Semester in photos: 62 of the best images from our visual staff

By Daily Egyptian staff

George Brozak, director of athletic bands, conducts the Marching Salukis from the stands during SIU’s first home game of the season against SEMO on Saturday, Sept. 10, 2016, at Saluki Stadium. (Anna Spoerre | @annaspoerre)
Mark Schwarm, an SIU alumnus of Kevil, Ky., sprays water on his horse, Butter, in between horse shows Sunday, Aug. 28, 2016, at the Du Quoin State Fair. “On a day like today where it’s so hot, it helps a lot to cool them down,” Schwarm said. “It also cleans them up for the next show.” (Ryan Michalesko | @photosbylesko)
Solar Bear partygoers watch as someone jumps off the roof into the pool Saturday, Aug. 27, 2016, at The Reserve at Saluki Pointe. (Branda Mitchell | @branda_mitchell)
Sophomore guard Sean Lloyd kicks his leg into the air following a play near the conclusion of the Salukis’ 72-67 exhibition victory against UMSL on Thursday, Nov. 3, 2016, at SIU Arena. Lloyd scored a team high 13 points in the game. (Jacob Wiegand | @jacobwiegand)
Carbondale firefighter Travis Young examines damage at the scene of a car accident in the 1400 block of North Illinois Avenue on Wednesday, December 7, 2016, in Carbondale. The vehicle drove off of the roadway and struck a power pole. One person was taken away in an ambulance. (Ryan Michalesko | @photosbylesko)
Alana Muench, 3, of Milwaukee, naps Monday, Aug. 29, 2016, in her father’s fair booth at the Du Quoin State Fair. “I normally have a baby sitter,” said her father, Andrew Muench. “But sometimes things come up and she has to come on the road with me”. (Ryan Michalesko | @photosbylesko)
From left: Lucas Damien, of Carbondale, Sam Jamerson, of Deerfield, Mike Walczewski, of Carbondale, Brittany Ristaino, of DeSoto, and Nathan Caslow, of Carbondale, react to the Cubs’ first World Series championship since 1908 on Wednesday, Nov. 2, 2016, at Tres Hombres in Carbondale. Ristaino said she has been waiting for this moment her whole life. “I couldn’t even breathe from the eighth inning on,” said Ristaino, a DeSoto native. “I was just holding my breath. I’ve never wanted anything so bad, for so many other people, in my life. There’s never been a team with more young players with more heart that wanted this more than we wanted it tonight. And I think we proved that.” The Northsiders won the Series 4-3. (Morgan Timms | @Morgan_Timms)
Kids wait with a Carbondale Police Officer at the scene of a stabbing Sunday, Oct. 30, 2016, in the 600 block of North Michael Street in Carbondale. (Ryan Michalesko | @photosbylesko)
Tammie Swinney, of Carbondale, participates in a worship service Sunday, Oct. 30, 2016, at Olivet Free Will Baptist Church in Carbondale. “It’s like a family [at Olivet],” she said. Swinney has been attending Olivet for five and a half years. This year the church celebrates 150 years in the Carbondale community. (Jacob Wiegand | @jawiegandphoto)
Freshman kicker Matt Sotiropoulos attempts a field goal near the end of the Salukis’ 50-17 win against the Racers on Saturday, Sept. 17, 2016, at Saluki Stadium. (Jacob Wiegand | @jawiegandphoto)
Officers from the Carbondale Police Department interview a man involved in a late night fight Saturday, Oct. 1, 2016, in the 100 Block of West Monroe Street in Carbondale. (Ryan Michalesko | @photosbylesko)
Musician Bob “Smilin'” Lewis, of Van Buren, Ark., performs with the Ben Miller Band on Friday, Sept. 31, 2016, during the Carbondale Rocks Revival Music Festival in downtown Carbondale. (Morgan Timms | @Morgan_Timms)
Master of Foxhounds Dr. Mark Smith, of Herrin, rides toward spectators with his hounds Sunday, Sept. 25, 2016, during the 29th annual Southern Illinois Hunting and Fishing Days at John A. Logan College. Smith and other members of Herrin-based Shawnee Hounds fox hunting club demonstrated fox hunting for spectators and allowed some to ride the horses. Founded in 1982, the hunt club is now the only one of its kind in southern Illinois. (Athena Chrysanthou | @Chrysant1Athena)
Senior setter Hannah Kaminsky reacts after scoring a point Saturday, Nov. 19, 2016, during the Salukis’ 2-3 loss to Missouri State in Davies Gym. (Morgan Timms | @Morgan_Timms)
Lindy Loyd, a Bucky Dome board member, lights jack-o’-lanterns Monday, Oct. 31, 2016, at the Buckminster Fuller Dome Home in Carbondale. The pumpkins, carved by SIU architecture and interior design students, were displayed for visitors and trick or treaters to view. “No one else is doing anything like this,” architecture professor Jon Davey said. “It gives the students a good time.” The students were assigned to carve the pumpkins over the weekend. Amongst nearly 80 pumpkins, designs included the Statue of Liberty, the Eiffel Tower and the U.S. Capitol Building. (Ryan Michalesko | @photosbylesko)
Deanna Price, an SIU graduate from Moscow Mills, Mo., poses for a portrait Thursday, Sept. 1, 2016, at the Daily Egyptian newsroom. Price placed eighth in hammer throw, throwing 70.95 meters, at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. (Ryan Michalesko | @photosbylesko)
Surrounded by incoming freshman and new students, interim Chancellor Brad Colwell, center, wears a pair of solar eclipse glasses for a group photo following the convocation ceremony Friday, August 19, 2016, at SIU Arena. (Ryan Michalesko | DailyEgyptian.com)
Members of SIU’s Gamma Kappa chapter of Sigma Kappa participate in the 2016 Walk to End Alzheimer’s on Saturday, Sept. 24, 2016, at Campus Lake. More than 215 volunteers registered for the event, said Courtney Finigan, manager of special events with the Greater Illinois Chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association. Finigan, whose grandmother was diagnosed with the memory impairing disease nearly 10 years ago, has been with the association for four years. She said the walk has been going on for about 20 years in the Carbondale area. “The volunteer program within SIU is great with promoting us,” Finigan said. “We’ve had a lot of luck getting volunteers through them and it helped a lot for this event.” The event raised more than $30,530 — or roughly 75 percent of the $40,000 goal — according to the organization’s website. (Autumn Suyko | @AutumnSuyko_DE)
Africana studies professor Joseph Brown silently reflects during a vigil remembering victims of the Orlando shooting Wednesday, Aug. 31, 2016, in Grinnell Hall. (Ryan Michalesko | @photosbylesko)
Benjamin Puffer, hand on candle, and Josh Schenkenfelder, a senior from Oak Forest studying journalism, work to craft a display of candles that reads “Alex K” in memory of Alex Kierstead — an SIU student who died in a house fire the day before Thanksgiving — on Friday, Dec. 2, 2016, outside the burnt home in Carbondale. Puffer, a freshman from Carbondale studying physics, met Kierstead through a mutual friend. “He was a really good guy,” Puffer said. “He’s just really cool. He had a really good soul. It’s one of the best things.” Kierstead, a junior from Aurora studying political science and journalism, was remembered by a few dozen friends and mourners at the candlelight vigil held outside the burnt building at 700 W. Freeman St. where Kierstead and his three roommates resided prior to the blaze. (Jacob Wiegand | @jawiegandphoto)
Members of the Southern Illinois Dance Company finish a dance routine Thursday, Dec. 1, 2016, during a rehearsal in Furr Auditorium. The rehearsal was in preparation for the SIDC’s “In Concert.” The concert is comprised of jazz, contemporary, ballet and hip-hop routines. SIDC is primarily choreographed by SIU students, as well as artistic director and advisor Lori Merrill-Fink, who is also the director of the University Honors Program. SIU alumna Andrea Hernandez has been part of the SIDC for more than four years. “When I was in school, the SIDC was my relax time,” Hernandez said. “I am really excited for the show, as it might be my last one.” (Athena Chrysanthou | @Chrysant1Athena)
Grassy Lake Hunting Club guide Duane Smith smokes a cigarette while watching for incoming ducks Wednesday, Nov. 30, 2016, during a Wounded Warriors duck hunt in Jonesboro. (Ryan Michalesko | @photosbylesko)
SIU senior guard Mike Rodriguez jumps for a shot during the first half of the Salukis’ matchup against Mount St. Mary’s University on Monday, Nov. 21, 2016, at SIU Arena. (Athena Chrysanthou | @Chrysant1Athena)
Saluki coach Barry Hinson celebrates after SIU’s 89-85 win against Murray State on Tuesday, Nov. 29, 2016, at SIU Arena. (Sean Carley | @SeanMCarley)
Professor of philosophy Randall Auxier poses for a portrait Monday, Nov. 21, 2016, in his Murphysboro home prior to its opening ceremony as the American Institute for Philosophical and Cultural Thought. The institute, which houses an estimated 35,000 books and scholarly articles, was established as a research site for humanities students in response to the closure of SIU’s Center for Dewey Studies. “It didn’t look anything like this when we moved in,” Auxier said. “It’s taken a lot of work.” (Ryan Michalesko | @photosbylesko)
Dakota Oria, a junior from Chicago studying computer science, attempts to clean shaving cream off a Hillary Clinton mask while impersonating Donald Trump on Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2016, as part of Dedicated Young Latinos Embodying Success’ fundraiser in the Faner Breezeway on campus. Members of the group asked passersby for $1 donations to “pie” either candidate as a fundraiser for Toys for Tots. “At the moment we’re just trying to lighten the mood of the election,” Oria said of the fundraiser. “Even though both sides are bad, it doesn’t mean we can’t have a little bit of fun.” (Morgan Timms | @Morgan_Timms)
Savannah Watts, left, and her daughter, Lilith, gaze at a candle Wednesday, Nov. 9, 2016, during a special ceremony at First Christian Church in Carbondale. Community members met to lament and show solidarity in reaction to the election of Republican Donald Trump as president. Lilith, 2, was born with spina bifida and she cannot walk on her own. Her mother said Wednesday night the election held great consequences for her family, especially because they rely on federal assistance for Lilith’s medical treatment. Watts said she fears the family could lose healthcare benefits they receive through the Affordable Care Act, commonly known as Obamacare, which Trump has vowed to repeal. “I cried a lot last night,” Watts said of her initial reaction to the news that Trump would become the 45th president of the United States. “It was even hard even to get out of bed this morning.” (Bill Lukitsch | @lukitsbill)
Jim Wall, a senior lecturer of radio, television and digital media, plays jazz on a cello with his band, the 618 Jazz Ensemble, on Thursday, Nov. 10, 2016, at The Grotto Lounge in Carbondale. “It’s my sanity,” Wall said of playing jazz. “It’s probably the most free form of music that there is.” The jazz player explained that jazz has a structure, but it also involves a lot of improvisation. “Mel [Goot] and I have been working together for years,” Wall said. “I know exactly what he’s going to do [when he plays piano] and he knows exactly what I’m going to do without even thinking about it, without rehearsing. We can look at each other a certain way, and I know what’s going to happen.” (Autumn Suyko | @AutumnSuyko_DE)
Kenny Turnbaugh, a senior from Carbondale studying history, stands in line with his fellow ROTC cadets during a Veterans Day ceremony Friday, Nov. 11, 2016, at Veterans Memorial Plaza. (Bill Lukitsch | @lukitsbill)
Freshman forward Tiajaney Hawkins (22) puts up a shot over William Woods freshman guard Kaycee Gerald (12) and senior forward Kelsey Scherder (21) during the Salukis’ 78-58 win over the William Woods Owls on Thursday, Oct. 27, 2016, at the SIU Arena. (Ryan Michalesko | @photosbylesko)
The Pulliam Hall clocktower weathervane sits silhouetted by the rising superman Monday, Nov. 14, 2016, in Carbondale. A perigee-syzygy, commonly dubbed as a “supermoon,” occurs when the moon becomes full on the same day as its perigee, the point in the moon’s orbit when it is closest to Earth. The 2016 supermoon appeared larger than at any other point in the last 68 years, and won’t appear this large again until 2034, according the NASA. (Ryan Michalesko | @photosbylesko)
World War II veteran and U.S. Masters swimmer Thomas Maine, 91, of Carbondale, swims breaststroke Tuesday, Oct. 18, 2016, during practice at the Recreation Center. (Morgan Timms | @Morgan_Timms)
Lee Roudybush, of Murphysboro, fishes alongside his dog Dexter on Sunday, Nov. 6, 2016, at Lake Murphysboro, which is located in Jackson County about one mile west of Murphysboro. “I’m recently retired, so I’ve done quite a bit of fishing lately,” said Roudybush, who is a 1984 graduate of SIU. “If I catch four or five good ones, I’ll take them home and cook them, but normally I just throw them back.” (Ryan Michalesko | @photosbylesko)
Auto technician and volunteer fire fighter George Cook, of Evansville, throws kindle onto the Spirit Fire on Saturday, Oct. 29, 2016, during the Southern Illinois Pagan Alliance’s Samhain celebration at Crab Orchard Campground. Cook has been a member of the alliance for eight years and identifies as an eclectic Pagan. “I love that Paganism is an earth-based religion that brings all sorts of people together,” Cook said. “It’s just like when Christians came over here, Native Americans were classified as Pagans because they didn’t believe in the Christian God, but they worshipped Mother Earth and Father Sky. They took care of their land and the land provided for them. That’s the path I follow.” During the ceremony, participants used the Spirit Fire to banish internal aspects of their life they wished to let go of, Cook said. (Morgan Timms | @Morgan_Timms)
Audrey Karsteter, a junior studying Horticulture from St. Loius, runs through the corn maze Monday, Oct. 24, 2016, at Bandy’s Pumpkin Patch in Johnston City. “I feel like a little kid again,” Karsteter said. “It’s refreshing.” (Autumn Suyko | @AutumnSuyko_DE)
Patrick Burke, a junior from Los Angeles studying theater, poses for a portrait in the Clown Room on Sunday, Oct. 23, 2016, at Chittyville School Haunted House in Herrin. “It’s fun scaring people,” he said. (Ryan Michalesko | @photosbylesko)
Officer Zach Street, a crash reconstructionist for the Carbondale Police Department, takes a picture of a shoe after a pedestrian was hit by a car Saturday, Oct. 15, 2016, in the 600 block of South Wall Street in Carbondale. Discarded articles of clothing — including a hat, two shoes and sunglasses — could be seen lining the roadway. (Jacob Wiegand | @jawiegandphoto)
Marcus Morey, of Fort Scott, Kan., takes a break from the rodeo with his eight-month-old Blue Heeler, Dolly, on Saturday, Sept. 3, 2016, during the Du Quoin State Fair rodeo. “I live for [rodeo],” Morey said. He said Dolly usually travels with him when competing in rodeos. (Jacob Wiegand | @jawiegandphoto)
Alyssa Johnson, co-owner of Dare To Be Boutique, poses for a portrait outside her store Tuesday, Oct. 25, 2016, at University Mall in Carbondale. The local boutique recently expanded to University Mall after nearly a year of operation on the Carbondale Strip. (Ryan Michalesko | @photosbylesko)
Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner speaks with members of the media Friday, Aug. 26, 2016, following his visit to Carbondale High School’s Rebound program. (Ryan Michalesko | @photosbylesko)
Costumed pedestrians stroll down the sidewalk during Unofficial Halloween early Sunday, Oct. 16, 2016, on the Strip in Carbondale. The annual event began in 2000 after a city ordinance, which has since been rescinded, restricted bars on the Carbondale Strip from operating on Halloween. (Jacob Wiegand | @jawiegandphoto)
Saluki football coach Nick Hill yells at a referee during SIU’s 30-22 win against Southeast Missouri on Saturday, Sept. 10, 2016, at Saluki Stadium. (Jacob Wiegand | @jawiegandphoto)
Players race for the ball during SIU’s fall football scrimmage Saturday, Aug. 20, 2016, at Saluki Stadium. (Ryan Michalesko | @photosbylesko)
Jeff Lane, of the Lane Motor Museum in Nashville, Tenn., poses for a portrait in a replica Dymaxion car Friday, Oct. 21, 2016, at the Bucky Dome in Carbondale. Lane transported the replica car from Nashville to Carbondale for the Dymaxion Days fundraiser. The Dymaxion car was designed by architect and inventor Buckminster Fuller, who taught in the SIU School of Art and Design from 1959 to 1970. The event aimed to raise money for the restoration of the Bucky Dome house, which Fuller built and resided in during his tenure at the university. “We still need $150,000 to complete the full restoration,” said Lindy Loyd, a Bucky Dome board member. “The next thing we have to do is insulate and seal the inside of the dome which will cost around $8,000.” (Ryan Michalesko | @photosbylesko)
U.S. Rep. Tammy Duckworth, left, jokes with a student in the Eurma C. Hayes Center after school program on Friday, Aug. 26, 2016, in Carbondale. “I bet your foot can’t do this,” Duckworth said while spinning her prosthetic foot. (Ryan Michalesko | @photosbylesko)
Cody Kelley, of Benton, rides a bull Saturday, Sept. 3, 2016, during the Du Quoin State Fair rodeo. “[I think my favorite part is] when I’m nodding my head and all my fears go away,” said 12-year-old Preston Fox, of New Burnside. (Jacob Wiegand | @jawiegandphoto)
Robyn and Richard Hamilton watch fireworks together on Saturday, Oct. 8, 2016, during Catfish Days festival in Olmsted. The pair met in the small southern Illinois town and have been together for almost 20 years. “Olmsted is where I met my bride,” Richard said. Robyn and Richard are raising nine kids together, some of which are from past relationships and others are adopted. (Morgan Timms | @Morgan_Timms)
The sun sets behind the Ferris Wheel on Sunday, Aug. 28, 2016, at the Du Quoin State Fair. (Athena Chrysanthou | Chrysant1Athena)
First responders load a man into an ambulance following a shooting Saturday, Aug. 27, 2016, near the 500 block of South Illinois Avenue. (Ryan Michalesko | @photosbylesko)
Senior hitter/setter Meg Viggars attempts a spike Saturday, Sept. 3, 2016, during SIU’s 3-1 loss to Northern Arizona at SIU Arena. (Sean Carley | @SeanMCarley)
James Todd, a junior from Oxford, Mich., studying finance and member of the Air Force ROTC, guards the American flag as part of a 24-hour Veterans Day vigil on Friday, Nov. 11, 2016, near the intersection of South Normal Avenue and West Grand Avenue on campus. Members of the Army and Air Force ROTC took shifts guarding the flag from 11 a.m. Thursday to 11 a.m. Friday. “It’s gives me an opportunity to really reflect and recognize that I’m only giving in total an hour and 30 minutes of my time to people who have spent years fighting for what I believe in and what this country believes in,” Todd said. He said he feels that Veterans Day is important to recognize those who have served and lost their own friends to protect the nation. (Jacob Wiegand | @jawiegandphoto)
Senior Andy Ross swims butterfly in the 200-yard individual medley race Saturday, Dec. 3, 2016, during the Saluki men’s team’s 195-93 loss to Missouri State at Edward J. Shea Natatorium. (Morgan Timms | @Morgan_Timms)
Erica Jones, a senior at Carbondale Community High School, plays the piccolo during the school’s homecoming pep rally Friday, Oct. 4, 2016, in Carbondale. (Ryan Michalesko | @photosbylesko)
Three-year-old Bailey Myers receives a drink from her grandmother Mary Wrye, both of Joppa, after making a trip down the slide during the Joppa Fall Festival on Saturday, Oct. 8, 2016, at the village park. “She’s my life,” Wrye said of her grandchild. “She’s everything to me. We spend a lot of time together and she keeps me busy.” She said her granddaughter’s smile is one of her favorite parts of spending time with her. The lifelong resident of the village of 400 described her granddaughter as priceless. “Just watching her growing up has just been amazing,” Wrye said. (Jacob Wiegand | @jawiegandphoto)
Alicia Hammond, a junior from Kankakee studying healthcare management, swings beside her son, Ryan Simington Jr., 4, on Monday, Oct. 17, 2016, at Lenus Turley Park in Carbondale. Hammond, a single mother and a full-time SIU student, recently started her own clothing line called “Secrets.” “I keep it on the cheaper side,” she said of her products, which she sells for less than $20. “I don’t want to break anyone’s pockets more than the school does.” At night, after her son goes to bed, Hammond also works at NeuroRestorative in Carbondale. “I had a child in high school,” Hammond said. “A lot of people probably doubted me and thought I wasn’t going to do anything, but I never let that get in the way.” (Anna Spoerre | @annaspoerre)
SIU junior guard Jonathan Wiley and Bearkat senior forward/center Aurimas Majauskas reach to rebound a missed shot during the Salukis’ 79-73 fall to Sam Houston State on Saturday, Dec. 10, 2016, at SIU Arena. (Ryan Michalesko | @photosbylesko)
Sydney Fred, left, 10, of De Soto, and Lillyana Rose, 9, of Murphysboro, sit on the stage at a U.S. Rep. Mike Bost and Illinois State Rep. Terri Bryant victory party Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2016, at the Elks Lodge in Murphysboro. Fred and Rose are grandchildren of Bost. (Ryan Michalesko | @photosbylesko)
Saluki senior guard Rishonda Napier (13) reacts following a play Friday, Dec. 9, 2016, during SIU’s 77-70 win against Southeast Missouri at SIU Arena. (Bill Lukitsch | @lukitsbill)
Neil Sizemore, of Carterville, inspects power lines Friday, Sept. 30, 2016, on Wall Street in Carbondale. Sizemore has worked for the Ameren power company for more than two decades. “I just needed a job,” said Sizemore, who also operates a farm in Carterville. “[It’s] a way to make a living.” The lineman said his father, two uncles and three brothers have worked in the profession. (Jacob Wiegand | @jawiegandphoto)
Cassaundra Jaegers, a junior from Ottumwa, Iowa, studying zoology, plays Jenga against Brad Olson, a sophomore from Oquawka studying wildlife biology, on Saturday, Aug. 20, 2016, during Dawgs Nite Out at the Student Center. (Morgan Timms | @morgan_timms)
Carbondale senior linebacker Jajuan Smith busts onto the field prior to the Terrier’s homecoming football match-up against the Mount Vernon Rams on Friday, Sept. 30, 2016, in Carbondale, Ill. The Terriers took down the Rams 76-51. (Ryan Michalesko | @photosbylesko)
From left to right: Henry Traylor, John Chambers and Kent Mason wave to people driving past Friday, Nov. 4, 2016, at Arnette’s barber shop in Carbondale. (Anna Spoerre | @annaspoerre)

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