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Editors Note: This is the second of a two-part story about how social media plays a role in college recruiting.
From a players perspective, Shawn Roundtree found his own positives in social media.
With a large number of his 1,045 followers being college coaches, Roundtree sees Twitter has a way to keep recruiters updated with his most recent information.
It is definitely a great outlet for athletes, such as myself, to get things out there that could go unnoticed. Twitter allows you to put things out there that someone may not have known, he said.
During the 2013-14 season, Roundtrees twitter feed is filled with mentions of his accomplishments, including his MVP performance at the Salem Invitational Tournament. There is also plenty of basketball, which Rivals.com recruiting coordinator Mike Farrell noted is something recruiters hope to find on an athletes feed.
While Roundtree said he has seen a steady increase in followers, it was the exact opposite for Kortney Dunbar.
The shooting guard was an instant hit once Sept. 1 rolled around and womens basketball coaches were allowed to start following her on Twitter. She said it was an awesome feeling to see which coaches were coming along in the notifications.
Once I started getting heavily recruited, as soon as they could follow me on Sept. 1 and you wake up at midnight, it was boom, boom, boom. It was like 50 followers and then 100 followers of coaches following along. They would message me and say, Hey, we saw you here. I could definitely notice, Dunbar said about her followers increasing on Twitter.
Over the past couple of seasons, Dunbar has tweeted about each of Edwardsvilles games and the summer camps, along with her recent nomination as a McDonalds All-American.
New to the tweets are mentions of the Tennessee Volunteers.
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PREP SPORTS: Recruits can be followed better on Twitter
The Infamous games have always been about choice. Players have the choice of where to go, what to do, and most importantly, what type of character they want to be, with rewards and penalties for veering toward good or evil. With Infamous: Second Son, that remains the case. Your powers develop based on your actions, and throughout the game youll face choices that determine how the story molds around you.
In previous previews weve seen the gameplay, including the way new protagonist Delsin Rowe can swap out powers. Weve also seen how the game looks and plays. This time, however, we had the chance to see how some of those choices play out, as well as checking out a glimpse of Infamous near-future Seattle. We also got a closer look at the powers.
Infamous: Second Son is as much a reboot for the series as it is the newest chapter in the franchise. It builds on what was already introduced, but also starts with a clean slate. You take on the roll of a new hero, explore a new city, and try new powers. But at its core, the best features of the franchise remain, and the new additions make those original features resonate all the more.
No relation.You play Delsin Rowe, a 25-year-old graffiti artist, aimless and unmotivated, until a chance accident thrusts him into the role of hero and accidentally reveals his ability. Hes a conduit a person capable of using super powers who can mimick the powers of any other conduits he meets. Unlike the previous protagonist Cole MacGrath, who had a single electricity-based power, Delsin can switch between abilities as he absorbs them from others. So far, there has been no confirmation that Delsin and Cole are connected in any way.
Delsin becomes a fighter against the Department of Unified Protection, a ruthless government agency tasked with controlling conduits. Beyond that though, he and his brother a local member of law enforcement are members of a local Native American tribe. How this plays into the overall story isnt clear yet, but it is a factor.
Choose your friends. As with the previous games, you choose how you interact with other characters. In the demo, Delsin meets another conduit named Fetch, whose ability is based on neon. This gives her several attacks that are light-based, as well as the ability to move around town quickly. When they first meet, Fetch is killing drug dealers, which earns her the ire of Delsins brother. After a quick confrontation, Delsin makes it clear that he is the guy that decides what happens with conduits, which creates a choice.
At that point, Delsin can either choose to redeem Fetch, or corrupt her. If he chooses to redeem her by convincing her to use her powers to make the city better, Fetchs story, attitude and the future missions she offers will all follow suit. For instance, in one,Fetch tips Delsin off to a drug dealers stash, and the two then clean the area out before destroy the drugs. But he can also corrupt her by convincing her that she should use her powers however she likes, including to destroy her enemies. In one corrupt mission, Fetch has become the poster child of out-of-control conduits, sparking protests from average citizens, which she and Delsin violently lash out against.
Light and Dark. Weve already seen that Delsin can switch between conduit powers, but so far only the Smoke ability has been active. In the recent demo, Neon was also playable. That not only shows us more of Delsins abilities, it hints at the way the game is meant to be played.
There are benefits to using each power at a particular area. Neon, for example, allows Delsin to quickly move across large areas, dashing from area to area. Smoke, on the other hand, has a better area attack. Despite a few differences, the powers function mostly the same, with a projectile attack, a grenade-like attack, a melee attack bolstered by powers, and a few others.
Swap meet. So far only the Neon and Smoke powers have been revealed, but there will be others. To swap between them, you just need to find a source of the respective power, like a neon sign to grant neon powers, or a chimney for smoke powers. That means that you can switch powers easily and constantly.
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Grappling with good and evil in our hands-on time with Infamous: Second Son
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For fantasy players, each real-life transaction comes with some sort of statistical fallout. As spring training opens, here's a team-by-team snapshot of some of the player moves from the offseason, along with a letter grade.
We're looking at fantasy implications, so the grades do not always correspond to teams' 2014 outlook.
American League
Baltimore Orioles: The Orioles have more holes than they did in September. Brian Roberts became a free agent and left an up-for-grabs second-base job. The club traded away closer Jim Johnson but seems to have no obvious in-house candidates to replace him. Left field also is unsettled. Grade: D
Second-tier winner: Rookie Henry Urrutia is the most skilled player in the left-field mix. The job seems to be his with a good spring.
Boston Red Sox: Though eight years older, new catcher A.J. Pierzynski will hit for a higher average and likely show just as much power as outgoing backstop Jarrod Saltalamacchia did. Edward Mujica is a solid bullpen arm who gives the team options should Koji Uehara be unable to close effectively. On top already, they improved. Grade: B+
Second-tier winner: As long as Stephen Drew does not re-sign, rookie Xander Bogaerts gets a full season of at-bats and looks ready.
Chicago White Sox: The White Sox signed Cuban first baseman Jose Abreu and acquired third baseman Matt Davidson and center fielder Adam Eaton. While their starting rotation and bullpen have been weakened, their lineup has improved. Grade: B+
Second-tier winner: Nate Jones has the power (89 strikeouts in 78 innings pitched) to take over as the closer.
Cleveland Indians: Similar to Detroit, the Indians appear to be stronger. Yan Gomes will take over at catcher, and if the Carlos Santana experiment at third base works, they will have an offensive upgrade there. Outfielder David Murphy and closer John Axford were excellent under-the-radar signings. Grade: A
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Which MLB teams made shrewdest offseason moves?
ELMHURST The Elmhurst Heritage Foundation accepted a $1,500 check from AT&T after state Rep. Dennis Reboletti nominated the organization.
The "AT&T Investing in Illinois Award" recognizes organizations and programs that are improving lives in their communities and the state by advancing education, economic growth, new technologies and other essential community services, according to an AT&T news release.
"The first folks I thought about were you," Reboletti said. "You guys do a lot with a little."
The $1,500 is earmarked for the Elmhurst Heritage Foundation's "Visionary Voices" capital campaign as well as other needs. The campaign aims to raise $250,000 for a new exhibit about Elmhurst history that will open at Elmhurst Historical Museum in the fall.
"The new exhibit is intended to be a real attraction for the museum and to serve and function as a continually evolving story as additions will be made," Elmhurst Heritage Foundation President Cathy Jordan said.
The new exhibit will replace the "Visions of Home" exhibit that was installed in 1986. Touchscreens, interpretive panels, videos and artifacts will make up the new exhibit.
Jordan thanked AT&T as well as Reboletti, whom she referred to as Elmhurst's homeboy.
"Dennis has always looked out for Elmhurst, and this is just another example," Mayor Steve Morley said.
Museum Director Brian Bergheger thanked Valerie Bruggeman and Steve Selcke from AT&T who presented the foundation with a $1,500 check and an award.
"I thank you not only for your gift, but your trust in what we're doing here at the historical museum, your trust in the Heritage Foundation as well as your trust in Elmhurst," Bergheger said.
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AT&T awards $1,500 to Elmhurst Heritage Foundation
February 11, 2014 - North American Soccer League (NASL) Minnesota United FC Minneapolis, Minn. (Tuesday, February 11, 2014) -- Minnesota United FC announced it has signed Brazilian midfielder Juliano Vicentini. Juliano joins the club as the fourth offseason signing and second Brazilian-born signing. Vicentini, a technically gifted midfielder will add offensive ingenuity and creativity to United's roster heading into the 2014 North American Soccer League (NASL) season.
"We are incredibly excited as a club," said United head coach Manny Lagos. "He has had a very good career in Brazil and Italy and he is a very well respected player. We are excited for him join the roster and help our club win games."
The 32 year old Vicentini, a 5'10" dynamic midfielder, joins United from the Brazilian side So Paulo Audax Sports Club. Vicentini started his career at Palmeiras of So Paulo in 1998 and has since played for several teams in Italy and Brazil, including Novora Calcio and Union Sportiva Lecce in Italy and Brazilian club America So Paulo.
"I am very happy and motivated to sign with Minnesota United," said Vicentini. "It is a new challenge in my life and I hope I will excel and be very successful with Minnesota. I hope I can help the team conquer all its goals this upcoming season. I am anxious to meet my new teammates and to start to train."
The signing of Vicentini, the second veteran Brazilian addition, makes it clear that the club is looking to build a strong championship roster of experienced players from around the globe. Vicentini becomes the fourth Brazilian-born player on Minnesota's roster, joining Tiago Calvano, Pablo Campos and Cristiano Dias.
"We want to always be open to looking for good quality players," said Lagos. "In the past we have been limited in the resources and perspective to look outside of the United States for talent. Part of the new vision of the club and ownership is to build a great team. We want to try to open ourselves globally, and we are trying build a club where players want to come here."
United's back line has been reinforced with the signing of Calvano, while the midfield has been strengthened with the additions of Vicentini and Serbian-born Mozzi Gyorio. The already dynamic attack added more offensive firepower with Colombian-American forward Christian Ramirez.
Minnesota kicks off its 2014 campaign on the road April 12th against the San Antonio Scorpions and opens at home April 26th against FC Edmonton. Minnesota United will play all 2014 home games at the National Sports Center Stadium in Blaine, Minn. The club is now accepting 2014 Season Ticket Deposits. For more information, fans can visit http://www.MNUnitedFC.com/seasontickets or call 763.4SOCCER.
With the signing of Vicentini, Minnesota United FC's roster for 2014 consists of the following 19 players:
Goalkeeper: Matt VanOekel
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Minnesota United Signs Dynamic Brazilian Midfielder
Bookmarks: Wild goose chase -
February 11, 2014 by
Mr HomeBuilder
After reading Beat the Reaper by the same author recently, I decided to try out his sequel. I was apprehensive because the sequel is never as good as the original. Apprehensions aside, I dove in, expecting the snark and cynicism Josh Bazell is capable of.
I was right to be apprehensive.
Wild Thing is the second adventure of Peter Brown, who is still trying not to be found by mafia gangsters while maintaining his profession as a doctor. Instead, he is called by his mentor to hunt down a monster in Minnesota, the Land of Ten Thousand Lakes equivalent of Sasquatch.
Brown is hired by someone known only as Rec Bill or reclusive billionaire.
Rec Bill sends Peter Brown and a paleontologist on this wild goose chase to catch the creature and the craziness of nine hells breaks loose in the process.
Wild Thing is a good exercise in creative writing and creative additions, where footnotes in Beat the Reaper were sarcastic while still being informative in as few words as possible.
In Wild Thing, however, the footnotes are mildly important to the progress of the story. Those and the multiple points of views distract from the original text on the page. There are chapters that explain what the creature could be but these chapters are also told by secondary characters, and while well written, really dont need to be there.
Bazell is a great writer, but where Beat the Reaper was a concise, fun thrill ride, Wild Thing was confusing and clearly not Bazells area of expertise.
The medical science in Beat the Reaper was easy to understand because Bazell is actually a doctor.
With Wild Thing, the science is well explained but a headache as a result of it not being Bazells forte. The explanations are not concise and therefore detract from the story.
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Bookmarks: Wild goose chase
In general manager Sandy Aldersons master plan, 2014 was circled as the Mets year to make their move.
But with big-money contracts belonging to Jason Bay and Johan Santana removed from the books, the Mets will begin spring training (pitchers and catchers report Saturday) looking strikingly similar to the team that last year finished 74-88, third in the NL East.
Or perhaps there a few more wins to be had, thanks to Curtis Grandersons arrival.
The way it stands today, without anymore additions, they might be a little short of .500, a veteran major league executive told The Post.
If the Mets are to have their first winning season in six years and compete for the playoffs their postseason drought dates to 2006 they will need just about every lucky bounce.
It starts with a rotation spearheaded by 40-year-old Bartolo Colon, who signed a two-year contract worth $20 million, as the Mets attempt to find an ace to replace Matt Harvey.
With Harvey expected to miss the entire season as he rehabs from Tommy John surgery, its Colon, Zack Wheeler, Jon Niese and Dillon Gee as the known components to the rotation heading into camp. The fifth spot could belong to Jenrry Mejia if hes healthy (he underwent September surgery to remove a bone spur from his right elbow), but veterans John Lannan and Diasuke Matsuzaka will be in camp as insurance.
Stud pitching prospect Noah Syndergaard, Rafael Montero and Jacob deGrom are among the young guns who will try to make an impression on Alderson and manager Terry Collins. But its unlikely, according to Alderson, any of those rookies will be in position to crack the Opening Day roster.
The Mets know what they have at two of the infield positions with David Wright and Daniel Murphy returning, but first base and shortstop are anybodys guess.
Ike Davis, who bounced between the Mets and Triple-A Las Vegas last year, was on the trade block for most of the winter, but Alderson never found a suitable offer in return, leaving Davis in a logjam with Lucas Duda at first base.
Continued here:
With just modest additions, Mets could improve dramatically
The consensus across the baseball landscape is that the Yankees club that starts spring training this week in Tampa is better than the outfit that ended 2013, a season highlighted by injuries to marquee players and underwhelming performance by others.
However, after spending close to a half-billion dollars to attract high-end talent and losing Robinson Cano, are the Yankees good enough to win the AL East which houses the Rays, Blue Jays, Orioles and world champion Red Sox?
Pitchers and catchers report to George M. Steinbrenner Field on Friday, and the hurlers are the first or second biggest question mark in the Yankees universe. All five starters CC Sabathia, Hiroki Kuroda, Masahiro Tanaka, Ivan Nova and whoever earns the fifth spot has to answer questions.
David Robertson replacing Mariano Rivera isnt the Yankees biggest problem in the bullpen. That would be: Who takes over for Robertson, among the best eighth-inning relievers the past few seasons?
Position players report Feb. 19, and the first full-scale workout is the next day.
Though the additions of Tanaka (seven years, $155 million), center fielder Jacoby Ellsbury (seven years, $155 million), catcher Brian McCann ( five years, $85 million) and right fielder Carlos Beltran (three years, $45 million) certainly provide the opportunity to be better, general manager Brian Cashman isnt ready to proclaim this years model an upgrade over last years bunch going into camp.
I have no idea, Cashman said when asked if his club was better than last years team at this point. We lost a high-profile player in Robinson Cano and [now] have a huge hole in the middle of the diamond. Andy Pettitte, Mariano Rivera and Robinson Cano are gone. We added significant pieces but lost a significant piece. I am not saying anything. We were a championship-caliber team last year until the injuries, and if this team stays healthy we will be a championship-caliber team.
An infield of Mark Teixeira who played just 15 games last year due to a right wrist problem Brian Roberts, Derek Jeter and Kelly Johnson is eons away from the 2009 infield of Alex Rodrigues, Jeter, Cano and Teixeira that propelled the Yankees to a World Series win over the Phillies.
Rodriguez is gone for the year via suspension. The 31-year-old Johnson, who has played 14 career games at third base, is front-runner for the bulk of playing time. Roberts, 36, appeared in 77 games last season, which was the most since 2009 when he played in 159.
We have Jeter at shortstop, Cashman said of the Yankees captain, who turns 40 in June and was limited to 17 games last season due to a leg problems that started with a re-fracture of the left ankle in spring training.
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Into spring training, Yankees hope big spending pays off
February 7, 2014 - Arena Football League (AFL) Jacksonville Sharks JACKSONVILLE - The 2013 South Division Champion Jacksonville Sharks announced Friday that the team has made two additions to its 2014 roster. Wide receiver Andrew Bodenheimer and linebacker Jeremiah Turner have been assigned to the team on one-year rookie contracts. Per team policy, terms of the deals were not disclosed.
The 24-year-old Bodenheimer (6'3", 210) heads to the Arena Football League after a standout career at East Carolina University. During his tenure with the Pirates, Bodenheimer progressed from serving as a walk-on special teams performer to a mainstay in the starting lineup. As a senior in 2012, Bodenheimer finished as the team's second-leading receiver, racking up 36 receptions for 371 yards and three touchdowns.
Bodenheimer established collegiate career highs as a junior in 2011. That season, he started 10 of the Pirates' games, totaling 46 catches for 484 yards. Bodenheimer first cracked the regular starting lineup during his sophomore season in 2010, catching 40 passes for 370 yards and the first two touchdowns of his East Carolina Career. As a redshirt freshman in 2009, Bodenheimer saw action in 14 games, serving primarily on special teams.
A native of Clemmons, N.C., Bodenheimer attended West Forsyth High School.
The 29-year-old Turner (6'2", 250) is the younger brother of current Sharks defensive lineman Jerry Turner. Though he has yet to play in the Arena Football League, Jeremiah Turner brings plenty of indoor football experience to Jacksonville. Most recently, Turner enjoyed an outstanding season with the Abilene Bombers of the Lone Star Football League. Earning LSFL Defensive Player of the Year honors, Turner racked up 15 tackles for loss, 12 sacks, five pass breakups and two blocked kicks to go along with 34.5 total tackles (28 solo).
Turner also has other professional football experience, as he spent time with the Canadian Football League's Calgary Stampeders in 2008. A native of Birmingham, Alabama, Turner spent his collegiate career at Concordia College.
In other Friday transactions, the Sharks announced that wide receiver Bobby Sewall and offensive lineman Johnny Culbreath have been placed on recallable reassignment.
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Sharks Add Rookies Bodenheimer, Turner
The narrative that has played out so far for the 2013-14 Brooklyn Nets has, in many ways, emulated the Los Angeles Lakers' 2012-13 campaign.
Big-name additions, championship hype and huge expectations quickly turned into poor team chemistry, questionable coaching and tempered outlooks.
The Nets, however, are finally turning their season around.
After a disappointing 10-21 start through December, which had first-year head coach Jason Kidd on the hot seat and players hanging their heads in disappointment, Brooklyn has flipped the script.
A 10-3 record during January earned Kidd Coach of the Month honors and vaulted the Nets back into the Eastern Conference playoff picture.
Now they have a chance at writing a different story than that Lakers tale.
Additions and Hype
The 2012-13 Lakers reloaded the roster during the offseason with two-time MVP Steve Nash and three-time Defensive Player of the Year Dwight Howard.
The Purple and Gold surrendered Andrew Bynum and six draft picks (three first-rounders and three second-rounders) for those two additions, which seemed like a small price to pay at the time.
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For Better and Worse: Brooklyn Nets Still Following Last Year's LA Lakers Path
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