The opposite of ordinary: Striving for tolerance for all walks of life on campus

By Suzanne Samin
A & E Editor

When I read Ohio Wesleyan’s slogan, “the opposite of ordinary,” I interpret it as a statement about our diversity and unique opportunities in both education and service.

To me, it says that our university, our campus, is a place where people of any race, religion, creed or walk of life can find acceptance.

It says to me, “We are not a box.” There is no “ordinary” OWU student, no exclusive “type” that defines us as a whole.

Given this message, it comes as a great disturbance to me that our campus could be a place where anyone would feel unwelcome – that anyone would be discriminated against, violently or otherwise, for who they are or what they believe.

Earlier this month, I caught wind of an unfortunate incident involving a student who had been harassed and assaulted on our campus for something I truly believed we accepted at Ohio Wesleyan – being a member of the LGBTIQA community.

Given our very active PRIDE group, our Spectrum Resource Center and the number of resources available to LGBTIQA individuals on campus, I was deeply disappointed, and, frankly, depressed to hear that a man associated with one of our fraternities on campus had thrown beer bottles at this individual, while yelling anti-gay slurs.

While the appropriate measures have been taken, and formal charges are in the process of being filed, I still cannot fathom the implications of this hateful act for our community.

Given our commitment to diversity, interdisciplinary connections, and cultural understanding, we should be completely and utterly ashamed, as a whole, that this is a plausible event on this campus.

Take a second to consider this: not only did someone choose to physically harm someone for being perceived or identified as homosexual, but also there were people there who laughed.

There were people there that stood by and did absolutely nothing: your classmates, your friends, your Greek brothers or sisters.
These were people whom you pass every day on the JAYwalk who perpetrated this crime, or allowed it to happen.

Being silent and being inactive is a form of perpetration. When it comes to discrimination of any kind, if you are not part of the solution, you are part of the problem.

We boast a plethora of beliefs at this university: religious, political or otherwise. Some of these beliefs do not accept the queer community.

However, the fact that a crime such as this could transpire here goes against everything that I, in my three years at this university, felt that we stood for.

No one should feel entitled to push his or her beliefs onto others. The persecution of others for living their lives is inexcusable.
Those actions are not the sort this university endorses and I, for one, will not stand for them.

When events like this happen, I have to ask myself how many more events or discussions we need to have to get this across to our students and faculty.

Everyone on this campus, and I mean absolutely everyone, should feel ashamed and responsible for these kinds of attitudes continuing to exist here at Ohio Wesleyan.

I know I certainly am.

As a member of the Women’s House, I am saddened, but also motivated – because this is further indication there is so much more to be done.

The bubble of acceptance and equality on this campus is a gift I, and other students here, have come to appreciate.

Those of us who are part of the SLU community, or any other equality organization, have been reminded we are not anywhere near finished in generating discussion and change on this campus.

Our bubble has burst.

For those who had seemingly nothing to do with this incident, I encourage them to deeply examine how they treat others, and how they respond when they witness others being mistreated. It is our responsibility as a student body to change and grow for the better – and every action and reaction, no matter how small, makes a difference.

For those who were there and did nothing, I hope you have given it thought and have found some sense of accountability.

I hope you have examined why you accepted the events unfolding, or why you did not do something to stop them.

I hope you eventually let go of whatever guilt you may have in exchange for motivation to cause change for the better.

I cannot say I know how to even begin addressing those of you who committed this crime.

All I can say is the anger I have expressed in writing this is not hatred aimed at you, but towards the attitudes you exhibited. To hate you, or anyone, would be to go directly against my own cause.

The unfortunate fact of the matter is hate is an ordinary thing that happens every day – on college campuses and city streets alike.

Hate is an ordinary emotion that fuels thousands of actions. However, we create the climate of this campus and we have the ability to change it.

It starts with changing our problematic attitudes individually, and then reflecting that to others. Slowly but surely, it can make a difference.

If we are going to call ourselves “the opposite of ordinary,” then we must live up to it.

Women can be empowered without reclaiming derogatory words

By Breanne Reilly
News Editor

When I first heard about the SlutWalk, the name took me aback.

Slut is a misogynistic term aimed at people, mostly women, who are considered to be “loose” or sexually promiscuous.
It is an insult.

And I do not believe that reclaiming a derogatory term, such as “slut,” makes it any less of an insult.

Arguably, embracing the word, “slut,” can give it a nearly harmless or positive connotation.

The often used phrase, “Hey, slut,” has made the word part of an ironic greeting. But, in my opinion, this casual use of the word is merely casual sexism.

In the case of SlutWalk, however, the word’s use has evolved into a sense of empowerment for women.

Sluts are now people who exercise their rights to their own bodies by embracing their sexuality and dressing however they want.

As part of the SlutWalk, participants have the option of dressing “slutty” or provocatively if they want to make a statement.

Last year, some students dressed in skirts, heels, bras and bathing suits.

Usually, I do not care what anyone wants to wear any night or day of the week. But I do have a problem with this part of the Walk.

If we encourage participants to dress “slutty,” aren’t we defining a certain type of style and certain parts of our own clothing in a negative way?

I understand this part of the Walk is meant to deliver the message that women should not be raped merely because they dress or act a certain way other people may deem unacceptable.

I understand we live in a society where blaming victims is common.

It seems when a woman is raped, her character is measured in relationship to her skirt length.
Her “slutty” attire is almost always used as an excuse for the attacker’s behavior.

But the truth is, women are raped regardless of what we wear, who we know or what we do.
Women are raped because rapists are foul.

There is no other reason.

In my mind, there exists no legitimate reason to blame a victim for rape and not the attacker.

And that, for me, is the point of the SlutWalk.

Although the word, “slut,” bothers me, SlutWalk is not just about the taking back the word.

And although I think the optional dress code is questionable, it also is not about what participants wear.

It is about the blame placed on the victim in a society that tells women “don’t get raped” when it should be preaching “don’t rape.”
I support this message, being a woman myself, and strongly believe we, as a society, should work to end this blame game.

Homecoming royalty quest trivial — or not

Homecoming. Bring on the competition.

Actually, bring it or else.

Is it me, or is homecoming this year a bigger deal than it ever was before? I’ve been lucky enough to watch students rip down fliers, bribe students for votes and even form a fan club or two in an effort to earn royalty status. The outcome of this year’s homecoming king and queen competition has literally reached the level of “The Hunger Games.”

Maybe people are trying to relive the glory days of high school, or maybe they’re just trying to leave Ohio Wesleyan with an overload of extracurricular activities and a crown to go with it, who knows!

Either way, I have never seen such cold-blooded competition to win homecoming king and queen.

The day the list of nominees was released, I’m sure hearts broke, and that moment most likely made those who didn’t make the list reminisce about that one time in high school when they didn’t make the varsity team or that other time when they didn’t get the part in the play.

But come on, people! What’s the big deal about being the king or queen? I just can’t understand why anyone would actually want to spend a Saturday morning freezing at Selby field. It just doesn’t seem like fun, and definitely not worth a shoddy crown and titles with minimal glory that will be old news come next week.

I spent a whole seven hours dabbling with the idea of running for homecoming queen. That rumor was short lived. I quickly realized that running would likely be the biggest joke among my friends, not to mention the fact that I wouldn’t be able to pull a Lindsay Lohan by smashing the crown and throwing it to my peers, let alone receive the key to the city of Delaware. No thank you, homecoming.

But still, people continue to scatter fliers and consume newsfeeds on Facebook. Now even I feel the need to participate in this fight for king and queen by helping some friends run a publicity campaign or two. So sue me.

In reality, when it comes down to it, homecoming is fun. It’s an old tradition of placing pieces of plastic and fake diamonds, ideally cubic zirconia, on people’s heads to make them feel special.

So to all you voters, vote — and good luck to the nominees. May the odds be ever in your favor!

Margaret Bagnell
Transcript Reporter

Spanish film festival brings culture and education with Lope

By Emily Feldmesser
Transcript Correspondent

The most recent installment in the first year of the Spanish Film Festival is the film, Lope. The film is inspired by the life events of the Spanish playwright, Lope de Vega.

Ohio Wesleyan students have taken an interest to these foreign films. Freshman Emma Drongnowski says that Lope “was really different from American films in the way that the characters were portrayed.” Assistant professor of Spanish, Glenda Nieto-Cuebas, one of the curators of the festival, says about “80 to 100 people attend each film.”

“The film festival is made possible due to a grant awarded by Pragda, which is an independent, New York based cultural initiative. The grant was made possible with the support of Pragda, the Secretary of State for Culture of Spain and its Program for Cultural Cooperation with United States University. Our university received the grant as a result of a proposal written by Glenda Y. Nieto-Cuebas and Andrea Colvin, assistant professors of Spanish at OWU,” Nieto-Cuebas said.

The film festival brings a sense of culture to students and faculty at Ohio Wesleyan. Colvin said, “Watching films from Spain and Latin America is a great way for our students to learn more about the cultures they study in class.”

The films help connect what students are learning in the classroom to real, applicable Spanish and the cultures that go along with it.
Freshman Raina Graham said, “It’s great that they show and expose us to different cultural movies.”

These movies also expose students to different “accents, phrases and different facial and corporal expressions that complements the spoken language,” Nieto-Cuebas said.

The films help “create a forum for the discussion of important socioeconomic and political issues that relate to many Spanish-speaking countries,” she said.

Students are enjoying these foreign films being shown at OWU. Drongnowski said, “It was very interesting to see a film made from a different nationality perspective.”

Colvin said, “The film festival is a fun way to bring students, professors and other members of the Delaware community together and build relationships outside of class.”

The movies range from animation to live-action and all have different subject matters.

Colvin said the “Spanish Film club provided a list of films to choose from.” In order to get the variety they desire, Colvin and Nieto-Cuebas picked films from different countries and that covered a wide range of topics.

As for the future of the film festival, Colvin said, “We would love to do it again in the future (perhaps biannually), but due to funding, it may not be realistic for it to become an annual event.”

With the student and community feedback given, the film festival may be able to continue for the foreseeable future.

Delaware sees a new generation of fine dining

By Samantha Simon
Transcript Reporter

Three generations of the Sims family have collaborated together to open Generations Fine Food and Spirits.

The restaurant has a goal to open Nov. 1 on 5 N. Sandusky Street, where Nova Restaurant used to reside.

This is father and son, Marty and Jeffrey Sims’ first restaurant, though they have been in the business for many years. Marty worked as food and beverage director in Columbus at the Holiday Inn, and Jeffrey worked as a chef at Tartan Fields country club in Dublin. The two had thought of opening a restaurant for some time and then Marty received a phone call to come look at the N. Sandusky street space.

“We came up and looked at it, and decided to give it a try,” Marty Sims said.

Generations will serve lunch and dinner Monday through Saturday. The restaurant will also have a full bar as they have secured a liquor license and are currently waiting on the beer license from city council to be approved. The bar will be open for happy hour from 4 to 7 p.m.

A large projection screen will be a main focal point for those who choose to sit at the bar, while the main dining room hopes to serve as a more formal setting suitable for a date or nice night out.

Besides from a few minor changes, they plan to keep the interior of the restaurant intact. Marty Sims said that there wasn’t much to change to the restaurant, and they ran into a great opportunity of an almost completely set up space.

The building is 100 years old with an industrial style look, which is perfect for the atmosphere they hope to create with their casual fine dining menu. They plan to offer a variety of menu items from different generations along with timeless classic pasta dishes, like spaghetti and meatballs and more modern dishes like lobster macaroni and cheese.

“We won’t have fried mozzarella sticks, but we will have fried brie with a raspberry mango chutney sauce,” Marty Sims said.

Some other menu items will include a gourmet grilled cheese with three different cheeses, tomato, onion and brushed with herb mayo. The menu also offers several flat breads ranging from a traditional margarita, to a more modern flatbread topped with gorgonzola, granny smith apples, bacon, onion and parmesan.

“There will be something for everyone, whether you like a burger, flatbread, steak or salad we will have it,” chef, Jeffrey Sims, said.

Marty Sims said the goal of Generations is to serve good quality and good consistency. Jeffrey Sims also said that a strong goal of theirs is to offer good service.

“This is our first venture into to the Delaware community and we want the city to be proud. Everyone in this process has been very helpful so far,” Marty Sims said.

Meeting their goal to open Nov. 1 would allow the restaurant to participate in Delaware’s First Friday of November, a community celebration that Marty and Jeffrey Sims hope to be a part of right away.

First Friday occurs every month in downtown Delaware, where venders, live music and special promotions line the street attracting many community members to dine out for the evening. The restaurant hopes to become a favorite for Ohio Wesleyan students.

Editors Note: In order to reach the projected opening date of Nov. 1, Generations is now hiring for various positions. Please contact Marty or Jeffrey Sims at 740-362-1195 or generationsfinefoodandspirits@hotmail.com for more information.

Actors take flight in The Fairy Queen

Left: Sandy Harned, flying master from ZFX, boosts up sophomore Hannah Sampson in a rehearsal of the Fairy Queen.

Direct Left: Sampson practices her lines in mid flight in a rehearsal of the Fair Queen. The Fair Queen will be showing Nov. 2-3, and Nov. 9-11. Other fliers in this production include senior Joe Lugosch, junior Josh Boggs and junior Hillary Fowler. This is the first time actors have “flown” on stage in a production at OWU. Harned trained both the performers and the crew on how to fly properly using cables and harnesses without injuring themselves. The Fairy Queen was adapted from Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream and features music by Henry Purcell.

Love Your Body day reinforces importance of self love

By Jenna Rodcay
Transcript Reporter

On Oct. 16, Ohio Wesleyan took part in the national celebration of Love Your Body Day, a campaign established by the National Organization of Women (NOW) to encourage and promote healthy body images.

The NOW website said, “The Love Your Body campaign was created as a response to media portrayals of women, particularly in advertising, that promote narrow and unhealthy ideals of beauty.”

This year marked the Love Your Body Day campaign’s fifteenth year of celebration.

Junior Natalie Duleba, a member of the Women’s House (WOHO), was the organizer of the OWU effort this year and did it as her house project for the semester.

According to Duleba, every member of the SLU community is required to do a house project that promotes their house’s mission each semester.

The WOHO works mainly to enhance knowledge about women’s, LGBT and feminist issues. Each year a different person takes Love Your Body Day on as a house project.

“I’m interested in body issues because they’re not talked about enough and they affect literally everyone,” Duleba said.

NOW encourages people to take part in the movement and bring attention to their communities.

Events take place on campuses across the country and the NOW website noted the diverse ways people express their support for the campaign; “they include blogathons, fashion shows, pickets, educational forums, athletic events and more.”

Duleba decided to incorporate a photo campaign into her project. She took photographs of volunteers for two weeks before Love Your Body Day and created two photo albums of the volunteers. She said the idea is a simplified version of what another housemate wanted to do.

The event’s Facebook page described the photo album as “normal people who love their bodies just the way they are.”

Each of the 39 models was photographed in front of past Love Your Body Day banners.

“There was no set number of people I was looking for,” Duleba said. “I got a lot more people than I was expecting.”

Duleba took head shots of the models, as well as pictures of them standing up, sitting down and showing off their favorite body parts. She chose four of her favorite photos to put in the albums and accompanied each of the model’s photos’ with a slip of paper that said their name, age, class year and favorite body part.

Duleba said most people chose their eyes and butts, while others chose their collarbones, legs, and wrists.

Though the NOW campaign focuses mainly on women, Duleba was able to photograph men and women of several different races and class years, Greek members, SLU members and those unaffiliated.

“I was super impressed by the amount of diversity I was able to get,” Duleba said. “I felt that leaving men out would be too limited. Body issues affect men too. I wanted to be more inclusive than NOW made it seem.”

Junior Gus Wood, a member of the WOHO, was one of the volunteer models. “I thought it would be an interesting opportunity,” Wood said. “It’s important for men to participate in this kind of project because it’s not just a women’s issue.”

Junior Katie Sponseller said she first participated in the campaign to help Duleba accomplish something she was so passionate about but found after participating she felt a real “inner beauty, outer beauty” experience.

“It was amazing to see the things that other people find beautiful about themselves,” Sponseller said.

Duleba presented the albums to the campus on Oct. 16, the day before national Love Your Body Day because OWU did not have classes on the national celebration day, while tabling in HamWill.

Duleba also encouraged people to sign this year’s Love Your Body banner. She said more than 50 people declared their favorite body part on the banner.

The banner will hang in the HamWil atrium from Oct. 22 to Oct. 26 and there will be a Love Your Body display in the atrium display cases during the first week of November.

Duleba said the campaign was a great first house project and motivated her to get more involved with other events, such as Written on the Body, a body image speak out sponsored by the Women’s Resource Center (WRC).

“It helped me express my passion for this issue and gave other people the opportunity to support a good cause,” Duleba said.

Editor’s Note: Natalie Duleba is an editor of the The Transcript, but the issue discussed is relevant to the campus as a whole. Duleba played no part in the construction of the article.

The Arjune DJs adds a new spin to campus nightlife

Freshman Bhuneshwar Arjune, member of twin music duo the Arjune DJs, mixes music at an event. His brother, Krishna Arjune, performs with him, DJing parties across the Ohio Wesleyan campus.

By Julia Stone
Transcript Correspondent

Freshmen twins Bhuneshwar and Krishna Arjune are taking over Ohio Wesleyan’s music scene by racking up gig after gig with their DJing business.

The “Arjune DJs” have already worked events including Viva’s Latin American Independence Day Dance, Stuying Up All Night and the International Fashion Show, which raised money for Save a Child’s Heart.

On Dec. 4 they plan to DJ at Up ‘til Dawn, the charity event for St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital.

With help from their friend, senior Iftekhar Ahmed Showpnil, the Arjune’s DJ business has skyrocketed. Iftekhar uses his connections to sororities, fraternities, and other organizations to find the twins gigs.

Crowds have responded well to the Arjune DJs. When asked how the Viva dance went, Iftekhar said, “Good, very good. As far as ratings go it was the best on campus so far.” The twins focus on smooth transitions between songs and playing music that fits the event to please the crowd. They never play from one set playlist, instead they adapt to the crowd’s reaction.

When asked why they decided to become DJs, the twins said their upbringing was a major influence. They have always been surrounded by music; especially Caribbean beats which influence their current style. DJing came naturally to them because they have drumming experience, which helps them blend beats and match tempos.

The twins’ family is an important part of their DJing business. Krishna said, “They have always been very supportive of everything that my brother and I do.” Their father encouraged them to start the business at the end of their junior year. Their parents help pay for DJing equipment and give moral support.

The twins have learned many lessons during their DJing careers. They have learned to adapt to please different crowds. They also value the principle of respect in business, and in life in general. Bhuneshwar said, “It doesn’t matter how good of a DJ you are, if you aren’t respectful then no one will respect you or your music.”

According to the twins, it is important to respect everyone’s taste in music at the event, but you can’t please everyone. Respecting different ages is also important to the twins’ music selection. Krishna said, “If there are younger children present, you must use your discretion.”

The twins taught themselves how to DJ. They ran their high school DJ club where they taught younger students the art of DJing and how to run equipment safely. Their first gig was a graduation party, which Krishna said went very well.

OWU appealed to the twins because of its high academic standing and the DJing opportunities it offers. When they had an overnight visit last May they talked to their Alpha Sig hosts and started making connections for their business.

So far the twins’ favorite music-related experience at OWU was Will.I.Am signing their business card.

The twins said, “Meeting Will.I.Am was such an influential experience because it has given us the motivation to improve our musical abilities, to become the best DJs we possibly can.”

In the future, the twins hope to continue DJing at OWU. After graduating they want to DJ at weddings and proms.

They look forward to upgrading their equipment and bringing enjoyment to others through their music.

Sheafor twin swimmers look forward to competing together

Haley (left) and Tirion (right) Sheafor are members of the OWU swimming and diving team. The Sheafor twins say “everything’s better when they’re together.”
By Sadie Slager
Transcript Reporter

Haley and Tirion Sheafor say everything’s better when they’re together. The identical twins, who hail from Charlotte, N.C., are first-year students on OWU’s swimming and diving team.

Tirion said their swimming careers started very early in life.

“Since we were four, we always liked the water,” she said. “So our parents signed us up for swim lessons. North Carolina is one of the biggest states for swimming and the times are generally faster there.”

Haley said that while they participated in a summer league swim team from ages four to nine, they had to choose swimming over soccer when they entered high school.

“It was a joint decision,” Tirion added.

Another joint decision was the twins’ decision to come to OWU.

Tirion said swimming had a big influence in their school choice.

“Ever since we chose to do swimming, we knew we wanted to go to a smaller school so we would be able to swim,” she said. “There is a nice new pool here and the swim team has a good reputation. Before we even started looking at schools we knew we would go to the same one.”

Also at the top of their list, Haley added, were UNC Asheville and Dickinson College.

“We went to a small high school, so we also wanted a small college so we would know everyone,” she said.

Tirion recalled OWU coming up on their radar during the college search process.

“We did personality tests online to see what schools would fit us, and OWU was one of them,” she said. “Then we visited here a couple of times.”

Haley and Tirion are glad to be a part of a college team, as the team they were on in high school was a club team and didn’t do anything together outside of practice and meets.

“We’re looking forward to that team feeling,” Tirion said.

Haley said she and her sister share many similarities in the pool, but excel in some different areas.

“For the most part we do the same events,” she said. “But Tirion is better at butterfly, and I am better at freestyle. We usually have
the same times for backstroke.”

In addition to participating in the same sport, Tirion and Haley chose the same area of study at OWU.

“We want to major in early childhood education,” Tirion said. “We both want to do the same thing. We have three classes together, and two separate.”

Tirion said she and Haley tend to make similar decisions, but make them on their own.

“We just like the same things,” she said.

Another thing they agree on is their favorite moments from the swimming portions of the 2012 Summer Olympics.

“Our favorite swim was Katie Ledecky’s 800 freestyle,” Haley said.

“And our second favorite was Brendan Hansen’s third place finish in breaststroke because he started in lane eight and still got third place,” Tirion added.

Haley said she and Tirion don’t currently have any Olympic aspirations, but they would consider being swim coaches after college.

In their first college meet, the Kenyon relays meet on Oct. 20, Tirion and Haley teamed up for the 200 backstroke relay and competed in a few other events separately.

While Haley specializes in freestyle and backstroke, Tirion’s main events are usually backstroke and butterfly.

Both sisters agree that they are more successful when they do things together.

“We’re generally better together, whether it’s in school or sports,” Haley said.

Tirion echoed this statement.

“We’ve always been together, so when we’re apart it feels like something is missing,” she said.

Baseball team optimistic after tryouts about upcoming spring season

By Tim Alford
Transcript Correspondent

Sophomore Charles Cooper pitches for the Bishops last season. Cooper helped the Bishops to three of their wins last season.
Over the weekend, the baseball team concluded their fall training which senior catcher Tim Heinmiller said had a much more competitive atmosphere this year.

Heinmiller said the four weeks of training during the fall, nicknamed “fall ball,” began with tryouts.

While the team has had tryouts every year, he said the team has only had 30-35 guys out in the past and this year the team had almost 50 guys.

“So the tryout felt more like a tryout, as the coaches had many more kids to see,” Heinmiller said.
Heinmiller said the number of players at the tryout helped the players to work even harder to earn a spot on the team.

“I think this was good for the team, as it created a more competitive atmosphere, and I also feel that this was necessary in order to get a good first impression of the freshmen we brought in,” Heinmiller said.

Tyler Mott, the head coach of the baseball team, said the competition served as a motivator.

“More competition forces players to step their game and effort up during practices,” Mott said. “It helps us coaches evaluate and take notice of the players who consistently work hard and want to compete for time.”

Heinmiller said the rest of fall ball consisted of four practices per week.

“One practice is an actual practice where we go over the nuances of baseball, such as bunt coverage, pick up moves, and communication,” he said. “The other practices are intra-squad scrimmages.”

Heinmiller said fall ball ends with the team separating into two teams and playing games against each other. He said this series, known as “Red/Black,” is played for the annual bragging rights.

Mott said the coaches will communicate with the players on what they need to do to make themselves better to prepare for the spring.

“The guys worked extremely hard this fall and competed consistently,” he said. “We will be working all winter with them laying out their expectations and roles.”

Heinmiller said Mott will give the team a weightlifting program and conditioning program to do over the winter. He said the conditioning program will focus on speed, agility, and explosiveness.

“This year, we will need to be a fast and scrappy team, so the conditioning will be important to allow us to stay strong throughout the season,” he said.

Senior shortstop Zach Bott said the winter training period is important for the team

“During the season, it is hard to condition and lift because you are playing two games during the week and four times on the weekend, so this is the time when we need to get stronger so we can make it throughout the season,” he said.

Mott said the team has most of the pitching staff back from last season as well as some experienced players in the infield and outfield.

“We will expect a lot from those returners, as we will count on them to help the guys who don’t have as much college game experience,” Mott said. “They will have to be good leaders each and every day for us.”

Junior third baseman Sean Vollenweider bats for the Bishop baseball team during regular season action last spring. The Bishops finished 23-18 overall and 9-7 in the North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC)
Heinmiller said that while the team has some upperclassmen who will be returning to take some spots, some freshmen will also fight to get some playing time.

Bott said these freshmen are full of talent and many will be major contributors right away.

Heinmiller said he has some goals for the team this year.

“I believe that this year we have a very realistic shot to win the NCAC and make it to the NCAA tournament for the first time in my four years here,” Heinmiller said.

“However, we still have a lot of work to do to get to this point. We need to work hard this off-season and we need to come back focused and hungry in the spring.”

Bott said he has some goals for both the team and himself.

“As a team, I think our goals are obviously to win the conference and go to regionals but I think more importantly it is to get better every day,” Bott said. “Personally, one of my biggest goals is to become a better leader.”

“Being a senior and playing for the last three years, I have been through a lot of the growing pains that the younger guys are going to go through in the coming months. So I want to influence the team and especially the young guys to keep their heads up and keep grinding every day.”

The baseball team’s first scheduled game is against Transylvania University on March 2.