Under the watchful eye of their instructor, Sensei Gould, eight to 12 members, dressed in the traditional white Karate Gi or everyday workout attire, move methodically across the wood floor performing moves in time with Gould’s counts.

As they do a series of exercises from kicks to blocks, Gould moves up and down the line making small adjustments in their form and stance. Quiet intensity is mirrored on each member’s face as they listen and practice until each motion is done with ease.

The students prepared for a quarterly competition this past weekend at Central Elementary in Brookings. The competiton has been held in the ROTC building in previous years, but because of the remodeling there it was held at the school.

Sarah Christensen, a sophomore manufacturing engineering technology major said that 50-75 people participated in the competition. The first night included sword fighting.

“I had never done that,” Christensen said, “It was mainly black belts.”

Participants also took part in a Kyu test and DAN exam.

“Everyone on campus passed,” Christensen said.

Since 1964, members of the SDSU Shotokan Karate Club have enjoyed the physical and mental benefits of this martial art. Shotokan focuses on self-defense, where one learns to counterattack an opponent and then get away, and is different from the attack-focused style of other martial arts forms, such as Tae Kwon Do Christensen said.

Christensen, the club’s president and a black belt, has studied Shotokan for 12 years.

“It’s a good workout, and it’s fun,” she said. “You can meet new people and learn techniques to use in everyday life.”

Concentration is important, Christensen said.

“Shotokan is very center-focused; you need to have yourself centered and ready,” she said.

Adam Kimble, a sophomore pharmacy major and club treasurer, said he agrees that concentration is needed in order to practice Shotokan.

“You have to be prepared,” he said.

Kimble, who started studying Shotokan in September, said that he joined the club because he wanted to meet new people.

“It also looks good on my resume to be involved with extra curricular activities and have a leadership position,” he added.

The karate club hosts a number of events throughout the semester. Last weekend, two self-defense specialists came to host a self-defense workshop. Kimble said they showed how to protect oneself in an attack, and how to get away.

“I got to wear the padded suit for the demonstrations,” Kimble said.

Kimble and Christensen said the competition they are competing in is open to people from all over.

“Students compete in a series of tests in order to move up to the next color belt,” Christensen said.

There are also special classes that black belt students can take and learn how to give tests and teach classes to other students.

“As a black belt, I can take a class and learn how to teach Shotokan,” she said.

Kimble said that this will be his first quarterly.

“I hope I pass to the next color,” he said. “There’s also something called BBA, or Brown Belt Academy. It’s a program for the brown belt students to get ready to take their black belt test.”

Christensen and Kimble agreed that Sensei Gould is one of the most knowledgeable instructors around.

“He’s thought highly of by people in the class,” Christensen said.

“He also understands that students are here for a college education first, and that sometimes they can’t make it to practice because of scheduling conflicts,” Kimble said. “He expects us to get good grades.”

At the end of practice, the members line up in front of Sensei Gould to be dismissed. “Remember,” he tells them, “let your mind dominate over your body. If you want to do something, then just do it. The body follows the mind.”

The club meets every Tuesday and Thursday at 6:30 p.m. in the Intramural Building in the Martial Arts room.

#1.885599:975755409.jpg:Karate 1 (Laura has name).jpg:Sarah Christensen, a black belt, concentrates during practice at the SDSU Karate Club. :Mike Carlson

SDSU’s women’s soccer team beat University of Mary (N.D.) 3-1 Sunday afternoon. The Lady Jacks put in good effort to keep their passes and shots under control despite the windy conditions.

The Lady Jacks started the first half by making good passes and looking for the open pockets on the field. Each teammate stayed in motion constantly, trying to get open and in as good a position as possible for the ball. The majority of the time the Lady Jacks were able to stay one step ahead and keep the passes circulating. The Marauders were not about to the let the Lady Jacks have an easy win and they were able to stop the Lady Jacks from moving any farther up field.

Freshman forward Kelsey Worcester could not be stopped from scoring the team’s first goal, with an assist from senior midfielder Michelle Rahe. The Lady Jacks took advantage of this early lead and pushed the ball back into the Marauders turf, each time getting closer and closer to scoring another shot.

Worcester, with another assist from senior midfielder Amy Goodrich, navigated her way through the Marauders’ defense and scored a second goal for the Lady Jacks. The Marauders remained scoreless and hard pressed to keep up with the Lady Jacks, who continued to manipulate the field.

As the first half came to a close, the Marauders had yet to score. As the wind continued to harass the passes made by each team, the Lady Jacks, led again by Worcester, unassisted this time, went in for the kill and scored their third goal.

As the second half began, it looked as though the Marauders were more determined to control the field. They defended the Lady Jacks closely, and intercepted what seemed to be pass after pass. In an effort to take back control, the Lady Jacks made small errors that were called in the Marauders’ favor, resulting in the Marauders first goal of the game.

The Lady Jacks pushed on, and their persistence paid off.

They were able to keep the Marauders from scoring a second goal with an amazing save by sophomore defender Maggie Eilers. They maintained their position in the Marauders’ territory for the rest of the game.

After the game, Worcester attributed her hat trick to teammate Michelle Rahe’s good passes to her.

“Michelle just got the good balls through and I was able to get in good position for the shot,” Worcester said.

She said that the team was playing much better since their game in Omaha.

“We’re practicing harder and we just got tired of losing,” she said.

“Highlights of the game were Kelsey Worcester’s three goals, and the good passing made by the team,” head coach Lang Wedemeyer said.

“We do have to work on consistency throughout the game. But the girls are working on it and improving.”

Wedemeyer also said that the team’s next game in Utah would be a new experience for many of the girls.

“For some of the girls, this will be the first time they fly to go to a game.”

The Lady Jacks play their next game in Cedar City, Utah, against Southern Utah on Oct. 9.

#1.885884:3689170637.jpg:soccer10-5.jpg:Number 5, Molly Scharfenkamp, dribbles the ball down the field.:Mike Carlson

SDSU has provided a solution to ease the process of traveling to away games for both athletes and fans with charter plane flights.

According to Rob Peterson, assistant athletic director, fans-including parents, alumni, booster club members and students-can purchase tickets to fly with the sports teams.

The department sets up seating on the plane, hotel reservations and transportation arrangements to and from special events that are offered to the teams and traveling fans. These special events include tailgate parties, alumni gatherings and city tours along with tickets to the games. All of these things are included in the airfare price, which can range from $530-$680 per person.

Peterson said that using charter planes to travel back and forth has benefited the sports teams greatly by reducing the stress level often caused by traveling to away games. Flying on the charter planes lets the teams usually leave at about 9 a.m. on Friday mornings and arrive at their destination with plenty of time to thoroughly prepare for the game. They return home at a more agreeable hour when using the charter planes, since the team usually leaves the game shortly after it ends.

“We try to have the athletes back home on Saturday nights so that they can use Sunday to regroup before the start of classes that following Monday. Sometimes that varies, depending on how far away the game is,” Peterson said.

Use of the charter planes has had a great impact on the number of people attending away games, especially games that are a greater distance away, Peterson said.

It has allowed fans to experience new venues in new cities along with the teams, such as Baton Rouge and New Orleans, Peterson said.

The teams also enjoy having the added support from fans since they are playing at some venues for the first time. As many as 20-40 people accompany the sports teams to their destinations each time, and the numbers are increasing, Peterson said.

Some of the places that SDSU teams will be going this year are Cal-Poly and Cal-Davis in California, Hawaii Pacific in Honolulu, New Mexico State, Long Beach State in California, Southern University in Louisiana, University of Colorado and Georgia Southern.

The charter planes have been a success so far, Peterson said.