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Tuesday, March 24, 2009 Volume 93, Issue 47Serving Southern Miss since 1927

INDEXCALENDAR............................2DIRTY BIRDS.........................2OPINIONS...............................4CONTACT INFO.....................5

ENTERTAINMENT.................6ENT. CALENDAR...................7SPORTS....................................8SPORTS CALENDAR.............8

POLICYTHE STUDENT PRINTZ IS PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND THURSDAY DURING THE FALL AND SPRING SEMESTERS. THE FIRST FOUR COPIES ARE FREE. EACH ADDITIONAL COPY IS 25 CENTS.

For the latest Southern Miss news, see studentprintz.com

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S PTreasury spending to lure investments in bad securities

TWITTERWant to know what’s happening around Hattiesburg? Follow us at twitter.com/printzentertain

ENTERTAINMENTBaltimore musician Dan Deacon dropped his new album last week. Find out what we think on Page 6

SPORTS Golden Eagle football gears up for their upcoming scrimmage in Madison this Friday. See Page 8 for full details

WASHINGTON -- The Obama administration on Monday released the long-awaited details of its plan to cleanse banks of bad home loans and other toxic assets, igniting a major Wall Street rally as investors glimpsed what might be the begin-ning of the end of a problem at the core of the financial crisis.

The Dow rocketed nearly 500 points after Treasury Secretary

Timothy Geith-ner briefed re-porters on the administration’s innovative but untested plan, which makes a strategic bet

that partnering with private inves-tors to buy the assets will stabilize the crisis while limiting the risk to taxpayers.

“We believe that this is one more element that is going to be absolutely critical in getting credit

flowing again,” President Barack Obama said. “It’s not going to hap-pen overnight. There’s still great fragility in the financial systems. But we think we are moving in the right direction.”

The new Public-Private Invest-ment Program will use $75 billion to $100 billion in federal financial rescue money to lure private inves-tors to join with the government in purchasing as much as $1 trillion in bad subprime mortgages, mort-gage-backed securities and other troubled assets that are dragging

down the balance sheets of finan-cial institutions.

With Wall Street greeting the plan optimistically, experts said, the potential for generous govern-ment financing could entice inves-tors into the troubled sector.

“I like where they’re going,” said Frank Pallotta, a principal at Loan Value Group in Rumson, N.J., a consulting firm that advises buyers and sellers of distressed mortgage assets. “It’s a step in the right direc-tion.”

Two large money management

firms, Pimco in Newport Beach, Calif., and BlackRock Inc. in New York, said they would participate in the asset-purchase program. And the Financial Services Roundtable, which represents large banks that would put assets up for sale and private-equity firms that would buy them, said it heard positive feedback Monday.

Geithner on Monday tried to ease concerns among potential in-vestors in the toxic assets that Con-gress might change the rules later, reflecting a worry raised by con-

gressional outrage over the $165 million in retention bonuses paid to employees at bailed-out insur-ance giant American International Group.

Getting investors to join with the government and take the risk of buying the bad assets “will re-quire confidence among investors there’s clearly established rules of the game consistently enforced going forward.” Geithner said the administration would work with

Jim Puzzanghera and Walter Hamilton

Tribune Washington Bureau

Illustration by Sebe Dale IV/Printz

Students take on thrill-seeking new hobbies

Daniel Firth says his middle name is “danger.”

Firth, a 19-year-old freshman at USM, is a volunteer fi refi ght-er with the Northeast Lamar Fire Department. To Firth, fi ght-ing fi res – and risking his life to serve the community – gives him both a sense of satisfaction and an adrenaline rush he does not get from any other source.

“There is no better rush than the opportunity to save lives and help strangers,” Firth said. “I love dangerous things.”

He’s not the only Southern Miss student looking for a thrill.

For Shelley Sheppard, a 23-year-old junior from Poplarville, skydiving is what gets her pulse racing. Sheppard skydives regu-larly with Gold Coast Skydiv-ing, a fi rm based in Lumberton.

“I just went just because I wanted to, and it seemed really cool,” said Sheppard. “It is a feeling that is not explainable. You have to do it to feel it.”

Firth and Sheppard are each involved in activities that an-nually produce injuries ranging from minor scrapes to broken bones or worse.

The National Fire Protection Association reported that more than 38,000 fi re fi ghters a year suffer some kind of injury.

Jumptown.com, a Web site maintained by a Massachusetts skydiving operation, claims that

at least one jumper in 200 can expect to be injured in some form or fashion. And the United States Parachute Association reported 18 people were killed skydiving in 2007.

Sheppard said none of those statistics get in the way of her passion.

“It’s way cooler than it is scary,” she said.

Sharon Stahler, a licensed pro-fessional counselor with USM’s student counseling center, said she also has jumped out of an airplane. Stahler considers it a way to feed a need for excite-ment in life.

“It is not brave if you are not scared,” said Stahler. “People override their gut feelings when taking risks.”

Stahler has branded this type of thinking, “knowing, with-out knowing why.” She said many people wish to be brave and take risks. “Leaning into our fears is a way of personal growth,” Stahler said.

Kevin Mathews, a 20-year-old junior from New Orleans, is currently a cadet with USM’s Army Reserve Offi cers Train-ing Corps program. Mathews said after his freshman year, he enlisted in the Army and went to basic training.

His motivation was to provide better service to the Army as an offi cer, but the danger involved in military duty also offered “a

Brett CarrPrintz Writer

See THRILLS on page 3

Top: Shelley Sheppard of Poplarville skydives. Bottom left: Kevin Matthews of New Orleans trains with his ROTC unit. Bottom right: Daniel Firth poses during a training fi re exercise.

Submitted Photos

Mississippi’s freedom sum-mer in 1964 successfully reg-istered less than 2000 black voters. This was an unsatisfac-tory percentage of Mississip-pi’s massive black population.

The Freedom Democratic Party was formed by blacks and whites alike to re-route the registration applications of potential black voters amongst other things.

Despite efforts by the Free-dom Democrats and droves upon droves of supporters, white Mississippi Senators John C. Stennis and Dennis Eastman were granted another term in 1964’s elections. The senators, known for segregationist policy, were widely held in contempt by Mississippi’s gargantuan population of disenfranchised blacks.

Fannie Lou Hamer, Annie Devine and Victoria Gray Jack-son Adams ran against Stennis and Eastman, but their names didn’t appear on the ballot because the Mississippi Election Commission claimed the petition for the women’s candidacy comprised too few signatures.

After the election, the three women trekked to Washington with supporters to contest the senatorial seats, as a signifi cant portion of American citizens in Mississippi were denied the right to vote.

Raylawni once again found herself on a bus to Washington.The group arrived in Washington to fi nd their destination,

the U.S. House of Representatives, staked out by a rowdy party of protesting neo-nazis.

For the fi rst time in her quest for civil rights, Raylawni was scared.

Raylawni thought of her three children at home. She thought about what would happen if the situation turned sour and headed toward violence. She foresaw her instincts guiding her to hit back. She thought about landing in a D.C. jail.

“No niggers in the capital!,” Raylawni heard one of the pro-testors shout.

With a racing heartbeat, she looked at Hamer, and an inspi-rational epiphany of courage knocked her noggin.

Hamer stood facing the clamor, with a large and powerful shoulder pointed dead center into the mob. She held her long winter coat tightly around her body, leaning towards the big-ots, swastikas held high.

A scowl of scorn and contempt grew on Hamer’s face. The knee facing the assembly, stiff and straight until this point, buckled as the woman’s hearty frame began to bustle to the building’s door.

Devine and Adams helped Hamer lead the way into the House. Raylawni and the others followed.

Although the election wasn’t overturned, the debate that fol-lowed proved to be a milestone in the civil rights movement.

Rayalwni walked away from the experience with newfound inspiration, grit and guts.

“They were the bravest women in the world,” said Raylawni through an expression of awe and fond memory. “They really made people want to go a step further.”

THE BIG YANKMississippi in the sixties was no place for an ambitious, ca-

reer-oriented black person--unless said person’s ambition was a spotless life career on a custodial staff.

Jesse BassOpinions Editor

The return to Washington

RAYLAWNI BRANCH

Editor’s note: This is the third story of the five part series regarding Raylawni Branch’s story. Another chapter of her story will be published Thursday.

Fannie Lou Hamer

See BRANCH on page 3

See TREASURY on page 3

Obama

www.studentprintz.com |Tuesday, March 24, 2009Page 2|News

www.studentprintz.com | Tuesday, March 24, 2009Page 3|News

news in briefEcoEagle Lecture Series: Polk speaking at noon in Stout Hall

Architect and planner James Polk will speak about green design on USM’s campus at today’s EcoEagle Lecture series at noon in Stout Hall. Polk is known for promoting livable communi-ties designed on the “village” model and his innovative design work. Sustainability inspired pizza will be served.

iTech warns of phishing emails ITech is warning the USM community to be aware of the increase in phishing emails recently. They remind students, faculty, and staff that no one from iTech or the University will ever ask for username or password via email. If you have responded to a phishing e-mail, contact the iTech Help Desk immediately at 601-266-HELP.

SAE Annual Charity Bowl ThursdayThe Sigma Alpha Epsilon Fraternity will hold their 12th Annual Charity Bowl March 26 at 5pm at the Rock. The team will face Sigma Phi Epsilon Fraternity in a full-contact football game. All proceeds will go to the Hattiesburg Civitian Camp.

Luncheon celebrating Red Cross month this weekIn the spirit of Red Cross month, South Central Mississippi Chapter of the American Red Cross is honoring local heroes through their celebration luncheon on Thursday, March 26, 2009 at 12pm at the Thad Cochran Center. These heroes include volunteers with the Red Cross, firemen, police officers, teachers, and nurses.

EventsCTODAYThrough April 2 – Registration for pairs billiards tournament, Payne Center8am to 4pm – Free Health Fair, Hattiesburg Family Health Center 11:45am - EcoEagle lecture on “Community Development,” Stout Hall B6pm – Jordan Foster Trumpet Recital, Marsh Auditorium6:30pm – Career Services Etiquette Dinner7:30pm – Fred Mills and the Mississippi Brass Artists Ensemble, Bennett Auditorium

TOMORROW12:15pm – Career Service Workshop: Professionalism, Bobby Chain Building6pm – Justin Buford Tuba Recital, Marsh Auditorium

THURSDAY 9:30am to 12pm – Teacher Job Fair, Thad Cochran Center10am – Annual Student Art Show, Museum of Art12:15pm – Public Convergence on Consumer Health Web Sites, Thad Cochran Center4pm to 6pm – Annual Student Art Show Reception5:45pm – Scrabble Club, Oak Grove Public Library6pm – Fernando Vargas Cello Recital, Marsh Auditorium7pm – Free Thinkers Forum, Room 303 LAB7:30pm – Wind Ensemble Concerto Concert, Bennett Auditorium

Micheal Gray-Lewis, a senior construction engineering major from Jackson, works to untangle his line while fi shing in Lake Byron.

Jesse Bass/Printz

BRANCH continued from page one“There were no jobs. Somebody

had to be the fi rst to do some things,” said Raylawni.

Her fi rst husband was mentally ill, later to be diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia. With three children in an unstable, low-income home envi-ronment, pressures were mounting for Raylawni. She needed a job.

After a brief stint as a seasonal tem-porary Christmas stock clerk at Sears, she went to the unemployment offi ce in search of work. The offi ce told her the local workwear factory, Big Yank Textiles, would hire her.

Raylawni went to the factory only to get the proverbial run-around. Big Yank told her the unemployment of-fi ce was responsible for hiring work-ers. Upon return to the unemployment offi ce, she was told Big Yank was re-sponsible for hiring.

She played along and went back and forth between the two, trying to make progress. After nearly a year‘s worth of round trips, Raylawni’s frustration began to evolve into anger. Somebody was about to regret writing her off.

Raylawni’s expeditious footsteps carried her to the unemployment of-fi ce one last time. In this visit, she was looking for the supervisor. She meant business.

She walked into his offi ce.“I virtually all but crawled up on his

desk, eye to eye,” said Raylawni.She got his attention.“If you don’t get the story straight,

I’m calling Washington right now. May I borrow your phone?”

The supervisor told Raylawni the truth, that the unemployment offi ce really had nothing to do with hiring.

She went to Big Yank one last time and told the powers that be about her chat with the unemployment offi ce‘s supervisor. She wasn’t letting this go. She needed work.

Big Yank hired her.

The 400 whites already working at Big Yank refused to share workspace with a black woman. The company had recently decided to start produc-ing permanent press garments, so they added a night shift for Raylawni to press clothes the white women cut and sewed during the day.

“They had nerve enough to say, ‘now go fi nd yourself three others,’” Raylawni said. She found three other women to help toil her nights away pressing workwear.

Raylawni and her friends joined the Amalgamated clothing union and started pressing. Before too long, Ray-lawni’s profi ciency snowballed.

“Tell those 400 women they didn’t sew enough shirts today,” Raylawni and her friends would joke as they looked at the looming stacks of shirts and pants produced that day, fi lling the building’s stairwell nearly to the ceiling.

The union paid piecewise, so as Raylawni and her friends began to fi nish in less and less time what was allotted for them to complete in 8 hours, nights at Big Yank got shorter and shorter while paychecks stayed the same.

One day, Raylawni went to see Big Yank’s secretary and put in her two-week notice.

“Raylawni, where are you going?” said the secretary.

“I’m going to school,” Raylawni replied.

“Well where are you going to school?” asked the secretary.

“I’m going to Southern,” Raylawni retorted.

The secretary dropped her pen. The paper on her desk stopped shuffl ing.

“Ha ha,” she cackled dryly, saturat-ed with sarcasm and disbelief. “You’ll be back.”

sense of excitement,” Matthews said.

“I don’t consider myself a cow-ard,” Mathews said. “I have never been put in a situation where I had to be brave, but I would like to think I am brave.”

Ongoing confl icts in Iraq and Afghanistan may dissuade some from pursuing a commission in the armed forces. But to Mathews, his love for the Army is truly a calling. “I needed to do it to appease my-self. There is really no other way

to put it,” he said.While Stahler recommends that

those who consider taking risks think long and hard about their decision, she said risk-taking can be a way to face fear, change and move forward. She said change is about fi nding things in life you cannot get past and doing some-thing about it. Without crisis, very few people will go through change, she added.

“Graveyards are full of people who never changed,” Stahler said.

THRILLS continued from page one

TREASURY continued from page oneCongress to strike the right balance.

The administration understands the anger over the bonuses, he said, and more broadly at the financial institu-tions that helped cause the crisis by making risky investments.

For that reason, the program is de-signed to limit the risk to taxpayers of cleaning up those assets, while also trying to lure private investors to help participate in the cleanup.

Geithner said the program would allow the government to share with private investors both the risks of ac-quiring the bad assets and the poten-tial gains if they are bought at low

enough prices. That innovative idea was selected as a better alternative to having the government buy up all the assets itself or simply allowing banks to work through the problems on their own.

“The alternative strategies would have the government either taking on all that risk ourselves, having all those losses on our balance sheet, or sitting back and let this process of deleverag-ing continue to weigh on the American economy, pushing viable businesses closer to the edge,” Geithner said.

Poll:Are the blocked roads near the LAB a hassle or does it make your commute to class safer?

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Change in Operating Hours

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Monday - Thursday: 7:45 a.m.- 6:45 p.m.Friday: 7:45 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. Saturday: 11:00 a.m.- 4:00 p.m. Sunday: 1:00 p.m.- 5:00 p.m.

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Applications are now being accepted for:Academic Year 2009-2010Executive Editor, The Student PrintzExecutive Editor, The SouthernerAll applicants for these positions should submit an electronic copyof a packet that includes:1. A formal letter of application2. A personal statement of intent which includes: A. A statement of philosophy of goals for the publication B. A plan for carrying out those goals. C. An evaluation of the 2008-2009 operation.3. A resume.4. Three letters of recommendation to cover someacademic as well as professional credentials.5. A complete transcript of all college-level work(Minimum 2.5 overall GPA is required)Submit to: Dr. Jeanne Gillespie, chairBoard of PublicationsSend packet to: [email protected] 4 p.m., Wednesday, April 8All materials should be submitted in PDF form.Interviews will beFriday, April 17 at 2 p.m. Dean’s Conference Room, LAB All applicants must attend

Typically, the birth of a col-lege town occurs one of two ways: the college is built and

the town follows, or a college is built in an already-thriving town.

When the former occurs, the col-lege is at the heart of the town. Its campus and the surrounding areas have a “downtown” atmosphere; lo-cally owned stores, coffee shops, and restaurants strung together with street-lights and sidewalks give students a plethora of entertainment options all within walking distance.

When a city is established before the college, the town expands out-ward, leaving the college somewhat stranded, and the metropolitan growth moves farther and farther away. It’s

easy to see which category we fall into here in Hat-tiesburg.

I spent a week in Gainesville, Florida visiting family who are all about their Uni-versity of Florida Gators. So natu-rally, they hauled

me around the UF campus. The cam-pus is typical—dormitories, libraries and whatnot—but what stood out to me was the miniature town right be-hind campus.

A series of quaint shops, like those you would find in a small town, lined

the streets. Sidewalks bustling with students shopping, having lunch with friends or just hanging out were also a common sight. I found myself wrapped up in the atmosphere of it all, and then wishing I could bottle and bring a little of that same atmosphere back to Hattiesburg with me.

Since our campus is so far away from downtown Hattiesburg as well as the thriving commercial section of Hardy Street, we really miss out on the experience of things like this. Nearest our campus we have what? Tattoo par-lors, empty buildings, a psychic shop, a bar, and apartment complexes.

Although it wouldn’t be an easy transition to make, bringing some downtown charm and convenience

to the area right around the campus would benefit students who live both on- and off-campus. Students who live on campus wouldn’t have to deal with the hassle of moving their cars (or the task of finding a parking place once they get back!), and students who live off-campus would have a place to meet and socialize with other students.

Aside from bringing students to-gether, building a downtown com-munity around the edges of campus would give local entrepreneurs a new venue and easy access to the college student demographic. Business own-ers who are former students, such as the owners of Side Street Bar and Caliente, who wish to open locations

convenient to the college students they once were would have a place to do so.

The property across Hardy Street opposite the front of campus would be a great location for such a community--replacing the current run-down build-ings with a new curb-appealing plaza of buildings ready for new businesses, adding to the Java Werks community. The proximity to campus as well as the need for a makeover makes this a perfect place for this opportunity.

Seeing students together even when they aren’t on campus creates an almost palpable sense of the col-lege life that draws outsiders in and reminds insiders why we choose to be here. Providing students with en-

tertainment right in their own concrete backyard, where they will be sure to be seen drinking coffee or buying sweatshirts, allows people who sim-ply drive through a glimpse into life on our campus.

It truly makes a difference. You can feel it in the air. You can’t help but think, “I want to be a part of this.” That’s how it should feel. Although right now times are tough, maybe one day the City of Hattiesburg, Southern Miss, and the efforts from graduates who want to give back to this commu-nity will come together to create such a place for us all to enjoy.

Madeline LivingstonPrintz Writer

Madeline Livingston is a staff writer for The Student Printz. Comments can be sent to [email protected]

Is anyone else as addicted to texting as I am? I think so.

But many of us text-ad-dicts are guilty of texting while driving (TWD).

You’re sitting in traffic and you hear the beep -- it’s a text mes-sage. It will only take a minute to read and respond. You know your eyes won’t be on the road, but you check it anyway.

Traffic starts to move and so do you, except with your eyes still stuck on the screen. Suddenly, the car in front of you slams the

brakes. BAM!!!You run into

the back of a Camry.

Now you’ve caused an acci-dent, and it was all due to your precious text message. Was it really worth it?

We think that we are invinci-ble behind the wheel. “I’m only sending a text message, nothing

will happen in that short amount of time,” we think to ourselves when the cell phone beeps.

But did you know that at 70 miles per hour, taking your eyes off the road for only three seconds, you have covered the length of a football field? That’s pretty far. Anything can happen at that speed in that distance.

While Mississippi doesn’t have a law preventing the use of cell phones while driving, it doesn’t mean the state agrees with or promotes it, either.

It is estimated that cell-phone-distracted drivers are four times more likely to be in a car acci-dent than those paying full atten-tion to the road.

A Harvard University study found that over 200 deaths and half a million injuries a year are caused by people using their cell phones while driving.

How many times has some-one pulled out in front of you, swerved over into your lane, or cut you off, only for you to later notice the offending driver had a

cell phone glued to the side of his or her head? Frustrating, isn’t it?

But how many times have you been the phone-distracted driv-er?

TWD for all drivers has been prohibited in Louisiana. The state even went as far to altogether prohibit the use of cell phones by teens while driving. According to a study by the Insurance Institute of Highway Safety, people oper-ating hand-held cell phones fill 1 million cars in America.

The study concluded that fe-

male drivers are more likely to operate cell phones while driving more than men are, and the gen-eral age bracket is 16-24 years old.

If you have to read or send a text message while you’re behind the wheel, the best advice is to pull over. If you’re not concerned with what could happen to you, at least take into consideration the lives of others on the road.

Samantha NewmanPrintz Writer

A sense of community thrives in Hattiesburg

Texting while driving not only dangerous, illegal as well

Samantha Newman is a staff writer for The Student Printz. Comments can be sent to [email protected]

Our hands are tainted.They have taken the

color black, covered in what some call “the Devil’s excre-ment.”

I am talking about that which has made us into slaves, addicted us to its use and power. It is what makes money and what makes the world go round.

I am talking about oil. The black liquid has put towns and cities on the map and made the economy soar, but at the same time has scoured and turned parts of the earth into a literal hell.

Places like Maracaibo, Venezuela and Baku, Azerbaijan are practical-ly uninhabitable. The land is with-out trees and grass, and the water is a graveyard of dead organisms.

Up until the 1950s, the United States was the largest exporter of oil. Towns like McCamey, Texas boomed in the 1930s and were known nationwide. People thought the oil would never run out, but oil inevitably does.

And the source of the oil is not replenished as often as the wind blows or the sun rises. Presently, the town of McCamey is practically dead in terms of business and num-ber of people.

The oil fields still sit there, but thankfully, the land has not suc-cumbed to the same fate of other regions of the world. Grasslands have taken back the McCamey, but the pumps are still a reminder of the ignorance we had in the past and what some people are just now learning.

About 98 percent of everything made and owned has been affected by oil in some way. I cannot deny that without oil, our technology and livelihood would not be near what it is today, but it is past the time to get away from oil and use renew-

able resources.We have had

the technology for decades. For example, the electric car is be-ginning to make a comeback, ac-cording to Gen-eral Motors.

For some rea-son, people are

still desperate to spend enormous amounts of time, money, and man-agement power to search for oil. Parts of Alberta, Canada have been decimated due to mining the tar sands and squeezing drops of oil from the grains.

Beautiful, lush forests, holding more productivity and aesthetic value than we will ever see from oil, have been completely wiped out. The oil has brought thousands of people to these areas and it be-gins to look like McCamey, Texas – déjà vu all over again.

The oil will run out and the towns associated with it will die while the original land is lost forever. Not only does oil bring business for a temporary time, but also it is the reason for so many deaths in wars. We are not in the Middle East look-ing for weapons of mass destruc-tion; we never were. We were com-ing to make sure the oil was there for ourselves.

Other than bringing us into the modern age of technology and somewhat improving our lives, I do not see anything else good about oil. It is time to put the use of oil in the history books and try to move on from the damage we have caused to our planet.

BrandonDrescherPrintz Writer

Brandon Drescher is a staff writer for The Student Printz. Comments can be sent to [email protected]

Slaving for the oil

[email protected] 4Opinions

www.studentprintz.com | Tuesday, March 24, 2009 Page 5|Opinions

Street Fighter IV, the latest in Capcom’s iconic fighting series, is undeniably the best 2D fighter available for the Playstation 3, Xbox 360, and soon PC. It is, debatably, the best fighter period.

Street Fighter IV is a 2D fighter, as it maintains the traditional Street Fighter gameplay, despite moving forward to 3D graphics. Finally, Capcom has effectively bridged this gap, something most fans agree the entries in the Street Fighter EX spin-off series never quite achieved.

The 3D graphics are simply fantastic. With no need to process the sweeping vistas of more free roaming next gen titles, SF4 focuses all of the hardware’s resources on depicting the two combatants. The results are the most detailed character models in a video game today. I haven’t seen such expressive characters since The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker, and that title was only able to achieve this through large cartoonish faces. Every single wince of pain, every grin of satisfaction is plainly visible at all times.

But this is all icing on the cake. The true entertainment value of SF4 lies in its incredibly deep fighting system. Emphasis has been taken away from long combo inputs and aerial moves, which has resulted in a deeper tactical game than that of Street Fighter III. The game now better reflects the “easy to learn, hard to master” axiom that all such skill based games try to follow. The hardcore gamers can obsess over 1/30th of a second timing, and the casual can just fire “hadokens” all

day long.On the down side, that 1/30th of

a second timing can be very taxing on controllers. The Xbox 360 controller is perfectly serviceable, but you’ll find that training mode just doesn’t think you’re pressing the buttons fast enough. The Playstation 3’s Dualshock controller is only slightly better. I’d highly recommend buying a fight stick or at least the game’s fight pad for those who buy the title. You’ll notice improved results and less thumb pain.

The new characters introduced into the series are hit and miss. While I love Viper and Abel, El Fuerte is a silly throwaway and Rufus is a very bad joke fat, lazy, ignorant American joke.

The greatest flaw is one currently inherent in the genre. Why are fighting games allowed to have such horrible storylines? They don’t even try. Each character’s story consists of two anime cut scenes lasting about twenty seconds each. Few of these even feature any continuity between the two. It isn’t even clear why some are competing in this martial arts tournament. When the faltering Mortal Kombat franchise has the deepest storyline in the genre, I think there’s a serious problem.

Despite this qualm, SF4 is a definite buy for fighter fans. The online play will keep you coming back and beating your friends never gets old. It’s the most fun I’ve had with a fighting game in years.

Portland indie rockers The Decemberists’ latest effort, The Hazards of Love, is quite the conversation piece, managing to be both the band’s weakest full-length album to date and one of the most ambitious musical works of 2009 thus far. How curious.

For those of you unfamiliar with The Decemberists’ and their hard-earned niche in the indie pop scene, here is a brief introduction to the band. Nearly a decade ago, singer Colin Meloy assembled a promising team of musicians. Realizing that they had a penchant for writing whimsical and extraordinarily catchy songs, Meloy and his band set about recording their impressive first album known as Castaways and Cutouts. However, during the songwriting process of Castaways, Meloy and the rest of The Decemberists came down with a serious case of Jethro Tull-itis, also known as minstrel-in-the-court syndrome. Grandiloquence abounded thereafter, and over four albums The Decemberists, with their British sensibilities and lofty vocabulary, rapidly gained fans among young anglophiles and prog-rock devotees. They burst out

into mainstream success with their last album, The Crane Wife, which was voted the best CD of 2006 by National Public Radio listeners.

The Hazards of Love, in this respect, is classic Decemberists. A curtsy to Anne Briggs’ 1966 EP of the same title, Hazards has all the intricacy and replay value of previous Decemberists work. Meloy’s wordsmith is as elegant as ever, and it certainly feels less forced than some of the lyrics in The Crane Wife (does anything really make a good rhyme for ‘fontanel’?).

Hazards is rife with obnoxiously catchy songs; in fact, not a single weak track litters the album. Unlike the band’s other LPs, however, Hazards plays as one long song — The Decemberists’ first attempt at a full-blown rock opera. “Won’t Want For

Love (Margaret in the Taiga)” treats listeners to the gusty guest vocals of Lavender Diamond’s Becky Stark. “Annan Water” is traditional Colin Meloy fare, boasting the frontman’s signature dry warble. The peaks of the album, though, are the sinfully simple “Isn’t a Lovely Light” and the unusually hard-hitting “Rake’s Song,” the last line of which is an excerpt from Anthony Burgess’ novel “A Clockwork Orange.”

It is the most unique aspect of “The Hazards of Love,” however, that is unfortunately the album’s weakest link. The band’s crack at a rock opera is a satisfactory one — it certainly can inspire listeners to treat the seventeen tracks as one entity (fans of The Decemberists’ EP “The Tain” might find some affinity here). In our world of short attention spans, not enough praise can be given to artists like Meloy who can craft an hour-long musical narrative. But one cannot help but feel that Meloy and company are better suited to the 5 minute vignettes of their 2005 masterstroke Picaresque and their other albums.

The underlying story in Hazards is vague at best: for reasons uncertain, a pregnant woman, a shape-shifting faun, a queen and a wicked rake are all cavorting around in a forest—any further understanding of the plot requires an undue amount of guesswork. Since a large portion of the album’s integrity depends on the overall cohesiveness between story and songs, the story’s ambiguity becomes a real shortcoming.

This is nit-picking, since otherwise The Hazards of Love has everything a true Decemberists fan has come to enjoy: catchy tunes, vocabulary that makes listeners feel oh-so-sophisticated, and tales of love, faraway places, and murder most foul. Is it pretentious? Of course it is. The Decemberists’ most solid album to date? Not by a long shot. Nevertheless, it is still The Decemberists, and they are still in classic form, as their recent EP collection Always the Bridesmaid proved. Fans and fans-to-be: ascertain The Hazards of Love however you will — it is worth every hypothetical penny.

Electro-pop mastermind Dan Deacon’s comments last summer suggesting that his new album, Bromst, would be a darker, more serious affair were simultaneously exciting and troubling to me. As fun as Deacon’s sugar rush style was on 2007’s Spiderman of the Rings, that degree of sheer energy could get awfully tiring if allowed to stagnate.

But change that style too much and the composer could lose what made him so interesting in the first place, especially if he was to force a more serious approach unsuitable to him. With its chipmunk vocals, noisy synth overdose, and opening Woody Woodpecker samples, Spiderman wasn’t exactly the most straight-faced of listens, despite an underlying compositional maturity, so the idea of a more serious Deacon raises a few eyebrows. Thankfully, we can all lower our collective brows: Deacon’s promise of a more serious listen wasn’t empty talk, but his past trademarks have not been abandoned.

Though much has been made of the musician’s aforementioned outlook adjustment, perhaps more

important to understanding Bromst is the addition of additional players and traditional instruments to Deacon’s electro-symphonies.

While still obviously the work of the man listed on the LP’s sleeve, it’s obvious he’s not alone here. The framework of a track like “Red F” is vintage Deacon: high-pitched vocals, impossibly bouncy synths, and a tendency to toe the line between enthusiasm and irritation. Yet it’s additions like the organic drums that pop in intermittently that imbue the track with a fuller texture than the man’s past spaz outs. As excellent as his past brief tracks could be for dance parties (or private bedroom freak outs), they lacked a certain textural depth that the addition of more “organic” sounds helps to counter.

Running parallel to the growth

of Deacon’s instrumental depth on Bromst is the growth of emotional depth. Much of the man’s past work seemed only capable of expressing joy, excitement, and childlike wonder, though it was awfully good at that. Thankfully, that’s not been left behind on Bromst, but there’s also a distinct theme of melancholy and communion not found before. The greater emotional impact here is best expressed in the album’s centerpiece, “Snookered.” Building slowly on minimal xylophone and synthesizers, the song grows more and more bouncy and joyful, while anchored by the central lyric of “Been wrong so many times before, but never quite like this.” Though such a vague lyric could apply to any number of things, it most importantly develops the track’s intended vulnerable mood.

Something similarly vague might not be a big deal for most acts, especially considering the obsession a large section of pop music has with the more unpleasant sides of the emotional spectrum, yet

for a so-called “Peter Pan” act like Dan Deacon, a simple shift to the melancholy has an intense impact. What’s most impressive is that he’s managed to do so without losing the fun side that originally garnered him accolades. Layered, seven-minute extended pieces like “Of The Mountains” can co-exist with the carefree energy burst of “Woof Woof,” which lives up to its title by opening with dog barks. Admittedly, the biggest failure for some is that these disparate elements do co-exist. Those who were annoyed by the man’s past efforts likely won’t be any less annoyed with this one and many listeners may just find the attempted balance here more exhausting than anything.

Bromst closes with a track named “Get Older,” a near-perfect summary of what Dan Deacon has done here. Nearly unrelenting in its pounding rhythms and endlessly buzzing synths, the track exists as a archetype of the Deacon aesthetic. Yet, the song reaches far beyond his past work, much as the ten tracks preceding it do. Deacon’s getting older and he’s recognizing that, but he seems to be getting better for it.

Entertainment [email protected] 6

MUSIC

Wham City’s Deacon matures with ‘Bromst’Eric NagurneyEntertainment Editor

DOWNLOAD• “Snookered”• “Get Older”• “Build Voice”

Eric Nagurney is entertainment editor for The Student Printz. Comments can be sent to [email protected]

Decemberists’ latest is great, albeit flawedDOWNLOAD•“The Rake Song”•“Isn’t A Lovely Light”

Patrick LaughlinPrintz Writer

Patrick Laughlin is a staff writer for The Student Printz. Comments can be sent to [email protected]

GAMES

Fourth Street Fighter lives up to heritage

Brandon MorrisPrintz Writer

Brandon Morris is a staff writer for The Student Printz. Comments can be sent to [email protected]

Star Ocean a good RPG for fans, not for first time players of the genre

From publisher Square-Enix, where Japanese role-playing dreams are made, and developer tri-Ace, also known for Valkyrie Profile, Radiata Stories and Infinite Undiscovery, we’ve recently received Star Ocean: The Last Hope. The Star Ocean series is one of the most revered franchises in role playing games. The latest entry will be passable for fans and those who enjoy Japanese RPGs in general, but

basically no one else.The primary reason for this is

that Star Ocean prescribes to every Japanese RPG cliché. The main character, named Edge of all things, is a blonde haired androgynous teen swordsman put in command of a starship on a mission vital to the survival of humanity. He’s joined by a sweet, sensitive, and spunky young love interest, a crazy comic-relief AI character with pink hair, and a naive green haired alien wizard, amongst others. The anime archetypes work for

those who love such things, but I’ve long since grown tired of them. The horrible English voice acting doesn’t help either.

The visuals help, but while the world is well rendered, the characters can come off as lifeless dolls. This is largely due to the 3D rendering of the anime art style from previous titles in the series. It just doesn’t work as well as a more realistic approach could have.

The story is simplistic and predictable, a horrible flaw in this

genre, and also inconsistent in tone. We have scenes of childish antics juxtaposed with the bloody deaths of space marines. Seconds after the allegedly 15 year-old Lemle, who isn’t even four feet tall and speaks as if she’s four, finds that her actions have caused the deaths of her grandfather and most of her town, she’s excited to go on a space journey with Edge and his silly pink-haired computer.

All of that aside, it does have its strong points. Unlike the previous games in the series, you visit many

planets. So, the story has a neat exploratory Star Trek feel to it. The sci-fi is a nice change from all the medieval settings, even though most characters use swords and bows anyway.

The real time combat is an improvement over its peers, though why I have to leave the world proper to engage enemies puzzles me. Am I the only one who doesn’t like 15 seconds per fight spent in intros and victory sequences? Even if I am, why does that require my party and enemies to be transported to an alternate universe?

It’s a sacred cow that needs to be killed.

As much as I didn’t like the newest Star Ocean, I know that a certain audience will love it. If you like Japanese RPGs in general or anime series like One Piece and Naruto, then this is probably your bag. Otherwise, I’d go with a more original RPG, like Fallout 3, Elder Scrolls IV, or Mass Effect.

Brandon MorrisPrintz Writer

Brandon Morris is a staff writer for The Student Printz. Comments can be sent to [email protected]

The Dutch DJ collective known as Kraak & Smaak, which played two dates at South by South-west in Austin last week, skillfully walks the line between competing, often polar-opposite, musi-cal worlds: beat-heavy club grooves, atmospheric chill-out and soulful, melodic pop.

It’s evident in the group’s eclectic second album, “Plastic People,” with such tracks as “Bobby & Whitney,” “Man of Constant Sorrow,” “Il Serpente” and the infectious, Motown-meets-Moby European chart hit “Squeeze Me.” It’s also evident in the sen-sibilities that make up the core of the group, DJs Mark Kneppers and Wim Plug, who came out of the world of dance music, and keyboardist Oscar De Jong, who came from a more traditional musician’s perspective.

“It’s a combination of between them being DJs and me being a musician, and that works,” says De Jong by phone. “I am a musician and I tend to make things too musical with bridges and choruses and blah blah blah. They know what works for the (dance) floor.”

But K&S also tours as a flesh-and-bones, seven-piece live band _ something many club-oriented acts don’t do _ and that’s where De Jong’s experi-ence comes in. The group has developed a reputa-tion for riveting shows at some of the globe’s top music festivals, including Glastonbury in England, Coachella in California, Winter Music Conference in Miami and, of course, South by Southwest.

“The idea of doing it live came from the fact that we made a mix CD (“Boogie Angst” in 2006) prior to ‘Plastic People’ that was music just for DJs for the floor. But when it came to making this one, this was for a different audience, people listening at home who don’t necessarily go to dance clubs,” he says. “There are 3 million DJs on this planet, and we want to do something different. Doing it live obviously is one way to do that.”

De Jong says that making the adjustment to dance music hasn’t been too difficult. “Being a pianist, going to conservatory but always liking funk and soul music, it was not really a big step into dance music,” he says. “For musicians, house music is sometimes too simple, but you have to make a (mental) switch. ... Of course, when the music is really for the floor, it can be hard for a person like me, but when it came to the album, then a musician can be more himself.”

In addition to the live setup, the human element comes into play on “Plastic People” in the rotat-ing lineup of R&B-influenced guest singers such as Ben Westbeech, the distinctively old-school soul voice of “Squeeze Me.”

“Our strength and our problem is that we like too many styles,” De Jong says. “The second album goes in various directions. ... The first album was sample-based, and on the second album, because our profile had grown a bit, it was easier for us to ask (singers) to be on this album, to say ‘Could we write a song together?’ without them saying, ‘Who are you?’”

The Resident Evil Series has arguably been the leader of the survival horror genre of video games. Four years ago, Resident Evil 4 changed the game play of the series by moving the camera to an “over the shoulder” point of view, giving the player a more personal viewpoint of the action. Resident Evil 5 continues this trend, while adding the first ever co-op experience in a Resident Evil title.

I initially started the game in single player mode to refresh myself on the game play. The control scheme mirrored that of RE4, making me feel at home with the game. The addition of a secondary player, played by an A.I. in single player mode, gave a peculiar sense of hope to the game. My first impression was that I finally had help during long fire-fights where my ten handgun rounds would do little more than prolong my inevitable demise. That hope was soon lost when the A.I. character expended all of her bullets and used her health kits on minor injuries. She became more of a liability than an assistant.

After a few rounds, I restarted the game with my roommate as my new partner. Being a fellow gamer, he proved to be

an immense improvement. Many jaded RE fans would argue that the series becoming a cooperative endeavor goes against all the series stands for, but I feel as though this makes the game profoundly more enjoyable. To be able to not only share your emotions felt in a survival-horror game, but to experience them with a friend makes for hours of play time enjoyment that lasts into the early hours of the morning.

The game’s storyline delves deeply into the history of the series’s Umbrella Corporation, the pharmaceutical company that was “dis-banned” for illegally performing human experiments and developing viral weaponry that was released on the American mountain community of Raccoon City in Resident Evil 2. The story was so rich with information that it leads players who have not played previous RE games to immerse themselves into the series history.

Before the game’s release, there was a bit of a falling out about the possibility of the game being racist towards black people. Personally, I found this absurd. Yes, the game takes place in a fictional African village known as Kijuju, which is heavily populated by black, middle

eastern, and Caucasian people alike. Even the protagonist Chris Redfield, a white American sent into the village to investigate bio-terrorism activity, is assigned a beautiful local African agent Sheva Alomar. As I was playing the game, I didn’t even notice the race of the locals. I only noticed the nailed bats, shovels, and sickles they were swinging at me. Jared Brock, a black Junior Computer Programming Major at Mississippi State, said, “I don’t see shooting people in the game as racist. I see it as shooting the guy swinging a forty pound axe at my face.” As the game neared it’s release date, accusations of

racism faded. But I did feel that such accusations were misplaced and not very well thought out, considering there were no accusations of racism in Resident Evil 4, which took place in central Spain and all of the infected were Spanish farmers.

Resident Evil 5 was not only fun, but by far one of the most

visually stunning and beautiful games I have ever played. The sheer detail in the game, from the flaking rust on tin roofs of local African shacks to the calming lapping waves of a nearby river to the woven pattern of the protagonist’s Kevlar shirt left me breathless in awe.

Players who are looking for a

game that is visually stunning, delightfully horrifying, and a great game to play with a friend would thoroughly enjoy Resident Evil 5.

www.studentprintz.com | Tuesday, March 24, 2009Page 7|Entertainment

New Resident Evil game gives zombie killers their familiar fixJames Prillhart

Printz Writer

James Prillhart is a staff writer for The Student Printz. Comments can be sent to [email protected]

Dutch DJ collective Kraak & Smaak doesn’t just keep its beats in the club

Cary DarlingMcClatchy Newspapers

DIVERSIONS

I call it “Bland. James Bland.” Others said “Quantum of Solace,” the 22nd installment in the James Bond spy series was “with the possible exception of ‘Licence To Kill’ the worst Bond movie ever”; “incomprehensible ... and flat-out dull”; “makes us understand the impor-tance of a good director, which is sadly absent here”; “nothing but a big-budget mess”; and _ my favorite _ “blurred, not stirred.”

There were some kind words said, too, and if you’re a Daniel Craig fan, go for it. “Quantum of Silence” is rated PG-13 and retails for $29.98

More to my liking, if only because they are films that I (and probably you) have not seen _ and maybe wouldn’t if this week weren’t so weak in other offerings _ are “Saturday Morning” and “Afro Ninja: Destiny.”

“Saturday Morning” stars Joey Piscopo, the 28-year-

old son of Joe, in his feature film debut. This light-hearted romance took the 2007 Best Comedy Award at Indie Fest USA. Wes Selman (Piscopo) is forced to get up and get going one Saturday morning when house re-pairs drive him from his bed. Not a morning person, he doesn’t expect to like what he finds outdoors.

What he discovers is a sort of Utopia in which ev-erything is beautiful and he can do anything _ includ-ing possibly winning the attentions of the woman of his dreams. Trouble is, this world exists only between 6 and 8 a.m. on Saturdays. Sort of like Shangri-La from “Lost Horizon.” The DVD is not rated and lists for $19.99

You might get a kick out of “Afro Ninja: Destiny,” an action film inspired by an online short that is one of the funniest and most-watched videos ever to appear on YouTube.

This stunt-filled film, which crosses Bruce Lee’s clas-sic films and Jackie Chan’s martial arts moves with blaxploitation films of the 1970s, is a hoot.

Jim CarnesMcClatchy Newspapers

‘Quantum’ DVD to be released today

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PUBLICATIONS: Starksville Daily News,

NE Mississippi Daily Journal,

U. of S. MS - Student Printz,

MS State Reflector, Desoto Times Today

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The Cellular South Fans’ Choice Award:

You decide the winner

While the state’s top sports media vote on the offi cial Cellular South Howell

and Gillom Trophies, we’re letting fans have their say too. Cellular South gives

fans a separate chance to vote for their choice of Mississippi’s top men’s and

women’s basketball player as part of the Cellular South Fans’ Choice Award.

Visit cellularsouth.com/fanschoice to learn the fi nalists’ names. Text your

vote for Howell Trophy fi nalists to DUNK (3865) and for Gillom Trophy fi nalists

to PASS (7277) using the player’s identification number. Voting begins at

7:00 p.m. on March 23rd, and ends at 6:30 p.m. on March 30th.

cellularsouth.com/fanschoice

Golden Eagles playing catch-upThe Southern Miss baseball

team is playing a makeshift version of midseason catch-up following a spring break week of ups and downs.

The Eagles started off the week with a win over Mississippi State before dropping a midweek game against Northern Colorado 8-7 and Friday and Saturday to Rice 4-3 and 16-4, respectively.

The Eagles committed seven errors in the five games, something head coach Corky Palmer said is a big reason the Eagles have run their record to 13-9 overall and 1-1 in Conference USA play.

“It’s frustrating, but if you look at our batting average and our opponents’ average, we should have a better record than we do,” Palmer said Monday. “We’re making mental errors in the field and running the bases that are killing us.”

The Eagles have two players, shortstop Brian Dozier and centerfielder Bo Davis, currently batting over .400, and eight more hitting above a .300 clip.

Golden Eagle pitching has improved as well, with five pitchers with an earned run average of 2.97 or lower.

Last week Palmer got two stellar pitching performances from junior Todd McInnis in the two wins. McInnis appears to be back on top after pitching 10 innings allowing just three earned runs and striking out nine batters.

“That was the most encouraging thing from last week,” Palmer explained. “His breaking ball was as good as I’ve seen it this season. He put us in positions to win the two games and I’m glad we managed to finish those games.”

Palmer said he plans to continue to shuffle his deck of cards when it comes to starting pitching.

Copeland is 1-3 in four starts this season with a 5.85 earned run average, and Stanley has allowed

just one earned run in nine and two-thirds innings of work.

Junior right-hander Scott Copeland will start today against UL-Monroe, and junior lefty Jeff Stanley will get his first career start Wednesday against in-state rival and 11th-ranked Ole Miss.

The two games give Southern Miss, ranked No. 54 in RPI by both Boyd’s World and WarrenNolan.com, a chance to climb the polls.

“We’ve kind of gotten behind the eight-ball in terms of RPI, so we need some tough games like these on the schedule to get us back on track,” Palmer said. “Hopefully we can clean up some of our mental errors.”

“If we’re going to have a solid season, we have to get those mistakes corrected.”

First pitch for both midweek games are set for 6:30 at Pete Taylor Park.

Tyler ClevelandSports Editor

The Golden Eagles walk out of spring break 2-3 but hope to play catch-up this week with a two mid week games against Loui-siana-Monroe at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday and the other Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. against Ole Miss, both in Pete Taylor Park.

File photo by Sebe Dale IV/Printz

Fedora looking for players to leadThe Southern Miss football team

completed their fourth spring foot-ball practice session Monday, just four days before the team’s first scheduled scrimmage on Friday.

Golden Eagle head coach Larry Fedora said the practice was in-tense, but that his team might have had a bit of a hangover coming off of a week off.

“I think some of our players think they are still on spring break,” Fe-dora said. “We put too many balls

on the ground and gave up too many big plays on defense.

Hopefully we’ll have a better practice on Wednesday and get back into the swing of things.”

The USM Athletic Department announced Monday that Friday’s scrimmage, the first of two before the spring game on April 18, has been moved to Madison, Miss.

The scrimmage is set for 5:30 p.m., and is open to the public.

“It’s for our fans,” Fedora said. “Where we hold it doesn’t affect us, so we decided to move the scrim-mage to Madison to give our fans in

the Jackson area a chance to come out and watch us.”

Fedora said that one thing he’s looking for this spring is on-the-field leadership from his return-ing players, but that he isn’t ready to anoint any particular player the leader he wants.

One candidate on offense could be junior wide receiver Johdrick Morris. Morris had four catches for 61 yards in the New Orleans bowl, but could be poised for a stellar sea-son with Freshman All-American DeAndre Brown’s health in ques-tion.

“There is no questioning Jo-hdrick’s athletic ability,” Fedora said. “He’s a guy I’m looking for a little bit more consistency from, but he’s getting a lot of reps and he can do some nice things if he can be consistent.”

Morris’s size (6-foot-3, 200-pounds) and speed make him an automatic threat on the outside that could provide a nice complement to Brown’s proven playmaking abil-ity.

“My size helps, but depending on the corner its still up to me to make the play,” Morris said. “I’m just glad to get a chance to compete, and if I’m given an opportunity I’ll do my best to help the team.”

On defense, it’s easy to see who has the biggest shoes to fill.

Outside linebacker Korey Wil-liams has made the move to middle linebacker and said he’s looking forward to manning the “Mike” po-sition.

“I feel like I have to step up,” Wil-liams said. “When you lose a guy like (departed linebacker) Gerald

(McRath), you can’t really replace him you just have to strive to have his work ethic and fill the void as best you can.”

According to Williams, McRath, who attended practice Monday in anticipation of Wednesday’s NFL Pro Day, left a hole in the Southern Miss defense that can only be filled by an in-your-face kind of leader.

“The guy’s a work-a-holic,” Wil-liams said. “He’s busting his tail from warm-ups to the end of prac-tice, and spending hours on film.

“I feel like I’m that kind of in-your-face player that will let you know that I’ll work for you if you’ll work for me.”

Fedora said he too believes Wil-liams is ready to lead.

“He was having a great season last season before he had his jaw broken,” Fedora said. “But he showed when he came back for the bowl that he can be that guy for us, he’s had a good .”

The Eagles will practice once more on Wednesday before leaving for Madison Friday morning.

Tyler ClevelandSports Editor

Southern Miss finishes another practice Monday in preparation for their public scrimmage Friday, April 18 at 5:30 p.m. in Madison.David N. Jackson/Printz

TodayBaseball vs. Louisiana-Monroe, 6:30 PMPete Taylor Park

Women’s GolfLady Eagle Classic All DayCanebrake Golf Club (Hattiesburg, Miss.)

Men’s GolfMobile Bay Intercollegiate All DayMobile, Ala. (Magnolia Grove)

WednesdayBaseball vs. Ole Miss, 6:30 PMPete Taylor Park

Sports Calendar:

Sports Page [email protected]

Love named Gillom finalistSouthern Miss junior, Pauline

Love of Luxora, Ark., was named one of three finalists for the Cellular South Gillom Trophy, honoring the state’s top college women’s basketball player Monday but the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame and Museum.

Love, who was selected by a

media vote around the Magnolia State, while Alexis Rack of Missis-sippi State and Bianca Thomas of Ole Miss, were named as the other two finalists. USM’s Stephanie Helgeson also received votes for the honor.

The 6-foot-1 forward, who was named a finalist for the second straight season, averaged 15.6

points and 10.4 rebounds for the 20-11 Southern Miss team that reached the Conference USA championship game for the first time in its history.Lady Eagles lead Classic

The Southern Miss women’s golf team placed five golfers in the top ten, as it leads the Lady Eagle Classic by nine-strokes heading into the final round. The tournament is being played at Canebrake Country Club.

The team shot an opening round 11-over par 295.

Junior Samantha Holt fired a one-over par 72 to sit one-shot back of the lead in second place. Junior Re-becka Nilsson and freshman Sandra Sohlberg, playing as an individual, are tied for third after shooting two-over 73’s.

Sports Briefs

’’‘‘It’s frustrating, but if you look at our batting

average and our opponents’ average, we should have a better record than we do

-Corky Palmer, Head coach

“It’s for our fans...where we hold it doesn’t affect us, so we decided to move the scrimmage to Madison to give our fans in the Jackson area a chance to come out and watch us.”

Larry Fedora,Head coach