Fresno State Focus Radio Edition: 04/13/2024
KFSR presents Fresno State Focus Radio Edition featuring stories of people of the Valley produced by media communications and journalism students at Fresno State. 90.7, KFSR
Hello and welcome to another segment of Fresno State Fcuse Radio Edition. I’m Yahaida Ruiz.
I’m Aaron Story.
And I’m James Sepeda. Have you ever been late to class because of the traffic surrounding campus? Today we will cover a story on commuter traffic. One of the biggest campus events is happening next week, known as Vintage Days. We will give you all the insights on what to expect for this big event next week.
We will also discuss how students around campus are getting prepared for finals on the horizon. Finally, we will end today’s show with multiple sports stories. Let’s take a ride into the commuter traffic. Those commuters driving in from South Valley expect a good drive with a bit of traffic and Selma with a three-lane merging into two. Those driving from Idaho to Fresno expect a smooth 20—to 30-minute drive.
That has been the report on your traffic. Attention Fresno residents, Vintage Days weekend is just around the corner.
Vintage Days – Yahaida Ruiz
The annual three-day fun entertainment food event, hosted by Fresno State students, will happen this year from April 19th through the 21st. The event will begin from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on both Friday and Saturday but will wrap up at 5 p.m. on Sunday.
The event will take place at Fresno State campus parking lots P30 and P31 due to ongoing construction around the campus. This year, Vintage Days will celebrate its 50th anniversary. You can expect lots of fun activities, crafts, tasty food, live music performances and much more.
Bella Bonilla shares how fun Vintage Days are.
“My name is Bella Bonilla. I’m a double major in anthropology and film, and I’m super excited for this year’s vintage Days.”
This will be the 50th vintage here at Fresno State.
“Last year I attended and I was working with my club Women’s Rugby, so we sell ice cream sandwiches. So I enjoy Vintage Days because I get to hang out with my team and I get to kind of promote my club. It’s also really fun to see the different vendors and different students and, you know, like local artists who go out and sell their stuff.”
Bonilla also added, “And there are also lots of different companies out there. I know that, sometimes the S.P.C.A is out there, and they have like little dogs, and there’s like a little zoo and other career options, and I feel like it’s a really good opportunity just for people to see what’s out there and to kind of boost Fresno State and different clubs that are on here. So yeah, I’m super excited. Don’t miss out on the fun three-day weekend event this year. Lots of fun. You do not want to miss out on it.”
Big Hat Days – Max Gallegos
Speaking of big events, reporter Max Gallegos had the opportunity to attend Big Hat Days. This year’s Big Hat Days had one of the biggest turnouts ever: 150,000 people turned out for the event!
One of the biggest draws of all of the vendors, Jonathan Villareal, sells sports memorabilia, but he also enjoys checking out the other booths.
“There are days you can come and enjoy some great meals, walk around the family, enjoy some great times, meet new people, and just enjoy yourself as a family. You know, we have many vendors offering many opportunities to grow their business.”
The Fresno Clovis area has always had a profound staple of pride and togetherness.
Jose Castillo says, “The atmosphere of Big Hat Days is unique. Some people call the small community Clovis, but I feel it is small. I mean, there are more than half a million people, but it does have a closeness. Everybody, you know, a small town, it’s so small, but you still have that feeling.”
Whether you are looking for food, clothes, jewelry, animal collector items or just a good time, Big Hat Days has it.
Graduation Reflections – Natalia Mendoza
The commencement ceremonies for Fresno State’s eight colleges and schools will take place from Friday, May 17th to May 19th. Reporter Natalia Mendoza spoke with students about their achievements during their college and their future plans.
Graduation is right around the corner, and it’s a bittersweet feeling for seniors who are getting ready for the festivities. Here’s what some of the seniors had to say.
“My name is Amanda. I’m a public relations and advertising major, and I’m a senior graduating in May. I’ve been at Fresno State for five years. I started in the fall of 2019, and I can say that during my time there, I wish I had been more open-minded to different opportunities and interests.
I started off as an environmental science major, and I wish I had given myself the opportunity to explore other things because I ended up switching majors and finding my calling in public relations and advertisement. And I wish I had switched sooner, and I wish I had let myself do that. But I’ve had a really good time since switching, and once you find your place, you’ll know, and you’ll be very successful.”
She knew she knew where she belonged due to her successes.
“That was the biggest indicator that I made the right choice because I started being very successful in what I was doing. So I would just say that for anybody who is thinking about exploring other options with majors, go ahead and listen to your calling and maybe even minor in it if you want to, or just switch your major in general just because. If you’re not enjoying what you’re learning, it’s going to be a rough few years. So that would be my advice.”
Another friend of hers, Jennifer Riojas, had some things to say about graduation and her reflection.
“I’m an MCJ major with an emphasis in film and media arts, and I am a senior this year, graduating my fourth year of college.”
She opened up and gave advice to other students on campus.
“So some advice I would give to anybody that is still like at any point in your college is to try new things and be open-minded, but another thing that got me through college was building a community. So, building friends and kind of getting yourself involved with the people that are in your classes because as you start to get further into your major, you start to see familiar faces a lot of the time, and it just makes it a better experience when you’re actually friends with those people because then you’ll find, especially as a film and media art student, all of our work is project-based.”
Her support system gives her motivation.
“So when you have the support of your friends, it gives you motivation. I would also say to build good relationships with your professors because they really want to see you succeed. And I think building personal relationships with them is also a way to give yourself motivation as well because I know for myself that I am close with the people that are in my graduating class that are also film students, as well as some of like my film professors, and that totally just gave me the motivation, the courage and support that I needed. In college, we all need support, so wherever you can find it, whether that’s your classmates, your professors, clubs, or whatever, I even got a job here on campus, and that opened a whole new wave of people that I had never met once before, but now that I work with them, that’s just a whole different crowd that I get to hang out with. So try to get yourself involved in something on campus, whether it’s a club or making new friends or a job or anything like that, you’ll start to see that there are so, so many people here and a lot of them are great.
Fresno State has slightly lower graduation rate compared to the state average rate, which according to the California Department of Education, statewide college graduation rates were about 84% from 2020 to 2021. In the same year, Fresno State had about 76% of the graduation rate. Congratulations to the Bulldogs on graduating!
Lisa Spoors Case – James Sepeda
A former Fresno State graduate assistant has been sentenced to five years in prison for a hit and run that left a local high school student dead. Lisa Ellen Spores, a former graduate teaching assistant at Fresno State, was given a five-year jail sentence for her role in the October 2022 hit and run that killed Rashad Al-Hakim Junior, a student at Hoover High School here in Fresno.
Spores was initially charged with murder, hit and run, resulting in bodily injury or death, and driving under the influence of drugs while causing an injury.
Spores initially entered a not-guilty plea to all the allegations. Prosecutors found it difficult to actually prove that Spores was driving under the influence at the time of the incurrence. In February, spores accepted a plea agreement and, during a no contest to charges of hit and run, resulting in permanent disability or death and vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated without gross negligence.
Prosecutors dropped the murder and driving while under the influence. Drug charges. In exchange for the plea, spores accepted a plea deal that included a maximum sentence of five years, which Fresno County Judge Gabriel Burkey carried out on April 10th. Rasheed was a high school student who had dreams of playing basketball. One day, he was crossing First Street and was not in a crosswalk when authorities say spores drove into him and left.
Spores was a graduate teaching assistant at Fresno State at the time of the crash. The contract with Fresno State ended one day after the district attorney Lisa Smithcamp filed charges against boys. Many students at Fresno State feel the spores as punishment is too late. I feel like that’s definitely not long enough now. Diving into the weather for this upcoming week.
Weather
Rain will come through Fresno today, but the rest of the week will be nice warm weather and sunny skies with summer just around the corner, which is the perfect weather for outdoor activities. Whether you’re planning a picnic in the park or a stroll around town. So get ready to enjoy a week filled with sunshine and mild temperatures, making it ideal for both work and play.
Spring Break Adlib
And don’t forget your sunscreen! Speaking of sunshine and warm weather. Yeah. Hi. How was your spring break? Thank you for asking me. I actually had a lot of fun during my spring break.
I went south and visited San Diego, specifically the pretty Carlsbad Flower Garden. I had a lot of fun, and then, on my way back home, I stopped for some really yummy bananas at Downtown Disney.
How was your spring break? Aaron? My spring break was pretty relaxing. I just watched some sports, some March Madness, some baseball, you know, and really trying to get my head straight for this final push of this spring semester.
Preparedness for finals
With the spring semester slowly coming to an end, many students are getting ready to prepare for finals. Here’s how students are getting ready.
Right now, I’m trying to make as many flashcards as I can for my exams. I’m also trying to read through the textbooks and review all the past chapters we went through. I’m also trying to go to the professor’s office hours and ask them what I can do to better my scores. Ask your professors what you can do better because they always try to help at least a little bit and not to stress out too much.
The next story is about corruption surrounding cannabis permits in the city of Fresno. The California State Auditor’s Office found issues with the City of Fresno’s legal cannabis approval process and a 60-page audit. Last week, the auditor’s office pointed out that Fresno’s approval process can lead to corruption and create conflicts of interest. The auditor noted that the Fresno city manager and council members have more sway over the approval process than other cities in the state.
The city of Fresno has a policy that investors, owners, managers and operators must submit background checks if they are convicted of a crime; they become ineligible to receive a permit. The state auditor pointed out that Fresno gave a permit to someone convicted of battery, violating the city’s own policy. The City communications office and the council president tell us that Fresno will consider the audit recommendations in the future, and now we will touch on some of the major sports stories, including March Madness, the new Fresno State basketball coach, the Masters, the start of the MLB season, San Joaquin Memorial’s Jalen Green, winning player of the week in the NBA, and finally, the highly anticipated UFC 300.
March Madness – Max
Our reporter, Max Gallegos, has a recap of March Madness. March madness has come to a close, and UConn has conquered the college basketball world once again. They defeated the Purdue Boilermakers 75 to 60. They made history with this championship run. They have won 12 straight NCAA tournament games by 13 or more points, and they’re the first team since 2006-2007 for the Gators to win back-to-back national championships.
I don’t know why anyone doubted this team, including myself in my bracket. I picked Auburn to beat UConn and advance to the Final Four; even after losing players to eligibility or to professional basketball, UConn still managed to be a pillar of excellence once again. What’s even crazier is Dan Hurley, UConn’s head coach, didn’t waste time talking about next season.
He was on the postgame podium discussing how he plans to have next year’s team ready to win a third straight. Keeping the focus on college basketball and head coaching.
Vance Wahlberg – Max
Fresno State has made a new hire after an array of candidates. Fresno State has decided on Vance Wahlberg as the program’s 20th head coach. Wahlberg spent 21 years at Clovis West High School in Fresno, winning 11 state titles from 1989 to 2002, before moving to the college ranks at Fresno City College between 2002 and 2006, posting an overall record of 133 and 11, and a state championship to cap off an undefeated season in 2005.
Since Jerry Tarkanian left, Fresno State has not been to the NCAA tournament since winning the Mountain West Conference tournament in 2016, Walberg will inherit a clean slate roster wise heading into next season, with six players in the portal to potentially re-recruit, and its complete rebuild. Nonetheless, Fresno State was in a major need of a culture change and Wahlberg has been successful everywhere he went.
Fresno State is starving for success within their basketball program, and only time will tell. Wahlberg is the answer.
Rick Pendergast – Aaron Story
The 88th annual Masters Tournament live from Augusta, takes place this weekend. Former professional golfer Rick Pendergast talks about who he wants to win the tournament and what the game of golf has meant to him. What age were you named an unfashionable professional golfer?
Pendergast talks with Aaron on his comeup.
“I was 21. Was that something you always knew you wanted to be, or was it just something natural to you and you feel like you could pursue that? No. Golf was kind of where I fell into it. I was a baseball player going into high school, and I played basketball, and the basketball coach was a baseball coach, and I told my dad, I can’t play baseball for this guy, and he’s my dad said, you should play golf, but I’m not that good. And he goes, “just to play golf. You’ll have more fun. You don’t have to deal with your jerk coach and you know, you have fun. You get to play golf, grandpa, all the time. So do that. Yeah. I said okay.”
Is that like when you say when you decided to. Was that year in high school that you wanted to pursue becoming a professional golfer?
“Our high school is three years, but every year I got a little bit. I really want to become a professional golfer, where I’m sure there are some long days on the course on the range. What was that journey like to becoming a professional golfer? Well, when I was 22, I got a job as an assistant pro at Woodland Hills Country Club in the San Fernando Valley, and that’s where we played golf when I was in junior college.”
“It was fun because the golf course is right there, but you have to fold your shirt and be nice, tell the members and stuff. So yeah, playing golf was the furthest thing on my mind then. But then I’d get out and play and the course was pristine and had incredible greens, and I could get better playing here every day, so I did.”
Wow. So what age did you retire from being a professional golfer? On Saturday I turned 64, got my amateur status last year. I think it was in March. What have been some of your favorite moments from your golf career? What was that journey like? You said you would play with your grandpa casually? Oh, well, I’ve had four holes in one.
I had five double eagles. That’s really impressive in my opinion. That’s good enough. Hole in one. Yeah, it was them. We’re in tournaments and one was I was one shot up the cut and I made a double eagle on the West. Oh. So I went from going home to actually moving up the leaderboard a little bit and then the next two days and moved up the leaderboard and got a top ten.
Oh wow. Do you still enjoy playing golf? You enjoy watching golf. You’re still a big fan.
“Oh yeah. Oh sure. Absolutely.”
Do you have a favorite golfer or you just watch it from a fan perspective?
My favorite golfer is Finlay Pendergast. When we used to talk last semester, he was pretty good with all the scores he would tell me he would get. It’s fun to see him enjoy it and mature on the course. And one of the guys on TV, I really like Cameron Smith though.”
Is it cool seeing your son pursue golf?
I remember talking to Findlay last semester. You said you played in high school. Is it cool to see your son doing something that you love to do?
“Oh, absolutely. I was mad at him last semester because he had a Friday class and he didn’t have a Friday class the previous semester, so we play golf every Friday. So now he’s off on Fridays and we get to play golf again.”
That’s awesome. That’s awesome. As a person that I love to play golf with, my dad, so I can only imagine those are some of the best times with your family out there. So that’s pretty awesome to hear.
“Kim and I used to play golf.”
She would play, yeah.
“When we got married, we lived in Knoxville and she was actually taught by a top 50 teacher in the United States. Oh, wow. She was fun to play with.”
The Masters are coming up. Is there a specific person you want to see bring home that legendary green jacket on Sunday?
“Because we’re friends with them. I’d like to see Bryson Land. Yeah, the hometown kid. Yeah, absolutely.”
So I want to say thank you again for letting me interview you and asking you these questions. And, Yeah, just thank you. Thank you. Appreciate it. Aaron. Yeah. Have a good day. Have a good day. You too. Thanks, Aaron.
MLB – Natalia Mendoza
Here are the top five pitchers in the league this week according to the MLB.
Here are the pitcher power rankings number one from the Baltimore Orioles Corbin Burnes. Number two from the Phillies, Zack Wheeler. Number three Zack Gallen from the Arizona Diamondbacks. Number four from the Los Angeles Dodgers, Tyler Glasnow. And lastly, number five Tariq Skubal. According to the ESPN app, the Los Angeles Dodgers are the number one team with a record of 10 to 5.
On the East Coast, we have the Atlanta Braves, whose record is seven wins and three losses. The MLB also welcomed a player to the show Matt Holiday’s son Jackson Holiday, the number one prospect.
NBA – Aaron
Here’s everything you had to know about the MLB. Fresno’s very own Jalen Green won the NBA player of the week award in March. As his third season comes to an end, he has taken the NBA by storm, having fans all around the world excited for his future.
What does Jalen Green’s high school basketball coach Brad Ross Norske have to say about his former player starting to find his way in the NBA as Jalen is becoming more successful in the league. What was coaching Jalen like in high school for those three years before, like his fame and his followers? What was he like on the court?
00;17;26;22 – 00;17;41;23
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Off the court? What was it like coaching him?
“Yeah, I mean I get asked this a lot and I tell people he was such off the court, he’s a good student. First of all, he had to get a 3.0 about to play. And I told this to an ESPN reporter last year. I think his name was Zach was doing a feature on J. And he asked for something we don’t know about. I said, you know what? You don’t know? People don’t know that. He was such a great teammate to that 13th, 14th guy, the guy that never played as much as he was to the top guys. He cared about all his teammates. Obviously on the court, we knew he’s going to be special the minute we saw him.”
“I mean, he did some pretty good things. And I think you’re finally starting to see that this year on the court with him. That’s my next question.”
Was there a specific moment you knew he was good enough to go to the league?
“I mean, he was ranked all those years, but you still have to put in that work and put in that extra step to get to the NBA.”
I was still saying it’s freshman year. Yeah. He wasn’t super skilled. He was not a very good shooter at all. But he did some things you just don’t see 14,15 year old kids do. . At that point I think we said this guy’s got a chance.
I mean, was he going to be a star in the league?
“We didn’t know, but we knew he’s going to have a good chance to play even at a young age. I remember those early days when he was a freshman. No one really knew who he was. But like, if you knew, you knew he was this athletic freak. He was, what, 14 years old leading you guys to his own.”
“And once you saw him live, you knew he had a chance. You know, he was, as he moved, different from everyone else.”
That’s a great point.
“He moved to me and got some things that you just don’t see, you know. Yeah. He won NBA player of the week a few weeks ago. I’ll call it to see someone you coached not only in the league, but becoming successful in the league.”
“It’s unbelievable! My son and I watch the games and we’ll flip them on all the time. Now. I was a little disappointed. You can get player of the month. I think that in the last game of the month when the Mavericks played the Rockets, Luka Donic had an incredible game and Jalen wasn’t very good and ended up getting player of the month.”
That was Easter night. So I was hoping he would have got for, you know, player of the week. I think his next goal is to get that big contract. I don’t think he will get the supermax, but he can get the one right below that. To be the player of the month and to be all NBA, I think those are his goals.
“But yeah, the kid that we coached for three years in the league performing like is yeah, it’s like three seals to me. It’s unbelievable.
You still talk to Jalen from time to time.
“Yeah we went to the Sacramento game. It was March this past March 10th. We went and I met with him after the game for a while”.
“He did not play well in the first half. I thought he played really well in the second half. He was attacking and I told him that. I said, listen, you’re settling, attack the basket. You’re very good when you attack. And I swear, Aaron, ever since then, the guy went on a tear. I’m not taking any, you know.”
“It’s just a matter. He was just selling too much shooting and he just. It was struggling, shooting the ball. And I think ever since that game, he came back and won that game as Sacramento was a good win. And they just want a huge winning streak. And obviously he’s a big reason why they went on that winning streak. I take time to talk to him.”
He doesn’t really answer calls. You got to facetime. So yeah he’s performing really well right now. So I try to definitely stay in touch with him.
So thank you again for doing this interview and I’ll talk to you soon. Sounds good Aaron. Any time. Thanks. But see it. That was still one and only. Brad Ross, now men’s basketball coach for the San Joaquin Memorial Panthers, talking about one of his former players, Jalen Green, and his success on the court. Off the court from high school all the way till now.
UFC 300 – James
This weekend, mixed martial arts fans from around the world will be watching one of the most highly anticipated events of the year. UFC 300 is scheduled for this Saturday at 7 p.m. and will be available for pay per view on ESPN plus. The main card holds some very competitive fights, including two title fights.
Alex Pereira looks to defend his title against Jamal Hill in the light heavyweight division. Pereira enters the matchup as a champion of the division and holds a professional record of nine wins and two losses, with seven of those wins coming via knockout and three coming in first round finishes. Hill enters the match as the number one contender in the division, and holds a professional record of 12 wins and one loss, with seven of those wins coming by knockout and four first round finishes.
Hill is currently on a four win fight streak. The second title fight is in the women’s strawweight division between two world class fighters. Zhang will look to defend the belt against the number one contender. Yan Yan on UFC 300. Also has some of the greatest athletes to ever compete in the Octagon. Justin Gates and Max Holloway. Both are looking forward to getting a shot at a division title and must go through one another in order to get the chance.
Arguably the greatest jiu jitsu fighter in the history of the UFC. Charles do Bronx Oliveira makes his return to the Octagon and is looking to get back to his winning ways.
And that wraps up our show for today. Today’s episode of Fresno State Focus Radio Edition was produced by Professor Hanayo Oya for the Department of Media, Communications and Journalism.
Our stories and interviews were produced by Natalia, edited by James Sepeda. This program is produced in collaboration with 90.7 KFSR from Fresno State focused radio edition. Yahaida Ruiz PerezAnd I’m Aaron Story. See you next week.
SSR presents Fresno State Focus Radio Edition Saturday mornings at five. For a complete program schedule. Visit KFSR Fresno State Radio Edition.