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WOMEN'S BASKETBALL: Defensive struggles lead to loss

After experiencing her team's second loss of the season Saturday, Ball State University women's basketball coach Tracy Roller said it wasn't hard to figure out what her team must do to improve. "It doesn't take a genius to realize that Louisville scored 81 points, Indiana scored 76 and Wright State scored 52," Roller said.



SOFTBALL: Four players sign letters of intent to BSU

Four players signed national letters of intent to play for the Ball State University softball team Friday. The players will join the team in 2009. Kim Mazzapica is a pitcher and outfielder from Palm Harbor, Fla. This summer she went 15-4 with an .073 earned run average with her club team.


WOMEN'S BASKETBALL: Ball State loses to Indiana after big early lead

Lacking a sense of urgency until late in the second half, Ball State women's basketball team lost its second game of the season Saturday night 76-71 to Indiana University. The Cardinals used a 20-4 run to take its biggest lead of the game, a 33-17 advantage with 6:38 remaining in the first half.


Birthing clinic continues search for stolen stork

Employees and patients at a Muncie birthing clinic are still looking for its stolen mascot that once sat on the front lawn to announce births. Barb Bechtel, certified nurse and midwife for Expectations Women's Health & Childbearing Center, said "Gregory Peck," a six-foot-tall, wooden stork was stolen last week.


Clean out the refrigerator before heading home for Thanksgiving

There's something unique about college life. When we step on campus at the beginning of the year, we have, perhaps unknowingly, entered a microcosm-the campus-wide bubble. We go to sporting events at school. We have our own government at school. We get our prescriptions at school.



INDOT finishes winter driving awareness week

As Winter Awareness Week comes to a close, even college students can prepare for the weather and the more dangerous driving conditions this winter, according to the Indiana Department of Transportation. Megan Tsai, spokeswoman for INDOT, said the first ice or snow storm of the year can be the most dangerous for drivers, and it is important to raise awareness.


WWII exhibit to stay in Bracken until January

A letter from a World War II soldier sits in a second floor display case of Bracken Library with the following header: "Date: Who cares; Place: Ditto," The letter from former Ball State University dean Victor Lawhead is one of several ties that the exhibit shows between the unversity and the war.


Winter shoes you can use

This year's warmer-than-normal autumn temperatures have extended the flip-flop and sandal season, but when the weather turns wintry, students will need shoes better suited for snow and ice. With the amount of walking students deal with, durability and comfort of shoes are crucial to overall foot health, said Jon McCreary, doctor of podiatric medicine at Achilles Podiatry Group.


WOMEN'S BASKETBALL: Cards try to snap streak vs. IU

When the Ball State University women's basketball team plays Indiana University Saturday, it will attempt to fight back in a rivalry it has been dominated in for almost 30 years. The Cardinals beat Indiana three times in the 1970s but haven't defeated the Hoosiers since a 57-47 home victory in March 1978.



SWIMMING AND DIVING: Swimmers, divers to compete at first home invitational of year

For the first time this season the Ball State University swimming and diving teams will compete in a two-day invitational. The Cardinals will play host to the Doug Coers Invitational at 6 p.m. at the Lewellen Aquatic Center. They will then continue their meet against Findlay College and Grand Valley State University Saturday.


Democratic candidate Jim Mansfield is declared Muncie's mayor

Democratic candidate Jim Mansfield has been declared the winner of Muncie's mayoral race. He lead his Republican challenger Sharon McShurley by nine votes after the results were announced on Nov. 6. After the election board members reviewed about 20 absentee and provisional ballots, they announced Friday that he beat McShurley by 11 votes.


Muncie to announce new mayor

Muncie's mayoral mystery is about to be solved - at least until a recount. Delaware County Clerk Karen Wenger said the election board will meet at 10:30 a.m. today to review all absenttee and provisional ballots. After adding the approved ballots to the current total, the winner of the mayoral race will be announced, Wenger said.


MEN'S BASKETBALL: Cardinals' colossal collapse

Last season, the Ball State University men's basketball team was unable to close teams out. The Cardinals suffered nine defeats by less than 10 points on their way to a 9-22 campaign. The Cardinals saw that again Wednesday night, watching their 15-point halftime lead evaporate to send the game to overtime Wednesday, in which the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee cruised to an 81-74 win against the Cardinals.



Fire dept. unable to fill positions

Retirements have thinned the ranks of the Muncie Fire Department this year, but Chief Alan Richards said the loss of personnel has not effected the firefighters' ability to do their jobs. These jobs include protecting Ball State University students, he said.


MEN'S BASKETBALL: Newell leads team in final minutes but can't get help

Even though Ball State University scored 29 more points Wednesday night than it did in its season opener, the Cardinals' offense was a glaring weakness in the final stretch. Cardinals' forward Anthony Newell finished with a career-high 29 points, but he was the only player to score for Ball State in the late going of Wednesday's loss.


Greetings from abroad

When studying abroad, whether it is to London or Australia, for a semester or three weeks, students must be aware of what they have to do to ensure a pleasant trip. Jim Coffin, Rinker Center for International Programs director, said students must decide what type of experience suits them.


Gora receives honor in Indy newspaper

Thanks to her strategic plan and increasing the university's public visibility, President Jo Ann Gora was recognized as one of Indiana's most influential women by the Indianapolis Business Journal. Gora said she did not know she was even in the running until she got a letter a couple weeks ago saying she was selected.


North Loop experiences few riders

Two weeks after Muncie Indiana Transit System discontinued the Late Loop because of low ridership, the North Loop is experiencing problems of its own, according to sponsors. NORTH LOOP As the North Loop heads into its third weekend of operation, sponsors hope ridership will increase after two weekends with low numbers, Jeff Phipps, manager of Bygones Bar & Grill, said.


OUR VIEW: Notice us

Hello new mayor-elect and welcome to the office, We're the students of Ball State University. We just wanted to introduce ourselves as early as possible so you would be familiar with us, the students attending the university, which is one of the biggest employers in Muncie.


WHO, ME?: Break through writer's block

What are you supposed to do when you have writer's block? I have no doubt every collegian in America comes across writer's block at some point or another. Whether it's choosing a topic for a paper, trying to write a newspaper story or even choosing a few well-phrased insults in a "no, I DON'T want you back" letter to an ex-girlfriend, eventually you hit a wall where you can't think of anything to say.