THURSDAY, FEB. 13, 2025
VOLUME 99 ISSUE 7
NEWS
LA VIDA
OPINION
SPORTS
NEWS
Three Texas Tech professors were awarded research grants from the American Heart Association in January. All three are working on projects in different fields.
First-year graduate student Daniel Mensah from Ghana uses inspiration from hip-hop and American culture to create art through a graffiti medium.
Gen Z seems to be falling out of love with Valentine’s Day, and The DT’s Alexandria Serratti explains how to reignite the spark.
Texas Tech junior baseball catcher Dylan Maxcey earned the solidified starting spot after two years of learning from the team.
L a w m a ke r s c u t f u n d s f r o m the Department of Education on Monday and the future of its resources is up for consideration.
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CLUB SPORTS
Tech rowing paddles past obstacles for team growth By GRACE HAWKINS L a Vida Editor
What started as a small group of Texas Tech students passionate about rowing has quickly evolved into a devoted team competing in regattas and facing the challenges of funding, equipment and competitors. The Tech Rowing Club, started in May 2024 by student Xavier Lewis, consists of 18 members — five women and 13 men — and is aiming to expand to about 30 members. Braedyn Canny, the team's treasurer, is one of the five women rowers. Canny, a sophomore astrophysics and mechanical engineering major from Tuckerton, New Jersey, said her goal is to get more women on the rowing team. “The problem is that sometimes we don't technically have enough for a four (a boat with four rowers and a coxswain),” Canny said. “When your membership is as low and circumstances can change at any moment, it’s a possibility that the women won't get to race at all.” The team started doing regattas (rowing competitions) in October. Michael Bohr, captain of the team and a junior engineering student from Houston, said they already have seen a vast improvement. In November, the team secured a winning medal in a race against Baylor. However, as the team continues to succeed, its members are seeking new equipment, Canny said. Because of the high cost of the sport, the team uses hand-medowns from other schools to keep
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From front to back, Texas Tech students Michael Bohr, Blayne Bradford, James Simmons and Braedyn Canny, row a five-man boat on Buffalo Springs Lake Feb.6 2025.
its operation costs lower. Although the team does have a membership fee ranging from $50 to $250, it doesn’t receive any financial contribution from Tech. “We get our boats as a donation from other clubs, so we don't often get the most top-of-the-line boats. I think that our first eight-person boat was from 1993,” Canny said. “It came from UT, and UT gave it to A&M, and A&M gave it to us.” Hoping for Tech’s support and more members joining the team, Bohr said he wants to see more equipment to ensure safety as the team continues to grow. “I would like us to eventually have a boat house because currently our boats are stored outside,” Bohr
said. “I was out there working on the boat the other night and was greeted by three coyotes. If there was a boat house, that wouldn't happen.” Nonetheless, Bohr said he loves the sport and is passionate about being in a team environment and helping fellow rowers grow. The beginner-friendly team has seen growth in members who are new to the sport. Despite the sport being physically and mentally demanding, Canny said she remembers just starting out rowing and thriving on words of encouragement from team members. “When I first joined, I felt like I was horrible, but compliments
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from team members and coaches– from Michael specifically,” Canny said. “Words of encouragement are definitely what our team runs off of because there's not much else.” Rowing on Buffalo Springs Lake, surrounded by the canyon and a sunset-painted sky, is an experience unlike any other, Bohr said. “You're in the middle of a canyon on the water and the sun's either going up or it's going down, so you're catching the West Texas sky, with people you care about, doing something you love,” Bohr said. “It's like you're one with the boat and you're one with others, It's like you guys are a car and you're revving an engine.” The team is focused not only
McMillian’s character promotes team morale Sports Reporter
ALESSANDRA RIOS/The Daily Toreador
The Lubbock Economic Develpment Alliance is working to revitalize the city’s downtown landscape through studentretention programs intended to invite post-graduates to move to the Hub City.
LEDA works to increase city’s post-graduation retention rates Staff Writer
Lubbock Economic Development Alliance is striving to secure and expand its impact on college students through focused programs and marketing strategies that promote student retention in the Hub City after graduation. LEDA is an organization that works closely with both existing and prospective businesses in Lubbock, with the goal of promoting economic and community development. According to its website, LEDA works to provide data regarding the city’s economy, market the community, and address workforce-related issues among other objectives. John Osborne, president and CEO of LEDA, said the college atmosphere in Lubbock provides a multitude of necessary additions
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BASKETBALL
By CORY WHITMAN
By LOGAN NEAL
on expanding its equipment and resources but also on building a strong foundation and a legacy for rowing at Tech. “I would like to leave behind a team that's going to see growth and improvement,” Bohr said. “Something that I could come back to in 10 years and look at it and, ‘I was a part of that.’” The team utilizes the rowing machines at Tech’s Rec Center every weekday and gets out on the water at Buffalo Springs Lake two to three times a week. For more information about the team, visit its Instagram page or website.
to the local economy. “The fact that they eat and shop, they’re getting their haircuts, they’re going out with friends, doing all the things that college students do brings all this money,” Osborne said. “Businesses love a young generation also because that’s your workforce. It’s also your future CEOs, and you all bring a fresh set of ideas and solutions to challenges.” With one of the largest demographics in Lubbock falling within the 20-24 year old age bracket, according to the 2023 Census Bureau records, the development of the city’s economy and community is largely dependent on the input of the college population. In recognizing the importance of fostering and maintaining a strong college centric culture, LEDA has made keeping students in Lubbock post graduation a
priority. Osborne said it is the goal of the company to create an atmosphere that is appealing to young adults even after their collegiate careers are over. “The City of Lubbock and LEDA have focused tremendously on improvements to our community that fall in line with what these younger generations are looking for and want, and we’re as fast as we can trying to develop those assets,” Osborne said. Jillian Guinn, the social media coordinator of LEDA, said one of the ways the company hopes to reach college-age adults is through social media. The goal is to use these platforms to highlight different appeals Lubbock may provide. “Through our socials, I really try to give a realistic view of what life in Lubbock is like, whether SEE RED RAIDERS, PG. 6
Most post-game conferences with head coach Grant McCasland detail where the Texas Tech men’s basketball team can improve. However, on Jan. 18, the conference went beyond its traditional routine. Behind a broken-up voice and watery eyes, McCasland detailed not what his team learned from him but what he and the Red Raiders absorbed from super-senior guard Chance McMillian. McCasland said his heartfelt reaction to McMillian stems from hard work in practice, games and in life. “He’s really inspirational for me because I hope t h a t I ’m l i k e Chance,” McCasland said on the verge of tears. “Not just as a coach, but in life. The reason why our team is winning is because of him.” McMillian committed to transfer to Tech just 21 days after McCasland was announced to
be the head coach of the program. McMillian is in his second season as a Red Raider, previously attending Grand Canyon University for three years. While at Grand Canyon, McMillian averaged seven points per game off of 20 minutes per contest. Since moving to West Texas under McCasland, McMillian has nearly doubled his points at 13 per game and averages 31 minutes per matchup, according to Tech Athletics. McMillian said the belief McCasland has instilled in him has elevated his game and frame of mind while at the Red Raider program. “It tells me that he really trusts me with the team,” McMillian said. “So I’m gonna try and do my best with my part to make sure the team is straight no matter what it is, off the court, on the court. No matter what it is.” SEE BASKETBALL, PG. 5