College changes ‘Shooter’ mascot after Las Vegas massacre
Duke forward Chase Jeter (2) drives between Marist center Connor McClenaghan (25) and Marist guard Kristinn Palsson (13) during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome)
POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y. — Mass shootings across the nation have prompted Marist College in New York to drop Shooter as the nickname for its sports mascot.
The Poughkeepsie Journal reports that Marist College came up with a new name for the costumed mascot for its Red Foxes men’s and women’s basketball teams after last month’s mass shooting at a country music concert in Las Vegas.
The school’s athletics department settled on Frankie, a nod to President Franklin D. Roosevelt, who was born in nearby Hyde Park.
The private college in Poughkeepsie, north of New York City, debuted the new nickname during last weekend’s season openers for both teams.
The original Shooter nickname was used for years and referred to shooting baskets, not guns.
