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Women’s Water Polo wins LBCC’s first state title since 2019

Kameron Hendricks
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Women’s Water Polo wins LBCC’s first state title since 2019

Long Beach City College women’s water polo team took home the school’s first state championship since 2019 with an 11-6 victory over the two time reigning champion Santa Barbara City College. 

The championship capped off an absolutely dominant season for women’s water polo with a final record of 39-2 only losing by one point to Riverside and to D1 school Cal State Northridge.

Sophomore Lola Annear and Freshman Jennifer Connelly led the Vikings’ offense with three goals each.

“I am so proud of our team; we worked hard all season preparing for this moment,” center Olivia Hurley told the athletics department, “The way we worked together was so impressive, and it’s something I’ll never forget.”

The game was tied heading into the third quarter where the Vikings dominated and went on a 5-0 run that they hung onto until the end of the game.

“We just won the state championship. The girls played amazing and had fun doing it, just like they did all year,” Director of Aquatics Bradley Adamson told the athletics department.

The championship was played at home in Long Beach so this win was even more special for the team to get the job done at home.

“I couldn’t ask for a better scenario with such a connected team that fought for each other all year long. Playing at home in the state championship for the first time in over 20 years made it incredibly special. I couldn’t be prouder of these girls,” Head Coach Chris Oeding told the athletics department.

This marks Oeding’s fourth state championship as head coach of the women’s water polo team with the first three coming in 2003, 2004 and 2006.

Santa Barbara won the state title the last two years and was poised to complete the three-peat but Long Beach stood in their way all year.

The two teams faced off three times this season with all three games going to Long Beach, showing complete dominance throughout the season.

Women’s water polo is back in a big way and with many freshmen on the team next year the team will look to run it back, hoping for another dominant season.

Basic Needs Program supplies free groceries to campus community

Isabel Murty
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Basic Needs Program supplies free groceries to campus community

LBCC’s Basic Needs program held their monthly food bank at the Trades Tech and Community Learning Campus (formerly PCC) on Tuesday, providing students and community members with free groceries and resources for their holiday meals. 

This grocery store takes place every fourth Tuesday of every month in parking Lot 1 at 1 p.m. on the TTC campus providing more than the standard goods that the Viking Vault gives. 

With the holidays fast approaching, the Basic Needs program took it upon themselves to supply the Long Beach community with various canned foods and produce. 

Maile Miller, an LBCC student who was in line to receive food, has an interest in agriculture and had heard about the event in passing on campus. 

“When I heard about it I was like Thanksgiving is coming up and I definitely need food,” Miller said. 

Miller emphasized the importance of the school providing food to students and their families right before the holidays. 

“There’s obviously a lot of families here depending on this food,” Miller said in reference to the amount of families in line. 

Long Beach mayor Rex Richardson made an appearance and helped hand out groceries to guests, as well as expressing the importance of providing food to the community to display this. 

William Rodriguez was another LBCC student who came to the event to get holiday food with friends. 

“I was so excited,” Rodriguez said when asked about the attendance of Mayor of Long Beach Rex Richardson. 

Rodriguez went on to describe the importance of having a political figure on campus, sharing how big of an issue groceries may be to the community. 

Rodriguez, along with friends Andres Felipe, Lina Sofia and Derek Harin Sanchez, gathered in line to obtain the goodies given by Basic Needs. 

“Yes, we were getting food for Thanksgiving,” Rodriguez said. 

Carl Kemp, executive director of public affairs and marketing helped to set up this grocery store.

 “I try to leave the legacy of leaving the world a little bit better than how I found it,” says Kemp

While this is the last food bank of the year, Basic Needs will resume its monthly food bank in January. 

 A Taste of Africa: students share culture through cuisine

Kiomi Valdez
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 A Taste of Africa: students share culture through cuisine

SAGE, Sankofa Adjustments with Great Expectations, and a Taste of LBCC collaborated this past Thursday in order to showcase cuisine and culture from various parts of Africa. 

On the menu were dishes such as Nigerian jollof, Sudanese falafel, Ghanaian beet juice, and Ethiopian curry. 

Inspiration came about when Angela Fowlkes visited Ghana for the first time and planted the “seed” to host an event centered around African cuisine. 

“When I went to Africa back in 2022 for the first time I had no connection to my culture. I never tasted the food, I never had any (African) clothing or friends or anything. So when I went there I got connected to my identity and so now this is a part of the seed from what grew there,” Fowlkes said.

Taste of LBCC President Julio Maya oversaw and assisted, when needed, with the various dishes that were being prepared.

None of the chosen recipes had long preparation times as Maya explained they had limited time within the facility.

“We put thought into them, they have to be quick recipes, recipes that can be made in the hour or half hour. That’s what we mainly do when we do these collaborations, we have enough time to eat, to sit down and talk and have time to clean up and get out of here,” Maya said.

The facility was also shared with other culinary students who were preparing ingredients for their class.

Joshua Campbell, a culinary student himself and member of SAGE explained that the recipes were not chosen haphazardly. 

“We didn’t want to just pull some African recipes from the internet,” Campbell said.

Joshua Campbell, SAGE club president adds rice to a pan with broth to cook the Jollof rice dish originating from Nigeria. The Taste of Africa event which was a collaboration between the culinary arts students and sage club included five traditional dishes originating from African nations on Nov. 21, 2024. (Nick Eismann)

“We were able to find students apart of our club and on campus who are African or who are in more direct contact with family members who are directly from or even currently in Africa, so we were able to get those dishes and get those recipes,” said Campbell.

One such student from Nigeria provided his family’s recipe of jollof rice and noted the amicable feud between West African countries on who makes the best jollof rice. 

There were no issues with acquiring the ingredients for the dishes as the LBCC’s kitchen was fully stocked, the only issue that Fowlkes noted was acquiring berbere spice–a spice blend that is a key ingredient in Ethiopian and Eritrean cuisine–for the Ethiopian curry. 

Dishes were presented individually with infographics placed near as attendees served themselves a plate of food. 

Both club members sat and the background for each of the dishes was read out to attendants. 

Women’s Volleyball advances in 3C2A state championships with 3-1 victory over Palomar

Kameron Hendricks
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Women’s Volleyball advances in 3C2A state championships with 3-1 victory over Palomar

LBCC’s women’s volleyball team defeated Palomar college on Saturday, securing their spot in the state championship quarter finals at Mt. Sac for the first time in school history.

Head Coach Tyler Jackson stated the Vikings practiced hard for this match and employed a variety of techniques as well as practicing into the holidays. 

“We practiced all week long, we even had a Thanksgiving practice. We watched and studied Palomar, they’re a really good team, a really good program. We scouted them, we studied them, we worked on their routes,” Jackson said.

Palomar pushed hard during the match with the Comets head coach calling frequent time-outs in order to rally the team. 

Both teams were proficient in their plays with LBCC losing the second round and nearly losing the fourth round.

When heading into the match, middle blocker and opposite hitter Hadassah Odeyale understood the gravity of the game to make it to finals since it was something they haven’t done in 24 years.

“We know that this team is a talented team so I wouldn’t say we were concerned but we were nervous, we have a lot riding on us for sure. We want to go to state, I don’t think we’ve ever done that before,” Odeyale said, “it was in the back of our minds all the way.” 

The Vikings next match is at Mt. San Antonio College on Dec.6 at 7pm and they will be facing off against Feather River for an opportunity to become the new State champions.

Men’s soccer defeat Cerritos, advance to 3C2A state championships semi-finals

Kameron Hendricks
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Men’s soccer defeat Cerritos, advance to 3C2A state championships semi-finals

In the crosstown rivalry, LBCC’s men’s soccer team defeated Cerritos 3-1 with a hat trick from forward Jose Mariscal on November 30th to advance to the state championship semifinals.

The team is now moving on to the 3C2A state championship semi-finals in Sacramento, with hopes to win their first ever state title.

The Vikings started off rough in the first half where they failed to score and ended up conceding a goal before the half.

Forward Jose Mariscal scored shortly after during the 40th minute tying the game to end the half 

This game wasn’t nearly as filled with yellow cards as the last as LBCC didn’t receive any penalties and kept their calm.

Goalkeeper Abraham Ramirez had multiple crucial saves this game including one in the last 3 minutes of the game.

“This game was a rivalry so this felt really good for us. They have a great team but at the end of the day I felt like this was our time and our turn to shine. I couldn’t let them score and try to put us out of the race for state,” Ramirez said.

Freshmen Anthony Martinez keeping the ball from the opposing team.
Long Beach advances to the State Championship game after a win against Cerritos on Nov. 30 2024. (Brianna Apodaca)

Going into the second half, Cerritos had already received 4 penalties while LBCC stayed out of foul trouble.

Mariscal gave LBCC the lead 2-1 with thirty minutes still left to play.

Cerritos player Gustavo Arias received a red card and further frustrated Cerritos.

Mariscal completed his hat trick with another goal to extend the lead to 3-1. 

Forward David Huerta spoke on the mindset that the team had during the game and how they kept playing relaxed.

“We saw that it was going to be a tense game and it would be tough but we just kept our minds on the fact that we will make it to state and that we just gotta do our best and don’t let anything discourage us,” Huerta said.

Head Coach Jorge Reyes said he felt relief and he was proud of his team for how far they have come.

“Cerritos is an amazing team and they are battle tested and this is our boys’ first time in school history (being in this position) and I’m just glad that they persevered and did their best out there and they came out with the win,” Reyes said.

LBCC will play against Butte College on Friday in the 3C2A semifinal at American River College. 

Lack of advertisement results in low turn out at Native American open mic

Kiomi Valdez
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Lack of advertisement results in low turn out at Native American open mic

The Social Justice Intercultural Center (SJIC) at Long Beach City College, which focuses on promoting equity and social justice through various programs and events, hosted an Open Mic Night to celebrate Native American Heritage Month, which was overshadowed by another event on campus LBCC After Dark which was taking place at the same time.

LBCC After Dark, was the larger and more widely attended campus activity happening at the same time, likely due to the food and accessible nature.

This left some attendees questioning the scheduling and visibility of culturally significant events on campus.

SJIC planned to host its Karaoke/Open Mic Night at LAC in B206, 2nd Floor of Building B, on November 19.

The event was intended to honor and celebrate Native American heritage by amplifying the voices of those who attend LBCC.

Meanwhile, LBCC After Dark, an event providing food, drinks, and snacks to students who leave class late or stay on campus for evening studies, collided with SJIC’s plans.

The event organizer, who declined to be interviewed, noted that this was the first time their Open Mic Night had been empty. 

“I usually check Viking Engagement. The last time I checked was two days ago, and there was nothing about an open mic night,” James Trinh said.  

For many students, the decision to attend events on campus often comes down to practicality, with one of the biggest deciding factors being food. 

One student who attended the LBCC After Dark event said they were unaware of the Open Mic Night and would have attended if they had known about it.

Student Darcy Beery being asked about their personal opinions regarding the empty Native American open mic event taking place at the Social Justice Intercultural Center on November 23, 2024. (Regina G Melchor)

“Flyers would have been more effective and would have made me aware of the event,” Darcy Beery said.  

The organizers had hoped the event would allow students to celebrate and honor Native American culture through self-expression, whether through spoken word, songs, or personal reflections.

Events like these are crucial for increasing awareness about minority groups, especially for newly enrolled LBCC students.  

When asked what the organizers could have done to spread the word, another student gave their thoughts

“They should advertise their Instagram,” Parker Ellerston said.

Advertising events like these help students understand the importance of celebrating Native American culture, it promotes inclusivity within campus and gets people interested.

LBCC’s men’s basketball team defeats Rio Hondo 94-93

Kameron Hendricks
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LBCC’s men’s basketball team defeats Rio Hondo 94-93

Two game-winning free throws from Mason Pacheco Robinson won the game for LBCC basketball 94-93 with 4.8 seconds remaining against Rio Hondo on Friday Nov. 8. 

The Vikings came out swinging in the first half to take the lead 56-42 over the Roadrunners at halftime.  

Coach Barry Barnes acknowledged that the team came out strong in the first half, but admitted that they were a little too flat in the second half. Regardless, he was proud of them for taking home a win.

Barnes said he is going to prioritize “containing the basketball” in practice after this game, along with keeping the mojo going so that they play well in both halves.

“We needed more scoring, so Lawrence Brown gave us 20 points in the first half,” Barnes said.

Freshman Lawrence Brown earned the team 25 points this game and said he is thankful for his teammates and their support throughout the game, along with his coaches who instill a lot of confidence in him. 

Brown shared that Rio Hondo went on a really good run coming out of the second half, so in practice they’re going to work on staying level-headed when something similar happens.

“We definitely got to work on when people go by us, playing help (defense) but being able to tag back to our guy, besides that I think it’s just a lot of communication between us,” Brown said.

Sophomore Major Hurley shared that the next team they play is Riverside City College and that they’re a much faster team than the Vikings so to prepare they’re going to work on getting back and transitioning offense. 

“This game we really pushed the pace, but they matched our intensity and knocked down some tough shots, but we responded and that’s all we had to do,” Hurley said.

Hurley is hyped for the rest of the season and is going to personally work on cutting down the turnovers so that he can have a successful rest of the season.

The Vikings now have a record of 1-5 and their next game will be against Orange Coast College on December 5th.

UMOJA club hosts culture feast to unite LBCC community through global flavors

Darla Perez
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UMOJA club hosts culture feast to unite LBCC community through global flavors

The UMOJA club hosted a “Culture Feast” for LBCC students and staff members to bring the cultural clubs of the college together, uniting them with food from different ethnic backgrounds.

“This gives us a chance to reunite all the clubs on campus-It also shades the love of Black, brown and queered centered clubs bring togetherness post -election,”the President of UMOJA, Kyshia Hearns said. 

The menu consists of many different ethical foods on the menu such as tamales, fried chicken, banana pudding, Thai chili, stuffed bacon wrapped jalapenos, and Kool-aid.

Arkesha Sturdivant, an LBCC student and student worker served the guests and helped set up the event.

“I always love to participate and if it wasn’t for Umoja I would be taking a break from school,”— “It’s my support system,” Studivant said.

Studivant is also a member of Umoja and says that she is dedicated to the club too.

Umoja means unity in Swahili and is a Black based club, however anyone of any ethnicity can be an Umoja club member.

Manalo Montoya is a proud member of Umoja and holds the position of Sergeant of Arms for the club and had a lot of great things to say about it.

“My job is to keep the peace and order,”… “It’s good to be a part of a group that is like a family, Umoja gives me something to do and I feel like I have a purpose here, ” Montoya said. 

Umoja is a student-run club that helps with student resources like education plans and counseling.

Umoja member and student Lexus Woodward said, “Umoja has contributed to my experience here at LBCC and every time I’ve been to an Umoja event I always felt welcomed.”

“Not just me but my son as well. We always enjoy ourselves.” 

Umoja hosts a lot of events on campus and all LBCC students are all invited, non-members and even their families.

Chrishaad Moye, a counselor for the Umoja center said, “Some of our members don’t have families and this gives them a chance to connect to their student families to celebrate different cultures around the holidays. Also to keep the good vibe energy going on the campus because the friends you make in college are the ones you keep in life.”

April Brown has been an Umoja member for two years and is also the student success coach for the club.

“I just help out where I can and it’s all about unity,” Brown said.

The music wasn’t the only thing playing as cards were being shuffled alongside other games such as Jenga and uno.

LBCC student and Umoja member Kaleb Brown said, “I wish they had more events like this to keep us engaged , strong, and make us better.”

Brown wasn’t the only one who had good things to say, Umoja member Arlena Ellis said, “I’m having fun and it’s a good place to give you support.”

Asb member Samuel Perez had stopped in, grabbed a plate and said, “It’s family time with Umoja, I love the connection, the ambiance and you always get to smile that makes you feel welcomed.” 

Good food and a lot of laughs were in the room and someone yelled “I got the itis,” a slang term meaning that a person is tired after a good meal, similar to a food coma.

That saying was followed with a chuckle from the whole room.

The event ended with a group picture that everyone participated in and held their fist high in the air, as the unity hit its peak.

Umoja is hosting a Kwanzaa celebration around December 5th at LBCC’s Liberal art Campus.

LBCC students share their summer of independent research

Kiomi Valdez
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LBCC students share their summer of independent research

Two LBCC students got the opportunity to conduct independent chemistry and biochemistry research in a nine-week summer program by Cal State LA that aims to provide undergraduates and community college students with early research opportunities.

These students were invited by LBCC science professors to speak at a Sip N Science event held recently, where attendees could ask questions about their experience and research while enjoying a meal.

Student speakers Elise Hastie and Jorman Villavicencio spent their summer at Cal State LA’s Research Experience for Undergraduates in Chemistry and Biochemistry program, where they were given the opportunity to be hands-on with science research being conducted right now. 

The program picks ten students every year and provides them with dorms at CSULA for the summer, as well as a $6,000 stipend for living expenses.

Hastie shared that she really enjoyed being on the cutting edge of science and seeing things that are happening that could potentially change the world one day and connect with all the professors and the research leaders.

“I think a lot of us were first-generation college students, so it was great to have that kind of influence in our life and see what higher education looks like,” Hastie said.

Villavicencio shared that he’s from Venezuela, and he was thankful to have that opportunity to work in an organic lab as a first-generation college student.

“The experience made me realize the business side of this and how I can make a great lifestyle out of this and the networking and friendships, because you meet so many people and make friendships that will last a long time,” Villavicencio said. 

Jorman Villavicencio, a chemistry major student at Long Beach City College, presents his collaborative undergrad research study on Nov. 9 at one of the Sip N Science events being held this month. (Alma Tamara)

Assistant Professor of Microbiology Erika Calle-Poppe alongside Chemistry Professor Lizeth Perez started Sip N Science to make science accessible to the college community and expose students to real-world scientific research in a way that they can understand.

Perez shared that bringing in Hastie and Villavicencio was a great way to demonstrate to students that they too can apply for this program and dip their toes into the field, because people who were once in their shoes have accomplished this and enjoyed the experience overall.  

This particular event was also marketed as a part of the college’s Filipino American History Month event series. 

“Usually we try to do a theme or a speaker that’s related to the heritage, but we brought some Filipino food in order to celebrate,” Perez said.

Perez elaborated that next month the Chief of Surgery at UCLA, Argentinian Dr. Christian Virgilio will be speaking at their event, included in the Native American & Indigenous Heritage Events.

“We wanted representation in science, so multiple people from multiple backgrounds and ethnicities, which are not represented in science,” Calle-Poppe said.

Calle-Poppe shared that Sip N Science is basically like a “Science Cafe” in which science is discussed in terms that anyone can understand and become interested in, in a more casual environment. 

Calle-Poppe said that when she was a student she struggled to understand how to make professional connections, and get research opportunities like Hastie and Villavicencio.

Hastie and Villavicencio were both thrilled about the turnout of the event and the opportunity to share their research and experiences with the research program. 

They both encouraged students to apply for the program and take the risk because they may end up loving it.

Vikings defeat Citrus College 17-14

Kameron Hendricks
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Vikings defeat Citrus College 17-14

LBCC football’s defense shined in their hard fought 17-14 victory over Citrus College facilitated by a huge interception from Travis Davis with 27 seconds left on the clock to hand the Vikings their final home victory of the season on Nov. 16. 

The energy was electric at Veterans Memorial Stadium as Davis intercepted a pass from Citrus’ Quarterback Jake Denerson and rushed for 18 yards to seal the win. 

“I’ll never forget this…trusting my coach and trusting my teammates. I really can’t do any of this without my teammates. I am grateful for this,” Davis said. 

Eric Zavala gave the Vikings their first points of the game in the first quarter with the completion of a 34-yard field goal giving Long Beach a 3-0 lead. 

At the end of the first half the Vikings were behind by four with a score of 7-3 after a Citrus touchdown in the last 46 seconds of the second quarter.

In the third quarter Quarterback Jett Peddy completed a 24-yard pass to Wide Receiver Marques Guzman, getting the Vikings’ score up to 17 while Citrus remained at 7. Both teams were scoreless for the rest of the quarter going into the fourth. 

The beginning of the fourth quarter saw the Vikings still ahead while Citrus scored another touchdown at the 14 minute mark to reduce the Vikings’ lead to 3 points with a 17-14 score. 

The Vikings tightened their defense for the rest of the half and were able to pull through with a hard-fought victory.

“I’m incredibly proud of the team and their resiliency. We fought back. We got ourselves out of a hole, and we’re super excited,” Head Coach Brett Peabody said.

Peabody also highlighted a couple of players, including Travis Davis, Michael Salinas, and Carson Moore. 

Michael Salinas, a freshman from Polytechnic High School and offensive lineman, talked about the mindset he and his teammates had going into the second half.

“The first half they had us, but when we came out of the locker room we trusted us and played our ball and we just did us,” Salinas said. 

Salinas was asked if there was any doubt about if they’d be able to pull off their victory. 

“Never, no doubt we always have our heads up. We are always a team,” Salinas said. 

Defensive end Carson Moore shared his teammates’ sentiment.

“Once we get that energy going they can’t stop us,” Moore said. 

After winning against Citrus College, Long Beach City College is going into its final game of the season against Ventura College on Nov. 27 with a record of 6-4.

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