Sixty six years later on Monday, April 29, Jason Collins of the NBA’s Washington Wizards broke down yet another controversial cultural barrier. Unlike Robinson, Collins was not the first African-American athlete in his sport – far from, actually – but rather he was the first in another controversial category.

On Monday, Collins became the first North American pro athlete to publicly announce that he is gay. Like Robinson, Collins sent shockwaves around not only the United States, but the entire world.

Collins took the initiative to represent an entire demographic of people – gay professional athletes – and that is something that takes tremendous courage and strength.

The 7-foot, 260-pound Stanford graduate made his announcement in a unique way, writing a story for Sports Illustrated about his coming out, what led to his decision to make this announcement and where he goes from here. In his article, which I must admit is extremely well-written, Collins doesn’t beat around the bush. In fact, he does the opposite, as he opens the article with this: “I’m a 34-year-old NBA center. I’m black. And I’m gay.”

Collins, a 12-year NBA veteran, isn’t exactly an All-Star caliber player. In fact, to be quite honest, he’s among the worst players in the league. But the great thing about this announcement is that it doesn’t matter. Whether it’s LeBron James or Jason Collins, it doesn’t matter how good the player is that makes this announcement. What matters is that Collins did make this groundbreaking announcement, and he’s finally comfortable in his own skin.

Collins described his inner-struggle by writing, “Imagine you’re in the oven, baking. Some of us know and accept our sexuality right away and some need more time to cook. I should know – I baked for 33 years.”

While Collins’ announcement was certainly unexpected and noteworthy, the hope is that announcements like this in the future aren’t big news.

Ten years ago, an announcement of this magnitude would be nearly unthinkable. As a society, as a culture, I don’t think we were ready for an announcement like this just 10 years ago. However, as time goes on, hatred and bigotry dissipate through learning and understanding.

As you mature, you realize that it doesn’t matter if you’re black or white, gay or straight. What matters is how you treat those around you and how you treat yourself. By all accounts, Collins is among the most respected players in the NBA, as Celtics coach Doc Rivers referred to him as “a pro’s pro.”

So where do we, as a culture, go from here? Thankfully, the outpour and response from fans, players and coaches alike was much more on the positive side than on the negative.

Lakers guard Kobe Bryant, a public figure who has considerable influence, even sent out a congratulatory tweet to Collins following the news. Numerous other players and public figures did the same, and President Obama even gave Collins a personal phone call.

While most people congratulated Collins for being so brave and courageous, there will always be a select portion of society that’s stuck in the past. And for those people who point fun at Collins, referring to him by homophobic slurs and more, you simply just have to shake your head and feel pity for them.

Like it or not, the tables have turned in society. Once upon a time, bigotry and hatred were the themes of the majority party. Now, in 2013, that same ignorant group of society is now  the minority, and their influence is weakening by the day.

So thank you, Jason Collins, for setting the precedent towards a new future. You just laid the first brick towards a paved path of openness in not just the world of sports, but in our culture as well.

Niehoff expressed excitement about the prevalence of JCU alum in the NFL. He joked, “I’m not used to hearing on ESPN, ‘that football school in Cleveland, John Carroll.’”

In light of JCU alumni making their mark in the NFL, Niehoff wants to work on bringing some of these alums back to campus, starting with Don Shula. He said he has put Mark McCarthy, vice president for student affairs, and head football coach Tom Arth in charge of this undertaking. On London Fletcher, 1998 JCU graduate and linebacker for the Washington Redskins, Niehoff said, “I can’t imagine he will be playing for many more years – as many as he can, I’m hoping – but then, I expect that we can have him here on a regular basis.”

Niehoff said he has corresponded directly with 49ers offensive coordinator Greg Roman, Jaguars general manager Dave Caldwell and Chargers general manager Tom Telesco, all JCU graduates.

“I congratulated all of them and I said, ‘You know, we’re going to love to have you back at Carroll.’ At this stage, it’s too early to say when we will schedule that, but we’ll get around to it,” Niehoff said.

Niehoff also expressed his excitement about the renovation of Murphy Hall, which he called, “the largest construction project of my time as president of John Carroll.” He said he hopes the renovation will increase JCU’s housing stock and make it a more attractive campus for prospective students.

One of the new ideas Niehoff discussed at the meeting was a joint agreement with Ohio University that will allow JCU students to go directly into OU’s new osteopathic medical degree program at the Cleveland Clinic’s South Pointe Hospital. He said that OU is starting a new section at South Pointe, and JCU will have about a third of the enrollment in the first year.

“This is the start of a cooperative agreement and I expect many more,” he said.

On staying in the loop with happenings at JCU, Niehoff said he regularly reads The Carroll News, and joked that he has “his sources,” who he keeps up with via email. Despite his expressed desire to be more connected with the University, Niehoff said he does not yet have a Twitter account.

“I have to be disciplined, because I can’t suck up my time,” he said. “I know a few presidents who do [have Twitter]. Unless we’re going to hire a staff to do that for me, I can’t see that as a value.”

Niehoff also touched on one of the hottest topics around campus – the prospect of Campus Safety Services becoming armed. According to Niehoff, there will not be a definite decision until the early fall of this year.

“I don’t want to make a decision over the summer when no one is around,” he said. “We’re still working out the logistics, [such as] if we were to do this, what would it take?”

The president expressed his pride in all that JCU and its students have accomplished recently.

“I’m excited about the positioning of John Carroll in the region, and getting the recognition we deserve for the quality of our students, the quality of their service, the quality of our educational outcomes and the difference we make in the region,” Niehoff said.

After being rescheduled from Saturday, April 20 to Sunday, April 21, action finally began at 1 p.m. on Sunday at Schweickert Field.  All remained quiet until the third. The Pioneers scored a run on a sacrifice fly to right field, giving themselves a narrow 1-0 lead.

In the top of the fourth, the Pioneers plated another run. Though senior pitcher Patrick O’Brien continued to keep the Pioneers’ offense at bay, there was a problem: the JCU offense remained uncharacteristically dormant for the first five innings of the game.

Trailing 2-0 in the bottom of the sixth, the Blue and Gold fought back. A leadoff single from senior Joe Veltri gave the Blue Streaks’ offense an early jump start in the inning. Veltri then reached second base on a wild pitch, giving JCU a runner in scoring position with no outs in the sixth. Sophomore Bobby Sabatino stepped up for JCU, ripping a single to right field that allowed Veltri to score from second, narrowing the deficit to just one for the home team. A sacrifice bunt from junior Mitch Herringshaw allowed for Sabatino to reach second base with just one out. Though Sabatino eventually reached third due to another wild pitch, the Blue Streaks couldn’t score him, ending the sixth inning still trailing by one.

O’Brien and junior reliever Billy Turosky combined to stifle the Pioneers offense again in the top of the seventh, giving JCU one last chance at a comeback. Even with a leadoff single from junior Chet Lauer, the Blue Streaks again failed to tie the game in the final inning, losing game one by a 2-1 score.

The second part of the twinbill also proved to be a pitchers duel. This time, it was JCU sophomore Andrew Doring facing off with Marietta’s Mike Mulvey. Neither team could generate any offense in the first four innings, as the first run of the game was not scored until the bottom of the fifth.

Senior outfielder Connor Marrero tagged a well-hit ball to left field for an apparent single, but Marietta’s outfielder misplayed the ball, allowing Marrero to advance to second. Veltri then bunted down the first base line, putting Marrero on third base. Sabatino got the run in on the next play, grounding out to the second baseman to allow Marrero to cross the plate and give the Blue and Gold a 1-0 lead.

The Pioneers answered in the top half of the seventh. Doring allowed his first hit of the game to Marietta first baseman Evan Brockmeier, who would later go on to score to knot the game at one.

The Pioneers struck again in the ninth. Brockmeier again reached base on a single, scoring on an RBI single off the bat of Marietta catcher Alex Toth. But the Blue and Gold refused to easily grant the “Etta Express” a key OAC win. JCU first baseman Jimmy Spagna reached base on an error to lead off the inning and then advanced to second on a fielder’s choice. One batter later, senior Ryan Konsler bunted a pitch on a suicide squeeze play that allowed Spagna to score, sending the game into extra innings.

All was quiet until freshman David Crowley knocked a single to start off the bottom of the 11th. Crowley advanced to second on a wild pitch, and to third on a Chet Lauer sacrifice bunt.

Freshman Robby Cifelli was brought in to pinch-run for Crowley as Konsler again stepped into the batter’s box. Expecting another bunt, the Marietta infield crept in. But Konsler would play the role of hero in a different way this time. The senior tagged a single up the middle, scoring Cifelli to give JCU a crucial 3-2 victory over the top team in the OAC.

Editor’s Note: The Blue Streaks split a non-conference series with the Case Western Reserve University Spartans at home on Tuesday, April 23, winning the first, 11-0, and dropping the second, 18-8. Spagna had a career day at the plate in game one, hitting 4-4 with a triple, home run and seven RBIs. Freshman Aaron Lapaglia pitched six scoreless innings in the victory, allowing four hits in the contest.

When LeBron James picked up his bags and headed south in July of 2010, anyone with half a brain knew that the years following would not be as bright as they had been with him. Without LeBron, it was well known that the Cavs would, well, struggle. And that’s exactly what they did. So why was Byron Scott blamed for what was commonly expected?

Sure, the Cavs only won three more games this season than they did during the 2011-12 season. Perhaps Dan Gilbert and the rest of the Cavs front office felt Coach Scott wasn’t developing players – or wins – at a necessary pace. But considering that the Cavs’ top three players – Kyrie Irving, Dion Waiters and Anderson Varejao – missed a combined 101 games this season, what did Cavaliers fans really expect this season? If they expected much more than a 24-58 record, they’re simply asking too much, too soon.

At one point, the Cavaliers seemed to be following the Oklahoma City Thunder’s blueprint towards building through the draft and steady improvement. However, the one glaring difference between these two blueprints is that the Thunder never fired their head coach, Scott Brooks, even after he was criticized early in his stint with OKC. After ‘staying the course’ with Brooks, the Thunder were rewarded, as they’re now a year removed from their first Final appearance and again have a great opportunity to win a title this season.

The decision to fire Scott was one that Dan Gilbert obviously felt was necessary – and maybe he’s right. The next question for Gilbert and company remained: Where do the Cavs go from here?

That question was answered earlier this week, as the Cavs hired their former head coach and former Lakers coach Mike Brown to a five-year, $20 million deal. Brown coached the then-LeBron-led Cavaliers from 2005-2010, even leading the team to an NBA Finals appearance in 2007. However, after being fired by the Lakers just five games into the 2012-13 season, he’s been on the open market since.

I disagreed with the original decision to fire Scott in the first place, but when you look at the situation realistically, the only plausible solution was to hire Brown.

Irving, the cornerstone and franchise player of the Cavs, disapproved of the decision to fire Byron Scott, saying he had to get over the loss of his “basketball father.” However, I’m confident that Irving will quickly take a liking to Brown.

Known as a defensive-savvy coach, Brown was fired by the Cavs in 2010, per LeBron’s request. Now, three years later, Brown returns to Cleveland for stint No. 2 with the Cavs, only this time it won’t be with LeBron.

The 2009 NBA Coach of the Year catches a bad rap after being unfairly fired from his original stint with Cleveland and his stint in Los Angeles. However, as someone who exclusively covers the Lakers and Cavs, I will say this: Mike Brown is a good coach, and Cleveland fans better appreciate that.

Mike Brown isn’t a perfect coach by any means. But he is a very capable, disciplined coach who is known for his defensive schemes and work ethic – both of which are areas in which the Cavs could greatly improve upon.

When you look at the Cavs’ major areas of concern, the two most glaring holes are defense and discipline. Fortunately, Brown will help solve both of those concerns.

And if you’re one of those Cavs fans still holding out hope for LeBron’s return to Cleveland next summer, it’s about time you cut your losses. After all, do you really think LeBron is going to leave Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh and the city of Miami to play for the coach that he had fired three years ago? While the hiring of Brown certainly won’t entice LeBron to come back to Cleveland, that was a long shot to begin with anyways.

With an extremely young, yet talented, core of Irving, Waiters and Tristan Thompson, it’s safe to say that Brown’s biggest task will be to develop the talent of all three of these players. Will he succeed with that task? Only time will tell, but I have confidence in Brown, and so should you.

When the 27,000-plus marathon runners woke up in Boston on Monday morning, I’m sure they didn’t envision themselves being involved in a bombing that left hundreds injured and three dead. Even more disturbing, one of the deaths was that of an eight-year-old child.

When that eight-year-old boy woke up on Monday morning, he probably envisioned a day full of joyous competition and early-spring weather in downtown Boston. What should have been a celebratory occasion for thousands turned into a national tragedy and resulted in the death of a third grader.

So what do we do next? What do we, as a culture, as a country, as a human race, do next? In any crisis situation, you have two options: rise to the occasion or fold like a stack of cards.

When I say “rise to the occasion,” I’m saying quite clearly that it’s time for us, all of us, to put our foot down and say enough is enough. How many planes have to crash into buildings, how many elementary school shootings, how many bombs must go off before we, as a culture,  decide that enough is finally enough.

Enough of the violence. The anger. The hatred. Our culture feeds off of those unsettling elements, and I can promise you this: it doesn’t work.

This isn’t a change that will happen overnight, nor is it a change that will be easy. But we, as a culture, are desperately in need of a culture change – and we need it now. We need to get back to our roots, our basic human elements. Somewhere along the line, we, as a culture, lost our compassion and empathy for others. Most of us live our lives full of hatred and anger, focusing on the negative and living with a pessimistic view of this gift called “life.”

I don’t know about you, but I’m sick and tired of living in a world where the top stories on the nightly news are based on shootings, bombings, stabbings and the overall topic of fear. This isn’t how life is meant to be lived. Rather, this isn’t the way that life should be lived. And it doesn’t have to be this way. It shouldn’t be this way.

Unfortunately, it is this way. We live in a world where we can’t send our kids to their first day of kindergarten without thinking “What if?” We live in a world where an eight-year-old boy can’t heroically compete in a marathon race and return home safely to his family at night.

So ask yourself: Did Monday’s tragedy in Boston really bother you? Or did it just upset you until you changed the channel and forgot about it? I know the answer for me, and I’m shaken to the core.

We shouldn’t have to live in fear of what may happen, but instead we should live our lives with excitement and enthusiasm, embracing what’s ahead. The world, and our lives, shouldn’t be run by fear and violence. Because when you live in fear, you’re not really living.

We need to be appreciative of what we have in our lives while we have it, and we need to take a stand to make a cultural change now. If we don’t make that change now, when will we? It’s now or never. Our future isn’t promised – we learned that on Monday.

Next time you’re upset, make sure it’s over something that’s worth getting upset about. We shouldn’t allow our days to be ruined because McDonald’s messed up our order or because we scuffed a new pair of shoes.  After all, if you have your loved ones and a place to sleep at night, life can’t be that bad.

Bottom line: Show some compassion, some empathy towards those around you. Life isn’t easy for anyone, so lets all make it a little easier on each other.

[Written by Gabriella Kreuz]

The men’s track and field team is showered with talented runners and jumpers who often bask in the most glory due to their high scoring. But this weekend at Mount Union’s John Homon Invitational meet, it was the throwers who came out and put on the show. Although the meet was unscored, many athletes participated to reach personal bests and seize another opportunity to compete amongst OAC competition.

Senior thrower Anthony Chizmadia took full advantage, winning the discus with a toss of 41.93 meters. The senior also finished second in the shot put, throwing 14.82 meters.

“This weekend was a test for myself. It was a day to focus on improving on every throw,” said Chizmadia. “Going into OACs, I need to improve on every throw to get to the top ”

Sophomore Rocky Mitolo also put together a strong performance, placing third in the discus with a throw of 40.67 meters and fourth in the shot put with a toss of 4.07 meters.

Senior Mike Minjock won the long jump title by clearing 6.96 meters, while freshman Jack Kelly finished fourth in the triple jump (12.72 meters).

In the hurdles, sophomore Nick Williams finished in second with a time of 15.77 seconds in the 110-meter event while sophomore Hayes Chrispin finished fourth (59.67). John Carroll had a pair of relays finish runner-up as well. The 4×100-meter quartet ofWilliams, Minjock, Kelly and sophomore Nick D’Amico ran a blazing 43.33. In the 4×400 meters, it was Dan Loya, Anthony Colbert, D’Amico and Mike Hydzik who finished second in 3:24.83.

Coming into Saturday’s games against Wilmington, the Blue and Gold had dropped two consecutive games to both Baldwin Wallace and Denison, losing 13-10 and 17-4, respectively. However, the Blue Streaks transitioned back to their winning ways against the Quakers.

In game one of the doubleheader, the Quakers jumped out to an early 2-0 lead in the bottom of the third inning before JCU responded in the top of the fifth. An RBI double from freshman Rob Cifelli allowed for sophomore Mark Huddle to score from second, cutting the deficit to 2-1 for JCU. Immediately following the RBI hit by Cifelli, sophomore Bobby Sabatino knocked in an RBI of his own with a single that allowed senior Connor Marrero to score and tie the game at two.

After shutting down the Quakers in the bottom half of the fifth, the score remained tied at two heading into the sixth inning.

Wilmington was able to squeak in a run in the bottom of the sixth to give themselves a narrow 3-2 lead heading into the seventh and final inning.

In the top of the seventh inning, Cifelli started the Blue Streaks’ rally with a lead-off walk. Sabatino was then able to reach base following a fielding error by Wilmington’s third basemen, giving JCU runners on first and second with no outs. Junior Mitch Herringshaw, who currently leads the team with a .438 batting average, then ripped a single to load the bases for the Blue Streaks. Following a pitching change by the Quakers, senior Aaron Miller singled through the left side of the infield to score Cifelli from third and tie the game at three.

With the game tied at three and no outs yet for JCU, senior Ryan Konsler lifted a sacrifice-fly to left field that allowed Sabatino to score from third, giving the Blue Streaks a 4-3 lead. Freshman Tyler Gentile eventually drew a bases-loaded walk that allowed Herringshaw to score, giving JCU a 5-3 lead going into the bottom of the seventh. From there, freshman Zach Verner closed out the game with three consecutive outs, sealing a 5-3 win for the Blue Streaks.

Following the narrow victory in game one, the Blue Streaks wasted no time in securing the lead early in game two.

A five-run first inning for the Blue Streaks was highlighted by a double-steal by Huddle and Konsler, who stole second and home plate, respectively.

Two runs in the second inning increased the Blue Streaks’ lead to 7-0 before they broke the flood gates wide open in the third inning.

A pair of two-run homers from both junior Jimmy Spagna and Konsler played key roles in a six-run third inning, where the Blue Streaks watched their lead balloon to 13-0 over Wilmington. From there, the Blue and Gold were reluctant to take their foot off the gas, winning game two of the doubleheader by a whopping score of 20-0.

In game two alone, Konsler and Spagna went a combined 8-for-8 at the plate while recording nine RBI’s and scoring six runs themselves. Sabatino and Miller each recorded three hits a piece to help guide the offense as well. Senior Patrick O’Brien tossed six innings while allowing only five hits and striking out four.

“It was crucial to take both [games] from Wilmington,” said Spagna. “The bats finally came alive like they were in Florida, and it was great to see. We needed to rebound after our previous two losses, and I felt that we responded quite well.”

With the win, the Blue Streaks have now four of their last six and sit at 15-8 overall.

“[These wins were] very important. We knew we had to come out of there with two wins to stay near the top of the OAC standings, especially with tough matchups this week against Mount Union and Otterbein,” said Herringshaw.

Few things in life are perfect, and baseball might just be one of them. The game itself – the way it is played, the way it is celebrated, the way it is remembered – baseball is perfect. However,  the designated hitter rule in Major League Baseball is anything but perfect. When it comes to the DH in baseball, I’m old school. There’s simply just no need for the designated hitter.

Since 1973, Major League Baseball has used the oddly inconsistent rule of allowing a designated hitter in the American League and disallowing a DH in the National League. It’s almost likely playing two completely different versions of baseball. How are you going to allow for one team to use the lethal bat of someone such as David Ortiz or Edgar Martinez but tell another team that they must have their pitcher bat instead? That’s the definition of unfair and imbalanced.

The DH was only added to increase the amount of runs scored, which in turn increases home runs, ticket sales and revenue. By my definition, the DH is a “new-era” fixture to the sport centered around increasing ticket sales and popularity rather than staying true to baseball roots. The MLB wants “fringe” fans to stay interested, so they try to boost the scoring as much as possible. Don’t believe me? Maybe you should wonder why the MLB turned the other cheek during the steroid era when Mark McGwire and Barry Bonds were destroying home runs and looking like The Hulk.

The option of having a designated hitter makes baseball almost too easy for a manager. How so? Consider this example: Your pitcher is throwing a shutout through seven innings. Your team has the bases loaded with two outs and the game tied at zero. Stepping to the plate is your pitcher, not your DH. Here’s where strategy is key: Do you use a pinch hitter, thus removing your stud pitcher from the game, in attempt to claim the lead? Or do you leave your pitcher in to hit, hoping he can reach base somehow?

These are the decisions that make baseball so tantalizing and strategic. It’s my theory that until you fully understand all that goes into the game, you can never fully appreciate baseball. Major League Baseball shouldn’t be catering the game to fringe fans who don’t know what RISP stands for. Instead, Major League Baseball should be catering to the die-hard fans that spend all winter staring out the window, waiting for baseball to return.

[Written by Haley Turner]

The first meet of the outdoor season proved to be a great starting point for the men’s track and field team. The men traveled to sunny Charlotte, N.C. for the UNC-Charlotte 49ers Classic. Despite being a Divison III school, the Blue Streaks held their own against some very talented Division I and II universities from across the country. Senior Mike Minjock competed in the long jump, placing 10th with a distance of seven meters. Throwers Anthony Chizmadia, junior, and Rocky Mitolo, sophomore, contributed by placing eighth (47-08.00) and ninth (47-05.25), respectively, in the shot put. Assisant Coach Kyle Basista said, “Mitolo had a very promising start, setting personal bests in shot, discus and hammer.”

Senior Will Rial earned the highest individual place, getting third in his first 3,000-meter steeplechase of the season, with a time of 9:38.74. Sophomore John Cameron also ran a great race, achieving a personal best of 4:03.98 in the 1,500-meter run, which is 5.5 seconds faster than his previous time. The standout race of the meet was the men’s 5,000-meter run, where the distance men worked together as a pack.

Senior Pat Burns ran a personal best of 15:11.04. Following shortly after was a large group of Blue Streaks, led by sophomore Johnny Honkala who dropped over 20 seconds off his personal best with a time of 15:19.25. Freshman Pat O’Brien (15:20.37) was next, followed by freshman Matt Chojnacki (15:21.49), senior Nick Wojtasik (15:23.20) and sophomore Tadhg Karski (15:24.60). In the heat directly after, freshman Andrew Snyder ran the race of his life, dropping over a minute off his personal best with a time of 15:56.32.

“For the first competition in three weeks, the guys came out looking very strong. They are motivated and fired up after finishing a program best second-place finish at indoor OACs,” said Basista.

JCU sprinters also had a successful weekend, as sophomore Nick Williams fared well in both hurdle events.

Williams was 10th in the prelims of the 110-meter hurdles, with a time of 15.36. In the 400-meter hurdles, Williams missed making finals by only one spot, placing ninth, with a time of 56.09. Basista said,“If [Williams] can stay healthy, then he is a national contender in both races.”

The men’s 4×100-meter relay team, comprised of Minjock, senior Bill Zaccardelli, Williams and sophomore Nick D’Amico, were eighth overall with a time of 43.06. Finishing ninth with a time of 3:22.94 was the 4×400-meter relay team made up of freshman Mike Hydzik, D’Amico, senior Anthony Colbert and Williams. D’Amico made his mark by running an incredible split of 48.9 in the relay.

The men will travel to New Concord, Ohio on Saturday to compete in the Muskingum University invite.

Women’s Track and Field

[Written by Zach Mentz]

After an indoor track and field season that consisted of three separate top-three finishes, the JCU women’s outdoor track and field team had momentum under their feet to begin the spring season.

The Blue Streaks traveled to Charlotte, N.C. this past weekend to compete in the annual 49er Classic, hosted by UNC-Charlotte. While the event was unscored, the Blue and Gold used the meet as preparation for the upcoming outdoor season.

Sophomore Emily Mapes led the way for the Blue Streaks, as she finished in second place in the 3,000-meter steeplechase, with a final time of 10:53.15. Teammate and sophomore Jenny Vrobel also claimed 10th in the same event, finishing with a time of 12:05.13.

Junior Nicki Bohrer competed in the 1,500-meter run, finishing 45th in the event versus competitors from the likes of Clemson University and the University of Pittsburgh.

In the 5,000-meter run, four individual Blue Streaks took home top 50 finishes. Senior Katherine Spillman led the way for JCU, finishing 26th with a time of 18:32.62. Juniors Taylor Whisler (30th), Caroline Kapela (41st) and Alyssa Singer (45th) also fared well in the event for the Blue Streaks.

With the 49er Classic now behind them, the Blue Streaks will look ahead to this coming weekend. The Blue and Gold travel to New Concord, Ohio on Saturday, March 23 to compete in the Muskingum Invite, hosted by Muskingum University.

The Blue and Gold continued their early season road trip this past weekend, traveling to Indiana and losing to Wabash College, 5-1, before sweeping two games against Dominican University, winning 6-5 and 4-0, respectively.

The Blue Streaks opened the weekend against Wabash College on Saturday, March 16 and struggled to find their groove offensively. In the bottom of the fourth inning, Wabash broke open a scoreless tie, as defensive miscues and a clutch triple gave the host Little Giants a 4-0 lead through four innings. From there, the Blue Streaks could only respond with one run in the top of the eighth inning, eventually losing the game 5-1. Sophomore Mark Huddle went 2-4 at the plate, and freshman Aaron Lapaglia tossed four innings of one-run ball, striking out two batters along the way.

Following the loss to Wabash, the Blue Streaks rebounded with a win over Dominican later that same day.

JCU jumped out to an early 1-0 lead following an RBI single from sophomore David Lykens, allowing sophomore Bobby Sabatino to score in the bottom of the first. The following inning, the Blue Streaks tacked on another run as a sacrifice fly from senior Connor Marrero allowed senior Ryan Konsler to score from third base, increasing JCU’s lead to 2-0.

The Stars responded in the top of the third inning, firing back with three runs of their own to claim a 3-2 lead.

Trailing by one, the Blue Streaks didn’t respond until the bottom of the fifth inning. Lykens collected another single as he grounded out to first base, allowing senior Joe Veltri to score from third base and tying the game at three. Junior Mitch Herringshaw advanced to second on the play and Sabatino advanced to third, putting two runners in scoring position for junior Jimmy Spagna. Spagna delivered on his opportunity, smacking a single to right-center field to score Sabatino from third and give JCU a 4-3 lead through five innings.

The score remained the same until the top of the ninth inning, when Dominican reclaimed the lead with a two-run single, giving the Stars a 5-4 lead.

Trailing by one in the bottom of the ninth, the Blue Streaks had their backs against the wall. With Herringshaw on first base and Sabatino on third, Lykens again stepped to the plate with a chance to rake in yet another RBI. Fortunately for JCU, the sophomore again rose to the occasion as he grounded out to second base, allowing Sabatino to score and tie the game at five, thus forcing extra innings.

Three innings later, in the bottom of the 12th inning, junior Chet Lauer ripped an RBI single to left field, scoring freshman Robby Cifelli and giving the Blue Streaks a 6-5 win in extra innings.

The following day, on Sunday, March 17, the Blue Streaks didn’t need quite as much drama to defeat the Stars. JCU used four separate one-run innings to pull off a 4-0 win. Sophomore Andrew Doring stifled the Stars’ offense, pitching six shutout innings while striking out six batters as well. With two wins in three games, the Blue Streaks improved to 10-4 overall, despite all of those games taking place on the road.

“We’ve kind of gotten used to the long road trips, and once we get on the field, we don’t even focus on home or away,” said Herringshaw.

With 12 of their final 18 games taking place at home this season, the Blue Streaks know that if they can survive life on the road early in the season, the future will be much brighter.

“We expected to have a very solid team this year, and we know that we don’t have that many holes [as a team],” added Herringshaw. We believe this start is something we can continue through the rest of the season.”

Eventually, as time went on and I grew older, injuries and, well, physical limitations kind of put a damper on that dream. I loved baseball then, and I still do now; but maybe becoming an MLB player just wasn’t in the cards for me.

So as a 15-year-old kid entering my sophomore year of high school, I realized by this point that I probably wouldn’t be going pro in baseball in a few years.

Before my sophomore year began, my mother recommended that I sign up for a journalism class as an elective course. Why? I’m not really sure, to be honest. For some reason, my mother thought I would make a good writer, and I said, “What the hell, why not?”

I remember my first day in that journalism class as just a 15-year-old kid, clueless of what the word “journalism” even really meant. I mostly remember being so lost when my teacher told me to cover my first story. I was apprehensive at first, wondering if signing up for this elective class was really a good decision after all, but I stayed patient and open-minded.

Fast forward a couple of years, and here I am as a junior in college, writing this column, reflecting on those days of when I was unsure of what this whole “journalism” thing was all about. I reflect on these days because one week ago today, on March 14, I was fortunate enough to be elected as the next editor in chief of The Carroll News after spending the last two-plus years as Sports editor. Quite frankly, I couldn’t be more thankful and appreciative of the opportunity.

Consider this: Five years ago, I had no idea what it meant to “cover a story.” Last night on Wednesday, March 20, I covered the Miami Heat at Cleveland Cavaliers game as a credentialed NBA media member – my fifth time doing so. I don’t bring this up as an attempt to brag, but rather to compare and contrast how much can change over the course of just a few years. Crazy how things change over time, isn’t it?

Buried away somewhere in a computer desk drawer at my house in Rochester, N.Y. is the very first article I ever wrote, at the age of 15. After my final baseball game in the summer of 2007, I wrote a “game recap” (that’s a generous way to put it) about how my team won the postseason championship. To be blunt, the article was horribly written. I didn’t have much of an idea or direction as to how to actually write an article, and for understandable reasons. Sometimes though, I’ll re-read that article and think about what a difference that time makes.

If I was never open to the idea of signing up for that journalism class all those years ago, I can honestly say I don’t know where I’d be today or what I’d be doing. For much of the past three years, journalism and writing for The Carroll News has been my main focus. It’s what I want to do after college, and I’ve known that for quite some time now. And to think how different that could all be if I decided against taking that journalism class as a high school sophomore.

Moral of the story: Open yourself to new ideas, opportunities and experiences. After all, you never really know what life has in store for you, do you?

For months on end, the snow pours down from above while the wind blows harshly into your face. During each and every winter day, I’m left shivering and hoping – hoping for warm weather to return as soon as possible; hoping for the sun to beat down on me again. Most of all, I’m hoping for baseball season to return.

At least half a dozen times before, I’ve sat down at a computer, and I’ve done exactly as I’m doing now: writing a column welcoming back baseball season. Yet no matter how many times I write these words, it never gets old: Welcome back, baseball season.

I know, I know. There’s still snow on the ground in most parts of the country. And while basketball and hockey are currently in mid-season form, you can rest assured that baseball season is slowly making its push back towards relevance.

MLB Spring Training games officially began this past weekend. College baseball teams have already begun their regular season campaigns as well. All across the country, at varying levels of competition, baseball teams are kicking the icicles off their cleats and stepping back out onto the diamond. It’s a beautiful thing, isn’t it?

This is the time of year where we slowly, but surely, transcend from frigid, bitter weather towards the early spring season. After the early spring weather comes the peak of mid-summer weather. Just like that, before you even know it, it’s suddenly the middle of July, and baseball season is in full swing. Funny how that works, isn’t it?

Slowly the temperatures will rise, and just as the weather continues to improve, so will  the mood of the average individual. Maybe I’m wrong, but I’d like to think there’s a correlation between baseball season returning and people generally being happier.

So if I’m asking one thing of you, it’s this: Embrace the weather. Embrace the fact that you can soon go outside again without dreading it. And most of all, embrace the fact that baseball season is officially back in action. In our neck of the woods, we certainly don’t see the sun enough. So embrace the transition from later winter, to early spring to mid-summer, because soon enough, baseball season will have passed by again, and we’ll be left bracing for the cold.

Follow @ZachMentz on Twitter or email him at 

The John Carroll University men’s track and field team continued its hectic schedule this past weekend, as they competed in two different meets in two days. The Blue Streaks traveled to Berea, Ohio on Friday, Feb. 15 to compete in the Greater Cleveland Championships before traveling to Kent, Ohio to compete in the Kent State Tune-Up the following day on Saturday, Feb. 16.

The Blue and Gold were not at full strength at the Greater Cleveland Championships, with athletes being split between the busy weekend of events, but the team still put together a fair performance, as they finished in fourth place out of six teams.

Freshman Mike Hydzik had a solid day, as he finished in first place in the 500-meter run, with a time of 1:08.77. Sophomore Hayes Chrispin finished just behind Hydzik in the same event, claiming second place, with a final time of 1:11.18.

Hydzik also picked up a first-place finish when he teamed up with sophomore Nick Williams, and seniors Mike Minjock and Anthony Colbert, as the quartet won the 4x 200 event with a collective time of 1:32.29.

Freshman Dan Loya also picked up a victory of his own, the first of his career, as he won the 800-meter run with a finish time of 2:01.21. Sophomore Gage Marek contributed to the Blue Streaks’ cause as he finished in third place in the 1,000-meter run, with a finish time of 2:40.25.

Sophomore Justin Ball turned in an admirable performance by finishing second in the pole vault, clearing 3.66 meters. Sophomore Rocky Mitolo also double dipped and reeled in points for the Blue Streaks as he finished third in the shot put before finishing fourth in the weight throw event, clearing 14.21 meters and 15.28 meters, respectively.

The following day at the Kent State Tune-Up, the solid performances continued to pour in for the Blue and Gold, despite the meet being an unscored event.

Minjock took second place in the long jump event, with a distance of 22.08 meters. Freshman Pat O’Brien picked up a top-five finish by claiming fifth in the 1,000-meter run, while junior Chuck Mulé took 14th in the same event.

The Blue Streaks will travel to Ada, Ohio this coming weekend to compete in the Ohio Athletic Conference Championships, hosted by Ohio Northern University.

Women’s Track and Field

After finishing in eighth place out of 18 teams last weekend at the All-Ohio Championships, the Blue Streaks were adamant about improving upon that performance.

Considering the second-place finish they brought home at the Greater Cleveland Championships on Friday, Feb. 15, it’s safe to say that they accomplished that goal.

Junior Nicki Bohrer was just one of four first-place finishers for JCU, as she won the 1,000-meter run with a time of 3:04.77. Sophomore Haley Turner (second, 3:06.68) and junior Anna Busta (third, 3:14.62) finished just behind Bohrer to help pick up points for the Blue and Gold.

Sophomore Emily Mapes dominated the mile run, winning the event with an impressive time of 5:20.58, while junior Caroline Kapela finished in third with a time of 5:35.55.

Freshman Jenna Crabtree did her work in the pole vault, winning the event by clearing the bar at 9 feet and 6 1/4 inches to take home the victory. Not to be outdone, sophomore Danielle Sample also earned a first-place finish of her own as she won the triple jump event with a distance of 10.64 meters.

At the unscored Kent State Tune-Up, sophomore Megan Martinko made her mark as she finished in fifth place in the 300-meter hurdles with a time of 47.11. Martinko also finished in 16th place amidst talented competition in the 60-meter hurdles, finishing with a time of 9.55.

The Blue Streaks will travel to Ada, Ohio this coming weekend to compete in the Ohio Athletic Conference Championships, hosted by Ohio Northern University.

That successful real estate agent was Jerry Buss, the man who eventually spent his jackpot earnings to purchase the Los Angeles Lakers (and Kings) as well as The Forum (the Lakers’ home arena) from Jack Kent Cooke for a grand total of $67.5 million.

Thirty-four years and 10 NBA world championships later, it’s safe to say that Buss is one of the most accomplished, well-respected owners in the history of professional sports.

Buss took control of the Lakers in 1979, and, just as he had done with his L.A. apartment investment, hit the jackpot again, as he selected Earvin “Magic” Johnson with the first pick of the 1979 NBA draft.

By drafting Johnson, Buss laid the foundation for “Showtime,” the golden era of Lakers basketball in the 1980s. A man with a blue-collar background, Buss understood what it was like to be at the bottom of the totem pole and was now experiencing life at the top in the most extravagant of all manners.

With Buss having passed away this past Monday, Feb. 18 at the age of 80, stories of his success and generosity have spread like a California wildfire.

For starters, here’s one story of Buss’ generosity: In 2005, Lakers center Ronny Turiaf needed open-heart surgery, and Buss paid for the entire operation. That’s the type of relationship he had with his players. “He saved my life,” Turiaf said recently.

Not only was Buss a generous man, but a patient one as well. When he bought the Lakers in 1979, he had one goal, which he explained in a 2010 interview with ESPNLosAngeles.com. “My dream really was to have the Lakers and Los Angeles identified as one and the same,” said Buss. “When you think New York, you think Yankees. I wanted that to be the case here as well … I believe I’ve accomplished that.”

Buss revolutionized not only the Lakers, but the sport of basketball, as he had the idea of selling courtside seats for top-dollar, recognizing how celebrities like to be seen and show off. Buss also came up with the idea of having “Lakers Girls,” adding to the ultimate “Showtime”  dream that he envisioned.

And while the stories of Buss’ success and compassion will live on forever, so will his legacy as one of the most influential, iconic men in the history of professional sports.

Rest in peace, Dr. Buss.

Follow @ZachMentz on Twitter or email him at 

Having had the last two weeks to prepare for the upcoming Ohio Athletic Conference Championships, the John Carroll University women’s swimming and diving team knows one thing: It’s go time.

The Blue Streaks (7-7, 4-1 OAC) ended the regular season by winning their last two meets, defeating both Hiram College and Baldwin Wallace University in the process. With a little bit of momentum on their side, the Blue Streaks will be ready to compete at the Championships, which span from today through Saturday, Feb. 16 in Akron, Ohio.

The Blue and Gold will be led by senior Julia Adams, the reigning OAC Women’s Swimmer of the Year. Adams won three individual events at the Championships last season en route to helping JCU pick up a third-place finish among six teams.

Sophomore Victoria Watson will also be depended upon to pick up points for JCU, as she ended the regular season with a first-place finish in the 100-yard freestyle event against Baldwin Wallace. Sophomore Karyn Adams, the younger Adams sister, also took home a first-place finish against BW by winning the 50 freestyle with a time of 26.40.

After finishing in third place at the OAC Championships in each of the last three seasons, it’s safe to say that the Blue Streaks are ready to reach new heights.

Competition will begin at 11 a.m. on Thursday, Feb. 14 at the Ocasek Natatorium on the campus of The University of Akron. The start time of 11 a.m. will be the same on both Friday, Feb. 15 and Saturday, Feb. 16 at the same venue.

Men’s Swimming and Diving

While the women’s team has finished in third place for three consecutive years at the Ohio Athletic Conference Championships, the men’s team has done something similar: They’ve finished in second place each of the past three years. Now, with more than two weeks passing since their last meet, the Blue Streaks (4-10, 1-4 OAC) will have their sights set on picking up that ever-elusive first-place finish.

While struggling somewhat during the regular season, there is undoubtedly still a core of talent on the Blue Streaks’ roster that will be depended upon this weekend.

The Blue and Gold will be led by senior Drew Edson and junior Nick Holvey, both of whom were big contributors in JCU’s narrow 118-109 loss against Baldwin Wallace to end the regular season.

Edson fared well at the OAC Championships last year, finishing second in the 200 freestyle event and fifth in the 500 freestyle to help pick up points for the Blue and Gold. On the other hand, Holvey contributed by finishing in third place in the 200 IM event, while picking up a fourth-place finish in the 100 butterfly.

Sophomore Nick Bockanic will also need to do his part if the Blue Streaks are to have success this weekend. Bockanic finished in first place in the 100 back event against Baldwin Wallace, finishing with a time of 59.33

The OAC Championships will take place at the Ocasek Natatorium on the campus of The University of Akron. The Championships will span over the course of three days, beginning today and ending on Saturday, Feb. 16. Competition will begin at 11 a.m. on all three days.

On the morning of Monday, Feb. 11, the NBA announced its plan to release the league’s newest uniforms – the Golden State Warriors’ sleeved, yellow jerseys. Yes, you read that right; I said sleeved. As in, sleeves on jerseys. Can you picture that?

Neither can I, at least I couldn’t at first. The Warriors will debut these alternate, sleeved jerseys at home on Feb. 22 against the San Antonio Spurs. I know, I know, don’t puke yet. Stick with me.

The NBA refers to these sleeved jerseys as the “first modern short-sleeve jersey” in all of professional basketball.

Adidas, the uniform provider of the NBA, describes the new jerseys as “the first-ever super lightweight stretch woven short with maximum ventilation for player comfort.”

While those descriptive words all sound really nice and innovative at first glance, allow me to translate what they really equate to: B.S.

The first inclination upon hearing this news is to simply think, “What’s the point of adding sleeves to the jerseys?” Well, allow me to answer that question for you.

The NBA isn’t unveiling these jerseys because of their “lightweight stretch” or even because they look cool (because they don’t). Instead, the NBA is releasing these new, sleeved jerseys for one predictable reason: money.

It’s not exactly a secret that the NBA wants to eventually sell advertising space on team uniforms, and adding sleeves to jerseys only adds more real estate for the league to sell to potential advertisers.

Sam Amico, the NBA columnist of FOXSports.com, wrote recently: “NBA teams don’t want to look like European soccer clubs, but they do want to maximize their advertising revenue. If that means placing ads on uniforms, then that’s exactly what NBA teams will do.”

So there you have it. The NBA will likely begin putting advertisements on jerseys starting next season, and it’s only going to expand. Maybe decades from now, the NBA will have players wear full jackets and sweatpants to allow for maximum advertising space. That could really generate some dough.

On one hand, this could be seen as a great business move, as selling ad space could generate an estimated $100 million.

On the other hand, this is quite literally the definition of “selling out.”

Coming off of a slump, the underclassman duo of Dan Mirman and Terner Gott were able to bring their team to a higher standing of 21 out of 29 teams on the 2013 Pete Willson Invitational in Wheaton, Ill.

Traveling long distances is second nature to the John Carroll University wrestling team, as they traveled to Fort Lauderdale, Fla. for their winter break. Instead of heading towards the ocean and sandy beaches, the team went west to the open fields, better known as the “Prairie State.”

Two years ago, during January of 2011, the team participated in the same Invitational, where they placed 20th out of 32 teams. The final day in Illinois, the team lost two spots and moved down to 22nd.

This past weekend, the team scored 31.5 points and finished 21st as a result.

The underclassmen were the ones who proved themselves at the tournament. Seeded at seventh, Mirman was able to overcome and reach his final destination of fourth place.

Reaching the semi-finals was a large accomplishment for this Wadsworth freshman. Greg Sanders, of Concordia, eventually took the championship and also took Mirman out of the running. The rookie has an overall record of 15 wins to 5 losses.

The big accomplishment was not there.

Instead, Mirman was able to defeat the No. 2 seeded UW-Parkside Dan Argueta with a final score of 12-9. Mirman caused this upset by winning the opening two matches.

Gott, who was seeded third, wrestling at 157 pounds, earned five spots lower at eighth. Of the three wins, Gott was able to do this by pin fall. Going through the match 3-3, the skilled sophomore lost his two matches to the No. 4 and No. 6 seed both by a single point.

Senior Bryan Steinmetz came close to placing, at 184 pounds. This lengthy veteran was able to reach to the quarterfinals, yet his opponents would not let him reach any further.

Many teams in the Ohio Athletic Conference participated, including Ohio Northern (11th place) Mount Union (14th) and Muskingum (22nd).

From JCU, other participants in the Invitational included freshman Mike Busiko (125 pounds), senior Doug Hayes (141 pounds), sophomore Matt Tusick (165 pounds), sophomore Danny McNamara (174 pounds) and junior Will Porter (285 pounds).

Fast forward to present day, and the Blue Streaks are making history: For the first time ever, JCU has earned a berth at the 2013 National Championships in Chicago.

With a 4-2 win over Duquesne this past Sunday, Feb. 3, the Blue Streaks officially earned a shot to play for the American Collegiate Hockey Association Division I national title.

“Going into the game, we were well aware that this win against Duquesne would clinch our spot [at Nationals], so when that game clock hit zero, we were riding high,” said junior Louie Morici.

With an overall record of 17-12 this season, the Blue Streaks finished first in the College Hockey Mid-America division, giving themselves the No. 1 seed for the upcoming CHMA Tournament, which will take place on both Feb. 23 and 24.  While the Blue and Gold have plenty to look forward to with a berth at Nationals, the regular season is not over yet.

JCU will take to the road on Saturday, Feb. 9 to take on West Virginia University. The following day on Sunday, Feb. 10, the Blue Streaks will play on the road against Youngstown State University. After that mini road trip, the Blue Streaks will return home to Gilmour Ice Arena to host Slippery Rock University on both Feb. 15 and 16 to end the regular season. With four games remaining on the schedule, you can be sure the Blue Streaks will be using the rest of the regular season to sharpen their game.

As this season marks the first in which the Blue Streaks have earned a trip to Nationals, it’s safe to say that this program is one on the rise.

“We had our first 20-win season last year, which set a record for wins [in a season]. This year we had our first division championship and Nationals bid,” said Morici. “A lot has happened in the three years I’ve been here. We’re re-writing history day-by-day.”

The 2013 National Championships will be played from March 1 through March 6 and hosted by Robert Morris University Illinois at the Edge Ice Arena. The tournament will be single-elimination and involve 20 teams.

Last season, the 2012 National Championships took place in Cleveland, as hosted by the Greater Cleveland Sports Commission, and were won by the University of Delaware. While the Blue Streaks certainly would have enjoyed the opportunity to play in their home city, they’re not going to complain with the opportunity in front of them this season.

“To have a shot at a national title is something I can’t even put into words,” said junior Sean McHugh. “I’m just so happy that all of our hard work and determination paid off.”

Fast forward exactly five weeks later, and here I am on the Monday after the Super Bowl, writing about the new football champions of the world, the Baltimore Ravens.

Crazy how the times change, isn’t it?

Over the course of the last month, we, as football fans, have learned a lot about Ray Lewis, Joe Flacco and the Baltimore Ravens. Critics everywhere had questions about Joe Flacco’s ability to lead a team deep in the playoffs. They also questioned the health of Ray Lewis, who played the entire postseason on basically one arm. We questioned how mentally tough this Ravens team was. And in the end, all of our questions were answered.

Flacco, a fifth-year veteran from the University of Delaware, put together one of the most unprecedented and incredible four-game stretches in NFL postseason history. In four games, Flacco threw a total of 11 touchdown passes (tying Joe Montana’s postseason record) and put up a goose egg in the interception column. The same quarterback who had been telling the media that he is in fact “elite” has finally silenced his critics.

And then there’s Ray Lewis. Where does one begin when talking about the impact Lewis had on his teammates this postseason? Before the playoffs began, Lewis announced that he would be retiring at the end of the season, no matter where the Ravens finished. By doing that, Lewis ignited a spark under his teammates that eventually turned into a fire that no team could extinguish. Lewis exemplified exactly what it means to be a leader, both on and off the field. It could even be argued that Lewis is not only the best leader in football, but in all of professional sports.

The great John Wooden once said, “It’s amazing what a group of men can accomplish when no one cares who gets the credit,” and I don’t think there’s a better quote to summarize the Ravens’ run. With the unveiling of the NFL’s newest “elite” quarterback and inspiration from Lewis, the Ravens were textbook examples of what can happen when players stop playing for themselves, and instead play for each other. After all, isn’t that what team sports are all about?

Follow @ZachMentz on Twitter or email him at 

Fast forward to present day, and the Blue Streaks are making history: For the first time ever, JCU has earned a berth at the 2013 National Championships in Chicago.

With a 4-2 win over Duquesne this past Sunday, Feb. 3, the Blue Streaks officially earned a shot to play for the American Collegiate Hockey Association Division I national title.

“Going into the game, we were well aware that this win against Duquesne would clinch our spot [at Nationals], so when that game clock hit zero, we were riding high,” said junior Louie Morici.

With an overall record of 17-12 this season, the Blue Streaks finished first in the College Hockey Mid-America division, giving themselves the No. 1 seed for the upcoming CHMA Tournament, which will take place on both Feb. 23 and 24.  While the Blue and Gold have plenty to look forward to with a berth at Nationals, the regular season is not over yet.

JCU will take to the road on Saturday, Feb. 9 to take on West Virginia University. The following day on Sunday, Feb. 10, the Blue Streaks will play on the road against Youngstown State University. After that mini road trip, the Blue Streaks will return home to Gilmour Ice Arena to host Slippery Rock University on both Feb. 15 and 16 to end the regular season. With four games remaining on the schedule, you can be sure the Blue Streaks will be using the rest of the regular season to sharpen their game.

As this season marks the first in which the Blue Streaks have earned a trip to Nationals, it’s safe to say that this program is one on the rise.

“We had our first 20-win season last year, which set a record for wins [in a season]. This year we had our first division championship and Nationals bid,” said Morici. “A lot has happened in the three years I’ve been here. We’re re-writing history day-by-day.”

The 2013 National Championships will be played from March 1 through March 6 and hosted by Robert Morris University Illinois at the Edge Ice Arena. The tournament will be single-elimination and involve 20 teams.

Last season, the 2012 National Championships took place in Cleveland, as hosted by the Greater Cleveland Sports Commission, and were won by the University of Delaware. While the Blue Streaks certainly would have enjoyed the opportunity to play in their home city, they’re not going to complain with the opportunity in front of them this season.

“To have a shot at a national title is something I can’t even put into words,” said junior Sean McHugh. “I’m just so happy that all of our hard work and determination paid off.”

Coming off of a slump, the underclassman duo of Dan Mirman and Terner Gott were able to bring their team to a higher standing of 21 out of 29 teams on the 2013 Pete Willson Invitational in Wheaton, Ill.

Traveling long distances is second nature to the John Carroll University wrestling team, as they traveled to Fort Lauderdale, Fla. for their winter break. Instead of heading towards the ocean and sandy beaches, the team went west to the open fields, better known as the “Prairie State.”

Two years ago, during January of 2011, the team participated in the same Invitational, where they placed 20th out of 32 teams. The final day in Illinois, the team lost two spots and moved down to 22nd.

This past weekend, the team scored 31.5 points and finished 21st as a result.

The underclassmen were the ones who proved themselves at the tournament. Seeded at seventh, Mirman was able to overcome and reach his final destination of fourth place.

Reaching the semi-finals was a large accomplishment for this Wadsworth freshman. Greg Sanders, of Concordia, eventually took the championship and also took Mirman out of the running. The rookie has an overall record of 15 wins to 5 losses.

The big accomplishment was not there.

Instead, Mirman was able to defeat the No. 2 seeded UW-Parkside Dan Argueta with a final score of 12-9. Mirman caused this upset by winning the opening two matches.

Gott, who was seeded third, wrestling at 157 pounds, earned five spots lower at eighth. Of the three wins, Gott was able to do this by pin fall. Going through the match 3-3, the skilled sophomore lost his two matches to the No. 4 and No. 6 seed both by a single point.

Senior Bryan Steinmetz came close to placing, at 184 pounds. This lengthy veteran was able to reach to the quarterfinals, yet his opponents would not let him reach any further.

Many teams in the Ohio Athletic Conference participated, including Ohio Northern (11th place) Mount Union (14th) and Muskingum (22nd).

From JCU, other participants in the Invitational included freshman Mike Busiko (125 pounds), senior Doug Hayes (141 pounds), sophomore Matt Tusick (165 pounds), sophomore Danny McNamara (174 pounds) and junior Will Porter (285 pounds).

Fast forward exactly five weeks later, and here I am on the Monday after the Super Bowl, writing about the new football champions of the world, the Baltimore Ravens.

Crazy how the times change, isn’t it?

Over the course of the last month, we, as football fans, have learned a lot about Ray Lewis, Joe Flacco and the Baltimore Ravens. Critics everywhere had questions about Joe Flacco’s ability to lead a team deep in the playoffs. They also questioned the health of Ray Lewis, who played the entire postseason on basically one arm. We questioned how mentally tough this Ravens team was. And in the end, all of our questions were answered.

Flacco, a fifth-year veteran from the University of Delaware, put together one of the most unprecedented and incredible four-game stretches in NFL postseason history. In four games, Flacco threw a total of 11 touchdown passes (tying Joe Montana’s postseason record) and put up a goose egg in the interception column. The same quarterback who had been telling the media that he is in fact “elite” has finally silenced his critics.

And then there’s Ray Lewis. Where does one begin when talking about the impact Lewis had on his teammates this postseason? Before the playoffs began, Lewis announced that he would be retiring at the end of the season, no matter where the Ravens finished. By doing that, Lewis ignited a spark under his teammates that eventually turned into a fire that no team could extinguish. Lewis exemplified exactly what it means to be a leader, both on and off the field. It could even be argued that Lewis is not only the best leader in football, but in all of professional sports.

The great John Wooden once said, “It’s amazing what a group of men can accomplish when no one cares who gets the credit,” and I don’t think there’s a better quote to summarize the Ravens’ run. With the unveiling of the NFL’s newest “elite” quarterback and inspiration from Lewis, the Ravens were textbook examples of what can happen when players stop playing for themselves, and instead play for each other. After all, isn’t that what team sports are all about?

Follow @ZachMentz on Twitter or email him at 

That’s exactly where the Carroll Crazies comes in. The Carroll Crazies will be busing JCU students to and from two different basketball games this winter – one men’s game and one women’s game. The student-run organization will bus students to the men’s basketball game at Capital University, located in Bexley, Ohio, on Saturday, Feb. 2. The second game that the Carroll Crazies will bus students to and from takes place on Wednesday, Feb. 6 as the women’s basketball team travels to Berea, Ohio to take on the host Baldwin Wallace Yellow Jackets. The best part of all of this is that both road trips are completely free to JCU students.

The Carroll Crazies is the official student section and fan group of Blue Streaks athletics. With numerous events throughout the year to promote, support and cheer on JCU athletics teams, the Carroll Crazies have a reputation for bringing spirit and excitement to all different kinds of JCU athletic events.

“Our ultimate goal is to get more ‘fans in the stands,’” said Carroll Crazies President Beckie Reid. “We want more of a student section at games, especially football and basketball games.”

This isn’t the first time the Carroll Crazies have provided transportation to games. Reid explained that the organization did something similar to this “about five or six years ago” and that it was “very successful.”

When LeBron James, the most talented basketball player on planet Earth, ditched Cleveland nearly three years ago, the future for the Cavaliers looked anything but bright. In the 2010-11 season following LeBron’s departure, the Cavaliers looked like anything but an NBA team. A long, exhausting stretch of struggles and hardships left the Cavaliers with an overall record of 19-63 that season, a mark poor enough to ultimately net the Cavs the first pick in the 2011 NBA Draft.

The good news was that the Cavaliers had a chance to select the best collegiate player in that draft, which would in turn automatically improve the talent level on their roster. The bad news? The 2011 NBA Draft class was one without a blue chip, superstar prospect. There was no Kevin Durant. There was no Derrick Rose. There was no Blake Griffin. And of course, this had to be the case the year that the Cavaliers had the top pick. At the time, it just seemed like more rotten Cleveland luck.

Analysts and other talking heads debated who the Cavaliers should take with the top pick, or perhaps whether they should trade the pick away entirely in return for a package of players and picks. Eventually, the two top choices for the Cavaliers were narrowed down to Duke’s Kyrie Irving and Arizona’s Derrick Williams. Unless you’re a sports fan who’s been living under a rock, I think you know which direction the Cavaliers went with that pick.

Fast forward nearly three years later, and the Cavaliers have resurrected themselves from the cellar of the basketball world. Irving, a point guard who was born in Australia, is quickly grabbing the attention of the basketball world – and for good reason. At the young age of 20, Irving isn’t even old enough to legally purchase alcohol – but he is old enough to be playing in the 2013 NBA All Star game, his first, in Houston on Feb. 17. Irving is also coming off of a three-game stretch in which he averaged 35.7 points per game on 61 percent shooting, a stretch of excellence that was good enough to earn him Eastern Conference Player of the Week. How’s that for a list of accolades before turning 21?

After LeBron left, many believed that it would be years before the Cavaliers were back on the NBA map. Fortunately for the city of Cleveland, all of those predictions have gone out the window. Playing in the shadows of LeBron James is not an easy thing to do – not by any stretch of the imagination. It takes a special kind of talent to make an entire city forget about the man who was once their hero, yet that’s exactly what Irving is: a special, once-in-a-decade type of player.

Don’t get me wrong: the NBA is chock-full of young, athletic and talented point guards. But anyone who has seen Kyrie Irving play knows that this kid is unique. He’s different. There’s just something about watching Irving that leaves you in awe, as your mouth waters for one more Irving jumper.

This past October, I predicted that Kyrie Irving would be a top-15 player in the NBA by the season’s end. As of this moment, I think it’s safe to say that Irving is well on his way to not only being a top-15 player, but perhaps one of the best players in the entire league. While we’re on the topic of predictions, I’m going to take it one (or two) steps further:  The Cavaliers will win an NBA title in the next decade.

LeBron James left Cleveland fans with some fantastic memories from his time here, but if Kyrie Irving can bring a title to Cleveland during his career, you might as well wipe LeBron’s name out of the Cleveland history books for good. That’s how good this 20-year-old kid is.

To recap the last month for the JCU wrestling team, the story begins in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., where the Blue Streaks competed in the Florida Citrus Open on Dec. 29 and 30. The Blue and Gold finished in eighth place among 12 teams in the tournament, but more importantly aimed to use that competition as a tune-up performance for the Budd Whitehill Duals on Jan. 11 and 12.

Competing on the road in Williamsport, Pa., the Blue Streaks went 2-2 at the Duals, with highlight wins over Williams College (19-16) and Oswego State (20-18).

Three days after the Budd Whitehill Duals, on Jan. 15, the Blue Streaks took to the road again, as they traveled to Alliance, Ohio to take on Ohio Athletic Conference rival Mount Union. The Blue Streaks went into the match facing a Purple Raiders team that hadn’t lost a match since Nov. 17. Plus, the squad was without Dan Mirman, Terner Gott and Clarence Semple. Knowing that it wouldn’t be an easy task, JCU battled in an attempt to pull off the upset. But they could not do so, as they fell to Mount Union, 31-7. Having been battle-tested over the past month, the Blue Streaks will continue their season when they travel to Tiffin, Ohio next week to take on the host Heidelberg University Student Princes on Tuesday, Jan. 29. The meet will begin at 7:30 p.m.

Editor’s Note: The Blue Streaks played host to the visiting Ohio Northern University Polar Bears on Tuesday, Jan. 22, only their second OAC meet of the season. For results, game stories, upcoming schedules and more, please go to www.jcusports.com.