The Daily Egyptian - March. 18, 2026

THE Daily Egyptian

Carterville assistant coach is subject of subpoenas

CARTERVILLE — The

Williamson County Sheriff’s Office and Illinois State Board of Education have served subpoenas on the Carterville school district in southern Illinois seeking the personnel file and any disciplinary records of John J. Wakey, a Carterville High School teacher and assistant football coach who is under investigation for criminal sexual abuse.

subpoena on the district for Wakey’s records on Feb. 25, four days after announcing it had opened an investigation involving an unnamed Carterville school district employee accused of sexually abusing a former student.

The sheriff’s office served its

Thrifting a piece of Carbondale

Taylor Hargraves brings a bin from the back of The Thrift Shop into the store on Feb. 10, 2026 in Carbondale, Illinois. The Thrift Shop has been a staple in the city for cheap clothes and household items since 1962. Emily Brinkman | @erb_photo

Sheriff Jeff Diederich told Capitol News Illinois last week that his office has received numerous calls since making the announcement and believes there may be multiple victims.

Capitol News Illinois obtained the subpoenas under a Freedom of Information Act request.

A second subpoena from the sheriff’s office, issued the same day investigators sought Wakey’s personnel file, requests academic records for 17 former students whose names the district redacted, citing a privacy exemption under Illinois’ public record law. The subpoena does

ORION WOLF owolf@dailyegyptian.com

In the past few weeks, two Carbondale restaurants were suddenly closed, Freddy’s and Fazoli’s. The parent company that owned Fazoli’s, Fat Brands, and M&M Custard, a franchisee of Freddy’s, both filed for bankruptcy which led to their closures.

M&M Custard, a franchisee of Freddy’s, filed for bankruptcy under Chapter 11 last November, which allows the company to remain in operation and reorganize their finances with the oversight of the creditors of the debt and the court.

“This difficult decision was made solely by the franchise owner after careful consideration of their business circumstances,” Freddy’s

public relations manager Kim Hunyh wrote in an email. “We’re grateful for the community’s support and for the dedicated team members who served them.”

Sebastian Gonzalez, an employee at the Carbondale Freddy’s location said that co-workers told him that the establishment just wasn’t getting enough business from customers.

“I wouldn’t say we all saw it coming but the hints toward it were that we were running out of stuff and it kinda like got in our heads,” Gonzalez said.

With not much time left this semester, Gonzalez, an SIU student, doesn’t see a point in trying to get a new job before leaving for the summer.

Linemen travel miles to keep the lights on

KRISTIN BORCHERS kborchers@dailyegyptian.com

Suspended in the air by his bucket, unharnessed, his winch snapped and Dale Guetersloh shot 35 feet into the air from his truck, knocking him unconscious. He’d been taking down a power pole, then woke up facedown in gravel, coughing up blood, unsure how badly he’d been hurt.

Only when he regained consciousness and looked down did he realize he couldn’t move his wrist. He managed to walk away that day in 2003 with only a torn lip, a mangled

wrist and another story that could have ended far worse.

Now 60, Guetersloh is still out in the elements at dawn — and at all the unpredictable hours that outages and southern Illinois weather demand.

He’s one of dozens of linemen across this rural region who keep the power grid alive.

Guetersloh is the serviceman for the Southern Illinois Electric Cooperative’s outpost in Metropolis. At the southernmost tip of the state, he watches over territory in Johnson and Massac counties, plus a sliver of

Pope County. He chuckles when he recalls his start in the business.

“I can remember when I was in my early 20s and my dad said, ‘I’d like to get you set up and get you to the union hall and get you in,’ and I’m thinking, ‘Man, my uncle got killed doing that,’” Gutersloh said. “I mean, why would I want to be a part of that?”

Yet decades later, Guetersloh became part of that workforce — one most people only notice when the lights go out.

A family tradition

As climate change amplifies the amount of severe weather that sweeps through the country, linemen face an increasingly challenging — and sometimes thankless — job. In southern Illinois, that job is made even more difficult by the vast territories lineman cover. On a day-to-day basis, Guetersloh drives around 120 miles managing his lines. Years on the same route have etched it into his memory.

For Guetersloh, climbing power poles is a family tradition.

Born and raised in Murphysboro, Guetersloh grew up the son of a well-known and respected lineman for Central Illinois Public Service Co., which later merged to become Ameren Illinois. He still remembers winter nights as a child when the wind howled outside his bedroom window. He said he would hide under his covers and think about his dad working outside — and how crazy he was for doing it. Then, he followed in his footsteps.

Before entering line school at

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not indicate why investigators are seeking the former students’ records.

A subpoena is a legal public record that’s part of an official investigation. It does not indicate that wrongdoing has occurred, or detail any allegations, and Wakey — who has worked in the district for more than two decades — has not been charged with a crime. He did not respond to multiple calls and text messages to his cell phone seeking comment.

The district must provide the records by March 26 to Williamson County Deputy Mike Flaningam. The sheriff has confirmed that Flaningam, who joined the department on Jan. 1, 2025, and formerly served as the chief of police in Carterville, is the lead investigator on the sexual abuse case involving the Carterville school employee.

The Carterville school district previously announced that it placed the employee on administrative leave after receiving notification from the sheriff’s office on Feb. 20.

On Friday, Diederich said the sheriff’s office did not have further comment to provide on the subpoenas. Carterville Superintendent Sarah Barnstable also had not responded to a list of questions about the matter as of Friday afternoon.

Separate inquiry by state education board

The Illinois State Board of Education has also issued a subpoena seeking records related to Wakey’s employment. ISBE served the district with the subpoena Monday — one business day after Capitol News Illinois and the Saluki Local Reporting Lab reported that an FBI tip that initially started the inquiry into the Carterville school employee had been made in November 2024, nearly a year and a half before allegations became public, and the employee placed on leave.

The state agency oversees education licensing in Illinois and

CLOSURE

CONTINUED FROM 1

Fat Brands, the Fazoli’s parent company, filed for bankruptcy under Chapter 11 in January.

“We all got a letter in the mail saying Fat Brands went bankrupt, but we did not know the severity of it,” Shannon Sparks, the assistant manager at the shuttered Carbondale Fazoli’s location, said. The letter came about a month before the restaurant closed, according to another employee.

“We didn’t have any idea we were closing,” Sparks said. “They just closed the lower-profiting stores. It was us in Carbondale and then one in Indiana.”

Sparks said there were clues the closure was coming the day before the company announced it.

“Me and my general manager, the night before, we had realized that he got called in for a meeting and he was like, ‘in 19 years, this has never happened,’” Sparks said. “Then, we got online and we realized our catering orders were shut off.

“This was just 8 hours before we were actually told. That’s

is responsible for investigating allegations of misconduct involving licensed teachers. Such investigations are separate from criminal or child welfare investigations, though ISBE may obtain information from those agencies if they are involved in the case. Though the agency was made aware that Capitol News Illinois had obtained its subpoena in a public records request, ISBE spokesperson Lindsay Record said the agency still could not comment on or confirm whether any specific investigation is underway.

The ISBE subpoena, which is described as part of a “licensure investigation” of Wakey, also seeks emails, text messages, internal investigative reports, interview notes, witness statements and other records related to his employment. The district has been ordered to produce those materials to ISBE by April 16.

Questions about reporting requirements

An FBI spokesperson in Springfield told Capitol News Illinois last week that its National Threat Operations Center, which serves as a central intake for public tips regarding federal crimes, had received information about possible abuse by a Carterville school employee in November 2024. At the time, the spokesperson said the FBI determined it did not have jurisdiction to lead the investigation, and turned it over to local law enforcement.

Flaningam received the tip that same month from an FBI agent in Marion while he was still serving as the police chief in Carterville. The following month, city officials opted not to renew Flaningam’s contract; his employment with the city ended on Dec. 31, 2024. He was hired as an investigator in the sheriff’s office beginning the next day, and transferred the case prior to his exit.

Diederich said the case remained largely dormant for 15 months due to a lack of evidence.

The announcement of the

when it clicked with me and him and we just had this gut feeling like: they’re going to shut us down tomorrow,” Sparks said.

Some of the employees weren’t surprised at the closure. Alex Waite, a former Fazoli’s employee, said most of the time that he worked there, it was usually barren of any customers.

Waite, also an SIU student, said the impact of losing his job didn’t hit him as hard as others because his parents were able to support him.

“It luckily doesn’t affect me too badly,” Waite said. “But I can’t say the same about all my coworkers.”

Sparks had worked at this location for four years. It was her main source of income with three girls at home.

“This job was my safety, my security,” she said. “I actually loved my job there. I had the shifts that I wanted. We had a good team. I don’t have anything really bad to say about the company besides, of course, some warning would have been nice.”

Sparks said that most employees were given severance pay, depending on how long they were

investigation has shaken Carterville, a southern Illinois community of about 5,800 people known in southern Illinois for its strong school system, as well as its high school football tradition. In the wake of the investigation, some parents and community members have questioned why the district did not make a report to the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services upon first learning about the FBI tip in November 2024. Educators are mandated reporters under Illinois law and must report suspected child abuse or neglect to the state’s child abuse hotline.

Barnstable, the Carterville school superintendent, said the tip, as relayed to a district administrator in November 2024, was anonymous and unverified, and school officials did not have enough information to conduct their own investigation or file a report to DCFS. She did not respond to a question about which administrator received the report, and whether that individual notified

employed at the location.

“It’s definitely devastating,” Sparks said. “I can’t even tell you what I did for the first two days because I was in shock of what was happening.”

For some employees, transfer to the Marion location was an option, but the majority of them were just laid off.

Sparks and Waite were among the many that couldn’t just transfer to another location.

“It’s obviously very scary because there’s not a lot of places. I don’t drive — so there’s not a lot of places in Carbondale that are hiring people like that,” Sparks said. “Looking for a new job and knowing Carbondale, there’s not a lot of options anymore.”

The Daily Egyptian reached out to Fazoli’s and the Carbondale Chamber of Commerce. They did not respond to emails seeking comment.

“It was nothing to do with the employees. It was definitely a corporate decision,” Sparks said.

anyone else, including the district’s attorney and school board members.

Barnstable said the district took immediate action once law enforcement notified administrators on Feb. 20 that a former student had provided a formal statement. The sheriff’s office notified the district that it had made a report to DCFS at the same time, she said.

It is not clear whether an earlier report would have triggered a child welfare investigation. Diederich said his office has not spoken with any alleged victims who are currently minors or enrolled in the district. The individuals who have come forward are former students who are now adults, and DCFS typically only investigates allegations of abuse and neglect involving victims under 18. Reports involving child victims of abuse who are now adults are generally referred to law enforcement, according to DCFS spokesperson Heather Tarczan.

Public sanctions against educators, including license suspensions and revocations, are published on ISBE’s Educator Quality webpage.

Capitol News Illinois and the Saluki Local Reporting Lab have also requested any disciplinary records related to Wakey through the Illinois Freedom of Information Act. Barnstable asked for an additional five days to respond to that request. She said the district intends to respond by March 19 — the date of the next Carterville school board meeting, where several parents have said they plan to address the investigation and the school’s handling of it.

This story was produced for Capitol News Illinois through the Saluki Local Reporting Lab, supported by grant funding from the SIU Foundation and the Illinois Press Foundation. News Editor Jackson Brandhorst can be reached at jbrandhorst@dailyegyptian.com

Salukis share Ramadan tradition at SIU

TAY ACREE tacree@dailyegyptian.com

Guests greeted one another with hugs and smiles Sunday evening as they entered the Student Center ballroom for SIU’s Ramadan Iftar dinner, gathering as what organizers called a “Saluki family” to share the tradition of breaking their fast during Ramadan.

The smell of warm food drifted through the room while volunteers moved between tables welcoming guests and helping people find their seats. Long tables were set with plates, water and dates, ready for attendees to break their fast together at sunset.

Organized by the Muslim Student Association and Pakistani Student Association, the event brought students, faculty and community members together to observe the

LINEMEN

CONTINUED FROM 1

American Line Builders Training, or ALBAT, he tried his hand at carpentry and railroad construction.

But his father, who died two years ago, encouraged him into the family trade. He wasn’t sure. He’d already seen the job take loved ones. His uncle’s partner, while driving them back to headquarters after a long shift in a bad storm, fell asleep at the wheel. His truck veered off the road and rolled. His uncle didn’t make it. That wasn’t the only loss.

“Outside of that, I’ve had three personal friends of mine that died in this trade also. And so for me, the risk is tremendous,” Guetersloh said.

His ALBAT training involved three weeks in Medway, Ohio, where he learned how to climb poles and absorbed the basics of electrical theory. After graduation, he began his apprenticeship in 1992, contracting with big-name companies like L.E. Myers until he earned the status of journeyman and accepted a full-time job with Ameren.

He’d had his own young family by then and needed to provide. Suddenly it didn’t look so bad on the other side of the door his dad had opened. But learning the job isn’t easy. It takes three and a half years and 7,000 working hours to reach journeyman status. And that, he said, is just “the bare minimum knowledge.”

There have been improvements over the years. Technology has helped, and so have better safety standards compared with the 1990s.

Guetersloh started out doing most of the work by hand. His body paid the price.

“We used to climb every single day — every day,” Guetersloh said. “If you can get a truck there, it’s far safer, it’s way more productive.”

The work can be dangerous. But Guetersloh hasn’t exactly spent his free time playing it safe either. He jokes he can’t blame the job for all his injuries — some are “self-inflicted.” Blame his affinity since boyhood for riding and racing dirt bikes. He left the hospital with a hematoma in his leg and a hurt shoulder from a Labor Day accident in 2025. He recently underwent rotator cuff surgery to repair repeated trauma to his shoulder. And when he’s forced to recover from an injury, it’s his mood that takes a beating — he “gets into a depression,” he said.

Islamic holy month of Ramadan and share the evening meal that ends the daily fast. Organizers said it was the first large-scale Ramadan iftar dinner hosted collaboratively by student organizations at SIU.

Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar and one of the holiest times of the year for Muslims. During the month, Muslims fast from sunrise to sunset, refraining from food and drink while focusing on prayer, reflection and acts of charity. Each evening, the fast is broken with a meal known as iftar.

Mehak Saeed, president of the Pakistani Student Association, welcomed guests and thanked the volunteers and campus supporters who helped organize the event.

“Every evening during Ramadan, families and friends gather to break their fast together at sunset,” Saeed

But with his job as Metropolis’ serviceman, he is rarely idle. He’s the first to receive a call anytime there’s an outage in the region he covers near the Kentucky border. And when the phone rings, he’s out the door.

“I am on call 24/7, 365. The only time I’m not on call is if I take a vacation,” Guetersloh said. “It’s part of the trade.”

He’d grown used to that call to duty as a kid, watching his dad rush for the door. Not everyone adjusts.

“For some guys that are new into this trade, that concept of the phone ringing all the time like that, and them having to drop whatever they’re doing to leave, that’s not quite so easy for them.”

Eventually, Guetersloh parted ways with Ameren and went to work for SIEC. The overtime at Ameren paid well, but with long, demanding hours he’d started to feel like his kids hardly knew him.

He also liked the idea of working for cooperatives like SIEC, which are independent and member-owned.

Although co-ops’ rates may be slightly higher than Ameren’s, Guetersloh said quality and trust make up for it. So does reach. Their lines extend into the most remote rural corners of the state — places that wouldn’t have power without them.

Their hearts can extend pretty far, too. Part of a serviceman’s job is to shut off power when bills are overdue. But Guetersloh, who works in one of the poorer parts of Illinois, can’t always bring himself to do it.

“I’ve paid some bills before for people that I could tell were in a very, very bad way,” Guetersloh said. “I’m a softy for that kind of stuff.”

Linemen as first responders?

When major storms hit, the job quickly extends beyond routine outages.

Linemen are often called across the country to rebuild damaged power lines after hurricanes, ice storms or tornadoes leave communities without electricity.

Stanley Treat, a colleague of Guetersloh’s who works as a serviceman at SIEC’s Dongola headquarters, has seen that firsthand. After Hurricane Katrina devastated Louisiana and Mississippi in 2005, Treat was among thousands of linemen sent to rebuild the electrical grid.

This frontline disaster work has fueled a national conversation about whether linemen should be formally recognized as first responders. The Homeland Security

said. “Tonight we are honored to share this tradition with our Saluki family.”

Saeed also recognized volunteers and advisers who helped make the event possible and acknowledged that this event took place on International Women’s Day, thanking women in attendance for their leadership and contributions.

Ibrahim Kamran, president of the Muslim Student Association, said the goal of the event was to bring the SIU community together while sharing the meaning behind the holy month.

“We wanted to do something meaningful before we leave and show the community what our blessed month is about, which is giving back and bringing people together,” Kamran said.

Kamran said organizing this dinner was especially meaningful to him since he grew up in the local

Muslim community.

“Bringing people together gives me a sense of purpose,” Kamran said. “It makes me happy seeing everyone together.”

Kamran said organizers expected around 200 guests, and the ballroom appeared full as students, faculty and community members gathered to break the fast together.

“Our Muslim community is very diverse,” Kamran said. “We have people from all different backgrounds and socioeconomic levels, and we all sit at the same table and break our fast together.”

Imam Kareem, a guest speaker during the program, spoke about the spiritual meaning behind fasting during Ramadan.

“Fasting is not only about abstaining from food and drink,” Kareem said. “It is about self-

restraint and focusing on what truly matters.”

Paul Frazier, vice chancellor for diversity, equity and inclusion at SIU, also addressed the guests and spoke about the importance of creating inclusive spaces on campus.

“I’m glad that we are at a place where we can have events like this where we can sit together and break fast together,” Frazier said. Throughout the evening, speakers reflected on the importance of community, faith and understanding during Ramadan.

As the call to prayer approached, conversations in the room gradually quieted as guests gathered around tables filled with food and desserts, ready to break their fast together.

Staff

Dale Guetersloh sits for a portrait Oct. 3, 2025 in his office cubicle in Metropolis, Illinois. Kristin Borchers | @kborchers@dailyegyptian.com

Act of 2002 excludes the profession from the federal definition. In 2021, U.S. Sen. John Kennedy of Louisiana introduced the Lineman Legacy Act aiming to change that, though the bill didn’t advance out of the Senate.

Given that linemen are called out into the elements alongside rescue and medical crews in natural disasters — to protect the public, at risk to their personal safety — Treat sees it as recognition that’s been earned.

“You can’t beat mother nature,” he said. “If you’re working on a line — even though you have the line grounded — if a lighting strike comes on that line, you’re gonna get hit by that lighting,” he said.

Like Guetersloh, Treat also comes from a family of linemen. His stepfather and great uncle both worked for SIEC.

Guetersloh knew the job was dangerous when he lost his uncle. He experienced it firsthand while helping restore power after a storm in Michigan. Before crews headed out, workers were told they had already lost one lineman during the restoration effort.

“As soon as he touched the gate, he died right there,” Guetersloh said.

“I remember very well, the guy that was with me — Jason — he looked over at me and he said, ‘Dude, I’m scared to death.’ and I said, ‘that makes two of us.’”

Still, he isn’t convinced that linemen need a first responder designation on a dayto-day basis. Safety is key, though, he said.

Craig Sondgeroth, president and chief executive officer of the Association of Illinois Electric Cooperatives, said safety is an ongoing topic of its member cooperatives, and the association has “worked tirelessly to reduce incidents and improve training.”

“Electricity is unforgiving and can be deadly in an instant,” he said. “Every time we invest in safety, we invest in someone’s life. That’s worth every effort.”

‘All about servanthood’ For Treat, linework is “all about servanthood.” After graduating high school in Dongola, Treat had planned to go straight into the Navy with his best friend, but felt called to the lines. His job managing seven substations keeps him busy — from routine maintenance to the unexpected.

“It just takes a squirrel, or a coon, or a tree limb, or somebody running into a pole — or I mean, just a number of things that can break — and it can happen in seven different substations,” Treat said. “And so I get a lot of calls.”

Treat, who also farms cattle, has seen a lot of changes in the region. The co-op also has fewer members than it once had because of population decline and families downsizing and selling farmland.

“You don’t have the families here. You don’t have the schools. You don’t have the attendance in the schools. It just keeps getting lower and lower in this south end,

because there’s not a lot of jobs,” he said. “And so people are moving to the areas where there is work and more stuff is offered. We’re not selling enough power through irrigation and grain bins.”

Some parts of SIEC’s line connect to vacant homes. But that doesn’t make the job easier — those lines still have to be maintained.

Between Treat and fellow serviceman Guetersloh, the two share more than 62 years of experience on the job.

Guetersloh is preparing to retire soon.

“Would I encourage my own kid if they were willing to get into this trade? Probably not,” Guetersloh said. “I just think there might be an easier way to make a living. So here I am 60 years old, I’ve had a lot of injuries over the years. I’ve had both of my knees operated on, both of my shoulders operated on, my teeth knocked out. Right now it’s all OK.”

Yet over time, he accepted that the job was his calling. He takes pride in putting people’s lights back on and thrives when he can troubleshoot an outage.

“My dad’s been gone for two years, but I thanked him countless times for giving me the opportunity and me finally doing it because I really do love doing that. I really do. So I think that was just what I was supposed to do.”

Staff Reporter Kristin Borchers can be reached at kborchers@dailyegyptian.com

Giant City Stables opens for the season

PEYTON COOK pcook@dailyegyptian.com

When Ramona Twellman received an opportunity to buy Giant City Stables in 2002, she took it. Carole Hadden Spa, who sold the business to Twellman, mentored her to keep therapeutic riding as a service.

Therapeutic horseback riding is designed for adults and children with disabilities and chronic conditions. Twellman is a certified instructor through Professional Association of Therapeutic Horsemanship.

Throughout the years, Twellman’s love

of horses grew, and so did her vision for the stables. The business opened its arena in May 2025, allowing them to offer lessons and therapeutic riding indoors.

The stables, located in Makanda, Illinois, offer horseback guided trail rides that opened for the season March 15. Their therapeutic and riding lessons open later on March 21. On Fridays, they also offer therapeutic riding for veterans that is paid for by the Department of Veterans Affairs and run by Zach Davis.

The stables’ website and pamphlet says horseback riding can reduce stress, boost

communication and trust and can help reduce PTSD.

Giant City Stables have a total of 21 horses that include two mules, Ruth and Speeder. Their oldest horse, Diva, was born in 1995 and used to be a show horse. Volunteer Hannah Davis said you can tell she used to be a show horse just by the way she walks — it is majestic.

Digital Editor Peyton Cook can be reached at pcook@dailyegyptian.com or on Instagram @cookmeavisual

The Thrift Shop is more than a store

EMILY BRINKMAN ebrinkman@dailyegyptian.com

The Thrift Shop has been a staple in Carbondale for people to shop for cheap clothes and household items since 1962 and was incorporated as a nonprofit in 1965. The store opened as a means for people to find affordable clothing. Today, The Thrift Shop hires people without homes, supports the community and sponsors local events.

Frisby and the employees are very close and are all passionate about what they do and love to help the community.

“We all run The Thrift Shop together, just normal people trying to help as many people as we can,” Frisby said. “We all just love it, it’s a tight family. It’s more than a job for us. It’s a

family experience.”

Outside of work, Frisby has a family that he spends his free time with, and some employees hang out together as well. After the Lights Fantastic parade, they all had a Christmas party together.

“I’m just really fortunate to have these people that love what they do,” Frisby said. “In the past, there’s been a lot of employees who kind of were just here to work and just to have a really good crew right now that was always looking for new ways to give back and just come up with fun projects like the Arts and Crap coming up.”

Photo Editor Emily Brinkman can be reached at ebrinkman@dailyegyptian.com or on Instagram @erb_photos_

years old. I’ve been coming here for years, I love

make you feel

if you need something they’re good for it.” Emily Brinkman | @erb_photo_

Hargraves looks at bins of all the merchandise they have upstairs Feb. 10, 2026. The

consist of all the clothes they have waiting to be placed on the floor to be sold. Emily Brinkman | @erb_photo_

History of Tropicana Vintage Clothing is sewn deep into Carbondale

Located near Carbondale’s Historic Town Square, sits a brightly colored building filled with vintage clothing and homemade art. Inside the walls are lined with colorful clothes and at the counter there’s a shelf of handsewn patches waiting to be bought.

Martha Briana is a local artist based in Carbondale. Her artistic operations are based out of Tropicana Vintage Clothing store in Carbondale, Illinois where she also works managing the store. Tropicana, which is owned by Tom Egert, originally was located at the Longbranch building, which is now a Cafe and Bakery. After Egert lost his job in the early ‘80s, he and a friend bought the building and filled it with items that would be of interest for the university students, including books, games and clothes. Briana said the clothes won out for Egert.

“...he traded a guy a case of whiskey for a bunch of tucks and he sold tucks for $5 a pop and all the university students, like, and they loved it,” she said. Egert did vintage clothing for a long time, then wanted to try something different and in the early ‘90s he opened a coffee shop in the building. He later sold the building and moved down the street to the current building.

“He did that, and then for a while, and I guess he didn’t like it, so he sold it. But then he bought this, and so he moved the store over here,” Briana said.

Briana said that from the late ‘90s to the 2000s Egert’s girlfriend worked at the store before she died. After that, it became vacant. Briana came in to check it out in 2013 and said it was kind of dingy. That same year she started studying printmaking at Southern Illinois University Carbondale.

Egert then tried to rent the store out to someone, but Briana said it went by the wayside.

Egert also owns three cabins, which is how Briana became involved with Tropicana. Egert hired her to clean the cabins and later asked if she wanted to help with Tropicana.

“Tom was like, ‘Hey do you want to do vintage clothing?’ and I’m like, ‘Yeah, sure,” and so we hauled all the racks and all the clothes back in. I painted the walls and stuff,” she said.

Briana had just graduated SIU with a master’s in fine arts and was screen printing in a basement.

Egert let her move the screen printing to the store.

Briana said she prepared the store and realized that they had a business that no one has gone to for a while and that it might not make any money.

“Tom owns the building, so he doesn’t have to pay a mortgage or rent or anything,” she said.

To gather the inventory for the store, Egert goes to different clothing sales and thrift stores to pick up

shirts by the pound. Some of the shirts and clothes he finds are used as inventory at the store and the rest is taken to the recycling center.

Briana said that before she met Egert she had been making patches and also was screen printing on T-shirts with a friend. They had the idea of buying some of the shirts that Egert was buying from the thrift stores in the area.

After the store reopened, Briana was able to work on her art. Briana and her friend screen printed their designs on the shirts. She did this for the solar eclipse in 2017 in Makanda, Illinois.

“We just set up a booth down in Makanda and made a ton of money. Because everyone and their mother came down for the solar eclipse and it was just like, ‘wow I can’t believe this,’” she said.

After the eclipse, she started making more patches out of the old T-shirts Egert had bought from other stores. Most of her screen printed designs are from old magazines or from random objects.

From designing and screen printing to sewing, everything is done by hand.

She sells these patches in the store, but also online on Etsy. She’s gotten orders from around the world and she also travels to art festivals to sell them.

Photographer Riley Semblercan be reached at rsemblercan@dailyegyptian.com or @riley_sembler

Salukis start 5-0 in conference play

AARON CARNAHAN acarnahan@dailyegyptian.com

The Saluki softball team began Missouri Valley Conference play undefeated, outsourcing their MVC opponents 45-7 over the last week as they faced Valparaiso and Bradley.

The Saluki pitching staff pulled off three shutouts in the five conference games. The bats were producing runs in bunches, averaging nine runs a game. The long ball has been a staple for the Saluki offense hitting 10 dingers in the last five games.

MARCH 6: SIU 12, VALPO 0

The Salukis’ home opener was a fiveinning run rule victory. Junior Emily William hit her fourth home run of the season and drove in two runs. Second baseman and co-captain Erin Lee had a two hit, three RBI day as well.

Freshman Jordan Stewart led the Salukis with four RBIs in the contest.

Stewart picked up her first collegiate career RBI on a two-run single. She later picked up her third and fourth RBis on a double to the gap in left center. The Dawgs offense exploded to put up 12 runs in the game including a five-run third inning.

Freshman pitcher Hailey Lucas threw all five innings in the opening game at Charlotte West Stadium. Lucas threw just 65 pitches allowing one hit and striking out three Beacon batters,

moving her record to 3-4 on the season.

The Salukis moved to 12-9 overall, and 1-0 in MVC play, while Valparaiso fell to 9-9 and 0-1 in conference play.

The Salukis were now riding a threegame winning streak into the second game of a Friday doubleheader against the Beacons.

MARCH 6: SIU 4, VALPO 0

Saluki pitching threw another shutout to follow up the scoreless outing from Lucas. Freshman pitcher Brooklyn Danielson started in the circle for the Dawgs in Game 2.

Danielson surrendered two hits, no runs and struck out three in her three innings of work.

Pitcher Emily Delgado relieved Danielson heading into the fourth inning and threw four innings of no hit softball to close out the game. Delgado picked up the win, moving her record to 4-2 on the season.

Infielder Amanda Knutson smacked a three-run double in the fourth to give the Salukis a 3-0 advantage. Knutson picked up her fifth, sixth and seventh RBIs on the season on that fourth inning double. Lee hit a sac fly to score grad student Brooklyn Pritchett and give the Salukis a 4-0 lead that carried the Dawgs to victory in game two against Valparaiso.

The third game of the series was canceled due to inclement weather in

Carbondale on Saturday, March 7.

MARCH 13: SIU 7, BRADLEY 2

The Salukis stayed home at Charlotte West and hosted the Bradley Braves for a three-game series beginning with a doubleheader on March 13.

Catcher Sydney Potter began the scoring with an RBI double to score Lee in the first inning. Potter picked up her 29th RBI on the season, leading the team in RBIs on the year. Williams hit her fifth long ball of the season to score three and later picked up a fourth RBI on a sac fly in the fifth.

Sophomore Hayden Kurtz drove in a run off of a sac fly, and Knutson smashed a solo shot for her second home run of the 2026 campaign.

Lucas started the game in the circle for SIU, pitching all seven innings, allowing two runs, only one of which was earned and striking out eight Brave batters on 85 pitches. Lucas grabbed her fourth victory from the circle this season to move to a 4-4 record.

Southern Illinois extended the winning streak to five consecutive games and went on to face the Braves again just an hour later in a Friday doubleheader.

MARCH 13: SIU 15, BRADLEY 0

The Saluki offense launched five home runs in the second game of the day, the most SIU has hit in a single

BASEBALL ROUNDUP

game since 2007. Knutson and Williams led the way with two home runs apiece. Williams had three RBIs off of her two dingers and Knutson had five RBIs in the game. Potter had the fifth home run for the Salukis, and 12 home runs on the season.

Lee, Kurtz, co-captain Hailey Wilkerson and outfielder Charley Pursley all recorded a single RBI in the game to total 15 runs for the Dawgs.

A third shutout in four games came from the Saluki pitching staff. Danielson was the starter in the circle, going four innings, allowing one hit and no runs in four innings of work, throwing 54 pitches. Junior pitcher Kaylen Grammer made her first appearance of the season entering the game to throw a scoreless inning in the fifth and secure the run rule victory for the Dawgs. Danielson picked up the win and moved to a perfect 4-0 on the season.

MARCH 14: SIU 7, BRADLEY 5

The Salukis played from behind for the first time all weekend in the third and final game against Bradley. After trailing 2-0 early in the game, the Saluki offense scored 7 straight runs to put them up 7-2. The Braves were able to mount three more runs but fell short and the Salukis were victorious 7-5.

Williams launched another deep fly and had three RBIs in the contest. Williams has seven home runs this season and has driven in 25. Kurtz went yard for the second time this season to total 11 RBIs in the 2026 campaign. Williams had a nine-RBI weekend and the Kurtz home run turned out to be crucial run support for the Salukis. Junior Maleah Blomenkamp had a two hit day at the plate and is hitting .329 on the season.

Delgado threw five innings allowing 3 runs, only one of which was earned and struck out three Bradley batters. Danielson entered the game in the seventh and threw a scoreless inning to secure the win for the Dawgs. Danielson was awarded her second save of the season. Delgado received the win and moved to a 5-2 record on the season.

Southern Illinois has now won seven games straight and remains undefeated at 5-0 in MVC play with a 16-9 overall record. With the loss Bradley is 6-18 and 1-5 in the MVC.

SIU is riding their win streak into a matchup with Illinois State next weekend for a three-game series. A doubleheader on Friday, March 20, will be followed by a third game on Saturday, March 21.

Sports Reporter Aaron Carnahan can be reached at acarnahan@dailyegyptian.com

SIU snags 4 wins in 7-game slate

Going into spring break, the Salukis faced a busy schedule. They competed in the Cambria Classic Tournament in Minnesota, faced SIUE and finished the week by battling Southern Indiana University in a three-game series.

MARCH 6: SIU 9, UNO 1

SIU was one of six participating teams in the Cambria Classic Tournament at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The threegame slate began with the Salukis taking on the Mavericks of the University of Nebraska-Omaha.

Right fielder Kye Watson and designated hitter Henry Kufa got the ball rolling with a pair of singles in the top of the first inning. Shortstop Tim Simay drove in both runners with a two-run double.

Pitcher Andrew Evans dominated in the first start of the tournament, putting up five scoreless frames.

An RBI double off the bat of third baseman Jaden Flores, followed up by a Kufa RBI single, put the Salukis in the driver’s seat, up 5-0.

Watson delivered an RBI single in the fifth, driving in catcher Mason Schwalbach. T. Simay drove in his fourth run in just six innings with another two-run double.

Although the Mavericks tallied a run, the Salukis got off on the right foot with a 9-1 win to begin the tournament.

MARCH 7: UNLV 16, SIU 8

Looking to remain undefeated, the Salukis faced off against the Rebels of the University of Nevada-Las Vegas.

Pitcher Meade Johnson got into an early pickle, allowing a run in the first inning and four in the second.

It took seven innings for the Dawgs to cash in a run. A two-run triple from catcher Jacob McKenzie and a fielder’s choice from designated hitter Michael Mylott plated 3 runs.

The Rebels came up in the eighth and mashed the ball around the diamond. The offensive onslaught produced 10 runs and gave UNLV a 15-3 lead.

The Salukis put up some more lategame runs on a triple from centerfielder Julio Guerrero and a home run from right fielder Kristian Sprawling.

The late effort was enough to cut the lead in half, and the Rebels walked away with a 16-8 victory.

MARCH 8: SIU 5, SDSU 4

The Salukis and the Jackrabbits of South Dakota State University dueled for the last game of the tournament.

Guerrero began the game with an RBI single to put the Salukis up early.

Pitcher Troy Shepard went to work on the mound and gave up an earned and an unearned run in the second inning.

After a lull in the scoring, the Jackrabbits tacked on a run in the fifth and sixth innings.

Kufa, continuing his productive series, closed in on the SDSU three-run lead with an RBI double.

Designated hitter Gabe Petrucelli crushed a ball over the fence, bringing the contest within a run.

Guerrero tied the game in the bottom of the ninth with a sacrifice fly, and the Dawgs were in business.

Flores came up and drew a walkoff walk, and the Salukis rushed the field in celebration.

SIU went 2-1 on the weekend.

MARCH 10: SIUE 16, SIU 6

The one-game battle between the Southern Illinois teams was underway on March 10, and the Salukis got off to a booming start. Watson and first baseman Cecil Lofton each went deep in the top of the first inning, giving the Dawgs an early 3-0 lead.

The Cougars took back a run with a home run of their own in the bottom half of the inning.

Flores drove in a run with an RBI triple and was cashed in via a Watson sacrifice fly.

A run-scoring single from Simay brought the Saluki lead to 6-4 in the third. This marked the end of the scoring for the Dawgs.

The Cougars’ offense erupted for the rest of the game, winning 16-6 in eight innings.

MARCH 13: SIU 10, USI 7

After his dominant outing against UNO, Evans took the mound in the first game against the Screaming Eagles of the University of Southern Indiana on March 13. The towering righthander sent the away team down in just

10 pitches to begin the game.

The Salukis wasted no time getting in on the scoring, batting around the order in the bottom of the first inning. Watson singled to lead off, and was scored by a Lofton RBI double. Guerrero and Schwalbach each tallied an RBI single to keep the line moving. Flores and Watson drew consecutive RBI walks, and the Salukis had a 5-0 lead after an inning.

Petrucelli made it a seven-run affair after roping a two-run double to center field.

The Screaming Eagles made a push with 3 runs over two innings, but home runs by Guerrero and Petrucelli put the contest out of reach.

Despite the opponents putting up 4 late runs, the Salukis took the first game of the series 10-7.

MARCH 14 (G1): SIU 7, USI 4

Looking to snag a series victory over USI, the Salukis sent out Johnson to face the Screaming Eagles in the first of two games on March 14.

Both clubs tallied their first runs in the third inning. SIU got on the board with a Guerrero RBI sacrifice fly.

A few innings went by and, once again, the scoring by the Screaming Eagles was matched by the Dawgs, this time via a Petrucelli RBI single.

The gritty USI offense put up another 2 runs in the top of the eighth, and the Salukis would need some lategame magic to pull out the victory.

The Saluki bats erupted for a five-

run bottom of the eighth. McKenzie and first baseman Kaleb Hall each put up a two-run single, with a run-scoring wild pitch sandwiched between the two knocks.

This late-game surge was enough for the Salukis to secure a 7-4 victory and a series win.

MARCH 14 (G2): USI 6, SIU 3

After a quick intermission, Shepard was ready to take the mound and lead the charge for the Salukis in game two of the doubleheader.

After sending the Screaming Eagles down without harm in the first inning, the SIU pitching staff faced adversity, giving up a run in the second, a run in the fifth, and 2 runs in the eighth inning.

Right fielder Jackson Dibble subbed in and drove in a run with a double to the right-center gap. Guerrero drew an RBI walk, and pinch-hitter Kyle Mager grounded out to drive in the Salukis’ third and last run of the game.

The Salukis were unable to complete the sweep and dropped the third game to the Screaming Eagles, 6-3.

After going 4-3 over spring break, the Salukis hold an 8-10 record.

The recap of the game against the Skyhawks of the University of TennesseeMartin on Tuesday, March 17, will be available at dailyegyptian.com.

Sports Reporter Noah Petschke can be reached at npetschke@dailyegyptian.com

Salukis lose Round 1 of Arch Madness

ELI HOOVER ehoover@dailyegyptian.com

Saluki guard Quel’Ron House stood at the free throw line with 14 seconds left, down 3. If he made both, the Salukis would have a better chance at survival. Instead, their chances dropped to nearly zero as the first free throw fell off the front of the rim.

The Saluki men’s basketball team learned the hard way that it’s hard to beat a time twice when they dropped their first round Arch Madness contest 67-63 against the Drake Bulldogs Thursday, March 5 in St. Louis. The loss ended the Salukis’ season and gave them a 10-11 Missouri Valley Conference record.

“I mean, it’s kind of repeating history throughout the whole year. We’ve lost a lot of close games,” guard Davion Sykes said postgame.

It was a slow start for the Salukis on both sides of the floor. They missed their first seven shots and committed two turnovers on the offensive end while letting the Bulldogs shoot 50% on the defensive end. That resulted in a 6-0 Drake lead after four minutes of play.

House finally took the lid off the basket for the Salukis at the 13:51 mark with a running layup, and SIU seemed to settle down from there. A goaltending and a House 3-pointer brought the Salukis within 11-7 with 11:34 left to play in the first half.

The goaltending that gave forward Jaheem Webber a basket kickstarted an

11-0 run that briefly gave the Dawgs the lead. A 3-pointer from Drake guard Owen Larson made that lead short-lived and put the Bulldogs back up 14-13 with 7:47 remaining in the first half. That Larson 3-pointer did little to slow the Salukis down. They continued their furious pace on offense while locking Drake down on defense. A Sykes dunk forced Bulldogs head coach Eric Henderson to call his first timeout down 22-17 with five minutes left on the clock.

SIU tried to run away with it, but Drake stayed at their hip throughout the rest of the first half. Saluki head coach Scott Nagy took his first 30-second timeout leading 29-25 with 1:12 left until halftime.

SIU forward Rolyns Aligbe and Larson traded baskets to set the score to 31-27 in favor of the Salukis after 20 minutes of play. House led all scorers with 10 points after a half.

A banked-in 3-pointer from Larson showed how the opening of the second half went for the Bulldogs in a nutshell. Even with Drake outshooting them, the Salukis kept a 38-35 lead with 15:47 left in the contest.

After a relatively quiet first half, Drake guard Jalen Quinn took over as the second half took shape. He scored 8 points in the first nine minutes of the half to give Drake a 46-44 lead, their first lead since the score was 11-9 early in the matchup.

Despite briefly tying it up, the Salukis couldn’t get over the hump as the second

Drake guard Jalen Quinn (3) pushes against SIU guard Damien Mayo (10) as he moves towards the basket in the opening round of Arch Madness March 5, 2026 at the Enterprise Center in St. Louis, Missouri.

Lylee

Gibbs | @lyleegibbsphoto

half progressed. Quinn hit a layup while getting fouled to bring the Bulldog lead to 53-50 with 7:05 left in regulation.

The Bulldogs seemingly had put the game away multiple times in the next four minutes of play, but House continued to keep the Salukis in the game, tying his career-high of 26 points with 3:07 still to play and the Dawgs down 61-58.

Sykes split a pair of free throws with 1:25 remaining to cut the Drake lead to 65-61, prompting Nagy to take a timeout to plan the rest of the game. After, House

made a layup to shrink the lead to two points with 28.5 seconds left, prompting another Saluki timeout. Quinn split two free throws on the other end to give the Salukis a chance, but House’s missed free throw put the nail in the Saluki coffin. Quinn split another pair to give the Bulldogs a 67-63 victory.

In what has been a rough shooting season for the Salukis, this game was no different. SIU struggled to a 4-25 mark from distance, a 39% shooting percentage from the floor and a 33%

mark from the free throw line.

“Going four for 25 from three, and three for nine from the free throw line, makes it really hard to win games,” Nagy said. House led all scorers with a careerhigh 28 points. He was joined in double figures by Sykes (11).

The Salukis end the 2025-2026 season at an even 16-16.

Sports reporter Eli Hoover can be found at ehoover@dailyegyptian.com or on Instagram @hoovermakesart

SIU falls short during Hoops in the Heartland

LEO CASTRO lcastro@dailyegyptian.com

The No. 8 ranked Southern Illinois Women’s basketball team faced off against No. 9 Indiana State in the opening round of Hoops in the Heartland on Thursday, March 12. Both teams entered the match looking to advance, but the Salukis took a first round exit after being outscored by the Sycamores 81-69.

The jump ball was lost by Southern Illinois and so was their first point to Indiana State. However, Indya Green

would run a 6-point streak with her layups two minutes in, assisted by her teammates Kayla Cooper and Alayna Krause. Both teams kept a consistent pace through the first quarter, as they traded runs and scores. Krause shot jumpers that ranged from 8 to 17 feet. The intense flow toward the end of the quarter kept the Salukis within just one play of gaining the lead on the Sycamores with a close 25-23 score.

Moving into the second quarter, energy not quite like the first took over

both teams. A deep 3-point jumper by Karris Allen would give the Salukis their first point of the quarter about three minutes in. A much slower paced quarter of the game would be evident as only 13 points would come from Indiana State and 6 from Southern Illinois during the ten minutes. Coming out of half time, the Sycamores started heavy with 5 points within the first minute, creating a small distance for breathing room. Quick back and forth banter took place going into the seventh

minute with each team trading equal points, however SIU seemed to stay behind despite their effort. With each Saluki point, it never seemed to not be followed up with a Sycamore score.

The last quarter of the game started with Salukis down 57-54. Keeping up with ISU, Jeniah Thompson dropped a jumper to put the Dawgs just 1 point away from tying the game with eight minutes left. However, a powerful 9-point jump to the Sycamores’ score was a big push for a wide gap in points between the two teams.

With time running out, close plays were farther and farther from being grasped. Five points from Krause were the last of the Salukis points as the game came to a close for the Southern Illinois women’s basketball season. The Salukis were bested by the Sycamores with a final score of 81-69.

The team finished with an overall record of 10-20.

Sports Reporter Leo Castro can be reached at lcastro@dailyegyptian.com

Sydney Potter turning heads on the diamond

looking for and what she was looking for, culturally, were perfect fits.”

SIU softball’s junior catcher Sydney Potter made her way behind home plate at Charlotte West Stadium on Friday, March 6, for her first official game in Carbondale, but she had already made her mark in the minds of the Saluki faithful.

“She’s not a big on-field personality, she speaks with her actions,” Saluki head coach Jen Sewell said in an interview with the Daily Egyptian. Potter’s actions this season have already included towering home runs and throwing out baserunners on defense.

After missing out on recruiting Potter out of high school, Sewell was ecstatic to have another shot at bringing her to Carbondale once Potter entered the transfer portal this past summer.

“Once you recruit a kid and lose them to somewhere else, you always have them in the back of your mind, keeping a list of people that might come back around,” Sewell said. “I thought what we were

Potter knew SIU was where she wanted to play once she came to Carbondale for a visit.

“I had some visits lined up after (SIU) I ended up cancelling, just because I really enjoyed my visit here,” she said.

After only one weekend in a Saluki uniform, Potter had already received three individual accolades. She won the Missouri Valley Conference’s Player and Newcomer of the Week awards, along with D1Softball’s Mid-Major Player of the Week.

She won those accolades after hitting a home run in all five games of the Florida Gulf Coast University Kickoff Classic and catching all weekend. Being able to get back to catching was a big part of why Potter left Creighton — where she played the past two years — for SIU.

“I caught all through high school, that’s what I was wanting to do in college, unfortunately that wasn’t the role

Creighton needed me to play,” she said to the DE. “To be able to come here and be catching as much as I have has been a lot of fun and it’s definitely increased my love for the game, being able to go back to the position I love to play.”

Potter has made a difference behind the dish for the Dawgs so far this year, getting pitchers strikes they might not get with a different catcher.

“She’s an elite receiver, she fools us sometimes,” Sewell said. “I think we were a bit shocked with how good, defensively, she was.”

According to Potter, the connection between her and the pitchers off the field has been a huge reason she’s been so successful defensively.

“Becoming friends outside of the sport I feel like definitely helps us on the field because I now know what makes them tick and what gets them fired up, ” she said.

Even with how impressive Potter has been on the defensive side of the game, her offense is what drew Sewell to her in

the first place.

“She’s pretty obvious on film,” Sewell said. “You have to hit the ball pretty hard for it to show up (on film).”

Potter has lit up scoreboards across North America early on this season, already tallying 11 home runs and 18 runs batted in to go along with a .319 batting average through 22 games.

“I feel like this has been the best my swing has felt, like ever, since I’ve started playing softball,” Potter said.

Potter’s swing is largely where it is thanks to coaching from Sewell and the rest of the coaching staff, according to Potter herself, but not before studying her swing all fall.

“It felt like she was seeing me as an individual player instead of trying to morph the whole team into one specific swing,” Potter said.

Softball America took notice of how well Potter played in February, and named her the fifth-best catcher in all of college softball heading into March, and Sewell

doesn’t think the awards will stop there.

“Obviously I think she’ll be a candidate for some big awards at the end of the year,” Sewell said.

Potter, on the other hand, isn’t worried about awards at the moment.

“I try not to put specific expectations on myself. I try more to focus on how I’m feeling with my swing and keeping myself healthy,” she said.

One thing they can both agree on: How badly Potter wants to win an MVC title.

“I think what she wants more than anything is a championship,” Sewell said. Potter agreed, saying it’s something everyone in the program expects.

“I definitely think we are capable of winning the conference outright,” Potter added. “I think that’s the standard coaches have for us.”

Roller derby skates through southern Illinois

Southern Illinois Gremlins competed against the Clarksville Roller Derby team on Saturday, March 14, 2026 at the Pavilion in Marion, Illinois. The initial match was followed by a scrimmage match with skaters from across southern Illinois.

The Gremlins were defeated by Clarksville with an overwhelming score of 184-90. In roller derby, scoring is achieved by a designated jammer – wearing a star helmet cover – who scores one point for every opposing blocker or pivot they pass, provided they are upright and in-bounds. The first jammer to break through the pack on the initial pass becomes the lead jammer, allowing them to end the twominute jam early. Jams are like rounds in roller derby.

The more humorous side of roller derby derives from the choosing of names and numbers.

Player names like: Midlife Crisis, Mulan Bruise, Booty Popper, Atta

Kontrol, Scrappy Gilmore, The Great Catsby, Doctor WhoA, Toxic Waist, Smaxolotl and Professor Plum Crazy are pun-oriented, while others may describe the player exactly.

For example roller derby player Scott Sharon (Big Poppa, 247) said of his name: “I’m a big person and I have five kids.”

Roller derby is an extremely physical sport that requires precise movements and training.

“Before you ever make contact with anybody, you learn a lot, like how to fall, proper ways to do it,” Clarksville player Charmaine Coles (Beastmode, 100) said. “They learn footwork, endurance and things like that.”

With the physicality comes injuries. Many players have been injured before, like roller derby player and coach Elizabeth Messerschmidt (Dead Pirate Robin, 6Fingers).

“I hyper-extended my wrist, my thumb touched my forearm,”

Messerschmidt said. “It was just a sprain and I wear bigger wrist guards now.”

There was a severe injury during the scrimmage match that resulted in a broken leg, and a trip to the ER via ambulance. Some players have gone years without any major injuries, like Beastmode, who has only broken a pinkie finger in her 14 years of playing.

Most players agreed the community and family is their favorite part of roller derby.

Player Mindy Reach (Professor Plum Crazy, 13) said her favorite element of the sport is the community.

“Everybody’s very supportive and you get to know a lot of other people from other leagues,” she said.

Messerschmidt has a tattoo symbolizing the sense of family that she gets from roller derby.

“This is like family,” she said of her teammates and players. “I’ve gone to court with these people to testify, and helped people move into houses in roller derby neighborhoods.”

After each match is concluded,

both teams are awarded individual Most Valuable Player in their respective positions, including Most Valuable Jammer, Most Valuable Blocker and Most Valuable Pivot. After awards,

ACROSS

1- Michigan college

5- German philosopher

9- To be, at the Louvre

13- Grumbles

15- Braggarts have big ones

16- Jones of jazz

17- Dracula, for one

18- Expose

19- Like Death Valley

20- Feign disinterest, 4 words

23- High ball

24- Adorable

25- Compensate for

29- Having no cost, in Germany

31- Landed (on)

32- Popular fashion magazine

34- Mentioned

guage

53- Practise for Macbeth, say 3 words

59- “It’s Impossible” singer

60- Rancho hand

39- Dungeons and Dragons, for example, 3 words

42- 1965 march site

43- Prefix with European

44- Big name in household humor

45- It’s a long story

47- Mischievous one

49- Uninteresting

52- Programming lan-

61- Upset, 2 words

63- R&B offshoot

64- Potato of the tropics

65- “Keep ___ to the ground”, 2 words

66- Hungarian patriot Nagy

67- Reach across

68- Word on monuments DOWN

1- Onetime Jeep maker, abbr.

2- Roller coaster feature

3- Injure badly

4- Dancer Pavlova

5- Meat on a stick

6- Petri dish filler

7- N, on a French map

8- Fearsome fly

9- Floor, in a French building

10- The ____ Degrees (Motown group)

11- Country singer,

Bonnie

12- Reds great Roush

14- Sauveness

21- The Ritz, for one

22- Having a debt to 25- Sculls

26- Ice sheet

27- Plug

28- Flower stalk

29- Actor Errol

30- Chiefs’ coach

33- Refuge

35- A long time

36- Cleopatra’s love ___ Antony

37- Actress Watson of the “Harry Potter” movies

38- Card game start

40- “Major ___” (1995 Damon Wayans film)

41- Bellini opera

46- Makes fit for a new purpose

48- Beginning

49- Sweep

50- Monkey

51- Stuck, in __ ___ , 2 words

52- Inert gas

54- Bring in

55- Short-billed rail

56- Russian river

57- Rate ___ (be perfect)- 2 words

58- Chinese money

59- Evidence collectors on TV

62- Old hand

PUZZLE PAGE

*To play Sudoku, fill a 9x9 grid with digits 1 through 9 so that each row, each column, and each 3x3 subgrid contains each number exactly once.