From painting to pottery, a new campus club gives students a way to unleash their creative sides.

Students are encourage to join clubs on campus to expand their horizons.

As with the other clubs on campus, the Art Club offers a chance to learn new skills and practice acquired ones. Any student from biology to Christian studies majors are welcome to join and make new friends.

Students had the idea to form the club last year, but the club officially began this fall semester.

The club has already had a couple of meetings with the first being a simple, get-to-know-everyone meeting. Homecoming event planning was the topic for the second meeting.

It already has about 20 members and is open to any students who would like to learn more about art techniques.

Currently, the club president is Lydia Rodgers, junior studio art, the vice president is Bekah Baker, senior studio art, and Amy Rooks, senior studio art, is the creative director.

The group has plans to meet twice a month. One meeting will feature a special speaker or demonstration of art techniques. Zac Buser, art department chair, Blake Smith and Elena Lee, each art instructors at North Greenville, have been invited to do demonstrations of their choice. Lee, who teaches painting, ceramics, and drawing, is also the faculty adviser for the club.

The second meeting of the month will let students have a group studio time to practice their skills. It is set up to be more of an open workshop. The members will get to hang out and give each other advice and inspiration for their individual projects.

The club members will be meeting in the drawing and painting studios in the Runion Building which is above Einstein Bros. Bagels.

This newly-formed club is a great example of students taking initiative to start a club for them to learn and meet new people.

The city of Greenville is rich with opportunities to experience all types of live music, plays and musicals. The Greenville Little Theatre is just one example of an inexpensive way to see a compelling story performed on stage.

The history of the Greenville Little Theatre can be traced all the way back to 1836. The Theatrical Corps, the forerunner to what people now recognize as the Greenville Little Theatre, performed its first show on March 5, 1836, to a full house.

In 1926, the Greenville Artists’ Guild, made up of 75 men and women, worked together to continue developing Greenville’s culture.

About ten years later, the theatre was able to begin using the Fine Arts Auditorium of the Women’s College which was located where the Little Theatre is currently housed. The same year, 1936, two drama professors from Furman University took the roles of Artistic Directors.

Productions unfortunately came to halt during World War II. The first play produced after the war was I Remember Mama. The production on May 2, 1946, starred Joanne Woodward, who is best known for her Oscar-winning role in The Three Faces of Eve.

In 1967, the theatre opened its new $800,000 building with the staging of the musical Camelot. The new building was also chosen to showcase two professional productions.

Shortly after, in 1976, The Glass Menagerie opened with Joanne Woodward returning to the Little Theatre’s stage. With the revenue from ticket sales for this performance and a benefit reception, enough money was raised to erase the theater’s debt.

Currently, Allen McCalla and his wife are the artistic director and producing director, respectively. They both have much professional experience in the theatre business. They are committed to showcasing the talent of the Upstate when producing the many plays and musicals.

Upcoming events at the Greenville Little Theatre include productions that range from classic plays to Christmas musicals.

The Piano Lesson, August Wilson’s Pulitzer-Prize winning play about a family fighting over a family heirloom, will be featured in late October and early November. The month of December will feature the classic favorite, A Christmas Carol. The theatre also offers acting classes for children and adults.

The Greenville Little Theatre is a great way to experience live performances without having to travel very far from campus. Most tickets are around $25 with lower rates for groups of 10 or more.

There is a new improvisational comedy team on campus called Start Wearing Purple.

When the main members of the old improv team, Work in Progress (W.I.P.) graduated, there was a eed for a new group to be started.

The improv team leader, Karla Neves, senior theatre, had a lot to say about the new team.

“When it was decided there would be another improv team, we started with a simple sign up sheet to see who was interested and to get people involved,” Neves said. “From that we had meetings and held some practices to see who worked well together and how they did on stage.”

They ended up with eight people as a core team and the rest of the people are rotators if one of the eight cannot make it. However, when they practice once a week, everyone is invited to join in.

When it was brought to their attention that they needed a name, two teammates Thomas Sieberhagen, freshman undecided, and Will Daniel, freshman theatre, introduced the team to the name Start Wearing Purple.

“When they brought us this song we had never heard it before and loved it so we used it as our theme song and our name,” Neves explained. “We wear purple to all of our events as a team.”

Their first performance was on Oct. 3 at the Trillium Arts Festival in Travelers Rest. They were there all day and performed four 30 minute shows.

The team’s next show is on Nov. 23 and 24 at 7 p.m. in Turner Chapel. They will be showing the movies Night at the Museum and School of Rock and having the improv show afterwards.

Americana artist Angela Easterling tells her story and taps into her South Carolina roots in her sophomore album BlackTop Road.

Easterling began her journey toward her musical career in Greenville, S.C. where she studied theatre at the Fine Arts Institute. She left the Greenville area to continue her studies at Emerson College. At Emerson, Easterling picked up a guitar and began writing songs, but her focus was still on acting.

Easterling moved to Los Angeles where she appeared in several minor roles in films and acted in commercials.

Music captured her heart, however, and she eventually moved back to the east coast to pursue a career in music.

“When she got away from Greenville, she fell in love with Americana music … she started writing and expressing herself through it. I think it’s surprised her,” Mason Easterling, Angela’s father and North Greenville University’s vice president of denominational relations, said.

After several years away from South Carolina, Easterling returned to the Greenville area where she now bases her business.

While in the area, she visited her mother’s family farm in Greer. The farm became the inspiration for the title track of BlackTop Road. The song protests valuing progress over heritage by expressing her anger and frustration when part of her family farm was paved over for a road.

Easterling draws on her personal experiences for several other tracks on the album as well. “American I.D.” is based on her encounters with the world while studying abroad and her reflections on what it means to be an American. The song connects with the free and enterprising spirit of America and celebrates both the unity and the diversity of American identity.

In BlackTop Road, Easterling paints a broad and colorful picture of America through the bluegrass feel of “Field of Sorrow,” the upbeat rock n’ roll of “BlackTop Road,” the haunting tones of “A.P. Carter’s Blues” and the Cajun influence in “Un Microphone.” She further diversifies the album by recording “Un Microphone” in both English and French.

“[I am] trying to make music that relates to all of us in America and in the world,” Easterling said.

Easterling has met with tremendous success since releasing BlackTop Road this summer. The album was listed on Americana’s Top 40 for six consecutive weeks. BlackTop Road also made it onto Vintage Guitar Magazine’s list of recommended albums in October. She was featured on Country Weekly’s hot new artist page as well.

“I couldn’t ask for anything better,” Easterling said in response to her recent success. “Hopefully people will continue to respond.”

Mason Easterling shared his daughter’s excitement over her recent achievements.

“I am extremely proud of her. I’m honored that she is beginning to get some significant recognition for her work. She’s a very smart and talented young lady and she’s worked very, very hard,” Mason Easterling said.

Easterling will be following up her success with a tour covering all the southeast. A calendar of Easterling’s performances is available at angelaeasterling.com.

Chandler Patterson takes a North Greenville corner kick Saturday night at Pepsi Stadium. Patterson had two goals in the Crusaders' 5-0 victory over Chowan. (Photo by Timor Kamilov)

Chandler Patterson, sophomore media ministry, powered the men’s soccer team to a 5-0 victory over Chowan Saturday night at soggy Pepsi Stadium. Max Duarte, senior marketing, assisted two of the goals, and Seth Snyder, senior business, added a goal and an assist.

“We finished well and attacked well tonight,” Crusader coach Chad Gfeller said. “We did what we needed to do, and hopefully we can carry some momentum into our last four games.”

North Greenville (5-5-1) scored first in the 24th minute when Manuel Izquierdo, senior, drove the ball into the goal from 22 yards away. Crusader keeper Justin Braddock, freshman sport management, came off his line for saves on two breakaway opportunities for Chowan.

Patterson directed a Duarte free kick into the net in the 33rd minute and added his second goal four minutes later on an assist from Joel Watkins, junior marketing, to give the Crusaders a 3-0 lead at halftime.

“Chandler always plays with speed, and it was nice to see that pay off tonight,” Gfeller said. “We have a lot of guys contributing, which is a good thing.”

In the second half, Snyder headed the ball into the path of Jonathan Restrepo, junior international business, who finished with ease. In the 78th minute, Snyder dribbled through the Chowan defense for an unassisted goal.

North Greenville will travel to Erskine today for a 6 p.m. match before facing Brevard at home on Saturday at 1 p.m.

Rebecca Stidham and Leah Ward each scored for the women’s soccer team in a 2-0 victory over Chowan Saturday afternoon at Pepsi Stadium. The Lady Crusaders outshot the Hawks 22-6 and controlled much of the possession in the victory.

“The key was starting well, coming out and playing as a team,” North Greenville coach Jesse McCormick said. “That’s something we have to do every game for the rest of the year. Our players did a good job of possessing the ball, finding the open player and not forcing it when it wasn’t there.”

North Greenville (8-4) got on the board in the fourth minute when Lauren Norris, sophomore early childhood education, laid the ball off for Stidham, junior health and wellness. Stidham finished the ball into the left corner of the goal for the early lead.

In the 26th minute, Ashlyn Henderson, sophomore outdoor leadership, collected the ball on the left side of the box and passed to Ward, junior sport management, at the top of the box. Ward evaded a Chowan defender’s challenge before scoring.

The Lady Crusaders have now won four out of five matches with five matches remaining in the regular season. North Greenville will go on the road to face Toccoa Falls tomorrow at 6 p.m. and Anderson Monday at 7 p.m.

“There was a couple games in the middle of the season where I felt like we weren’t playing up to our potential, but I think we’re on the right track now,” McCormick said.

During the last election, President Obama recited well-rehearsed speeches to the Jewish community and pro-Israel Americans to ensure their votes and support. Lately though, it seems that the President is looking for a reason to terminate the United States’ relationship with Israel.

“Part of being a good friend is being honest. And I think there have been times where we are not as honest as we should be about the fact that the current direction is profoundly negative—not only for Israeli interests but also U.S. interests,” Obama said in June to NPR.

Obama’s new course of action regarding Israel is to encourage Palestine and Israel to meet on common ground and co-exist in peace.

“I think that we do have to retain a constant belief in the possibilities of negotiations that will lead to peace,” the President said. “And that’s going to require, from my view, a two-state solution that is going to require that each side – the Israelis and Palestinians—meet their obligations.”

Anna Rhodes, sophomore English, has a huge passion for sharing Christ in the Middle East. She understands the importance of supporting God’s people.

“My passion is for God and for His laws; I want to obey Him to show my love to Him. Part of this obedience includes loving His people. Though His people have grown to include gentiles who are a part of the church, His original children are the Israelis. Therefore, if I choose to turn my back on them, I will be turning my back on the One who loves them. As I fight for Him, I must fight for them,” Rhodes said.

Rhodes’ support of Israel should be an example to Christians all over the nation.

“As Christians, we have a responsibility to the Israeli people; it is because of them that we can be free in Christ because Christ came through them. They are very much a part of us. It is through them that we have been blessed. If we turn our backs on them, we turn our backs on our own family. Though they may not know God as we do, they were the first, and they have the blessing belonging to the firstborn,” Rhodes said.

Iran is threatening nuclear war and Obama appears to just be encouraging their plans of destruction.
He recently shut down defense mechanisms America established in Poland and the Czech Republic. He also told the U.N. that America would be first to surrender nuclear weapons if the rest of the world would follow suit.

Call me a skeptic, but something tells me that even if Iran promised to destroy its weapons of mass destruction, America would still be Tehran’s number one target.
Why would the nation’s current support of Israel—a policy that America has upheld for decades—be the President’s main focus with so many other pressing issues that need immediate response?

Obama has been well aware of Iran’s growing nuclear resources since last February. Iran remains to be America’s biggest threat today, yet Obama continues to waste time.

“I do know that if [Obama] chooses to leave Israel to defend herself, deliverance will come from somewhere else, and it will cost American lives. You cannot be a power in this world we live in and still expect to remain neutral,” Rhodes said. “More and more we will be forced to choose sides or we will pay a very dear price for our ignorance. If Obama wants to protect American lives, he had better choose to protect Israel as well.
”
Obama informed Israel that if the Israeli army were to destroy the nuclear weapons of its surrounding enemies, America would terminate the current relationship. Basically, Israel either loses lives or loses its most trusted ally.

Has this been Obama’s plan since his entry into office? The Bible is very clear—support Israel, or else. If Obama abandons Israel, the surrounding nations will not rest until every last Israeli is destroyed and the land becomes the 23rd Arab state.

And without an Israel to destroy, Iran’s main focus will become America. Acts of terrorism within our own country will become more devastating and more often than Obama could have ever imagined.

We should not underestimate al-Qaida or Iran, nor should we rest in Obama’s original promise to support Israel.

When asked about the origins of sex trafficking, the average American responds by mentioning China, Thailand or the Philippines. Americans rarely realize that sex trafficking hits close to home.

Just ask Thomas McAuliff, junior elementary education. McAuliff is passionate about Love 146, an organization formed to end sex trafficking.

“One of the big things Love 146 does is task force—campus coalition. As students, we have limited resources, but over 100 different campuses are involved with Love 146,” McAuliff said.

Love 146 was founded in 2002 by Rob Morris, Desirea Rodgers, Lamont Hiebert and Caroline Hahm. The four traveled to Asia and first discovered sex slavery and exploitation as they went undercover with professional investigators to a brothel.

“[There were] little girls standing behind a wall of glass, and each wore a matching dress with a number pinned to her chest; they were watching children’s cartoons,” Love146.org says.

“Men were purchasing these girls by the number pinned to her dress… and then there was number 146. The only one not watching cartoons, she was staring back through the glass with fire and fight left in her eyes, there was still life there. In her eyes we found our calling. In her number we found our name.”

Love 146 has since dedicated its resources to abolish child slavery and sex trafficking.

In a year’s time, 100,000 young girls are kidnapped, lured or coerced into the world of sex trafficking in America. Men and young boys are also susceptible, but the most common sufferers are young women.

“Sex trafficking is a modern-day form of slavery in which a commercial sex act is induced by force, fraud, or coercion, or in which the person induced to perform such an act is under the age of 18 years,” the Department of Health and Human Services said.

More often than not, the young girls are not runaways or abandoned children. Most of the girls are kidnapped or forced. The traffickers threaten the girls, their families and their friends in order to gain control of their lives.

In America, most of the children are kidnapped right outside their homes. Traffickers have been known to convince young girls to leave with them to pursue the idea of a new career or relationship.

Once the girls are far from home, the traffickers “condition” the children. This includes starvation, physical and mental abuse, rape, imprisonment and forced drug usage.

The girls are under constant surveillance and their lives are threatened by their captors. Many are too afraid to leave, even if given the opportunity.

Most of the young women are between the ages of 11 and 19, the most common age being 13.

According to the Department of Health and Human Services, the children face numerous health risks.

“Physical risks include drug and alcohol addiction, physical injuries, traumatic brain injury, sexually transmitted diseases and forced or coerced abortions.”

The biggest issue that faces the nation is those that are ignorant of the severity of sex trafficking in America.

Jared Snead, senior media ministry, suggests that students build awareness by watching films, such as the movie Taken.

“It really shows how terrible trafficking is. First, though, students need to pray. It is an issue that doesn’t really come into our everyday prayer requests,” Snead said.

McAuliff agrees that prayer is priority. As the main campus advocate for Love 146 this year, his desire is to see students become more involved.

“You can’t say, ‘we maybe can stop it.’ You’re already defeated. You have to know that we can and will stop this. We want a Greenville task force that involves the community, parents, all citizens in working together,” McAuliff said.

BSU is beginning to go through paperwork to become more involved with the Love 146 movement.

We must inform ourselves of the dangers our nation is facing. Awareness is key to building a better future for our children.

The students and faculty pose for a picture after an overtime victory by the students in the annual student/faculty basketball game during homecoming week. (Photo by Daniel Jamison)

The students handed the faculty a 56-51 loss in overtime at the faculty/student basketball game, which was held on Tuesday night, Oct. 6.

After the second period, the game went into a three minute overtime with the score tied at 49. Jody Jennings put the faculty in the lead with a big shot down the stretch, but they could not stop former basketball player Bart Shartzer, sophomore sport management/business administration, from leading the students to the win.

The faculty/student basketball game was hosted by the Student Marketing Association. Ellen Long, SMA president, coordinated the event. Many came out to support their fellow students or favorite professor.

Some of the professors that participated in this event were Jim Bates, Chris Sloan, Jody Jennings, Allen McWhite, Victor Preito and Donny Mathis. Kelshun Smith, junior mathematics, Jeremy Howard, senior sport management, Jennifer Bush, senior sport management, and Kate McDaniel, sophomore sport management, were a few of the participants on the student team. All the students and faculty members had a great attitude and enjoyed the scholastic rivalry.

“I participated in the faculty/student basketball game for two reasons. One, I love to play basketball, and who wouldn’t want the chance to play against teachers. That never happens. Two, it was for a great cause in raising money for North Greenville’s business club, Phi Beta Lambda. The club is for NGU’s business majors, and helps to prepare us for what is to come after graduation,” Jennifer Bush said.

The SMA had a game of knock-out for the crowd to participate in and the winner was awarded a t-shirt.

Every day through television, the Internet, and the radio, Americans are bombarded with thousands of images about why their bodies are not good enough. From watching tiny girls on reality television shows winning the competitions to the latest fad diet, it seems impossible to see oneself as beautiful.

These negative issues can cause someone to not look at their body as what it is as a whole, but each independent issue—focusing on one flaw until it is believed to be so distracting from the rest of the body that the whole image is ruined.

This mentality can cause a severe drop in self-esteem, depression and unhealthy dieting habits that can actually dig people deeper into their body image issues.

Women are shown that beauty is only found when they are blemish free, have 2 percent body fat and have perfect, long silky hair. When looking in the mirror, it is difficult to find the perfection that is being forced upon them.

This is not limited to only females. Males can also be influenced by negative self-esteem. Males in the media are portrayed to be ripped, hairless and glistening (not sweating) when they play basketball. Anything other than this is portrayed as unattractive and gross.

It does not have to be this way. It will be extremely difficult to change how the media portrays perfection. Companies make a large amount of money out of the self-loathing that they cause by funding these commercials that force the ideals. However, it will be simpler to change the way we view these images.

When I was younger, I had difficulty with realizing that this is not what real people look like.

I read an article explaining what our bodies really do for us, and it changed my perspective.

Maybe you do not like the way your legs look. With a campus made of hills like North Greenville, those legs do a lot of work. They hold your body upright, they carry you where you want to go. How is it fair for us to criticize them for a minor imperfection when they work so hard for our basic needs?

Maybe you don’t appreciate how your hair looks (or how much you have). Human hair does many things to assist the body. Your eyebrows keep too much light from entering your eyes and protect them from being irritated by too much sweat or water.

Other hair protects the body in other ways, to keep the good stuff inside your body and keep the bad stuff out. The hair on your head serves to protect your brain from damage and infection. If the scalp gets a nasty gash, the hair can help keep foreign matter out of the wound.

If we can appreciate our body for what it does for us, and what God created it to do, it will be much easier to appreciate ourselves and our beauty, for we are God’s creation and we are made in His image. What gives us the right to decide what is beautiful?

He clearly states that every last one of us is beautiful–no matter our size, our color, how much money we can afford to spend on the latest clothes, or what lumps and bumps are where. We are all wonderfully and fearfully made. Ecclesiastes 3:11 says “God makes everything beautiful.” Who are we to say anything contrary?

“I’d rather forget and not slow down/Than gather regret for the things that I can’t change now.”

The opening title track of Forget and Not Slow Down, the new album from Relient K, is lyrically and vocally one of the best moments on the album. While Relient K is known as a Christian band, and there are definite Christian touches to this album, Forget is essentially a thinly-veiled breakup record.

But if Matt Thiessen, Relient K’s lead singer and main songwriter, set out to make an album about an ended relationship, at least it is from a Christian perspective.

“Without you I’m still whole/[God] and life remain beautiful,” he sings on “I Don’t Need a Soul (To Hold).” The story of Thiessen’s romance can be quite easily seen in these tracks. Songs like “Candlelight” and “Savannah” recall happier times and describe a significant other in loving terms. “Therapy” holds the moment of being on the edge of a breakup. And Thiessen moves on with “Over It.” The importance of getting past a relationship’s end seems to be the focus of this record. The key word here is “forget.”

Not slowing down, however, did not seem to be a goal musically. Much of the album is composed of slower, more introspective tracks, not usually a characteristic of the band.

There are several musical interludes between songs that are intended for album flow, a technique borrowed straight from the Beatles. That makes sense after Relient K said on their MySpace page that they chose to go for a more “classic rock” sound on this album, bringing in only real instruments. This choice resulted in a fresher, organic sound. Much of this album is reminiscent of Relient K’s earlier efforts, with thankfully less polish than the rather commercial last record, Five Score and Seven Years Ago.

Matt Thiessen can be forgiven and even applauded for attempting a breakup album. Many iconic records have come out of ended relationships. Musically the album is pleasant, if a little too understated. But Relient K here occasionally falters on lyrics. As a band known for cultural references, especially on the earlier records, the enigmatic qualities to some of their words today are rather puzzling. For instance, “Sahara” describes “a lion on his side.” Are the words ultimately deep or meaningless? For a band that used to sing about mood rings and Chap Stick, this song is quite a departure.

There are some standout tracks on this album, where Thiessen finds the balance between documenting his personal life and contributing to the world of music. The title track is both exquisitely thoughtful lyrically and moving vocally. “If You Believe Me” brings a fresh approach to a romance on the rocks. And “This is the End (If You Want It)” is almost searing as it describes the absolute end of a relationship: “So think real slow/Don’t forget that yes is yes and no is no . . . This is the end/If you want it.”

While Relient K still has some honest moments lyrically, they seem to rely on double meanings in this album. That signature sense of humor seems to be missing here. Maybe they have just gotten a little too serious. But Forget is a breakup record, after all.

The Crusaders golf team traveled to West Palm Beach, Fla. last week to compete in the annual NCCAA national championship tournament. The Crusaders came into the championship having finished no higher than third this year but were hoping to make this their best match of the season and nab their first national championship.

The beginning looked promising for the Crusader golf team. They finished in fourth place after the first day of competition. The Crusaders came in the second day hungry and still seeking their first national championship.

The Crusaders as a team finished better than they did on the first day after two rounds but unfortunately they dropped from fourth place to fifth place with a total team score of 910.

The Crusaders finished 30 strokes behind the leader Dallas Baptist University, which shot an astonishing 820. Brad Caldwell, senior sport management, led the Crusaders with a 223 and finishing eighth in the individual category.

Following Caldwell, Brandon Coggins, senior elementary education, shot a 225, Andrew Beck, junior business administration, shot 228 and Harrison Martin, junior international business, shot a 267.

The Crusaders’ fourth and final tournament of the season is Oct. 19-20 in New Tazwell, Tenn., at the Lincoln Memorial Invitational Tournament. This will also be the first time since the 2007-2008 season that the Crusaders will compete in the Lincoln Memorial Invitational Tournament, in which they finished fifth.

The Lady Crusaders dropped both matches on homecoming weekend. North Greenville faced off against the Lady Hawks in this past Saturday’s game at Hayes Gymnasium.

The Lady Crusaders were defeated by the Lady Hawks (23-25, 23-25, 25-19, 21-25). Sophomore Kaitlyn Pierce was out for today’s match. The Lady Crusaders were missing Pierce’s leadership and skills on the front line. The match against Chowan College was not in the Lady Crusaders favor.

“The lady’s played a hard fought game, but just could not manage to come out on top,” Lady Crusaders coach Lauren Axson said. “The ladies played with integrity and confidence, but had some downfalls throughout the game.”

“One of our major competitors and leaders Kaitlyn Pierce did not play today, but I told the ladies there would be situations like this, where one of our major competitors like Kaitlyn wouldn’t play due to injuries,” Axson said.

The second match was at 4 p.m against Lincoln Memorial. The Lady Crusaders were overpowered by Lincoln Memorial, losing in three straight sets (18-25, 14-25, and 19-25). North Greenville showed weaknesses in miscommunication against Lincoln Memorial. The ladies played a very intense game against Lincoln Memorial.

North Greenville had some young players that showed some positive skills to build on for the future starting with Charity Koschel, freshman sport management, who had three kills in the match and several well-struck attacks.

The other young players Crusader who played well today was Haleigh Gilbert, freshman early childhood education, who had two solo blocks in the second match of the day. Sara Beth White, freshman mathematics education, also contributed, she continued to mature for the Lady Crusaders playing phenomenal throughout each set.

“The younger ladies played a phenomenal game. I was proud of the young ladies,” Axson said. “This has been a long, but fun season.”

The Lady Crusaders will face King College Oct. 19 at 7 p.m. in Hayes Gymnasium.

The men and women’s cross country teams wrapped up the 2009 season by capturing third place at Thursday’s Wingate Cross Country Pre-Conference Invitational. Neither team was able to qualify for the regional race.

Head coach Micah Sepko said that although the cross country team did not make regionals, it was still a good season.

“Obviously regionals is what you strive for as a team,” Sepko said. “But we were dealing with some injuries this year and it was an overall successful season for us.”

Anita Casey, sophomore psychology, led the Lady Crusaders, as she did the entire season, placing seventh with a five-kilometer time of 22:36. Not far behind, Shana Sears, junior English, Ariel Seppala, senior interdisciplinary studies, and Jill Forthaus, freshman intercultural studies, were able to place 10th, 11th, and 12th respectively with times of 23:24, 23:25, and 23:46.

In a change of pace, the men were lead by Senior T.C. Ford, who placed 10th with a five-kilometer time of 18:33. Daniel Stockwell, junior secondary english education, and Andrew Mosteller, freshman youth ministry, were able to place 12th and 15th with times of 18:50 and 18:51. This was the first time all season that Mosteller did not finish first for North Greenville.

“Everyone has their off days,” Stockwell said jokingly. “I was able to get in front of Andrew, and I thought to myself, ‘at least I can say I was in front of him for a few seconds during a race.’ I ran as fast as I could go for the last 100 yards and I ended up beating him, which felt pretty good.”

The Crusaders have had a busy two weeks racing at the Belmont Abbey Invitational on Oct. 3 and the Furman Invitational on Oct. 10.

The men were able to take fourth at Belmont Abbey, while the women also came in fourth place. The Crusaders then had what they believed to be a solid showing at the Furman Invitational (a Division 1 race) with the women placing 13th and the men placing 14th.

Casey continued to lead the pack for the Lady Crusaders in both races placing 11th at Belmont Abbey with a five-kilometer time of 21:35, and 64th at the Furman Invitational with a five-kilometer time of 23:00.

Mosteller also remained the Crusader men’s top finisher grabbing seventh place at Belmont Abbey with an eight-kilometer time of 31:07, and placing 82nd at the Furman Invitational with an eight-kilometer time of 31:24.

The Crusaders were not able to achieve their goal of racing in regionals, but they believe that there is plenty of room for improvement and plan on getting better in the off-season.

“It was disappointing,” Casey said. “But there is potential for this team and we are going to work hard over the summer to get better.”

Mosteller, who was impressive as a freshman, believes that this young Crusader team will be better next year.
“We should do really well next year,” Mosteller said. “We are going to work hard, buckle down and make it to regionals.”

The play Undone was performed Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. and Thursday at 7 p.m. as part of Baptist Student Union in Turner Chapel at North Greenville.

Karla Neves, director, and Lindsay Ross, playwright, had quite a turnout for the play they put together. On Wednesday night there were about 75 people there and on Thursday night the chapel was packed.

The play was a documentary drama based on divorce, which followed the lives of a pastor and his wife and another man’s relationship with two women.

Theater majors Corie Savage, Nathan Baker, Lindsay Furrow, Addi Musen, and Will Daniel comprised the cast.

“I enjoyed writing this play and watching it all be put together and acted out,” Ross said. “All of the actors and the director did an exceptional job of bringing my play to life.”

Ross assisted with most of the play practices to see how things were going to be played out.

“I loved directing this play. It was an amazing experience to watch the actors and designers come together,” Ross said. “The play changed drastically over the course of rehearsals, and I am extremely pleased with the outcome.”

Both ladies seemed to be impressed with how it was received and were satisfied with the end result.

“There seemed to be a lot of people moved by the performance,” Kyle Stelling, stage manager, said.

After the show on Wednesday night most of the people stayed to attend a talk-back meeting with the cast and crew. Audience members asked the cast and crew about how they prepared for the production.

“All of the songs that were played really pulled on my heart strings,” Megan Owenby said. “I know people who have been through divorce, and this play helped with how to understand their struggles and how to talk to them.”

Undone was filled with emotion such as laughter, sadness and compassion.

“I am so proud of my cast and crew with all the hard work they put in,” Neves said.

“The last scene really spoke to me when I saw a man of God breaking down saying he was wrong, and asking for his wife’s forgiveness and to marry him again,” Becca Kosobucki, actor said. “I was so happy with the way it ended up. It touched peoples’ hearts.

“If we could make a difference in one life or one marriage it was worth it,” Ross said.

After getting the first victory of the season, head coach Jamey Chadwell led the Crusader football team into their toughest game of the season against the North Alabama Lions on Oct. 8.

The Lions, ranked third overall in Division II, had not lost a home game since 2004 and this streak would remain intact as North Alabama defeated North Greenville 50-3 in a one-sided game.

“Our guys played hard and I was proud of the effort,” Chadwell said. “They are just a better football team than us right now.”

On the offensive side of the ball, North Greenville amassed only 73 total yards, much of which came on the ground. Running back Montez Hatten, sophomore business, rushed 14 times for a total of 31 yards and running back Justin Beasley, freshman sport management, had 11 carries for 23 yards.

North Greenville’s defense was strong in the first half once again but the Lions offense proved to be more aggressive in the long run. Linebacker Damien Wright, graduate student, had another strong performance finishing with 8.5 total tackles in the game.

Defensive backs Jereme Green, sophomore print media, and Jamarius Robinson, sophomore business, each had 6.5 total tackles while linebacker Nathan Batchelor, sophomore business, finished with six total tackles.

Defensive lineman Andre Bernardi, senior sport management, had another big game for North Greenville finishing with two sacks and one forced fumble in the game. In addition to their strong play, the Crusader defense also created the only scoring chance for North Greenville.

In the fourth quarter, Alex James, sport management, forced a fumble which was recovered by Johnell Bell, senior business administration, at the North Alabama 14 yard line. The Crusader offense was unable to put the ball in the end zone but did get on the board when Zach Sears, freshman business, kicked a 24-yard field goal for North Greenville’s only points of the game.

“We have not even come close to out potential,” offensive lineman James Thurn, junior broadcast media, said. “We have to get better each and every day. We have an uphill climb the rest of the season and we just have to keep striking the stone.”

The Crusaders’ uphill climb continued on Oct. 17 when the 11th-ranked University of Charleston Golden Eagles traveled from West Virginia to Tigerville to take on North Greenville.

The Crusaders hung tough for most of the game, keeping within striking distance until a fourth quarter outburst by the Golden Eagles. The Golden Eagles scored 13 points in the final quarter to come away with a 34-7 victory over the Crusaders.

The North Greenville offense showed much improvement from the North Alabama game racking up 250 total yards, including 199 from the ground game. Hatten ran the ball 16 times for 73 yards and wide receiver Marcus Middleton, junior sport management, was used in the backfield multiple times as he carried seven times for 66 yards, including a second quarter touchdown.

Nicolas Williams, freshman undecided, was also put in the backfield during the game as he rushed four times for 31 yards. Quarterback Richard Harb, junior history, continued his struggles, completing just eight of 22 pass attempts for 51 yards and three interceptions. Williams was Harb’s favorite target finishing the game with five receptions for 32 yards.

“We can’t beat a good team when you turn the ball over and throw three interceptions,” Chadwell said. “We have played a very tough schedule, and if this would have been any team besides one of the best, we could have won. The off week really helped give our offense some confidence, and I thought we executed very well. We moved the ball very well all afternoon, but we couldn’t get it in the end zone.”

The defense did their part and kept the game close until the end as the University of Charleston wore down the Crusaders to make the margin of victory even higher. Robinson had his second strong game in a row finishing with seven total tackles. Batchelor finished with 6.5 total tackles, one tackle for a loss, and one interception.

Jones and Bernardi put pressure on the Golden Eagle offense all game combining for four tackles for a loss and two sacks. Bernardi also forced a fumble in the game and Nick Rosamonda, sophomore sport management, finished with a forced fumble and a fumble recovery.

The Crusader football team has an off week next week before returning to action against Clark Atlanta on Oct. 31 at 2 p.m. in Atlanta, Ga.

The Homecoming Court smiles for a photo with NGU President Dr. Jimmy Epting. Katie Potter, sixth from left, was crowned Homecoming Queen. (Jenny Farnham)

The rain came down and the temperatures dropped during homecoming week, but not even the weather could stop North Greenville University’s homecoming festivities. From Wednesday to Saturday, students celebrated homecoming Peanuts style with activities to go along with this year’s Charlie Brown homecoming theme.

The homecoming celebration finale included a Charlie Brown parade leading up to the big game and the announcement of this year’s homecoming queen on Saturday.

Several campus clubs and organizations, including the Student Marketing Association, marching band, historical society and campus ambassadors created Peanuts -themed floats. Woodstocks, Snoopies, Lucys and Charlie Browns galore made a circuit past the student center, throwing candy to parade watchers.

Later on that day, in spite of frigid temperatures, NGU fans showed up to the Crusaders vs. Golden Eagles football game, enthusiastic and ready to cheer for both the crusaders and the homecoming queen candidates.

At halftime, following a performance by the marching band, the homecoming court was presented to the crowd. Representatives from 12 different campus organizations appeared on the homecoming court. Last year’s homecoming queen Keri Gibson, 2009 graduate, also made an appearance.

After the homecoming court was presented, the homecoming queen and runners up were announced. Brother Sister Fellowship’s Toni Alexander, junior history, and Crusaders Outdoor Adventure and Recreation representative Meredith Casey, senior outdoor leadership, tied for second runner up. The first runner up was Bethany Sarazen, senior theater, representing Theatron.

Katie Potter, junior early childhood education, from Baptist Student Union was crowned 2009 homecoming queen.

“I’m just in shock right now because I really didn’t think I would win. But it’s such an honor to be able to have people who care enough about you to vote and just the support I’ve had throughout this whole process … I have the best friends who were there through everything,” Potter said.

The overall winners for the homecoming club and organization contest were also announced during halftime. Third place was awarded to Campus Ambassadors. Theatron placed second and Marching Band won first place.

In order to win the competition, clubs and organizations accumulated points by collecting items for a food drive, organizing service projects and participating in contests throughout homecoming week.

The club and organization contests began on Wednesday with a “mystery” pumpkin carving contest. The SMA took the prize for the mystery contest with a detailed carving of Charlie Brown’s face.

On Thursday, club members dressed up as Peanuts characters to participate in the Peanuts character contest. BSU won first place with Peanuts character masks while BSF came in second with its 2009 updated version of the Peanuts cast, including tombstones for Snoopy and Woodstock who didn’t quite make it to 2009.

The clubs also chose representatives to dress in as much red as possible for the “I said be red” contest. Most competitors appeared dressed in layers of red clothing from head to toe. Some even painted their faces and decorated their hair red.  The campus ambassadors had the most red and won the contest.

The homecoming competitions also included a scavenger hunt, a game of “win, lose or draw” and a “Family Feud” game show.

The final evening of competitions, students and club members attended a carnival hosted by student services. Despite heavy rain, students showed up to joust, complete obstacle courses and ride on a giant slide.

NGU students enjoyed a Charlie Brown homecoming with enthusiasm and excitement all weekend.