Centennial Student Union Blog
Vote daily as Minnesota State Mankato seeks #1 ranking in the Star Tribune’s annual Readers’ Choice polling. Cast your vote at www.votemnbest.com/MinnesotaStateUniversityMankato. Voting closes April 17. For three years straight, Minnesota State Mankato has been voted Minnesota’s Best in the College/University category. Past recognitions were thanks in large part to all of the students who voted. Last year, the Mavericks were also voted as the #1 College Sports Team.
April 14 – Minnesota State head coach Shari Dickerman and assistant coach, Alli Altmann, earned the silver medal at this year’s IIHF Women’s World Championships after Team USA suffered a 6-5 loss in overtime to Canada in the championship game. Dickerman, who was an All-American for the Mavericks in goal during her playing career from 2000-2004, was named the fifth head coach in Minnesota State history this past March. Altmann, who played for the Mavericks from 2008-12 and concluded her first year as an assistant coach on the Maverick staff and \served as Team USA’s goaltending coach.
The Spring 2024 Student Government Elections have been announced.
Maverick Adventures offers students a host of ways they can celebrate and contribute to Earth Month.
Minnesota State students celebrated Holi, the Festival of Colors, with a burst of vibrant hues replacing snowflakes, symbolizing the transition from winter to spring.
APRIL 1 – Minnesota State men’s basketball coach Matt Margenthaler has been named the 2024 Division II Coach of the Year by the National Association of Basketball Coaches. This is the first time that Margenthaler has been named the NABC DII Coach of the Year. Earlier this season, he earned his fourth NSIC Coach of the Year award. He was also named the NABC Central Region Coach of the Year. The national award is sponsored by the Marines.
APRIL 4 – Minnesota State Mankato students may be among those asked to re-submit payment after purchasing tickets to the NCAA Division II Central Region Men’s Basketball Tournament at Taylor Center March 16-19. Maverick Athletics said the email is a legitimate request and not a scam after online ticket sale transactions did not go through successfully. Credit cards may not have been properly charged due to technical issues with the vendor’s transaction authorization protocols. The security of user personal or financial information has not been compromised by this issue in any way.
APRIL 4 – Mavericks Men’s Basketball Coach Matt Margenthaler was featured in an extended interview with KFAN’s Justin Gaard as part of Thursday, April 4, broadcast of the Dan Barreiro Bumper-to-Bumper show.
Rebroadcast of 24-minute interview can be found on the Dan Barreiro Podcast found on iHeart Radio, Spotify and other streaming platforms. Margenthaler’s interview starts at 21:00 into the second segment of the April 4 podcast.
MARCH 28 – ANASTASIA, the musical stage production based on the 1997 animated film, opens in Ted Paul Theatre April 4. The MSU Theatre’s spring stage spectacle runs through April 14 and features a cast of 29 and a 12-piece orchestra. Student tickets are just $5 at msutheatre.com
BBNO$, known for his popular singles “Lalala” and “edamame,” will perform Thursday, April 11, at 7:30 p.m.
On the ballot for the April 8-9 online Student Government Election, mnsu.edu/voting, is the Student Athletics and Student Activity Fee Referendum. Maverick Athletic Director Kevin Buisman said the proposed athletic fee increase of $1 per credit hour offsets excessive inflation. Without the funding, steps to make up the revenue could include reducing student seating at home hockey games in order to generate revenue from general admission ticket sales.
Denisha Cartwright, Mavericks’ All-American senior sprinter, began her outdoor track and field season with NSIC Women’s Track Athlete of the Week Honors. Cartwright placed first with a time of 12.81 seconds in the 100m hurdles at the Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays. Her time ranks first in NCAA Division II this season. Her prelim time of 11.17 (2.9 wind) in the 100m dash ranks first nationally and broke her own school record.
Maverick Adventures is coordinating a month of programming celebrating Earth Month that promotes sustainability, equity, education and wellness in the outdoors. Programs that include indigenous astronomy, biodiversity, and ethics and animals share the month with field trips, volunteer opportunities and wellness classes.
Mavericks freshman Jabez Reeves and senior Shemar Miller earned NSIC Outdoor Track and Field Athlete of the Week honors Tuesday, April 2. Reeves (Woodbridge, Virginia) ran a time of 10.37 (2.2 wind) in the 100m dash at the 96th Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays. The NCAA provisional time leads the NSIC and ranks sixth in NCAA Division II this season. Miller (St. Elizabeth, Jamaica) placed seventh in the triple jump with a leap of 15.65m (51-4.25). He ranks second in NCAA Division II this season.
Cyrille Date was elected 2024-25 International Student Association president and Yves (TJ) Tchouke was elected ISA vice president following the Thursday, March 28, conclusion of international student voting at Minnesota State Mankato.
Minnesota State University, Mankato’s 2023-2024 Good Thunder Reading Series will conclude its season Thursday, April 4, when it hosts author Melissa Febos with a series of events. Events at 11 a.m., 3 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. are free and open to the public. The evening program in Ostrander Auditorium includes readings by Febos and Nathan Larson, MFA candidate, readng from his short story, “The Shades In-Between.”
“Rock and Roll” is the theme April 8-12 as Fraternity and Sorority Life at Minnesota State University invites the campus to join in celebrating Greek Week. Activities include a Monday FREE hot dog cookout for the campus community as well as cardboard boat races, and the popular lip sync contest among the FSL chapters. The week concludes Sunday, April 14, with the annual awards banquet recognizing the Chapter of the Year and other outstanding accomplishments among the FSL community.
MARCH 27 – The Mavericks Women’s Basketball Team advance to the NCAA DII NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME Friday after defeating Cal State San Marcos Wednesday night 70-68. The win came on an Emily Herzberg layup with 0.2 seconds left in the game. The Mavericks go for the national title Friday at 7 p.m. against Texas Woman’s University. The game will be televised on CBS Sports Network.
MARCH 25 – The Maverick women’s basketball team advance Wednesday, March 27, to the NCAA DII National Final Four to face the Cal State San Marco Cougars after defeating Georgia Southwestern State 93-88. The Maverick overcame a 10-point first half deficit led by senior guard Joey Batt with 21 points. The Cougars beat top-seed Gannon U. in overtime.
MARCH 25 – Malik Willingham was named to the NABC All-Central District First Team. The Mavericks’ senior guard from Waseca, Minn., led the team this season in scoring averaging 18.9 points per game. Earlier this season, he was named the NSIC Player of the Year and the D2CCA Central Region Player of the Year.