Candidates air opinions
Forum addresses higher education, voter apathy
by Travis M. Combs
The Metropolitan

According to a recent Census Bureau study, if the current voting trends among young voters continue, by the year 2022 there will be an expected 4:1 ratio of senior citizen voters to voters between the ages of 18 to 25 years old.

These statistics prompted the Colorado Youth Vote Collation to stage a candidates' address forum Oct. 24 to talk about the issues facing Colorado, particularly issues regarding higher education affecting Colorado students. The forum took place in Tivoli room 320 on the Auraria Campus.

The coalition-sponsored forum was presented in conjunction by both Metro and the University of Colorado at Denver's student body governments. It was hosted by showcased candidates for  Governor,  candidates for the U.S. Senate and  speakers both for and against proposed amendments 27 thorough 31.

Tax cuts for student tuition, along with college and university tuition hikes, environmental issues and voter apathy among young people were the main topics covered by the gubernatorial candidates and the spokesman for Strickland.

The guest speakers included governor candidates Rollie Heath (D), Ralph Shnelvar (Libertarian) and Ronald Forthofer (Green Party). Joel Harris acted as spokesman for incumbent Gov. Bill Owens (R). Mike Johnston was spokesman for Senate candidate Tom Strickland (D). Senator Wayne Allard (R) was not present, nor was a spokesperson. Also in attendance were speakers for and against the amendment issues.

Johnston, Strickland's stand-in, began the event by addressing Strickland's stances on the issues of education, in which the Strickland campaign promises to give all higher-education students a $12,000 tuition tax deduction and an increase in funding for the Federal Pell Grant if elected.

"What we're seeing is that the path of equal opportunity requires a college education," said Johnston. "College education is becoming more and more expensive.

"Now the average college student's debt is twice as much as it was eight years ago," he said. "We have to make a concerted effort to make college tuition more affordable. Two things we want to do are a tuition tax credit and increasing funding for the Pell Grant."

Heath said that education was his top priority. He has both received the lifetime achievement award for his work on inner city schools and run a billion dollar company.

Heath's priority is education, he said.

"Always has been and always will be. I think we need to be accountable for every student in every classroom. Period," he said.

Schnelvar addressed an audience member's concern over supposed rights of students to receive free higher education. He said that the cost of higher education, if not paid for by individual students, will be paid for by Colorado taxpayers.

"When you want somebody to pick up the cost of education, that someone is everyone else," Schnelvar said.  "It just doesn't make sense.

"It makes enormous sense for students to be paying for their own education. That which is not paid for is not valued. It is immoral, from the Libertarian point of view, to be taxing other people for things that you should be providing for yourself," he said.

Forthofer generated the most audience applause. He said that higher education is the right of everyone.

Forthofer advocated basic rights for everybody. Among those rights to which everybody is entitled is the right to an education.

"I call for publicly-funded education from kindergarten through the 12th grades, including the university system and trade schools," he said.

According to Forthofer, questions of where the money will come from is of concern, but a publicly-funded school system can be paid for in other areas of taxpayer-sponsored programs.

"Instead of spending $400 billion a year on the military and $200 billion a year on corporate welfare, let's spend that money to work for people in this country," he said.

Harris, too, addressed the issue of education. He said that the Gov. Owens promised to strengthen Colorado's educational system and has delivered on that promise.

"Each year he has been in office, the Governor has ensured our schools were fully funded," Harris said. "That means $750 million was funded into Kindergarten through 12th grade levels to ensure that no child is left behind.

The forum continued with speakers on both sides of several proposed amendments.

Included were parties speaking about: Amendment 27, which proposes to limit the amount of money individuals, political parties and political committees can contribute to candidates running for local and state offices; Amendment 28, which states that most elections held after Jan. 1, 2003,  would be conducted by a mail ballot; Amendment 29, which would remove the role of the neighborhood caucus and assembly meetings in selecting candidates for the primary ballot and would instead require candidates to receive a certain number of signatures to get on the ballot; Amendment 30, which would allow eligible voters to register to vote and cast their ballots on election day; and Amendment 31, which would require all public schools to be taught in English, and would require non-English speaking students to learn the language through English-immersion programs.

Phil Winters, Campus Organizer and C.E.C. of the Colorado Youth Vote Collation, who presided over the forum, said voter participation among 18- to 25-year-olds can literally decide an election's outcome one way or another.

"In the 2000 presidential election, the highest office in the land was literally determined by a few hundred votes," Winters said. "There were tens of thousands of young voters in Florida alone that did not participate in that election.

"If we can just get enough young people out to vote, they can become a constituency and have a lot of innate power," he said. "If more young people voted, we could go into the future senator's office and say "look, our educational costs are skyrocketing and we want you to do something about it." We don't have that opportunity right now because we're not looked at as being that important."

Readers wanting further information on the candidates and the ballot issues can go to NEWS4Colorado.com for further information, on-line discussions of key candidates and election results.
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AHEC cuts staff, delays repairs
by John R. Crane
The Metropolitan

Auraria Higher Education Center will be cutting 23 positions to compensate for a $1.4 million cut in funding from its three schools.
The majority of the cuts will be made in facilities management, with more cuts in purchasing and the campus police department. Positions to be eliminated include one Auraria police lieutenant, AHEC director of external affairs and director of design and campus construction. AHEC currently has 340 classified staff and 45 professional exempt staff, such as division directors and childcare workers.

The most visible results of the cuts to students will be delays in the solving of maintenance problems on campus.
The cuts will be effective Dec. 31, said Dean Wolf, AHEC executive vice president of administration.
In addition to cuts, there are about 25 vacancies, most of which will not be filled, Wolf said.

AHEC is, however, seeking police officers, three police communication technicians and a refrigeration mechanic.
Ironically, Wolf said AHEC has had trouble attracting police officer candidates. In two months, about six people have applied for police officer positions.

“We only found one (candidate) appropriate for this environment,” Wolf said.

Approximately $600,000 will be saved from eliminated positions, and vacant positions will save about $250,000, Wolf said. AHEC’s 2002-2003 budget was $20.6 million before the $1.4 million cut. The savings will come from the second half of the fiscal year.

AHEC receives no state funds, which leaves its three institutions as its main financial providers. About $17.5 million comes from the three schools, partly through student fees, with the remaining $3 million coming from parking fees and the Tivoli.
The amount of money coming from each school depends on how much space its students occupy, said Larry Lopez, vice chairman of the Auraria Board. However, increasing enrollment at a school does not necessarily mean more money for AHEC.

“If you look at the numbers,” Wolf said, “our (2002-2003) budget is based on 2001-2002.”
With the Community College of Denver’s 6,691 students, the University of Colorado at Denver’s 11,760 students and 19,390 at Metro, that totals 37,841 students at Auraria, which is about 3,000 more students than last year.

“We’re trying to stuff a Big Mac into a regular bun,” Lopez said.

Increased enrollment did not affect the 2002-2003 AHEC budget, Wolf said. Though AHEC was able to provide 10 extra classrooms this fall, a similar enrollment increase next year could leave students without a classroom.
Indeed, the Auraria Executive Committee considered enrollment caps at an Oct. 16 meeting, according to an Oct. 24 article in Silver & Gold Record. Wolf said such a decision will be up to the schools to decide.

Lopez said enrollment caps are a “reasonable thing to look at.”
“When running out of space, what choice do you have?” Wolf said.

Wolf said a 100,000 square foot building would be needed to accommodate roughly 3,000 more students. Such a building would cost about $23 million to construct.

In addition, more faculty would be needed, which is difficult when trying to save money, Wolf said.
Renovations and repairs were the targeted cuts. Wolf said there will be a minimum of five years before Auraria students will see more renovations, and three years before any needed repairs will be made.

The funding cuts will be made “based on the campus priorities, with the highest priorities being given to the health and life/safety and essential education support,” said Julie Hughes, AHEC director of organizational development and performance, in an Oct. 25 memo.
For those losing jobs in facilities management, the aftermath of the cuts will be more tangible.

John Lovshin, director of design and campus construction, said he was disappointed, but not entirely surprised at being eliminated from his position. Lovshin said he anticipated the cuts about a month ago.

“I’m reviewing my options,” Lovshin said. He said he has been making calls and looking for work in the Denver area.
Lovshin said he was pessimistic about whether or not the Owens administration will be funding Auraria anytime soon.

“Auraria doesn’t look enough like a highway,” Lovshin said, referring to Gov. Bill Owens’ funding of various Colorado highway projects.
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Campus police ready for trouble
by Brenden Martin
The Metropolitan

August 1, 1966-12:30 the early afternoon on a hot summer day.  Would-be sniper Charles Joseph Whitman made his made to the observation deck and unleashed 96 minutes of terror on the campus at the University of Texas in Austin while standing atop the University of Texas Tower.  Students fled and ran to find cover from the barrage of bullets while some students were pinned to their spots for the duration of the shooting spree. Local authorities tried to everything to stop Whitman.  They even tried flying a plane over the tower to scare Whitman, but nothing seemed to work.  Finally, three Austin Police Officers stormed the tower in a heroic event and shot and killed Whitman before he could kill any others. 
Whitman shot and killed 13 people on the campus that day and wounded many, many more. 

October 2, 2002, a sniper begins a tri-state shooting spree that sends the citizens of Maryland, Washington DC, and Virginia into a panic for 20 days.  Scenes on TV showed people ducking while pumping gas.  Local economies took a plunge. Many were afraid to leave home and many were even afraid to go to the window of their own homes.  Reports of a child, a bus driver and many others being gunned down seemed to the top news story every day and night. Innocent bystanders were now the No. 1 targets in a madman's evil rage that seemingly had no rhyme or reason.  In the end, 11 people were murdered and three people injured before John Allen Muhammed and John Lee Alvo were apprehended and charged.

The chilling reality of being shot and killed is a thought none of us likes to think about.  Some Metro students lived the terror April 20, 1999, in Littleton at Columbine High School.

Now more than ever, we depend on local and federal police forces to keep us out of harm's way. So how safe are on we Auraria Campus?  

The Auraria Campus police force boasts a total of 16 armed police officers.  Chief Heather Coogan declined to comment on how many officers are on duty at any given time.

According to Coogan, should an event such as Columbine or a random sniper attack occur on campus, Auraria Police would respond by "letting the campus know that we are there, and also we do maxim foot patrols and bike patrols to be visible on campus at that time. 

"We are always training. We actually had Denver PD come over and do some training on different arrest situations and field force exercises," Coogan said. Although the Auraria Police do train for situations like these, the Denver Police Department is in close contact with AP dispatch, and "if should something happen on campus, we won't wait to call Denver to come in," Coogan said.

In other cases in the past, police response times have been a key issue in either helping or hindering the outcome. "In policing, if one department calls for help, they drop everything they are doing and respond immediately with lights and sirens," Coogan said.

Because Metro is a city campus, the Denver PD is often visible on bike patrols and foot patrols by students and faculty. 

"It makes me feel safe to see campus police and Denver PD," saidstudent Matt Thompson. "I think just having them around detours crime from happening." 

The reality is that nothing could stop any person from unleashing any kind of violent act on any given day.  The odds of these things happening are extremely low, but with the events that are unfolding around the world it is hard not to be reminded of it every time CNN airs.

Having a private police force with direct communication to a larger city force decreases the odds of anything ever occurring on Auraria Campus.  In actuality,  students are safer on Auraria Campus than we are in almost any other place in Denver.
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P.A.N.D.A. Games help encourage racial pride
by Brian Walker
The Metropolitan

The P.A.N.D.A. Games  (Pan African Nurturing and Development Association) will visit the Auraria Campus in February.  The Student Government Assembly will co-sponsor this organization in order to further African American education.

TheP.A.N.D.A. Games are an academic competition designed to promote the accomplishments, struggles and contributions by people of African descent throughout the world. This Jeopardy-type game show revolves around African history and factual knowledge of African Americans in their communities. 

The P.A.N.D.A. Games contribute several forms of scholarship funding and prizes to the winners.  There are three main purposes for this program: One, to instill in young people of African descent a sense of  self-esteem and pride in their heritage. Two, to develop an interest in an education beyond high school. And three, to promote the accomplishments of African culture. 

The SGA has formed a group to  help educate these high school and middle school students to ensure victory.  Brotha Seku, Chris Chandler, Yosief Abraha and Valerie "Imani" Hawthorne-Bey will relate their intellectual skills and factual advice to these children. 

The P.A.N.D.A. Games have been a nationwide organization for 17 years.  The Games are scored by answering questions correctly. The team with the most points at the end wins.  The questions concentrate on anything from Angola to Zaire, Goobers to Gumbo, Indabas to inventions, and philosophers to Pharos.             

This Program, "will bring the community to the campus," said Seku, SGA President. It's like being a "preventative medicine," said Seku, when we can show the children and the community what college really is.  To bring to them the realization that College is not far away.

These Games will be held in the Tivoli student union, room 604 on Feb. 21-23, 2003.
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News Briefs

Professor from Israel to speak on Middle East conflict

Benjamin Beit-Hallahmi, professor of psychology at the University of Haifa in Israel, will speak on the topic "Tragedy and Hope in West Asia: Can We Find a Just Solution for Israelis and Palestinians?" at Metro Oct. 31 at 10 a.m. to 11:15 a.m. in Tivoli 320. The program is sponsored by the Golda Meir Center, Metro's Psychology Department and Metro Student Activities.

Beit-Hallahmi is an internationally noted psychologist and the author of several books. He received the William James Award for Contributions to the Psychology of Religion. His essays on politics and history have been published in periodicals in Israel, Great Britain, France and the United States.

Walkout, peace rally planned to protest war in Iraq

Anti-War Auraria, a coalition of Auraria campus student clubs, is sponsoring an anti-war rally Nov. 4. The all-day event starts with a campus-wide walkout at 11:45 a.m. in protest of a military strike against Iraq.

The walkout will be immediately followed by the rally at the Flagpole featuring student leaders, local politicians and educators. Auraria students will also stage various forms of political expression throughout the day. Anti-War Auraria urges Auraria students, faculty and staff to participate.

Fly-fishing veteran to hold seminar

Bobby Hix, a 20-year fly fishing veteran, is holding a free fly-fishing seminar Nov. 5 from noon to 1p.m. in the Tivoli Turnhalle. Hix owns All Pro Fish-N-Sports in Littleton, and he is recognized as one of the top guides in the Colorado region. The event is sponsored by the Auraria Rock Crawlers- Outdoor Adventure Club. Anyone interested in attending should R.S.V.P. at rsvp@rockcrawlers.org. For more information, call Matt Meester at (303) 556-8068.

Deadline for grant proposals nears

Students interested in applying for a student travel grant for January 2003 must turn in their Student Travel Proposals by Nov. 1.  The grants help fund the cost of travel to attend regional and national educational conferences.

The proposals are available in pdf form on-line at www.mscd.edu/student/resources/sfrc. Completed proposals should be turned in to Arliss Sunderwirth Webster, director of the Student Finance Resource Center, in Tivoli 311H. For more information, call (303) 556-4435.
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Metroopinion

Bet on the Lakers this year
Walter Gant
The Metropolitan

This is my favorite time of year. Halloween is here and football and hockey are in full season.

My enjoyment is only amplified by the fact that the basketball season starts in a couple of days. The anticipation is high for me. I just wish that the Nuggets had a worthy product.  Right now I'm going to breakdown my hopes for the season, as well as my predictions.

Let's start with the Nuggets. Kiki Vandeweigh may be the smartest GM in the league not named Jerry West. In one year, he basically wiped out every bad contract the Nuggets had allowed to happen. He let go of Antonio McDyess, which seems to be a very good move thus far. He drafted two people we never heard of, but that's the way of the NBA today.

The next thing he did was position himself to have a chance in the Lebron James sweepstakes scheduled to take place following the season.

Make no mistake about it; the Nuggets will battle with the Cleveland Cavaliers and the New York Knicks this year for the worst record in the league. Even if we don't get the first pick in the draft, the Nuggets' next emphasis should be on getting a point guard.

This promises to be a great draft in that department. Keep a look out for Duke PG Chris Duhon who could easily be the best PG in the nation this year.

Now, let's discuss the rest of the league. The league has gotten closer to the Lakers but not much. It doesn't matter if they have home court advantage or not, nobody can hold Shaquille O'Neal. The next closest teams to the Lakers are Portland, Dallas, San Antonio, and Sacramento.

The Spurs and Sacramento have the best chance to beat them, but none of them will. Sacramento and the Spurs are tough enough for the Lakers. Dallas plays no defense.

Portland is just Portland, so they will blow up at any minute. The Clippers will make the playoffs this year and will probably upset one of the teams that I just mentioned.

The Jazz will not make the playoffs, so go and see the best power forward in history. Karl Malone will probably retire this year. That means that John Stockton is gone too. You won't see a forward dominate like Malone for a long time, so enjoy it.

The East is the East. Mark my word,s the east will compete and the best teams aren't all in the West anymore. The Nets, Celtics, Hornets, Pacers, and Hawks will run with any team in the league this year.  I like the Nets and Hornets the most because of what they did this year. The Nets got rid of Keith Van Horn and received Dikembe Mutombo. That's a steal to me. They also got Rodney Rogers and Chris Childs. The Nets look real good.

The Hornets did the best they could when they left Charlotte for the cozy confines of the Bayou. They made no changes, but added an extra couple of role players. The core of that team is there and they were tough to beat last year.

The Washington Wizards will also do a good job. They had the most dramatic overhaul of any team and their play is showing it. They will be ready for the season.

The Chicago Bulls will also surprise a lot of people and they will make a serious bid for a playoff seat.

My predictions are this: Lakers over the Kings in seven games. The Nets will beat the Hornets in seven games. The championship still goes to LA . They will beat the Nets in six games.

Enjoy a dominant forward in Jazz's Malone.  You will not see it again, any time soon.
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Can we put a price on friends?
Josh Pacheco
The Metropolitan

In my years at Metro I've seen some interesting people come in and out of my life.  The social scene here doesn't always get the greatest of reviews.  However, wherever people congregate, relationships will be found.

Though it is awkward to write about at times, it really deserves some thought.  Making friends is the cornerstone of our college experience.  I mean, who could live without the friend that will console you when you feel like the world is tumbling in on you; or, what would you do without the buddy who treats you to lunch to watch the Broncos play? 

These are the people that we should consider more than friends, we should consider them family.

College often gets a bad rap because of some of the immaturity that still exists while in the maturing process of life. Students might over indulge in partying and drinking, but the lessons learned through such situations are valuable.  I don't think that there is a person in college that doesn't have a horrible experience with their peers. 

Such experiences may be hard to deal with at the time, but they serve as an amazing opportunity to learn and grow. 

For some of us, this semester will mark the beginning of our college experience.  For those, the years ahead will quite possibly be the most life changing years in their lives. The person who still has a long road left to walk will find that life has barely even begun and even though the road looks long, it is not.

When it comes to the friends that you make here at school I only have one bit of advice'value them.  Everyone can think of a relationship or a person that we wished we had taken better care of, or one that we had taken less for granted.

College is a place for learning and we endure the years here so that one day we can have a great job and earn a good income. However, if we don't learn that we are each other's most valuable resource, then how much is that income really worth?

For some of us, our college career is in mid swing and we have had enough of a taste of the social scene to know how bitter or how sweet it can be. 

So far, we have learned that it is important to make friends and it is more important to keep friends.  We are learning that life is much easier to swallow when you have somebody there to help you, so hopefully we are learning that it is important to treasure the people we have in our lives.

And for those who are finishing up college, their minds are on things beyond. The "real" world. Fears may come about because of wasted opportunities in school.  It is always uncertain when you are in a point of transition in life.  

When they leave school they will go with more than just a degree, they will go with the memories that have been made along the way, and the lessons that those memories have taught them.

Obviously, whatever stage of school that you are in here at Metro, relationships play a big part in you life. I am a true believer that the people that we meet and the friendships that we make along the way in college are half the fun. 

So when you go to your classes and when you are walking down the halls, make sure to remember that it is as important to embrace those people who simply say "Hi," as it is to value the ones who have been there you whole life.

Life is much easier to swallow when you have somebody there to help you.
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The Gadfly
Brian P. Reed

Pep assemblies become rallies; revolutionary debris litters the floor of Wall Street. Your children have taken over, you have been warned.  The representatives of gluttony will be given 24 hours to vacuum and shave their ways or leave, or they will be weeded out and assasinated with a hoe to the back of the neck to save bullets.
-Kurt Cobain, Nirvana

In retrospect, it is difficult to put an exact 'spin' on the influence that Kurt Cobain and Nirvana have had on my life.

It may sound silly; but for me, and many of those in my generation, the sound, angst and chaotic, dionysian order they produced gave many of us strength.

I had taken a job in Seattle the first of January, 1994, the so-called birthplace of Nirvana, and had long-before, in Denver, admired their revolutionary style.

I often found Nirvana playing in some "shit-hole" bar-booked under some "guise" band name, like the "Runny Boogers"-that quickly closed and lockedits doors for Nirvana to perform for as few as 100 people.  I could come home on Friday, put on some Levi's and quickly exit the cumbersome mental crap that had been amassed from the previous week. 

Their performances were better than drugs, sex or (for you right-wing, Christian- Fundamentalist dorks) abstinence.  It was poiesis.

You see, I could justify having majored in Philosophy and English Literature and becoming a "businessman" by throwing all ills to the wind, at least for the moment, while listening to their poetic yet violent emergent indignation of the "booboisie."

I now see the difference between the mind of an 18-year-old college student and a 34-year-old college student.  Anyway, as I lived across the street from the "Seattle Center" (the site of the World's Fair in 1962), I realized that something bad had happened as I drove home from work on April 5, 1994.  Approximately 2000 people had left work early to attend a vigil at "The Center."  It had just been announced that Kurt Cobain had blown off his head.  Wake up call .  . .

Mind you, again.  Nirvana released their first album without pomp and circumstance on the black market.  Their second album, Nevermind, however, was picked up by a major firm and blew the crap I ,as a "degreed" adult, had been force-fed for ten years.  Nirvana displaced Michael Jackson, M.C. Hammer, C&C Music Factory, Michael Bolton and other non-artistic, amorphous blather from the "Billboard Top Ten" charts within a week of the album's release.

Some might say . . . this is just nostalgic nonense.  But by popping "Pop" off the charts for the first time in almost a decade, Nirvana single-handedly opened the door for R&B, Country and Alternative Music to have a place in the Billboard "Top Ten."

Nirvana made it to the top, living out of vans in roadside stops.  When Kurt Cobain committed suicide, he lived in a multi-million dollar house in the nicest part of Seattle with a wife and a child.  He still decided to kill himself, not in the house, but in the garden shed.

Money doesn't change anything.
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Are coffee cups truly disposable?
by Elisabeth Seaton
Guest Columnist

I'm worried.  The other day, I ordered two iced mochas at a certain coffee place.  Whether I was really lacking caffeine or a colliding of alternate universes happened, I dropped one in the entranceway.  I managed to catch the cup on the re-bound.  "What luck," I clucked,

"I'll just re-use this cup."  Before I brought the cup to the counter, though, the barista had already begun a new one.  A new cup.

The cup worried me.  I took the burden into work and tried to ignore the superfluity of its existence.  I didn't throw them away.  I couldn't bring myself to add to these looming landfills in some distance, veiled from society's eyes.  My boss tossed them, in an effortless swoop, into the sad mouth of the wastebasket.  I sighed.

In Germany, France, and, I'm willing to wager, even, Lithuania, they use glass mugs for coffee with the option of a lonely, one sized "to go" cup.  It is not promoted to have coffee "on the go."  Coffee is a social event, a time to reflect, and a pause in the day.  Here, it is about and for money.

We grab our coffee to start our engines, to make money for someone else.  I suppose, that's beside the point.  However, it is one of the symptoms of our "to go" society, in a plastic cup.  In the USA, we expect swiftness and comfort due to the time crunch imposed upon us.  We must maximize output, minimize human error.

Is this what Ralph Nadar is proselytizing?  If we don't begin the process of earth rejuvenation through the everyday wasteful conditions, are we going to find ourselves, literally, in a world of hurt and have no resources left to counteract the process?  It will have passed us by, while greedy corporations will be sitting in their sterile 2,500 square foot living rooms.

Then I was at a certain grocery store.  I stood behind an elder, double bagging her cola's.  She is from the land where plastic was born.  She's from the era that promoted using as much of it as possible, for ease and comfort.  I don't blame her. 

I did want to donate my cloth bags to her, and offer to help her to the waiting van.  While scads of Americans double bag their colas, am I one of a handful of people, plus the two cities of San Francisco, and Berkeley, who are re-using their bags or utilizing a single, over sized cloth?  Are we aiding a movement or just fighting upstream to some unknown kismet? 

My girlfriend saves everything.  She rescues cans from wastebaskets downtown, while we're on the way to dinner, and throws them in her oversized shoulder bag.  In her backseat lie three garbage bags weighed with organized waste.  She doesn't have the luxury of curbside recycling.  She is a rescue worker; an upwardly mobile bag lady.  Sherri will rescue plastic on a curb, pick things from the office garbage.  She might wade into the Speer canal in the name of a discarded beer bottle. 

Will her fanaticism make a dent?  While barista's offer eternal extra plastic cups, and generations of Americans accept the 'Plastic' as the option at the Grocer, will we cause even a ripple of hope?  I haven't, personally, thrown away a plastic bag since I saw a movie on recycling in eighth grade.  I do forget to bring my bags with me to the Grocery store.  I also have a whole closet of plastic bags. 

Will my shame induce any kind of world makeover?  I don't know.  We can only hope, for now.  Like Nadar quoted at his rally, the wise and hopeful words of Gandhi, "First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win."
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Letters to the Editor
Please do not steal from the less fortunate
Dear Editor,

Each year at this time, members of Golden Key International Honour Society and Sigma Tau Delta sponsor a campus-wide drive to collect food, clothing, toys, and blankets for Denver's less fortunate citizens.  Collected items are turned in to Channel 9 for their "9cares, Colorado Shares" drive and are distributed to more than 100 local food banks and other rescue/assistance facilities.  The boxes are located at strategic locations around the campus and are posted with signs describing their purpose.

This year we have discovered that some items are being stolen from the collection boxes.  We realize that although 99.9 percent of the Auraria Campus population is composed of honest citizens, there are apparently a few (a very small minority) who do not subscribe to the philosophy that it is better to give than to receive.  Everyone knows that payday often seems a long way off, and if a hungry student helps himself to a can of soup from a collection box, this is, although not excusable, at least understandable.  A bag of toys or clothing, however, is neither of the above.

Golden Key and Sigma Tau Dalta members are grateful to those who donate so generously each year to this drive, and we encourage those who consider the contents of these boxes as merely a source of collectibles to re-think their philosophy and, if possible, return the items they have taken to one of the collection boxes before the drive ends on November 14.

Dorothy Hicks
Alumni Liason, Golden Key and Sigma Tau Delta

Donations are being stolen from collection boxes.
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Letters Policy

The Metropolitan welcomes letters of 500 words or fewer on topics of general interest.
Letters must include a full name, school affiliation and a phone number or e-mail address.
Letters might be edited for length, grammar and accuracy.

Mailbox:
The Metropolitan
900 Auraria Parkway, Suite 313
Denver CO 80204

e-mail: grubbs@mscd.edu
phone: 303.556.2507
fax: 303.556.3421
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Metroactive

People

Reader Info
Introducing new People section

The Metropolitan is introducing a new section this week called People. Every week we will do an in-depth feature on someone who has a campus tie, be it a student, a teacher, a janitor or a homeless person who sleeps on campus.

We would appreciate suggestions on who to do our features on. If you know of a campus person with an interesting story to tell, e-mail suggestions to Editor Jenni Grubbs at grubbs@mscd.edu.

"T-Bird" keeps it busy with school, youth
Metro junior gets nickname from the Ford Thunderbird his dad loved
by Jonathan Kuenne
The Metropolitan

Travis Brown, or "T-Bird", is currently a junior at Metro.  Brown is pursuing a business management degree and also is a co-founder of a new innovative youth organization.  Travis is a 20 year old Colorado native who earned the nickname "T-Bird" when he was just a little one.  The name T-Bird comes from his initials TB, coupled with the fact that his dad loved the classic Ford Thunderbird.  "Most of the people who know me refer to me as T-Bird", Brown said.  "I like it because it's unique." The T-Bird keeps a busy schedule with a new business, a full load of courses, a full time job, working out and studying hard.

In talking with Travis, I learned about the pivotal events which made T-Bird the man he is today. 

It all started when Travis was in middle school.  He remembers being hit by a car just outside his house.  "I was coming out on the street and a car came flying by.  It threw me into the air.  I did a double back flip and landed on my head," Travis said.  "I had these nasty bruises on my knees and a headache you couldn't imagine," he added.  Fortunately, Travis did not have any knee problems or head injuries from the accident.  "The T-Bird was not able to fly away from the on-coming vehicle," Brown said sarcastically.  Travis has not been hit by any oncoming traffic since his accident in middle school.

After middle school, Travis continued on and graduated from Lutheran High School in 2000.  "My best memory of high school is definitely the high school prom," Brown said during an interview on Friday. "You're looking at the prom king, baby!"

Travis chose to further his education here at Metro. When asked what his favorite memory of college is so far he responded, "My favorite memory of college would have to be running around Washington Park in my underwear.  I lost a weightlifting bet with a friend. I had to run the three miles around Washington Park on the Fourth of July-in Italian cut underwear. I had the words 'I lost a bet' painted across my chest.  It was great to see everyone's reaction." Brown has not revisited the park since.  However, if you are enjoying a nice afternoon in Washington Park, keep on the look out for a man running around in his underwear; it just might be T-Bird. 

So far, Travis' favorite class here at Metro has been Taekwondo.  "I enjoyed taking Taekwondo because you got to wear cool robes and learn crazy moves," he said. "My favorite move I learned was the spin hook kick.  I think that if I was in a dark alley downtown getting mugged, I could use the moves I learned in Taekwondo and hold my own," he added.  However, Travis has not yet been in a dark alley downtown and doesn't plan to be.

The T-Bird is pursuing a business management degree and is currently a co-founder of a new innovative youth organization.  "I feel that today's youth are ignored," Brown said. "There isn't a place where kids can go and be themselves.  We plan to open a nightclub where teens can use their creative talents to be heard."  The club, 1 Liquid House, is currently in the developmental stages and plans to start building in 2004.  Travis plans to be a mentor in the club when it opens. 

In addition to starting a new business and taking a full load of courses, Brown is working full time.  Five days of the week Travis clocks in and out of Nordstrom in Park Meadows.  He is a salesperson in men's sportswear on the first floor.  He wanted me to mention that he does work on commission.  And, like most college students, he could use some extra cash.  So if you need new fall clothes, you know where to find the T-Bird. 

I asked Travis what his favorite quote is. "I cried because I had no shoes, until I saw a man with no feet," Brown responded.  "This quote teaches you to appreciate what you really have.  I think we take everyday things for granted."    Travis was wearing shoes that day. 

T-Bird is a big fan of techno music.  His car is constantly filled with the funky beats and sounds of techno.  "I don't have a favorite artist.  But if I were to choose it would be a toss up between Paul Oakenfold and George Acosta," he said.   

If you don't find the T-Bird at work or school, you'll find him in the gym.  When asked what his favorite pastime is he responded, "My favorite pastime is definitely working out."  Travis works out 3-4 times a week with his work out buddy and fellow MSCD student Garon Wennen.

In 10 years Travis plans to be working and mentoring at 1 Liquid House.  In 20 years he plans to be married have kids of his own. But for now, the T-Bird is busy with a new business, a full load of courses, working full time, pumping the iron, and studying hard.

"My favorite memory of college would have to be running around Washington Park in my underwear."  - Travis Brown, Metro junior

Fact Sheet
The Fact Sheet is the place to learn all about the person we are profiling - a collection of facts about that person.
Age: 20
Favorite movie:  Braveheart
Favorite quote:  "I cried when I had no shoes until I saw a man with no feet."
Favorite radio station: 93.3 KTCL
Favorite musical artist: Paul Oakenfold or George Acosta
Favorite pastime: working out
Family: 1 brother, mom and dad
Marital Status: single
Major: Business management
Favorite color: green
Favorite restaurant: Cheesecake Factory
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Celebrating death
by Armando Manzanares
The Metropolitan

Ancient civilizations from both east and west had a very uncanny method of welcoming death and celebrating it. During this time the Egyptians basked in their majesty of creating grand tombs filled with riches, personal items and other elements of the person for whom they created it. Assisting the newly dead on their journey through to the afterlife.

In the western hemisphere, the Aztec civilization created tombs similar to those of the Egyptians. However, their celebrating was not necessarily for the newly dead but of remembering the dead and honoring the dead, present and past.

This celebration was originally held, according to the Aztec calendar, at the end of July and beginning of August. With the Spanish conquest about, it was transformed to coincide with the Christian holidays of All Saints Day and All Souls Day - the beginning of November. Trying to define the similarities between the Christian beliefs and those of the indigenous people in order to convert them, the attempt was to evolve this heretical-type ritual into a Christian celebration.

Both of these ancient civilizations looked at death as a new beginning, a doorway to the next life or to new existences. If fact, death was coveted and greatly anticipated.

Nov. 1 and 2 marks Dia de Los Muertos (Day of the Dead). It is celebrated in many Latin American countries as well as here in the United States. The celebration involves the appreciation and respect for the people that have moved on from this lifetime, that have died.

It is believed that during these two days, the dead walk back through that doorway and are reunited with their family or loved ones. They eat, drink and commune together before returning back to their graves for another year. It was believed that the dead had the same desires and needs as the living. The lives of the living depended on the treatment of their dead. Therefore, careful preparation must take place to ensure the soul's arrival and special treatment. With great respect and reverence, the dead are welcomed home.

The same holds true today for current participants in this wondrous and mystical celebration. The dead are greatly respected and preparation for the undertaking is done sometimes weeks in advance.

People build altars to welcome and honor the soul of the dead. Placed upon the altar is usually one or several pictures of the person that has passed on, along with many daily items that the person would use as if they were living.

Special or favorite foods of the dead are placed upon the altar, as if being served a plate at the dinner table. The altar is also adorned with personal items of the dead as well as lit candles, candy, alcohol, chocolate milk, blankets - pretty much any item you can think of, all depending on the age of the person when he or she died. Music is also played to serenade the altar, usually music attuned to the dead person's tastes.

In Mexico, the celebration begins on the first day with church bells ringing every 30 seconds throughout the night to call the souls back. A path of marigold, or zempoalxochitl, petals are placed from the street, through the yard into the deceased relative's house to guide the soul back home from the cemetery.

That evening, traditional foods and celebration-specific foods such as what we call chicken molé, tamales and special bread recipes just for this occasion are prepared and indulged upon. Visiting friends, relatives and co-workers wander the streets, bearing gifts of candles, flowers and that special bread made only at this time of year. Partakers visit many homes throughout the night - it has been referred to as a ritualistic "trick or treat." Atole, a corn-based drink with sugar and spices, is offered all about. So is Tequila as mariachi bands play. This is a public mourning of the loved one, lasting all night.

The next day everyone re-gathers at the appropriate house, gathers all the items on the altar and procession back to the cemetery of where the body was laid to rest. The items of the altar are spread around the gravesite. Music floods the air from guitars being played and songs sung grave to grave to sing the souls back to the graves. Many stories are told and remembrance is given. All of this ends at sundown. The living and dead are re-united once again.

Death is recognized as occurring daily within each of us in many ways, or at least to those of whom that celebrate Dia de Los Muertos. The preciousness of life is felt and there is an ever-present balance between darkness and light.

Embracing death allows life's embrace as well. The dead are not truly dead, while the living are not completely alive. This is the paradox that the Day of the Dead brings to remembrance.
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Saperston to tell of bus life
by Ian Neligh
The Metropolitan

In 1993, Eric Saperston graduated from college, got into a 1971 Volkswagen Bus with his dog Jake, and set off to follow the Grateful Dead. Challenged by his college mentor to make his Deadhead experiences more meaningful, As Saperston puts it, "I decided to call up some of the most powerful people in the world and ask them out for a cup of coffee."

He sold everything he owned, and bought a VW bus and set out on the road.

The Journey, a 91-minute documentary chronicles Saperston's years on the road as he asks an array of movie stars, CEOs, artists, and a former U.S. president for advice on how to lead a successful life.

"To find out the values that they live by, what struggles they have endured, and what advice they have for our generation to better prepare ourselves for the road ahead," said Saperston. "I've been able to meet people who have consistently achieved greatness over their life, and they have some pretty amazing guiding principles, ideas, and concepts that have worked."

Saperston has met and talked with: Jerry Garcia, The Indigo Girls, Henry Winkler, Billy Crystal, Jimmy Carter, the CEO's of UPS, Coca Cola, Home Depot, and a huge variety of senators, authors, musicians, and a surf legend, just to name a few.

 "He got to graduation with a degree, and wasn't sure where he wanted that to take him. It's normal for people to graduate and not know what they are going to do," said Brooke Dilling, "the associate director of Metro student activities. "It's just making the most out of the package that you've been handed."

 "He's got this really great message for anybody of any age," said Dilling. "I was so inspired by him that I told myself that whatever school I was at, I would try and make a point to bring him to that campus."

"I've got some really amazing insight from some very powerful people," said Saperston.

"I have the opportunity to be a conduit between those people who are extraordinary folks, and bring their message to a new generation."

His journey has become the basis for an award winning feature and short film as well as an award winning college performance called the "Do Your Thing Tour."

Eric Saperston will be speaking on campus on November 7th at 1:00pm at the Tivoli Turnhall.the event is free and doors will open at 12:30.

"We are going to be cooking grill cheese sandwiches in the background as people are coming in, so that people can grab one and see what he has to say," said Dilling.

Sexy Kind Grilled Cheese Sandwiches Made With Love For One Dollar
by Eric Saperston

I have found what prevents many of us from going on great adventures is the lack of CHC (Cold Hard Cash). My journey was no different. It was Eleanor Roosevelt who said, "Do what you can, with what you have, where you are." I believed her. Since I didn't have any money when I started this trip, I had to figure out how to keep the dream alive without actually having to get a job.

If any of you folks have ever traveled around this great country of ours and pulled into a rest stop you might have seen me and not remembered. You see, how I funded this trip was by driving my Volkswagen bus into a rest area, putting my Golden Retriever, Jack, in the passenger seat with the window rolled down to attract people's attention, setting up my Coleman stove and selling "Sexy, Kind Grilled Cheese Sandwiches Made With Love for One Dollar." People would ask what I was doing and I would tell them I read a quote in college that said, "To know the road ahead, ask those coming back." So on holiday, I decided to call up some of the most powerful people in the world and ask them out for a cup of coffee. The reason: I wanted to know what pushes and drives them to do what they do, struggles they've endured and what advice and counsel they'd give our generation to better prepare ourselves for the road ahead.

Guess what? People actually bought my sandwiches and not only did they give me a dollar they gave me five, ten, I even got a fifty dollar bill once. As far as I'm concerned, that's what my college education was all about: fifty-dollar grilled cheese sandwiches. Not only did people help fund my journey; they even told me where to go . . . in a good way. They gave me names of people to interview and even invited me to stay at their homes.
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Poe honored for Halloween
by Ian Neligh
The Metropolitan

"The boundaries which divide Life from Death are at best shadowy and vague. Who shall say where the one ends and where the other begins?"
-from The Premature Burial, 1844

Perhaps one of the most beloved and well-known masters of the melancholy, Edgar Allan Poe is acclaimed  as both the greatest and unhappiest of American poets.

In his supernatural fiction, Poe sometimes dealt with the deep-rooted paranoia, mental enfeeblement, obsessions, damnation and death. 

Born in 1809, he suffered throughout his life from bouts of madness and depression, and in1848 he attempted suicide.  Poe, a gambler, a soldier, and a widower, disappeared for three days a year later after a drink at a birthday party and on his way to visit his new fiancée in Richmond, Va. He turned up in delirious condition in a Baltimore gutter and died on October 7, 1849.

An Evening With Edgar Allan Poe was shown at Metro in celebration of this year's Halloween presented by the Hunger Artists Ensemble Theatre.  The event was sponsored by LINKS (Leadership Interaction Networking Knowledge Success) an on campus organization dedicated to increasing student success and retention.

"We started this last year, we took and added a few more stories to it because we got such great results last year so we decided to bring it back add a little to it make it a little bigger show and it will continue for a few more years by the look of it," said Stacey Nelms, the show's director and one of several Metro students and alumni involved in the acting troupe. 

"Before there wasn't really any stage reading of Poe so there were a lot of us Poe enthusiasts in the ensemble and we decided that, well, why don't we make a play form of Poe and have the actual characters telling the story, that is kind of how it originated." 

The show displayed the talented actors of the ensemble performing a variety of Poe's more twisted tales.  Later this week the acting troupe will be performing the show Nov. 9 at the Byers-Evans House Museum.

Spirits of the Dead
by Edgar Allan Poe, 1827
(This poem is also called Visit of the Dead.)

Thy soul shall find itself alone
'Mid dark thoughts of the grey tomb-stone;
Not one, of all the crowd, to pry
Into thine hour of secrecy.

Be silent in that solitude,
    Which is not loneliness- for then
The spirits of the dead, who stood
    In life before thee, are again
In death around thee, and their will
Shall overshadow thee; be still.

The night, though clear, shall frown,
And the stars shall not look down
From their high thrones in the Heaven
With light like hope to mortals given,
But their red orbs, without beam,
To thy weariness shall seem
As a burning and a fever
Which would cling to thee for ever.

Now are thoughts thou shalt not banish,
Now are visions ne'er to vanish;
From thy spirit shall they pass
No more, like dew-drop from the grass.

The breeze, the breath of God, is still,
And the mist upon the hill
Shadowy, shadowy, yet unbroken,
Is a symbol and a token.
How it hangs upon the trees,
A mystery of mysteries!
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Metrosports

Ties leave Metro behind
Women need to win out to grab regular season title
by Donald Smith
The Metropolitan

In Game 1 vs. Regis Sept. 20,  the Metro women's soccer team was trying to gain control of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference lead and break into the nation's top 25. It was also important to most of the returning players to prove that last year was behind them and that they wouldn't be road kill for Regis University, the defending RMAC champs, who had a prefect conference season in 2001.

Well, to make a long story short, 90 minutes later the Roadrunners had a 2-0 victory over the then No. 11 Rangers. The win started Metro's month of momentum as they went from unranked to now owning the No. 11 spot in the nation. It also struck confidence into the team as they dominated Regis in almost every statistical category.

But that was then and this is now.

In Game 2 vs. Regis Oct. 25,  with no more surprises no more adjusting, no more secrets, the game ended with a scoreless tie in double overtime.

"Last time we played them we got the result, we scored the goals, they didn't," Metro head coach Danny Sanchez said. "I expected (this time for) it to be a nip-and-tuck battle all the way to the end and it was. All though, we want to win, we are not disappointed in the result."

Two days later, Metro endured another double overtime in a 1-1 tie against Southern Colorado in Pueblo.

The two ties allow the Roadrunners to keep control of their own fate but it didn't increase their conference lead over their advisories from Regis. In fact Metro is currently trailing them 31 points to 29 points in the conference standings. The Roadrunners have three games to take back the lead from the Rangers, who only have two games remaining in their season.

"We win out, we are conference champions," Sanchez said. "If we are the No. 1 seed in the tournament, we host and get a bye to the final. It is as simple as that and that is what we have been looking for all year."

Metro (13-2-2 overall, 9-0-2 RMAC) had established its arsenal and No. 18 Regis (13-3-1, 10-1-1 RMAC) started to show signs of weakness as the two met again. Before the game the Raodrunners were all smiles, as confidence seemed to be all that came from the team. They had a four-game win streak, nearly perfect team chemistry and the RMAC lead going into it. The team's weapons were ready, willing and able, starting with RMAC Player-of-the-Week Jenelle Brandt. Brandt was coming off a big four-point game (1 goal, 2 assists) in a 6-0 blowout of Fort Lewis College (Oct. 20) to go along with Joslyn Brough's three assist and two goals from Miller and Leichliter. But were they ready for Regis?

"We've beaten them once before why can't we do it again?" Allen, the starting goalie, stated. "We're a strong team we can beat them."

"I feel confident," Lechliter added, "but at the same time really nervous. This is a really big game for us because if we win there's a chance we might get to host the (RMAC) tournament, but I'm still nervous because they're a really good team."

But with their nervousness cast aside, Metro set the pace early. The Roadrunners retained possession for most of the half, putting an early scare into the Rangers, but all the pressure couldn't result in a goal. Last week's defensive player of the week goalkeeper Taresa Cavaliere rose to the challenge and saw seven shots came but no goals were allowed to enter the net. Allen saw 5 shots cast at her, but none would enter. The two keepers stopped each other's offenses and took a 0-0 score into the half.

In the second half, the keeper's job wouldn't get any easier as they would each get beaten but not defeated on the play.

Late in the second half, Regis would get a 2-on-1 breakaway chance on Allen but missed a wide open net on the play, shooting the ball wide on what looked like a possible game winner. Then, Metro would get its opportunity as Jenelle Brandt took a shot from 35 yards away. The ball hit the cross bar, the post, then the opposite post, only to roll out away from the net and have Regis defenders clear out of play.

Finally, with just minutes remaining, Metro was called for a foul inside of the keeper area resulting in a free kick only seven yards away from the goal. The Regis midfielders rushed the play and the shot was blocked in front and cleared away from the area by Metro defenders, who lined up to creat a human wall from goal post to goal post.

These three opportunities would be the closest the two team's got to winning in regulation. Overtime wasn't much better for either side as both teams, tired, battered and bruised gave it their all to try and untie the game in both overtimes, but had to settle for a tie.

"My legs don't want to work right now. That was a long game," Brough said after the long intense battle. She had to gather her breathe before continuing. "The first time we played, they did not expect us to be as good as we are. This time they came out expecting what they saw. It was a great game, battled both ways very well. Today, a tie is not wonderful, but it is not a loss."

Two days later, the Roadrunners traveled to Pueblo and ran into another foe they had seen once before. This time it was the Southern Colorado (8-6-3, 5-4-2 RMAC). The Thunderwolves came to play the Roadrunners last time only to leave with their tales between their legs in a 2-0 win by Metro Sep 22. Again, that was in the past.

This time the Thunderwolves were improved and ready for the Roadrunners as they held Metro to only six shots in the first half forcing the Roadrunners to go over 150 minutes without a goal as well as keeping the score 0-0 heading into the break. In the second half, Brandt attempted to end the game in the 62nd minute scoring on a penalty kick to make the score 1-0. But Southern's Casey Clarke tied it seven minutes later, forcing yet another overtime. In the two overtime sessions, the Roadrunners would out shoot the Thunderwolves, but not outscore them leaving the score tied at 1-1.

The Roadrunners finish the season against Colorado Christian University (4-10-2, 2-7-2 RMAC) Oct 30 (after press time), New Mexico Highlands (4-9-2, 2-7-2 RMAC) Nov. 1 and Adams State College (7-9-0, 2-9-0 RMAC) Nov. 3.
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Roadrunners On Deck
Nov. 1
Women's Soccer vs. New Mexico Highlands 2:30 p.m. at Auraria*

V-ball vs. Colorado Mines 7 p.m. at Auraria*

Men's Soccer at Colorado Christian 1 p.m.

Nov. 2
V-ball vs. Chadron State College 7 p.m. at Auraria*

Nov. 3
Women's Soccer vs. Adams State College Noon at Auraria*

WEEKLY RESULTS
Oct. 27
Women's Soccer tied Southern Colorado 1-1

Men's Soccer tied Fort Lewis College 3-3

Oct. 25
V-ball def. Regis University 32-30, 30-20, 30-25

Women's Soccer tied Regis University 0-0

Oct. 23
Men's Soccer lost to Regis University 2-0

*Free entry and parking Lot-R for all Metro home games
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V-ball wins despite 'off night'
by Eric Eames
The Metropolitan

Halloween night might be another story, but when Metro volleyball setter Devon Herron walks on the court she doesn't seem fee-fi-fo-fum scary. Nobody can be scary at 5-feet 10-inches, when you're about as normal sized as a flight attendant.

But those notions belie the rampage she has been on this season and the resulting carnage upon opponents. For the past six games (dating back to Oct. 11), Herron has been at her best. In those games, she's collected 275 assists for an amazing 14.47 assists per game average. Even head coach Debbie Hendricks, a school record-breaking setter herself while at Lubbock Christian University from 1985-88, has been impressed with her court-ruling and direction-calling qualities that the setter position requires.

"Over the past couple weeks she has become more creative in the plays the she is calling and the set selection she is making," Hendricks said.

Against uptown rival Regis University, Herron was at it again recording 44 assists and 10 digs in the straight set 32-30, 30-20 and 30-25 victory Oct. 25 in front of 250 fans at the Auraria Events Center. With the win the Roadrunners (20-4 overall, 15-0 RMAC) climbed two spots in the national rankings to No. 10 and ran their unbeaten streak to 15 straight matches, all against Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference competition.

Herron received plenty of help from senior Nicki Fusco (15 kills), Shawna Gilbert (12 kills), Beth Vercic (11 kills) and Jessy Roy (10 kills, 11 digs). Ysabel Martinez led the Rangers with a game-high 17 kills along with Julianna Bayley, who had 12 kills and 17 digs.

Despite solid contributions up and down the lineup, the Roadrunners feel they didn't play up to their potential.

"We didn't play well tonight," Hendricks said. "We were a little out of sync. I think It was a good sign that we can have an off night but still dig in and do the job the way that we have to in order to win.

"We knew Regis would bring its best game that they could against us and they did and we did some things well tonight, but there were some other things we didn't do up to our potential."

It's been a good four games since Metro faced an opponent with the Rangers' pedigree, although since being ranked as high as 21st in the nation in mid-September Regis has struggled to keep above .500. With respected head coach Frank Lavrisha on a personal leave of absence the Rangers have fallen to 13-11 overall and 8-7 in the RMAC and are in danger of not making the RMAC Championship tournament for the first time in school history. 

Yet, when Metro and Regis meet the atmosphere takes on a playoff intensity, not regular season. In a rivalry that ripened in 1977 (the inception of Regis volleyball), the Rangers currently have a 39-30 all-time series lead over the Roadrunners.

"It's been a while since we've been in front of a large home crowd and a good competitive opponent on the other side of the floor," Hendricks said. "It was good for us to be tested a little bit, test the nerves and play through that and we did."

The rivalry was in full tradition in the first game. Metro would score four straight points. Regis battled back. Metro took a 26-22 lead. Regis battled back.

"In game one we played pretty bad," Herron said. "We had a lot of errors and stupid plays that are not in character with what we usually do. I think in game two and three we minimized those errors a lot and that is how we were able to pull away."

Metro easily took game two, out-hitting Regis .333 to .196. The score was tied at 22-22 in third game, before the Roadrunners left the Rangers behind. Herron put the nail in the coffin with kill off a dig by Bayley that sailed long over the net.

Herron has proved she is no malingerer to injury or to watching countless hours of game film. Three days before the Regis game, she twisted her ankle late in game three in a win against Colorado Christian University (Oct. 22) and did not return. She missed only one day's practice. This year the junior setter has become more acquainted with the rewind button on the VCR, unraveling opponent's idiosyncrasies, while hiding her own.

"We do a lot of discussing about what plays are better at a certain time," Hendricks said, "and having her look at her tendencies and making sure she doesn't get locked into doing the same things in every rotation all the time."

With the green light to call her own plays, the film has helped Herron read a defense inside out, she said. One play that has been unstoppable all year is when outside hitter Fusco or Roy leaves their outside position and comes running down the middle for a kill. Metro rarely runs it though, so not only is dominant, but an opponent never knows when it is coming. The Roadrunners ran it four times to perfection against Regis.

Admitting that she struggled in the first part of the year, Herron's confidence has ballooned as Metro continues well into the evensong of the season. In this her junior year, Herron is already No. 1 on the Roadrunner's career list for assists (4,117) and assists per game average (13.63) as of Oct. 29.

"At the beginning of the year I felt a lot of pressure from other people and specifically form myself," Herron said. "I finally tried to sit myself down, have a talk with myself. And I was like forget it. I'm just going to go out there and play hard and have fun, because I'm a junior and it is going so fast to the point it's going to be over, so I just want to make if so I am the best I can be."

With four games left, including a showdown in Kearney against Nebraska-Kearney that could determine who hosts the RMAC Championship tournament, Hendricks is still looking for the best from the Roadrunners. It may come at the most opportune time. Playoff time.

Metro plays at home against Colorado School of Mines (1-23, 1-14 RMAC) Nov. 1 and Chadron State (10-13, 7-8 RMAC) Nov. 2.
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Sports Briefs
Swimmers place 4th
Metro men's swim/dive team placed fourth at the Early Bird Invite Oct. 18-19 at Colorado Springs University. Noah Pavlakovich  finished second in the 200 Breaststroke. Jonathan Sterchy came in third in the 200 IM and Mert Saggin placed second in the 100 Fly. The Roadrunners finished in the top 10 in 13 other events. Steve Synder took third in diving.

Season at a loss, men play to sabotage
by Andrew Lam
The Metropolitan

Metro men's soccer coach Brian Crookham has had a roller coaster of a career. With a 61-68-6 record since taking over in 1995, Crookham has had two winning seasons, and with only two games left in this season he will finish with another losing record and will miss the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Championship tournament for the second year in a row. 

The two remaining games at Colorado Christian University (Nov. 1) and at home against no. 19 Colorado School of Mines (Nov. 3) will prove to be rather pointless for the Roadrunners' final ranking, regardless how many goals are scored.

Coming off of a 2-0 loss to Regis (Oct. 23) and a 3-3 tie against Fort Lewis College (Oct. 27) in Durango, the Roadrunners continue looking at missed opportunities that have caused them losses. With only one win against a conference team, Metro (5-10-2 overall, 1-9-1 RMAC) sits in the basement of the RMAC standings and ending the season with two conference wins, however uplifting to team spirit, will not pull Metro into contention for a invitation to the conference tournament. 

Metro played Regis on its home field Oct. 23, and despite the usual raucous home crowd that turns out for the showdowns between the crosstown rivals, the Roadrunners got shutout 2-0.

Freshman goalkeeper Zach Franklin stopped four of the six shots Regis got on goal, while Metro failed to score despite five shots on goal, two of which came from junior Alex Grecu, who is tied for the team lead with four goals.

The Roadrunners first fell behind with  five minutes remaining in the first half but despite the score was still very much in the game.

Metro racked up eight shots to Regis' three, with five on goal. The Roadrunners' offensive threat fizzled in the second half, however, with three total shots to the nine from Regis. Metro's inability to focus on specific threats on the opposition was obvious, with 11 of 12 shots coming from three players, and Regis midfielder Lance Snodgrass scoring his 15th and 16th goals on the year.

"We let Snodgrass get away from us twice," Crookham said. "He had three opportunities and we let him score twice."

The ensuing game against Fort Lewis showed that Metro can indeed score goals, but scoring more than the other team proved to be difficult as the game finished in a 3-3 tie. 

"If we score three goals, we should win the game," he said

The Skyhawks (6-6-5, 4-4-2 RMAC) got on the board first in the 32nd minute, and Metro responded with six seconds left in the first half as junior Jeff Manson came off the bench and weaved through the defense to tie the game going into halftime.

Three minutes into the second half Fort Lewis regained the lead, and another three minutes later Metro freshman Chris Bolton was assisted by junior Michael Abeyta to even things out.

"We traded opportunities all game," Crookham said. "It was very competitive."

The excitement slowed until midway through the second half when Fort Lewis capitalized on a fumble by Franklin in the goal area to take a 3-2 lead. But senior Domonic Duran came through to avoid another conference loss when he scored with six minutes remaining. 

With wins in the final two games, Metro's record would improve to 7-10-2 (23 points) and Crookham would avoid his worse season ever, since he went 5-15-0 (15 points) in his first year at Metro. However Metro has already dropped matches to Colorado Christian and Mines this season.

Metro can play spoiler, though. A win against Colorado Christian (4-9-2, 4-4-1 RMAC) could keep them out of the RMAC tournament, and a win against Mines (12-4-1, 7-2-1 RMAC) could cause a lot of problems in the national tournament.

In a season plagued by injuries, most notably senior goalkeeper Eric Butler, younger players have been able to get more playing time. Franklin did not expect to play much this season, starting out as Butler's backup, but Crookham has seen him mature greatly.

"Zach has played well," the coach said. "Every game he has matured."

Metro not only wants to disrupt its opponents' post season hopes in the final two games, but the squad still has players sorting out their future within the soccer program. 

"We have a lot of pride in finishing strong," Crookham added. "We owe it to our seniors."
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