33rd Annual Stillwater Arts Festival

The Stillwater Arts Festival has grown from a small, local art show to a premier springtime event for the region, noted for the quality of artists and its outstanding entertainment.

In 2010, the festival will be held in Downtown Stillwater and will feature exceptional fine arts and outstanding entertainment.

Formerly know as the Run for the Arts, our event is held in the thriving community of Stillwater, which is home to Oklahoma State University, the world famous Eskimo Joe’s and Oklahoma’s friendliest people, as voted by Oklahoma Living Magazine.

Produced by the professional staff of the City of Stillwater and aided by dedicated volunteers, the Stillwater Arts Festival features approximately 70 juried artists along with an extensive food court, artist demonstrations, children’s activity area and more!

• 2010 Artist Application | 2010 Call for Artists Brochure
• Past Festival Award Winners
• Visit the Newsroom for videos, fact sheets, maps and more
  
  

Coming soon to a curb near you—

Blue Carts!
Automated Residential Waste Collection Program

begins in April

(STILLWATER, OKLA. / Feb. 16, 2010) — Beginning this spring, a new, automated system for residential curbside waste collection will begin in Stillwater.

Each household with curbside services will receive a blue wheeled cart at no additional charge.

The Automated Residential Waste Collection Program is efficient, safe, and more sanitary than the standard bag collection. And, switching from cans to carts is easy. Residents just need to roll the cart out to the curb on the designated trash collection day, which is once per week. The trucks outfitted with hydraulic arms do the rest of the work.

According to Waste Management Director David Higgins, "Automated waste collection programs are one of the most advanced trash systems in use today. They have been implemented in many cities across the U.S. and Canada with great results."

The City of Stillwater conducted a pilot program from September 2008 through February 2009 on 3,000 households. The pilot participants were surveyed and they provided positive feedback. As a result, the Stillwater Utilities Authority Trustees recommended the citywide expansion, which will take place in two phases— with the majority of households beginning in April and the rest in July.

Plan to attend S.A.F.E. (Storm Awareness for Everyone) Program Thursday, March 18

Guest speakers from the National Weather Service and Local Emergency Managers will be on hand to make presentations and answer questions from the community to help keep your family safe.

Payne County Emergency Management directors with special guests Rick Smith and Forest Mitchell from the National Weather Service Office (Norman) will present the second S.A.F.E. (Storm Awareness For Everyone) Program Thursday, March 18 at the City of Stillwater Community Center, 315 W. 8th Ave.from 6:30 to 9 p.m.

According to S.A.F.E. program coordinator Rob Hill, City of Stillwater emergency management technician, "With Oklahoma's volatile weather it is important that residents have the knowledge they need to keep their families safe. Our mission is to help educate people in Payne County on how to recognize severe weather and what to do before, during and afterwards."

S.A.F.E. program presentations will be given by Rick Smith and Forrest Mitchell with the National Weather Service Office of Norman. These sessions will include safety and scientific weather information, starting at 6:30 p.m. The program will include question-and-answer sessions with area experts.

The S.A.F.E. program is free and open to the public. Storm spotters, Skywarn and emergency management personnel should also attend.
 

Hill said, "This program is ideal for people new to the area, as well as those who need to brush up on their weather preparedness. We are extending a special invitation to the area's international community who may not be familiar about tornados and Oklahoma's thunderstorms."

Radio Shack will be present to provide purchasing opportunities for the NOAA Weather All Hazards Alert Radios. Also the Stillwater Amateur Radio Club will be on hand to discuss local radio repeater systems, packet radio and skywarn opportunities, and Amateur radio in general.

Cowboys Win Ninth Big 12 Team Title

The No. 4 Oklahoma State wrestling team crowned three individual champions in winning its ninth Big 12 team title and its 43rd overall conference title Saturday at McCasland Fieldhouse in Norman.

OSU 133-pounder Jordan Oliver, 141-pounder Jamal Parks and 184-pounder Clayton Foster were all crowned as Big 12 individual champions at the event, with 157-pounder Neil Erisman, 174-pounder Mike Benefiel and heavyweight Jared Rosholt placing second at their respective weight classes.

The Cowboys finished with 70.5 team points. No. 2 Iowa State took second with 69 points and No. 8 Oklahoma was third with 64 points. Missouri (33 points) and Nebraska (32 points) rounded out the team leader board.

The title was the 11th of coach John Smith's career, as the Cowboy mentor owns two Big Eight titles to go with his nine Big 12 crowns. Oliver and Oklahoma 125-pounder Jarrod Patterson were recognized with co-outstanding wrestler honors.

Perhaps the defining moment of the championship round came when 184-pounder

Clayton Foster topped No. 3 Max Askren of Missouri by a 10-6 decision. After surrendering the first takedown of the bout in the first period, Foster recovered to score a reversal of his own before yielding an Askren escape. Foster started the second period in the top position and scored a key two-point nearfall to go up, 4-3. An Askren escape brought the score to 4-4. The third period was all Foster, as the Cowboy junior got things going with an escape, then bagged two takedowns and added a riding time point to seal his win. The win was Foster's first in five career tries against Askren and all but clinched the Big 12 title for the Cowboys.

Oliver got things going strong for OSU in the championship round when he hit a five-point move in the second period to fuel his 6-2 win over No. 7 Nick Fanthorpe of Iowa State. Fanthorpe got in on Oliver's left ankle, but Oliver wrapped his right leg over the top of Fanthorpe to score a takedown of his own and quickly turn him to his back for a three-point nearfall.

Parks kept things going with his 3-2 win over Zack Bailey. Ranked No. 3 in the country, Bailey is the highest-ranked wrestler Parks has beaten in his OSU career. The two wrestlers traded escapes to start the second and third periods, respectively, but the deciding moment came when Parks bagged the winning takedown with 15 seconds left in the third period. Bailey escaped with one second left, but it was too late. The win was Parks' third in four career bouts against Bailey.

With 70.5 team points, OSU improved on last year's team total at the Big 12 Championships by 30.5 points, making it the largest one-year improvement in conference history.

Neil Erisman, the third of OSU's six finalists, lost a tough 6-5 decision to No. 12 Shane Vernon of Oklahoma at 157 pounds. Both wrestlers scored a takedown and recorded an escape in the first period, then traded escapes to start the second and third periods, respectively. A Vernon takedown with 56 seconds remaining proved the difference in the bout, as Erisman was unable to answer after posting an escape.

OSU had three wrestlers compete in third-place bouts, with 125-pounder Chris

Notte claiming a 6-4 victory over Nebraska's David Klingsheim in a heated bout that saw both wrestlers get slapped with unsportsmanlike conduct penalties. At 149 pounds, Luke Silver lost a wild 9-6 decision to Missouri's Nick Hucke in which there was only one takedown the entire bout. OSU 165-pounder Alex Meade was upset in his third-place bout by Oklahoma's Tyler Caldwell, who pitched a 5-0 shutout against the Cowboy redshirt freshman.

Perhaps the most exciting bout of the semifinal round was won by Foster, who escaped in the tiebreak period then rode Iowa State's Jerome Ward out to claim a 6-5 win.

Parks also won an exciting semifinal bout, taking Missouri's Todd Schavrien down with 14 seconds left on the clock to snare a 7-6 victory. Things weren't nearly as difficult for Oliver, who stormed to a 10-2 major decision win over Missouri's Nathan McCormick. Erisman, seeded third at the championships by the Big 12 coaches, pulled an upset by scoring a comfortable 8-2 victory over 15th-ranked and second-seeded Andrew Sorenson of Iowa State.

Only one Cowboy wrestler competed in the pigtail round, with 197-pounder Alan Gelogaev losing a 6-5 decision to Missouri's Brent Haynes. A technical violation by Gelogaev proved costly in his defeat.

Notte and Silver were both bonus-point winners in the consolation round, with Notte storming to a 16-2 major decision win over Missouri's Eric Wilson and Silver pinning Nebraska's Dustin Payne just one minute into their bout. Meade was an 11-4 winner over Nebraska's James Nakashima. The lone Cowboy to go down in the consolation bouts was Gelogaev, who dropped a 4-1 decision to Eric Lapotsky of Oklahoma.

The Cowboys compete at the NCAA Championships from March 18-20 at the Qwest Center in Omaha, Neb.

Final Team Standings
1. Oklahoma State - 70.5 points
2. Iowa State - 66 points 
3. Oklahoma - 64 points
4. Missouri - 33 points
5. Nebraska - 32 points

OSU Individual Results
Pigtail Round
197 pounds: No. 10 Brent Haynes (MU) dec. No. 8 Alan Gelogaev (OSU); 6-5

Championship Semifinals
125: No. 15 Jarrod Patterson (OU) dec. No. 10 Chris Notte (OSU); 2-1
133: No. 3 Jordan Oliver (OSU) MD Nathan McCormick (MU); 10-2
141: No. 6 Jamal Parks (OSU) dec. Todd Schavrien (MU); 7-6
149: No. 7 Mitch Mueller (ISU) dec. Luke Silver (OSU); 9-3
157: No. 11 Neil Erisman (OSU) dec. No. 15 Andrew Sorenson (ISU); 8-2
165: No. 5 Nick Marable (MU) dec. No. 8 Alex Meade (OSU); 2-1
174: No. 9 Mike Benefiel (OSU) dec. No. 19 Jeff James (OU); 6-2
184: No. 9 Clayton Foster (OSU) dec. No. 12 Jerome Ward (ISU); 6-5
285: No. 1 Jared Rosholt (OSU) dec. No. 16 Tucker Lane (NU); 5-3

OSU Consolation Round Results
125: No. 10 Chris Notte (OSU) MD Eric Wilson (MU); 16-2
149: Luke Silver (OSU) fall Dustin Payne (NU); 2:00
165: No. 8 Alex Meade (OSU) dec. James Nakashima (NU); 11-4
197: No. 6 Eric Lapotsky (OU) dec. No. 8 Alan Gelogaev (OSU); 4-1

OSU Third-Place Bout Results
125: No. 10 Chris Notte (OSU) dec. David Klingsheim (NU); 6-4 
149: Nicholas Hucke (MU) dec. Luke Silver (OSU); 9-6
165: Tyler Caldwell (OU) dec. No. 8 Alex Meade (OSU); 5-0

Finals Results
125: No. 15 Jarrod Patterson (OU) dec. No. 5 Andrew Long (ISU); 5-3
133: No. 3 Jordan Oliver (OSU) dec. No. 7 Nick Fanthorpe (ISU); 6-2
141: No. 6 Jamal Parks (OSU) dec. No. 3 Zack Bailey (OU); 3-2
149: No. 4 Kyle Terry (OU) dec. No. 7 Mitch Mueller (ISU); 4-2
157: No. 12 Shane Vernon (OU) dec. No. 11 Neil Erisman (OSU); 6-5
165: No. 5 Nick Marable (MU) dec. No. 3 Jon Reader (ISU); 6-5
174: No. 4 Stephen Dwyer (NU) dec. No. 9 Mike Benefiel (OSU); 9-5
184: No. 9 Clayton Foster (OSU) dec. No. 3 Max Askren (MU); 10-6
197: No. 1 Jake Varner (ISU) dec. No. 2 Craig Brester (NU); 5-2
285: No. 3 David Zabriskie (ISU) dec. No. 1 Jared Rosholt 3-1 SV2

Cowboys Trounce Huskers, 74-55

James Anderson scored 25 points in what likely was his last game at Gallagher-Iba Arena, and Oklahoma State closed the regular season by beating Nebraska 74-55 on Saturday.

Oklahoma State (21-9, 9-7 Big 12) clinched a winning record in conference play and likely also sealed a berth in the NCAA tournament. The Cowboys will be the seventh seed in the Big 12 tournament in Kansas City, Mo., and will play Oklahoma in the first round. The Cowboys and Sooners split a pair of regular-season games.

Oklahoma State has won four straight games against Nebraska (14-17, 2-14). Brandon Richardson scored 16 points for the Cornhuskers, who have lost 14 of their last 16 games and finished last in the Big 12.

Anderson went 9 of 15 from the field. Nebraska had no answer for the 6-foot-6 junior guard nicknamed "Big Game James" for his penchant to come through when the Cowboys need him most. He left the game with 2:14 left to a standing ovation.

Anderson leads the Big 12 in scoring and is widely expected to forgo his senior season and enter the NBA draft, but after he hit an acrobatic shot in the lane and drew a foul with 16:22 left, some in the orange-clad crowd chanted "One more year!" as Anderson stepped to the free throw line.

At that point, Anderson had scored 21 points, while Nebraska had 23.

It was that way most of the afternoon for the Huskers, who played without their leading scorer, Ryan Anderson. He injured an ankle Wednesday night in a loss to Colorado.

Nebraska made its first three 3-point attempts and led 9-8 after a 3-pointer by Lance Jeter less than four minutes into the game, but the Huskers managed only one basket during the next 11 minutes.

Even as Nebraska burned three timeouts in a vain attempt to stem the tide, the Cowboys went on a 22-2 run, highlighted by three 3-pointers by reserve guard Nick Sidorakis. Anderson's layup with 6:30 left in the half made it 30-11.

Oklahoma State went 9 of 15 from 3-point range in the first half.

Oklahoma State led 38-19 at halftime - Nebraska's lowest-scoring half of the season. The Cowboys started the second half on a 15-6 spurt to push their lead to 53-25 with 15:44 left, and the Huskers came no closer than 19 points the rest of the way.

Sidorakis, who entered the game with eight 3-pointers all season, went 4 of 6 from behind the arc and scored a career-high 12 points. Obi Muonelo, Oklahoma State's only senior, scored 13 points, and Matt Pilgrim had eight points and 10 rebounds.

Cowboys Top Minnesota, 16-9

Oklahoma State scored early and late as the Cowboys knocked off host Minnesota, 16-9, Saturday night at the Dairy Queen Classic in the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome.

Cowgirls Win Pair at The Preview Featuring Bedlam

Senior pitcher Anna Whiddon threw a one-hit, complete-game shutout against 11th-ranked and bedlam-rival Oklahoma, and Oklahoma State won the nightcap 1-0 over the Sooners in The Preview Featuring Bedlam here Saturday night at the ASA/Hall of Fame Stadium.

Whiddon (10-2) was nearly unhittable, giving up the lone hit off the bat of Stillwater-native Katie Norris in the bottom of the fifth. The native of Huntington, Texas, retired the side in the first, third, fourth and sixth innings. The only time OU had a runner reach second base was in the bottom of the second when Whiddon hit Lindsey Vandever with a pitch and then walked the following batter, Keilani Ricketts. However, she struck out Norris to end the threat.

Oklahoma State scored its lone run of the game in the top of the fourth. Sophomore Julie Ward hit a double down the left-field line off Ricketts. She advanced to third on a groundout by freshman Amy Graham, and scored on a sacrifice fly by another freshman, Tamara Brown. The Cowgirls threatened to score in two other innings, with runners on first and second with two outs in both the third and sixth innings. But Ricketts was able to work out of those jams.

The victory ends a 15-game losing streak at the hands of the Sooners. The streak dates back to 2003, when No. 18 OSU defeated sixth-ranked Oklahoma 4-0 in Stillwater. It was also the last year that both teams were ranked. The Cowgirls still hold the all-time series record with the Sooners, 69-66.

In Oklahoma State’s earlier game, the Cowgirls defeated Nevada 5-2 thanks to a bases-loaded home run off the bat of Ward in the bottom of the third. It was her third grand slam of the season.

OSU led 1-0 in the first when leadoff hitter Mariah Gearhart scored on a double by Ward. After the four-run third and a 5-0 lead, freshman pitcher Kat Espinosa gave up a run in the fourth on a pair of hits, a walk and a hit-by-pitch, then gave up an unearned run in the sixth on a walk and two Cowgirl errors. She improved to 4-2 on the season.

Oklahoma State (14-5) has now defeated two ranked opponents this week and is 3-5 on the season versus ranked foes. The Cowgirls will host the Nevada Wolfpack on Sunday morning at 11 a.m. at the Cowgirl Softball Complex.