he 2013 summer tour, in a 23-8 win in Tokyo.* Wales have sco

Nashville, Tenn. - When the sun shines on the rooftop at Vanderbilts Brownlee O. Currey Jr. Tennis Center, it means a little more to Marie Casares.Casares, a former member of the Commodores womens tennis program (2011-15), played a role in pushing Vanderbilt athletics to the forefront of sustainable energy on campus. Two years ago, she proposed the installation of solar panels atop the Currey Tennis Center, where she once starred as a Commodore student-athlete. The panels have greatly reduced the buildings energy consumption, and they could be the precursor to a renewable energy movement across Vanderbilts campus.For Casares, the sun-soaked panels atop the Currey Center represent her energy-friendly way of giving back. Now she hopes the project will serve as a catalyst for a sea of change at Vanderbilt, and beyond. There are so many resources we could use to make energy clean and make everything renewable, Casares said. Thats a change we should start making.The project began in the fall of 2014 with the help of Vanderbilts Green Fund program. The Green Fund is money set aside by VU Facilities and Dean of Students office to address student-initiated energy conservation projects. Students propose projects with environmental and economic benefits to a student-led committee that works closely with Vanderbilts Sustainability and Environmental Management Office (SEMO) and the Campus Energy Manager. The group determines which projects receive funding and then manages their subsequent installation. Engineering students like Casares are particularly encouraged to craft proposals.In cultivating an idea, Casares neednt look far for inspiration. Her father, Esteban, is an electric engineer in the familys native Ecuador, and he runs a 4,320-panel solar plant in Maries hometown of Quito. In a sense, solar energy runs in Casares family. That was music to the ears of Geoff Macdonald, the longtime Vanderbilt tennis coach and a proponent of solar technology. So Macdonald and Casares put their heads together and came up with a way to impact the Commodores tennis facility.By the fall of 2014, Casares had already become a decorated student-athlete at Vanderbilt. As a junior during the 2013-14 season, she set school records in single match wins (32) and combined wins (60). Casares would go on to deliver the point that clinched Vanderbilts most recent SEC championship in April 2015. That year she helped carry the Commodores to the programs first NCAA title, after which Casares earned All-Tournament honors. Her love for tennis dated back to childhood, and it made it easier for her to pinpoint a Green Fund proposal. I had to provide an idea of where the project would be and what it would do, Casares said. So since its something close to my heart, I proposed the tennis center.A determined Casares wrote and submitted a two-page proposal for the Green Fund in Dec. 2014. She called for the installation of solar panels that could both generate electricity and help heat the buildings water. Casares estimated that the project would pay for itself in five-to-seven years. Marie did a phenomenal proposal, Macdonald said. It was scientific, it was researched, it described how much money it would save. It was just amazing.The solar project would be the first of its kind at Vanderbilt, and Casares noted the importance of its promotion at an athletic facility. That angle could help garner publicity and spark a bigger conversation about renewable energy on campus. Even if a small project like this one, one of the smallest of the proposed projects, gets built, it can spark a fire of good, sustainable and renewable energy alternatives here at Vanderbilt, Casares wrote.It wasnt long before Casares received good news: the Green Fund Working Group, comprised of six administrators, six students and a faculty member, approved the approximately $80,000 funding needed for the project. Crews installed the first panels on the Currey Center roof in the fall of 2015 and the second set this fall. In all, 67 Solar Laminate PVL panels and four SunMaxx Thermopower panels were placed on the roof. According to Macdonald, the panels are built to last 25 years, and the early returns suggest a wise investment: in its first three months, the system cut natural gas consumption at the Currey Center by 40 percent.Those benefits have shown just how impactful similar projects could be across campus. Look at the McGugin Center, Macdonald said. Look at Memorial Gymnasium. Theres so much roof space here. Itd be wonderful if we could somehow get more solar energy at Vanderbilt.Campus energy experts agree. Michael P. Vandenbergh, the David Daniels Allen Distinguished Chair of Law at Vanderbilt Law School, is a leading scholar in environmental and energy law and the director of the universitys Climate Change Research Network. Vandenbergh said its important for people to witness the true power of solar energy, which is why the Currey Center project has the potential to spark change.People need to see evidence of progress in order to want to invest time and energy in other projects, Vandenbergh said. Solar power has come to represent a very forward-looking way of thinking about the future. Its something thats very attractive to potential applicants at Vanderbilt, and even faculty and staff. It gives us a chance to envision a kind of campus that we can be proud of.Now a civil engineer in her native Ecuador, Casares has already recognized the impact of the tennis center project back in the states. Last month, a sophomore in Vanderbilts engineering program emailed Casares to inquire about her experience with the Green Fund. That student, too, hopes to spearhead a similar project, one that could likewise illustrate the untapped potential of renewable energy at Vanderbilt.That impact brings a sense of pride to Casares. Two years ago, a Vanderbilt tennis player simply wanted to make a difference. Soon, that difference might be felt all across campus.For me, it came from a place of caring -- caring about the world, about Vanderbilt, about a certain place in the tennis center, Casares said. I think its very powerful. I can already see the change. Cheap Air Max Australia . 8 Kansas to a 64-63 win over Texas Tech on Tuesday night. The freshman from Vaughan, Ont. 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Saturday, kick-off 14:30 Principality StadiumWales and Rob Howley will look to build on their 24-20 victory over Argentina last weekend when Japan visit Cardiff on Saturday.Wales winning record, eight wins and one defeat, doesnt appear to be under threat from a side that has struggled to find the form which saw them defeat South Africa at last years World Cup and narrowly miss out on qualification to the knock-out stages on bonus points.Despite their victory over the Pumas last week, Wales need to find that killer instinct. They allowed Argentina back into a game that should have been done before the final quarter. It is a much changed Welsh side, but with Gareth Abscombe finally given the keys to the halfback kingdom for the very first time, we could see Wales play without the burden of expectation and with a licence to thrill.Team newsWales have made 10 changes to the team that beat Argentina last weekend, but despite the reshuffle, it is a side that poses a massive attacking threat. Jamie Roberts is restored to a back-line that sees Liam Williams start at full-back and Leigh Halfpenny start on the wing for the first time since the 2011 World Cup. Warburton is given the captains armband while 18 year-old Keelan Giles should make his debut from the replacements bench.Japan have made four changes to the team that beat Georgia last week, with wingers Akihito Yamada and Kenki Rukuoka been giving starting roles. The other changes sees prop Kensuke Hatakeyama and lock Samuela Anise come into the starting fifteen.Wales: Liam Williams, Halfpenny, J Davies, Roberts, Cuthbert, Anscombe, Lloyd Williams; Smith, Baldwin, Lee, Hill, Jones, Lydiate, Warburton, King. Replacements: Dacey, Gill, Andrews, Ball, Moriarty, G Davies, S Davies, Giles.Japan: Matsushima, Yamada, Lafaele, Tatekawa, Fukuoka, Tamura, Tanaka; Nakatani, Horie, Hatakeyama, Kajikawa, Anise, Ilaua, Nunomaki, Mafi. Replacemments: Hino, Yamamoto, Ito, Helu, Matsuhashi, Mimura, Uchida, Lotoahea.dddddddddddd.Key head-to-headIf Japan have any chance of an upset, the boot of Yu Tamura will be vital in keeping the scoreboard ticking over. He tagged on two penalties last week but the one conversion from four tries against Georgia will not be good enough. For Wales, it is a trip into the unknown as Gareth Anscombe takes his first start at fly-half. There is no doubting his ability but whether he can stamp a real claim on the fly-half position is a different story.Key stats* The countries have met on nine occasions. Wales lead the series 8-1.* Wales record win against Japan was a 98-0 success in Cardiff 12 years ago, while Japans sole victory came in the 2013 summer tour, in a 23-8 win in Tokyo.* Wales have scored a total of 289 points during four previous Test match encounters at home against Japan.* Japans victory over Georgia in Tbilisi last weekend was their first win since Jamie Joseph took over as head coach.WeatherThe weather in Cardiff is never an issue with the roof at the Principality but it will be dry and cloudy for the game.VerdictWales have far too much firepower in their back-line and if they get an early score, will go on to record a comprehensive victory. The tries will come but nothing less than a demolition against Japan will do. Keenan Giles should be unleashed and his performance will also answer questions on whether hes ready for the international Test arena. With Liam Williams at full-back, any aimless kicking from Japan is going to be punished. Wales have stuttered so far in the autumn series and this provides them with a perfect opportunity to answer critics and lay down a marker ahead of the visit of South Africa next week. Expect them to win by 30. ' ' '