This should be one of the most fun times in the life of Jaye Dawn Two Bears, a 5-foot-10 freshman guard who is living her dream as a University of Milwaukee womens basketball player.But instead of being able to focus on text books, jump shots and the Panthers season opener on Nov. 17, the native of Cannon Ball, North Dakota, is keeping her ear to the ground for news some 750 miles away. Two Bears is gravely concerned about the welfare of her family and thousands of other people who live along the Missouri River.Two Bears is a member of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe. And since April, she has gotten involved as much as she possibly can with the protests started by her tribe against the Bakken pipeline project, which is funded by a company called Dakota Access.The $3.7 billion project is a 1,172-mile underground pipeline for oil that crosses through four states -- North Dakota, South Dakota, Iowa and Illinois -- and would shuttle approximately 470,000 barrels of crude oil per day. Proponents say the pipeline will make the United States less reliant on imported oil. Protesters, including Two Bears and her family, argue that the pipeline would damage the environment, impact climate change and poison the water they need to survive. Mni Wiconi, they say. Water is life.We are not against pipelines or oil -- we are against putting it up under our water, Two Bears said. This is where we get 90 percent of our drinking water.Originally, the pipeline was supposed to run north of Bismarck, North Dakota. But the residents of Bismarck said they didnt want it, and Dakota Access decided to move it toward the reservation.Thats when protesters acted.In August, the Standing Rock Sioux filed a request for a temporary injunction of the pipeline construction. A federal judge denied the request in September. A federal court denied the tribes appeal in October.Protesters, which number in the thousands, have drawn international attention. They have pitched tents and teepees at a campsite that is less than two miles from Two Bears home. On Thursday, more than a hundred protesters were arrested after a standoff with police in Morton County. At least one person was injured. The battle has even moved to?Facebook, where users opposing the pipeline are ?checking in from the?Standing Rock Indian Reservation, some?claiming the change in location will overwhelm and confuse law enforcement.?The camp and the protests started in April, while I was still home, said Two Bears, who graduated in May from Shiloh Christian High School in Bismarck. The camp has continued to grow, and over 180 tribes are with us. They have sent letters and posted their tribal flags.In addition to the issues regarding the environment, a Standing Rock tribal chairman said construction crews and their bulldozers have already destroyed and desecrated sacred burial grounds.Two Bears, a four-time all-district and all-region player in high school, capped her prep career by celebrating a state title her senior season. It was Shiloh Christians first state title, in any sport, in school history, and Two Bears has been able to use her local celebrity status to draw added attention to the cause.In fact, Two Bears said the protest group has received support from all over the world.So many indigenous tribes and people are with us, she said. We are even getting support from cities and administrators in places such as Dallas and St. Paul [Minnesota].Its made me feel like we are going to win this battle, knowing we have so much prayer. We want to stop the pipeline and protect our water and our sacred sites. We are not only fighting for our Native people but also for everybody along the Missouri River.Two Bears, whose brother Cody is a tribal official, said her teammates and coaches at Milwaukee support her activism, and they realize how hard it is for her to be at college when there is so much turmoil back home.On Sept. 17, Two Bears was able to go home briefly in order to put on a basketball clinic for kids. She was there along with University of Wisconsin mens basketball player Bronson Koenig, who is a Native American from the Ho-Chunk Nation Tribe.While home, Two Bears visited the campsite and the protesters and came away impressed.Seeing people come together, no matter the color of your skin, Two Bears said, its beautiful, honestly. Cheap Rays Jerseys China . The 26-year-old Ireland striker, who has four goals this season, has signed a three-and-a-half year contract with his new club. 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NEW YORK -- The Blair Pitch Project started to show results for the Atlanta Braves.Using a revised windup developed during a brief trip to the minor leagues, Aaron Blair won for the first time in 13 major league starts and helped the Braves slow the New York Mets wild-card chase with a 7-3 victory Monday night.Acquired from Arizona along with Dansby Swanson and Ender Inciarte in Decembers trade that sent Shelby Miller to the Diamondbacks, Blair had been 0-6 with an 8.23 ERA in his first 12 big league starts, including 0-2 in three outings against the Mets.Its frustrating giving up runs and going out, not getting a win for your team, but tonight was good, Blair said.Freddie Freeman, getting little sleep after bringing his newborn son home from a hospital late Sunday, drove in three runs off a misfiring Noah Syndergaard. Freeman had four hits for the Braves, who have the worst record in the National League, and Swanson had three hits and three RBI.Blair, a 24-year-old right-hander selected 36th overall in the 2013 amateur draft, went on the disabled list after an Aug. 28 loss because of a strained left knee, then worked on his mechanics during two injury rehabilitation starts in the minors. Braves pitching coach Roger McDowell wanted him to cut down on the turn in his rotation, to reach out farther with his pitching arm and to stay more upright.Obviously, giving up a run per inning wasnt great, so I was up for any changes, Blair said.Activated to start against the Mets, Blair (1-6) did not allow a hit until the fourth, when Curtis Granderson singled and T.J. Rivera hit a two-run homer.Blair gave up six hits in six innings, struck out four and walked one, lowering his ERA to 7.71.All the hard work that hes put in and making changes and sticking to it, not reverting back in stressful situations, its nice to see him rewarded for it, Braves manager Brian Snitker said. He got a good downhill plane going, I thought, and obviously some of those changeups they were swinging over had some late action.Blair was given the ball from the final out and received more than 50 text messages of congratulations.I was able to make pitches whenn I needed to, and if they hit the ball, they just hit it right at guys, he said.dddddddddddd. So some of the line drives I was on the luckier side.Syndergaard (13-9) allowed five runs in 3 2/3 innings, and Atlanta fouled off 26 of his 99 pitches. He started to falter in a 35-pitch second that included consecutive walks and RBI singles by Swanson and Inciarte, the first on a 99.9 mph fastball and the second on a slider.Freeman led off the third with an opposite-field homer to left, extending his streaks for hits to 23 games and for reaching base to 39. Freeman then reached down to slice an opposite-field, two-run double in the fourth for a 5-0 lead.Freeman could barely keep his eyes open afterward.I got nothing left. I left it all out there, he said. I can hardly think right now.OH SO CLOSERio Ruiz, a 22-year-old Braves third base prospect, had been announced as a pinch hitter in the seventh inning Sunday in his major league debut when Washington changed pitchers, rain started to fall and the tarp was brought out. The game, which had been interrupted for 1 hour, 7 minutes in the sixth, was called after a 1:50 wait. His parents, who changed their flight to stay after the first rain delay, did not make the trip to New York and headed back to Los Angeles.Theres nothing frustrating about being here in the majors leagues, he said. Im still all smiling.ROTATIONRHP Ryan Weber will start for the Braves in Wednesdays series finale, his second start this season and the seventh of his big league career.GREAT GLOVEBraves LF Matt Kemp, a two-time Gold Glove winner, ran in for diving catches in the seventh on Michael Conforto and Alejandro De Aza.TRAINERS ROOMBraves: RHP Mike Foltynewicz, hit on the left calf by Marcell Ozunas liner on Sept. 12, is playing catch and walking on a treadmill. Snitker said he could return this season.UP NEXTJulio Teheran (5-10) is to start Tuesday for the Braves and RHP Robert Gsellman (2-1) for the Mets, Teheran is 1-0 with a 0.78 ERA against New York in three starts this year. ' ' '