Author Archives | Jacob Barrett

Women’s soccer travels to NEC

The Keene State College women’s soccer team took to the turf on Saturday for some friendly spring competition.

The Owls traveled to New England College in Henniker, New Hampshire, for a series of shortened games against other schools in the area in order to keep the rust off in a long offseason and test out team dynamics on the field without this year’s graduating seniors.

Throughout the course of Saturday’s action, the women played four twenty-five minute games. The first of which resulted in a win for the Owls against the hosting NEC

Pilgrims, followed by another win against Mount Ida. Keene State lost only to Eastern Nazarene in a close 1-0 matchup. The Owls then came back to finish off NHTI with a score of 3-0 in their final match of the afternoon. Several players said it was good to get back out on the field and thought they did well despite not having the seniors.   

“We really came together, I think after losing our seniors that have carried our team this past season, it went really well,” junior forward Brittany Tolla said.

Head Coach Denise Lyons said that the outing makes her optimistic about what is to come next season.

“I’m really excited. I like what I saw,” Lyons said.

Tim Smith / Photo Editor

Tim Smith / Photo Editor

The tournament was more than just an opportunity for Lyons and her team to try out their new dynamics. Lyons said that the matches also gave her a look at what could be in store for the team next season.

First-year forward Zoe Paige scored her first goal in an Owls Uniform in the final game against NHTI.

“I wanted to try some new combinations up top. We’ve got a lot of forwards and a lot of different options, I was just trying to see where we could put players in,” Lyons said.

Some of those combinations include Tolla and Julia Pearson, and Morgan Kathan with midfielder Patricia Norton.

The games also gave players insight into what they need to work on for next year. Midfielder Kali Santino said that she and the rest of her teammates need to be sure to pass more and be on their toes.

“We just have to make sure we’re always moving and stay aggressive,” Santino said.

The tournament didn’t paint a clear picture of what the team will be like in the Fall of 2016.  The matches were nine-versus-nine, so the formations weren’t realistic to how they would be in-season.  Additionally, the team is still waiting on the incoming first-year’s.

Furthermore, many members of the team were not on the field on Saturday, like Katie Silegy and Tyrah Urie. Chloe Loos, Rebecca Costello and Taylor Farland also did not make it onto the field for the tournament. The turf field they were playing on in Henniker has a different feel to it than the grass fields the Owls normally play on.   

Now the team will be focused on following strength and conditioning regimens getting ready for the real deal, eleven-on eleven matchups and another shot at the Little East conference title.

Jacob Barrett can be contacted at jbarrett@kscequinox.com

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Sisters in the infield

It’s the bottom of the ninth, extra innings in the shoreline conference championship and there are two outs. Kayla Votto is at the plate, and her sister Courtney takes her lead off of third base. Kayla lines a pitch to right field, driving Courtney across the plate and winning the game.

Four years later, the two sisters are reunited on the softball field, hoping for more late-game heroics for Keene State College.

Kayla, a junior who is in her third season as an Owl, plays second-base or shortstop, and has been joined by a familiar face 90 feet away from her over at third or first: her sister, Courtney, who is in her first year with the team.

Tim Smith / Photo Editor

Tim Smith / Photo Editor

Hailing from Connecticut, the Votto sisters have both been playing since their days of tee-ball, and have been sharing the field through the years of their youth and travel leagues, and even high school. Now the two are back on the diamond together. Kayla said that the two years without her sister on the field with her were a bit of an adjustment period.

“It wasn’t a huge adjustment, but it was difficult not seeing my sister every day on the softball field,” Kayla said.

The two are back together, and with that comes the good and bad sides of playing sports with a sibling.  

According to Courtney, if they were to let the competition turn into sibling bickering, it would have a negative influence on not just them, but their teammates as well.

“That affects our game; it affects their game. It affects everyone around us if we don’t get along,” Courtney said.

However, the two said that they don’t let it get to that point.

Tim Smith / Photo Editor

Tim Smith / Photo Editor

“We get in arguments, but they’re resolved like that. We don’t let it affect our game,” Courtney said.

Still, the sibling rivalry is there and drives the Votto’s to play better.

“We motivate each other. If Courtney is doing really well, I’m like ‘ugh, my younger sister is doing better than me’,” Kayla said.

Kayla, who is currently a captain for the Owls, according to the KSC athletics website, has a .283 batting average and a fielding percentage of just over .900. Kayla has had high praise for her younger sister this far into Courtney’s rookie season.

“She’s doing really well. She’s impressed me a lot and I think she’s impressed a lot of people,” Kayla said. “Courtney’s defense on the field is just unbelievable. She acts like she’s been here for three or four years as a college softball player.”

Courtney, who comes to Keene after two years as captain of her high school softball team, has been able to knock in nine RBIs and cross home plate five times so far in her rookie season. Courtney also said that having her older sister at KSC has made the transition to college ball a little easier.

“Knowing all the teammates and her friends made me a lot more comfortable coming here,” Courtney said.

Tim Smith / Photo Editor

Tim Smith / Photo Editor

Their father, Ron Votto, who has also been coaching them since they first started playing, said he sees his daughters as two completely different players. He noted that Courtney has more power than her older sister, but that Kayla is more capable on the basepaths. Ironically, those attributes are what the sisters said they want to incorporate into their own skill sets.

“I want her [Courtney’s] power,” Kayla said.

“Definitely her [Kayla’s] speed. She’s so fast,” Courtney said.

Both noted that their father Ron had a large influence on them both on and off the softball field, as he was critical of their performances and pushed them to be their very best. However, Ron said that even when one didn’t have the best of games, the other would be there to help their sister get over the hump.

“The two of them would really have each other’s back. If one made an error, the other would be there to pick her up. If one struck out, the other would be there to say ‘hey, you’ll get ‘em next time.’  They’ve always had that dynamic, even though the two of them didn’t see eye-to-eye all the time as sisters,” Ron said.

Their father also said that being able to see his daughters’ hard work take them both to Keene State and being able to watch them from the stands is why he was so hard on them.

“There’s no better feeling than that,” Ron said.

Jacob Barrett can be contacted at jbarrett@kscequinox.com

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Indoor track and field wraps up season

The Keene State College indoor track and field team had two meets over the weekend. The first of the two took place at Tufts University and was the last qualifying meet for the NCAA meet before the ECAC Championship.

According to the results posted on the Tufts athletic website, Katelyn Terry finished second in the 400-yard dash in 58.94 seconds. Her sister, Lindsey Terry, came in seventh after finishing with a time of 01:01.94. Lauren Marcoe finished tenth out of 16 in the women’s 800 meter, and Allison Brady and Brittany Gravallese finished in the bottom two spots for the Owls.  Lauren Markoe won her 800 meter race, crossing the finish line in 2:18.29; Alison Brady finished in 2:22.89, and Brittany Gravallese finished in 2:25.90.

For the men, Eric Dietz finished thirteenth in the men’s 200 meter dash, finishing with a time of 23.53 seconds.

According to the Keene Owls Website, at ECAC’s, Lindsay Szuch ran her 5,000 meter race in 18:47.35 and Karisa Berman mustered up the strength to toss 11,41 meters.

NCAA Championships will take place on March 11 and 12 in Grinnell, Iowa.

Jacob Barrett can be contacted at jbarrett@kscequinox.com

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Softball starts season in Virginia

Keene State College’s softball team saw its first pitch take place in Virginia on March 5 as a part of the weekend-long Virginia Wesleyan Beach Bash in the first game of a double-header. The Owls first went up against Baruch College.  The Owls beat out their opponents in a lopsided 25-0 five-inning shutout.

According to keeneowls.com, KSC built their lead off of fifteen hits and a little help from Baruch, who had six errors. KSC center-fielder Stephanie Long led her team with four hits and a walk, driving in two runs in the process and crossed home plate three times herself.  Olivia Indorf hit a grand slam and first-year infielder Courtney Votto went 3-4 in her first collegiate action. Baruch was also unable to strike out a single KSC batter in their loss.

Game two of KSC’s double-header ended with a 9-3 loss to Salem. Salem started the game off with a two-run first inning in which Keene State pitchers gave up thirteen hits.  The Owls offense was held to seven. Pitcher Molly St. Germain’s performance landed her two earned runs, one strikeout and one loss. Indorf came in in relief but gave up seven runs in four innings.

The next day, KSC went up against the Randolph-Macon Marlins, who kept the Owls from getting a single hit in a 2-0 loss.  The Marlins allowed walks in seven innings.  KSC pitcher Olivia Indorf got hit with the loss in the game.

No stats were available for KSC’s five inning 9-0 loss to VA Wesleyan.

The now 1-3 KSC softball team will be back on the field on March 13 against the University of New-England in Winter Garden, Florida.

Jacob Barrett can be contacted at jbarrett@kscequinox.com

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Owls basketball earns LEC honors

After a season in which the Keene State men’s basketball team went 20-10 and won the Little East Conference Title, four Owls’ efforts for their team earned them individual honors.

Seniors Nate Stitchell and Nate Howard, junior Matt Ozzella, and rookie Ty Nichols earned LEC team honors for their performances this season.

“It’s nice getting recognition,” Ozzella said.

Ozzella, who made the LEC first team, has averaged nearly 13 points a game, scoring at least 15 in 12 games this season.  He also had as many as 18 rebounds in a game, which came against UMass Dartmouth.  Ozzella has also accumulated six double-doubles over the course of the season.  Interim Head Coach Ryan Cain said that the Massachusetts native is a special kind of player, noting his physical strength and overall versatility.

“I don’t know that you can describe him as a player because he does so many different things on the basketball court,” Cain said.

Next, the seven-foot-tall Howard made the LEC second team.  Howard nearly averaged a double-double over the course of the season, with 10.3 points and 9.7 rebounds per game, including the Dec. 30 game against Loras College, where the center snagged 19 rebounds and 22 points.  Even after missing two games with a separated shoulder in late Jan., Howard has managed to come back and score at least fourteen points on five different occasions.

Cain touched on Howard’s all-out type of play as being an asset to the team.

“Nate Howard has played so hard game in and game out.  He dives on every loose ball, he makes so many little hustle plays and he’s definitely a guy that we want to give a lot of touches to,” Cain said.

Stitchell defended well enough to steal him a spot on the All-Defensive team.  The point guard stepped into the starting lineup this year, has averaged over 15 points a game and more than two steals a game.  According to both Stitchell and Cain, Stitchell’s high energy and determination is what has made him difficult to score against, and it rubs off on his teammates, even when some players are too hurt to play.

“Nate Stitchell has been our heart and soul, basically throughout our entire season. We had some injuries and he was the guy that maintained that confidence level and really pushed our team to keep playing at a high level,” Cain said.

Finally, Nichols, who is in his first year with the team, got named to the All-Rookie Team. The first-year forward won two state championships while in high school and came out firing in his first game as an Owl, scoring eighteen points against Green Mountain College.

From then on, Nichols has averaged just under thirteen points a game, including a 20-point performance in the LEC Finals against UMass Dartmouth.  Cain said Nichols’ experience in important games is what makes him play like a veteran collegiate player.

“He’s anything but a freshmen at this point.  He’s playing like a senior.  He’s just so confident in big moments,” Cain said.

With four players on the Owls making the cut for LEC recognition, Stitchell said that there were other players who could have made it on the list of awardees and said that the prominence of KSC ballers on these hypothetical best-of-the best LEC teams shows that no one on the team is focused on individual success, but instead on what’s best for their team.

“It shows exactly how we are on the court,” Stitchell said.   

Now the Owls are in the Sweet 16 after winning the LEC championship for the second year in a row.  Stitchell and his teammates said that they are good enough and earned the right to play against some of the best teams in the country, with some of the best players in the LEC.

“This year, we’re happy to be here, we understand that we’re supposed to be here,” Stitchell said.

Jacob can be contacted at jbarrett@kscequinox.com

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Medication is a blessing and a curse

Horror stories of overdoses, arrests and family turmoil have been tied to the notion to always say no to drugs. But what happens when you get the green light to use them from parents, doctors and the law?

Prescription drugs have been under great scrutiny for a long time, especially painkillers.

The reason why is easy enough to understand: people are getting hooked on the stuff.

While much of the talk surrounding opioids revolves around pills ending up on the street and being obtained illegally, perhaps the biggest and the hardest problem to spot stems from when the drugs are obtained for legitimate reasons from doctors tasked with treating patients. Trust me, I know.

I’ve been on quite a bit of painkillers since I was very young, mostly because of surgeries. While having surgically broken femurs, broken and titanium-fused vertebrae and others would justify the use of heavy duty stuff like Morphine, Valium, Percocet, Codeine or a cocktail of any of those medications, that doesn’t eliminate the risks that go along with taking them.

The side effects of these medications are almost worse than the pain that they block.

Nausea, memory loss, liver damage, hallucinations, mood swings, loss of appetite, and more. It’s scary.

One time, while recovering from surgery on some sort of concoction of medication, my caregivers came into my bedroom carrying my food.

They seemed normal enough, I could hear their voices, but couldn’t see their mouths.

They were headless. It wasn’t fun, and it was nothing like the Nightmare Before Christmas.

It sounds silly, but it was terrifying. I had a panic attack, my heart beat out of my chest, and every time I tried to readjust my vision, nothing changed.

After they left I vomited and didn’t eat for the rest of the day.

I was 14.

When I healed, I stopped taking the drugs, and after months of regimented consumption of the synthetics, going without was rough. Cold sweats, the shakes and nightmares almost every night.

The withdrawals were something I didn’t understand at that age, but I felt every bit of them.

If I were older, it’s hard to say I wouldn’t try to stop the sickness with more of what got me there in the first place

Now I still have pain on occasion, but I’m on the softer stuff, not as strong or as harsh.

Being older, I’m able to choose how much and when to take the tiny but dangerous pills, and I try to keep my intake in check to prevent another headless human incident or a stint of withdrawal.

So far so good.

Kendall Pope/ Managing Executive Editor

Kendall Pope/ Managing Executive Editor

That’s not to say that the drugs I take now don’t cause their own, new set of challenges.

The orange bottle on my dresser reads, “Take one tablet every six to eight hours as needed for pain.” Doctor’s orders.

The problem with that is that instead of lying around in a hospital bed watching TV all day,I have to go to class, do homework and actually do things that will have consequences if I do them halfheartedly.

The pain doesn’t stop because I’ve got obligations, and neither do the pills.

When I do take them, I have trouble staying focused in class, staying motivated to do homework, lose my train of thought and my voice drops an octave.

My singing in the shower has gotten awful. That’s a lot of sacrifice for a little relief.

I have recently come to the conclusion that the pain is normally tolerable.

What’s not tolerable is not giving the classes that my parents and I are paying a fortune for my best effort.

Instead of just relying on a few milligrams of Codeine to take the edge off, I do a little extra physical therapy.

As a result, school’s gotten better and overall I’m a much happier person.

As Billy Madison once said, “Yahoo for School! Yahoo for Me!”

Everybody has a crutch, and maybe it really is drugs, but at some point there’s a moment when you realize you can walk without it.

I finally got rid of one of mine; two more to go (although those two are actually real crutches, if I get rid of those I’ll fall down).

Baring that weight on your own is going to hurt at first, but it really is true what they say.

No pain, no gain.

Jacob Barrett can be contacted at jbarrett@kscequinox.com

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Living with mental illness

“Did you know that there is a landmass of garbage that is twice as big as the United States?  I felt like a bigger piece of garbage than that.”

Those are the words of Keene State College junior Matthew Bergman as he described what it’s like on the worst days with his condition.

Looking at Bergman, there’s not much of a difference between him and any other KSC student. The film major has plenty of friends in his TKE fraternity, gets good grades and has all the responsibilities that any other student has.

There’s something going on in Bergman’s mind, however, that no one else can see at a mere glance.

Bergman suffers from depression and anxiety.

He’s not just sad or nervous either; there’s a chemical imbalance in his brain causing him to exacerbate bad feelings and go into panic without knowing when it’ll happen.

These reactions are caused by chemical imbalances as a result of genetic and environmental stressors.

Psychology professor Nashla Feres said that these disorders are a part of a person’s genetic make up.

“For depression or anxiety, there’s always going to be some kind of genetic or biological basis,” Feres said

According to Bergman, it has a real effect on him and his school work.

The effects on social and academic success aren’t just the result of the sadness and anxiety, but the byproducts of the condition as well.

Feres said that emotional disorders can lead to other neurological issues.

“ What we know that anxiety and depression do, is that they do affect your cognitive functions, so your memory is poorer, you can’t concentrate in class, you just can’t learn as well.  So it’s definitely related to [students’] success,” Feres said.

Bergman also said that while he does have a great support system and friends at the college he has not told the majority of his friends about his the extent anxiety and depression, but said he probably leaves signs of it by the way he sometimes behaves.

Bergman is one of many students dealing with these problems.

First-year student Brianna Neely also has depression and anxiety.  She said her condition often keeps her on guard.  “Some days with depression you just don’t want to move, you don’t want to get out of bed,” Neely said.  “The littlest things can set off the biggest emotional reactions.”

Neely said that her condition caused her to take a few years off after high school in order to get her it under control before she could come to KSC.

According to Feres, it is far more likely for students age 16-24 to be diagnosed to develop emotional disorders because of chemical changes in the brain as a result of puberty.

In short, high school and college age students.

Photo Illustration by Tim Smith / Photo Editor

Photo Illustration by Tim Smith / Photo Editor

According to a survey conducted by the American College Health Association in 2012, many of the students who come to KSC have had similar issues.

Of the over 1000 students surveyed, More than eleven percent of students reported that they had been diagnosed with depression and anxiety within in the last twelve months prior to taking the survey.

Furthermore, about thirty-three percent of students said they felt so depressed it was difficult to function.

Fifty-five percent said they felt overwhelming anxiety.

Close to eight percent said that they had intentionally hurt themselves. more than seven percent of students said they had contemplated suicide and nearly two percent had actually attempted suicide; All at some time within the last year prior to the survey.

In order to prevent occurrences like this mentioned above, those who have anxiety, depression and other disorders can be treated with regimented therapy and medication.   

Feres insisted on the importance of utilizing both medication and therapy in order for a student to learn how to better manage their disorder.

In comparison, the survey shows that only about three percent of students got treatment involving both medication and therapy within within 12 months prior

Feres said that finding a way to access those resources is where it can become difficult for students due to lack of insurance, willingness and availability.

“It can be very challenging for people,” Feres said.

If they’re looking for help coping with their disorder, students at KSC can turn to the Counseling Center, which is found in the Elliot Center on the KSC campus.

Assistant Director of the Counseling Center Mona Anderson commented on how important resources like this can be to students on campus.

“I think all people, throughout our lives, at different times in our lives where we are trying to figure things out and certainly in college there’s a lot of things that students are experiencing or struggling with or trying to figure out and we know that when our bodies are fed and our emotions are tended to, we’re going to be more successful. So in order to help our students be both successful academically and successful as human beings and people in the world, I think that the counseling center is essential for that,” Anderson said. “I think that some people would not be able to stay in college without this resource.”

Anderson also gave credit to the staff and faculty for their ability to  get students the help they need.

“In my experience, the staff and faculty here at Keene State are very supportive. Of course we can always do more educating around it, they’re not therapists, but they’re very supportive and they reach out to us to help the students,” Anderson said.

Anderson said that the counseling center offers workshops and trainings for those who work and go to school at KSC in order to create a better understanding of mental health disorders.

Some students are trying to do the same thing.

Phoebe Buckman is the secretary for the KSC chapter of Active Minds, a nationwide organization that strives to raise awareness for students who are dealing with a behavioral disorders.

Buckman noted the discussion panels and other events have been an effective tool in educating the student body on emotional disorders. She said that events such as the suicide vigils, which allow students to light a candle for every 100 college students who committed suicide nationwide, as well as for loved ones who took their own lives, were especially encouraging.

“We also get students who walk by and try to figure out what it is and then stay for the event,” She said, “I think that there is still of lot of work to do.”

On the bright side, Buckman said that the membership of the Active Minds chapter here on campus has doubled in the last year or so.

Neely, who is also a member of Active Minds, said that being a part of the organization has been very gratifying for her.

“it was a long time before someone really helped me, so to be able to actually help other people also is a very rewarding experience,” Neely said.

Buckman said that next year Active Minds will have a bigger role on campus.  The group has been preparing to put on programs in residence halls to teach students about behavioral disorders, and host more discussion panels and events.

Still, Keene State is just a small portion of the college student population nationwide. According to the Active Minds website, one in four adults suffer from some kind of mental illness.

Because it is so prevalent, Feres reiterated the importance of the efforts of the counseling center and Active Minds to reduce the stigma of being diagnosed with a behavioral disorder and be able to better understand those who dealt with them.

“It is something that students should be aware of and worried about.” Feres added, “Trying to get people to feel less ashamed about it is really important so they can go and seek the help that’s out there.”

Jacob Barrett can be contacted at jbarrett@kscequinox.com

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Disabilites unite strangers

I met Mark Woonton at a little breakfast joint in Pelham, New Hampshire.

My aunt works with him, and kept telling me how I needed to meet this guy.

“He’d be good for your column!” she said.

All she told me was that Mark had had brain surgery, and she didn’t know much else, but she was adamant that his story should be told.

After meeting this guy, I realized she was right. We sat there eating breakfast as he told me his story and a few jokes along the way.

Wooton’s condition, Hydroseph, causes spinal fluid to build up in his skull and put pressure on his brain, which could be deadly if too much is built up.

To keep the fluid out, he has a shunt, which runs from his brain down through his body. It does its job.

There is one slight problem with that though – the shunt breaks and, every time it breaks, it has to be replaced.

Woonton has been in and out of hospitals his whole life, each time laid up in bed for weeks.

I can tell you from experience that frequent stays in an uncomfortable bed with tubes sticking out of you and bandages wrapped around your body is demoralizing, depressing and downright cruel.

I have to admit though, Woonton was incredibly honest with me as we sat across from each other.

He said he’d often start his morning crying, and once the tears dried he’d ask himself this question: “What’s one thing I can do today to get me one step closer to getting out of here?”

Woonton’s struggles aren’t just found and conquered within the walls of inpatient bedrooms though. From the start, doctors told him he wouldn’t be able to do much of anything on his own.

Woonton was born blind, but as time went on he regained his sight. It was believed that he might not be able to walk, and he now walks under his own power.

He wasn’t sure he’d ever be able to drive, live on his own and live a life without the fear of his shunt breaking and what the consequences of that might be.

Instead of worrying about the next surgery, he focuses on the next day. He’s doing what he has to do and loving it.

Woonton knows he didn’t get there alone, and gave a shout out to those teachers and nurses that helped him when he missed weeks of school during his stints in the hospital and helped him get healthy again.

Kendall Pope/ Managing Executive Editor

Kendall Pope/ Managing Executive Editor

He wants to be a writer and make people laugh however he can, even if it means at his own expense. 

He writes a regularly updated comedy blog called “Funny Business” in which he makes fun of the more cynical parts of reality and issues caused by his condition. That sounds so familiar

This guy and I are a lot alike. We’re both overly-talkative twenty-somethings who enjoy writing and have a strange sense of humor.

More importantly though, we’re two people who have been through some very serious, debilitating stuff we could do nothing to prevent, but we’re doing what we have to live the way we want to.

Talking to Woonton was an eye opener for me.

I often speak about taking things one day at a time, but I can’t honestly say that I’m constantly on a gunghoe mission to build on the progress I’ve made. It’s exhausting and intimidating.

There’s a million things I need to do before I’ll be able to walk on my own. It’s not just me either.

Everybody has things they need or want to accomplish, but often we find ourselves daunted by the task. 

It’s like the feeling you get when you have to write a 20-page paper, that holy crap moment looms over your head until you are forced to either do it all at once or do nothing at all.

Either way it’s unlikely you’ll end up with a desirable result. If you work on it little by little until you get it done, it doesn’t seem so bad.

So, what’s your metaphorical 20-page paper?

Is it recovery from medical problems? Relationship issues? Financial strain? Maybe it really is a 20-page paper.

No matter what your answer to that question is. Answer one more.

What’s one thing you can do today to get closer to where you want to be?

Jacob Barrett can be contacted at jbarrett@kscequinox.com

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KSC dive coach on administrative leave

Keene State College dive coach David Mason has been put on a leave of absence pending further investigation of an alleged incident which is supposed to have taken place in September of 2015 at Monadnock Regional High School, where Mason was a physical education teacher.

Mason, who was also the Owls’ head coach in the 1980s and 1990s, was put on administrative leave by Keene State College sometime before the start of spring semester.

Interim Swimming and Diving Head Coach Chris Woolridge declined to comment on his colleague’s situation, but did state that he has been coaching the Owls’ divers in Mason’s absence.

Senior diver Cody Fitzgerald commended Woolridge for doing what he can to make up for Mason not being able to help out on the pool deck.

“He’s been as good of a replacement as we could ask for,” Fitzgerald said.

Still, Fitzgerald said he thinks that as long as Mason is gone, improvement will be hard to come by. “His absence has definitely been a negative in our practices because it’s hard to move forward with dives when you’re missing your head coach,” Fitzgerald said.

Vice President of Student Affairs and Interim Athletic Director Kemal Atkins declined to comment on Mason’s situation other than to say it is unknown when a decision regarding Mason’s alleged incident will be made, but in the meantime, he will not be coaching at KSC.

“Conclusions are being drawn before anything is proven and it seems like it’s more of a ‘guilty until proven innocent’ type of system here,” Fitzgerald said.

The Equinox is actively investigating further and will publish updates as they become available.

Jacob can be contacted at jbarrett@kscequinox.com

Crae can be contacted at cmesser@kscequinox.com

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Search for A.D. continues

The search for a new Athletic Director at Keene State College continues.

The task of replacing former AD John Ratliff began in August  2015, when a 12 person committee was given the job of sifting through applications and conducting interviews in order to find the new head of Athletics.

According to committee chairman Wanda Swiger, the job opening was originally posted in August with the hope that the new A.D. would be in place by January 1.

However, even though there were in fact candidates under consideration for the position, most candidates were unable to start in the middle of the school year.

The committee, which meets once a week or biweekly, decided to repost the job listing and will continue the work of finding a new A.D.

Now, according to the job application posted by the college, the start date of the job is set to be on or before July 1. Swiger said that since the deadline has been extended, the committee can be more thorough.   

“There was a bigger time crunch [the first time], and so we were really rushing to try to get it done so that we could get somebody in place. Whereas now, I think we’re going to do due-diligence and really focus not so much on rushing, but to make sure that we actually get the right person for the position,” Swiger said.

Swiger also said that the original search was beneficial in that it allowed the college to narrow down and give specificity to what they wanted.

“What we found was that we really…on the Keene State side of things we needed to do more due-diligence in reassessing what those needs were so that when we hire someone, that they’re a good fit for that position and that they can take Keene State athletics and Keene State where we need it to go moving forward,” Swiger said.

Something that Swiger said the committee wanted to emphasize in the criteria was that the committee wants a candidate who already had experience with some of the duties associated with being an AD, such as working with NCAA compliance, managing a budget and fund raising.

“Coming in, they have to be able to hit the ground running in all of those areas,” Swiger said.

According to Swiger, the committee has already began reviewing applications.

Vice President of Student Affairs and interim AD Kemal Atkins said that the prolonged proccess isn’t surprising to him.

“This is not unusual of positions at this level…it’s a very attractive position. We have a strong department, It’s an attractive institution, good student-athletes, good coaches, so we expect that we’re going to have a strong pool,” Atkins said.

According to Atkins, there have been around 50 applications submitted to the committee as of this week so far. Despite the fact that he’s enjoyed taking on some of the AD duties, his application, he said, is not one of them.

“I think with my other responsibilities that position needs one person solely focused on athletics,” Atkins said.

The committee will be working on narrowing down its search by the middle of February.

Jacob can be contacted at jbarrett@kscequinox.com

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