Screaming Eagles clinch series win with doubleheader sweep Friday
EVANSVILLE, Ind. – University of Southern Indiana Softball kicked off the start of a six-game homestand Friday with a doubleheader sweep to clinch a series win against Tennessee Tech University, winning 5-1 and 3-0 from USI Softball Field.
Southern Indiana (8-17, 5-5 OVC), who had been on the road for the previous six games in the last couple of weeks, came out with a bang in the bottom of the first inning in Friday’s first game. After a pair of free passes, senior infielder Whitley Hunter barreled up a three-run home run to left field to put the Screaming Eagles up early, 3-0. It was Hunter’s first career home run in a USI uniform.
USI tacked onto its lead in the bottom of the fourth. After three consecutive singles to load the bases, sophomore infielder Sydney Long shot a pitch back up the middle to drive in a pair of runs and push the Screaming Eagles’ advantage up to 5-0.
Tennessee Tech (10-22, 4-7 OVC) tallied an unearned run in the sixth, but senior pitcher Josie Newman sealed the deal with her 11th complete game this season.
Newman (5-10) struck out six and gave up only two hits and the unearned run. Offensively, USI totaled nine hits in game one with freshman first baseman Lilly Brown recording two hits and sophomore outfielder Kate Satkoski going 3-3 at the plate.
For the Golden Eagles, sophomore starting pitcher Emily York (4-6) was dealt the loss after surrendering all five runs in 3.1 innings pitched. Senior pitcher Payton Wagner tossed the last 2.2 innings.
The second game of the twin bill started out in a pitcher’s duel between Tennessee Tech’s freshman pitcher Lainey Fitzgerald and USI’s freshman pitcher Kylie Witthaus. There were only four combined singles allowed through the first three and a half innings.
USI ended the scoreless battle in the home half of the fourth inning. With the bases loaded, junior outfielder Caroline Stapleton delivered a two-out RBI single to give the Screaming Eagles a 1-0 lead. Stapleton registered two hits in the game.
After Witthaus kept the shutout intact in the fifth and sixth innings, Southern Indiana added some insurance in the bottom of the sixth with a run on an RBI triple by Satkoski who later came home to score on a wild pitch to make it a 3-0 lead for USI.
Witthaus finished the game to improve to 3-6 on the season, notched her fifth complete game this season, and also pitched her first career shutout and first of the season for USI. Witthaus struck out four and allowed only four hits in the outing.
Tennessee Tech’s Fitzgerald also went the distance, dropping to 3-6 after surrendering three runs with eight strikeouts in six innings of work.
Southern Indiana will aim to collect a series sweep on Saturday in the series finale. First pitch for Saturday’s game at USI Softball Field has been moved up to 9:30 a.m. due to rain in the afternoon forecast.
Saturday’s game can be heard on The Spin 95.7 FM. Additional coverage can be found at usiscreamingeagles.com.
Capability to multitask, including managing a high volume of calls, monitoring fire panels, locating and updating on-call staff schedules, and following…
The Storm Prediction Center says there’s an enhanced risk for widespread severe weather and tornadoes on Sunday. Some storms may produce very large hail as big as golf balls.
Strong tornadoes and 75mph straight-line winds will also be possible.
The storms are likely to fire up on Sunday afternoon
CenterPoint Energy is actively monitoring severe weather threat.
CenterPoint Energy is closely monitoring weather forecasts and preparing for potential storm impacts in southwestern Indiana. According to the National Weather Service, there is potential for severe weather beginning Sunday afternoon and continuing into Sunday night. The forecast calls for numerous showers and thunderstorms, with the possibility of large hail, damaging winds, isolated tornadoes and heavy rainfall that could lead to localized flooding.
“We are closely watching the evolving forecast and taking the necessary precautions,” said Shane Bradford, CenterPoint’s Vice President, Indiana Electric. “Our teams are focused on readying our operations so we can respond quickly and safely if outages occur.”
As part of its preparations, CenterPoint is taking steps to enhance its readiness and support restoration efforts, including:
· Monitoring internal weather forecasts, along with reports from the National Weather Service and local weather outlets
· Taking inventory of materials and readying equipment to support potential system repairs
· Evaluating timing and initial plans for mobilizing crews and resources based on forecasts
CenterPoint encourages customers to take steps to prepare for severe weather:
· Stay informed: Monitor local weather updates and alerts from the National Weather Service. Follow CenterPoint on Facebook and X (formerly Twitter) for updates.
· Downed power line safety: Stay at least 35 feet away from downed power lines and report them by calling 800-227-1376.
· Prepare an emergency kit: Keep flashlights, batteries, water, medications and a battery-powered phone charger ready.
YOU SHALL KNOW THE TRUTH THE TRUTH WILL SET YOU FREE (JOHN 8:32)
Jesus was born in Palestine and did much of his teaching there about 2,000 years ago.
The words Jesus spoke were so offensive to the chief Jewish scribes and priests they called upon the Romans to crucify him even though he had committed no crime except, “He stirs up the people, teaching throughout all Judea, from Galilee even to this place” (Luke 23:5). Actually he was just calling for peace and justice.
The Chief Pharisee, Joseph Caiaphas, and his ruling Judaic council charged Jesus with
heresy and asked the Romans to try him. The Roman rulers, Pontius Pilate and King Herod,
could find no fault in his behavior and planned to release him. Pilate then called together the chief priests and the religious rulers and the populace, to tell them Jesus would be released. “But they were urgent, demanding with loud cries that he should be crucified” (Luke 22:6-25). So, Jesus was crucified for expressing views those in power in the Sanhedrin found offensive.
Those eye witness accounts as reported in the Bible come from the famous authors of the Gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, all of whom were Jewish. Ergo, the knee jerk response of contemporary society and Trump’s White House that they were being anti semitic would lie fallow.
The Romans, much like those today in American academia who caved to the financial
threats from the Trump Administration, just washed their hands of the matter (Matthew 27:11-26). However, the shame of shirking the most sacred duty of a college, that is, preserving the free flow of ideas, cannot be so easily cleansed.
Another Palestinian activist, Mahmoud Khalil, who advocates in America today for peace
and justice in Palestine and Israel has not been charged with any crime, but is currently
imprisoned in America for exercising his First Amendment right to free speech, principally
during his tenure at Columbia University. He was arrested by the power of President Donald Trump’s Executive Branch that disagrees with Khalil’s calls for peace in Gaza and an end to the slaughter by the Zionists of over 50,000 Palestinians, mainly civilians. Khalil’s peaceful support for the resistance of the Palestinian people from 1948 until now to the military actions and occupations by Israel in Palestine, Egypt, Iran, Syria, Lebanon, the West Bank and Yemen is at odds with the positions of the Trump and Zionist Israeli administrations.
The myopic view of Israel’s Zionistic actions over the past seventy-seven years is
reminiscent of lessons from Hans Christian Andersen’s 1837 fairy tale, The Emperor’s New
Clothes. Just as a narcissistic ruler is conned into parading naked before an adoring crowd until an innocent child exposes his vanity, Presidents Biden and Trump find no fault with the Zionists in Israel. That is the very purpose of the First Amendment, to expose the truth.
When our government will brook no dissent nor even consider opposing views, great
harm and even greater injustice may occur. Protests and free speech in a non-violent academic atmosphere are vital to preserving our democracy. Just as our Founders feared, a silenced majority leads to tyranny from a minority.
Many Jewish people at Columbia University, and in much of the rest of the world, agree
with Khalil or, at a minimum, believe he has the right to peaceably, publicly express his views.
In America, Free Speech is not anti-semitic or pro-Palestinian; it is an essential element to
preserving our democracy. As the Jewish and Roman rulers of 2,000 years ago discovered,
power abused can lead to rights denied and even a country being destroyed. 1948 might have been a new beginning for Israel, but it may not survive the Zionist dream of total conquest of its neighbors in the Middle East while being abetted by our government, much of the media and academia.
The First Amendment to our Constitution is first because our Founders knew it is vital to
democracy. When our institutions sell their principles for money or succumb to fear of speaking the truth because they may be branded anti-semitic, we may eventually reap the whirlwind, perhaps even a nuclear one.
Education bill targets social-emotional learning and teaching of cultural competency
By Anna Cecil, TheStatehouseFile.com
During Wednesday’s Senate Education and Career Development Committee meeting, senators from both sides of the aisle proposed amendments to the now approximately 135-page education legislation House Bill 1002.
Only the amendments called by Republicans prevailed.
Social-emotional learning
Sen. Gary Byrne, R-Byrneville, proposed and passed Amendment 32, which will repeal social-emotional learning (SEL), trauma-informed care (TIC) and cultural competency teaching and training requirements for teachers in Indiana public schools. Byrne said getting rid of these programs will open more room for teachers to focus on the subjects they are teaching.
He said this amendment is in line with the bill’s overall purpose, which is to decrease regulations on Hoosier schools and educators.
SEL is the term neuroscientists use to describe the way children obtain skills like responsible decision making, self- and social awareness, and relationship management.
Currently, Indiana has seven SEL competencies: sensory motor integration, insight, regulation, collaboration, connection, critical thinking, and mindset—only regulation, collaboration and connection are required to be taught.
“Teachers are not therapists, nor should they be treated as such,” he said. “Trained, licensed mental health professionals are better equipped to handle the social, emotional aspects of a student’s life.”
Sen. J.D. Ford, D-Indianapolis, said he could not support Byrne’s amendment because SEL helps students improve their academic performance and mental health and build strong relationships.
Sen. Fady Qaddoura, D-Indianapolis, said Bryne’s amendment implied that teachers should ignore the social and emotional needs of their students, which may not allow them to reach their full potential.
Byrne’s response was that teachers taught sufficiently before SEL was codified into Indiana law, and that since it has been required, students have been worse off emotionally.
“This type of training is not helping,” Byrne said. “And again, we see our test scores and everything else falling down. I think what this is doing is just deregulation, going back to what we used to do, when teachers had more time to work on academics.”
“If you don’t see teachers fulfilling that role, do you see other professionals in the school system that can fill that role?” Qaddoura asked Byrne, after reminding him of the importance of emotional intelligence, especially when students enter the workforce.
Byrne said it is up to a child’s parents to equip them with those skills.
Sen. Andrea Hunley, D-Indianapolis, said the General Assembly’s repeal of SEL teaching and training does not mean teachers should stop doing it. She added that knowledge of students’ diverse cultural experiences, which ties into SEL, is still important.
“I want to be really clear to anyone who’s listening to testimony today that just because we strike this out of the bill and say it’s no longer the policy of the state of Indiana doesn’t mean that it’s not best practice,” Hunley said.
Curricular materials
Sen. Linda Rodgers, R-Granger, proposed and passed Amendment 29, which would allow the governing body of a public school or the organizer of a charter school to decide which fees are reasonable to charge families for school supplies that are not curricular materials.
During the 2023 legislative session, the state budget allocated $160 million to cover textbook and curriculum fees for parents of school children. Rodgers said since then, schools have been confused about what they are allowed to charge parents for. Her amendment aims to clarify this.
Sen. Shelli Yoder, D-Bloomington, said she would like to speak with her school corporations before supporting it.
“This seems substantive,” she said. “We have not had an opportunity to really discuss this or hear what impact it is going to (have).”
Qaddoura was concerned that the amendment might create more fees for families.
“I want to be on the side of the parents that we fought for in the last 20 years to get to the point that we can alleviate the pain for families to pay hundreds of dollars,” he said. “I feel that now this is a reversal.”
Hunley said the amendment will not fix the fact that the original budget did not allocate enough money to cover curricular costs. Like Yoder, Hunley wanted to discuss the issue more thoroughly because she did not think the amendment was clear about which material school corporations might begin charging parents for.
“We just have to make sure that our parents are being protected about what types of costs are being passed on,” Hunley said. “We need this to be as specific and as clear as possible. … It’s also about making sure that as a state, we are doing our part to ensure that school districts aren’t in a bind where they have to pass costs onto families.”
Secretary of education requirements
During previous meetings, the Education and Career Development Committee debated the necessary requirements for the governor-appointed state secretary of education. Earlier this month, the committee learned the secretary never has to be a Hoosier to hold office.
This inspired Yoder to author Amendment 26, which would require the secretary of education to reside in Indiana once they are appointed.
Her amendment failed, only receiving votes from fellow Democrats on the committee.
Committee Chair Sen. Jeff Raatz, R-Centerville, said as a sponsor of the bill, he could not support Yoder’s amendment because it goes against the author’s intent of deregulation.
“I don’t even understand how this is a deregulation issue,” Yoder said. “I think it’s a respect-for-Hoosiers issue.”
Yoder pointed out that, earlier in session, the Senate agreed Property Tax Assessment Board of Appeals (PTABOA) members must live in Indiana. She said the secretary of education should meet that requirement as well.
“Why would we let the secretary of education work remotely from another state or another country?” she asked the committee. “They are going to receive payment by Hoosiers.”
On the House floor in January, representatives attempted to increase the prerequisites for the person appointed to be secretary of education, like requiring two years of administrative educational experience. This attempt failed, leaving it up to the governor to pick the person they think will do the job best.
On Wednesday, Ford proposed an amendment that would require the individual to have a bachelor’s degree. It failed, also only receiving votes from his fellow Democratic senators.
“All I’m asking to do is just say, ‘Hey, if you’re going to be the secretary of education, which is one of the largest state agencies, lots of state dollars in our budget, the least we could do is have that person possess a bachelor’s degree,’” Ford said.
Evansville Thunderbolts Bring Smiles and Support to Peyton Manning Children’s Hospital Evansville
Visit highlights community opportunity to support pediatric patients
Evansville, IN – The Evansville Thunderbolts made a heartwarming visit to Peyton Manning Children’s Hospital Evansville this week, bringing smiles to young patients and raising awareness for their upcoming charitable event, “Give Back Night.” This meaningful initiative underscores the Thunderbolts commitment to making a positive impact on the community they call home.
During yesterday’s visit, team members Jordan Simoneau, Benjamin Lindberg, Ethan Price, and Nolan McElhaney spent time interacting with the patients by building an astronaut out of blocks, painting and spreading joy throughout the hospital.
“Having the Evansville Thunderbolts visit our hospital today was a truly special experience for our patients,” said Dr. Wendy Woodard, Pediatric Hospitalist and Medical Director at Peyton Manning Children’s Hospital Evansville. “Their visit today means so much to these kids and their families, reminding them that they have a community rallying behind them.”
The visit highlighted the upcoming fundraiser this Sunday, March 30, at the Ford Center, where $5 from every ticket sold will go directly to support Peyton Manning Children’s Hospital Evansville.
“It was great to get out and see these kids and put a smile on their faces and they put a smile on our faces as well,” said Evansville Thunderbolts forward Jordan Simoneau. “It means the world that we can give back to everyone in the community in this way.”
Discounted tickets are available for $16 and can be purchased, on our website at
https://give.stvincent.org/events/Thunderbolts or by mentioning Peyton Manning Children’s Hospital at the Ford Center Ticket Box Office. Doors open at 2:15 p.m. and the puck drops at 3:00 p.m.
