Davidson College has picked one-time quarterback and 2003 graduate Paul Nichols as its new football coach. Nichols was introduced at a press conference Friday morning at Baker Sports Complex, where he declared it was Day One of Just One Agenda: Reviving the Wildcats football program. See the story in SPORTS»

-
Davidson College grad and Statesville native Tom Marshburn and two fellow crew members lifted off Wednesday, Dec. 19, from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on a Russian Soyuz spacecraft headed to the International Space Station.  Flight Engineers Tom Marshburn, Roman Romanenko and Chris Hadfield were scheduled to orbit the Earth for two days before docking to the space station module at 9:12 a.m. Friday, Dec. 21. The new trio will join Commander Kevin Ford and Flight Engineers Oleg Novitskiy and Evgeny Tarelkin who have been at the orbital laboratory since Oct. 26.

WATCH the launch video above, or here

READ MORE about Tom Marshburn and the mission on DavidsonNews.net, Dec. 19, 2012, “Davidson grad Marshburn heads back to space”.

Tom Marshburn answers a reporter’s question at a press conference held at the Cosmonaut Hotel, on Tuesday, Dec. 18, 2012, in Baikonur, Kazakhstan. (NASA/Carla Cioffi photo)

Tom Marshburn is back in space today after lifting off at 7:12am EST (6:12pm local time) aboard a Soyuz rocket from Kazakhstan. The 1982 Davidson graduate and NASA astronaut is a flight engineer on a 6-month mission to the International Space Station, where he’ll help with medical studies of astronauts on an extended space mission.

Evening temperatures were below freezing as the rocket sped away from the Baikonur Cosmodrome, according to a NASA announcement. Along with Dr. Marshburn are Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield and Russian cosmonaut Roman Romanenko.

(WATCH the launch video here.) Read the full story

A Davidson fire engine rushes by on Jackson Street on night recently, with siren and lights all running. (Alex Wasowicz photo)

It has been a busy couple of weeks for the Davidson Fire Department, including calls for gas leaks, outside fires, cooking fires, and hazardous chemicals. Last Saturday, Davidson firefighters called for help from a Charlotte Fire Department hazardous materials team after detecting hazardous gases in a June Washam home, where carpet-cleaning chemicals had been used. Other calls included cooking fires and malfunctioning alarm systems at Davidson College. A tally of the past two weeks’ 28 medical calls may be found below, as well. Meanwhile, in case you were wondering, that siren and loudspeaker announcement Thursday morning on the Davidson College campus was a test.

The department also co-hosted the 30th Annual North Mecklenburg Christmas Parade, which had 2,831 participants on Dec. 1. (See a photo gallery, Dec. 1, 2012, “Christmas Parade: 2,831 marchers, thousands of watchers”

And keep an eye out on the main streets of Davidson Sunday night, between 6 and 8:  Word is that Santa will be making his annual pre-holiday inspection on a fire truck.

Read the full story

Former Davidson star Stephen Curry returns to his hometown of Charlotte Monday night to lead his streaking Golden State Warriors against the Charlotte Bobcats.  Curry is growing into a leadership role with the Warriors, leading the team in several offensive stats. SPORTS»

Members of Davidson College’s student Senate and the Davidson Town Board laughed during a joint meeting Thursday night on campus. From left, SGA Chancellor Amira Davis, SGA President Billy Hackenson and vice president Alex Hauer. (David Boraks/DavidsonNews.net)

By DAVID BORAKS
DavidsonNews.net

At the start of Thursday night’s meeting between Davidson College student leaders and town commissioners, Mayor John Woods asked students for a wish list. They offered a variety of ideas, from a downtown sandwich shop or Main Street bar, to a bowling alley or arcade. And they asked a few questions of their own:

Why aren’t their more cool shops, especially in the block of stores on north Main Street near the Davidson College Bookstore? Would the town consider increasing the speed limit on Griffith Street to something faster than 35? Does Davidson really have a rule against chain restaurants? Read the full story

Pierria Henry scored 6 points in the last 1 minute and 14 seconds, including two free throws with four seconds left, to lead undefeated Charlotte past Davidson, 73-69, at Belk Arena Wednesday night. The 39th meeting of the Charlotte-area rivals was a back-and-forth battle, with 10 lead changes and 10 ties, right up to the final minute. See the story in SPORTS»

Main Street was packed Saturday night. Town officials estimate the three-day total for the crowd at 25,000. (Amy Ellis/DavidsonNews.net)

An estimated 25,000 people flooded Main Street over the three nights of Christmas in Davidson last week, according to town officials. The Nov. 29 to Dec. 1 festival brought folks from around the Lake Norman area, Charlotte and beyond for shopping, dining, performing and all around holiday cheer.

This year’s festival picked seasonally-dressed pets in the Doggie Fashion Show and the ugliest sweater in town (see below). Read the full story