The Lumberjack



Students Serving The Cal Poly Humboldt Campus and Community Since 1929

Category: Sports

  • Katelin Talbert goes for the goal

    Katelin Talbert goes for the goal

    • Talbert kicks a ball back into play during the team’s match against Stanislaus State on October 6, 2019. | Photo by Elliott Portillo
    • Jacks senior goalkeeper Katelin Talbert makes a leaping save during the first half of the team’s match against Cal State LA at College Creek Field on Novmeber 9. | Photo by Thomas Lal
    • Katie Talbert at a photoshoot for the California Storm. | Photo courtesy of California Storm
    • Talbert kicks a ball away during a match with the California Storm | Photo courtesy of California Storm

    Former Lumberjack Wildlife Major and Goalkeeper, Katie Talbert spent four years patrolling and defending the nets at College Creek Field and now finds herself with the opportunity of a lifetime: an invitation to preseason training camp with Seattle’s OL Reign of the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL). Beginning February 1, The trial pits Talbert against some of the best young talent in the nation for a chance to play at the sport’s highest level domestically.

     

    “I’m just so excited to be able to train with professional soccer players,” Talbert said in an exclusive interview. “It’s just taking one more step higher in the competition that I’m not used to and I’m super ready for the challenge.”

     

    Soccer comes naturally to Talbert, who started playing at age four. At age 11, she played competitively, alternating between field and part-time goal keeper. When she was 14, her club team converted her to a full-time goal keeper because there were no other players at the position.

     

    “I started playing and I just picked it up really fast, and so they were like, ‘oh you’re good at this, we’re just gonna keep you at goalkeeper,’” Talbert said. “I was a fast learner on how to play that position.”

     

    “And then I just kept playing,” Talbert said. “I just enjoyed it because I like throwing my body in the air…which is fun.”

     

    The position change helped the Sacramento native accomplish another one of her childhood goals: to play soccer at the collegiate level. After decommitting from Sonoma State her junior year of high school, Talbert found Humboldt as the place she wanted to be.

     

    “I’ve always wanted to play college soccer,” Talbert said. “I contacted them [Humboldt] because they had a wildlife major and I always wanted to be a wildlife major from when I was a little kid.”

     

    While at Humboldt, Talbert proved crucial as a defensive specialist, earning all-CCAA honorable mention honors in 2017. Her height, athleticism and fearlessness proved to be vital assets on the field.

     

    During the off-season, she trained and played with the Sacramento-based California Storm of the Women’s Premier Soccer League (WPSL). The semi-professional team, which boasts distinguished and accomplished alumni such as USWNT member Alex Morgan, gave Talbert another opportunity to improve her skills.

     

    “Every summer I’d go home and play with them, and I found that team has helped me a lot [to] get better,” Talbert said. “A lot of the girls on the team are ex-pros or DI [Division I] college girls, so I think that’s been a level up in competition.”

     

    Storm Head Coach and Executive Director Jamie Levoy, who has known and coached Talbert the past four summers, feels that she has all the tools necessary to be successful at the next level.

     

    “She’s versatile,” said Levoy. “She knows how to read the game beyond the goal keeper. She makes fearless decisions.”

     

    As one of the few invitees to come from a small Division II school, Talbert noted that there is a bit of a chip on her shoulder going up against women from a variety of esteemed universities.

     

    “I’m pretty sure most if not all of the other girls coming in for the preseason and trials are all from DI schools,” Talbert said. “I really feel like I’m kind of like the kid coming in in a way.”

     

    Despite that, Talbert feels her time at Humboldt and the competition she faced there have also prepared her for this moment.

     

    “It [Humboldt] gave me a great opportunity,” Talbert said. “A lot of my friends who I played soccer with competitively were committing to DI schools, and then I committed to a DII school, so nobody really thought that it would be great competition, but the fact that we are in one of the tougher DII leagues for soccer definitely helped my career a lot.”

     

    “There’s an expectation,” Levoy said. “That’s what a lot of people look at: ‘did you play for a top 25 program?’ I think it’s cool she can go in and say, ‘look, you don’t have to play at the biggest school.’”

     

    For Talbert, she believes the opportunity ahead sets her up for success later.

     

    “I had an offer from a team in Portugal that I turned down to come to this try-out because I thought this would be a better opportunity for me to continue playing in the NWSL or other opportunities to come in the future,” Talbert said. “My main end goal if I can is to possibly play for the Sacramento NWSL team whenever that happens, which I heard might happen in 2022.”

     

    Whatever happens, Levoy believes Talbert is set to succeed.

     

    “Honestly, she’s so deserving and she’s a great athlete,” Levoy said. “Everything is falling into place for her.”

     

  • HSU Softball remembers Evelyn Andrews

    HSU Softball remembers Evelyn Andrews

    Coach Sarchett and players reflect on their most memorable memories with Evelyn Andrews

    Evelyn Andrews, a softball player at Humboldt State University that no one will ever forget. Evelyn Andrews loved playing the sport since high school and once Andrews came to HSU she was among the redwoods that surround HSU’s softball field. It has been 10 months since the passing of Evelyn Andrews which wasn’t her losing her battle with cancer. It was due to a clotting complication that is common to Acute Myelogenous Leukemia patients.

    Andrews Coach Sarchett decided that this year was appropriate for Morgan Brant to wear her number in honor of her. “Morgan and Evelyn Andrews were the best of friends and Morgan wanted to honor her this way” said Coach Sarchett. Isabel Starr, a softball player at HSU explaining how she couldn’t see anyone else representing Evelyn Andrews number on the field than Morgan Brant. Morgan Brant, Softball player at HSU decirbies how she felt honored to be wearing Evelyn’s number. “She was the hardest worker I have ever met and always made a huge impact whenever she stepped on the field. I hope to make her proud and emulate the same energy she had” said Brant.

    “Evelyn Andrews was a hardworking and ambitious person. She laid everything out on the field. She dove for every ball in the hole, swung hard at every pitch she went for, and overall, played with a purpose” said Starr. Starr talks about how Evelyn was a selfless teammate and did anything in her power to help the team overcome any obstacle they faced together. Starr says “Morgan plays with a purpose, just like Evelyn. To me, Morgan is a selfless teammate, doing whatever is asked of her and does whatever it takes to help us succeed as a team.” Starr talks about how the number 21 isn’t just any regular number not at least to Humboldt States Softball team “There isn’t a better person to be wearing that number on our field and any other field we play on.”

    Coach Sarchett talks about Evelyn Andrews work ethic as a softball player “Evelyn Adrews work ethic is what stands out the most. It was second to none” said Coach Sarchett. She is now starting to base off on a majority of her recruiting on the type of person Evelyn Andrews was. “I want players that are going to come and work hard everyday, selflessly putting the team ahead of themselves and that is what Evelyn did everyday” , said Coach Scarchett. Brant talks about how Evelyn has impacted her both on and off the field, Brant says, “As a player, she taught me the importance of always being the loudest in the field and the best teammate you could have. Her “Don’t Suck” motto has stuck with my team and I and drives us to be the best person we can be.” Evelyn taught Brant how to see the good in people and taught her that laughter is the best medicine and positivity is the most important thing. “She taught me how to fight and be strong through anything I face in life” says Brant.

    “Evelyn Andrews was one of the most amazing people you’d ever meet. Although there are many people within this world that are amazing, she was one who stood out among everyone else. She was kind, caring and a bit of a butt sometimes.She was one who took advantage of every single opportunity that was thrown her way. Whether it was extra time on the softball field or just being with friends and taking advantage of the happy moments. She was also someone who gave you an extra push when you needed it.”

    Starr talks about the biggest lesson she learned for Evelyn was how to no suck, she learned instead of being regretful of decisions we make, we need to make the most of it. Starr says” The most important lesson Evelyn taught her was not to suck. This was the motto she constantly said that will forever be stuck in my brain. The term “Don’t Suck” applied to everything. Dont suck at softball, and don’t suck at being a decent human. I learned how to love and care for others. I learned that no matter how upset I am, dot shut those who love you out.” Starr talks about how she hasn’t stopped implementing “Don’t suck” into her life now and she doesn’t plan on stopping. Starr says, “To this day I wish I could thank her, face to face. For teaching me subtle, yet valuable lessons.”

    “I think we have learned to enjoy every moment we have and know that it can be taken away any second. So we are all going to go out and live our lives to the fullest” says Coach Sarchett.

    Brant’s best memory of Evelyn was their Sunday movie days they had, “She would always make chocolate chip pancakes for breakfast and we would spend the day watching movies of friends of each other. Usually accompanied by sushi or Toni’s.” Coach Sarchett’s best memory of Evelyn was her smile, “She could change the mood of a room in seconds with her positive and contagious smile.” Starr talks about one of her best moments that she had of Evelyn, Starr was taking her first footsteps on campus and was having a hard time finding her groove and fitting in. “I was trying really hard not to be me, unfortunately. I was trying not to talk too much or too loud. I was just having a hard time figuring out what the vibe was on the team since it was the first time I had ever met any of the girls.” Starr talks about how they were going over simple team things, such as jersey numbers, sizes, and the handbook. As soon as the meeting with the team finished Evelyn and Morgan pulled her to the side and asked Starr how she was doing and Starr told them she was having a hard time to fit in. Evelyn had invited her over for mac and cheese with Morgan, Starr agreed. “That night we talked a lot and ate a lot…all three of us talking about anything and everything there was to talk about. They warned me about morning running and they warned me to never be late to anything I could help it. They made me feel at home. The overall experience with Evelyn and Morgan was comforting. I wasn’t as sad as I was to be away from my family at that moment because I had found mine. I found my Humboldt Sisters that I could forever rely on. Just the simplest memories I have of her are my favorite and they are memories I don’t think I could ever forget.”

    Ev 2, Cancer 0.

  • Rugby is the closest sport to football HSU has left

    Rugby is the closest sport to football HSU has left

    With Humboldt’s Lumberjack football gone rugby can take the spotlight.

    Rugby will never be able to replace the gap left by Humboldt State University’s football departure. If youth athletes within the Humboldt community want youth to play a contact sport and watch anything that resembles football, it’s rugby. Not only are they going to be able to watch a contact sport, but they are also going to watch a top level team.

    HSU’s rugby team has been a part of the campus since 1973. The team was Division 1 and battled with the likes of Cal Berkeley and Chico State until 1998, when they became a Division 2 team.

    As a Division 2 team they had their most success in 2005, when they made it to the National Championship but came up short to Colorado State.

    Since then, HSU Rugby has been a part of the National Collegiate Rugby league. The team had great success over the last four years, ranking seventh in the nation without the chance to play the national championship due to COVID-19.

    Much of the team’s success is thanks to ex-football players at HSU and the recruiting of local and Division1 club rugby. Latufeao Kolopeaua, a junior at HSU and former football player, was recruited to join the rugby team after the football team was disbanded in July of 2018.

    “If it weren’t for rugby here at Humboldt I would have transferred over to Montana Tech to play football,” Kolopeaua said. “Even though I sometimes dislike the decisions by this university, I’m very happy I was able to stay here and play rugby because the university is cheap, close to my home of LA, compared to Montana, and I really like it here.”

    HSU Rugby is a great opportunity for local high school athletes, like myself who went to McKinleyville High and played rugby for Chico Rugby club, to still play a contact sport while also staying local. Tali Fonoti, an incoming freshman for the rugby team, was a running back for St. Bernard’s Academy’s team, who won the Division 3 state championship.

    “I wouldn’t be staying here if it weren’t for rugby,” Fonoti said. “If Humboldt offered football then I would be playing for them. I’m happy to be able to stay here and play a sport and to be honest, the rugby team is the only reason I’m staying up here. It is my first time playing rugby, but it is something I’ve watched a little bit growing up. There is just no youth rugby in Humboldt which is the only reason I didn’t play.”

    Picking up rugby came easy to Fonoti. He believes rugby could be the sport to fill the gap of HSU football for local high school athletes.

    “I don’t think it is that hard to transition from football to rugby,” Fonoti said. “I was always in a sport so I am confident in my ability to pick one up easily. The fundamentals of tackling and running the ball are almost the same. If any high school kids wanted to stay up here and play a contact sport I would be for sure talking them up to play rugby because it’s not that hard to learn.”

    Logan McDaniel, a freshman from Belmont, never would have heard of HSU if it weren’t for rugby.

    “I would be playing rugby or football at another school,” McDaniel said. “Humboldt wouldn’t have even been on my radar. I’m happy I was recruited and they have some sort of contact sport at Humboldt because I love it up here.”

    Although HSU football is disbanded and can never be fully replaced by any sport, rugby could be the one that comes closest to filling the gap for the community. Local athletes will be able to stay home, save money and play for a nationally ranked collegiate team.

  • Club sport athletes stay on track

    Club sport athletes stay on track

    Unable to practice as a team, athletes practice one-on-one.

    Humboldt State University’s athletics clubs are currently unable to practice on a team level. Members hold themselves accountable in hopes of the restriction lifting and allowing teams to meet and practice again.

    Part of being ready to play whenever COVID-19 restrictions loosen or end, is staying in shape. Colin Waichler, president of the cycling club, has no set plan for his team, just encourages them to stay on the bike.

    “We haven’t been doing any real individual training this semester,” Waichler said. “To be honest, we don’t do any team training in normal years, there’s no motivation around for that when just going for a rip is way more fun. If you count super chill group rides as training, I guess we train.”

    Waichler said the club members are riding mostly the same amount as they would normally, even without races that would be scheduled.

    “Right now, everyone’s riding at their usual level minus the four or five race weekends we normally have in the fall,” Waichler said. “For most of us, that’s one to three casual rides a week.”

    Waichler has been doing more than just stepping on the bike to stay in shape.

    “Ordinarily, I’d be riding four or five hours a week. Distance varies, but about 30 to 100 miles, usually on less rainy days but occasionally I’ll go for a swim,” Waichler said. “Outside of that I don’t really train but do a good amount of hiking and ski touring when possible.”

    Anthony Perez, president of the archery club, staying in shape is not the only reason he maintains individual practicing, mental health is a huge factor when it comes to being able to practice.

    “I try to at least shoot twice a month, safely of course,” Perez said. “The only reason why I go out is because archery helps me destress. With the whole staying indoors and not having much contact besides the house plant, it gets hard to find motivation but when I go out to shoot, it helps me clear my mind because I’m only focusing on my breathing and the target.”

    Perez elaborated on how practicing helps him stay in touch and focused with his surroundings, a great break from the monotony of virtual instruction.

    “Just overall feeling the surroundings, like how strong the wind is, the leaves falling and just have that feeling of being alive versus migrating from the bed to the desk,” Perez said. “It’s really hard to explain but it’s like you’re in touch with everything because you’re using all your senses to make sure you make that shot, but when I’m inside my house, I only need one or two senses and I’m not at full capacity. Like I’m on autopilot.”

  • Women’s volleyball team practices during COVID-19 pandemic regardless of no season

    Women’s volleyball team practices during COVID-19 pandemic regardless of no season

    The team practices with approval of HSU president and CSU system while adhering to state and local public health policies

    The Humboldt State University’s women’s volleyball team found a way to practice during the pandemic. The team’s practice plans were approved by HSU President Jackson and the California State University system and practices must abide by state and local COVID-19 public health regulations. HSU is one of the few schools in California allowed to do so.

    Macy Thomas, a junior at HSU, explained the precautions taken by the team to abide by the COVID-19 safety protocol.

    “Of course there were several limitations in place, but throughout the last couple months we’ve been able to increase our practice size, duration and level of contact in a safe manner,” Thomas said.

    To hold practices, the team divided into two smaller pods. The team is required to wear masks during practice as well as remain socially distant throughout it.

    Lenox Loving, junior at HSU, said it was hard for her to adapt to practicing as two separate pods instead of an entire team. Loving found it especially difficult to get used to playing with the new players, but said it gave them a chance to create a bond on the court.

    “In my pod, I was one of three returning players and the rest were new,” Loving said.

    Loving said playing with the new team has made her excited for the future season, whenever that is confirmed to happen.

    “The past couple of weeks we have been able to practice as a full team and it has been really fun to play with some of the new players from the other pods,” Loving said.

    The players were given options for the fall semester and practice was optional for players. A few players chose to stay at home, a decision fully supported by their teammates, and the players that decided to come back and practice, quarantined for two to three weeks once they arrived in the county.

    Players had several rounds of continuous testing and a slow introduction back into practices and workouts.

    “HSU had us following several different protocols every week in order for it to remain safe such as testing, temperature checks, COVID check-ins everyday,” Loving said.

    The team hopes to know within the next couple of weeks if they will play any games this spring or be forced to wait until next fall. Head Coach Kelly Wood expressed eager she is to get back onto the court and compete against other schools again.

    “I know my athletes are longing for the long road trip, the bonding experience and many more than anything, the competition versus the other schools in our conference,” Wood said.

    Without this year’s season, it hurts the team to think back to last season and how much times have changed. Making memories while competing with the thrill of going to play games, traveling and their normal hustle during the season as a team.

    “We understand the circumstances and changes that need to be made, so we choose to remain positive and thankful for our health and ability to practice together right now,” Thomas said.

    Wood says the team has been amazing during this very odd and unpredictable time that is happening to everyone, pointing out that the veteran players on the team really stepped up this year.

    “They have shown resilience, commitment and they have remained very positive during a very challenging time,” Wood said. “The returns have been helpful and gone above and beyond to help the newcomers enjoy the experience as possible despite the circumstances and my 13 newcomers have been a pleasure to get to know and work with during this time.”

  • Remembering Evelyn Andrews 10 months after her passing

    Remembering Evelyn Andrews 10 months after her passing

    By Katelyn Dendas

    It has been 10 months since my friend, teammate and freshman year dorm mate, Evelyn Andrews, passed away. I don’t remember what the grief counselor said or what transpired after that Monday, but I do remember arriving at the entrance of the Arcata Community Forest in my white, tennis shoes with a rambunctious dog, Mayes, and my sad girl hours playlist. 

    Different forms of grief were transpiring within my team but I wanted to be among the redwoods, searching for a reason or answer to this loss. I walked for two hours going from trail-to-trail, stopping to explore everything that caught Mayes’s attention, but thinking for too long hurt my heart even more.

    On my way into the forest I had two separate phone calls, one to my mom and the other my dad. Both times with tears rolling down my cheeks as I continued to ascend to the top of the hill, out of breath but telling them every detail I knew. 

    Over the four months prior to February, Evelyn battled Acute Myelogenous Leukemia, a secondary blood cancer that was a direct result of the treatment from her lymphoma in 2017. In the end, a clotting complication common in AML patients developed and was not overcome.

    Humboldt State University Athletics stated for the record that Evelyn died cancer free.

    Ev 2, Cancer 0.

    I found comfort walking among the giant redwoods that day. In the forest everything felt small. Like the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrow defines ‘sonder’ as,

    “The realization that each random passerby is living a life as vivid and complex as your own—populated with their own ambitions, friends, routines, worries and inherited craziness—an epic story that continues invisibly around you like an anthill sprawling deep underground, with elaborate passageways to thousands of other lives that you’ll never know existed, in which you might appear only once, as an extra sipping coffee in the background, as a blur of traffic passing on the highway, as a lighted window at dusk.”

    “An epic story that continues invisibly around you,” the Arcata Community Forest continued on, from the plants above ground to the roots stretched out below. 

    No clue that Evelyn was fighting for her life 300 miles away, the trees have seen so much that her passing didn’t stop them from living their own. I continued to walk the forest feeling like a passerby. For a moment I stopped to appreciate the sun beaming through the tall trees and the tears started to roll again, but this time they weren’t as heavy. My breathing felt light and I was happy, smiling upon memories of shenanigans and chaos with Ev. 

    The sun shining through felt warm and hopeful. I took out my phone and tried to capture what I was seeing. It was magical. The next day, I found out that the timestamp of that moment was the same time the machines were turned off and Ev had taken her last breaths.

    I can’t explain it, but reflecting on that picture and feeling that moment over again, I am constantly inspired. The forest helped me make sense of the heart ache I was feeling. For a couple of minutes on Mon., Feb., 17 at 3:30 p.m., I felt connected to everything.

    As I continue to get my degree in environmental science and management, the pressure of time running out gets heavier. Climate change becomes more daunting and depressing. There is a lot of work that needs to be done. 

    Sometimes shrugging my shoulders and pondering if ignorance really is bliss. But then I remind myself of this moment that I had. In a time of deep mourning, I had the ability to walk in a forest full of old redwoods and heal. I didn’t have to go far to experience a viable ecosystem. 

    The Arcata Community Forest is a treasure. A treasure that not everyone can say they have or will experience. Communities around the world are being trapped into concrete jungles with the natural world degraded around them, when facing sorrows and pain there is no environment to escape to.

    I miss Evelyn Andrews so much. She still amazes me, for even in her last moments she continued to show me the light. She is constantly inspiring me to fight for the environment, to give it my all and metaphorically leave my mark (remember leave no-trace when actually in nature). 

    Everyone deserves a moment out in the environment that makes them feel connected to everything because, “an epic story continues invisibly around you.”

  • Justin Turner exposes the World Series to COVID-19

    Justin Turner exposes the World Series to COVID-19

    Justin Turner didn’t need to be the story in the wake of the Dodgers’ first World Series victory in 32 years. Instead here we are, wondering what sort of, if any, punishment Major League Baseball will decide to hand down to Turner after he decided to run out onto the field to celebrate with his teammates and their families after he learned he had tested positive for COVID-19. 

    Putting aside my own feeling about the Dodgers as a Giants supporter, this is simply not fair to LA fans who have been waiting for this day for so long. When the Major League Baseball Players Association made the decision to work with the MLB to host the playoffs at neutral sites in a partial bubble, all players became responsible for trying to maintain that bubble. 

    Turner was removed from the game at the start of the eighth inning after a previously inconclusive test result returned back as a positive. He remained in isolation until the game ended, even tweeting and acknowledging that he had COVID-19. 

    Turner still returned to the field, however against MLB regulations, and hugged his teammates and their family members. He even sat down next to Dave Roberts, the Dodgers general manager, who has survived Hodgkin lymphoma in the past, to pose for a team photo with the trophy while neither of them were wearing masks.

    It’s not unreasonable to expect an adult to follow guidelines they agreed to. Turner’s actions were selfish and unreasoned. It is one thing to be among teammates who you’ve been in close contact with for months, but Turner could have also exposed several people to COVID-19 who may not have even known that he tested positive. 

    It’s more disappointing to see Turner take these actions after having previously served on the MLBPA executive board. Prior to the Dodgers beginning their postseason run, Turner even spoke about how responsible players were taking safety precautions and how that allowed this whole postseason to even happen. 

    It is understandable that Turner wanted to celebrate with his teammates. Those guys participated in a tough season with no fans and came out on top together. Turner is an everyday player, and it would have been doubtlessly hard for him to not be on that field with his teammates. But at the end of the day, that is what every one of those guys signed up for. 

    His teammates will likely support him always in this matter but Turner’s actions have cast all of baseball in a bad light. For two consecutive seasons now the attention will be placed on the MLB to see what decision they make, this time regarding any potential punishment for Turner following their investigation. 

  • Humboldt State Hall Of Fame Inductees

    Humboldt State Hall Of Fame Inductees

    Hall of Fame nominees for class of 2020 and class of 2021 announced

    Humboldt State University’s Department of Athletics announced the Hall of Fame nominees for the classes of 2020 and 2021.

    The class of 2020 inductees are Laura Champ, Heather Johnston, Scott Peters, Lisa Petty, Lyndon Rowells and Chrissy Stalf.

    The class of 2021 inductees are Nicholas Bawden, Bridget Berg, Dan Collen, Katie Harris, Staci Self, Anetra Torres, Zack Weinberger and the 1976 Men’s Cross Country team.

    Chrissy Stalf, softball, 2010, was very excited and felt honored to be inducted into HSU’s Hall Of Fame.

    “There are many great athletes in the Hall Of Fame as we speak and being considered one of them is an honor,” Stalf said in an email.

    Stalf is upset her head coach, Frank Cheek, would be unable to attend the induction ceremony due to his recent passing. Cheek recalled how a few years after finishing her career at HSU, Cheek was going to write her a nomination for the Hall Of Fame. She felt honored to hear that from him.

    Stalf enjoyed playing softball in the middle of the Redwoods and felt no other campus could compete with the surrounding view while playing. The town would come out to support the softball team, win or loss.

    “When you walked around town, they knew who we were,” Stalf said. “I am proud to say I am a Lumberjack Alumni!”

    Lyndon Rowells, football, 2010-2011, felt humbled and honored to be recognized for all the hard work he put into playing the sport he loves. Rowells found out that he was being inducted into the Hall Of Fame. Rowells said his favorite thing to do while playing football was winning.

    “Scoring a touchdown was fun and all but it meant nothing if we didn’t get the victory,” Rowells said in an email.

    Lisa Petty felt honored to be inducted into the 2020 HSU Hall of Fame after being a member of the women’s basketball team. It reminds Petty that the work ethic she put into playing basketball was worth it.

    “Athletes spend countless hours practicing and working towards their goals so to be recognized for one of the greatest achievements in sports, is truly humbling to me,” Petty said in an email.

    Petty found out a couple of weeks ago when former HSU Interim Athletics Director Tom Trepiak gave her a call. During one of her final press conferences of her career at Humboldt, Trepiak was the one who had mentioned to Petty that maybe one day they will see her in the Hall of Fame. Petty thought it was a joke.

    “To get the news from him, someone who cheered me on during my entire career, was a gift,” Petty said.

    Petty’s favorite thing when she played at HSU was the camaraderie with her teammates and coaching staff. She said she made lifelong friends and connections at Humboldt.

    “During games, we went to war together,” Petty said. “We battled and left everything we had on the floor and that’s the one thing I always look back on and am beyond grateful for.”

    Petty is grateful for the opportunity to play competitively for the Lumberjacks.

    “I am competitive in nature,” Petty said. “It didn’t matter if it was practice or in a game, I was out to win and I would do whatever I could to get the job done. But again, over the years, the relationships and the friendships I developed are some of my most cherished memories.”

  • Baseball clubs across California come together

    Baseball clubs across California come together

    Club baseball organizations from the CSU system discuss COVID-19 obstacles

    Humboldt State University club teams are not the only ones having issues with recruiting and getting on the field. Baseball clubs across the Cal State system came together to discuss the cancellations of their seasons due to COVID-19.

    Most teams present have been unable to do anything in-person due to quarantine. Players from University of San Francisco came up with a unique idea to combat restricted field access.

    Alex Bradshaw, a member of the USF baseball club, is able to practice with his teammates because of a homemade batting cage.

    “Saul Diaz [a member of USF baseball] was able to build a homemade batting cage that some of us are able to meet up at and hit some balls,” Bradshaw said. “There are only about five of us on the team right now so no rules are broken and we are doing our part in social distancing.”

    HSU athletic clubs aren’t the only ones getting the short end of the stick when it comes to not being able to get on the field.

    Aiden Patterson, president of the USF baseball club, has been facing the same problems when it comes to creating a game plan to get back on the field.

    “They are slowly bringing sports back into our area. Our university is not working with us now and they never did,” Patterson said. “Our club is not allowed to use equipment or fields on campus. Our club sports representative has been trying to work with the Athletic Director but they have not even budged a little on the issue.”

    Robert Rocha, president of Long Beach State University’s baseball club, has been working hard with his university to get the team back to practicing.

    “Up until two weeks ago there was no chance of us getting back on the field,” Rocha said. “ Then I received and email last week with guidelines for practice from a representative of the NCAA that I sent to club sports and they are reviewing the situation right now.”

    During the meeting, Martin Gordillo, president of HSU’s baseball club, questioned if club teams would compete in the spring season, some were hesitant to say yes. The debate surrounds wanting to compete and not wanting to expose players to COVID-19.

    “Going back to practice is hard to decide,” Rocha said. “It is frustrating because we want to practice, but I do not want to have guys risk their own health for us to play baseball.”

    Daniel Pena, Cal State Fullerton University’s baseball club president, spoke on the risk of COVID-19 extending beyond players on the field and into their households.

    “I know some of my players live with their parents and grandparents,” Pena said. “I just don’t want any house to be jeopardized. It is a hard decision because we don’t want to force the issue of people being hurt and sick.”

    The biggest problem at hand surrounds lack of players for the competitive season. COVID-19 has created boundaries surrounding club outreach and recruitment.

    “We are only three to five people,” Patterson said. “It isn’t a matter of will, but if we will be able to compete. We can’t even recruit during these times. We just don’t have the numbers.”

    Recruitment and outreach has limited player enrollment. Pena found it difficult to motivate returning players, adding that the team’s competitive attitude is down due to the cancellation of their season.

    “A lot of guys graduated,” Pena said. “Recruiting is going horrible and I have difficulty contacting my teammates. They don’t respond to me probably because there is no effort put into this season. It’s hard to be competitive when there is no season to look forward to.”

    The meeting between CSU baseball clubs has solidified the fact that the spring season remains undecided. Even if teams were permitted to compete in the spring, they may be unable to play due to the lack of players on the field.

  • Women’s lacrosse drops their competitive season

    Women’s lacrosse drops their competitive season

    Greta Roberts, president and player of Humboldt State University’s women’s lacrosse team, made the decision with her coach and teammates to cancel the upcoming spring season. The team decided that not being able to recruit in the fall would be an issue for spring and it was best to drop the season.

    “We do most of our recruiting at the beginning of each semester and with everything being online, this was not a viable option,” Roberts said. “Most people coming to our team having never played lacrosse and our first semester is really about teaching and connecting.”

    Another reason factoring into canceling season was player safety. Roberts and her coaches would not be able to get new players on track and able to play the game safely.

    “The decision to suspend our season this year was based on the safety and sustainability of our team,” Roberts said. “Since we are not permitted to have any physical practices, it is impossible to teach the game correctly. At the end of last spring, almost half of our team graduated and by the beginning of this fall, almost all of our players have moved out of Humboldt County.”

    Kiya Guire, a member of the women’s Lacrosse team, felt the decision was very difficult to make because the team is so close.

    “As a student athlete, this decision was a hard one to make because we love our sport and we love our team who has become our family,” Guire said. “But with the current situation, we wanted to do what we thought was right for our team.”

    Jacob Hluboky, head coach of the men’s lacrosse team, has not made the final decision to cancel the 2021 season, but believes the decision will be made very soon.

    “With this whole COVID-19 situation it has become hard to recruit for this season,” Hluboky said. “Retaining players has also been a major factor as many are not up here right now. It is understandable and we just need to go full boar on recruiting for the next season so we have a solid team to put on the field.”

    Hluboky has declared that even if the team does not have a season, he and his coaching staff are going all in on recruiting for the 2022 MCLA Divison II season.

    “We have a network of scouting in about 15 states,” Hluboky said. “My assistant coaches and I are looking for the players we want and need. We are going to put all our effort into recruiting these areas and bringing talent onto this team.”

  • Humboldt State’s women’s basketball team races for racial change

    5K race to protest social and racial injustices while raising money for AACAE

    The Humboldt State Women’s Basketball team participated in Race For Change that started on Oct. 15 and ended Oct. 18. The event was a virtual 5k run, walk, or bike ride to bring awareness about the social and racial injustice happening. 

    The team joined other universities in the California State University system in participating to raise funds in order to support the African American Center for Excellence at HSU.The team plans on making this an annual event they will continue to participate in.    

     “UC San Diego women’s basketball initiated this terrific event to athletic programs across the country and we were on board from the beginning,” Head Coach Michelle Bento-Jackson said. “We saw this as an opportunity to continue to use our voices and to put into action our passion towards social justice.  One of our main objectives in the event was to get as much participation as possible to continue to bring awareness both locally and throughout other communities.”  

    The women’s basketball team raised over $1,100 and will be giving the proceeds to the AACAE. Douglas Smith, director of the AACAE, is grateful that the women’s basketball team took the initiative and supported them by participating in Race for Change.

    “Funding for the Center has been a challenge since it opened its doors five years ago,” Smith said. “So this type of support will help us engage and develop a sense of belonging in the Black student community.”

    The ACCAE team appreciated the HSU athletes who participated and showed their support. The other HSU teams who joined in the event were the women’s volleyball team and women’s rowing. With moving forward to next year the women’s basketball team expects an even bigger event with more participants. 

    The team had numerous team discussions and individual conversations about racism and social injustice prior to the event. Samantha Caries, a junior on the team, believes that the conversations that have been happening on an individual and a national level deserve to be recognized.

    “I feel like they’re finally shedding light on racism that takes place daily in the world,” Caries said. “This coverage should not go away. We are lost for words to how this is continuing to happen.” 

    Caries struggled to express her frustration over the fact that the world was already forgetting about the Black Lives Matter movement and the systemic targeting of the Black community.

    “To be honest, I can’t find strong enough words to fully express how strongly I feel about the social injustices, the hate, and the racism that continues to occur in our world,” Caries said.  “It disgusts me, it makes me extremely angry, and I feel sad and apologetic to the Black community.  

    Bento-Jackson hoped people could open their eyes, their ears and their hearts to attempt to understand the life that the Black community and BIPOC have to endure on a daily basis and to genuinely show empathy. 

    Smith expressed appreciation for the women’s basketball team providing the AACAE with the much needed funding to continue their work and dialogue within the HSU community.

    “Raising awareness is one step in the long process of having honest and real change in our society,” Smith said. “This is the role the women’s basketball team assumed and it is appreciated. We all have a direct role to play with regards to addressing social injustice and how it manifests itself in the lives of so many people in this country and around the world.”

  • Lumberjack basketball welcomes a new head coach

    Lumberjack basketball welcomes a new head coach

    Exclusive interview between reporter Jazmin Pacheco and Tae Norwood

    Tae Norwood, brings nearly two decades of collegiate basketball coaching experience to the Lumberjack family as the new head coach of the Humboldt State University men’s basketball team. 

    “They are going to get a coach that is honest, that’s transparent, that’s available,” Norwood said. “Who is going to push them to their limits and try to get every ounce of talent I could out of them on the court, but also challenge them mentally to be greater students in the classroom.” 

    Norwood grew up in Brooklyn, New York and was the first in his family to go to college. Norwood said he’s an inspiring example for his nieces, nephews, cousins and younger family members to know that if he could be a first generation graduate, so could they.

    “I was a measuring stick, as they would say, if I can do it, they [family members] can accomplish the same things,” Norwood said.

    Norwood was a natural athlete. He played baseball and football but fell in love with the game of basketball. He started playing at the age of five after his Uncle introduced him to the game and encouraged him to play sports. He played basketball all throughout college and got into coaching after that. 

    Norwood completed his undergraduate work at Green Mountain College, a private institution in Vermont, where he received his bachelor’s degree in recreation and leisure services. 

    Norwood was a four-year letter-winner at GMC, earning two all-conference selections and helped the Eagles win three conference championships throughout his four years there. He was the program’s all-time leader in steals and assists, and was inducted into the Green Mountain Athletics Hall of Fame in 2016.

    He received his master’s degree in health and kinesiology with a focus on coaching from Georgia Southern University.

    In 2018, Norwood was a National Assistant Coach of the Year while coaching at Lynn University. He coached there for a total of six seasons. 

    As head coach, Norwood has high expectations for the men’s basketball team and plans to gain national recognition.

    “This basketball program has a great tradition and a great legacy from the early Coach Wood days to Coach Kinder,” Norwood said. “So I expect our program to be competitive nationally. I expect our team to compete on the top of the CCAA conference on a yearly basis and ultimately have the opportunity to play in the NCAA tournament to compete for national championships.”

    Norwood recruited 12 new players to the men’s team. He expects the new team to bond and become supportive, family-like.

    “We’re not going to cripple them in life by giving them everything. They got to work for everything they’re going to get. We’re going to give them every opportunity they can have in order to grow and be successful,” said Norwood

    Norwood says Matt Dempsey, his college basketball coach, made a huge impact on his life and helped him become the man he is today. He hopes to provide that same support, mentorship, and commitment to his own team. 

    “So many life lessons are being taught by playing sports and being in a group dynamic that are transparent when it comes to everyday life,” Norwood said. 

    Norwood’s philosophy at HSU is all about family, having great cohesiveness and great inclusion. He believes successful athletes require building relationships off the court to understand who they are as people, not athletes.

    “My expectations for these young men is that they care about their academics, about their education and about graduating,” Norwood said. “That they play hard with great effort and great energy and when I mean play hard, I mean play hard in the classroom as well as playing hard on the court because winning is a big product of doing those things.”

  • Recreational sports athletes react to SJSU in AS meeting

    Recreational sports athletes react to SJSU in AS meeting

    Athletes speak out against the uncertainty surrounding rec sports and the playing season  

    Recreational sports at Humboldt State University is made up of 15 competitive and four non-competitive club teams that practice and play in their respective seasons throughout the school year. Each club team offers the opportunity to students of all skill levels to participate and grow their abilities while building community with fellow teammates and recreational sports athletes. 

    Since spring break of early 2020, HSU officials have not allowed recreational sports teams to gather or practice in order to avoid the possible spread of COVID-19. No update has been given to any rec sports athletes over the past months on when their teams would be allowed to return, practice and compete. 

    HSU announced that it would be allowing San Jose State University’s football program access to the Redwood Bowl and Student Recreation Center facilities to prepare for their upcoming season. 

    Rec sports was finally allotted the opportunity to be heard publicly at the Associated Students board meeting on Oct. 9. 

    Martin Gordillo, a student and member of both the men’s baseball and volleyball teams, led a discussion on who at the university was behind the decision to not allow rec sports to conduct practices. 

    Gordillo noted the lack of communication from the Cal State University Chancellor’s office regarding the future of rec sports. Gordillo explained the strategies that fellow rec sports clubs are willing to follow in order to uphold CDC safety guidelines. The plan includes reallocating funds from travel budgets in order to pay for increased sanitation supplies and COVID-19 testing for athletes and faculty.  

    Associated Students member, Collin Waichler, believes an in-depth look at Chancellor Timothy White’s decision would provide clarification to the decisions that lead to the cancellation of rec sports.

    “I think it would be very helpful if we can get the text of the Chancellor’s decision to not allow rec sports,” Waichler said. “So we can see that and look at it and figure out exactly what’s going on.” 

    A representative of the HSU men’s crew team, Michaella Praska, voiced her experience as a rec sports athlete in her senior year not being able to practice and compete with her fellow teammates. 

    “It’s so disheartening and I’m very, very disappointed in how things are being run and I just wanted to say my team really became my family,” Praska said. “So to not be able to like have  that one hour or half hour to be able to spend more time with them. It really hurts. And I don’t  feel like I stand alone.”  

    The future of rec sports continues to be uncertain for the time being, Gordillo ended his presentation by quoting the HSU’s rec sport’s pledge.

    “We are Humboldt plus sports and we care for our athletes, one voice in solidarity loud and proud.”

  • HSU Athletics Department left in dark about SJSU

    HSU Athletics Department left in dark about SJSU

    Jane Teixeira addresses student concern over football program’s stay on campus

    ***Editor’s note: SJSU football program was tested in congruence with Mountain West conference guidelines***

    The Humboldt State Athletics Department was notified that the San Jose State football team was coming to HSU the same time the general student and staff population of campus were told. 

    With the notice coming late on Sept. 29, the first chance that the department had to discuss matters was the following day with the Spartans roughly 24 hours away. 

    “I got the same information at the same time that everybody else got the information on campus,” HSU Athletics Director Jane Teixeira said.

    SJSU anticipates spending $100,000 to $150,000 in total while at HSU. This includes meals, housing, use of Humboldt State’s facilities and round trip bus fare per San Jose State’s media relations. 

    It is currently unclear as to how much of this estimated budget belongs to Humboldt State or how that money will be distributed.

    On Tues. Oct. 13, Santa Clara County moved into the orange tier from the red tier, meaning that COVID-19 guidelines will be loosened. 

    According to San Jose State football social media and Humboldt State University,  the team will be leaving the HSU campus on Oct. 14 following the announcement that Santa Clara County will allow the Spartans to hold practices on their own campus once again. 

    According to an email sent out to HSU students on Tuesday Oct. 13 if conditions do get worse in Santa Clara County again. 

    “Should Santa Clara County return to the red tier, HSU will consult with Humboldt County Public Health and SJSU about the viability of the team’s return to HSU to proceed safely for practice and/or competition.” Humboldt State said in the email.  

    Teixeria explained that she has not been involved with any contract negotiations between HSU and SJSU, but believes the arrangement is similar to any rental of the Redwood Bowl. 

    “I believe that they are renting our facilities and paying for them like any other outside group would be able to do,” Teixeira said.

    Student concerns surrounding a large group of people coming onto campus was addressed by Emergency Management Coordinator Cris Jones Koczera. Koczera said that since the team arrived, the Athletics department has been working with local county health officials. 

    Koczera believes the chances of the SJSU bringing COVID-19 with them is very low considering the team is subject to mandatory testing once per week before the Mountain West season begins, and three times per week when competition starts. 

    “Because of the frequency of testing that was required both by the state and by local county public health, they are by far the most tested individuals, probably in our entire county right now,” Koczera said. 

    The Athletics Department became aware of frustration coming from the rec sports organizations on campus which prompted Teixeira to hold a meeting with members of those groups on Sept. 30. 

    For Division 1 athletes, there is immense pressure to perform well and do whatever they are told to do as part of their respective athletic programs. Teixeria pointed out that while the SJSU football team is on our campus, they did not directly make the decision to come here themselves as individuals. 

    “It’s really important to know that the student athletes and the coaches and the student workers and the people that are up here from San Jose State are just following the lead of their leadership,” Teixeira said. “Just like we’re just following the lead of our leadership and I think it’s important that our individuals or people who are out in the community understand that this is by no fault of their own.”

  • Humboldt State University’s women soccer team create bracelets in support of Black Lives Matter

    Humboldt State University’s women soccer team create bracelets in support of Black Lives Matter

    Proceeds go to the African American Center of Academic Excellence

    The Humboldt State University women’s soccer team started a bracelets for change movement to show their support for the Black Lives Matter movement.

    Mary Swisher, a senior at HSU and soccer player throughout college, stated that the social injustice present within our country was infuriating and motivated the team to combat the issue.

    “While I cannot speak on the racist experiences that African Americans face, it hurts me to hear, see and learn about the effect that racism has on my peers in athletics, at school and the border community of color,” Swisher said. “My teammates and I have decided that we will continue to educate, advocate and work to support people of color in our community and our country.”

    Athletes are asking for donations for HSU’s African American Center of Academic Excellence. The team has handmade 30 bracelets out of the 70 that were ordered by friends, family and the community, totaling more than $700 dollars to the AACAE so far.

    The AACAE is a cultural and social hub on campus to support identifiable Black students and offer them a higher education. Douglas Smith the Organizer for HSU’s AACAE said he was shocked by the compassion demonstrated by the women’s soccer team.

    “Very grateful for multiple reasons. We didn’t reach out to them or ask to fundraise,” Smith said. “They did it on their own ambitions. I was grateful.”

    COVID-19 and budget cuts hit the AACAE hard. With the money being donated, they feel extremely grateful and thankful. Smith believes it’s time to confront racial injustices head on and create dialogue.

    “Times up. Honestly the time for conversation and talking about it and educating people about it, it’s kinda over,” Smith said. “If there isn’t action being taken place right now then move out of the way. My mood for your question is it’s time for action and talk is rhetoric.”

    Coach Grant Landy of the women’s basketball team stated that the athletes came up with the bracelet idea completely on their own and had the AACAE in mind.

    “I challenged the team to continue the conversation about racial injustice and they came up with the bracelet idea,” Landy said. “They wanted to help our campus community and chose the AACAE to help support.”

    The women’s basketball team choose to help support HSU’s own clubs and organizations. Landy applauds the team’s spirit and dedication to raising awareness for racial injustice.

    The Women’s Soccer Team is still accepting bracelet orders and is still taking donations to support HSU’s AACAE.

    Swisher stated that the women’s basketball team felt they needed to contribute more than conversation to the racial injustice movement.

    “As a team we were having conversations about the injustice against African Americans in our country,” Swisher said. “The conversations were productive and we were educating ourselves but we decided that talking about that problem was not enough.”

    The co-captain from the women’s soccer team, Sabine Postma, has experience doing similar fundraisers in her hometown in Washington. The team decided their impact would be most effective if they donated their proceeds to a local organization, like AACAE.

    “It’s an admirable organization on our Humboldt State campus that empowers, supports, and celebrates the Black lives in our community,” Postma said.

  • Sports Bubbling for controlling Coronavirus

    Sports Bubbling for controlling Coronavirus

    Science behind social bubbling casts doubt on the security behind implemented safety practices

    How many Superbowl parties have you been to? Drunk bodies stacked on top of each other. Frantic embraces. Hollering and crying. Sports, both play and spectation, is all about physical expression. And each one of those mass expression events carries the potential for an outbreak of COVID-19.

    According to the CDC, the virus is more likely to spread through close contact than through airborne transmission. Packing tightly into bars, gathering in stadiums, cheering and hugging are all likely to spread COVID-19. Early in the year, scientists linked a soccer game in Italy to a massive outbreak, with the true toll difficult to track.

    The danger doesn’t just come from the stadium, but also all the orbiting viewing locations. Simply social bubbling by quarantining the team, coaches, staff and media doesn’t cut it when major transmission events may happen as a result of independent viewings of sports broadcasts in addition to attendance of official events.

    Transmission through close contact may be more likely than airborne transmission. Contact sports may be more dangerous than sports with significant distance between players. Baseball has faced bumps in the road, with an outbreak in the Miami Marlins, but football requires more contact, and therefore more risk. The NFL recently suffered its first major outbreak in the Tennessee Titans, signaling a failure of their non-bubble model. 

    Realistically, models of disease spread must consider a wide range of variables. Changing numbers of susceptible individuals, changing likelihood that a susceptible person will encounter a sick person, increasing numbers of recovered individuals, the implementation of safety measures, and frequency of social gatherings like sporting events are all variables that matter when mapping disease transmission. But simple exponential growth is the basic reason why uncontrolled disease can overwhelm local healthcare at the beginning of an outbreak.

    One person has it, they give it to two people in a day. Those people give it to two more people each then next day. That’s four new people who can give it to two more people each. That’s eight new people and in a few weeks many more have it. It doesn’t realistically work that way on a large scale due to a wide range of important factors, but it’s a useful model for how outbreaks can begin in previously uninfected communities.

    Now say one person on a football the team contracts COVID-19. Then that one person gives it to 14 people through close physical contact. So, 15 people have it. They go out into the community and give it to 2 people each in a day. Our starting number is higher, so the growth is faster. Those 15 give it to 30 people, those 30 give it to 60, those 60 give it to 120, and so on.

    • Graph by Jen Kelly

    This clear danger is just one reason that hundreds of college teams have been cut due to the pandemic. These cuts impact athletes, athletic programs, schools and local economies. Specifically, Football often funds the rest of a school’s athletic program. If it goes, so might every other sport. Sports matter on a local level, not just as a national industry.

    That’s where the bubble solution comes in. The team and everyone who supports them cuts themselves off from the rest of a community. No one leaves, everyone gets tested constantly. It’s a bubble.

    In practice, it’s difficult. That’s hundreds of people quarantining together, with further levels of quarantine within the bubble. The people with the most contact, such as the players and coaches, must stay away from the other staff as much as possible, effectively forming bubbles within bubbles. Then the staff with the most contact to the players stays away from the staff undergoing the least risk.

    • Graphic by Jen Kelly

    All of those bubbles on the edge of popping, delicate planning, and vigilant testing for only a chance to keep the team safe. There are severe consequences if all those measures fail. And none of those intense measures accounts for what happens outside. It can’t account for people huddling around their TV, packing into bars, or embracing when victory is declared.

  • SJSU Football team brings mixed reactions

    SJSU Football team brings mixed reactions

    Humboldt State University students unsure how to feel about visiting football team

    In a campus wide email sent out on Oct. 1, Humboldt State University informed the student body that the San Jose State University’s football team, the Spartans, would be staying on campus to train for their upcoming 2020 season.

    The Spartans are currently unable to practice at their own stadium due to a combination of stadium construction and COVID-19 regulations within Santa Clara County that prevent the practice of contact sports for reduced infection.

    The email stated that “approximately 141 players, coaches, and staff will stay in HSU residence halls that have previously been unused this semester. The halls are separate from anywhere that HSU students are currently living on campus,” with students on campus stating that they were staying at the Redwood Hall dorms.

    SJSU has pledged to cover the costs of the used athletic facilities, housing and testing for the team. HSU emphasized the separation of the team from students, stating that contact with students will be minimal.

    HSU students are still coming to terms with the news. Hours after the initial email, students are reacting with mixed opinions and fears of future California State University’s coming to Humboldt.

    Kezia Letzin, a zoology major, and Nastya Yudinova, an exercise science grad student, welcomed the news. Hoping the SJSU football team can bring a sense of community during these tough times.

    “Honestly, I don’t care,” Yudinova said. “If we’re not using the field, ‘why not help them?’ It’s nice to know that we are still a community.”

    Letzin also agreed, saying the field went largely unused due to the current pandemic and it made sense to allow another team to utilize it.

    Freddie Rosen, another zoology major, and Nicole Vazquez, a studio art major, and Melania Guillen, a film major, were less than pleased with the news. Rosen believes it was a terrible idea, already finding fault in HSU’s claim the football team would be held separately and away from students.

    “It isn’t fair that they are using facilities that we don’t even have access to,” Rosen said. “They said that they were going to be away from students, when they are in Redwood Hall, which is where everybody is.”

    For Velazquez, the main issue surrounded the lack of transparency from HSU administration, something she thought students should have had a say in.

    “It was sprung upon us so suddenly,” Velasquez said. “I know that it’s not our decision as students, but we paid money to go here and this wasn’t in the plan.”

    Guillen felt the administration is unfairly treating HSU students by prioritizing another school and their athletics before their students.

    “It’s kinda unfair,” said Guillen. “We are all up here doing our best, and it’s unfair to see another school come onto our campus and be prioritized in a way that we could.”

    HSU has stated that the initial plan is to host the team for one week, but without concrete certainty on a scheduled timeline, the team’s stay could be longer.

  • Spartans arrive at HSU despite campus concerns

    Spartans arrive at HSU despite campus concerns

    ***Editor’s note: SJSU football program was tested in congruence with Mountain West conference guidelines***

    The Spartans have arrived and this time they’re not carrying spears or shields. Instead the San Jose State football team stepped onto the Humboldt State campus on Oct. 2 with bags full of clothes, televisions, gaming consoles and plenty of padding. As 141 players, coaches and trainers streamed out of the six buses into a school that hasn’t seen college football since 2018. 

    Humboldt State students received an email on Sept. 30 that the San Jose State football team would be arriving within the week. Initial reports suggested that the Spartan football program would be at HSU for one week per the Spartan Daily student newspaper from SJSU. The duration of their stay is not confirmed and could be longer. 

    According to the Humboldt State Athletics Department, the length of the Spartan football team’s stay at HSU depends on the regulations set forth by Santa Clara County where SJSU is located. 

    “It’s uncertain at this point as it depends on the needs of SJSU and how quickly they may be able to return to their campus to practice and play games,” the HSU Athletics Department said in an email. “They are working with Santa Clara County Health to get approval for that as soon as possible.”

    SJSU Head Coach Brent Brennan said in a press conference on Oct. 5 that the arrangement between San Jose State and HSU came quickly with the need to start full contact practices soon. 

    “I think it probably came together in about a week, maybe a little less than that,” Brennan said. “President Jackson here and their Athletic Director Jane Teixeira and our Athletic Director Marie Tuite, our CFO Charlie Faas, Dr. Papazian, it was just a mad dash that way.”

    As of Oct. 5, Santa Clara County has announced that they are moving into the third tier of COVID-19 classification after seeing an decrease in new cases each day. While there is still no official time set for the Spartan football team to be on the HSU campus, this development could mean that the team may return to San Jose sooner rather than later. 

    “It was a slap to the face on rec sports. Because we really didn’t know what the hell was going on. We thought it was Athletics. We were like ‘Athletics, what the heck?’ and then Humboldt County was like ‘Yo, what the heck?’ But it wasn’t really Athletics’ fault.” 

    Martin Gordillo

    While the team is on campus, they will be responsible for testing their athletes and personnel using their own testing resources. In an email sent out on Oct. 1, Humboldt State told students that will be tested once per week. This runs contrary to Mountain West conference protocol who state on their website that athletes will be tested three times each week. It is unclear whether this testing will apply to the preseason training that the Spartans are currently participating in. 

    While the Spartans are on campus, Humboldt State’s own NCAA teams will still have access to facilities during their scheduled times in order to continue their preparation for hopeful upcoming seasons.

    “HSU sport programs are still using Redwood Bowl during their regularly scheduled and reserved time periods,” HSU Athletics said in an email.

    Even as the San Jose State team was arriving on campus HSU students and athletes alike were confused and upset that more context had not been provided for the team’s arrival. One of the loudest voices that could be heard across social media was that of the club sports on campus that have been unable to hold practices since COVID-19 shut down the majority of sports. President of HSU Club Baseball Martin Gordillo was upset that the communication between the administration and recreational sports teams was not more clear. 

    “It was a slap to the face on rec sports,” Gordillo said. “Because we really didn’t know what the hell was going on. We thought it was Athletics. We were like ‘Athletics, what the heck?’ and then Humboldt County was like ‘Yo, what the heck?’ But it wasn’t really Athletics’ fault.” 

    According to Gordillo, there was a miscommunication between Athletics and recreational sports which was clarified in a meeting with several of the club sports and the Athletics Department.  

    “In reality it wasn’t Athletics,” Gordillo said. “It was mainly more towards the Chancellor’s Office who made that decision on whether or not to allow athletics to continue to practice but not rec sports.”

    Gordillo stressed that while he feels that communication can be improved between rec sports and athletics, there is a disconnect with how the Chancellor’s Office views rec sports in comparison to NCAA athletics. 

    “I believe the Chancellor’s Office has made it seem like they really don’t care about rec sports that much,” Gordillo said. “They don’t see us and [NCAA] Athletics as equal. Not Athletics in general. Athletics wants to work with us. They really want to have our voices heard.” 

  • Humboldt State athletes prepare for uncertain seasons

    Humboldt State athletes prepare for uncertain seasons

    Despite an uncertain future, athletes continue to train for their next season

    Normally fall sports would have begun their season at this time of year. For now, however, fall and spring student athletes must wait for the foreseeable future until they can touch the court or field as a team. For senior athletes the possibility of not having a season can weigh heavy on their mind. Fall athletes are ready for the season to start in the spring, but there is still no solid answer if it will happen.

    Tyler Guptill, a senior on the Humboldt State men’s soccer team, has had to deal with these problems. Guptill has also had to come to terms with the fact of not having a season in the fall.

    “Yeah there are a lot of difficulties during this time”, Guptill said. “However, we are very fortunate to be the only CSU able to train this fall.”

    Guptill and other athletes have been able to train for the upcoming season by using the HSU gym but they must follow all social distancing guidelines and stay in small groups.

    As for the possibility of not having a season, Guptill has had to keep his head high and voice his positivity to his teammates and coaches.

    “Whether we have a season in the spring or not I think it’s important to lead with being positive”, said Guptill. “We all love the game so much, the face masks and social distancing won’t distract us from working hard. It’s important to think about the young guys and do our best to make this time productive and most importantly memorable. It requires a lot of extra work but the guys have that fight in them, so I’m excited for whatever comes our way.”

    Fall athletes are not the only athletes who have to deal with the uncertainty of a season. Chris Louie, a senior on the Humboldt State rugby team, must deal with the possibility of not having a season in the Spring. Louie was a transfer from Sacramento City College last year.

    “It was my first year playing and now I have a different environment to train in”, Louie said. “ I don’t like how the season ended. Now I feel like I have to be more prepared for the oncoming season so we can win.”

    Louie has stayed in physical shape by running and going to the gym everyday since self-isolation has ended.

    “Physically I have actually been able to push myself but in a different mindset, not as a sports mindset but as a lifestyle choice.”, said Louie. “I’ve always had a coach or team to push me to go to the gym. But now with no season I have to push myself to go to the gym, setting me forward for the future. I have to better myself in life and not just the game.”

    Louie has always been able to look on the bright side. The possibility of having no season really proves this.

    “I’ve always had a positive mindset, I look at life like there are two sides.”, said Louie. “With every negative there are always positives surrounding it. For example I’ve been in college for 6 years. Even though I don’t have sports to play my senior year, I realize I have almost graduated and that is a positive to take away from no season.”

    The Athletics Department is starting to allow socially distanced practices this week. As for playing a season in the spring, the question still holds whether or not athletes will have one.

  • When in-person sports can’t be a reality, fantasy delievers

    When in-person sports can’t be a reality, fantasy delievers

    The Lumberjack guide to fantasy football

    2020 has been a year of disruption felt throughout the globe let alone Humboldt State campus. Like most industries in America, live sports has been subjected to repercussions stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic.

    With most states banning the gatherings of large amounts of people, sports organizations such as the NBA and MLB have attempted to salvage the remaining portions of their seasons in order to keep fans entertained and revenue coming in. As the fall has drawn closer many have worried the pandemic would stifle the incoming football season. Though the arenas in which these teams rival for the next few months may be empty, the fans at home are champing at the bits for the action their hearts long for.

    Despite the current pandemic stifling most ways fans enjoy football season, one thing remains as popular as ever: Fantasy Football.

    Though it might be daunting from an outsider looking in, fantasy football is a pretty easy game to get into for fans of all ages.The first step of the game for any prospective fantasy football franchise owner is finding a league.This can be accomplished by joining or starting a league with a group of friends, coworkers or family members, if not joining a league online.

    For the novice beginner with no previous experience we suggest joining a league with people you know first. Each league ranges in size from eight to sixteen team owners.The league fee also ranges from group to group, often varying from twenty to a few hundred dollars per individual participating in the season.This pool of money is then distributed to the team that come in first place.

    Fantasy football is a game that can be learned as the season progresses but the gist is that the better your players perform during the regular NFL season, the better they will perform each week against other teams in your league. The players’ stats from each week are added up and the team with the most points is the winner.It is important to start your franchise off with a solid roster. As draft day approaches here’s a few tips and tricks that will help you curate a team that will hopefully perform well throughout your season.

    Select players that you project will continue to perform well from last season.

    Be weary of players that have the same by weeks during the season because this will dramatically affect your teams chances of winning during such weeks.

    Steer clear of players that are prone to injuries, suspensions or any lackluster performance from previous seasons.

    At the end of the day what you learn throughout the season will be as a result of trial and error. Have fun with it, learn from your mistakes and don’t be afraid to take a chance on certain opportunities that may arise during the season.

  • Humboldt State Athletes stay fit safely during pandemic

    Humboldt State Athletes stay fit safely during pandemic

    COVID-19 is not an excuse to stop sweating.

    Student athletes do not have the luxury of taking a break because once COVID-19 is over, it is right back to the game they play. Athletes not only have to worry about the lack of open gyms, but also the ongoing social justice movement that swept across the country. Some athletes found it easier to cope and build a healthy diet and workout routine around these problems than others.

    Benicio Benavides-Garb, a sophomore soccer player for HSU, has stayed in shape by using his personal weights and running. Benavides-Garb lifted with his barbell and set of dumbbells whenever he could. The running app Strava played a large role in Benavides-Garb’s fitness still being at a top level.

    “Strava allowed me to try and break all my previous records I had on all my runs before,” Benavides-Garb said.

    Benavides-Garb has also stayed in shape by passing the soccer ball with his little brother. Benavides-Garb’s passing has really improved since he trained with his little brother. The training not only improved both of the brothers’ skills, but also their relationship.

    “Practicing with my little brother has led to a lot of bonding between the two of us,” Benavides-Garb said. “We are probably the closest we have ever been.”

    One athlete has taken the all natural approach to staying in shape for their season. Kahanu Amantiad is junior and member of the Humboldt Rowing team. Amantiad trained over summer on her rowing machine. The rowing machine was essential in Amantiad staying in shape for her season. Additionally, Amantiad has been surfing all quarantine in her home state of Hawaii.

    “I’ve spent most of my days surfing at my secret spot,” Amantiad said. “There are about two other people in the lineup, so we socially distance very easily. I’ve been working on my bottom turn and a couple snaps here and there.”

    For some athletes like sophomore basketball player Joey Rodrick, there are more distractions to training than just COVID-19. Rodrick spent most of his time in quarantine lifting in his homemade weight room and training with a socially distanced trainer. When quarantine was over and parks reopened, Rodrick was able to play with the top talent of Portland. Rodrick worked on his jumpshot and other moves for his upcoming season.

    “Playing with the best of the best definitely allowed me to work on my skills and improve as a player for HSU,” Rodrick said.

    However, training came to a halt when Rodrick chose to be a part of a call for social and racial change. Protests rightfully proved to be more important than playing basketball for Rodrick.

    “It’s been hard to train and practice because of all the protests,” Rodrick said. “I have been taking part in them and have really been adamant on doing my part for social justice.”

  • Determined and Dedicated: Eureka Local Paves the Way to the NFL

    Determined and Dedicated: Eureka Local Paves the Way to the NFL

    NFL Green Bay Packers pick up Eureka standout in the 2020 Draft

    You’re watching the 2020 NFL Draft. It’s the sixth round and the Green Bay Packers are on their 29th pick. The Packers are about to make a life altering call to a player who will soon have the chance of playing alongside the quarterback legend, Aaron Rodgers. A familiar Humboldt County name flashes across the screen. Former local Eureka high school alumnus and University of Oregon center, Jake Hanson has just been drafted as the 208th overall pick for the Green Bay Packers for this upcoming 2020-21 season.

    A key component of Hanson’s journey began when he signed to play for the Oregon Ducks in 2015. During his four seasons playing with the Ducks, Hanson started almost every game. During his first three seasons, Hanson didn’t allow a single sack with a total of 2,738 snaps. The starting center received a total of two honorable AP second team Pac-12 All Conference recognitions.

    Tyson Miller is a local MMA pro fighter, former high school teammate and good friend of Hanson’s. Miller and Hanson initially met in kindergarten but it wasn’t until the two went to a football camp together their freshman year when they really hit it off and started hanging out. Miller sees what many fans have noticed on social media since the draft. Hanson comes in at almost 6’5”, 303 lbs, his size works to his advantage.

    “First of all, his size,” Miller said, “He was bigger than most of the other lineman on the field.”

    Size is not the only key feature that stands out about Hanson. Miller points to Hanson’s effort on the field as a big upside.

    “He’s going to be a professional football player.”

    Tyson Miller

    “Jake is going to give it 100%,” Miller said. “If somebody demanded more than 100%, he was more than willing to give more than 100% right back.”

    The dedication and game mentality that Hanson possesses is one that is truly admired by not only Miller, but by others as well. The ability to turn up the heat in a game is sets athletes apart from one another.

    “[He is] going to be a professional athlete,” Miller said, “He’s going to be a professional football player.”

    Hanson is going to be a memorable name within the community and make an unforgettable mark for the Packer Nation.

    In an article by Forbes, Packers General Manager Brian Gutekunst pointed out Hanson’s work ethic and personality as a positive for the teams newly acquired offensive lineman.

    “Just really a model of consistency and another culture guy,” Gutekunst said. “The kind of guys that we like to bring into our offensive line room.”

    While the Packers have their seven year veteran center Corey Linsley under contract for another year, there is no doubt that Hanson will be Linsley’s backup for this upcoming season. Hanson is going to be a great asset to the Packers. His strength, size and quick feet will play a pivotal role in his movement of helping block the defensive line. I am predicting that with time, after the team continues to work with him and his snap consistency, he will be their starting man.

    If you’re looking to watch some football and don’t know what to do without Humboldt State’s football program but still want that local spin, be sure to tune into some of the Green Bay Packers match ups. Remember to look for #67 on the field.

  • Humboldt State Alum Plays Professional Basketball Abroad

    Humboldt State Alum Plays Professional Basketball Abroad

    Justin Everett continues his basketball career in the Republic of Georgia

    Justin Everett was on the Humboldt State University men’s basketball team for five years. After graduating with a major in business marketing and a minor in economics, he decided to continue his athletic career as a professional athlete with the BC Cactus Tbilisi out of the Georgian Basketball League in the Republic of Georgia.

    During the signing process, teams based in different countries were interested in Everett, but he didn’t have a specific place in mind that he wanted to play for. He and his sports agent solely based their decision on which team would be the best fit for him to showcase what he can do and get more exposure.

    “My goal was to get my feet in the door in a respected league, where I can perform and establish myself as a high level player to propel my career in years to come,” Everett said.

    Everett played a total of 15 games during his 2019-20 season with Cactus Tbilisi. He averaged a total of 13.8 points, 7.6 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game. On Dec. 7, 2019, Everett set his season high with 23 points and a season high of three assists in just 35 minutes against BC Titebi. He had a season high of 12 rebounds in 36 minutes against Dinamo Tbilisi on Dec. 22, 2019. Everett also recorded 5 double-doubles, scored in double figures 12 times in 15 games, and had 20 points or more in three games.

    Due to COVID-19, his season was cut short. The transition of playing in Georgia to moving back to the States was a big change for Everett. He moved back in with his family, who he hadn’t lived with since he moved away for college. The hardest part has been not having the facilities he normally had. Everett hasn’t been able to shoot a basketball since he got back to the States.

    Everett was first inspired to play basketball when he was only two years old, but he didn’t start playing at a competitive level until he was in the second grade. His role models growing up were Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal, as well as his father, who taught him how to play after he showed an interest.

    “I was born in 1996, so Kobe had just gotten into the league,” Everett said. “I grew up watching him and Shaq win all those rings in LA and my dad played college basketball so I kind of just got into it. Once I started working out and started playing, it just felt comfortable and I enjoyed it.”

    Everett was born in Glendale, CA but was raised in Clovis from third grade up until he graduated from Buchanan High School. He started taking his basketball career more serious the summer after his freshman year in high school.

    “We put in a lot of work after my freshman year of high school,” Everett said.

    Looking back on his career as a professional athlete, Everett says he never imagined getting this far. Although he is very passionate about playing basketball and loves the game, he says he had a backup plan of going straight to the workforce if he didn’t get any college offers after high school.

    “Honestly, I didn’t think I would make it to college basketball,” Everett said. “I almost didn’t make it to Humboldt State and then Steve Kinder ended up giving me an opportunity to go play basketball over at Humboldt on a full ride scholarship.”

    “Humboldt County, the Arcata area and just all the fans and the support was tremendous. They always packed the gym and they were loud every night we were in there. I enjoyed the process of it all.”

    Justin Everett

    Kinder was the head coach for HSU men’s basketball and was there throughout the entirety of Everett’s college basketball career. After Everett’s sophomore season, he tore his ACL and redshirted the following year of 2016-2017, he went through the rehab process and fully recovered before playing again the last two years he had left at HSU.

    During his last season, Everett led the Jacks with 15.6 average points per game and a 6.6 rebounding average. The 2018-19 All-California Collegiate Athletic Association First Team honoree shot 50% from the field and 76% from the charity stripe during his senior season.

    Everett says he really enjoyed the years he played basketball at HSU and all the road trips he took with his team.

    “Humboldt County, the Arcata area and just all the fans and the support was tremendous,” Everett said. “They always packed the gym and they were loud every night we were in there. I enjoyed the process of it all.”

    He said the best part was getting to grow and evolve his game and play for a super league.

    “I definitely want to try and play, five, ten, 12 years,” Everett said. “See where it takes me and try to get to the highest league possible.”

    For those wishing to follow in Everett’s footsteps, he recommends lifting weights, eating right, getting a routine going, stay disciplined and consistent. With that, he says the results will follow.