Author Archives | Leela Stockley

Police Beat

Sept. 20 – 10:22 p.m. 

While on duty, an officer of the University of Maine Police Department (UMPD) noticed a female first-year on the second floor of Knox Hall with a bottle of wine. The UMPD officer spoke to the resident and had her dump out the wine. She was compliant. The resident was referred to the Student Conduct Code Committee.

Sept. 20 – 10:40 p.m. 

Resident Assistant (RA) staff in Knox Hall called UMPD after finding Cooper Braverman of Houston, Texas in possession of a usable amount of marijuana. UMPD determined that Braverman was under the legal age and was not in possession of a medical marijuana card. The UMPD officer also found alcohol in Braverman’s room. The officer dumped out the alcohol. Braverman was summoned for possession of marijuana by a minor and was referred to the Student Conduct Code Committee for the possession of alcohol by a minor. 

Sept. 20 – 10:42 p.m. 

A UMPD officer was called to the second floor of Oxford Hall by RA staff. The RA had noticed a student drinking, and the UMPD officer spoke with the resident. The resident was compliant, the UMPD officer dumped out the alcohol, and the student was referred to the Student Conduct Code Committee for the possession of alcohol. 

Sept. 21 – 1:00 a.m. 

While on patrol, Officer Morse of the Orono Police Department (OPD) noticed a vehicle speeding on Main Street near Leadbetter’s gas station. Officer Morse conducted a traffic stop and approached the vehicle. Officer Morse noticed an open 18 pack of Natural Light beer in the passenger seat of the car. After speaking with the driver, Cooper Chamberlain, 19, of New Gloucester, Officer Morse conducted a field sobriety test and determined that Chamberlain was inebriated. Chamberlain was arrested and had a blood alcohol test conducted at OPD which tested under 0.8. Chamberlain was charged with violating license restrictions and summoned for the illegal transportation of alcohol by a minor. 

Sept. 21 – 5:45 p.m. 

While on an alcohol detail, Officer Leskey of OPD was called by an employee of Bells IGA who reported a fake ID. The employee had recorded the phone number on the license, and Officer Leskey called. The number belonged to Hanna Sevigny, 19, who lists an Orono address. Sevigny admitted to being in possession of a fake ID. and using it to attempt to buy alcohol. Officer Leskey arranged to meet with Sevigny, who was compliant, and she was summoned for the possession of a fake ID.

Sept. 22 – 1:00 a.m. 

A UMPD officer was called to Androscoggin Hall after three female residents returned to the dorm in an Uber. One of the residents was throwing up, the University Volunteer Ambulance Corps were called, and the student was transported to St. Joseph Hospital in Bangor. All three of the residents were referred to the Student Conduct Code Committee. 

 

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Fogler Library among Maine libraries participating in reciprocal lending program

Libraries across the state of Maine, including the Raymond H. Fogler Library at the University of Maine, are now participating in a reciprocal lending program that allows library cardholders across the state to borrow library books from any of the participating libraries.

The program includes more than 70 of Maine’s libraries, including the Maine State Library, the Maine State Law and Legislative Reference Library and the Northern Light Eastern Maine Medical Center Hadley Parrot Health Science Library. 

The collaboration, which went into effect on Sept. 16, allows anyone with a valid library card, including student ID cards to check out books from any of the participating libraries around Maine.

All of the libraries in the University System have opted to participate in the program, which will make access to academic documents much easier to get for students and researchers alike.

Libraries around the state have been participating in the interlibrary loan system for a while now, but this program makes it much easier to get texts. Through the interlibrary loan, a person is able to request a book through their library by requesting it online. The requested text will then, if it is not on hold or checked out, be sent to that library and the library will inform the person that they are able to check out that text. However, the reciprocal borrowing program allows you to simply drive to a library near you, and as long as you have a valid library card, you will be able to check out the text in person. 

The program grew from an idea that was discussed at the Maine Library Association’s Fall Conference in 2018. At the conference, librarians from around the state expressed a strong desire for the development of cooperative programs that would strengthen library resources. After the conference, a working group identified libraries with the software systems necessary to facilitate reciprocal lending and started moving forward with a pilot program to test out how the program might work. 

“What really makes this work seamlessly is that the participating libraries are utilizing the same library system software,” James Jackson Sanborn, the director of Maine Infonet said. Maine Infonet is the organization that manages the library systems which makes this lending program possible. “The fact that the participating libraries all have library cards with a 14-digit barcode and the software is able to recognize a library card from a participating library makes this doable.” 

This program will create a larger scope of access to public, academic and special collections libraries.

Currently, the libraries that have chosen to participate in this program have to stay in the program for a year, and then the program will be reassessed to see how well it served the public. The hope is that in the future, more libraries will be able to implement the software needed and participate in the program. 

While the program will be beneficial to both library users and the libraries themselves, head librarians from around the state have discussed setting limits on how the system will be executed. This may extend to item limits, to cut down on the risk of potential issues and errors in how the system processes checked out materials.

“It’s essential work and we believe good things happen when we can break down barriers to sharing library resources,” Sanborn noted.

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UMaine Defenders of Wildlife hosts first official meeting

On Wednesday, Sept. 18, members of the University of Maine community came together at the first unofficial meeting of the Defenders of Wildlife. The students involved in this group are in the process of getting the Defenders of Wildlife recognized as an official club at UMaine. Until then, they are acting as an extension of the nationwide Defenders of Wildlife organization. 

The Defenders of Wildlife is a non-profit organization that spans the United States. They were founded in 1947, and since then have dedicated their time to the protection and restoration of endangered species and habitats. The volunteers work in communities across the country to provide resources and education about endangered wildlife and habitats. They also work on grassroots campaigns to combat federal motions that seek to harm the environment and fragile ecosystems. Throughout the years that they have been active, members of the group have testified in front of the national legislature in defense of their campaigns. 

Attending the meeting was Robert Hooke, of the UMaine Climate Change Institute. Hooke, who has been involved with environmental activism throughout his life, spoke in coordination with the Defenders of Wildlife in front of Congress to advocate for the responsible management of predatory wolves.  

Currently, the Defenders of Wildlife are working on both the local and national scale to raise awareness of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, as well as the Arctic Cultural and Coastal Plain Protection Act. The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is in northeastern Alaska and has garnered attention recently. The wildlife refuge is home to hundreds of species, as well as indigenous people called the Gwich’in. The Gwich’in have a close relationship with the land, and call the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge the “Sacred Place Where Life Begins.”

In 2017, Congress introduced the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, known as Public Law 115-97, which would have opened the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to gas and oil drilling. However, the Arctic Cultural and Coastal Plain Protection Act which was proposed in 2019, known as H.R. 1146, amends that law to prevent drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

The UMaine chapter of the Defenders of Wildlife, although they are not fully recognized as a club at the university, worked hard to ensure that H.R. 1146 was passed on Thursday, Sept. 12 2019. Through public outreach, the Defenders of Wildlife were able to secure 46 calls to Rep. Jared Golden, who voted to pass the bill. Now, the Defenders of Wildlife are working hard to ensure that a sister bill is passed in Congress which will classify the wildlife refuge as “wilderness,” the designation for land with the highest amount of conservation protection.

“The arctic environment, in which I’ve spent a lot of time, is a very fragile environment. It is a very beautiful environment. Putting roads and drilling platforms into an environment like this is just desecration of the landscape,” Hooke, whose work focuses on glacial mechanics, said. “Most of the countries on earth have pledged to reduce their carbon emissions over the next few years, and if you add up those pledges, they aren’t nearly enough to prevent a serious increase in Earth’s temperature. We’ve seen many effects from what can be attributed, in part, to climate change. We don’t need more oil. What we need is an emphasis on renewable energy resources.”

As the semester progresses, the Defenders of Wildlife will continue to campaign for the protection of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. They are planning on sending out petitions to Maine State Sens. Susan Collins and Angus King to urge them to vote to protect the wildlife refuge and classify the land as wilderness. Currently, the UMaine Defenders of Wildlife have 663 of the 1,000 signatures that they need to send to Reps. Collins and King.

 

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UMaine students taking an interest in the political climate

As the world has seen in recent weeks, high schoolers and undergraduate students have been taking the world by storm with their involvement in political advocacy. Students from around the world have shown themselves to have an avid interest in the political climate, driven by factors such as climate change, gender discrimination and immigration laws. During the 2018 midterms, thousands of people aged into the system and registered to vote in numbers that had not been seen in 25 years. 

In a report by the Institute for Democracy and Higher Education, numbers of undergraduate voters doubled since 2014. The report was based on data gathered from more than 1,000 campuses across the U.S and showed that 39.1% of students participated in the midterm election process. This number is up 20% from the number of students that reported voting in the 2014 midterm election.

That is why in the race towards the 2020 election, constituents have had to tap many resources to connect with their younger constituents. The Democratic debate on Thursday, Sept. 12, with the ten front-running candidates, put the candidates to the test. 

One of the major policies on the debate state that intrigues undergraduate students is the discussion of free college tuition, as well as loan forgiveness. The average college graduate has almost $40,000 worth of student debt, and many students have both federal and private loans. Combining the extreme risk that taking on thousands of dollars’ worth of debt with an unstable job market, students and high school graduates face an ever-widening chasm that discourages pursuing a higher education degree.

Because of the cost of higher education, when Sen. Bernie Sanders talks about free two and four year college programs, it gets people’s attention.

Even though candidates have talked about issues that matter to undergraduate voters, one of the biggest issues is connecting to the younger demographic.

Liam Kent of the UMaine College Democrats noted that the older candidates like former Vice President Joe Biden and Sen. Bernie Sanders don’t get as much attention from college students as their younger rivals. He also noted that, with the fight for gender equity, students like seeing female candidates holding their own on the debate stage. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, who has admittedly had some rough patches in her political career, has garnered quite a following, as has Sen. Kamala Harris.

Because of the current political climate, many younger voters are extremely educated on the factors that have led up to and continue to affect both the Republican and the Democratic Parties.

Declan Downey, the vice president of the UMaine College Democrats, noted that people are very aware of how the Democratic Party has shifted its policy goals since 2016.

“The conversations being had about healthcare, America’s wars, massive income inequality and many other issues reflect a Democratic Party that is beginning to understand [the need to shift policy goals],” Downey notes.

As the 2020 election looms closer, projections anticipate that there will be a tsunami of newly registered voters. In 2016, 139 million people turned out on election day to cast their ballot. Some projections say that the number of voters could reach 156 million for the 2020 election.

“We are the most powerful voting block,” Kent said, urging his peers to stay politically aware and active.

UMaine will be providing a voter registration table on the Mall on National Voter Registration Day, Tuesday, Sept. 24.

 

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15th annual Jeff Cole memorial game leaves Maine football excited for season

This past Saturday, April 27, the University of Maine football team took to the field for the 15th annual Jeff Cole memorial football scrimmage game. This is the first scrimmage game that the Black Bears had in the 2019 season.

The contest is a memorial to Jeff Cole, who served as an assistant coach to the Maine football team for six years. Cole passed away in 2004 after a long battle with cancer. His work with the Black Bears affected many student athletes, and he is remembered for the positive impact that his relationships as a teacher, mentor and friend had on people.

In differing fashion from recent years, the Black Bears split the roster into two teams, Team Blue and Team White, instead of their typical offense versus defense scrimmage. The idea came from new head coach Nick Charlton, allowing players to shift around and interact with everyone on the roster.

Incumbent starting quarterback, second-year Chris Ferguson, finished the day completing nine of 14 passes for 93 yards and a touchdown.  

Honorary captain for Team White was Mike DeVito, former defensive end for the New York Jets and then the Kansas City Chiefs. DeVito had attended the University of Maine and played for the Black Bears during his undergraduate career, and was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Jets in 2007.   

“Every opportunity you have to put this helmet on is a blessing … It’s an honor to be out here with you guys, make the most of every second on that field. Play like a group of savages, alright?” Devito told the Black Bears as they got ready to hit the field.

After the game, Coach Charlton presented second-year defensive back Richard Carr with a full scholarship, amid much cheering from his peers. In a jovial speech, Coach Charlton noted, “I taught Rich Carr how to clap the other day, and now I get to give him a full scholarship.”

With several young players making impacts on the field, including first-year players Jayvaun Shear, Shawn Bowman, Adrian Velez and Zac Bouhalloufa, Maine has a strong nucleus to build around for the coming season.

Interestingly enough, the most impressive touchdown of the game came from second-year guard Liam Dobson, who punched the ball in from two yards out.

Multiple in-state talents, such as first-year quarterback Grant Hartley from Auburn, Maine, flashed skills that will hopefully translate in the coming years. Hartley hit fellow first-year wide receiver Clark Barnes on a 55-yard bomb in the end zone. First-year walkon kicker John Williams replaced an injured second-year Kenny Doak, and kicked all of the extra points for both teams.

In other Black Bear football related news, fourth-year linebacker Sterling Sheffield and fourth-year wide receiver Micah Wright were invited to NFL minicamps by the Cincinnati Bengals and Arizona Cardinals, respectively. After watching Sheffield fly around the Alfond Memorial Field for his entire collegiate career, any team that chooses to pick him up will not be disappointed. On top of this, former quarterback turned tight end Drew Belcher signed a contract with the Arizona Cardinals as an undrafted free agent. As a school typically not known for producing football players, Maine’s improving program will produce prospects for years to come.

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UMaine softball splits doubleheader with Holy Cross, drops series against Albany

On Thursday and Friday, April 18 and 19, the University of Maine softball team played doubleheaders against Holy Cross and the University of Albany. The Black Bears split Thursday’s non-conference series with Holy Cross, winning the first game 8-7, while the Crusaders won game two with a final score of 3-2. The Black Bears returned to the field on Friday to face off against the University of Albany Great Danes but were defeated in both games with final scores of 2-1 and 11-7.

Holy Cross started off Thursday’s game with a triple, scoring on a double soon after. The Crusaders scored their first three runs in the top of the first inning.

Fourth-year infielder Maddie Decker brought the score up to a tie with three runs during the bottom of the fourth inning, after sending a home run over the right field fence. Decker sent second-year utility player Hailey Perry and first-year outfielder Emma Larke in for scores on her home run.

Holy Cross held the lead by three runs at the bottom of the fifth inning after scoring on a home run to right field. Maine won back the lead at the bottom of the sixth, after scoring four runs. Holy Cross attempted a comeback in the top of the seventh inning but were unable to defeat the Black Bears, leading Maine to their 10th victory of the season.

Holy Cross also started off the second game Thursday and led the Black Bears 2-0 after the fourth inning. The Crusaders took a 3-0 lead when they scored their third run of the afternoon.

However, the Black Bears fought for the lead when first-year utility player Keely Clark scored a two-run home run during the second half of the sixth inning. Although Clark’s home run brought the score up to 3-2, the Black Bears were unable to gain any more offensive ground against Holy Cross for the rest of the game, ending the contest at the same score.

The Black Bears returned to the field in a two-game series against Albany on Friday afternoon. The Great Danes took an early lead with a run bringing the score to 1-0 at the top of the first inning.

The Black Bears were unable to score into the fourth inning and Albany brought their lead up to 2-0 during the second half of the fifth inning. The Black Bears were able to get a point on the scoreboard during the fifth inning when Decker hit her second home run in a week. The game ended without any more points, and the Black Bears dropped their first game against the Great Danes with a final score of 2-1.

On the second game of the day Albany got a quick start, allowing the Great Danes to get up 1-0 after the bottom of the first inning. However, the Black Bears weren’t done scoring home runs for the day. First-year utility player Kya Enos hit her first career homer, which was followed up by an RBI single up the middle by Clark. By the bottom of the third, the Black Bears were down 3-2 to the Great Danes.

Maine was able to take a 4-3 lead in the fifth inning, after fourth-year third base player Alyssa Derrick, drove home first-year utility player Grace McGouldrick from second base.

Albany took the lead after making a run off of an error in the Black Bears infield, but the score was tied during the ninth inning at 7-7. The game went into extra innings, and the Great Danes eventually took the upper hand with four runs at the top of the twelfth inning, ending the game with a final score of 11-7 in favor of Albany.

The Black Bears were meant to return to the field on Saturday, April 20, but the game was canceled due to inclement conditions.

Saturday’s game would have seen the Black Bears face off against Albany once more, as well as honor past championship teams during what would have been the first annual legends weekend. Legends weekend was meant to honor the 1984 and 1987 ECAC Championship teams, who had 25-14 and 29-10 season records, respectively.  Although the Black Bears were unable to play on April 20, their next game will be on Saturday, April 27 in Vestal, New York where they will be competing against Binghamton University.

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Black Bears Fall in first indoor track meet against UNH, have hopeful season outlook

The University of Maine men’s and women’s indoor track teams competed for their first meet of the season on Saturday, Dec. 1 in a home meet held at the Memorial Gym. The teams worked hard, but fell to the University of New Hampshire Wildcats. The men’s team combined to score 89 points to UNH’s 99, and the women’s team combining to score 83 points against the Wildcat’s score of 94.

Saturday’s meet was the first of two times this indoor season where the Black Bears will compete against the Wildcats.

Third-year Ariel Clachar brought in the first points of the meet for the women’s team, winning the long jump with a jump of 5.61 meters. Second-year Anna Shuman won the triple jump, with a jump of 11.25 meters. First-year Brianna Ewing brought in five points with a time of 9.15 seconds in the 60-meter hurdles.

Second-year Cassidy Hill won both the 60-meter hurdles, finishing with a time of 7.82 seconds, and the 200-meter dash, which she finished in a time of 25.71 seconds.

Fourth-year Hayley Lawrence won the 3,000-meter run with a time of 10:44.

The women’s 4×400 relay also took a top finishing spot. The winning team, made up of fourth-year Lauren Magnuson, second-year Brittany Torchia, Hill, and first-year Samantha Sudol, finished with a combined time of 3:57.

The first win for the men’s team came after first-year William Green won the pole vault, vaulting a height of 4.25 meters. He was closely followed by a win from second-year Troy Davis, who won the men’s high jump after jumping a height of 1.98 meters. First-year Elijah White won both the long and triple jumps, with jumps of 6.8 and 14 meters, respectively.

Fourth-year Kelby Mace brought in second place for the Black Bears in the 60-meter dash with a time of 7.08 seconds. He was accompanied by first-year Ethan Orach, who brought in second place in the 800-meter run, with a time of 2:00. First-year Travis Nickerson was also awarded second place in the 1,000-meter run, after bringing in a time of 2:38. He was closely followed in the event by teammate second-year Cooper Nelson, who finished third with a time of 2:44.

Fourth-year Aaron Willingham finished the 3000-meter run with a time of 8:34, which was almost 30 seconds ahead of the second-place finisher from UNH.

The men’s 4×800 relay team, comprised of Nickerson, first-year James Oliver, Orach, and second-year Colin Tardiff, won the event with a time of 8:17.

The only Black Bear to place in the heptathlon, which is comprised of the 60-meter dash, long jump, high jump, and the pole vault, was third-year Cam Cleathero, who took home first place.

Cleathero, a third-year, is excited and hopeful to see where the season takes the Black Bears. During the meet, he commented, “I’m excited for this year, we have talent that came in, on both sides, both guys and girls. It’s going to be good, we got pretty much everybody back this year. I think we only graduated two seniors.”

Although this was their first meet of the indoor season, the Black Bears have been preparing all year.

“I love the atmosphere of the team. Whether it’s before a lift or after a practice, they’re always having fun. But everyone knows how to put the work in, and everyone is super welcoming, we do team events, it’s super fun,” Zack Westman, a first-year, said.

Second-year Catharine Christensen agrees.

“I think being on this team is really great, we’re all really supportive of each other,” Christensen said on Saturday.

The women’s team captain, Hayley Lawrence, has noticed a change in the team since she was a first-year

“I’ve been on the team four years, I’ve done every season. I think as a captain, personally I’ve seen a lot of the girls grow. My freshman year, there was some distance. But, being a senior, I’ve noticed the whole team bonding aspect, and growing really close this year, that’s been really exciting to see. We’re all just really supportive of each other,” Lawrence said.

The Black Bears were well prepared for their first meet, after working hard throughout preseason. They also have a goal set: make it to the America East Championship meet.

“I’m really excited for America East, the last meet of the season where we race against everyone in our conference. It’s kind of a big meet, a lot of adrenaline, it’s what we work towards each year,” Lawrence said.

Cleathero noted that Saturday’s meet helped Black Bears get a feel for the season.

“It’s more of just a shake-up today, the first meet of the year. It’s not really competitive, it’s more just getting into it and starting up again,” Cleathero said when asked how he felt about going up against rivals UNH.

Although Maine was unable to take a win away from the first meet of the season, they are prepared to work hard and plan to improve as the season goes on.

Their next meet will be in  Hanover, New Hampshire, as the Black Bears will be competing against teams from Dartmouth and the University of New Hampshire.

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Sports Tech Paves the Way for New Fan Experiences

It used to be a tradition to turn on the radio and tune in to your favorite sports games. In fact, many might remember your parents talking about some of the great announcers of what seems like the ‘good old days’ of broadcast sports, such as Marv Albert, Dick Enberg or Al Michaels. Nowadays though, sports coverage is looking to other venues, mainly tech startups, to bring people even closer to their favorite teams.

Many traditional sports leagues are looking to invest in new technologies to capture the attention of younger sports fans, particularly the fans who are part of the generation whose smartphones bring them a swipe away from the latest team statistics and updates.

The major push for sports leagues to be investing in technology right now is the fact that if they are not able to compete with other information platforms, they risk losing the interest of their fans. Many younger audiences are constantly trying to stay ahead of the curve, when it comes to entertainment, and for major entertainment outlets to maintain their audiences, they must keep up with a generation that is constantly innovating new technologies.

Some ways that the sports world is working to engage their audiences are by experimenting with popular technology such as augmented reality and virtual reality as a way to fully engage audiences in the sports experience. The MLB is working on ways to incorporate augmented reality into its apps by labeling player positions, showing relevant statistics and even projecting the amount of ground an outfielder may potentially cover on a fly ball.

The NBA is leaning into virtual reality heavily by adding virtual reality viewing as a feature in the League Pass TV service. The league has already committed to broadcasting 27 games in full virtual reality, which will allow all the games to be viewable from within a headset.

The NBA has also committed to making sure that its games are digitally accessible to fans. In 2017, the NBA set a new record for attendance, with approximately 22 million fans attending games during the 2017-18 season. This has led to the NBA taking a pro-social media stance, as this encourages fan interaction and fan retention. Approximately 92 percent of NBA players are on twitter, as well as other social media platforms.

Many major league teams are also turning to streaming services for viewership. The NBA launched an all-access League Pass in China last year, which acts much like a regular season pass; the purchase allows you to tune into every game of the season on a streaming service.

Many in the sports world fear that they will lose loyal audiences to the younger generation that are more invested in gaming than sports. This is why many of the NBA teams, 15 to be exact, are partnered with or have ownerships of eSports teams.

According to Forbes, an estimated 1.6 million people are playing eSports through NBA 2K, the gaming league that was launched this year by the NBA. Because of the astonishing numbers, other leagues are jumping onto the bandwagon. The NFL has announced a partnership with the gaming company Electronic Arts (EA) and ESPN to host a competitive league for the Madden game series.

Universities are also getting in on the tech wave. The Georgia Institute of Technology, a tech focused college in Atlanta, hosted its inaugural GT Sports Innovation Challenge last Saturday and Sunday, Nov. 3-4.

The GT Sports Innovation Challenge was a 24-hour event which invited innovators to meet the challenge of transforming ideas for sports technology into reality. NetPositive, one of the winning submissions, is an interactive interface that allows volleyball coaches to utilize data collected from myVERT wearable devices, which players on the Georgia Tech volleyball team wear. The data pulled from myVERT devices is then uploaded to a database which generates analytics and player statistics. This can help coaches to plan for upcoming matches, see which players are doing well and even help to anticipate over-exertion in athletes.

This data is also the kind of data that major league sports teams seek to incorporate into fan experiences. By having player statistics easily available for use on a user interface, such as an app, major leagues can successfully integrate their teams with augmented reality which allows the fans a more in-depth look at what their favorite athletes’ performance is like, which developers hope will encourage loyalty.

Amazon, in fact, has already taken advantage of the fan-driven desire for more information. Now a household name, the Amazon Alexa can provide on-demand NFL information. Twitch, a video game live-streaming website, commonly stream NBA G League and eSports events.

Another major company, Intel, has expressed interest in virtual reality sports. They have recently produced technology that can produce 360-degree highlight videos for a linear TV and are working on another piece of tech that will create an immersive virtual reality experience.

Coupled with the legalization of sports gambling in six U.S. states, the future of sports looks to make large financial gains in the next couple of years due to the demand and interest in sports technology.

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UMaine Men’s Hockey Opens Season with Two Wins

The University of Maine Men’s ice-hockey team has started their season triumphantly, bringing in two wins over the St. Lawrence University Saints during their first two games of the 2018-19 season.

The two game series kicked off with a contest on Friday, Oct. 12 at the Harold Alfond Arena in Orono.

The Black Bears, propelled by their triumph over the Prince Edward Island Panthers during a preseason game on Oct. 6 with a finishing score of 6-1, brought in a victory with a score of 3-1 over St. Lawrence Friday.

Starting off the game, the Saints forced the Black Bears to play strong defense. The first period was tense as the Black Bears found their footing. Second-year goalie Jeremy Swayman made nine saves in the first period alone, making 16 saves total during the game on Friday night.

Although during the first period the Black Bears played heavy defense, they came back strong in the second period. Chase Pearson, a third-year from Cornwall, Ontario, found the net first for UMaine 10 minutes into the second period.

The second score of the game was made by Ryan Smith, a third-year from Roanoke, Virginia. Smith corralled the puck off the left-wing board, and fired the puck past SLU’s goaltender with nine minutes and 14 seconds left in the second period.

St. Lawrence’s Philip Alftberg was able to sneak the puck past Swayman, scoring the Saints only goal of the night on a power play opportunity, just two minutes after the Black Bears had scored again, making the score 2-1.

Pearson iced away the game for the Black Bears, scoring the final goal of the night after receiving the puck from Jacob Schmidt-Svejstrup, a first-year from Denmark. Pearson finished off the play with pressure from the St. Lawrence defensemen, and solidly landed the decisive goal for the Black Bears.

The Black Bears were unable to efficiently capitalize on their power play opportunities, only converting one of seven power play opportunities. Luckily, the defense played well, as Swayman turned away 16 of the 17 shots made by St. Lawrence, and the defense blocked 12 shots. The Black Bears were able to consistently keep the pressure on the Saints to play strong defense, winning 40 of the 63 faceoffs on the night.

The Black Bears returned on Saturday evening to face off against the Saints once again, this time bringing in a victory with a score of 4-1 over the Saints. The Black Bears are once again off to a 2-0 start, reminiscent of their 2016-17 season.

The first period started off quickly, with the first goal landing just 31 seconds into the game. The goal was Schmidt-Svejstrup’s first collegiate goal, and it gave the Black Bears a lead that they held onto for the rest of the game.

Patrick Shea, a third-year from Marshfield, Massachusetts, made the second goal of the night for the Black Bears. Mitchell Fossier, a third-year from Alpharetta, Georgia, caught the puck in from the neutral zone and tore down the ice with a 2-on-1 break. He sent the puck backhanded to Shea, who made a short-handed breakaway and brought the score up to 2-0 in favor of the Black Bears.

Rob Michel, team captain and a fourth-year from Camillus, New York, made the third goal of the night with a rebound. His initial shot was saved and bounced out hard but returned to him. His teammates Schmidt-Svejstrup and Fossier provided assists and cover, allowing Michel to land the goal with six minutes left in the third period.

St. Lawrence’s first and only goal of the night came during a 4-on-2. Jake Stevens fired a shot off the feed from Zach Risteau, Ryan Garvey deflected the puck into the net, bringing the score up to 3-1.

Maine’s triumphant last goal of the night was made by Tim Doherty, a fourth-year from Portsmouth, Rhode Island. Doherty handled a hard shot that kicked from behind the net out to the left circle, where he handled his way around defenders and fired it into the net with a wrist shot seven minutes into the third period. The Black Bears finished the game with a total of 39 shot attempts.

Swayman showed great hope for the season, following a strong Friday night performance with an even better game on Saturday night, turning away 23 of 24 shots on Saturday evening. During the second period, Swayman impressed with his hand eye coordination, snagging multiple shots out of the air with ease.

Coach Red Gendron told the Portland Press Herald, “I think overall we were better tonight than we were [Friday] night, we had one lull [in the second period], but I think you’re going to get those in most college hockey games. We want to get to the point where we can be precise in what we do for 60 minutes and not have any significant lapses … when that does happen, Jeremy Swayman is a pretty good goalie. I thought he had a really good weekend.”

Though the game ended in a victory for the Black Bears, it was marred by an injury to first-year Adam Dawe. Dawe was leveled near the center of the rink by the Saints’ defenseman Dylan Woolf with less than two minutes remaining in the game. Woolf was awarded a five-minute major penalty, and no post-game updates were given on Dawe.

The Black Bears will return to the ice on Oct. 19 against the University of Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs, and will be playing a series that will continue on Saturday, Oct. 20.

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UMaine Tennis Club Keeps Competition Friendly

Sophomore Darian Goggin, a social psychology student, plays tennis because he loves the sport. An avid tennis player since his sophomore year in high school, Goggin hopes that he has the potential to play at the competitive level when he gets in to law school. For now, though, he has joined the University of Maine tennis club, which he attends practice for three times a week to improve his skills.

Unlike NCAA recognized teams, the UMaine tennis club is self-governed and elects its own officers, who organize the practices and matches for the team. They meet and have competitive matches against each other to compete for rankings. The club had a match on Saturday, Sept. 22 to determine the rankings of members on the team. These rankings later determine the players who will represent the UMaine club tennis team at the larger competitions with other club tennis teams.

The UMaine club team has played against teams from Bowdoin College, University of Rhode Island, Williams College, University of New England and Harvard, at the semi-final and final level.

Last season, the team was runner-up at the New England Club Tennis Championship. This year, the team has several promising first-year members bolstering their roster and is optimistic about how they will do at competitive matches.

While the team plays competitively away from the home courts, their practices are often impressive. Firstyear Sammi Saulter, a business student, has already fit well within the organization, bringing an intense presence onto the court every time she plays. The integration of new students to the university onto club teams cannot be overstated, especially in the case of club tennis, who has had low numbers in recent years.

Renee Clavette, the president of the club, says that one of her favorite parts about the sport and the club is the opportunity to get to meet other people.

“When we get to travel to other places and have team dinners … we get to hang out with the other teams afterward, which is fun,” Clavette said.

Although Clavette loves the social aspect, she says that the actual organization of the club is a challenge.

“I have a lot of hoops to jump through, which can be stressful. I have to organize the practices … and make sure we fundraise and have our insurance covered so that we can still compete,” Clavette explained.

Organizing events is an important part of running the tennis club. This year, the club is planning several different fundraisers to keep their group running.

The club also participates as volunteers at some of the local events. This past academic year, they volunteered at the Pedal the Penobscot, a cycling event that helps to support the Bangor Land Trust. The club also volunteers at the Healthy High 5k, a road race that is annually hosted by Maine in the spring, and at the Maine Day Meal Packout hosted by Maine Honors College every spring.

A large part of the club is focused around communication. To be able to play well, the members need to recognize the importance of keeping a friendly environment. Many of the members are partnered up with other players who they have never met, especially at this point in the season, however the energy level within the organization and general attitude are incredibly uplifting, as the club has a friendly environment that is always open to new players.

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