Winter 2006 Rabbit Tracks

RABBITRABBITtracks

P a s s i o n a t e . R e l e n t l e s s . C h a m p i o n s .

Volume 12, No. 2 South Dakota State University Winter 2006

G O B I G . G O B L U E . G O J A C K S .

Mid-Continent ConferenceSDSU celebrates membershipMid-Continent ConferenceSDSU celebrates membership

What probably has been the most difficult aspect of transition to Division I has been resolved. Withacceptance into the Mid-Continent Conference, we now have twenty of our twenty-one sport programs in a position tocompete for regular season championships by the 2007-08 seasons.

Beginning with the 2008-09 seasons, these twenty sports will be competing for regular season championships, conferencepost-season competition and NCAA post-season national championships. Equestrian is the only sport for which there areno conferences or an NCAA championship yet. Schools sponsoring equestrian now compete for the Varsity EquestrianNational Championship.

The wrestling and volleyball programs are eligible for NCAA post-season competition in their current season.

Conference membership is a crucial aspect of any athletic program. Foremost, it provides student-athletes opportunitiesfor team and individual recognition. For fans, it provides substantial meaning to the regular season schedules. For thedepartment, it provides consistent scheduling and structure to the everyday affairs of the program. For the University, itdefines relationships with other universities.

One large task remains in the transition. It is called NCAA Division I Athletic Certification. Currently, the CertificationCommittee on campus is conducting a yearlong self study of three operating principles in the Athletic Department.

Mary Kay Helling, associate vice president for Academic Affairs, heads the steering committee.

According to NCAA bylaws, the committee will study:

• Governance and commitments to rules compliance;

• Academic integrity; and

• Equity and student-athlete welfare.

Assembled from across campus, a committee of twenty-two individuals representing student leadership, the AlumniAssociation, the SDSU Foundation, the Board of Regents, and the faculty, will prepare the self study for NCAA review infall 2007. The NCAA Certification Committee will act on the report and determine if certification is granted inFebruary 2008.

As a department we were fully aware of the tremendous task we faced. We had been well advised by our consultants. Withconference membership determined and certification about to come to fruition, the transition has gone as planned.

Our student-athletes have been remarkable in their loyalty and dedication to make this process happen as have been oursupporters of Jackrabbit athletics. It has taken extreme patience and dedication on the part of everyone. Even in theseearly years of the process, we have shown that we can compete and we belong to Division I.

Go Jacks!A message from Fred Oien

— Fred OienSDSU Athletic Director


Athletic Department in finalphase of Division I transition

Rabbit tracksWinter 2006, Vol. 12, No. 2

SDSU President Peggy Gordon MillerSDSU Athletic Director Fred OienSDSU Sports Information Director

Jason HoveSDSU Sports Information Assistant Director Ryan SweeterAssistant to AD/External Affairs Keith MahlumEditor Andrea Kieckhefer, University Relations

Contributing WritersDave Graves, Kyle Johnson, Denise Watt, University Relations

Designer Kristine Madsen, University RelationsPhotographer Eric Landwehr, University Relations

Rabbit Tracks is produced by University Relations in cooperation with the SDSU AthleticDepartment at no cost to the State of South Dakota. Please notify the Athletic Departmentoffice when you change your address.

Athletic Department South Dakota State UniversityBox 2820, Brookings, SD 57007Telephone: 1-866-GOJACKSFax: 605/688-5999Website: www.gojacks.com

Cover photo: President Peggy Miller at the conference announcement.Front cover photo by Eric Landwehr, University Relations

1,200 copies printed by the SDSU Athletic Department at no cost to the State of South Dakota. PE069 12/06

Mid-Continent Conference — State starts play next fall .2

Q&A— Ten questions with Fred Oien on the Mid-Con .5

Backyard— Improvements enhance stadium tailgating . .6

Burger Pete— Binkers feeds Jacks in many ways . . . . . . .8

Preparing the fields— No shortcuts in priming fields . . . .10

Kathy Heylens— She knows the ABC’s of the NCAA . . . .11

Off-season— More athletes stay in Brookings to workout .12

Fall camp diaries— Jeff Hegge, football . . . . . . . . . . . .13

Fall camp diaries— Becca Mansheim, cross country . . .14

Fall camp diaries— Liz Lane, soccer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16

Fall camp diaries— Emily Rooney, volleyball . . . . . . . . .18

Briggs Scholars— Duffy, Grimsrud, Tschetter . . . . . . . . .20

Summer vacation— Athletes share their favorite trips . . . .22


2 • Rabbit tracks

Long-time rivals North Dakota State andSouth Dakota State find themselves togetheragain as three new members join the Mid-

Continent Conference July 1, 2007.Both Dakota schools got the big news August

30, the day after the University of Indiana-FortWayne was invited to join the Mid-ContinentConference.

The new schools and the exit of ValparaisoUniversity will provide a ten-team league for the2007-08 season.

“I think the addition of SDSU, North DakotaState, and Fort Wayne will make us a strongerconference,” Commissioner Tom Douple said in alate-September phone interview.

“We’re all very excited for all the newmembers to come in. [The existing schools] are allanticipating how they will fare against the [new]competition.”

SDSU will be competing for conferencechampionships in eighteen of the nineteen sportssponsored by the Mid-Continent Conference.(SDSU doesn’t offer men’s soccer.)

The Mid-Continent sponsors championshipsin eighteen of the twenty-one sports fielded bySDSU. The other three are football, wrestling, andequestrian. State participates in the Great WesternFootball Conference and the Western WrestlingConference. There is no conference for thecollegiate sport of equestrian.

Bring on the bandState formally accepted the invitation to join itsnew conference at an August 31 pressconference/celebration.

Gathered in the remodeled Volstorff Ballroom,about 100 members of the Pride of DakotasMarching Band blared out the school songs ontheir shiny, new silver instruments while yellow,blue, and white balloons greeted students, faculty,and fans flocking in for the historic event.

Four television cameras were pointed to the

head table, which included everyone from thegovernor of South Dakota to the conferencecommissioner.

Pride Director James McKinney brought thecrowd to its feet, clapping in rhythm, as he led theband in Ring the Bell and Yellow and Blue. Afterhearing the invitation to join the conference, thecrowd of 450 Jackrabbit boosters rose to a standingovation that was mixed with clanging cowbells.

The celebration, which included free SDSUice cream at the conclusion, capped a five-yearprocess.

A deliberate processSDSU decided to move from Division II toDivision I athletics in 2002 after gaining supportfrom the Alumni Association, the SDSUFoundation, and the student and faculty senates aswell as the Board of Regents. Their votes followedan encouraging report from a private consultingfirm.

Finding a conference, which State hoped todo directly after leaving the North CentralConference, proved challenging.

That made August 31 all the sweeter. “We’vebeen waiting a while,” Athletic Director FredOien said as he took the press conferencemicrophone. Oien, who has served as AD at hisalma mater since 1990, hailed the foundation laidby mentors Jack Frost and Harry Forsyth.

But he called particular attention to thecurrent staff, who received an ovation when Oiendirected them to stand.

“Our staff is in tack because of the quality wehave and their commitment to the student athlete.I got to be the cheerleader out front, but you didall the work,” said Oien, who was wearing a Mid-Continent Conference pullover and cap that heand President Peggy Gordon Miller receivedearlier.

Homesweet home

SDSU celebrates membership in Mid-Continent Conference

M i d - C o n t i n e n t C o n f e r e n c e


All eyes on conference crownsAmong those staff members were volleyball coach Andrew Palileo andswimming and diving coach Brad Erickson.

After three seasons of playing as an independent, Palileo is excitedabout the opportunity to play for a league title. “This is what all thekids and coaches have been working for. It’s a good day for them,”Palileo said after the press conference, which had the elements for a peprally except for a bonfire.

“We’ll be able to compete right away. . . . Our players are goodenough to compete right away,” the coach said.

The Mid-Continent offers a chance to build new rivalries, willhelp with travel, and provide a recruiting base, Palileo said. “We’ll berecruiting more in the [Mideast] area because kids will be able to goback home some,” he said. Though spread widely, most schools are on aband from Kansas City to Detroit.

Testing the watersErickson’s tankers have a jump on the rest of the SDSU athletes.

They competed in the Mid-Continent Conference last season as anaffiliate member and are doing so again this season.

“I was very impressed with the whole conference from the firstweek that we got in. They had just great press releases, kept track ofevery team’s top ten times, and athlete-of-the-week honors. I was justvery impressed with it. For the detail they gave, it seemed likeswimming was the only sport they had,” Erickson said.

Athlete-of-the-week and conference medals helped motivate hisswimmers last season, he said.

As for competitiveness, Erickson said, “It’s a conference that for oursport of swimming, we fit very well. Oakland University is far andabove any other program in the conference. They were a Division IInational championship team before they switched [to Division I] in1999-2000.

“Beyond Oakland, it’s a very competitive race for No. 2 and wehope we can be there.”

‘The University was ready’Women’s basketball players Ketty Cornemann and Andrea Verdeganshare similar enthusiasm. Verdegan, a junior, said, “It’s really exciting thateverything is taking place. You want to play for a conference title. Youwant to play in a conference. It means you’re getting somewhere.”

That somewhere could be the NCAA tournament. The Mid-Continent Conference champ is an automatic qualifier.

While freshman Cornemann hasn’t had to deal with the headachesof playing an independent schedule, the opportunity to play in aconference is “just as exciting for me because I get more chances tocompete for conference titles,” she said after the press conference.

The press conference crowd included Nancy Neiber, associateathletic director and former women’s basketball coach with twenty-three years experience here. “I view it as an opportunity for ourstudent-athletes to compete against the best. The University was ready.

“The ultimate will be when one of our teams, men or women, getsthe opportunity to compete for an NCAA championship,” she said.

Dave Graves

Rabbit tracks • 3

South Dakota StateUniversityJackrabbits

Brookings, S.D.

Centenary CollegeGents (m), Ladies (w)

Shreveport, La.

Indiana University-Purdue University-

Fort WayneMastadoons

Indiana University-Purdue University-

Indianapolis Jaguars

North Dakota StateUniversity

BisonFargo, N.D.

Oakland UniversityGrizzlies

Rochester, Mich.(suburban Detroit).

Oral RobertsUniversity

Golden EaglesTulsa, Okla.

Southern UtahUniversity

ThunderbirdsCedar City, Utah

University ofMissouri-Kansas City Kangaroos

Western IllinoisLeathernecks (m),Westerwinds (w)

Macomb, Ill.


4 • Rabbit tracks

Clockwise from lower left: • President Peggy Gordon Miller stands to give aJackrabbit yell at the conference announcementgathering at SDSU’s Volstorff Ballroom in The Union.

• Miller addresses the August 31 gathering.

• Tim Van Alstine, of Western Illinois, and head ofthe Mid-Continent’s athletic directors’ council, left, isjoined by President Miller and Athletic Director FredOien at the August 31 selection announcement.

• Pride members Lance Hellstrom and Katie JoMcGuire pep up the crowd by joining other Pride ofthe Dakotas members in playing the school song atthe August 31 announcement.

• Dignitaries gather at an August 9 reception forofficials from the Mid-Continent Conference, whovisited SDSU before selecting State to join.

• Some 450 community members, students, andfaculty members nearly filled the Volstorff Ballroomfor the August 31 conference annoucement.

“The ultimate will be when one of our teams,

men or women, gets the opportunity to compete

for an NCAA championship.”— Nancy Neiber,

associate athletic director


Athletic Director Fred Oientackles ten questions about theMid-Continent Conference and SDSU.

Rabbit tracks • 5

1. When does SDSU begin play in the Mid-Continent Conference? 2007-08

2. When will SDSU be able to participatein post-season conference tournaments?In 2007 for volleyball; in 2008-09 for othersports. [Note: In 2005, the NCAA granted thevolleyball team a waiver to compete in post-season play.]

3. What was your gut feeling when theconference finished its site visit inAugust?Both the site visiting committee and our stafffelt everything had been looked at. . . . Whenyou have that kind of examination and don’tsee any glaring comments at the end, Ithought it was the right fit. It was a verypositive feeling.

4. What was the first thing you did aftertaking Tom Douple’s call to report on theconference vote?Actually, President [Peggy] Miller got the call.She called me and I smiled.

5. Why is SDSU a good fit with the Mid-Continent Conference?There are eighteen sports that we sponsorthat will have championships in the Mid-Continent Conference. From a conferenceperspective, the more depth you can add tothese sports and the greater stability you canbring to them, the stronger it makes yourconference.

6. What sold SDSU to the Mid-ContinentConference?The rich traditions that have occurred atSouth Dakota State. There is tremendouscommunity and student support for theprogram. They loved how strong our studentsare academically.

7. What is the strong point of the Mid-Continent Conference?Its academic institutions. Athletically, it’s beensuccessful at a lot of sports. There are

tremendous leaders, both at the institutionsand at the conference level.Those leaders have a high standard of whatthey believe the student-athlete experienceshould be. The experience is about how theyare treated as student-athletes. There isrespect and dignity for them as individuals.

8. How does the number of athleticscholarships given by SDSU compare withother schools in the conference?It varies from sport to sport. Our plan is to beat or above the conference average. Thescholarships will be very comparable toexisting membership. [Note: State’s men’sand women’s basketball teams and thevolleyball team are already at the maximumset by the NCAA.]

9. What will it take for SDSU to host aconference tournament?The men’s and women’s basketballtournaments are on a bid basis using neutralcourts. Other sports are on a bid basis withsome requiring a financial guarantee andothers just requiring the host school to footexpenses.

10. Is this the final step in the transition toDivision I?The certification process for the NCAA is thefinal step. We will file a report in 2007. TheNCAA will review the document and thenthere will be a site visit, much likeaccreditation for academics. In February ’08the report goes to the NCAA ExecutiveCommittee for action.With the committee’s approval, we become afull-fledged member with the right toparticipate in all areas of NCAA Division I in’08-’09.[Note: Full membership provides SDSU votingrights at the Division I level, revenue sharingfrom the NCAA and the conference, NCAA-financed academic grant programs forstudent-athletes, and the right to play inpost-season tournaments.]

Athletic Director Fred Oien listens to comments at anAugust 10 press conference at the conclusion of a visitby Mid-Continent Conference representatives to SDSU.He had a big smile August 30 when SDSU was invited tojoin the Division I conference.

Q&A with the AD

SDSU Corporate Partners:Anchor – Avera Brookings MedicalClinic, Coca-Cola, Daktronics, First Bank and TrustFounding – ARAMARK, Farm CreditServices of America, LarsonManufacturing, State Farm InsuranceMajor – Brookings Health System,Burger King, Cubby’s Sports Bar andGrill, Dacotah Bank, De Smet FarmMutual, First Premier Bank,Northwestern Energy, South DakotaBeef Industry Council, SDSUBookstore

When it comes to tailgating, there’s nothing that quitecompares to The Backyard. “Tailgating is a big part ofgame day atmosphere,” says Facilities Manager Matt

Thorn. “We’ve done a lot of improvements, and we try andimprove it every year. This is something we are really excitedabout.”

The Backyard is a three-acre spread on the north side ofCoughlin-Alumni Stadium. Separated by a groove of cottonwoodtrees, the area is home to 3,000 to 5,000 tailgaters, who faithfullygather prior to each home Jackrabbit football game.

“It’s certainly one of the biggest improvements since I’vebeen going to games there,” says fellow tailgater Matt Einsphar. “Itmakes the game that much more of an event.”

On game day, tailgaters quickly transform the tranquil setinto a true pregame sporting bonanza.

After setting up shop outside their motor homes, campers,and tents, complete with flags, tables, chairs, and even big screentelevision sets for viewing of other top college games across thecountry, tailgaters settle in before departing for the stadium tocheer on the Jacks.

What’s for lunch?The Backyard is also the place for some of the best cookingaround. There are traditional items like burgers, brats, ribs, and hot

dogs. For others, like Einsphar and his tailgate group, dining gets alittle more serious with chili, seafood platters, and jambalaya, acajun rice dish.

“We’ve even had fried pickles,” remarks Einsphar. “This is achance to get together with friends and have a great time, cooksome good food, and go to the game.”

The Backyard atmosphere wouldn’t be complete withoutmusic and radio station pregame shows serving as theentertainment backdrop.

Tailgating is nothing new, but five years ago SDSU officialsdecided to change the dynamics and have “organized tailgates,”thus the birth of The Backyard.

A place of their ownThis year tailgaters could purchase a reserved spot to tailgate.

The largest spots are fifty feet wide and sixty feet long andsell for $350 for the season. The middle ones are thirty-by-fiftyand go for $210, while the smaller spots are thirty-by-twenty-fiveand cost $140. Single-game prices are $100 for the large spots,$75 for the middle tier, and $50 for the small ones.

For areas that aren’t reserved, tailgaters can enter on a first-come, first-serve basis for $5, provided they have a vehicle.

All income generated goes toward athletic scholarships andoperating expenses for the Athletic Department.

6 • Rabbit tracks

Backyardgives tailgating new meaning

T a i l g a t i n g

Rabbit tracks • 7

Fun for everyoneWould-be tailgaters only have to contact the Jackrabbit ticket office to reserve aspot. A detailed map of the layout and parking passes are mailed, according toThorn, who relates the public is pleased with the arrangement.

“People like it because when they drive up they know they will have theirspot,” he says. “We provide everybody who buys a spot with a nice looking roadsign with their name on it.”

The Backyard also features a “fun zone” for children. They can climb a bigcastle and slide down the other side, or enter a giant blow-up balloon and bouncein the inside. They can also be seen interacting with SDSU student-athletes, whooffer a variety of skill lessons, such as putting, shooting a basketball, and guiding asoccer ball.

“All-in-all, what we are trying to do is create a fun, family atmosphere,” saysThorn. “It’s not meant to be a big party, but instead an event where family, friends,and fans alike can assemble and have a good time before going into the stadium towatch the Jacks.”

Kyle Johnson

“It’s not meant to be a

big party, but instead

an event where family,

friends, and fans alike

can assemble and

have a good time

before going into the

stadium to watch the

Jacks.”– Matt Thorn, facilities

manager

The grassy area north of Coughlin-AlumniStadium, known as The Backyard, has becomean increasingly popular place to start the funbefore kickoff.

This year marked the second season that fanscould buy designated area to grill their dogs. Allproceeds go to scholarships and AthleticDepartment operating expenses.

8 • Rabbit tracks

“I can feed people . . . I’m good at that . . . I can cook on the grill.”

Indeed, it’s something many people in the state, especially the SDSUAthletic Department, have come to know and appreciate about PeteBinker. Dubbed “Burger Pete,” Binker, and his wife, Jo, are owners of

Burger King in Brookings. They are also proud supporters of the Jackrabbitathletic teams, a fact that doesn’t go unnoticed by the staff.

“Pete and Jo have been long-time loyal friends of SDSU,” says AssociateAthletic Director Keith Mahlum. “Their names have been synonymous withmany Jackrabbit events over the years. Their generosity has provided numerousopportunities for our student-athletes.”

The Binkers have three scholarship endowments. It started in 2000 with a$500 scholarship going to one volleyball player per year. In fall 2006 theycreated a $1,000 softball scholarship, and another $1,000 scholarship for amember of the Pride of the Dakotas Marching Band.

“We get a great deal of personal satisfaction supporting the students,” saysBinker. “My goal is to make things better. I want them to be successful, andwhatever I can do to help them achieve success, I want to do it.”

Looking for picturesOriginally from the Twin Cities, the Binkers moved to Sioux Falls, where Petegraduated from the University of Sioux Falls and played football for theCougars.

Binker took a job with the Juvenile Detention Center and eventuallybecame a probation officer. However, he decided to change course and boughtinto the Burger King franchise business. In 1979, he came to Brookings andthe “Burger Pete” saga soon took shape.

“I’m a big sports fan,” says Pete, who ventured to the SDSU sportsinformation office, where he inquired about obtaining Jackrabbit pictures andmemorabilia to display on the walls inside Burger King.

That visit spawned a relationship that lasts to this day: Burger King doublecheeseburgers delivered to the press box crew and members of the media athalftime of the Jacks’ football games. Later in the season, when the weathergets cooler, Binker’s chili makes an appearance. Cheeseburgers are also servedto the press box staff at the basketball games.

And, there’s much, much more.Since the late 1980s, he donates his time cooking Burger King Whoppers

at the annual Stan Marshall Golf Tournament. He also serves meals when theJackrabbit coaches host their basketball, volleyball, and football camps duringthe summer. For the last five years, he has donated money to the Pride so bandmembers can be outfitted in a set design T-shirt.

Recently, the Alumni Association approached the Binkers about a feed foralums tailgating in The Backyard for the Jacks’ home football games; theyobliged and served up Whoppers and refreshments.

“We cook right there and serve under the tents,” notes Pete. “It gives the

‘Burger Pete’gives SDSU athletics a

special flavor

alums who come back a place to go and be involved withtailgating before going to the game.”

Hosting, having funWhopper feeds aren’t only confined to SDSU. For the lasttwenty years, the Binkers have taken Burger King to townsaround the state, raising close to three-quarters of a milliondollars in fund-raising events.

“I charge whatever it costs me and they keep the rest,” says

Pete, who recently was in Howard for its 125th anniversary, andFlandreau and Madison for their county 4-H fairs. “We’ve doneabout 1,500 of these in about sixty different towns.”

The best clients, though, are the ones wearing yellow andblue. Each fall they host a picnic for the football team at HillcrestPark. And, one evening during fall camp, the team is invited todine at Burger King, except for a select few who skip the mealso they can partake in a hamburger-eating contest outside thebuilding in the parking lot.

“They get ten hamburgers and a glass of water, and it’s whocan finish the most in five minutes,” explains Pete. “It’s a traditionwe started about eight years ago. It adds a little fun for the guys,so it’s a neat thing.”

The Binkers have also opened up their Brookings home. Forthe last five years they have invited the women’s and men’sbasketball teams over for steak dinners. And, they have avolleyball kickoff for players and parents at the beginning of fallcamp.

“It’s simply a matter of getting involved and beinginterested,” says Pete of his stewardship. “We wouldn’t do it if wedidn’t enjoy it. The important thing is to help out and makethings better.”

Kyle Johnson

P e t e B i n k e r

Servin’ up stewardshipA look at the Binkers generosity:• $500 volleyball scholarship• $1,000 softball scholarship• $1,000 marching band scholarship• Double cheeseburgers to the press box crew at

halftime of Jacks’ football games. (Chili on the menu forcold-weather games.)

• Cheeseburgers to the press box staff at thebasketball games.

• Whoppers served at the annual Stan MarshallGolf Tournament.

• Meals for basketball, volleyball, and footballcamps hosted by SDSU coaches during the summer.

• Donations to the Pride so band members can beoutfitted in a set design T-shirt.

• Whoppers for alums tailgating in The Backyardat Jacks’ home football games.

• Women’s and men’s basketball teams have steakdinners at the Binker home.

• Volleyball players and parents gather at theBinkers for a kickoff meal.

Above: Freshmen Justin Mitchell, left, and Corey Jeske sink their teethinto hamburgers at an August 21 contest at Burger King in Brookings.Neither won. The best burger eater was fellow freshman Tyler Duffy, whodowned six in the five-minute contest.

Below Right: SDSU football team members enjoy the Whopper feed on abeautiful fall day outside of the Burger King rstaurant in Brookings, SD.

Bottom: Enough for a meal. SDSU Assistant Football Coaches RobSarvis, left, and Daren Wilkinson each grab trays full of hamburgers fromBurger King owner Pete Binker.

Rabbit tracks • 9

10 • RabbitTracks

Maintaining State’s athletic fields takes time, toil, and even atad of artistic finesse. The grounds crew uses forty to fiftygallons of white paint before each home game to create

the lines on the football field alone. Another thirty gallons each ofblue and yellow is used to paint the end zones. It takes four men twodays, weather permitting, to complete this endeavor, ideally as closeto game day as possible.

“We watch the weather closely the week of a game,” says MattThorn, athletics facilities manager. “We like to start painting onThursday. The paint lasts a week, but the later you put it down, thebrighter it will be.”

The crowning touch is the SDSU logo at midfield, hand paintedevery fall by grounds supervisor and assistant facilities manager DougHagman.

“He does it freehand,” Thorn says. “It takes a lot of guts to dothat without a template. Most schools have a template. The first logotakes Doug a half day. Then we go back every week and spray theoutline, so we’re not laying it out every week.

“We built our own template for the checkerboard end zones.”

Growing & mowingWatering and mowing, of course, depends on what Mother Natureprovides.

“When it’s very dry, we mow every other day,” Thorn says.“When it’s gotten lots of rain, we mow every day. We use a NationalReel mower. You can see the lines on game day. It gives the field abetter look.

“We water once a day for a week, then do heavy watering. Thenwe let it dry out, which stresses it a bit and promotes growth. Butnothing replaces rain water.”

When it comes to chemicals, less is more.

Careful with the chemicals“We put very little chemicals on the field,” Thorn says. “We fertilizeonce every twenty days, but we struggle a bit to keep the weedsaway. We spray once in the fall to prevent dandelions and otherweeds. We use Confront, which is campus approved. Other schoolsuse other chemicals, like 2-4D.

“We have to be careful of any chemicals we use because of thegreenhouses. When we do spray, we let everybody know. And the day

has to be perfect, no wind at all. That’sthe one thing that always hampers us. We have a great field of turf,but we can’t treat the field. We’re basically an organic field.”

On game day, the crew has to ensure all water is off the field.“Safety is number one,” Thorn says. “It has to be a safe

environment for the players, so they don’t lose their footing. And ithas to look as good as possible forthe fans coming to the game and theplayers.

“It takes some time. I have threefull-time people on my grounds crewand they also take care of therugby/cricket field, the soccer field,the softball and baseball fields, andthree practice fields,” he says.

New softball field in useBefore a game at the softball field, Thorn says, workers spend aboutan hour mowing and dragging the infields and painting the batter’sbox, foul lines, and pitcher’s circle.

“We’ve put a ton of work in this summer,” he says. “This fall isthe first time we’ve held competitions there. The women played themen’s fast-pitch team, the World Series champs, on September 9.They’ve won multiple national tournaments and placed in the worldtournament a couple of times. Then we had an alumni gameOctober 7. Next spring, we have a thirty-game schedule out there.”

They’ll put in portable bleachers for now, he says, andcontractors will complete the dugouts this fall or next spring.

For soccer, the grounds crew maintains the practice field on thenorthwest side of the HPER Center. The team plays at FishbackField, which is maintained by the city.

“We run the games out there, but the city mows and paints thelines,” Thorn says.

The grounds crew leaves its mark on many fields, but thefootball field is the granddaddy of them all.

“That’s the guys’ baby,” Thorn says. “They’re pretty proud of iton game day.”

Cindy Rickeman

Preparing the fields:Time, toil, artistic finesse

“That’s the guys’

baby. They’re pretty

proud of the field on

game day.”

–Matt Thorn, facilitiesmanager

Groundskeeper Doug Hagman,right, prepares the midfield logo atCoughlin-Alumni Stadium with PatHolmes before the season opener.

KathyHeylens

“Kathy’s energy and her

willingness to work with all

coaches in all situations is

what really makes her

wonderful at her job.”

— Nancy Neiber, associate athleticdirector, commenting on KathyHeylens, compliance officer

Understanding the ABC’s of NCAA

K a t h y H e y l e n s

Below: Kathy Heylens lets out a cheerduring the men’s basketball game againstNorth Dakota State University February18. Helping her cheer on the ’Rabbits isBert Neiber, father of associate athleticdirector Nancy Neiber.

Rabbit tracks • 11

Kathy Heylens has come a long wayfrom not knowing what NCAA stoodfor to becoming the Athletic

Department’s in-house NCAA expert.“Kathy Heylens is our NCAA,” says

longtime women’s basketball coach and currentAssociate Athletic Director Nancy Neiber,“Kathy is very deserving of our fans knowingjust how important she is to our department. “

Heylens began her eighteen-year AthleticDepartment career as secretary to former headHarry Forsyth. Neiber says now you’d neverguess Heylens once asked her about the NCAAacronym.

“Kathy has to know [the NCAA RuleBook] front to back,” she says.

As the sole NCAA compliance officer,Heylens keeps a busy schedule.

“It’s a wide variety of tasks with this job,”she says. Heylens does everything fromdetermining the eligibility of each player tomonitoring the coaches during recruitment.She is in regular contact with athletes, parents,coaches, and even the booster clubs.

“I think what makes Kathy good is justthat she’s so approachable. She welcomespeople into her office. They go to see her whenthey have concerns,” says Neiber.

That’s the part of her job description thatHeylens loves best.

“My favorite part is working with thestudent-athletes. The athletes are fun andenthusiastic. It keeps you young,” she says.

Fred Oien, head of the AthleticDepartment, notes that Heylens takes her jobseriously, but “because of her demeanor, Kathyis so fun to be around. She’s kind of our in-house counselor—keeping our spirits up—andshe does it very well.”

The transition to Division I has broughton new responsibilities and challenges forHeylens.

“There are a lot more rules that we needto be aware of,” says Heylens. For example, she

is in charge of making sure the coaches followscheduling rules that state the number D-Ischools the Jacks are required to play.

“It was such a learning process when westarted this in our exploratory year,” saysHeylens, who often takes on the role ofteacher.

Heylens, with the help of the coaches,monitors the academic eligibility of eachstudent-athlete. She interprets rules, advisescoaches on recruiting matters, and sorts outathletic scholarships and financial aid.

“She holds one of the most crucialposts in our Department,” says Oien.

Heylens’ style makes her well suitedfor the post. “I’m really organized andreally detail oriented and maybethat’s why I like this job,” she saysfrom her office lined with filecabinets. Each document has its place.

During the five-yearreclassification to D-I, which beganwith the 2003-04 academic year, theNCAA requires a yearly strategic plan.Heylens leads the team that puts thatreport together.

“This is a challenge. We have toaddress the philosophy of D-I andhow we are going to meet these,”says Heylens. “Each year you shouldbe progressing more and more.”Next year the NCAA will do a sitevisit. Heylens will spend severalweeks preparing for their visit andself-study.

The busy job does have itsperks, says Heylens. A self-proclaimed “music person,” Heylensenjoys taking in Jackrabbit sportingevents.

“It’s probably more fun for mebecause I know all of the students,”she says.

Miranda Reiman

12 • Rabbit tracks

After nine months in Brookings,freshmen Chris Johnson and BradHerman took the opposite path that

most of their classmates followed.They stayed in Brookings. Although

Herman did find a job while they were intown, the main motivation for Johnson, ofCouncil Bluffs, Iowa, and Herman, ofLuverne, Minnesota, wasn’t to get to knowthe campus town better or earn big bucksworking at Brookings Municipal Utilities.

They stayed in Brookings because fifty oftheir football teammates did. That representshalf of the entire squad.

And football players weren’t the onlyathletes to make Brookings their summerhome as well as their school-year address.Strength and conditioning coach NathanMoe reports a significant increase from 2005,when he arrived here from Eastern Illinois.

Veteran observers say the summer athletecount was the highest in recent memory.

In addition to more than fifty footballplayers working out with Moe four times aweek, there were thirteen women’s basketballplayers, a dozen men’s basketball players, sixsoccer players, seven volleyball players, anequestrian rider, a wrestler, and a coupletrack athletes.

The basketball teams included incomingfreshmen, some for five weeks, but most foreight weeks.

A Division I commitmentMoe says the athletes “understand what ittakes to be successful at the Division I level.

They’ve made a real commitment to besuccessful at the Division I level, and this iswhat they need to do.” After two years ofplay at Division I, athletes understand theneed to be bigger, stronger, faster.

While it might seem like that would bethe attitude at every university, Moe says thatis not so.

“We’ve got more athletes here [in thesummer] than we ever had at EasternIllinois, which is a similar sized school in asimilar sized community. Part of theattraction to SDSU was the commitment ofits athletes,” Moe says.

Those athletes expect that commitmentto pay off.

“The main thing is there is a lot morecamaraderie, more people to push youthrough your workout; [there is] moreaccountability to get things done,” saysJohnson, who spent the previous summerworking out with former Abraham LincolnHigh School buddies that were heading toother programs.

No coaches allowedCoaches can’t participate in the off-seasontraining, but Moe and his assistants can directplayers in the weight room as well as on thepractice field. But there can be no footballs,formations, or anything that would resemblea football practice, Moe says.

The NCAA rules also restrict the startof directed workouts for football players tonine weeks before the opening of fall camp,he adds.

There aremoreregulationsabout summerworkouts forfootball thanthere are forother sports.

Moecustomizes theworkouts foreach sport. Ingeneral terms,the football andmen’s basketball players lift and run four daysa week for about an hour a day. The runningis a mix of agility work and conditioning.Other sports lift three days a week and runfour to five times a week.

Getting to the practice field for 6 a.m.stretching and running drills sets a standardfor commitment.

But Herman says it isn’t his alarm clockthat forces him out of bed so early on asummer morning as it is his fellow defensivelinemen. “They hold you accountable. Youmake friendships and get closer. It helps withteam chemistry,” Herman says of the sessions.

Extolling the off-season workouts,linebacker Johnson notes, “You’re with yourfootball family, and they’re all relying onyou.”

Dave Graves

Athletes spend summer staying fitIncreasing number of athletesstay here for off-season workouts

Nathan Moe

Volleyball player Minette Ridenour strugglesto balance a 72.5-kilogram (145-pound)power clean during testing on the first day offall camp August 10. Her work is witnessedby Assistant Coach Phil McDaniel; left;strength and conditioning coach NathanMoe; and teammate Minette Ridenour.

F a l l c a m p d i a r i e s


Football Camp Diary:By Jegg Hegge

Editor’s note: Jeff Hegge, #28, is a seniorsafety and two-year letterman fromWatertown. The history major would havebeen a returning starter at corner, butmade the switch to free safety duringspring ball.

Sunday, Aug. 6We checked in today at Larson Commons;went over paperwork and had physicalsover at the HPER. It was good to see allthe guys again and the excitementeveryone shared.

Monday, Aug. 7Our morning was filled with strength andconditioning tests. The conditioning testseemed to be tough for some of the guys.In the afternoon we had our first practice.

Wednesday, Aug. 9The morning practice was hot withhumidity near 100 percent. In theafternoon we had media day, takingpictures and doing interviews. We had askills competition between the classes andthen for supper we ate at Pizza Ranch.

Thursday, Aug. 10Had our first lift of fall camp and thenpractice in the afternoon.

Friday, Aug. 11First full-padded practice today; a lot ofpads popping. Many of the guys havingproblems with their hamstrings.

Saturday, Aug. 12First two-a-day practice. Rain delayed themorning practice; defense had a goodsecond practice.

Sunday, Aug. 13Great day! No practice, light day of liftingand meetings.

Monday, Aug. 14Very competitive day. Everyone felt freshfrom the day off. Burger King fed usWhoppers at Hillcrest Park for supper.

Tuesday, Aug. 15Another two-practice day. Full pads bothpractices and the young guys scrimmaged.It was nice to see what they have learned.That night we went to the pool with thevolleyball and soccer teams.

Wednesday, Aug. 16One practice in the morning. Seniorswent to the Performing Arts Center torecord the intro for our games. It wentwell and I can’t wait to see how it turnsout.

Friday, Aug. 18Good, hot practice in the morning. Liftedin the afternoon then ate again at PizzaRanch. Pizza Ranch really treats us well.

Saturday, Aug. 19Light, mental practice in the morning.Scrimmaged in the afternoon. Defenselooked solid with the offense makingsome big plays. Received the night offfrom meetings.

Sunday, Aug. 20Lifted and watched film from Friday’sscrimmage. Coaches graded film and madechanges to depth charts and adjustments tothe defense.

Monday, Aug. 21The burger eating contest highlightedtoday. Tyler Duffy [a freshman runningback from Brookings] won by eating sixcheeseburgers the fastest. The contest is atradition to stay.

Tuesday, Aug. 22Two shorter practices; trying to perfectour skills and get guys healthy.

Wednesday, Aug. 23Began Wisconsin-LaCrosse preparationtoday. More of a mental practice than aphysical one. Meetings were shorteneddown tonight.

Thursday, Aug. 24Rusty, slow practice in the morning,extremely humid and muggy. Came backin the afternoon and had a great practice.Tonight, I gave my senior speech on thehighs and lows I have experienced in myfour years at State. A lot of the guysunderstood what I said.

Friday, Aug. 25Practiced under the lights for a nightpractice. Much of the day we had off torelax. Came out sharp and had one of ourbest practices of fall camp.

Saturday, Aug. 26Last day of fall camp; simulated a game-day situation. Mood was light andeveryone was in good spirits. Rookieshow was awesome, a great finale to fallcamp. Most of the guys watched thevolleyball game that night.

Jeff HeggeHumidity, enthusiasm,appetite high at football camp



Cross-Country Camp Diary:By Becca Mansheim

Editor’s note: Becka Manshiem, a seniorfrom Brookings, is one of fourteen nursingmajors on this year’s women’s squad. Sheplaced sixth at the Division I IndependentChampionships in fall 2005 and won theDivision I Independent Outdoor 1,500-and 5,000-meter titles in the spring.

Monday, Aug. 21 The cross-country team met at the HPERat 10 a.m. to caravan to Maplewood StatePark, Minnesota, to get a solid week oftraining on trails (nice change of sceneryfrom Brookings!) with the team duringour final week before school starts.

I cannot believe this is my senioryear—my last year at cross-country camp,my last cross-country season—it goes toofast!

Twenty-two men and women cross-country athletes were able to make it toour fall camp outing this year. After settingup our campsites, we girls went for ourfirst run of the week, which consisted ofnever-ending hills and rough trails.Surprisingly, the pace remained steadythroughout the run, which is unusual forour first women’s team run together(normally, everyone gets a little excitedand the pace gets faster quickly). After oureight-mile run together, we finished theworkout session with core strengtheningexercises.

The night ended with us eating andcatching up with everyone’s summeraround the campfire.

Today’s mileage: 8

Tuesday, Aug. 22 I didn’t wake up as sore as I thought Iwould due to the uneven trails we ran onyesterday and sleeping in a tent.

Today, I went nine miles in themorning and three miles in the afternoonworking towards my seventy-mile week.

We started out our morning run as awomen’s group again. Some of theyounger girls turned back earlier, so KatieTornberg and I ran the last five or so milestogether. We were able to find some gravelwith better footing than the trails, so wewere able to pick up the pace a bit and geta harder run in together. For theafternoon, we went swimming in the lakeby our camp and played a little whiffle ballon the beach.

I finished off the night by eating toomany s’mores!


Wednesday, Aug. 23 Yesterday during our afternoon run, KatieTornberg and I found some soft grass trailsthat we lead the women’s group to thismorning. Although we still couldn’t avoidthe constant up and down of the hills, thegrass was a pleasant break from dodgingthe rocks, branches, roots, and holes. Thismorning I went eight miles without anycomplaints except for some blisters on myfeet.

My body is starting to feel slightlyfatigued due to the different terrain thanI’m use to in FLAT Brookings, but I’mstill without aches or pains. We did corestrengthening exercise after our morningrun, then went into town, played whiffleball with the guys at a baseball field in

Pelican Rapids, Minnesota, and stopped bythe Dairy Queen for some ice cream.Three girls joined me for an easy four-mile afternoon run to loosen up the legs.


Thursday, Aug. 24 Today, I woke up stiff, and my teammatesechoed with the same complaints. Wemade sure to stretch longer than usualtoday before our run. This morning I wentnine miles with core strengtheningexercises after the run. The women’s teamalso made a train to give each othermuch-needed massages to loosen up ourknots and tight muscles. Ahhh! That feltawesome!

I also noticed that a blister on myright pinky toe was starting to get red andlook infected. Two years ago, I had a blisterget infected on the same toe, and it turnedout that I got blood poisoning from it, soI’ll have to keep an eye on it.

During the afternoon, we had acompetitive game of co-ed kickball. Myteam won! It also started to rain thisafternoon during our easy three-mile run.

Once we got back to camp, we foundout that we were in the path of majorthunderstorms and possible tornadoes.After many calls to our parents to checkthe weather on the Internet, we made thedecision to pack up camp a day early andgo home, although many of the guyswanted to “tough it out.” We later learnedthat some tornadoes touched down aboutfifteen to twenty miles away from ourcamp.


BeccaMansheimCross-country camp — no walk in the park


Friday, Aug. 25Although we weren’t camping anymore,the girls stayed in Brookings for a final runtogether before everyone left for home toget their belongings packed up to be backfor Sunday’s cross-country meeting andthe start of school. My legs were sure gladto be back on the flat roads of Brookings.

We went for an easy five-mile run,and Katie and I tacked on one more mileto make it six for the day.

I went to the doctor today to havemy pinky toe checked out because it wasthree times as big as my pinky toe on myother foot, and it was very irritated andfelt like it was pulsating after my run. Hediagnosed me with blood poisoning dueto my infected blister and gave me an oralantibiotic to take for ten days. Since Iknew what I was looking for, I was luckyto catch it early, before it made me sickwith a high fever and body aches like it

had it the past.Today’s mileage: 6

Saturday, Aug. 26 I ran nine miles with the girls still inBrookings—Caitlin Berry, Sarah Hanson,and Claire Steinke. I tacked on three milesto get my weekly long run of twelve milesin one training session.

My toe is still bothering me and isnot looking any better. It worries memore that I won’t be able to fit it in arunning shoe more than that it is hurting.


Sunday, Aug. 27I met with the girls that have moved backto school for a morning run together. Iran eight miles to finish off the seventymiles for the week.

My legs feel strong. Although thetrails at Maplewood made us sore andslowed down our runs, they, withoutquestion, made us stronger. My blister hasturned into a blood blister and is lookinginfected as ever. I’ll have to call the doctoror see the trainers tomorrow.


TOTAL weekly mileage: 70

Editor’s note: Mansheim had the bloodblister popped, took antibiotics for tendays, and never missed any training. On Friday, Sept. 1, she won the women’s5K at the NDSU Cross Country Open in17:54:13 and was named Division IIndependent Women’s Cross CountryRunner of the Week.



Soccer Camp Diary:By Liz Lane

Editor’s note: Liz Lane, #6, is a juniormidfielder and two-year letterman fromWest Des Moines, Iowa. Themathematics major started ten games asa freshman and played in another ten in2005.

Wednesday, Aug. 09Today we reported to fall camp. I was alittle nervous coming in, but seeing allthe girls again reaffirmed myexcitement for our season.

Today, we just had meetings anddinner with all of our parents.Tomorrow is when the fun starts—playing soccer.

Thursday, Aug. 10First day of actual practice! We did 1 vs.1, 2 vs. 2, and 3 vs. 3 in the morning. Itwas really exciting to see how much weprogressed on our individual skills overthe summer. In the afternoon, wereviewed our defensive tactics, since thatwas our emphasis for the day.

During our night practice, thedefense went off with [Coach] Lang[Wedemeyer] to work on defensivemovement, while the midfielders andforwards, myself included, played a four-goal game. I ended up rolling my ankleslightly, so I had to sit out the rest ofpractice.

As practice progressed, we movedinto 11 vs. 11, employing the tactics welearned throughout the day. Afterpractice we took our team pictures inthe dark. I am really excited to see howthey turned out.

Friday, Aug. 11This morning we had a classroomsession on building confidence andmental preparation.

Various girls shared how theyprepared themselves for a game ortraining. It was very beneficial because Itend to look at my faults before I play,creating unnecessary anxiety.Afterwards, we had practice, with theemphasis still on defense.

We played small-sided games, andthen moved into 11 vs. 11. The 11 vs.11 was initially another defensive walk-through, but then we were allowed toplay, all out, for about twenty minutes.

This preseason is different fromthose of past. Usually, we aren’t this faralong, so the coming season is lookingvery promising.

Saturday, Aug. 12Today was our first three-a-day. Mybody is a little tired, to say the least, butthe cold baths after practice really helprejuvenate tired legs.

We had our first scrimmage today,though. It was an intrasquad scrimmage,blue vs. white. We were only able to geta half in though due to thunder andlightning.

I was a little disappointed because Ifelt that I was connecting with theforwards. When that happens, the gameis so much easier, and I felt like I couldhave played forever.

Sunday, Aug. 13We had the morning off, giving us thechance to sleep in and regenerate ourbodies. It was much appreciated.

During the afternoon session, wefocused on our attack, walking throughvarious patterns. It was very mentallyintensive. The night session was verysimilar, but we split up into our

positions. The midfielders, myselfincluded, worked on turning away fromthe defense and playing a long ball. Itwas very functional.

The practice concluded with a funshooting game called three shots and across. Overall, the day required a lot ofmental focus.

Monday, Aug. 14Our first day off of practice. We hadteam bonding in the morning. We didthree different activities, but the onethat was the most fun was beingblindfolded. We had to run across thefield and through an obstacle course.

At one point we had to dribble asoccer ball while blindfolded. It wasprobably the most fun we’ve had.

Tuesday, Aug. 15Attack, attack, attack. After having a dayoff, I expected my legs to be under me,but the focus was on attack, and mylegs were tired. We did a lot of sprintingand shooting.

The afternoon practice allowed thelegs to recover. We went over variousplays for dead balls. This practice wasmore mentally demanding thenphysically.

At night, all the athletes—football,volleyball, and soccer—went to thepool. It was a good bonding experiencefor the Athletic Department. It was alsofunny to see people doing belly-flopsoff the high dive.

Wednesday, Aug. 16Once again, our practices wereoffensively minded. We had twopractices, each focusing on our attack.

The morning practice consisted ofcrossing and finishing, while theafternoon session was comprised of re-starts and possession games.


Liz LaneSoccer camp: Mental focus,physical drive, and a little bit of fun



Thursday, Aug. 17We finally get to scrimmage someone other thanourselves. We had an early morning stretch to getour legs under us and get mentally prepared.

That evening, we scrimmaged the SDSUmen’s club soccer team. They ended up beatingus, primarily because we were always one stepbehind them. It was very frustrating.

Friday, Aug. 18We did a regeneration session in the pool in themorning. In the afternoon, we had a walk-through and went over our game plan for ourscrimmage against Northern State on Saturday.

Saturday, Aug. 19Game day, finally! We had an optional practice inthe morning to stretch out and just wake up.Most of the team came; showing their eagernessto play.

That afternoon we faced off againstNorthern. We won 4-1. The game was verybeneficial, because we accomplished our goals, butwe also learned what we needed to work on.

Sunday, Aug. 20We had the whole morning and afternoon off,giving us time to catch up on sleep. It was greatlyneeded.

In the evening, we watched film from ourgame against NSU, then we had a regenerationsession.

Monday, Aug. 21We hit the field running today. We started outpractice with a lot of fitness with the ball. It wasvery fatiguing, but it also made the rest of practicegame-like (since we will be that tired towards theend of the game).

The rest of practice we played small-sidedgames. Our night practice was much lighter andmore functional. The defenders worked onswitching the point of attack, and the forwardsworked on finishing. The midfielders got mixed inbetween the two groups.

I can’t wait for tomorrow morning becausewe have a pool session.

Tuesday, Aug. 22We did fitness in the pool today. It was pretty fun,but still a good workout.

We had the whole afternoon off, and gotright back into practice that night. We played 11vs. 11 for the most part, so it was very functionaland game-like.

Wednesday, Aug. 23The morning practice was very light. Threeshooting stations were set up, and we movedbetween them. It was a very technical session.

In the afternoon, we added pages to our teamscrapbook. After that, we had a light lift. Ourevening session was a little more intense. We wentover attacking and clearing on crosses.

Thursday, Aug. 24We left for the University of Northern Iowa forour first game. Upon arriving in Cedar Falls, wewalked the game field and got a little practice in.We played the three-grid game and three shotsand a cross, our two favorite games.

Game day tomorrow and the excitement isbuilding.

Friday, Aug. 25Game day has finally arrived. In the morning, wejogged and got some touches on the ball, just sowe weren’t sedentary all day.

We played the University of Northern Iowathat night. We outplayed them and ended upwinning 3-0. It was a good starting game for theyear, building our confidence while allowing alltwenty-three girls playing time.

Saturday, Aug. 26We drove to DeKalb, Illinois, today in order toface Northern Illinois on Sunday. Upon arriving,we had a walk-through, going over the possibleformations they would play.

The rest of the day was filled with free time.We ended up doing some team bonding thatevening, playing Pictionary and Spoons.

Sunday, Aug. 27This morning we faced off against NorthernIllinois University. Today was our test. NorthernIllinois was more physical and faster thanNorthern Iowa, so we were anxious to see if wecould match them, as well as outplay them. Weended up winning 3-2.

It was probably the most exciting game Ihave played in since attending SDSU. We went up2-0, but then they came back, scoring two goals.With about 15 minutes left, our outside backdribbled forward and scored a beautiful goal. Itbent around the goalie to the far side of the net.Northern Illinois was not able to recover.

The big win made the ten-hour drive homemore cheery and lively.


Volleyball Camp Diary:By Emily Rooney

Editor’s note: Emily Rooney, #12, is a 6-1 sophomore middlehitter from Red Wing, Minnesota. The journalism/masscommunication major played in all thirty-five matches in 2005,making twenty-nine starts. She ranked second on the team inhitting percentage and blocking average.

Friday, Aug. 11We started this morning by testing our maxes in the weight roomat 7:30. I went up in my weight maxes on all three lifts—squat,power clean, and bench press.

We had three practices today, which all went well. I gothome at about 10:30 tonight, and I am definitely ready for bed.

Saturday, Aug. 12Breakfast this morning was tough; we were all so sore today.Blisters, muscles, and our shoulders were sore.

After a three-hour practice, coach said we get the afternoonoff. We tried to relax till our evening practice, which seemed tolast years. We ended strong, but still need to pick it up fortomorrow.

Sunday, Aug. 13We looked really good today playing. We had the morning offand practice at 2 and 6 p.m. Between them we had dinner and ameeting about attitudes. I think mine is OK.

I played right side tonight while we scrimmaged, and I putthe last ball down, which made me feel good.

Monday, Aug. 14This morning we got our body composition tested, had acompliance meeting to sign a lot of papers, and took our headshot photos for the program and scoreboard.

Our afternoon practice started out good but didn’t end verywell, and coach was not impressed. The second practice startedout really intense, and we ended with a competitive scrimmage.Tomorrow morning we get to eat brunch at coach’s house!

Tuesday, Aug. 15At 11, we got an amazing brunch at coach’s house. Then we hadtime to buy schoolbooks and do other stuff we needed to do. Wehad a three-and-a-half hour practice that went well, not perfect,but we competed.

At 6:30, the football team, soccer team, and us all went to thepool, where the freshmen in all three sports had to show offsweet tricks off the diving board.

Wednesday, Aug. 16Today was the world’s longest. Individual practice in the morning,followed by lifting, and long practice, which involved a lot ofrunning, and finally a third practice at 6:45. I left the HPER at10:15 tonight after I took a fifteen-minute ice bath to try andprevent my soreness.

We ended the evening session with good play again. I think Iplayed pretty good defense, for being a middle hitter anyway.

Thursday, Aug. 17Last night coach taped our scrimmage and by watching it hedecided that our middles (me, Amy [Anderson], and Carley[Boll]) weren’t transitioning, getting on and off the net, fastenough.

So today at our three-and-a-half hour practice we did thehardest middle drill of all time called “blue lip” because you getso tired that your lips turn blue.

Today marks seven more days until our first game!

Friday, Aug. 18We took our team photos this morning and I took care of someschool stuff.

Practice was really tiring again today. Almost four hours ofstraight transitioning for us middles, and our legs were dead.

Coaches took us out to a movie and to dinner at Cubby’stonight. Cubby’s definitely hit the spot.

Saturday, Aug. 19The first three hours of practice were not bad, we actually playedpretty good, but as soon as we started playing each other in ascrimmage it went down.

EmilyRooney


Legs grow weary at volleyball camp

Rabbit tracks • 17Rabbit tracks • 19

Coach wasn’t happy at all. He had us take the nets down and he told us he’dsee us at 5:30 a.m. tomorrow and to be ready for three practices. Yuck.

Sunday, Aug. 204:30 this morning came way too fast, and we left our house for practice while thestars were still out. Despite the time, we practiced really well, which hopefullywon’t inspire coach to have morning practices a lot.

Our afternoon practice went good too, so coach cancelled our third practiceand we got the night off to sleep.

Monday, Aug. 21Breakfast at 8, lunch at noon, lifting at 1:30, and practice till 5:30. It was an excitingday because they moved the lines on the court to one main court instead of twopractice courts. We now have one game court.

We practiced our game warm-up and then scrimmaged each other in theteams that we will have tomorrow for our intrasquad scrimmage.

Even though we’ve been going for eleven days without a break, knowing threedays till game day is reassuring.

Tuesday, Aug. 22We had an intersquad scrimmage tonight, and the team I was on won all threegames. It was really fun and gave us the chance to get our nervousness out beforeour first tournament this weekend.

Wednesday, Aug. 23Today’s practice was two T-shirts worth. It was really intense and we all got reallysweaty. We basically just went over defense and tried to tune up everything for thebig tourney this weekend.

We ended on a good note as we scrimmaged each other. . . . One morepractice!

Thursday, Aug. 24This morning after breakfast we all swam in the pool for a while to loosen up ourmuscles.

Our legs were still pretty tight for practice, but we made it through our lastpractice of fall camp just in time for the other three [tournament] teams to get intothe gym for practice.

The tournament is tomorrow and our first game is against NDSU. I hope Ican sleep tonight.

Friday, Aug. 25We came out of the first day 2-0. Our first win [at 12:30 p.m.] was against NDSUin five games. We won the first game, lost the second and third game, and we endedup winning the last two games to win the match.

Then at 8 p.m., we beat Weber State in three games. They pummeled us lastyear, so beating them easily felt great.

Saturday, Aug. 26We finished our first tournament 4-0, which was the best we could do, sohopefully coach is satisfied, because I know we are.

We beat Gonzaga today in five games, we let down for a bit, but came outahead again.

Then we took Washington State in four games. They are a good team; sobeating them should hopefully boost our confidence going into our nexttournament this coming weekend against Wisconsin, Oregon State, and Oklahoma.


To whom much is given, much is expected.” Thosewords of biblical wisdom certainly apply to BriggsScholars, who receive the University’s largest

scholarships ($6,500 per year) and would be embarrassed not tomeet the minimum grade point average of 3.0. The demands andstiff competition for the awards mean that few can also balancethe load of a collegiate athlete.

But basketball player Courtney Grimsrud and swimmer JaneTschetter have proved it can be done, and football player TylerDuffy is seeking to follow their lead.

Grimsrud, a 20-year-old junior from Sisseton, carries a 3.95GPA while majoring in biology/premed. Tschetter, a 21-year-oldsenior from Brookings, carries a 3.93 GPA while majoring inbusiness economics. Duffy, also of Brookings, is a first-semesterengineering major.

Each of them could teach seminars on time management andpriorities.

Majoring in time managementThe women agree that time management is the biggest challengein being a college athlete and a Briggs scholar. “I was in threesports in high school, so I was kind of used to it. But once youhit college, everything becomes more intense,” says Grimsrud,who was the top student in her graduating class of seventy-four.

“I just have to use every free moment to get morehomework done or more time in the gym. I’m just really focusedon academics and basketball.

“You’ve got to have a planner, definitely,” she says with asmile.

Tschetter, who suffered a career-ending shoulder injury afterher sophomore season, says, “I came to South Dakota StateUniversity to be a student, so academics came first. I had to giveup other things—a social event or sleep—so I could go to swimpractice.”

Duffy, a 1,552-yard all-state running back in his senior seasonat Brookings High School, admits he was attracted to State by theopportunity to play football for the Jacks. It was later that the

former National Honor Society member learned that he wasselected for one of the twelve Briggs Scholarships to be awardedby State in 2006.

FB helps GPAWhile sports can be seen as a distraction from academic progress,Duffy says just the opposite.

“If I manage my time, I should be able to succeed in bothareas,” he says. “Football will help me manage my time. There isstudy table on Tuesdays and Thursdays, grade checks, and we fillout reports on when assignments are due,” says Duffy, who tookAdvanced Placement classes in high school.

Because an “A” in an Advanced Placement class scores 5.0 onthe grade scale, Duffy finished his high school career with a GPAabove 4.0.

However, “I had to work for my grades. In the secondsemester of my senior year I didn’t have a free period. Ourteachers pushed us pretty hard,” Duffy reports.

As a college student, much of the responsibility for academicsuccess lies in the individual student.

Grimsrud says, “I’ve always had a drive to do my best inwhatever I try. If you’re going to do it, you should do it right. I’vealways been taught that.” That attitude instilled by parents Kimand Cory Grimsrud can be seen on the basketball court, whereshe was South Dakota Miss Basketball as a senior.

A team effortBut it also can be seen on road trips, where she joins herteammates in breaking out the books.

In fact, Grimsrud and crew posted a 3.73 grade point averageduring the 2005-06 school year. That was the highest GPA of anywomen’s basketball team in the nation—NCAA Division I, II orIII or NAIA. “It was really exciting” to gain the honor, Grimsrudsays.

While it’s the first time for State to gain that honor, the Jackswomen have been in the Top 25 Team Honor Roll for threestraight years.

Making the gradeBriggs scholars balance books, competition

“


B r i g g s S c h o l a r s

When Grimsrud made her campus visit to Brookings, shewas hopeful that she was joining a team that wanted to do well inschool. Early in her freshman year, she realized that was true. “Ithelped knowing that I wasn’t the only one that wanted to excelacademically.”

Think tankersThe swim team mirrored that picture.

Tschetter recalls that during her sophomore year (2004-05)SDSU had switched from Division II competition to a Division Iindependent. “We traveled more. I really noticed an effort in howteam members prepared themselves academically,” she says.

As a result, the swimmers finished with a 3.42 GPA, placingthem twelfth in the nation and earning the team’s first All-American Academic Team Award.

“[Coach] Brad [Erickson] has done an excellent job ofrecruiting athletes who also excel in the classroom. On bus trips,pretty much everyone was studying—reading their textbooks,rewriting their notes, or reviewing their notes. We still had fun,but there was a time when we would turn the movies off andfocus on academics,” Tschetter recalls.

The definition of dedicationThe effort did more than help Tschetter maintain a BriggsScholarship.

Through being a collegiate swimmer and a Briggs scholar, “Ilearned the true definition of dedication. It wasn’t easy or fun toget up at 5:15 and walk across campus before the snow wascleared from the sidewalks to go to swim practice,” Tschetterunderscores.

However, there are benefits to dedication.“That extra hour of study frequently was the difference

between an A or a B . . . . It almost became a mental game topush yourself through another week of practice. But it was sorewarding to push yourself and see your times fall,” Tschetterdeclares.

The discipline shown by Grimsrud and Tschetter as highly

performing students and college athletes challenge another pieceof biblical wisdom—you can’t serve two masters.

Dave Graves

What will the future bring?By fixing their eyes on the future, Briggs scholars Jane Tschetterand Courtney Grimsrud have been able to stay the academic coursewhile competing in Division I athletics.

During her first three years at State, Tschetter took seventeento nineteen credits per semester so she could have the option oftaking an internship during the school year and still be able tograduate in May 2007.

She ended up taking an internship this summer in Washington,D.C., at The Corporation for National and Community Service, whichoversees the AmeriCorps program.

After graduation, Tschetter plans to go to law school, preferablyone in which she also can earn a master’s degree in nonprofitmanagement.

Tschetter, who suffered a career-ending injury as a sophomore,still swims recreationally a couple times a week. “I miss[competitive swimming], I miss my teammates, I miss thecamaraderie. [But] my best friend from college, Mariah Pavlicek, Imet my first day of practice and I think she will be my friend wellinto adult life,” Tschetter says.

Grimsrud says her long-term goals and her faith in God keepher from the temptation to slack off.

“My values that I’ve been taught from my family—my momand dad and grandparents—have always taught me to do my best,and I’m looking toward my future. If I want to be a doctor, I can’t beout partying or doing other things a college student doessometimes,” she says.

After shadowing a family practitioner in Sisseton for the lasttwo summers, Grimsrud has decided to become a familypractitioner.

— Dave Graves

“I learned the true

definition of dedication. It

wasn’t easy or fun to get

up at 5:15 and walk across

campus before the snow

was cleared from the

sidewalks to go to swim

practice.”

–Jane TschetterSwimmer and scholar

Courtney Grimsrud Jane Tschetter Tyler Duffy

By the time she was a high-school freshman, SDSUsoccer player Daniella

Pappas could already be considereda world traveler.

As a sixth-grader, she went toEurope with her family. When herclub soccer team traveled toNorway for a soccer tournamentthe summer after her freshman yearof high school, Pappas admits shehad a slight advantage over herteammates.

“I was used to the flight time”and the jet lag, she says.

Pappas, of West Des Moines, Iowa, and seventeen teammatesplayed in a weeklong tournament, the Norway Cup, whichfeatured nearly 100 teams, she says. Her club crew advanced tothe top sixteen.

“I loved it. It was so much fun,” she says of the trip, herfavorite summer vacation.

After a tough loss ended the team’s tournament run, theteam had more time to relax and sightsee, she says. “We could’vegone farther,” she recalls. “We were bummed, but in the long runI think we were glad.”

Every day of the trip included sightseeing, with destinationssuch as the Nobel Peace Center in Oslo, Pappas says. On the firstday of the trip, the group of nearly forty people took a boat touraround the pier. “It pretty much started us off for the fourteen-day trip,” she says.

After a week in Oslo, the group traveled to Scotland, wherethey spent a few more days. “Our coach is from Scotland,” Pappassays. The team met the coach’s parents and visited their house.

The group’s trip to Scotland included a visit to EdinburghCastle, situated at the top of a hill, which provided the tourists

with yet another opportunity for exercise. “We always took atrain to places. We always walked,” she says. “A lot of girls did theshopping thing.”

While the group saw many new places, Pappas says peopledidn’t take advantage of the local food culture. “We always ate atT.G.I. Friday’s,” although she had been dared to eat caviar at onepoint during the trip. “I was used to my parents making me trynew things,” she says.

Pappas now names Norway on her list of favorite places. “It’shard to explain. It’s so cool,” she says, naming the atmosphere asher favorite element. “It’s just kind of one of those places youwant to retire to.”

While Pappas enjoyed both countries, her favorite part of thetrip came on the way home when the girls played a pick-upgame of soccer in Iceland. Five or six locals joined the game. “Itwas really cool playing with a different type of person,” she says.

After the game, the group visited a hot springs spa called theBlue Lagoon.

“It was very relaxing. It was a good way to end the trip,” shesays.

Pappas has played soccer since second grade. “It’s natural,” shesays. The freshman elementary education major has played onthree teams during her career. “It’s always been fun” getting toknow other girls, she says.

The goalkeeper’s love of travel matches her love of the game.She says she doesn’t take her experiences for granted “becausesome people can’t afford to take a trip like this, or have seen thesights I’ve seen.”

Pappas plans to continue traveling, and hopes to go toAustralia with a group of friends in the next year or two. Thanksto a family vacation to Waikiki, she would like to one day teachin Hawaii. “If not there, then we’ll see,” she says.

Denise Watt

M y F a v o r i t e S u m m e r V a c a t i o n


DaniellaPappasGoalkeeper goes to Norway with club team for tourney

Editor’s note: Fall camp is no vacation for SDSUathletes, who report for pre-season practice inearly to mid-August. But before they startedrunning windsprints at State, they recalled someless exhausting days.

The responses below are sampling of thosereceived in a request to each of the fall sports.

Maggie Eilers, soccer (defender),fourth-year athletic training major fromBrookings.During the summer before my senioryear of high school, I had theopportunity to visit Spain for a schoolSpanish Club trip. We traveled throughthe southern beaches and touristcities, north through Madrid andancient monasteries, and ended inBarcelona.

Our trip lasted seventeen daysand included bus tours of cities, hikes through mountains,visits to grand churches and ancient ruins, and culturaltrips to strictly Spanish-speaking restaurants.

I loved this vacation because I experienced a deepamount of culture in a short period of time while learningthe language, the people, and gaining respect andknowledge of another country.

Karoline Brause, soccer (defender),senior health promotion major fromFergus Falls, Minnesota.

In the summer, my family usuallyrented out a lake home near ourhometown, and we would fish, tube,water ski, and relax by the lake for aweek. We did this every summer that Ican remember.

We don’t do this anymorebecause my parents bought a lake

home, but it still feels like a vacation every time I go homein the summer because my family will all get together.Spending a week at the lake with my family is my favoritesummer vacation because we can all forget about our busy

lives and catch up with each other while enjoying theoutdoors.

Natasha Swift, soccer(defender/midfielder), freshman pre-nursing major from Littleton, Colorado.

My favorite summer vacation washanging out at a teammate’s house inMinnesota with our whole soccerteam. She lives on a lake, and we gotto take out her boat and just hang outfor a while. At night we played boardgames and yard games, then we hada huge bonfire and made s’mores. It

was an awesome way to get to know the soccer teambefore we came into preseason.

Rachael Tritz, soccer (defender), juniorhealth promotion major from SiouxCity, Iowa.My favorite summer vacation wouldhave to be last summer when I went tothe Ozarks with a few friends fromcollege. We went up for five days, wentboating, skiing, went to Party Cove …oh, it was a great time. I also laid outevery day and got a tan! It was just a very relaxing vacation and

it was really fun. The Ozarks are beautiful, and I definitelyam planning on going again!

Emily Rooney, volleyball (middlehitter), junior advertising major fromRed Wing, Minnesota.

My favorite summer vacationmemory has been going up to myfamily’s cabin in northern Wisconsinevery year since I was young. We goevery possible weekend, and we fish,ski, tube, and eat campfire food.There’s never any worries, and I get tobe with my family and in the sun. It’sperfect.



Maggie Eilers

Karoline Brause

Natasha Swift

Rachael Tritz

Emily Rooney

My favoritesummer vacation

Kristina Martin, volleyball (outsidehitter), junior consumer affairs majorfrom Hubertus, Wisconsin.

My favorite summer vacation wasthe summer before my freshman yearof high school. My family and I went toEagle River, Wisconsin, up north, andstayed at a cabin. Our neighbors alsocame and stayed at the neighboringcabin. We water skied, went tubing,canoeing, boating, and swam. The

weather was perfect, and we have made it a familytradition ever since.

Corey Jeske, football (quarterback),freshman health, physical educationand recreation major from Buffalo,Minnesota.

I’ve never been on a summervacation, but I’ve been on a springvacation. I went to British Columbia,Canada, to go snowboarding at amountain called Whistler. It was sweet,and I fell off a huge fifty- to sixty-footcliff that had frozen water on the

side—like icicles. Landed on my back in really deep,powdery snow. I was fine, . . . but it was pretty intense.

Colin Cochart, football (tight end), afreshman from Kewaunee, Wisconsin.

My favorite vacation memorywould have to be when I went on acruise ship when I was a sophomorein high school.

It was a weeklong cruise, and westopped at islands and just hung out. Itwas probably the most relaxing time ofmy life.

Dan Priddy, football (kicker), afreshman engineering and Spanishmajor from Eden Prairie, Minnesota.

My favorite summer memory wasgoing to my girlfriend’s cabin with twoother friends. I was 18, and it was mylast summer before college. It wasvery relaxing and fun to just hang outby and in the lake. The night sky wasfilled with stars, satellites, theNorthern Lights, and shooting stars.

This is my favorite memory because I was with people veryclose to me in a very stress-relieving place.

Willie Jones, football (defensive line),senior health promotion major fromYankton.

Two years ago, my girlfriend, herfamily and I all went to Seattle,Washington. We were there for aweek. I was 20 years old. We went toMount St. Helens, downtown Seattle,and we went to a Seattle Marinersgame.

It was my favorite vacationbecause it was so beautiful out there, and the mountainswere awesome. It was also my first vacation with my sonCameron, who was eight months old at the time. That wasmy favorite vacation ever.

Conrad Kjerstad, football (defensiveback), freshman prelaw major fromWall.

My favorite summer vacation tookplace when I was around three yearsold. My family drove to Florida to go tothe beach. Good thing I don’tremember the drive. The beach wasawesome. We built a huge sandcastle, and I also got to catch littlecrabs that burrowed under the sand

and tickled my feet. The beach was a dream come true fora kid my age.

Ryan McKnight, football (offensivelineman), freshman constructionmanagement major from Sioux Falls.

My dad and I went on an archeryhunt for black bear in Canada when Iwas 18. It was my favorite because Ihave always wanted to go on a bearhunt.

Marty Kranz, football (linebacker),senior health, physical education andrecreation major from Watertown.

When I was younger, my familywas taking its first vacation. We wentto Okoboji, but when my parents wentto check in to the hotel, my two oldestbrothers got into a fight and myparents got mad and brought all eightof us kids back home, never getting toactually have the vacation.



Kristina Martin

Conrad Kjerstad

Corey Jeske

Colin Cochart

Dan Priddy

Willie Jones

Ryan McNight

Marty Kranz

A message from Keith Mahlum

For decades the focus in the Athletic Department has been to improve thequality of life for Jackrabbit student-athletes. In recent years, we’ve shared withyou that we evaluate our program’s success based on academic achievement,athletic competitiveness, social responsibility and the positive momentsexperienced by our student-athletes.

Our departmental mission is crystal clear: To be a premier student-centeredcollegiate athletic program. We expect to be a nationally recognized athleticprogram. Our program consists of twenty-one intercollegiate sports, and all ofthem are gearing up for conference membership and potential post-seasoncompetition.

As friends of our program, you’ve been an integral part of our past success and you willdefinitely play a vital role as we build our championship programs at the highest level withinthe NCAA. Often times you have asked, “How can I help?” One of the most importantways you can help today is to continue or expand your financial support of the JackrabbitClub. We have developed case statements for each sport outlining specific needs andaspirations. The next step is for all of us to work towards achieving these goals.

We understand that many of you have a personal interest in specific sports or capitalimprovement projects within our program. You have the opportunity to direct your gift toyour point of interest.

The bottom line is there are twenty-one great reasons to give: (1) Baseball (2) Basketball –Men (3) Basketball – Women (4) Cross Country – Men (5) Cross Country – Women (6)Equestrian (7) Football (8) Golf – Men (9) Golf – Women (10) Indoor Track – Men (11)Indoor Track – Women (12) Outdoor Track – Men (13) Outdoor Track - Women (14)Soccer (15) Softball (16) Swimming/Diving – Men (17) Swimming/Diving – Women (18)Tennis – Men (19) Tennis – Women (20) Volleyball (21) Wrestling.

We appreciate all that you’ve done to support our student-athletes in the past and lookforward to the awesome opportunities your continued generosity will provide futureJackrabbits. Please take a moment and consider how you or others you know can facilitatethe next generation of Jackrabbit success.

Thank you for your consideration.

— Keith MahlumAssociate Athletic Director / Development Director


“21 Reasons to Give”

NON-PROFITUS POSTAGE PAIDBROOKINGS SDPERMIT 24

South Dakota State UniversityAthletics DepartmentBox 2820Brookings, SD 57007-1497


Documents

Winter 2006 Rabbit Tracks