3 Things From Jennifer Moody

Last week we got a visit from the DH writer Jennifer Moody. There was three things I learned from Jennifer Moody's talk. They were to make sure if you want to work in field to get experience. This is really true in many jobs. Experience is the way to learn while doing the job.

The second thing I learned was to be open to doing any story. Even if it is not what you are paied to write, sometimes you are asked to write a different story and you must be ready and able to write any type of story.

The third thing is to be carful to who you share information with. Some information you get should not be shared with just anyone so you must be carful to who gets that information.

Jennifer Moody had a lot of great points to make and was really great about answering questions.

Roos Brothers In A Battle On The Court

Imagine what it is like to be part of triplets growing up. Spending all sorts of time with your brother and sister and doing everything together. That was what it was like for LBCC basketball player Taylor Roos.

What would it be like to play against your brother after all those years of playing together? Well Taylor has to deal with that every time he plays against his brother. Taylor is part of triplets. His brother Trent plays basketball at Chemeketa Community College and their sister Ashlyn plays basketball at Corban.

This season Taylor and has played Trent and twice. In the first meeting played at LBCC, Taylor had 25 points while Trent had 23 points, but Chemeketa won the game 73-70. In the second meeting played at Chemeketa, Taylor had 19 points and Trent had only 8. The biggest change was in the final score; LBCC got a little payback and won 94-69.

“Playing against my brother is defiantly surreal. It’s hard not to get in a one on one battle with him when we play each other. It is also hard not get in a fight with him out on the court,” said Taylor Roos.

Before they split up and went to different colleges, the Roos bothers played together at Sprague High School. It really sounded like they were quite the dynamic duo in high school and really played well together.

“My brother and I played well together especially when we were both on the court at the same time, we both have a feel for where each other is on the court and it made it a lot of fun,” said Trent Roos.

After they played high school ball together the Roos brothers went different ways to continue their basketball careers. Taylor ended up here at LBCC and it just so happened that Trent ended up at Chemeketa, and they would be able to play against each other twice a year which can set up some interesting matchups. Trent said, “Playing against my brother brings back memories of when we used to play one on one growing up and the competitive drive we both had to win.”

While Taylor scored more points in each win this season, LBCC was only 1-1 in games verses Chemeketa. You have to think that he would give up points for his team to get the wins. During the game at LBCC this season the Roos mom had on a shirt that had Taylor and his number on one side and Trent and his number on the other side. That might be the hardest thing for a parent to deal with, having two kids playing against each other.

“It is really fun to have them play against each other, makes for a really competitive matchup, said LBCC head coach Randy Falk.

Who: Roos Brothers part of triplets (1 sister)
What: Both play basketball in NWAACC South division
When: Both Sophomores
Where: LBCC & Chemeketa
Another What: They play against each other twice a year

Last Story

The subject of my last story is a feature story on the Roos brothers and what it is like playing against each other after playing together through high school.

This weekend I will try to be in contact with the brothers and hopefully the mom or dad as well to tell me what it is like being a parent of two great basketball players.

Questions:

Here are some questions I will ask Taylor and Trent:

How close are you and your brother?

What was it like playing with your brother all through high school?

How did you two end up at different schools?

How hard was it for you both to go play at different schools after playing together that long?

What is it like playing against your brother?

Here are a couple for the mom or dad.:

What is it like to have your son's playing against each other?

"Only a Few in The Stands"

Anyone who has been to any college athletic event is part of something special. Those people that fill the stands pay to go watch great sports and have a fun experience. People fill the stands at those stadiums. Even if you go to any high school football or basketball game you would see the stands full of parents and student supporting their team. Now compare that to athletics here at LBCC and you would see a big difference.

If you go to any athletic event here at LBCC you would not find the stands full of people cheering and supporting the team. Instead you would see a small select group of fans that come and support the Roadrunner teams. That fact begs the question of why are there not a lot of people who come support LBCC athletics?

That question to me adds more questions to it. The first question is why would you not come to the games? If you are a student it is free to come, and even if you’re not it is pretty cheap to see some good competitive games and some good teams play night in and night out.

LBCC is a community college so you know they might not have the same athletic talent as most division one schools, but the athletes here at LBCC are still some of the best from around the area and are determined to get better. A lot of the students here come from smaller schools that had successful high school programs.

This past season the LBCC women’s volleyball team finished in second place in the South Division and made it into the NWAACC tournament, which is a great accomplishment. Right now the men’s basketball team is in fifth place with a 6-6 record in the South Division, but has been competitive in almost every game so far this season.

As I sat in the stands for the men’s basketball game last weekend it got me thinking about what the players felt about all this. The crowd at games can play a key role in the game. If your team is up and the crowd is making lots of noise it could be hard for the other team to make shots, or if your team is on a comeback they need the support to help them fight back into the game. After I thought about it I knew that it must be hard to play every night in front of only a couple hundred fans and try to give it your all, but that’s what all the teams do at LBCC and most are very competitive.

"So many things to pull us away from sport events these days, makes me wonder if people really watch the sporting events or is more just about the socializing," said Head Volleyball coach Jayme Frazier.

Jayme made a good point there. At Lebanon High School, the boys basketball team has lost 45 games in a row but the gym is always full of students and parents. That makes me wonder if the socializing aspect of the game is more fun to the students than the actual game is. Maybe we need to make the games more social but where you are able to watch and talk about the games too.

It is not that no one shows up, but there are not as many as there could be. Most of the people who show up are a few students and the parents of the athlete and maybe a couple friends too. I wonder if people don’t go to games because they don’t know when they are. LBCC athletics is not advertised much around here and it is not like the games are on the radio, so people might find it hard to find out when the games are.

Perhaps if LBCC maybe put a ad somewhere to come support the teams, or maybe if we could broadcast the games over the Internet or radio to gain more interest, then more people might come. Until that happens I must salute all the fans that do take time to come and support teams here at LBCC. They support all the teams and get to see some great athletics in the process.




Want to know more about the different teams here at LBCC?


Athletic Sites:

Volleyball

Men's Basketball

Women's Basketball

Baseball


Don't know when the next game is?

Men's schedule and women's schedule

Column Outline "Only a Few in the Stands"

The topic of my column is going to be about poor attendance at different LBCC athletics.  I wonder why more people and students do not go to games, the teams are competitive and for students it is free to get in.  It is a chance to see some junior college athletics that are good and need the support because people at the game cheering helps them preform better in hard situations. 


Sources:

I am going to try to set up a meeting with the LB athletic director Jim Bell.
My second source will be a player on the men's basketball team and get his thoughts on the topic.
My third source will be head volleyball coach Jayme Frazier.

Questions:

Why do you think LB athletics has poor attendance?
How many people do we get on a normal attendance night?
What could we do to get more people to come support these teams?
Does it make you sad that more people do not come support the teams?
How do you feel when there are not tons of people to come watch you play?


Want to know more about the different teams here at LBCC?
Athletic Sites: Volleyball
Men's Basketball
Women's Basketball
Baseball

Don't know when the next game is?
Men's schedule and women's schedule

On Campus

There is a place on campus that seems to be a new quite spot to study while you wait for your next class.  Last year some students might not have known about this spot, but this year is a whole different story.  Every time I walk by this place there are lots of students always doing work at the tables upstairs as well as downstairs.

I think part of the reason that it is a more popular spot this term is because more students know they can go into the building, I think last term many students were not sure if they could go into it because it was close to the construction zone.

One of the unique things about this place is the lone newton ball that fly's back and fourth on the first floor.  Another reason this place is a good one to stop and study is the fact that it is always quite.  There is always people there but it never gets loud.  The last thing is the back wall is full of windows which allow you to be able to look outisde.

The second floor has the most space to be able to get some work in.  If you follow the hallway you can also get into Red Cedar Hall and Madrone Hall.  There are many great quite places to study here at LBCC but this spot might just be the new hidden gem where you can get away and get some "me" time.

Bio Instructor Who Knows His Stuff

You might find him taking pictures at weddings. You might find him hiking up a mountain or traveling to places in the west. But the best place you could find him in a science classroom here at LBCC. It’s Biology instructor Jeff Fennell.


There is a lot to the man behind the biology instructor. Jeff is a man of many titles and many interests. On weekdays he is an energetic teacher who gets students excited about biology. On his free time he has many different interests that show he is not just another science teacher. The most important thing to note about Jeff is that he makes learning fun because of all his real life experience in the field.

In 2006 Jeff and his family moved to Oregon when he took a job here at LBCC. Jeff teaches all three basic biology classes here at LB, Bio 101, 102 and 103. Anyone who says that Jeff is not qualified for the job have not talked to him and learned that he has spent 10 years of his life in some schooling.

Jeff started his schooling while he was in the Air Force. After four years of active duty he then moved to the University of Washington where he got his undergrad in Biology. His next stop was Montana State where he got his masters in fish and wildlife management.

“I think he is a great instructor because he has so much experience in the field already,” said current student Manny Ortiz.

Teaching is not always what Jeff wanted to do in life; he said he sort of fell back onto teaching. He wanted to go into wildlife management but there is not enough demand for that position so he fell into teaching and has taught at many different community colleges in Washington and Oregon.

“The best part of my job is the students, I enjoy interacting with them and helping them learn about Biology, It is a fun job,” said Fennell.

While he said he does enjoy teaching, he said there are parts of it that he does not like so much like grading papers. Like any good teacher Jeff loves doing things outside of school. One of his hobbies is photography, he has a business taking pictures at weddings and doing some portraits.

If you can’t find him taking pictures somewhere, there is a good chance you could find him traveling or hiking somewhere. He has been to every western state west of Texas and Oklahoma.

Jeff has so much experience in the field of biology that when you are in his class you are bound to hear a great story that you can relate the information too. From getting shot at while doing his Grad school project on prairie dogs by the local farmers to just some of his experiences hiking and traveling, Jeff always has a great story to tell and really enjoys talking to his students.

When you go to a class taught by Fennell you are going to notice a few things. You will see his passion because he is talking about something he loves. Another thing you will see is the great learning environment. He will help you with anything you need help with in labs or anything else you might need. The way he teaches is also good because he uses power point and really goes deep into subjects, which leads to tangents on great stories.

“I always loved learning about animals and the behaviors of different animals,” said Fennell.

Who: Jeff Fennell
Job: Science Instructor
When: Teacher at LBCC since 2006
Where: He has experience all over the west
Interests: Photography, Hiking and Swimming
College: Undergrad at University of Washington, Masters at Montana State
Military Service: Air Force, 4 years on active-duty at several air bases in Texas