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MSU gymnastics claims second place in the Big Ten Championship

Michigan State gymnastics ended its Big Ten campaign in Iowa City where the Spartans claimed second place in the Big Ten Championship with a score of 197.550.

From start to finish, the final session of the Big Ten Championship was a beautiful battle full of jaw-dropping performances from MSU, Michigan, Iowa and Ohio State.

Michigan State kicked off the Big Ten Championship on the floor. Senior Nyah Smith started the Spartans off with a solid 9.850 to set the tone for the evening.

Also, a show-stopping day from MSU sophomore Skyla Schulte landed her in second place with a high 39.625.

To cap off the evening, the Spartans were awarded two Big Ten accolades. Nikki Smith was named Big Ten Freshman of the Year–the same title Schulte acquired just last year, and head coach Mike Rowe clinched Big Ten Coach of the Year for the second year in a row.

With every Spartan gymnast scoring above 9.850 on the floor, the Spartans ended rotation one with a 49.425. Unfortunately for the Spartans, Michigan put up six scores above 9.900 to finish in first place with a 49.725.

Unlike their earlier meeting this season, the Spartans fell to the Wolverines who scored a huge 198.000 to win the Big Ten Championship. Michigan State finished second and Minnesota followed close behind with a 197.250.

It was not the outcome the Spartans hoped for, but luckily for them, their season is not over yet. Today at noon, Michigan State will find out when and where their regional competition will be held at the end of this month.

Student-led healing event causes confusion among students

A post-shooting healing event, organized by two students in collaboration with MSU and the MSU Museum, confused students who interpreted the event as a protest against the university.

Psychology sophomores Hannah Greenspan and Kirin Krafthefer were inspired to put on a community-centered healing event by Krafthefer’s blog Spartan Stronger, which gives students the opportunity to post testimonials about the Feb. 13 mass shooting at MSU. However, the pair labeled the event as a walkout occurring during class hours, which led many students to understand the event as a protest against the university.

For several students, including anthropology sophomore Erin Willcock, the term walkout sounded like a protest related to gun control or directed toward the university.

“It’s not political,” Krafthefer said. “I feel like people need to reel that in. We’re kicking ourselves for calling it a walkout.”

The confusion kicked in when the event was rescheduled to Sunday, March 19 after heavy snowfall on the Monday it was originally scheduled for. Willcock was one of a few students who commented on the walkout’s Instagram page expressing concern that a walkout would occur on a weekend.

The event had been planned in collaboration with the university who would be providing sound systems, tables and materials. When Greenspan and Krafthefer saw the need to reschedule because of the weather, they originally decided on Wednesday, March 15, but were told the university couldn’t support them with materials if the event potentially interrupted two school days, leading the pair to reschedule for a weekend.

Greenspan and Krafthefer said it was never meant to be a protest against the university. They said there was no point during the organization of the event where they felt limited by MSU.

The rescheduled event was held yesterday at Demonstration Field.

After a short speech from Greenspan and Krafthefer, index cards were available for students to record their experiences from Feb. 13. All of the cards will be preserved in the MSU Archives and, with permission, will be temporarily displayed in an exhibit inside the MSU Museum.

Ingham County signs on to opioid lawsuit payments

Ingham County Health Department, or ICHD, will be participating in an opioid lawsuit settlement targeted at funding prevention and treatment efforts during the opioid epidemic.

Proposed multibillion dollar settlements from a national lawsuit against Teva Pharmaceuticals, Allergan Pharmaceuticals, CVS Pharmacy and Walmart Pharmacy are being joined by Michigan which could bring in a huge amount of money to the state’s municipal governments over 13 years, according to a press release from state Attorney General Dana Nessel’s office.

Municipal governments are eligible to participate if it is currently litigating against the defendants or has a population of 10,000 or more. Each Michigan county is eligible and Ingham County has signed on as a participant.

The amount allocated to the state and its municipalities is partly dependent on the amount of participation of local governments, according to the statement.

Based on original reporting by Bella Johnson, Vivian Barrett and Maggie George.