Here is the third episode!

In our first segment we interview Maryville wrestling coach Mike Denney for the first time this year.  The Saints are only a few days away from regionals at St. Cloud State University in Minnesota.  Along with regionals this upcoming weekend, we discussed the move of the wrestling team from Omaha, Neb. to Maryville University this past year.

In our secnd segment, we recap this past weekend in Maryville Saints softball.

During halftime Kim Gebken lets us know what is going on at Maryville this upcoming week.

In our third segment, we interview Head Coach of the Maryville women’s basketball team Chris Ellis and discuss the upcoming GLVC Conference Tournament.

In our fourth and final segment, we recap the past week in Maryville University men’s basketball and break down the upcoming week including the GLVC Conference Tournament.

Follow the link to listen to Saints Talk.

“Athletics conducted a study to determine the best opportunities to add a women’s sport.  We evaluated conference opportunities, finances, facilities, personnel issues and the impact on our current sports,” said Marcus Manning, Maryville Athletic Director.  “At the end of the process, we concluded that women’s swimming and diving would have several state and regional opportunities to compete while being cost effective for the University and athletics department.”

Maryville will add a women's swim and dive team to its athletic program starting Fall 2013. Image background courtesy of Petr Kratochvil, Composite image created by Alexandra Gresick

Manning believes this new sport addition will help increase overall enrollment at Maryville.

“It will increase enrollment for the University because new options are being created for a certain group of students with a special skill set and talent level,” said Manning.  “Maryville University has the opportunity to recruit prospective students who otherwise would not have considered the institution before.”

Maryville has not yet named a head swim coach but Manning says that plans are in place to recruit and hire a candidate.

“Athletics will follow standard protocol as with any search for a job opening.  We will develop a search and screen committee, go through the interview process and identify the person who is the right for Maryville University, the athletics department and our incoming student-athletes.”

Manning also says there are no plans at this time to add a men’s swim and dive team to the athletic program.

“At this time, Maryville University has not considered adding men’s swimming and diving.”

Although Maryville does not have an aquatics facility, there are plenty of nearby options.  Maryville’s athletic program continues to grow with the addition of wrestling this year and will become even more strong with the new swimming and diving team.

1. Eat!

There’s a reason it’s called Fat Tuesday, so why not set aside your diet during Mardi Gras? In St. Louis, one of the most popular celebrations is in Soulard. Tues. Feb. 21 is the Lumiere Place Light Up the Night Fat Tuesday Parade. It is the tenth year of the classic Fat Tuesday parade in downtown Soulard. This popular parade begins at 7 p.m. at the corner of Washington and Broadway and runs through downtown St. Louis. It is guaranteed to be a night of beautiful, illuminating colors, sights and sounds! Let the fun continue with the after party located at the Stadium Sports Bar and Grill in Lumière Place.

CAB hosts "Dueling Pianoes."

2. Eat more!

College students are always looking for ways to eat more healthily. New dining hall or not, eating pizza and hamburgers every day gets old quickly. Here is a solution: a local produce co-op. The co-op offers fruits, vegetables, salads, diary, snacks, candy, seasonal foods and much more. For example, an organic and local fruit snack basket is $5 for three Gala apples, three oranges, three pears and three tangerines. All you have to do is order online then pick up your food once a week at the specified location. The closest location to Maryville is Manchester, Mo., which is only 10 minutes away. You can eat an assortment of fruits and vegetables, support your local farmers and save money at the same time!

3. Listen to music.

CAB is hosting “Dueling Pianos” where two piano players will battle playing songs requested from the audience. Come Feb. 24 at 8 p.m. to watch some goofy, stressed-out piano players, listen to great music and eat free food. This live performance will be in the Donius University Center.

"The Way" by Alexander Liberman at Laumeier Sculpture Park.

4. Spend a day at the park.

Have you heard of Laumeier Sculpture Park? Right off of Highway 270, the park is popular for showcasing sculptures outdoors instead of in a traditional museum. The goal of the park is to allow people to experience art and nature simultaneously. The park has events and exhibits throughout March that would be perfect for an interesting and unique weekend activity with some friends. If you aren’t interested in seeing the art, then you can enjoy the beautiful park. Take a friend, enjoy the beautiful winter-but-more-like-spring weather and admire the curious sculptures. Laumeier is an excellent escape from the everyday stress of college.

5. Learn to de-clutter.

Being presented in the University Auditorium Feb. 21 at noon, “The Story of Stuff: An Inside Look at Our Consumerist Society” reveals the connections between social and environmental issues, uniting everyone in the project to create a healthy, more sustainable world. Allison Cook will speak about how all of the “stuff” in our lives affects our homes, our community and our world. Sounds like a downer? Maybe, but the facts you’ll learn about preserving the environment will definitely boost your morale. For more information, contact Cook at (213) 507-4713 or allison@storyofstuff.org.

Coach Morgan yelling advice to one of his wrestlers during the Missouri Valley Invite

The season is about over for the Maryville Saints wrestling team. With a little more than 8 matches left to be had between the national qualifier and the national tournament, it is truly crunch time for the Saints. And it was at this time last year that assistant coach Mario Morgan was gearing up for his senior run at a national title at University of Nebraska-Omaha. The four-time national qualifier in college was also a two-time finalist and a national champion his senior year. I sat down with coach Mario Morgan to discuss the upcoming two tournaments for the Saints, what goes into being a national qualifier, All-American and national champion.

The biggest thing, according to Coach Morgan as well as many other coaches, is the mentality a kid has going into the national qualifier as well as the national tournament. According to him, the biggest difference between his freshman year, when he only qualified for the national tournament, and his sophomore year, when he placed third, was the mentality he brought with him. But it wasn’t just something he had for a limited time.  According to Coach Morgan you don’t just have the attitude of being an All-American when you are at the national qualifier, you have to bring it with you all year, to every workout, practice, and tournament all season long. According to him having the mentality of a champion isn’t something you can decide to pick up at the end of the season, it is something you have to live on a daily basis. Having the mentality of a champion, in other words, isn’t something you can choose to flip on or off.  The mentality of a champion is a lifestyle you have to live.

But keeping up the mentality of a champion can get hard sometimes, and losses and injuries that kids suffer throughout the season can wear on them not only physically, but also mentally. It is then that kids have to turn to their teammates and their coaches to learn from their experience. However, with only two guys on the team with any experience at the national tournament and with a freshman-heavy team, there aren’t too many older teammates for guys to turn to for leadership. That’s why Coach Morgan considers it his responsibility in large part to keep guys in the right mindset going into the national qualifier this weekend.

After all, a large part of the end of the season comes down to a kid’s mentality, and that is where most older guys often have the biggest advantage over their younger counterparts, mostly because they are calm and confident in their ability to win against anyone. This is why Coach Morgan believes it will be so important for him and the other coaches to keep the guys calm and confident this weekend, because we have a lot of young guys who are “on the bubble”. By that he means that we have a lot of guys who have a good shot at going to nationals as long as they perform well. And performing well, as well as so much else, comes down to the mindset each kid has, the mentality of a champion, something Coach Morgan knows very well.

Take the movies “Bridesmaids” for example, the horrendous brainchild of Kristen Wiig and Maya Rudolf. And for any women who are fans of this movie, I am sorry but it must be said. From a guys point of view the movie was terrible, almost painful to watch. I mean really, who wants to watch a movie where one of the “funnier moments” was an overweight lady getting food poisoning and being forced to go to the bathroom in a sink while at the same time soiling a wedding dress? That wasn’t comedy; that was revolting.

Yet this isn’t the only movie that has been an offender of this sort, many movies in the rom-com genre fail in two places: one being the lack of comedy, the other being the overly cheesy and predictable “romance”. Luckily though, there is still hope as was proved to me this weekend by a movie titled “This Means War”.

This movie stars Reese Witherspoon as an ordinary business lady who is being courted by two man she doesn’t know are actually both best friends and spies. While it seems like one of those over-the-top cheesy romantic comedies where he two spies sabotage each others dates, it is far more than that.

The movie not only creates deep and relatable characters, it creates real drama and emotional connections as well as surprising the audience on the romance side of the movie. The reason I point out these aspects of the film is because I believe that most rom-coms lack “real” characters and real emotions or drama, so it is a relief and a delight actually when you get to go to a movie and be pleasantly surprised like I was.

In the end, despite the rather average reviews the film has received so far, the movie comes out head and shoulders above many other movies in its same genre. The movie provides enough action for the guys, a good dose of romance for the girls and plenty of humor for both in what I deem to be the best romantic comedy of the year thus far. As such, I give this movie a 5 out of 5, not for being a perfect movie, which it isn’t, but for being by far the best romantic comedy of the past two years.

Dog dressed up for Mardi Gras at the Beggin' Pet Parade. Courtesy of Mardi Gras, Inc.

Feb. 11- 12: Southern Comfort Taste of Soulard

What better way to welcome Mardi Gras than with some traditional Louisiana-style Southern cooking? Tickets are $25 per adult, and several of Soulard’s finest restaurants will have samples of their classic, most popular dishes. Sounds tasty!

Feb. 12: Beggin’ Pet Parade

Is your pet a party animal? Let’s be realistic—probably not! But why not dress him in a glittery mask and hundreds Mardi Gras beads as if he was attending a private masquerade ball? Your dog can join the thousands of pets parading down the streets of Soulard, and afterwards you can enjoy some good old-fashioned tail-gating. Registration is $10, and all proceeds go to the Open Door Animal Sanctuary.

Feb. 18: Mardi Gras Party at the Broadway Oyster Bar

The Broadway Oyster Bar is serving up gumbo, crawfish, jambalaya and other traditional New Orleans delicious dishes at its big Mardi Gras party. Get some friends together and drive down to South Broadway for some live jazz and tasty Cajun Creole cuisine.

Feb. 18: River City Casino Grand Parade

The River City Casino Grand Parade boasts to be one of the largest Mardi Gras parades in the Midwest! The parade’s route is from Busch Stadium to Anheuser-Busch Brewery, and afterwards people join at Soulard for drinks, culinary delights and live music.

Party bus at the River City Casino Grand Parade. Courtesy of Mardi Gras, Inc.

Feb. 19: Mardi Gras at the Zoo

If you’re looking for a family-friendly festival, the St. Louis Zoo is hosting a Mardi Gras carnival perfect for children and families. There will be crafts, music, costumes and a grand parade for children of all ages!

Feb. 21: Lumiere Place Light Up the Night Fat Tuesday Parade

It is the tenth year of the classic Fat Tuesday parade in downtown Soulard. This popular parade begins at 7 p.m. at the corner of Washington and Broadway and runs through downtown St. Louis. It is guaranteed to be a night of beautiful, illuminating colors, sights and sounds! And—it’s free!

In our first segment, we talk with women’s basketball player Abby Duethman about becoming the seventh Saints women’s basketball player to score 1,000 points and ead coach Chris Ellis about this past weekend and their upcoming games.

In our second segment, we talk with men’s basketball head coach Kevin Carroll about the Saints’ games this past weekend and their upcoming action this weekend.

In our third segment, we talk with Saints Talk Wrestling Insider Joey Moorhouse about the two dual meets from last week and the Saints’ outlook heading into the postseason only two weeks away.

In our final segment, I talk about opening weekend for Saints baseball.

Hope you enjoy it!

Follow the link to listen to this week’s episode of Saints Talk.

The Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) believes the signal changes will help improve driving.

According to information on the MoDOT website, Traffic Operations Engineer Greg Owens says “the new signal lights improve safety and reduce traffic delays.”

The new flashing yellow light yield signal may seem kind of confusing at first.  After all, it is different than the former solid green, but the purpose is the same.

The new "Left turn yield on flashing yellow arrow" signals will replace the former "Left turn yield on green". Photo by Alexandra Gresick.

The MoDOT website states, “A flashing yellow arrow means left turns are permitted, but you must first yield to oncoming traffic and pedestrians and then proceed with caution. The flashing yellow arrow does not replace the solid yellow arrow and its meaning; it does replace the green “ball” indication as a signal for a yielding left turn.” A flashing yellow arrow means that the driver should be cautious when making a left turn.

Some of the features are the same.  When the flashing yellow arrow turns to stationary green, the driver turning left has the right of way; oncoming traffic must stop.  When the arrow turns stationary yellow, the signal is about to turn red.  At this time the driver turning left at the signal must prepare to stop or complete their turn if still within the intersection.  Then when the signal turns to solid red, the vehicle must stop and not turn or proceed forward.  After the signal turns green again, the left turn light’s arrow will start flashing yellow.  Click here to see a video from MoDOT explaining the new signals.

The new signals are believed to be more effective at promoting safety than the former solid green lights.   MoDOT cites this concern for safety as one of the reasons for changing the signals.

“The solid green light is often misunderstood as a left turn indicator. This is because drivers naturally think ‘green means go’. Traffic making a left turn on a solid green light sometimes does not yield to oncoming traffic, which can result in more crashes,” the MoDOT website explains. “The flashing yellow arrow allows left turns but at the same time communicates the “caution” message to drivers. The flashing yellow left-turn arrow is especially effective at intersections with high volumes of traffic.”

As with any change, people will have their opinion on whether they believe it to be effective or not.

“I think they are dumb,” said one Manchester resident.  “I was very confused when I first saw the one at Manchester and Weidman.”

My guess is the new “left turn yield on flashing yellow light” signals will replace all of the old solid green left turn signals in Missouri and the rest of the United States.  I think the signals are a bit confusing but after reading the explanations on the website, I think they may make more sense in the long run.  It may seem confusing at first, but whether we like it or not, the new flashing yellow arrow is here to stay.

While most coaches are committed to their teams, few coaches that I have known do as much for the athletes as Coach Reynolds does for the individuals on the wrestling team. Every day Coach Reynolds consistently wakes up at 6 a.m. to run morning practice for those guys that have morning class, he wrestles full time with no breaks during practice taking on All American Matt Baker on a daily basis, and then after practice he will do extra technique or extra live goes with anyone that wants to do so.

In other words, Coach Reynolds is not your average three to 5 coach, someone who is only there during practice. He is truly committed to his athletes, and last year, even after tearing his labrum, he continued training with and preparing both Aaron Denson, and Ryan Pankoke to be national champions, a goal which they both achieved. It is rare to see someone sacrifice as much of their time and demand so much of their body as Coach Reynolds does on a daily basis for his wrestlers. Yet, when asked what the hardest part of being a coach is, he didn’t say anything about the training, the early mornings, or the time commitment; the hardest part of being a coach in his eyes is having to watch a wrestler struggle, either with injuries or losses, and having to try to help them through those rough patches.

And it is from those experiences of helping guys fight through adversity that he has gained some of his greatest insights into what someone needs not only to be a successful wrestler but a successful competitor in any sport. In his own words he says that you can’t “make” someone a good wrestler, you can only give them the opportunities to get better and to succeed. That’s why he is up working out every morning at 6 a.m., and that’s why he stays after practice to do extra work with guys.  Because he wants to give every athlete on the team the opportunity to improve and make themselves the best at what they do.

Through thick and thin, through injury and adversity, he has always been there for any of his wrestlers that need help or someone to work out with.

One of his favorite quotes that he lives by is that “I can’t allow someone or something else besides me to influence how successful I am.”

That is why, despite having bad knees, a shoulder that by all means requires surgery and a full time job, he still finds the time and energy to work with guys both at 6 in the morning before the day truly starts and after practice when the day is at a close. Coach Reynolds expects only the best out of himself and his wrestlers, and that’s why everyone on the wrestling team is lucky to have him here; he is not only a great coach, he is also a great role-model and a great person. Someone to truly look up to.

Backyard hens. Photo Courtesy of Michelle Lawrence.

However, maybe you live on campus or are just a poor, busy college student, so you don’t have time to raise chickens. Luckily, the Green Speaker Series has monthly presentations on various environmental topics in hopes of lowering Town & Country’s carbon footprint by educating the public on sustainability. Past topics include how to affordably “green” your home and “Bag-it,” a documentary that shows how plastic affects our everyday lives.

“Maryville students should be interested in the speaker series because Green Maryville Student Association (GMSA) and the Center for Sustainability want to empower students to work on and off campus to bring about sustainable changes,” said Adam Paige, President of GMSA.  “Attending the Town and Country Green Speaker Series not only contributes to learning, it also provides the opportunity to meet residents and officials in the community, which may lead to involvement in off campus projects and initiatives.”

The excitement doesn’t stop at raising chickens, because April 19, 2012 at 7 p.m. the Center for Sustainability will host Brian Bozek, Professor of Mathematics at St. Louis Community College, to speak on the Climate Reality Project at Maryville University. It will be a perfect opportunity for students to learn about climate change from a presentation developed by Al Gore!

Maryville’s Center for Sustainability and Green Maryville both encourage students to become environmentally conscientious and to actively participate in ways to protect the earth. Attending events like the Green Speaker Series are fun, positive ways to learn more about sustainability. So even if you have no intentions of raising chickens, go to the event anyway, meet new people and learn some fun facts!