University of Arizona - Desert Yearbook (Tucson, AZ)

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The New Miss Tucson: A Surprising Student Full Of Talent And Smarts by Mari A. Olson When I interviewed Lisa Mandel I really didn ' t know what to expect. I could have followed the old stereotype that, because she ' s pretty, people expect her to be stupid. But she ' s not. The senior from Las Vegas is both beautiful and very intelligent. Last fall she won Miss Tucson, and in June she will go up for the title of Miss Arizona. She is majoring in marketing, but has strong hopes of going into the entertainment field. As cap- tain of poms, she gets plenty of dance practice and keeps the entire squad in place. Many of the mem- bers often complain, good heartily, that the practices are tough. When I ' m at practice I like to make it worth it, explains Lisa. She has participated in many pageants for quite a few years, which she said, they simply provide me with scholarships. Her down-to-earth appeal may also stem from the fact that she is a resident assistant at Manzanita- Mohave Hall. I have the coolest girls, said Mandel, about her residents on 5th floor of East Mohave. In the anticipation of the Miss Arizona competi- tion, Lisa really hasn ' t had the time to prepare. It is very understandable. She ' s a full-time student, RA, and captain of poms. For the talent competition in the Miss Tucson contest, Lisa did a jazz dance performance. She has been dancing for 15 years and with her experience on poms it may be OK that she doesn ' t always have time to prepare for June. Dancing seems to come natural- ly. Last year Lisa got practice for June when she ran for Homecoming Queen, with the support of her hall. She enjoyed the competition, but not the entire rou- tine that everyone went through in trying to get nominated. The Bobcats ' sponsor the event and throughout the competition, the girls tend to get very competi- tive. It really reminded me of rush, said Lisa. Lisa isn ' t greek. It really doesn ' t make a difference to her. She didn ' t rush as a freshman because she always felt that the girls that did usually fall into definite stereotypes when associated with a certain house. Lisa ' s point is obvious. She has no time for stereo- types when she is so busy breaking them. The dif- fernce is noticable. She isn ' t the typical beauty queen that people often dislike. Down-to-earth, intelligent, and talented. This beauty is a refreshing change. She isn ' t from Tucson, but it really doesn ' t matter. She is often asked about this and why she ran for a competition that wasn ' t of her home state, Nevada. Tucson and Las Vegas share the same qualities: climate, looks, and appeal. But Las Vegas missed out on Lisa. Richard Micelli, a secondary-education sopho- more and new friend of Lisa ' s said , Lisa is probably the most spirited Wildcat I have met while going to school here. TUCSON 29

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tflH Lisa Mandel, Captain of Poms and the new Miss Tucson keeps a busy schedule. Last year she ran for Homecoming Queen while preparing for the Miss Arizona Pageant. Not only does Poms keep her on her toes, but so does being an RA at Manzanita-Mohave Hall. June will be her big test. If she wins Miss Arizona she may go on to Miss America. 28 STUDENT LIFE

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Synchronized Swimming: One Member To Be Reckoned With by Mart A. Olson Synchronized swimming made a comeback this year, not as a team, but as a club. The time that these swimmers put into their skill is just as time consum- ing and exhausting as if this was an intervarsity sport. One club member, Char Ernstein, has started out late in life. At 55, she is a force to be reckoned with in the Synchronized Swim Club because of her dedication and sheer enjoyment of the sport. In February, she competed in the State of Arizona Senior Olympics. For the competition she did syn- chronized swimming and freestyle speed swimming. When Char lived in Washington, D.C. with her family, she gave up tap dancing and opted for the swimming pool at the local Y. A teacher there asked her to join the synchronized swim group. That sparked Char ' s interest in the sport. After this, swimming became a family event with the Ernsteins. Char ' s children always took an inter- est in her swimming and always supported her. Her oldest son was Char ' s coach and swam synchro-du- ets with her. Even her husband has completely sup- ported her. He swims just for the pleasure of it. So we usually leave him on the deck with the stop watch, said Char. Char ' s hoping that the Synchronyzed Swim Club will go far this year and even farther in the future. She doesn ' t feel that it will gain the funding and team status that it once had. Soon, perhaps after we have all graduated and are working, the UA will have finally gained strength and have a sychronized swim team like it did in the past. The club participated in colligiate competitions, but Char was unable to participate because of her graduate-student status. This year proved to be a smooth and exciting one for Char and her team- mates. With 10 workouts a week, Patty McCatherty as coach, and Ron Sutherland as sponsor; synchro- nized swimming at the UA is watched by all. 30 STUDENT LIFE