Students enjoy a free meal of pizza and cake outside the Student Rec Center at NIRSA's 60th birthday celebration on Feb. 22. Photo by Christa Connelly/Daily Titan Photo Editor.

The Cal State Fullerton Student Recreation Center (SRC) joined the celebration of the National Intramural-Recreational Sports Association’s (NIRSA) 60th anniversary on Feb. 22.

Students were offered a free buffet of pizza, cake and various beverages and were invited to participate in activity stations.

The SRC highlighted the rock climbing tower “El Capitan” along with an X-box station featuring recreational type games and a “Meet the Trainers” station, where students were able to get their body fat measured while becoming familiar with the personal training program offered at the SRC.

Intramural sports coordinator Albert Betran prepares slices of cake for students. Photo by Christa Connelly/Photo by Daily Titan Photo Editor.

Students must have been members of the SRC in order to participate in the programs and facilities offered, said Vanessa Solarzane, senior business major and clerical assistant at the SRC. “So a bunch of people came in and signed up,” she added.

Awareness of the SRC is low, according to Ashley Indge, senior kinesiology major and rock wall attendant.

“I think a lot of people think it’s only for big work out buffs,” she said. “But it’s important to come here and see what’s new.”

NIRSA supports intramural sports and sports clubs with a national collegiate championship series, said Albert Beltran, Intramural Sports Coordinator and Cal State Fullerton alumnus.

It’s a resource for collegiate recreational sports that promotes wellness and fitness programs in recreational facilities.

Students who participate in the intramural and recreational sports program at the SRC get the opportunity to play against different teams in their region and bid to continue on to the national championships, said Beltran.

NIRSA also offers scholarships to students who are interested in becoming recreational professionals.

The association helps those individuals get their initiation and dues paid in order for them to go to the conferences that NIRSA offers, said Beltran.

It also provides sponsorship opportunities.

Currently, CSUF is working with Cliff Bar and Luna energy bars in a joint-participation promotion.

“They provide us with all of the energy bars to pass out and promote,” Beltran said. “Then the school gets money for doing the promotion for them.”

NIRSA is focused on promoting the benefits of participation in recreational sports.

“Intramural sports are a good opportunity for those students that played sports in high school that might not have had the skills or abilities to play at the collegiate level,” said Beltran. “They can still go out and play the sports they love.”

It’s also a socializing tool, according to Indge.

“It’s really good to meet new people and get involved in activities,” she said.

The SRC sets up games and organizes scheduling for intramural teams, while the players run the teams.

“There are no scheduled practices,” Beltran explained. “All we do is set up the leagues and the times to play. Scheduled practices are up to them.”

Intramural sports are more structured way of playing when compared to recreational sports. Intramural sports have set teams and set game times while recreational sports are during open recreation hours and are pick up games between students that are present.

Recreational sports are for the most part, a leisure activity that act as stress relief. Beltran believes the activities are beneficial to the student today.

“There are studies that have shown that sports and working out are an excellent way of relieving stress,” he said. “So many students have to work full time and go to class full time. This is an opportunity for them to escape from that.”

After having two weeks off due to rain complications, CSUF finally had a day of clear skies and a solid field to work with.

With six different players scoring a try, hard work was certainly put forth.

“They were a tough team,” said junior forward Kevin DeNatale. “When the forwards control the rucks, like we did today, it allows the backs to get the ball.”

The Titans were indeed aggressive in controlling the pace of the game.

Within the opening minutes of the game, a knockout from midfield was driven to the 20-yard line, causing a massive pile-up.

Solid rucking by the forwards allowed the ball to find its way out of the mess and to be swung into the left corner for the first try of the game for the Titans.

A couple minutes later, the hunt continued as Titan junior back Ian Forner jolted down the left-hand side at midfield. As Aztec players came charging at him head on, he made a smart play and kicked it ahead by popping the ball over the players.

Sophomore back Jourdan Hilaire found the ball on the third bounce for a try.

“We utilized our speed and back-play more than (before),” said freshman back Taylor Edwards, who scored the next try off a 20-yard line kick ahead by fellow senior back Pete Petty.

Before the half, SDSU was able to score their one and only try for the game over a solid pile-up on the try line finally collapsed in coverage.

CSUF did not allow the lead to affect their play, as they came rushing onto the field after halftime and set up Forner for an easy conversion.

Despite kicking it back to SDSU, the ball seemed magnetized to the hands of CSUF players as senior forward and team captain Jonathan Arroyave got the ball back within moments. He ran into a ruck for a quick popoff pass to fellow senior forward Randy Odhiambo, who pitched the ball back out to Arroyave on the far left side, leaving a pile of stunned SDSU players on the ground and an open path to take it in for another CSUF try.

As much success as the CSUF squad had in the game, they always strive for more.

Head Coach Phil Grieve still sees the team as having reached a mere 30 percent of its potential so far this season.

“We still have a bit of an individual game out there and need more focusing, relaxing and technical support,” said Grieve, who hopes to lead CSUF from a Div. III to Div. II program this year.

The next match for CSUF men’s rugby will be at Whittier College on Saturday at 1 p.m.

Titan sophmore goalie Brandon Heethuis robs sophomore left wing Sean Hoang of a point-blank shot for Long Beach State, during a victory for the 49ers Saturday night. Photo by Brian Evans/For the Daily Titan

Titan Ice Hockey fought to the finish, but fell short once again to the Long Beach State 49ers, as the season ended in a dramatic 6-5 overtime loss on Saturday night.

“It’s going to be a tough game,” said backup goaltender Greg Lewis, 34, a finance graduate student. Going into the game, the team had lost their previous two matches against the 49ers. The game didn’t start well for the Titans; a glance to the scoreboard only 3:37 into the game showed that the team was already down by three goals

At this point, the Titans opted to use their 30-second timeout. Not only did this slow down the 49ers’ momentum, it let the Titans critique their strategy. This proved successful as the Titans recorded their first goal little over a minute later, when Titan sophomore forward Elan Dunaev took a slap shot that made its way past Long Beach State junior goaltender Ricky St. Louis.

The Titans put another point up on the board with a little over two minutes left in the first period, when freshman forward Jacob Daniel stole the puck from a 49er defenseman and skated from coast-to-coast to score a short-handed goal on a breakaway.

The Titans trailed 3-2 at the end of the first period.

With a total of 10 penalties in the second period alone, there was only one goal scored. Unfortunately, it was for Long Beach State. A little over 2 minutes left from an otherwise scoreless period, 49er sophomore center Matt Kresky scored on a rebound into an open net after the initial save was made by Titan sophomore goalie Brandon Heethuis. This was the first of two short-handed goals scored by the 49ers.

Senior forward Chris Houlihan protects the puck as he makes a move for the goal. Photo by Brian Evans/For the Daily Titan

After entering the third period down 4-2, the Titans knew they would have to come out strong and aggressive to turn the game around, and they did.

2:30 into the period, Titan senior forward Blake Dorman took advantage of a power play when he put the puck into the net on a rebound while battling in front of the net.

A few minutes later, Long Beach junior forward Brad Roberts earned his hat trick, scoring his third goal of the game.

At this point, the game looked bad for the Titans, but they did not give up.

Dorman scored his second of the game with another goal on the power play when he took a wrist shot that floated over goalie St. Louis’ catching glove.

The game got more and more intense as the Titans were only one goal away from tying it up.

Incredibly, with only 1:13 remaining left in the game, Dunaev hustled hard and scored his second goal of the night. The Titan forward took a shot that was initially saved by the 49er net-minder, but the goalie fell backwards and the puck bounced into the back of the net.

As the regulation time had run out and the two teams made their way into overtime, it looked as though it was going to end in another shootout. However, the 49ers had other plans. With only 50 seconds remaining in the overtime, 49er freshman defenseman James Robelotto put a loose puck behind Heethuis, destroying all hope for CSUF.

The locker room was silent when Titan Head Coach Nick Moran said, “In my eyes, we won the game.”

As everyone gave thanks to those around them for such an exciting season, those who are returning next season are already energized.

Titan hockey returns for their final game of the semester at the Honda Center in Anaheim versus hockey alumni March 7 at 9:30 p.m.

Dorman's size can only demonstrate just a small fraction about how much of a threat he is on the ice. Photo by Brian Evans/ For the Daily Titan

Blake Dorman, a history major at Cal State Fullerton, is a 6-foot, 300-pound senior forward for Titan Ice Hockey. His height and weight have proven to be a threat for opposing teams, but there is much more to number 18.

Dorman, 25, began playing street hockey in the front of his house as a 7-year-old, and advanced from there to roller hockey. He didn’t have much experience in ice hockey but decided to give it a try.

“I found out about Titan Hockey last spring while I was walking to class and the team had a booth near the quad,” Dorman said.

Dorman was late for class, so he negated to stop and get more information about the club, but he looked them up on the Internet right when he got to class, and was interested right away.

“I was immediately drawn in and even more interested because he (Head Coach Nick Moran) is a great coach. I had played for him when I was younger and played against him many times,” Dorman said.

Team emergency medical technician Michelle Chawner has gotten to know Blake by treating him for injuries and traveling to games.

“We do not talk about hockey ever before the game, but Blake is a kind-hearted and is always willing to listen and loves just hanging out and talking about the day,” Chawner said.

Pre-game rituals is what he enjoys the most. Listening to his favorite music, which includes ’80s punk rock, gets him pumped up before taking the ice.

In a game against Arizona State University, Blake Dorman muscles his way to the front of the net. Photo by Brain Evans/For the Daily Titan

“Every time I step on to the ice, I want to make a difference. I don’t get all that much ice time, but I try to get the other team’s attention in any way possible,” Dorman said. “I love to line guys up and absolutely crush them. If I get to come flying into that player in the corner and smash him against the boards, then I have had a great shift.”

Dorman has played in every game this season and averages about ten minutes per game, but he makes the most of it. He’s scored four goals on the season, which have all come on the power play.

The referees seem to have an effect on his playing time, as he has served 42 minutes in the penalty box.

Sometimes hitting hard has it’s price, and Dorman gets called quite frequently, but he can’t help the fact that he is twice the size of his opponents.

Dorman shared some of his memories about Titan Hockey and one of them came in the first game of this season at University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

In his first shift, he had a Rebel in his sights at the blue line near his team’s bench. The puck came around the boards and his opponent pinched to try to keep the puck in the zone, he just missed him and made contact with the boards. There was a big reaction from the crowd after the thunderous crash he had made into the boards.

“When I think about it now, I kind of laugh about it to myself, but you can bet your money on it that the rest of the game they had their heads on swivels looking for me whenever they touched the puck,” Dorman said.

The CSUF Titans took on the Northern Arizona University Lumberjacks on Jan. 29, and sophomore goalie, Brandon Heethuis was as excited for the weekend of big games as was Dorman.

Heethuis said after the game, “Despite the loss, Blake went out there in the first period and ruined one of their players, as everyone could see when he was injured and needed to be helped off the ice, and they were even more fearful of him on Saturday night.”

“I hit that guy at center ice and it was beautiful, until they slid into my ankle and it was uncomfortable and aggravated, but they saw me on the bench and knew I could hop over the boards at any time,” Dorman said.

“I thought my days of playing hockey at a high level were over, but here I am,” he said.

Dorman said that Titan hockey has been a very special experience.

“The relationships with my teammates, fans, and people who made this team and season possible along with this entire experience will no doubt last a lifetime,” Dorman said.

Daily Titan Staff Writer

Titan Ice Hockey lost their fourth straight game in an 8-5 loss Saturday at Glacial Gardens arena.

After two upsetting losses to Northern Arizona University last weekend, the Titans couldn’t rebound against the Long Beach State 49ers. This was their second loss for the Titans in its third contest with them this season.

Titan goaltender Brandon Heethuis squats to defend shots from the Long Beach State 49ers. Photo Courtesy by Dave Munoz/For the Daily Titan.

After some close calls for both teams during the first period, LBSU was the only one to put in a goal.

With 2:26 to go in the period, LBSU sophomore right-wing Robbie Zdjelar put the puck past Cal State Fullerton sophomore goalie Brandon Heethuis with a back-handed shot on a rebound in front of the net.

A few moments later, CSUF junior defenseman Andrew Hodge batted the puck off the goal line as it was about to trickle into the net after a shot.

The Titans held strong and finished the period trailing 1-0.

“Their goalie is negotiable,” said Assistant Coach Larry Holmes. “We need to take more shots.”

Judging how the second period turned out, Holmes was right.

Drastically different from the first period, the second period contained seven goals.

Unfortunately, every time the Titans scored, the 49ers would strike back to regain their lead.

Titan junior forward Tyler Olson scored the first goal of the period with a shot that flew past LBSU junior goalie Ricky St. Louis, right between his arm and the goal post.

Less than four minutes later, LBSU struck again.

While on the power play, with Titan junior defenseman Kyle Levindofske sitting in the penalty box for a tripping penalty, 49er junior center Brad Roberts shot the puck up high and hit the roof of the net.

CSUF tied the game again when Titan senior center Chris Houlihan scored on the power play with a low slap shot that found its way past the goalie’s pads.

But it only took a minute for the 49ers to take another lead at 3-2, when LBSU’s Sean Hoang received a nice pass from behind the Titan net and immediately put it past Heethuis.

About two minutes later, Houlihan scored another power play goal for the Titans when he took a wrist shot that went between 49ers goaltender’s arm and leg.

Again, only 40 seconds later the 49ers regained their lead at 4-3.

As the fast-paced second period was winding down, Titan freshman defenseman Payne Sauer made a quick stop in front of the opposing net, tricking the 49er defenseman to keep moving.

Sauer made a quick shot on goal and the puck barely trickled over the goal line as the buzzer sounded. The game was tied once again, at the end of the second period.

“In the third period, we’ve got to play the same way we did in the second period,” said Titan back-up goalie, Greg Lewis.

The Titans went into the locker room with all the momentum on their side, but was it enough to send the 49ers packing?

“You can only give them the lead so many times when they’re playing very aggressive,” Titan freshman forward Daniel Jacob said.

However, the 49ers held their composure and scored four straight goals. Truly devastaing to CSUF fans, but the Titans weren’t out for the count just yet.

CSUF got one with a little more than two minutes remaining when Titan senior defenseman Cyrus Raagas was awarded a penalty shot when he was brought down on a breakaway.

While he skated toward the net, Raagas faked the goalie at the last second, and as the goalie went to his knees, slipped the puck underneath him.

Unfortunately, it was not enough and the LBSU 49ers held back the persistent Titan team.

The final score was 8-5 in favor of the 49ers and CSUF was baffled once again.

The Titans’ last game of the season will be held Saturday, Feb. 20, again against LBSU, at 9:30 p.m. at the Citizens Business Bank Arena in Ontario.

(Left to Right) Jason Holmes, Cyrus Raagas, Andrew Hodge and Jacob Daniel. Photo by Brian Evans/For the Daily Titan.

Former president of the Cal State Fullerton hockey club, Brian Evans, founded the club and played six games in the fall semester of 2008, coming out with a 9-3 victory in their last game of the year against the UCLA Bruins.

That initiated enough respect for the team to achieve Division II classification for the 2009-10 season and a full schedule of 29 games.

Titan captain and kinesiology major Andrew Hodge, 20, has been playing hockey for 13 years and said joining the team has made his experience at CSUF better.

Hodge has taken over the reins as president this season, and has worked together with three other captains on the team to help him with managing the team and its responsibilities.

For him, hockey is not only a stress reliever, but has also helped him meet a lot of interesting people who are as excited about hockey as he is.

He said it’s important to do his job and try to help make his team better.

Head coach Nick Moran, assistant coach and faculty adviser Dr. Steve Jobbit and the other assistant coaches put their heads together and decided to name three more captains to manage the 25-player team.

They all decided on senior Cyrus Raagas, junior Jason Holmes, and freshman Jacob Daniel to assist Hodge and help bring this band of brothers together to perform as a solid unit on the ice.

“We believe in these guys, (and) they’re doing an excellent job,” said Jobbit.

Jobbit is an assistant professor of Modern European History and said that this is a brilliant organization. He said that coaching the team has made his experience at CSUF even more enjoyable than before.

Jobbit is very passionate about his players and works very hard to keep them in shape for the game.

“We win together and we lose together,” said Jobbit.

According to Jobbit, the team will definitely return next season for another full-fledged season of cross-checks into the boards, bruises to heal and goals to score.

In a win against USC earlier in the season, the team showed a lot of character against a much more experienced team, said Moran. “We don’t react to what everybody else does. We react to what we do for each other,” he added.

Hodge is thankful to have the three captains by his side and turns to them whenever he needs advice.

Every team needs that certain someone to lead them, and whether they are announced as a captain or not, every team has one to help the players work together to win.

“I don’t try to put myself above anybody on the team. I only try to lead by example,” said Hodge, who plays the right-wing position on the ice.

It is occasionally difficult for the four leaders to be in control of their studies, but the coaching staff has made a point that school comes first and hockey comes second.

Among the captains, there were only a few minor injuries sustained this season.

Hodge suffered from a concussion earlier last year and Daniel had a bruised shoulder mid-season.

As for Raagas and Holmes, they have managed to stay healthy with just the bumps and bruises every hockey player receives during the game.

“We got the win, but we got it through adversity, and that’s what this team’s identity has been about – it’s coming through adversity and coming out on top,” said assistant coach Jacob Vasinda in regards to a a victory on Oct. 17 against Utah.

Holmes, Raagas and Daniel were unable to comment because of rigorous preparation for a pair of games against Northern Arizona University in Anaheim over the weekend.

“We have the capability of dominating, but the guys just have to show up for three full periods,” said Jobbit in a win after a shootout against Long Beach State.

“This is a chance for the team to learn how to work together and trust each other on the ice,” said former player Evans before the beginning of the season.

He, along with the coaching staff and players, are standing at full strength to work together against every opponent.

Goalie Alex Miller stretches out to make a save. Photo by Brian Evans/For the Daily Titan.

The Titan ice hockey club found the back of the net but fell behind to the Northern Arizona University Ice Jacks for the second time this weekend.

Coming off a humbling 12-0 shutout loss to NAU on Friday night, the CSUF Titan hockey club looked to bounce back in their second round against the Ice Jacks on Saturday night at the KHS Ice Arena in Anaheim.

After noticing such positive attitudes radiating from the Titan locker room last night, you could almost feel that this game was going to be a little different, and it was.

“There was nothing to change, yesterday was just an anomaly,” said Titan goalie coach David Bezeau.

Despite ending the game with a 6-4 loss, the Titans came out hungrier and much more aggressive than the night before.

In fact, the Titans struck first, 8:08 into the game, when freshman forward Preston Olson took a slap shot that found its way in the goal after senior center Chris Houlihan won the face-off in the Ice Jacks’ zone.

The victory lasted only a few minutes when suddenly NAU sophomore forward Michael Farnham’s shot on goal beat the Titan sophomore goaltender, Brandon Heethuis.

Only a few minutes later, the Titans capitalized on a golden opportunity when the referees gave separate NAU players a two-minute penalty for elbowing and interference. Houlihan put an elevated shot on the net, while the NAU junior goalie Chris Snowden was sprawled out on the ice. Giving the Titans their second lead of the game and finishing the period with a 2-1 lead.

Holding the lead for almost a third of the game, the Titans lost it when NAU senior defenseman Kyle Martinez scored a power-play goal off a rebound nearly halfway through the second period to tie it up. The slashing call against CSUF’s junior defenseman Kyle Levindofske was the reason for the Ice Jacks’ advantage.

The NAU Ice Jacks, still skating with adrenaline from their last tally, kept the pressure on and took the lead when they netted another goal when NAU junior forward Barett Buckowich skated behind the net and scored with a wrap-around less than two minutes later.

With exactly one minute left in the second period, CSUF sophomore center Dalton Braniff desperately tripped up NAU’s forward Farnham during a breakaway attempt, and the on-ice officials awarded Farnham a penalty shot. Farnham skated wide to the left side and beat Heethuis as the puck fired over his shoulder. Fortunately for the CSUF Titans, the puck ricocheted off the crossbar and out of harm’s way.

When the clock wound down to end the second period, NAU led 3-2 and the intensity was felt both on and off the ice. In fact, the arena made an announcement that anyone who became too rowdy would be escorted off the premises.

NAU jumped out in front, starting the third period by scoring two quick goals in the first four minutes. However, Titan sophomore forward Elan Dunaev found himself on a breakaway, but the NAU goalie aggressively came out of the net to attack the puck. Dunaev still managed to score with his knack for not giving up on the play.

Towards the end of the game, NAU scored once more, but that was also quickly answered when Titan forward Houlihan put the puck in the net.

“We’re playing a lot more relaxed and composed,” said back up Titan goaltender Alex Miller, 20, a junior majoring in business management. This could help explain the major difference between this game and their last. Unfortunately, it was not enough, as the Titans lost again to NAU with a more respectable score of 6-4.

CSUF prepares to face-off with Long Beach State at the Glacial Gardens in Long Beach at 8 p.m. on Feb. 6.

Titan goalie Brandon Heethuis leaves the goal crease to make a great save on an NAU break away attempt. Photo by Brian Evans/For the Daily Titan.

Northern Arizona University completes shutout against Titans in their third match this season.

The Cal State Fullerton ice hockey club hoped to win their first game against NAU this season, only to fall short in an embarrassing  12-0 loss on Friday night at the Anaheim Ice arena.

Out-shooting the Titans every period, the Division II Ice Jacks controlled the puck for most of the game.

After the puck dropped for the first time, the Ice Jacks put on pressure, taking only 46 seconds to score their first goal when senior forward Dillion Shaffer tapped in a rebound that was initially stopped by the Titans’ sophomore goalie Brandon Heethuis.

Only a few minutes later, NAU notched their second goal of the game after a wrist shot from the face-off dot nicked off Heethuis’ glove, fell behind him and slowly trickled pass the goal line, giving junior defenseman Rob Brown his only point in the game.

When the match was at 5:52, the Titans received their first power play opportunity after a delay of the game penalty was called against NAU freshman defenseman Ian Shaeffer.

However, the Titan defense was caught flat-footed and were found chasing NAU freshmen forward Tyler Sopp on a successful breakaway, where he chipped the puck over Heethuis’ glove, hitting the roof of the net.

Titan junior goalie Alex Miller came in to relieve Heethuis halfway through the first period. The Titans finished the first period trailing 3-0.

Only 21 seconds into the second period, the Titans found themselves short-handed again after junior center Chad Pelliccioni was called for interference.

This led to the first of six power play goals that NAU managed to score, after a wrist shot by sophomore forward Michael Farnham at the face-off dot found a hole over Miller’s shoulder.

The tempo picked up for both teams but the Ice Jacks finished the second period with a 7-0 lead.

Once the third period started, Heethuis was back in front of the net for the Titans, and the tension started to build as the hits got bigger and the tempers got shorter.

The Titans started to play more physical to counteract the quicker and more puck-possessive team facing them. It backfired when 6-foot, 300-pound junior forward Blake Dorman hammered 5-foot-9-inch, 140-pound Shaeffer into the boards. Shaeffer appeared to be a bit dazed as he laid on the ice, but was fortunately able to get up and skate to the bench on his own strength.

While Dorman sat in the penalty box for boarding, it only took 57 seconds for NAU senior defenseman Kevin Ingram to fake Heethuis, skate around him and bury the puck into the back of the net.

Even after such a blowout loss, the Titan coaches and players felt optimistic for their next game. “We just have to come out and play like we can play. We’re a good team,” said asst. coach Steve Jobbitt. “We got to just let this game go.”

In response to how the captains feel about playing against the same team Saturday night, “Smaller rink, more hits,” said senior defenseman, captain Cyrus Raagas, 25, a senior majoring in graphic design.

“We have to keep our composure and bring the intensity to them,” added forward, captain Jacob Daniel, 18, a freshman majoring in political science.

On an uncommonly cold night on Nov. 20 at UC Irvine the Cal State Fullerton Club Rugby team fought under the bright lights to take back the Higgy’s Cup.

After falling behind 11-0 in the first half of regulation, Ardy Hernandez credits, “Pure heart and dedication and wanting to keep our only lead,” as pushing the team to pull off the win.

The teams battled while CSUF fought back to gain and hold a 16-11 lead with mere minutes left.

UCI pushed within three meters of scoring when penalties, yellow cards and an array of kicks forced Fullerton to keep on the defense for over 5 minutes.

In the midst of the team’s clutch defense, two players were given yellow cards causing Fullerton to not only have to defend, but to protect with two fewer men than their opponent.

“We just picked it up, and heart lead us through,” said Jonathan Arroyave, team captain.

Higgy’s Cup has been a traditional match between CSUF and UCI since 2000.

Kevin Higgins, who the cup is played in remembrance of, was arguably the best Rugby player to ever come out of Orange County.

After Higgins graduated from Mater Dei in Santa Ana, he planned on playing football for Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.

However, after an early season injury he was red shirted and not capable of playing.

Destiny took over when Higgins became healthy in time to play on the school’s club rugby team.

Within 16 months Higgins became, “One of the most prolific centers to ever pull on a United States Eagles jersey,” according to the United States Rugby Football Foundation, which is just one of the many organizations to create scholarships to remember his name.

Sadly, the story of Higgins does not end in fame and glory. Concussions and cancer plagued the end of his life, which ended by his own hand.

Fellow teammates from Mater Dei, who were associated with CSUF and UCI, decided in 2000 to create the Higgy’s Cup as a direct way to remember their dear friend and teammate.

CSUF won the first six cups. Of the last three UCI won two, and one was cancelled.

“This is the best tradition. We played amazing and this shows real Titan Pride. We are excited and overwhelmed right now,” said Hytham Elsherif, after the team secured the win.

After coming off a 13-2 defeat in San Diego at the KROC Center Ice Arena, the Cal State Fullerton hockey club fell once again to the Aztecs of San Diego State University with a score of 11-2 Saturday night at the Anaheim Ice Arena.

The Titans returned home for the first time since Oct. 17 after a four-game road trip to Loyola Marymount University, Northern Arizona University and SDSU.

CSUF came out of the gate early in the first period with a goal scored by sophomore center Dalton Braniff just 36 seconds into the game. But at the end of the first period, the score was 4-1, with the Aztecs ahead by three.

“The Titans are facing some of the tougher teams whose programs have been around for a great while,” said Claire Holmes, team manager.

There was no question about that, but despite the quick speed and toughness from the Aztecs, CSUF gave their opponents some hard hits for their home crowd to enjoy.

This, however, led to the Titans finding their way into the penalty box twice in the first period and twice more in the second.

SDSU didn’t look baffled or afraid at all and skated the ice with blazing speed and intensity as the Titans worked together, trying to find a way to match up with their opponents.

At 2:45 into the second period, Aztec senior forward Phillip Wong was penalized with a five-minute major, game misconduct and was ejected from the game for checking a Titan player from behind.

CSUF’s attempts to find the answer for their opponents were nowhere to be found as the Titans came up short one attempt after another to find the goal, but Aztec goalie Scott Dainty would not allow another goal by him after sophomore forward Elan Dunaev scored the Titans’ second and last goal of the night during the second period.

With 1:07 left to play in the second period, Titan freshman forward Jacob Daniel was penalized with a five-minute major, game misconduct and was ejected from the game for face-masking an Aztec defender.

The scuffle developed in front of the Aztec net, and at the other end of the ice, a second skirmish occurred and two Aztecs were penalized for rough and unsportsmanlike conduct.

“It’s one thing to be down, but they kept getting kicked (down by the Aztecs), so they responded, … at least they’re showing some heart,” said Jacob Vasinda, Titan forward coach, about his team when they were being pushed around by their opponents.

The Titans started off the third period skating shorthanded with two men in the penalty box and were trailing SDSU 6-2.

Within 20 seconds of the period, the Aztecs scored another goal.

At 8:57 senior forward Alec Nadelle scored his second goal of the night for the Aztecs against CSUF junior goalie Alex Miller.

With 10:38 left in the game, Titan Head Coach Nick Moran substituted goalie Greg Lewis in for Miller to rest his legs for the rest of the game.

He came up with a lot of excellent saves, including one while lying flat on his back.

However, Aztec junior left-wing Anthony Sansone was able to find the hat trick and score his third goal of the night toward the end of the game.

At the end of the game, Vasinda said that the team came out strong in the first period, but missed assignments throughout the rest of the game.

“One missed assignment leads to another,” he said. “SDSU’s a really good team. Two years ago they were Division II champs.”

Vasinda was asked about Miller’s performance in front of the net, and he said, “All three goalies are awesome – Brandon, Alex, Greg – but when you don’t give them support, goalies can’t make every save every game. He did what he could; he did more than he could.”

Lewis was the back-up goalie during the game and saw some action late in the third period, including a penalty shot taken against him.

“I came out as far as I could, took up the angle, and hopefully he’d take a shot that was stoppable, and he took one that hit my pads,” he said.

He was also fortunate enough to save the puck from gliding in while he was flat on his back: “As I went up to cover it on the right, somebody got their stick on it and pushed it out to the left, so I reached back with my stick to the left … It was between my arm and my body, so that was when it got underneath me … I got a little out of position definitely, but I just tried to stay as solid as I could,” Lewis said.  

One of the Titans’ co-captains, junior defender Jason Holmes, said that the team came out a little flat, but they did get to hit their opponents a little more than they had the night before.

To prepare for next weekend, he said that the team will review the video of the game and work on what they need to improve on the ice.

“LMU is smaller than us, and they’re very fast. We have speed but not like that, so our hitting gets in their heads,” Holmes said.

The Titans will face LMU on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and Arizona State University on Sunday at 1 p.m., with both games at the KHS Ice Arena in Anaheim.

The CSUF blue team scrambles to shoot as paintball shots are fired in their direction on Saturday at the NCPA Tournament. Photo Courtesy Karen Woodruff.

It was 8 a.m. and Cal State Fullerton’s paintball club was warming up with their guns before hosting and participating in the year’s first National Collegiate Paintball Association Tournament, the biggest collegiate paintball tournament on the West Coast to date.

Excitement was in the air at the CSUF paintball team’s tent as roughly 20 students suited up, donned their masks and calibrated their guns to the rules-stipulated settings.

The compressed-air tanks attached to the backs of their guns must only blast enough air to propel the paint balls at safe velocities.

Although the team is a young one – it was started only two years ago – they have proven to be competitive. The only two West Coast teams to attend nationals were Cal State Long Beach and CSUF.

CSULB snatched second place and CSUF “took third place in nationals out of 54 teams,” said CSUF player Jason Thach.

Many people might know paintball as a sport or game played in various environments with different geographical features, but the sport played by professionals and colleges usually takes place on a field with a turf or grass surface.

At this tournament, the arena was set in a barren field and surrounded by black netting used to protect spectators from stray paintballs.

The field is covered with soft, air-filled bunkers for players to use as cover.

Teams start each round from two barrels placed on each side of the field.

When the referee yells, “Go!” players dash to the nearest bunker trying to avoid whizzing paintballs.

Each game is capped at five minutes, but rounds rarely last that long.

“This is college center flag; there are points for each man alive; there are points for each man killed,” said Randy Lay, an assistant at the event.

If the flag in the middle is captured – called a flag-pull – teams get points, and they get even more if the flag is placed on the opposing team’s barrel.

“We have a good chance (of winning),” said Michael Wilson, a CSUF sophomore, a few rounds into the tournament. “Our teams have good players. Our players are smart.”

Throughout each round they played, the Titans were shouting to communicate with each other, an integral part of succeeding in paintball while other teams that didn’t communicate, friendly and opposing player positions, didn’t fare so well.

Teamwork is the hardest aspect of paintball, and it takes a while to learn, said Kent Marume, a freshman playing on the veteran CSUF blue team.

Good paintball teams have players who are able to read each other’s moves.

Marume said that if you have two good players on a team, it doesn’t mean anything if the team doesn’t work together as a whole.

The competition was intense, and the points separating the top teams were few by the time teams were playing the last rounds leading to the semifinals.

A member of the CSUF paintball team attempts to get a good shot at his opponents at Action Star Games in Bloomington, Calif.

During the last set of preliminary rounds, there were no more than 15 points separating the CSUF blue team and the CSULB gold team, both were battling it out to make the bottom slot in the finals.

“I’ve never seen a tournament this close where things change point-by-point,” said Jacob Davalos, a player on the CSUF blue team.

The CSULB gold team ended up with 518 points by the end of the preliminary rounds, with the CSUF blue team coming up short with 514 points.

The CSUF orange team made it to the finals but lost to Cal Poly Pomona in its last round, placing fourth in the tournament.

CSUF’s three teams – the veteran blue team, the orange team and the new white team – scored plenty of points and placed well in the competition.

The orange team made it the furthest at fourth place out of 11 teams while the blue team placed fifth and the white team placed seventh.

“It’s the first tournament of the season,” Marume said. “We have a fairly new group of guys,” he said, but the general consensus among the CSUF teams was that they did well for only having one practice with the whole team.

Yvonne Truong, captain of the CSUF white team, said that considering the lack of practice with a whole team, placing seventh was OK.

In addition, the white team made improvements in its communication skills.

Marume felt that the blue team didn’t do enough “laning” at the start of each round, which is when players fire between bunkers called lanes before the opposing team has a chance to run from the starting barrel to the protection of the nearest bunker.

On the bright side, he said that his team had some good games and he “shot three or four guys (during) a couple games.”

Jeramie Costales, a player for the CSUF orange team, said he felt that his team had good teamwork, but to make it further than fourth place the players would have to work on communicating with each other.

“This sport doesn’t compare to anything,” said Kerrigan Colwell, CSUF’s coach. It’s the camaraderie that sets the sport apart from others. You have to cover your teammates’ backs, he added.

“What I like about paintball is the kids who make up the sport,” said Karen Woodruff, ASG’s owner. It teaches the players camaraderie and teaches them how to move toward a shared goal. “(The sport) can bring out the best in them,” she said.

Jonathan Arroyave tries to break free from four UCSD defenders. Photo Courtesy of Paul Rudman.

Dressed like soccer players and playing a sport often compared to football, Cal State Fullerton’s Rugby club stormed the field this Sunday for their first preseason game against the University of California, San Diego. After three hours the comparisons slowly dwindled away and Rugby proved itself a sport in its own.

“Continuous motion (makes the game) much more engaging than football,” Randy Odhiambo said, who is a junior Public Relation’s major and marketing coordinator for the team.

Team Captain Jonathan Arroyave said the only comparison to football is in hitting.

“Football is more of a power sport,” Arroyave said. “In rugby not only do you do that but you are also on the field the entire time.”

Unlike football, the ball in rugby is in constant motion. At any time a player must prepare for being on offense or defense because of this streaming style of play.

While Rugby normally is formatted in two forty-minute halves, Sunday’s game was separated into three different quarters. In the first quarter Fullerton scored three trys, similar to touchdowns, followed by two kicks.

Each try being worth five points, and kick worth two resulted in a 19-0 lead.

Coach Phil Grieve began the first quarter with his starters. He then made sure to rotate the rest of the players so that every player played for at least two quarters.

Last season the team had close to 20 members with fifteen players needed on the field at a time. This season the team has doubled in size creating a new element of depth.

This year marks the team’s 25th year as a club and team President Jeff O’Brien, a senior business and kinesiology major, hopes to lead
his team from Division III into Division II during this important season.

Last year the Titans were two games shy of moving up a division after falling short in a playoff game to USC.

“We are starting just as good [as last year] if not better,” said O’Brien.

Rugby is a relatively unappreciated sport in America despite it being played in over 200 countries. Now with the sport being reinstated into the Olympics it is going to be difficult for American’s to avoid the second most played sport in the world, second to soccer and above basketball.

Since Fullerton does not have the traditional football team on campus the rugby team hopes to satisfy students craving for a high contact and highly competitive sport.

Tijeron Black, a senior psychology and Business major said, “If you miss the raw contact come to rugby. Contact is (here).”

Despite the brute physicality of the game there was far less confrontation between the players than is seen in other sports such as basketball and football.

Black called it a “new aspect of team effort (in rugby).”

“One player can’t change the game it takes the team to commit,” Hytham Elsherif, a senior Kinesiology major said.

Unlike football, open runs and deep passes are a rare occurrence, most of the scoring comes from small passes from player to player.

At the closing of the game Arroyave led the team in lining up to thank the fans for coming before joining their opponent for a traditional after party.

Junior attack Mike Ansel scored 106 points for the Titans last year. Photo Courtesy EYEinIphotography.

An inside look at an athlete is something that many fans can appreciate. Getting to know an athlete on a semi-personal level is comforting to fans and everyday people because it gives them an opportunity to see what type of person an athlete really is.

Cal State Fullerton junior Mike Ansel, 21, a communications major, and freshman Chris Cole, 19, undeclared, are two of the premier players on the Men’s Lacrosse Club.

Ansel, who came out of El Toro High School in Lake Forest, Calif., plays attack for the Titans, while Cole, a graduate of Foothill High School in Santa Ana, plays midfielder.

Last year, Ansel was the Southern Lacrosse Conference player of the year, leading the nation in Division II Men’s Collegiate Lacrosse with 104 points in 16 games.

Cole was part of three consecutive Southern Section championships. He was an All-American and was one of the top scorers in the Sea View League.

After winning their conference, the lacrosse club went on to the national tournament where they lost to Emory University in the first round.

Recently, both Ansel and Cole sat down and answered some questions about their personalities and their aspirations as lacrosse players.

Daily Titan: Tell me something about each of you that no one on the team knows about?

Mike Ansel: Well, this is going to sound a little weird, but I pay $35 for my haircuts.

Chris Cole: I’m really into koi ponds because I love fish and the relaxing sound of the water.

DT: What is more meaningful to you, scoring a goal or preventing one?

Ansel: It has to be scoring a goal. My position is attack so that’s what I live for, which is scoring goals.

Cole: I love to prevent a goal because it demoralizes opponents when they can’t score on us.

DT: What do each of you love the most about lacrosse?

Ansel: I love that lacrosse is a laid-back and very fun sport. It doesn’t get a ton of national attention but, man, it is fun to play! The scoring of goals, physical play and constant attention you must pay to your opponent is what makes the sport great. Also, if you keep your head on a swivel, you’re going to take some punishment.

Cole: I love the constant action and perpetual motion of the sport. There are no dull moments in lacrosse, which makes the sport great. Since I’m a very confident guy, I love to embarrass the defense. I’m very competitive, and lacrosse brings out the best in me.

Freshman midfielder Chris Cole led Foothill High School to three consecutive Southern Section championships. Photo Courtesy Chris Cole

DT: Who taught you how to play the game?

Ansel: My coach at El Toro High School, Pat Gowan, taught me how to play lacrosse. I owe him a lot for showing me the right way to play lacrosse. His assistants, Randy Josselyn and Greg Guy, were also instrumental in my development as a player.

Cole: John Fox, my high school coach. He helped make me the player that I am today.

DT: Who is your favorite player?

Ansel: Well, I’m kind of cheating, but I have to say I have two favorite players: Ryne Olson and Jordan Michaels.

Cole: Michael Watson.

DT: Favorite team?

Ansel: Syracuse Orangemen.

Cole: Ohio State Buckeyes.

DT: Who inspires you to be the best?

Ansel: Michael Powell of the Boston Cannons. He’s a great all-around player and defines the word tenacious. He never gives up, and the way he plays just inspires me to be the best lacrosse player possible.

Cole: My stepbrother, Randale Thornhill. He introduced me to the game and showed me how to go about my business and how to be a good man.

DT: How do you apply the game of lacrosse to your daily lives?

Ansel: In life if you don’t put in the effort, you’re not going to see the results. In lacrosse, like in life, there are no shortcuts in becoming a successful person.

Cole: Overcoming the odds, determination and dedication are all part of lacrosse. I look at life the same way.

DT: Describe each other’s personality.

Ansel: Chris reminds me of myself in that he’s super confident and sometimes even brash, but he’s a good guy and modest, but once you get on him on the field he’s like me: an animal.

Cole: Mike is a funny and confident guy who likes to be the life of the party. He plays hard and is always working at becoming the best. I see that in myself, so that’s probably why we get along so well.

Women’s rugby club President Vanessa Kelly works on techinique. Photo by Randy odhiambo for the Daily Titan.

By Brandon Angel
Daily Titan Staff Writer

Women’s rugby at Cal State Fullerton is returning for the first time in 21 years.

Recruitment has been difficult, said club president Vanessa Kelly and marketing and fundraising coordinator Randy Odhiambo, who spearheaded the effort of bringing back women’s rugby to CSUF for the first time since 1988.

According to Kelly, a huge problem is that most women on campus are unaware that there is a women’s rugby club being formed.

“I work out at the Student Fitness Center and ask other women if they would be interested in playing rugby on campus,” Kelly said. “Most of the time I get a surprised look, and a look of ‘women play rugby here at CSUF?’”

Rugby has been a sport played by men up until the 1970s.  A U.S. Women’s National team was formed in 1987, so the sport is relatively new to women in the U.S.  The stereotype that only men play rugby has been part of the reason why it has been difficult for Kelly to get more women to come out and play.

Another reason why women refuse to play is because rugby is a physical game. In rugby there are no pads, unlike in American football. Kelly insists that although rugby is a physical game, it is an intelligent, skilled and technical game.

“A lot women are afraid to play because men play the sport,” Kelly said. “When the girls see no pads they go running in the opposite direction, but I believe that it’s cool and refreshing to see a girl get hit and roll around and get down and dirty in the dirt without a skirt.”

Freshman Marin Jensen, a fellow rugby club member, just wants women on campus to give it a shot and look past the stereotype that it is a man’s game.

“My mom hasn’t exactly come around to me playing rugby,” Jensen said. “But my dad on the other hand, told me to go for it. He said ‘if something happens to you we’ll just take you the doctor and get you fixed.’”

As of right now there are only 16 women on the team. Ideally, Kelly would like to see 22 women on the team because that is the amount of jerseys she has available.

It takes 15 to play a game, but with only one sub available, Kelly won’t have much to work with. In rugby, once a player is substituted, the player cannot return to the game.

“Realistically, it will be hard to get 30 to come out, but if I could get 28 women to come out, that would be great,” Kelly said. “If I could sub one squad for another squad I would be ecstatic.”

Kelly knows that recruiting more women for rugby is going to be a difficult process, but she insists she is up for the task. As a freshman at CSUF, she will have four years to build the rugby program into what she hopes will become a mainstay at CSUF.

“I’ve always believed that you have to do what drives you and be passionate about what you do. When I graduate from CSUF I want people to be able to say that rugby isn’t just a man’s sport, it’s a woman’s sport too.”

The women have begun practicing already in preparation for the league, which starts in January. The team practices on Mondays and Wednesdays in front of the Student Health Center at CSUF.

Defensmen Payne Sauer gets tied up by a Trojan resulting in a Titan power play. Photo by Brian Evans for the Daily Titan.

By Jonathan Potts
For the Daily Titan

The Cal State Fullerton men’s ice hockey club came up short against the USC Trojans Thursday at the Anaheim Ice Arena .

In a game that would not be decided until the closing minutes, the Titans were victims to missed opportunities and inconsistent intensity.

“We played one period of good hockey,” faculty adviser and assistant coach Steve Jobbitt said.  ”We need to learn how to stay focused and carry that intensity through all three periods.”

Indeed, the Titans were dominant in the second period, outscoring the Trojans 3-1. Freshman defender Payne Sauer scored the Titan’s only power play goal to tie the game with 3:40 left in the period. Spirits were high on the orange and blue side of the stands during the second break.

It was a different story in the third, when the Titans, who were a timid 1-for-8 on the power play, got out-skated and out-played by a more experienced USC team.

“This is only our second year as a team,” junior forward Chad Pelliccioni said. “We just need to get better playing as a unit and that will come with time.”

Last season was the Titan hockey club’s inaugural exhibition season consisting of only six games. So far, the Titans are struggling to get things on track with an overall record of 1-8 spanning from the beginning of last year. The young team’s only win came in the final game of the season last year.

But it was clear during the second period that this Titans squad can be very dangerous when they are firing on all cylinders. They played a very physical game of hockey and were able to capitalize on their opportunities. But ultimately, missed opportunities and mental lapses in the first and third periods cost them the game.

Down 5-4 with seven minutes left, the Titans gained the power play advantage on a Trojan slashing penalty, only to give it up less than a minute later when they got caught with too many men on the ice.

Fittingly, the back breaker would come during yet another Titan power play when the Trojan freshman forward Nick Helmer scored on an unassisted goal giving his team the 6-4 lead with 1:34 left in the contest.

Freshman forward Jacob Daniel has high hopes for the rest of the season despite the loss.

“I’m in my first year and the team as a whole is only in its second year,” Daniel said. “I think the more we play together the more we will improve.”