largest concern among skeptics is how little Love contributes to the fund per missed shot. Entering every night as a lock to chunk at least five attempts off front iron with his busted-ass jumpshot; however, Love feels it’s better to play things on the safer end.

“Originally Terry Watson wanted me to contribute way more,” Love said. “Something about using a larger sum

of money would help with ‘charity fraud,’ whatever that means. He told me that the money would definitely be going towards a house for someone, though now that I think about it he just hired a contractor.”

Another concern among locals is the concept of charity work for the less fortunate in general, with Chapel Hillians preferring to live in a bubble of self-righteousness without a desire to actually contribute to the lives of those around them.

“I wish that feller would just play some damn ball,” said Carolina fan Cooter Thomas when we confronted him walking out of Walmart with a two-liter of Mountain Dew and a pack of Marlboro Reds. “I don’t give a rat’s ass ‘bout no damn charity. You think Dean Smith would’ve ever gone for something that stupid? Now ‘scuse me, I need to go home and mount my degree from ECU and catch up on ‘Yellowstone.’”

Among ranking players, Love finds himself in the bottom 12 athletes in field goal percentage so far this season — well on pace to pump those contribution numbers up even higher. What could come as a blow to the fund, however, is North Carolina’s dedication to missing the NCAA Tournament this year.

“Obviously less games means less stinkers in the box score,” Love said. “That’ll definitely come as a blow to the larger Chapel Hill area — we were shooting for a $5 contribution this year. Don’t get it twisted, we still have plenty of time to get there, which would put us well on our way at 0.0000089% towards a home here in the Hill.”

When asked about his opinion on Love’s altruism and the impact it’s had on the team, senior forward Armando

Bacot couldn’t provide a single intelligible sentence. Instead, the frontrunner for ACC player of the year drooled all over himself while editing his biceps for his upcoming post on Instagram. With no other options available, we turned to a quote from junior guard RJ Davis.

“Caleb and I share a special bond,” Davis said. “It’s not every day you have an opportunity to get as close with a teammate as he and I have due to occurrences off the court. He truly is the gift that keeps on giving, to everyone, even if you don’t want him to. Like, even if you explicitly tell him ‘That’s my girlfriend, man,’ he’ll do it anyway. Like, I’m serious, why would he do that? Kinda messed up when I sit here and think about it. … [long, incredibly awkward pause] … What was the question?”

Even though the hunt for an appearance in the big dance is fizzling out quickly, the hunt for five dollars is still extremely attainable given Love’s erratic behavior with the ball in his hands. Needing only 155 more missed shots to get there, he has a realistic chance to reach his goal as soon as this Sunday, Feb. 19, when the Tar Heels take on the No. 23 Wolfpack at PNC Arena.

Culture

Nomadic Photo Ark creates time capsule of campus

Monica Jane Frisell and Adam Scher travel the country with a full, mobile darkroom coined the Nomadic Photo Ark, capturing and recording individuals’ stories as part of their project “Portrait of US.”

Since July 2021, Frisell and Scher have visited Vermont, New York, Georgia, Colorado, Ohio and Florida. In each location, they invite people to sit for a recorded interview and share pivotal moments in their lives. Frisell then photographs the participants on 8-by-10-inch film with a Kodak Master field camera.

Through a partnership with the Craft Center, the Nomadic Photo Ark spent the beginning of February at NC State, photographing and recording stories of those on campus, culminating in a pop-up exhibit on Friday, Feb. 10 on Centennial Campus.

The exhibit featured 30 portraits of students, staff and Raleigh locals along with quotes from their interviews. Audio recordings of these interviews played in the background as attendees and participants wandered through the portrait displays.

“Being able to leave a set of the prints

and stories is really nice, because it ends up being a time capsule of what life was like,” Scher said. “It’s pretty small. It’s only 30 people. But it’s a little bit of an insight of what life was like this week on campus. That’s another part of the project, to create a snapshot of people’s stories right now.”

Frisell and Scher said conversation in combination with the process of analog photography creates authentic connection.

“I just see almost more of a collaboration between me and the person who’s sitting with me,” Frisell said. “Especially after the conversation, it really just allows us to sit together. It’s only like, a minute or two minutes, but it still makes it easier for me to feel good about taking the portrait. … I’ve never been able to capture that same kind of personal focus if I’m shooting digitally.”

The large format of 8-by-10 film allows Frisell to create contact prints where they lay the negative directly on the paper before exposure rather than suspending negatives above the paper with smaller film. This introduces directness and intimacy to the portraits.

“There is that element of the light [that] hits that one negative and then that negative

is touching the paper,” Frisell said. “And that’s about as close to that specific moment as you can get physically.”

This intimacy was evident in the final prints. Kate Scheer, a second-year studying mechanical engineering, participated in the

exhibit. Though Scheer doesn’t often like photos of herself, she enjoyed Frisell’s final print of her.

Pokemon GO Club builds campus community

leaders.

The NC State Pokemon Go Club serves as a tight-knit community for fans of all Pokemon media, from the mobile game to the franchise’s card game and movies. Pokemon Go, a location-based mobile game that was famous for its grip on the world upon its release in 2016, still boasts a loving fanbase and thrives in communities seven years later.

Riley Malik, a fifth-year studying business and president of the club, said a group of eight students founded the club in fall 2018.

Today, the Pokemon Go Club has the largest server in the NC State Discord hub, boasting over 2,500 members.

“Literally everyone and their mother can relate to it somehow,” Malik said. “At our input tables, people stop by and say, ‘Oh, I don’t know anything about going on, but I downloaded the app back in 2016.’ … Everyone can relate to that.”

Regular club meetings held every other Friday include games, raffles and tournaments. The club also hosts game strategy workshops, as well as organized tournaments that are registered under The Silph Road, a worldwide Pokemon network, and uses its competition rules.

The club also hosts its own tournament, the Tournament of Champions. In it, members can battle against every club officer and win an original Talley Student Union-inspired lapel pin, similar to that which players can win in Pokemon games after defeating gym

Pokemon Go tournaments are hosted in Talley Student Union and involve players trying to knock out all the Pokemon of their opponent using an assortment of six Pokemon. Players carefully select their six, making the most of the qualities and types of Pokemon they have. Tournaments between students follow a bracket-based progression.

Malik said the club welcomes participants from surrounding areas such as Durham and Chapel Hill and has even witnessed people traveling as far as Charlotte and South Carolina to participate in tournaments. Malik said some professors are even known to attend club meetings.

Nathaniel Wellborn, a third-year studying technology, engineering and design education, is the club’s webmaster. Wellborn said Pokemon Go is well suited for college students as it incentivizes activity and community engagement.

“I started playing freshman year when I got to college,” Wellborn said. “I figured I was gonna be walking around a lot, and it’d be a nice incentive to actually stay active and make sure I was getting out and about.”

As a member of a small degree program, Wellborn said the club has given him a space to meet people he would not meet otherwise.

NC State’s campus has 132 “Pokestops,” which are in-game locations that provide players with essential items. Additionally, North Campus has 16 gyms where players can battle each other for control and participate in raid battles which pit players against

particularly powerful Pokemon.

The club constructed these locations along a route that allows players to visit most of them in the amount of time it takes new Pokemon to generate in new locations.

Malik said the balance of game content and community at NC State is largely responsible for the club’s success.

“Where I went to high school … the closest Pokestop or anything I could interact with in the game was like a mile away, and I had to drive to it,” Malik said. “I couldn’t see anything from my house, and there were

no people around that were playing. … I feel like we’re really lucky because we have the campus. We have the resources in the game, and it’s been so amazing to help us build the community.”

While the game is what brought the club together, Wellborn said the community it created will be the most enduring aspect of the club.

“I think if Niantic or the Pokemon Company or Nintendo ended up at any point shutting down this game, I think we‘d just find another reason to hang out,” Wellborn said.

Libby Whittaker leads new crop of softball players for 2022-23 season

Redshirt junior Libby Whittaker is a bona fide leader of NC State’s fresh-faced softball team. The infielder is the only fourth-year who has stuck with the Wolfpack since her freshman year, and she’s as excited as anyone to see how this season shakes out with an almost entirely new crew.

“We have a super young team, but that’s exciting because it’s pretty new,” Whittaker said. “We have 11 new people and [about] 10 returners. … I think it’s gonna be a really good season — we have a lot of intensity, we have a lot of drive, and it’s something that some of our teams haven’t had in the past.”

Whittaker hails from Mifflinburg, Pennsylvania, a tiny borough made up of less than 3,500 people. Although she had a prolific high school career — boasting secondteam all-state honors in 2017 and 2018 — Whittaker wanted a change of pace from rural Pennsylvania.

“As soon as I got to Raleigh, I was like, ‘Wow, this is awesome,’” Whittaker said. “I had never really spent a lot of time in North Carolina, and I really wanted to go far away from home — just kind of get out. I love Raleigh, I love NC State — the education that I’m getting here is great.”

Although Whittaker’s individual and team goals have remained somewhat the same over the last four years, she sees something invigorating in this new group of women.

“From team to team, we wanted to win,” Whittaker said. “But, I feel like this year, everybody just kind of gels together really nicely. And not that that didn’t happen in

previous years — there’s something about this team this year that makes it feel special.”

Last year’s early exit from the ACC tournament was disappointing for a team that performed so well in nonconference play, but Whittaker looks toward the new season as an opportunity to work even harder despite setbacks. Facing a tough nonconference schedule, Whittaker and the rest of the team will lean on their youth and grit both on and off the field.

“We don’t give up and I feel like we make adjustments very fast,” Whittaker said. “Because [the team] is so young, and they’re

playing in their first collegiate games, I think we’re gonna go out strong and hopefully stay strong. Especially playing as a freshman, they’re going to want to make their freshman year memorable.”

Individually, Whittaker’s learned a lot from over three years at NC State. Every athlete has their ups and downs, making it crucial to find a happy medium — especially after a tough loss or a few bad practices.

“Hard work is more than hard work,” Whittaker said. “It takes a lot of time management, determination, grittiness, as I mentioned before. I feel like … mentality is one of the most important things that

anyone can have. If I didn’t have the right mindset, no shot I would still be here.”

Whittaker may be the picture-perfect example of a team leader this season, but she learned from some of the best. She credits Randi Farricker and Logan Morris, two of her former teammates, with showing her what it means to be a trailblazer.

“They were both kind of two different athletes,” Whittaker said. “Logan was super gritty — she just wanted to win. She was a baller, like, she always gave it 110%. And so did Randi, but Randi was more of my, like, mentality coach, in a way. She kept me stable; I could always go to her for something.”

Whittaker plans to graduate this spring with a degree in biology. Although she has one year of eligibility remaining, her biggest focus is on her post-graduate academic plans. Whittaker said she’s considering nursing school or continuing her job at UNC REX Healthcare where she works alongside physical and occupational therapists.

“There is nothing easy about being a student in STEM,” Whittaker said. “But, I appreciate the challenges. I’m glad that it’s kind of difficult for me because I was able to learn that much more, and I think it’s going to set me up for a lot of different things in the future.”

Post-graduate plans aside, Whittaker’s taking the season one game at a time.

“Regardless of, the results of the season, we’re gonna work hard,” Whittaker said. “We’re gonna be determined. We’re going to be gritty, and we’re gonna go out there every inning, every second of the game and try to win.”

NC State softball: Breaking home run records, but not the scoreboard

With the spring sports season in full swing, NC State softball is ready to dust off the diamond and get to work after going 33-23 overall and 7-17 in the ACC in 2022. What many casual fans might not realize is that NC State head coach Jennifer Patrick-Swift has an interesting method to the madness of scoring in softball: hit as many home runs as possible. Ultimately, this strategy leads to entertainment value of softball games being prioritized over actual scoring, or even winning, for that matter.

With the first five games of the 2023 season out of the way, the Pack has gone 0-5, so let’s take a look at how the statistics have led to these losses so far. The team’s batting average is a measly .178 compared to its opponents’ .434, as the Wolfpack has scored 14 runs to its opponents’ 58.

The first home run of the 2023 season can be attributed to freshman utility player Makayla Marbury. This first of many came in a five-inning, 15-1 loss to Arizona on Sunday, Feb. 12.

The 2022 season ended with a batting average of .260, but out of 359 total hits, 82 were home runs. This staggering number

of tanks within the Wolfpack batters box absolutely dwarfs its opponents’ number of 52. In addition, fifth-year infielder Logan Morris led the team with 14 homers by the end of the season.

The 2022 season was also highlighted by a specific game against UNC-Chapel Hill on March 26, when the team set a new program record for number of home runs within a game. The previous program record was eight home runs in 2013, but a grand total of nine home runs against the Tar Heels set a new target for the team to break through in 2023.

This mindset being preached within the

training rooms and on the field should be something to celebrate, but it could be giving false hope to people watching. Hearing news of home runs always gets fans excited, but when the bombs don’t translate to wins, it feels like they have no purpose. The past five seasons, excluding 2020, have led to mediocre win percentages, with no Wolfpack team achieving a win rate over .589. Over the same period, the Wolfpack has not trailed its opponents in home runs since 2017.

‘Leave no doubt’: Gino Groover, NC State baseball ready to put on a show in 2023

As we enter a new era of NC State baseball in 2023, it can be hard to find a star player to latch onto and a team identity to connect with and root for. Who will lead? Who will be there in the clutch? Most importantly, does the Pack have what it takes to get back to the NCAA Tournament?

Well, look no further than junior third baseman LuJames “Gino” Groover. Groover is set to headline a hungry Wolfpack squad in 2023, one that’s determined to set the record straight come postseason time and put on a show while getting there.

Groover, who transferred from UNCCharlotte, had a breakout season in 2022. On top of being an All-ACC player and leading the team in multiple statistical categories, Groover became a fan favorite due to his high-energy, dependable and clutch playstyle.

Now with a full year under his belt, Groover and the Wolfpack are ready to take matters into their own hands, especially after back-to-back seasons of controversial decisions that have foiled NC State’s high postseason aspirations.

This season, Groover and the Pack are determined to control their own destiny and leave no room for doubt by the end of the regular season.

“This year we’re going to turn some heads, open some eyes,” Groover said. “I think that this year, we’re going to let it be known and leave no doubt. That’s all we can do — take it out of the hands of other people, make it so there’s not even a question about what’s going to happen. We’re going to go out, win as many games as we can, perform to the best that we can, have fun and put on a show for everybody.”

Getting back to the tournament, or even contending for a tournament spot, isn’t easy, especially in the ACC. For Groover, the journey there starts with both personal improvement and stepping into a leadership role. As a transfer himself, Groover is in a prime position to be a role model for the Pack’s reloaded roster that includes seven transfers and 10 freshmen.

“I want to be better than what I was last year and in the previous years, to go out there and keep improving from a personal perspective.” Groover said. “But also just getting out there and leading the team, and then putting in a lot of confidence that carries all the way around — people are looking at what I’m doing.”

On top of sliding into a leadership role, Groover is determined to build on his statistically impressive 2022 season where he tallied 86 hits, 16 doubles, 10 home runs

and recorded a team-leading .364 batting average.

“I want to hit 20 doubles this year, 1520 home runs,” Groover said. “The biggest goal that I set is that I want to chase that .400-average mark. I think that’s probably the hardest one to do, especially in ACC, but I feel like I’m more than capable of doing it.” Groover didn’t just perform well in 2022; he performed well when it mattered the most. The junior consistently came through in clutch situations last season, hitting a game-winning home run in extra-innings versus Quinnipiac and scoring the gamewinning runs in back-to-back walk-off wins against UNC-Wilmington and Boston College.

Those are just the highlights because being clutch is something Groover prides himself in. His secret? Just treat that extrainning, two-out at-bat like any other.

“I treat it like any other normal at-bat — I go out there, and I’m just confident in my ability,” Groover said. “I know the work I

put in, it allows me to slow the game down and just go out there and do what I do normally, and I don’t try to do more than what I normally do. Essentially, I usually always make something happen when it’s needed.”

Groover’s clutch gene helped NC State win quite a few games last season, but at times, the team’s downfall was a lack of defense rather than offense. With a bevy of offensive talent on the roster, this year’s test will be when Groover and the rest of his team are fielding and pitching. But the junior is confident the Pack will pass that test with flying colors in 2023.

“Overall, I believe that our defense as a whole should be a lot better this year,” Groover said. “That’s what I’m excited about because we’re gonna hit, so it just comes down to stopping other teams from scoring, and I believe we have the ability to keep that to a low this year.”

As D1 Baseball’s No. 8-ranked third baseman entering the season, Groover is expected to have no issues in holding down

the hot corner for the Pack, and a team-wide focus on defense will aid an NC State squad that’s confident in its ability to produce offensively.

Ultimately, an improved defense and high-octane offense are nothing without a united team to power it. But even with 17 new players, Groover and his teammates are already on the same page. NC State is focusing on a selfless, team-first style of play, a strategy that Groover believes is the final piece of the puzzle to putting on a show during the season and leaving no doubt come April and May.

“At the end of the day, we know that once the time comes, these players are willing to play for the person in the next jersey,” Groover said. “That’s all you can really do. If we get the players to play for each other, great things will happen — put the team first instead of yourself.”

It all starts on Friday, Feb. 17 at 3 p.m. when NC State takes on Wagner in its season opener at Doak Field in Raleigh.

Take me out to the ballgame: Why you should watch NC State baseball and softball

Once basketball and football are over for the year, what’s an NC State fan to do? Instead of anxiously awaiting the fall semester return to Carter-Finley Stadium, give America’s favorite pastime a chance this spring.

In the next few months, there will be over 100 NC State softball and baseball games compared to less than 15 football games and a little over 60 for men’s and women’s basketball in a usual season. With that many games, being an in-person fan is opportune, and games are easier to attend as an oncampus student.

Plus, Doak Field has received some major upgrades after the 2022 season, including new seats, new lighting and a new video board. Baseball also features Ripken the Bat Dog, a black labrador retriever who fetches stray bats from the field. Ripken can also be found at Durham Bulls games, a not-too-far drive for some minor league baseball.

While Dail Field isn’t getting the same treatment as the Doak, it might be the easiest place to see a game for an on-campus student. Located adjacent to both Talley Student Union and Reynolds Coliseum, there’s no excuse not to attend an after-class softball game.

Here are some reasons to get excited about baseball and softball this season.

Baseball

The NC State baseball team is in the top 25 of several preseason polls, and this year’s squad is already promising. With a strong record of 36-21 last year and 17 new players, there’s a lot of anticipation brewing around the fresh faces.

Of the 10 incoming freshmen, outfielder Michael Gupton is the most encouraging addition. Having committed to NC State in 2018, Gupton is the nation’s No. 36 overall player in the class of 2022 and No. 1 in North Carolina according to Perfect Game. At the 2021 Perfect Game National Showcase, Gupton also set an unofficial world record in the 60-yard dash at 5.96 seconds. With his .380 batting average from high school, Gupton is sure to be a great addition to the 2023 Pack squad.

As for transfers, be on the lookout for junior outfielder Carter Trice. Coming from Old Dominion, Trice boasts a .288 batting average with 17 home runs and 49 RBIs in his sophomore year. Trice was also named to the Second-Team All-Conference USA.

In addition to the new players, plenty of returning names have a lot of promise. Junior infielder LuJames Groover had both the team-best batting average at .364 and the best OBP at .440 in 2022, and he actually had one more at-bat than Tommy White last

season. While “Tommy Tanks” has transferred, Groover is running it back with the Pack in 2023.

Also returning from 2022, junior outfielder Noah Soles had a .321 batting average and a .396 OBP last year, both of which are good for second amongst this year’s veterans. On April 4, 2022, Soles was named ACC Player of the Week for his performance in the series against Clemson.

Although the Pack has had unfortunate endings each of the last two seasons, head coach Elliott Avent has assembled a strong crew for his 27th with NC State. This year’s squad may have some development to do with 17 new players, but based on the aforementioned players alone, it could be another promising year for Pack9.

Softball

After 2022’s rough time in ACC play with a 7-17 record, Wolfpack softball is looking for a comeback season. Last year’s team wasn’t awful with a .589 overall win percentage, but stepping it up in ACC play will be crucial this season, and head coach Jennifer Patrick-Swift has assembled a worthy team of recruits; according to Extra Inning Softball, this incoming class is the fourthbest in the nation.

Among these top recruits is freshman

catcher Amanda Hasler. Hasler was the No. 10 recruit in the country, and although the Pack’s first five games of this season didn’t go great, she should be a force to be reckoned with this season. Although there have only been five games in the season so far, freshman utility player MaKayla Marbury has already garnered a .364 batting average with 11 at bats, the best average for those who have played all five games. You can’t make predictions this early in the season, but Marbury may be one to keep an eye on.

Of the returners, redshirt pitcher Aisha Weixlmann should continue to be an exciting player. With a 3.78 ERA from 2022 and 138 strikeouts collected from 127.2 innings pitched, Weixlmann should be on track to fulfill former pitcher Maddie McPherson’s spot this year.

Redshirt junior infielder Libby Whittaker has been slowly growing throughout her NC State career. After doubling her at-bats between 2021 and 2022, Whittaker’s batting average went from a .225 to .247. Whittaker also went from three to six home runs, and based on these trends, Whittaker should only be going up from here.

There is a lot to be excited about for both baseball and softball this year. Catch an after-class or quick weekend game and you’ll be seeing some world-class performances from either Pack squad.

NC State softball begins 2023 campaign after tough start

With the Candrea Classic in the books, Wolfpack softball finds itself in a rough 0-5 hole to start the season. Fortunately, the Pack will get to recoup at home with a 10-game stretch.

Where NC State stands

Softball at NC State has been good but not great during head coach Jennifer Patrick-Swift’s tenure. She has yet to produce a losing season but sits at a record of 109-81 during those four years.

A winless opening tournament is not the way anyone wishes to begin their season, but it happens nonetheless. The Pack has a dominant 62-25 home record over the past three seasons. That’s a statistic Wolfpack fans are excited to see with 37 home games lined up for this season.

Tournaments

Of those 37, nine come right away as the Pack hosts the ACC/Big Ten Challenge Feb. 17-19 and the Wolfpack Classic Feb. 24-26, split up by one home game against Elon on Feb. 22. Iowa and Purdue will each get two chances at the Pack during the Challenge. Funny enough, NC State is 1-1 against each team over the past 20 years. Penn, East Tennessee State and James Madison will combine for the five games during the Wolfpack Classic.

Looking deeper into the season, the only other regular season tournament NC State is lined up for is the LSU Tournament March 31-April 2. LSU swept the Pack last time it played in Baton Rouge in 2015, as well as winning a 2-1 series in Raleigh just two years ago. This poses itself to be an important midseason weekend for the Pack as the

HOME RUN

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Scoring on homers doesn’t guarantee a large amount of points unless the Pack can get runners on base. Hitting a grand slam, or even homers with multiple runners on base, can lead to a quick lead change over an opposing team, but strictly solo shots from NC State hitters won’t cut it.

The Wolfpack softball team and coaching staff seem to only care about hitting the ball out of the park rather than making specific plays to win specific games. If NC State really wants to score a solid amount of runs per game, then it should reel back on swinging for the fences to ensure that runners can get on base and open scoring chances.

remaining three games of the trip are split amongst Louisiana Tech and BYU.

Remaining Regular Season

Immediately following the Wolfpack Classic, NC State takes a trip to Blacksburg, Virginia, for a three-game weekend. It’s already been mentioned that the Pack hasn’t traveled well in recent history, but its conference woes are just as much an issue. NC State’s best conference record in coach Patrick-Swift’s tenure was 3-0 in 2020, the year COVID-19 shut down the world. Her best record outside this season was a dismal 15-22 in 2021.

Opening up conference play with Virginia Tech on the road is a crucial opportunity for

Even if the team wanted to keep its home run mindset, trying to keep runners on base would allow them to score more points and hopefully win more games in the long run.

Some baseball and softball fans might argue that a higher-scoring team is more fun to watch than one that scores more home runs, but there should be a happy medium between the two. If a team is relying solely on solo shots, then the game gets repetitive and only one member of the team is able to shine.

Patrick-Swift and the softball coaching staff should stray from their “home run or no runs” mentality in order to save the team from another mediocre season. The excitement of hearing the bat crack and the players rushing to make it to the bases can be more entertaining than seeing ball after ball go over the fence.

the Pack to inspire change in these self-built narratives. The Pack is 7-1 in Blacksburg since 2011 and has only lost one series there since 2005.

Returning to Raleigh, NC State will host back-to-back home series against NC Central and Notre Dame. The last time the Irish visited Raleigh was the previously mentioned 2020 series, a 3-0 sweep for the Pack, but when they met last year, it was the opposite. A day trip to Buies Creek, less than an hour-long bus ride from Dali Softball Stadium, for a matchup with Campbell interrupts the homestand as Boston College and Radford occupy the next four games.

The last time NC State went to Louisville, “Avengers: Infinity War” was less than a

month from its release date and the royal wedding was around the corner. The Pack also went 1-2 against the Cardinals. NC State has since gone 7-2, but all nine games were played in Raleigh. These two programs have been in very similar spots over the past five seasons, and this series could prove to be a tough, critical one for both sides.

A home game against North Carolina A&T sets up the Pack for the previously mentioned LSU Tournament. NC State won’t return home immediately, however, as it takes a trip up to New York for a threegame series with the Syracuse Orange. The Pack got swept in Patrick-Swift’s only trip to Syracuse, but an ACC tournament win in 2019 and a 2-1 series win last season show a positive trend in this matchup.

After that, the Pack plays 12 of its last 15 games at home. Those lone three road games make up the final series of the season against Pittsburgh. Following a game against USC-Upstate, NC State has backto-back series against Clemson and UNC. Patrick-Swift only has a combined two wins against these teams since joining the Pack, both of which came against UNC. These are the final home conference games of the season, so there isn’t a better time for her to increase that win total.

The remaining home series will be against Norfolk State and East Carolina, which includes Senior Day on April 30. The Pack beat the Pirates 9-6 last season in a comeback win and is looking for its first Senior Day win since 2019.

The ACC tournament will be hosted by Notre Dame this year during May 10-13. The Pack has won two ACC tournaments (2006, 2013) and one ACC Regular Season Title (2006) and is looking to accomplish both here in 2023.

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