Hilbert will host a celebration of its international students and their cultures Tuesday afternoon in Franciscan Hall.

The event, which runs from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m., will include salsa dancing, polish food and henna art.

Kera Bush-Turner, Hilbert’s international student coordinator, said she hopes the event will boost the visibility of international students on campus and teach students about one another’s traditions.

“Our goal for this event is to have the entire Hilbert community learn more about our international diversity and how they can leave their mark on the world,” Bush-Turner said.

The scheduled events are:

• Salsa dancing with award-winning dance teacher Fanny Olaya, 3 p.m. to 4 p.m.
• Tabling by international students, 4 p.m. to 6 p.m.
• Henna art from Lori Henna Studio, 4 p.m. to 6 p.m.
• Polish Cuisine from the Wanderer Hut food truck, 4 p.m. to 6 p.m.

On Wednesday, April 26^th, Alyssa Collier and Faith Dyet will be hosting a Mat Ball tournament program as a way for students to be physically active with fellow peers and enjoy the final weeks of the spring semester.

Sporting events allow student athletes and non-athletes to engage in and play sports, while also having fun with friends. Exercise is also an excellent method to de-stress from the demanding college experience of schoolwork, exams, among many others. 

For those who are not familiar with mat ball, it is similar to kickball. It is an indoor team game where players try to score runs by going around the bases after kicking a ball. Unlike kickball, the bases are large floor mats, and any number of players can stay on them at the same time before running to the next one. Players on defense can tag runners out by catching the ball, throwing it at the runner, or touching the players with it. Once you split up into teams and set up the field, you’re ready to compete.

This event will be taking place in the Hilbert Hafner Center at 8 p.m. There will be a QR code to sign in and sign a waiver once students arrive at the gym.

Scott Caracci, the Management Coordinator for the Hilbert College Athletics department, says this is a great way for students to get involved.

“I think that it is great that you girls are holding a mat ball game in the Hafner Center,” he said. “It will give students on campus a new opportunity to meet new people while also being active. Safety during these types of events is paramount. Having campus safety looped in and having students sign a waiver are good steps to ensuring safety for this activity”.

At the end of this event, each student that has been signed in through the QR Code will be entered into a raffle for a chance to win Hilbert Hawks apparel and accessories. Collier and Dyet are hoping that this event will not only allow students to build connections with fellow peers, but also will build individual skills such as leadership, discipline, and confidence.

Dyet, one of the students who is running this event, said that she is very excited to be hosting mat ball.

“I am grateful to anyone who decides to participate,” Dyet said. “This has taken a lot of time and planning to ensure that students are receiving interactive programs that they enjoy.”

February 21st-24th was Communications Career week here at Hilbert College.

There were many activities such as a Sports Media Panel, Filmmaking Seminar, Marketing Seminar, and more.

During this time, students had the opportunity to tour two of Buffalo’s most popular production studios, WNED/PBS and WKBW (Channel 7 News).

“The purpose of career week is to connect our students with as many industry professionals and opportunities as possible. We want to show students different avenues into the industry and give them an idea of what it is like to work in an exciting field,” said Justin Sondel, a professor of digital media and communications, and the main organizer of Communications week.

At WNED, students learned about media production including live programing, radio, talk shows, audio, camera work, and more. Upon walking into the WKBW studio, Jeff Russo, anchor and reporter, as well as sports director for Channel 7 news, Matt Bove, welcomed the students and answered many questions about working in the field of journalism.

Students also watched the live taping of the noon broadcast anchored by Hannah Buelher, and meteorologist Mary Wrobel.

Jamal Harris, a digital media and communications major who attended the trip says “The news tour was definitely interesting, glad I went on it. Just cool for me personally, the news where the reporters were and the live studio.”

This was a great opportunity for anyone with an interest in communications, media, journalism or politics.

Students were able to ask experienced professionals questions one-on-one, see behind the scenes like audio and visuals, as well as learn about the dedication it takes to embark on this career path.

Keep an eye out for other fun and informative opportunities on Hilbert Campus. You can stay informed by checking your email and the school website for weekly updates, in addition to following Hilbert on instagram.

● @hilbert_involement

● @cab_hilbert

● @hilbert_comm

• @the_hilbert_scribe

Check out WNED’s and WKBK’s websites for internship opportunities.

The Hilbert College Baseball team traveled down to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina to compete in seven games over a six day stretch during spring break.

They earned a record of 4-3 while down south to bring their overall record to 5-6. Two Hawks, Brendan Walsh and Pat Whelan, earned athletic honors for their play in Myrtle Beach.

The spring trip was described as “an overall fun experience for both team bonding purposes and playing” by Walsh. The team played in competitive games and all players became closer to one another, he added.

On their first day, the Hawks saw an early morning double-header against Penn Tech College where they split the series by losing 4-2 in game one and winning game 2, 5-4.

In game one, Hilbert would only be able to plate across two runs. The first run was given in the top of the first inning after Derek Martinez reached base safely on an error that scored Whelan. The second run was earned in the fifth inning off of a double by Pat Whelan that scored Jairo Santos. Despite the strong outing by first-year pitcher, Andrew Cole, the Hawks were not able to generate enough runs to win game one. Cole threw 5.2 innings, allowing only one earned run and striking out two batters.

Game two saw a fast pace with little offense for either side. Penn Tech was able to score four runs in six innings, three of which unearned. The Hawks would not plate a run until the bottom of the sixth, when an RBI single off the bat of Manny McClain scored Derek Martinez. Hilbert would tie the game after back-to-back walks and a wild pitch scored three more runs. In the bottom of the seventh, senior Angelo DiNizo would double to left field, scoring Frank McCabe, allowing the Hawks to earn a walk-off win, 5-4.

Day two of competition was against Delaware Valley College, for a single 9-inning game. The Hawks struck early by scoring one run in the first inning and one run in the second inning. These runs came off the bat of a Thomas Evans double and a Griff McAndrews ground ball. Delaware Valley’s pitching silenced the hawks for the remaining seven innings while pushing across eight throughout the game, creating a final score of 8-2. Freshman Brendan Hediger had an impressive performance on the mound, throwing five innings, allowing one earned run, and striking out four.

The fourth game of the trip was a contest, under the lights, against Valley Forge University, which resulted in another walk-off win for the Hawks. Hilbert would take turns with the lead with Valley Forge until they claimed a 6-4 lead over the Hawks in the seventh inning. The Hawks would not respond until the bottom of the ninth when a Derek Martinez ground out made it 6-5. Jack Duffek was able to seal the game for Hilbert with a two RBI single to give the Hawks a 7-6 victory.

When asked about his big hit, Duffek described the at-bat as a great opportunity and the “kind of situation you dream of.”

“Down one, bases loaded, down to the final out.”

He kept his approach simple, saying to himself “take a deep breath, hit something hard.”

A deflating walk-off defeat for Hilbert against Clark Summit College would be overshadowed by a two-win day against Geneva College. The score of the double header would be 3-2 and 11-4. In game one, a Thomas Evans RBI, a John Riviere fielder’s choice, and a balk generated enough runs to defeat Geneva, given another strong outing from Cole. Cole held Geneva to one earned run over 5+ innings of work.

The second game against Geneva saw an offensive explosion for Hilbert. Ben Ratajczak, Evans, Whelan, Ben Chowaniec, and John Watson all recorded RBIs in the game. Whelan, Evans, and Santos also recorded extra-base hits. One of Whelan’s extra-base hits was a monster home run over the right field wall that gave the Hawks a 7-0 lead in the second inning. This game also saw another dominant outing from pitcher, Hediger, who threw six innings, allowing only one earned run.

For their actions over spring break, Walsh earned AMCC Pitcher of the Week while Whelan earned Hawk of the Week. Walsh appeared in two games, allowing no runs and only one base runner over five innings of work. He recorded two wins and a save while down south. Whelan posted a .444 batting average in Myrtle, while slugging .833. He also put together three multi-hit games over the week.

Have you ever witnessed someone in cardiac arrest, wishing that you could actually do something to help?

Well now is your chance. As a Hilbert College student you are eligible for CPR/AED training.

On behalf of Campus Safety, Officer John Bailie is offering a course for said training.

“We will be offering the Hilbert College Community ideally after Easter Break, for free, in small exclusive groups.”

According to Health & Safety Institute the human brain can only survive, four to six minutes without oxygen. After six minutes irreversible brain damage can occur and possibly even death. CPR stands for cardiopulmonary resuscitation, and it is a technique that is used to slow the process of brain death by restarting the heart and getting a person to start breathing again.

CPR is needed when someone goes into cardiac arrest, when the heart malfunctions and stops beating unexpectedly. According to the American Heart Association about 10,000 incidents of cardiac arrest occur at work each year, and about 92% of victims die before even reaching the hospital.

Bailie said people can cause additional harm when they perform CPR incorrectly.

“Broken ribs and sternum, vomiting, stomach distension, and brain damage,” Bailie said.

Bailie said the classes last less than two hours.

“It takes roughly 60 to 90 minutes depending on the student,” he said.

When CPR might not be working, one might have to start to use an automated external defibrillator, commonly referred to as an AED. The need to know how to use an AED is just as important as learning CPR, Bailie said.

If you are interested in learning CPR and how to use an AED you can reach out to Campus Safety or Bailie.

They will be offering this opportunity to all students in small groups throughout this semester, ideally any time after Easter Break. All you need to do is reach out to Bailie at jbailie@hilbert.edu.

Bert Fest offers students many opportunities to relax and have fun.

The Hilbert Hawks Women’s Basketball team traveled to the 4th seeded Penn State Altoona Lions for the first round of the AMCC playoffs and came up with an upset by a score of 54-40.  

The Hawks dominated the game from the tip, scoring within the first 16 seconds of the game. They led by as much as 19 points in the 3rd quarter and Mackenzie Catan threw in seven  three-point shots and finished with a game high 21 points.  

Other key contributors were Ashley Schroeder with 13 points and 5 assists, Chloe Champagne added another 5 assists, Alesia Hamm contributed 10 points and Monika Allen finished with 8 points and 10 rebounds in just 11 minutes.  

The total team defensive effort allowed the Hawks to grow and maintain the lead throughout the entirety of the game. “Although our offense was great our defense won us the game” says Champagne. 

The Hawks led in nearly every statistical category, they shot a better percentage from field goal and beyond the arc. They also out rebounded the Lions by 12 and gathered 5 steals which led to more 2^nd chance and fastbreak points. “We applied pressure the whole game… they were crying” Champagne adds. 

Music and laughter filled the air on Monday after Hilbert College hosted a musical concert performed by artist Phillip Jackson, also known as Eems. The concert took place in the 78 West Café.

In an interview, Eems explains that he is from Kansas City, Missouri, and has been playing music his whole life. He started off playing the drums and worked his way to the piano, then later started open mic. He has always written music and fell in love with the idea of performing. His mom was a choir director for the church, so music has always been a way to get together and show love. “I love performing in front of people, being on stage”, he says. Now, Eems travels on tour to different colleges to perform songs and bring people together with the art of music.

Hilbert was the second to last school for the tour and aside from good snacks and beverages, students were given the opportunity to come on stage and perform with musical artist, Eems. Alexis Kelson was one student in particular who stood out. After pushing herself out of her comfort zone, Alexis performed a freestyle on stage with Eems. This concert helped improve the confidence of many students by allowing them to perform and be a part of such a unique experience. Many college students are not given the opportunity to relax and have fun during a busy time of the semester, so it’s heartwarming to see people come together and enjoy music.  

Hilbert Involvement ran this event and was very happy with how this event turned out. Alex Gill, head of student involvement says that this was a time for students to relax. Life can get hectic, so this concert gave students the opportunity to escape everyday life and enjoy the comfort that music brings to life.

“This crowd was perfect. Hilbert Involvement knows how to throw a show! Thanks for having me and I can’t wait to see you all again soon”, writes Eems in a recent Instagram post.

Hilbert’s Men’s Basketball team fell short in their First-Round playoff game, battling it out with Pitt Bradford until the final minutes of the game, losing 80-79.

This game was the third time of the year that the two teams have collided. Every game that the two teams have played against each other has come down to one point differential.

Hilbert has a young, promising roster to build with, while also having lots of offseason time to recruit.

Senior Elijah Powell is a great role model for Hilbert’s team and many players look up to him.

“This team was more of a family than any other team and played hard for each other every night,” Powell said. “I’m very close with these guys, they’re my brothers.”

The team was led by many key players throughout the season. Quran Briggs is a great basketball player leading the team. Briggs led the team in scoring this season averaging 31.0 points per game, while shooting 48% from the field.

“It was a good season,” Briggs said. “It wasn’t the finish we wanted. It was fun playing with this group of new guys.”

Briggs was happy with how his team performed.

“It feels great. It’s an honor,” Briggs said. “I feel like they look up to me and they ask how I do what I do, and I’ve never had it happen to me it was great.”

The Hawks concluded the season, finishing 12-13 overall. This record doesn’t define the Hawks, Only 3 seniors will not be back next season and the future is promising.