Men’s Basketball Falls to Colby

Men’s Basketball Falls to Colby

By Kaitlyn York Contributing Writer

Milani Hicks (#22) goes for a layup, fighting through the pressure of Colby College’s defense.

Dearborn Gymnasium roared with applause as the Men’s Basketball team took the court preparing to face the Mules of Colby College. After a hard fought battle, the Beavers fell short of the win with a final score of 92-76 going to the Mules.

Head Coach Richard Meader said the team knew they had a hard game ahead of them. “We knew it was going to be difficult. They were 7-1 and had a couple wins over very good teams,” said Meader. “They had good size and could shoot the ball very well.”

Knowing what they would be going up against, the Beavers worked on guarding their (Colby’s) offense during practices leading up to the game. “They’re a very good shooting team so we were just working on getting to their shooters and stopping that,” said Milani Hicks, a senior captain.

When the game began, Hicks started out strong scoring the first two points of the game with a slam dunk. Colby came back and scored a three-pointer immediately after and that was just the beginning of the back and forth battle for the lead.

  “We played nervously,” said Meader “Our effort was there, there was no question about that, but we didn’t make shots and Colby did and that really makes it difficult.”

At halftime, the score was 49-32 in favor of the Mules, though the Beavers did not give up hope. Riley Robinson, a junior captain, said they knew that they still had a chance to win and were able to come up with a new plan for the second half.

       “We tried to make some more changes defensively and offensively and we were able to execute them but we just came up a little short,” said Robinson.

Throughout the second half of the game, the gymnasium filled with tension as both teams played strong in hopes to beat out the other. “With a team that moves the ball as well as they [Colby] did and shoots it as well,” said Meader. “To stop them you’ve got to be aggressive and we ended up fouling them because the movement of the ball puts you in a tough situation.”

Though the game did not turn out as they had planned, the Beavers remain positive as they look back on the things they did well. “Just not giving up at the end,” said Hicks. “I know we were down 15-20 at the beginning but we didn’t give up, we still fought and that’s a positive. I’ll take that away.”

“It was hard, physical game, two good teams battling, fast-paced,” said Robinson. “I really liked the resiliency that we showed.”

Amir Moss was the top scorer of the game for UMF, scoring a total of 26 out of the 76 points. He was followed by Hicks, who scored 13 personal points.

With the loss, the team now has a record of 4-2 but remain 2-0 within their conference. “Obviously, the main goal is to win the conference and go to the NCAA’s,” said Meader, while also pointing out his team’s specific goal for the season. “Our goal is to get the number one seed and play at home with the final game.”

The Beavers will face off with the Mules again on Tuesday, Jan. 8th at Colby College. Before then, the team will continue to work on building up their confidence and getting out of the shooting slump that they are currently in according to Meader. “We’ll shoot better next time and we’ll do some things to counter them.”

The next home game for the men’s team will be played on Wednesday, Jan. 16th in Dearborn Gymnasium starting at 7:00 p.m..

Ballroom Dance Club at UMF Takes a Spin

Maegan Hewey Contributing Writer

    Tapping, twirling, leaping, swinging, all the moves that come with the Ballroom Dance Club. As this club has just joined the UMF family at the start of the fall 2018 semester, they are moving like no other.    

   Julia Allen, a Junior creative writing and theatre major, is the instructor for the Ballroom Dance Club. “I started learning ballroom through a friend about a year and a half ago,” said Allen. “But a lot of what I know is from lessons in my hometown, and being self taught.”

   Dancing tends to bring out the confidence in people, and this club aims to do just that as Allen says encouragement is one of her main priorities.

   “I have found in my experience that ballroom has encouraged people to interact more on a social level and become more self-assured,” Allen said. “I just love watching our members grow and become more comfortable with dancing.”

   Since this is a new club on campus, their focus might change with the coming years, but as right now, they people to learn dance and have fun. “Eventually I would like to see us use the skills that we have learned at a social dance, and perhaps at competitions in the future,” said Allen.

   Ballroom dance is not one kind of dance, there are many different styles. “Some of the recent dances we’ve worked on are tango, cha cha, and foxtrot,” said Allen. “But our favorite so far is swing!” Swing is a type of dance that is bouncy, fast past and up beat. Once dancers learn the moves, they can apply them to just about any song.

   If learning to dance is something that sounds intriguing, students can swing their way into it from 7 p.m, to 8 p.m. in Roberts Learning Center 005 on Monday’s. If Monday’s do not work, the club also offers sessions on Friday’s from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m., with a fee of $5 for non-student members.

BAM Busts a Move at Fall Recital

Sara Pinette Contributing Writer

   All forty-five members of Bust-A-Move Beavers came together for three shows during Thanksgiving week to give students, friends and families a performance that left the audience electrified and roaring with applause.

The shows included different styles of music and dance including lyrical, tap, contemporary, jazz, clog, hip-hop, and even some ballet. The show kicked off with all black attire and a high tempo beat as the entire club took part in the number titled “Soul Bossa Nova” choreographed by Alyssa Leonard, Carson Hope, and Jamie St. Pierre – all UMF students.

During the first half of the show, the club performed large group numbers such as “Jailhouse Rock” and “Supermarket Flowers”, which showcased the clubs synchronicity and fluidity as a team.

Among the group dances, the show featured 27 others pieces choreographed by 19 different members of the club and for many, that is the most exciting part of putting on a show like this. Heather Towle, a sophomore and psychology major, performed with BAM for the first time during show week.

“It felt really great to perform with my really close friends and I’ve been dancing pretty much my whole life, but I’ve never actually performed my own choreography.”

The President of the club, Morgan Laferriere, then chimed in and said, “her choreography is so good.”

  Towle choreographed the dance “The Way You Make Me Feel” which was a jazz piece that featured seven dancers who dazzled in blue sparkly tops as they sassily strutted across the stage.

 Laferriere is a rehabilitation major who has been a part of the BAM club since her first freshman semester at UMF. Laferriere choreographed two dances, her favorite being “Bohemian Rhapsody”.

“No one has ever done a 5-minute production number in BAM – ever – so I thought it was really cool,” Laferriere said. BAM showed a true passion for performing by dancing to the classic and many other time-honored pieces such as “You Can’t Stop the Beat” and “Footloose” after the intermission.

Preparing for this show was no easy task, according to the members of the club. Countless hours of choreography, rehearsal, costume designing and forging.

“I think there’s just so much to be done,” said Laferriere. “ I feel like I have finally everything done and then I remember ‘oh wait I have that other thing [to do]’, but it all came together in the end.”

 It did, in fact, come together at the end as the whole club left the stage after taking their final bows and gave some of the seniors a spotlight to perform one final time. Seniors Rachael Chavarie, Abby Waceken, and Monicah Paquette were able to shine in their own unique and individual way, with tiaras sparkling on their heads.

 “Dancing the last senior piece felt amazing, emotional, and bittersweet,” said Chavarie, a senior Elementary Education major, who will be student teaching in the spring. “I’ve been dancing since first grade so knowing it may be my last time performing on stage made it really personal for me. It’s hard to believe this chapter of my life may be ending, but I’m excited to see what’s next in my life.”

 BAM constantly works towards being an inclusive club to all UMF students. “We’re really a big family. Whether they’ve been dancing their whole life or this is their first time doing dance,” said Hope.  “They can join and participate in groups to try different styles of dance.”

According to BAM’s showcase pamphlet, any students who are interested can check out their table at the club fair next spring, or talk to any current members.

Who Chooses when UMF closes for a Snow Day?

By Aislinn Forbes Contributing Writer

  Already this year, the UMF campus has had two cancellations because of dangerous weather,  but the student and staff on campus don’t seem to know who is actually responsible for making those decisions.

   Through an email interview, Administrative Specialist Amy Perrault wrote that if classes will be delayed or cancelled, the alert will be sent no later than 6:15 AM. “It is difficult to track down the one responsible for a storm closure,” said Perrault. “Because the decision is a committee decision and does not land solely on one person to make the call.”  

  The committee takes into account more than just forecasts. The members monitor road closures throughout the night and early morning, weather warnings, and local contacts, including Mt. Blue High School. It is impossible to confirm these methods with any of the committee members directly because only a select few know who they are.

    “It’s one the hardest jobs on campus,” wrote Perrault. “The committee members are a well-guarded secret.”

   Professors likely don’t know either so they are following the same procedures as the students. At least, Professor of History, Allison Hepler is.

   Hepler commutes from Woolwich to Farmington three days a week, leaving at 3:30 AM in order to arrive on campus by 5:00. Often, weather will be different at her home on the coast than in Farmington, so she often has to play the odds.

   “If I’m here the night before and it’s iffy, I will prevail on one of my friends and stay over,” said Hepler. “I have sometimes stayed overnight thinking that there’s no way they’ll cancel school, and I get to work at 5:00 and then my phone dings at quarter to six.”

   Along with Hepler, Jeff Mckay, the Director of Facilities, and his team are also on campus in the early mornings. McKay oversees between four and twelve people responsible for campus clean up during and after storms. They are often on campus by three or four in the morning. “We always plan as if we are going to open,” said McKay.

 There is a reason that the decision isn’t made earlier. According to Professor Pamela Mitchell, forecasts can be pretty accurate when it comes to location of storms in the 12-24 hours before they arrive. “I think that forecasting the exact amount of snowfall is pretty difficult and this is where there seems to be some inaccuracy,” said Mitchell.

   McKay is someone who monitors the weather separately from the committee and knows that large storms, especially, require a lot of planning. “If we had a storm coming tomorrow,” said McKay, “we would have already been planning yesterday.”

   Despite the hard work, the decisions aren’t always perfect. Allison Bernier, a Senior and a commuter from Livermore Falls, had to miss class on Tuesday Nov. 13th because of weather. “I didn’t want to skip class,” said Bernier. “But it wasn’t worth it to put myself in danger.”

   It was a day that began with quickly falling snow, the sticky kind that gets stuck in tire treads. Mitchell said, “Second most dangerous (weather for drivers) is wet snow, which facilitates hydroplaning.”

   That Tuesday, UMF did not delay classes despite the fact that Mt. Blue had announced a delay, and Spruce Mountain High School had cancelled school all together. Bernier recalls seeing someone off the road as she attempted to drive into Farmington.

    Conditions were dangerous enough that Campus Police issued a warning to students crossing the road to Scott Hall. It reads, “Give cars and especially trucks extra time to stop before attempting to cross. They are having a hard time making the hill by Scott Hall on Main Street.” This warning was posted at 10:19 a.m.

   Commuting students shouldn’t feel pressured to make a dangerous trip if the weather is unexpected. “I tell students, you use your own judgement,” said Hepler.

   “Students need to make decisions on their own based on how safe they feel,” agreed McKay. “We certainly wouldn’t want the fact that we’re open to be the determining factor

Downtown Spotlight: Determined Nutrition Club Welcomes UMF Students With Open Arms

By Grace McIntosh Contributing Writer

Walking into the quaint building where Determined Nutrition occupies, the eyes are met with vibrantly painted walls of lime green. Silver tinsel and other Christmas decorations grace the walls and motivational messages such as “Dream, Achieve, Succeed” adorn the room.

   Determined Nutrition is an “ herbalife health club” that sells healthy shakes and teas “patented to serve and give the body what it needs on a cellular level,” according to Danielle Allen, owner of the health club. Herbalife, which is a “nutrition and weight management company”, is the supplier for the shake’s and tea’s ingredients.

   When it comes to creating shakes and teas for the menu, Allen and her employees take it very seriously. “I am like a chemist or mixologist,” she laughed. “A lot of times it’s trial and error, we never put anything out that we have not truly tried or made to taste exactly like it’s supposed to.”

   “I love being able to walk out the door with a brownie batter shake and know that its guilt free,” Allen said. “It still tastes like I am licking the bowl without all those calories.” Shakes are 200 to 220 calories and include 24 grams of protein. The 32 flavors vary from vanilla to snickers to oatmeal cookies and many more.

   The teas that are sold have varying levels of caffeine labeled as “energizing, boosted and lit”. Classic flavors such as Chai and Lemon teas are offered, as well as candy flavors such as Gummy Bear and Skittles.

   Determined Nutrition is the third club of its kind to pop up in Maine, and when Allen opened her shop’s doors last May, she had a goal to positively impact the community. “I help people lose weight, gain weight and gain energy,” said Allen “It has been the most rewarding, amazing thing I have ever done in my entire life.”

   Allen also passionately expressed her wish to assist everyone with kindness. “Serving people with a smile and making a change in somebody’s day means more to me than anything else in my job.”

   In the future, Allen would love to see more students stop by her shop. “We are starting to get you guys [students] to trickle in which is nice,” she said. “I am always open to what you guys are looking for.” The business offers a dollar off any order for students who show their ID at the checkout.

   The students who do utilize Determined Nutrition, go for various reasons. “I definitely have different groups come in,” said Allen. “We have the people who hit the gym who come in for one reason, and we also have the people looking for a pick-me-up for studying.”

   All of the teas served at Determined Nutrition are vegan, while shakes are vegetarian. The menu labels which products are gluten free. Their business hours are  are 7:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Monday through Tuesday, 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Wednesday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. on Saturday, and closed on Sunday’s. Determined Nutrition can be found adjacent to the Municipal Parking lot next to Tranten’s.