The Daily Free Press
Year xli. Volume lxxxii. Issue lxxxii.
Campus & City
CONDOM COP OUTS: Study finds why some girls might avoid page 3 condoms
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Tuesday, March 6, 2012 The Independent Student Newspaper at Boston University Sports SCIENCE TUESDAY
PROTEIN SHAKE: Researchers potentially find key to extending life page 5
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HARTFORD-BREAK: W. basketball upset in conf. semifinals page 8
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MBTA to use digial advertisement to help close budget gap Universities across
nation discuss plans against sexual assault
By Samantha Tatro Daily Free Press Staff
In a move that could generate about $1 million annually for the T, the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority will partner with media sales company Titan to install “Digital Advertising networks” at four MBTA stations. “Every dollar helps, and we continue to work towards identifying ways to generate revenue, such as advertising,” said MBTA spokeswoman Lydia Rivera. “This is just another example of creativity to seek non fare revenue ideas.” Platforms will display series of large, digital-ad billboards “designed to deliver high-quality, compelling advertising, transit and editorial content to the MBTA rider” will initially be placed at Park Street, North Station, South Station and Harvard Square, according to a letter from Titan to the MBTA. “We believe that the visibility of these Displays, coupled with the captive nature of the transit environment will command a significant premium from advertisers,” Titan wrote in the letter. With the MBTA’s $160 million dollar budget deficit, revenue from the new digital ads is an “excellent opportunity” for the MBTA, Rivera said. “This is one of various opportunities that can help us,” she said. “This is something
By Amelia Pak-Harvey Daily Free Press Staff
This is the third part of a series examining how Boston University handles cases of sexual assault, in response to the two separate arrests of men’s hockey players for sexual assault in the last two months.
Despite the negative publicity tied to Romney’s history as a policymaker, he said, what should ultimately draw voters to Romney is his private sector experience. “I think that’s really important because if you’ve been in the private sector,” he said, “then you really have a better understanding of the incentive that the private sector requires to perform hiring.” Although Romney’s attempts to downplay his experience as governor in favor of his private sector experience may help develop support within the Republican party, it may have the opposite effect on moderates and Democrats, said Chris Towner, a sophomore involved with the Boston University College Democrats and a BU College of Arts and Sciences student. “His moderate accomplishments like healthcare help make him much more appealing to Democrats than his opponents,” Towner said. “One of Mitt’s problems is
The spotlight following the arrests of two Boston University hockey players has revealed that some universities have more resources and codes for sexual assault reaction than BU. While some private universities have similar policies to BU for rape and other types of sexual assault, other schools offer different resources to address these incidents. BU spokesman Colin Riley said the university holds students accountable for their violations in the code of responsibilities, whether it is on or off campus. “For every case we hear for an alleged violation of the code of student responsibilities, the sanction can run from no action up to suspension or even expulsion,” Riley said. “Each case is treated individually, on the facts of that particular case.” After an allegation of sexual misconduct is brought against a student, the university uses a “preponderance of the evidence” to determine if sexual misconduct occurred, according to BU’s Lifebook. Syracuse University’s non-consensual sex policy stated that after a student sends a complaint to the Office of Judicial Affairs and the University Judicial System finds students in violation of the policy, they could face suspension or expulsion. Syracuse offers a Silent Witness Program to report crimes anonymously, similar to BU’s anonymous tip submission online or via text, and has an Advocacy Center with programs that address sexual or relationship violence. “Our crime-prevention and investigation departments both do proactive presentations where they talk about avoiding sexual activity under the influence of alcohol, because issues of consent become very clouded when one or both persons are drunk,” said Jennifer Horvath, the public information officer at Syracuse’s Department of Public Safety, in an email. Horvath said the Advocacy Center is the best on-campus resource for these issues. The center offers peer programs such as Sex Esteem, a group that discusses healthy relationships, sex and sexuality, as well as A Men’s
Tuesday, see page 2
Sex, see page 4
AUDREY FAIN/DAILY FREE PRESS STAFF
Print ad billboards in T stations, as shown here at the Kenmore Square T station, may be a thing of the past: In the hopes of raising revenue, the MBTA is planning to install digital ad billboards.
that, if this is well received and we experience monetary gains, we will continue with.” Titan, which already advertises on MBTA buses, subway car interiors and exteriors, T platforms and commuter rail platforms, serves about 12 major U.S. cities, including New York and Los Angeles.
In addition to installing one three-sided digital billboard about six-feet across diagonally, the company will install six six-foot digital displays and 32 four-foot digital displays, according to the letter. Titan recommended the MBTA alternate between displaying editorial content such as
MBTA, see page 2
Super Tuesday predictions look favorably toward Romney By Joseph Dalia Daily Free Press Staff
Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney should have no trouble winning the Republican primary in the Commonwealth on Super Tuesday, said Professor Douglas Kriner, who teaches American politics at Boston University. About 64 percent of Bay State Republicans said they would vote for Romney, with Rick Santorum trailing in second place at 16 percent and Ron Paul at 7 percent, according to a recent Suffolk University poll. Romney’s background in Massachusetts politics, Kriner said, should serve as a major advantage in Tuesday’s primary. “Romney will certainly be helped by his time as Massachusetts governor in the primary,” he said in an email. “Massachusetts voters already have a strong connection with Romney and he is close to a lock to win.” Despite Romney’s tendency through-
out his campaign to distance himself from the moderate policy positions he endorsed as the governor of Massachusetts, Kriner said, his standing with the state’s voters will likely remain unharmed. “Romney’s opponents are quick to point out a number of significant changes in positions between Governor Romney and Candidate Romney . . . [but] Romney’s tacking to the right to win the Republican primary is unlikely to hurt his chances in Massachusetts,” he said. To broaden his appeal among conservative voters, Romney should distance himself from the issues surrounding healthcare reform, said Greg DeSocio, president of the Boston University College Republicans. “The healthcare [issue] might work against him,” DeSocio, a BU School of Management senior, said. “However, the argument he’s been making, which I think has been a really strong one, is that some things might be good for a state but bad for the country.”
Students question if culture taken seriously By Thea Di Giammerino Daily Free Press Staff
Members of Boston University’s Center for Gender, Sexuality and Activism said the campus harvests a “rape culture,” especially in light of this semester’s reported sexual assault incidents. The two seperate cases of alleged sexual assault involving hockey players and three reports of ‘peeping Toms’ have exacerbated concerns over BU’s culture. While a number of students questioned the culture, not everyone may be taking the issue seriously. “Doubting individual stories, or denying a rape culture exists, perpetuates the problem,” said Ariana Katz, the co-director of CGSA. “Discrediting the idea of a rape culture is simultaneously discrediting the experiences of survivors and people that are living in a rape culture.” CGSA members began using the term pub-
licly to discuss how rape is trivialized and how survivors fail to report their assaults out of fear of public shame, Katz said. Filmmakers coined the term rape culture in a 1975 film about men sexually assaulting other men in prison. “You prove a rape culture by the people that are affected by it and by the feeling,” the College of Arts and Science senior said. “So when we talk about how rape culture at BU is a thing, we’re saying these women that came out against the rapists, the hockey players, . . . that their experience is something we’re seeing larger at BU.” College of Communication junior Michelle Tsiakaros, a CGSA volunteer and a member of the Feminist Collective, said people desensitize rape via their speech and actions. “It’s making BU memes about rape,” Tsiakaros said. “It’s making casual comments like ‘That test raped me.’” The popularity of BU memes, such as one
Meme, see page 4
COURTSEY OF BU MEMES
This example from BU Memes is one of several that have been created that make light of recent sexual assault incidents. Some students say this reflects upon the “rape culture” at Boston University.
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Tuesday, March 6, 2012
New electronic ads to potentially Santorum, Gingrich ‘extremely unappealing to brighten up T stations’ atmosphere the vast majority of Americans,’ student says MBTA: From Page 1
news, weather and sports scores and advertisements on the screens to attract riders’ attention. Anthony Villiotti, a freshman in Boston University’s School of Management, said the ads will give T stations a livelier and renewed atmosphere and he is “in full support” of the MBTA’s new measures. “[The digital ads] would provide excellent advertising opportunities to companies of all natures,”
Villiotti said in an email. “It would give the MBTA additional income, charging companies to use the space, and since the MBTA is experiencing financial difficulty, this is a way to get more income without raising prices.” Villiotti said the ads would make riding the T a more enjoyable experience. He said, “This may completely revitalize the MBTA and hopefully prevent it from raising the T fares.”
Tuesday: From Page 1
that . . . he wishes they never happened – something that is sending Democrats, moderates and Independents running toward re-electing President [Barack] Obama.” Romney’s public condemnation of these accomplishments, he said, will affect his chances in the general election, but should not do much to harm his chances in Tuesday’s Republican primaries. “I think Super Tuesday will be a pretty decisive victory for Rom-
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ney,” he said. “Both [Santorum and Gingrich] are extremely unappealing to the vast majority of Americans.” Among the remaining candidates in the Republican race, Romney would be the most likely to garner support across party lines in the general election, said CAS sophomore Gregory Phipps, the BUCD campaign relations director. “Romney has a good moderate record in Massachusetts and peo-
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The Daily Free Press Crossword By Tribune Media Services Across 1 Basic Latin lesson word 5 Bedtime story preceder, perhaps 9 ‘70s dance club 14 Dancer Falana 15 Canyon effect 16 Not whispered 17 Response bias may affect one 18 Weak, as a novel plot
43 BP merger partner
46 Bra size 47 Falling star
51 Model’s array 53 “Get lost!” 57 Defense gp.? 59 Certain no-parking area
64 Hit the ground
66 River romper
24 Stick 25 Reasoned belief in a supreme being
Sudoku
62 Brink
20 Proverbial advice to a physician 23 “__ Miz”
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49 Lesley of “60 Minutes”
65 1814-’15 exile site
67 Titicaca, for one 68 Cause a stench 69 Natural homes 70 Author Bagnold
8 Sharpened
32 O.K. Corral fighter
50 “Yo!”
9 Most goofy
33 500 sheets
52 Low, moist area
10 Laid up
34 Zenith
54 Apartment sign
11 Motown genre
35 This puzzle’s theme, if you listen to the beginnings of 20-, 40- and 59-Across and 11-Down
55 Asleep, probably
37 Defensive trench
58 __ noire
40 Fans
60 Actor Rickman
41 With sustained force
61 Collaborative Web site
27 Scaredy-cat
71 Norms: Abbr.
30 Appoint as a posse member, say
Down 1 Top dog
33 Huck’s transport
2 Was heard from the herd
21 Prefix with sect or cycle
3 Muslim god
22 Captained
4 Like a basketball team’s center, usually
26 Hot tub
36 Consider 38 Obama’s younger daughter 39 “The Name of the Rose” writer 40 Scold vigorously 42 Damaged, as mdse.
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19 Piccolo, e.g.
D F P
12 Adorable 13 Shelley works
28 Monopolizes, with “up”
44 Jobs, vis-à-vis Apple Inc.
29 Kennel sounds
46 Oregon NBA team, familiarly
31 No __ traffic
48 Old touring car
56 Tropical hardwoods 57 Stratford’s river
63 Figure out
Solution is on Page 4
Sudoku-Puzzles.net
Difficulty: Medium
Solution is on Page 4
Campus & C ity Study shows less frequent use of contraceptives Campus Crime Logs Mama drama By Dana Finley Daily Free Press Staff
The following reports were taken from the Boston University Police Department crime logs from Feb. 27 to March 5. Police responded to a call from 518 Park Dr. on Feb. 27 at 2:09 p.m. to assist in settling a dispute between a non-affiliated mother and son. The 17-year-old male had stayed with a friend, a BU student. The mother reportedly expressed concerned for him. The Office of Residence Life was involved, but the pair left without incident. Wet recovery BUPD assisted the Boston Police Department when they located several suspects of an armed knifepoint robbery on Feb. 29 at 12:14 a.m. near the intersection of Silber Way and Bay State Road. The robbery had occurred near Massachusetts Avenue and Marlborough Street Suspects were seen fleeing over the Silber Way footbridge toward the Esplanade by BUPD. The suspects apparently jumped in the water before being caught by police shortly after. Credit check A female student reported on March 1 at 11:03 p.m. that after briefly leaving her wallet at the security desk while signing in at Sleeper Hall at 275 Babcock St., it was stolen. Her credit card was used in Roxbury about one hour after the wallet was taken. Not-so-happy hour Alcohol enforcement officials patrolling the Beacon Street and St. Mary’s Street area of South Campus on March 2 at 10:29 p.m. identified two BU students violating alcohol laws. They were summonsed to the district court for procuring alcohol and possession as minors. Big time fall A 19-year-old non-affiliate female injured her ankle after a fall down an icy snow bank on March 3 at 3:37 p.m. in the rear of Agganis Arena at 925 Comm. Ave. The area was fenced off to prevent fans of musical group Big Time Rush from accessing the tour bus area. She was transported by ambulance to Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center for treatment.
By Julianna Flammio Daily Free Press Staff
College of General Studies sophomore Naintara Aditya said being a freshman girl can be intimidating. New environments with fewer restrictions can lead to impaired judgment – including when it comes to sexual activity. “I don’t think condoms and protection are the number one things on people’s minds,” she said. Freshman girls use condoms less frequently during sex over the course of their first academic year, according to a study published Tuesday by the Miriam Hospital in Providence. Researchers from the hospital’s Center for Behavioral and Preventive Medicine, affiliated with Warren Alpert Medical School at Brown University, asked 279 freshmen girls to keep monthly reports of their condom use. They also asked questions about the participants’ high school GPA, religious beliefs, parents’ education levels and alcohol and drug use starting in the month before entering college. The results of the study, which was released online in January, link less condom use to young women who binge drink, receive low a high school GPA or come from lower socioeconomic backgrounds. Patricia Rieker, a visiting professor in sociology at Boston University, said she finds the study’s results to be disturbing. “It’s critical that young women practice safe sex given the exposure that they could have to very serious kinds of sexually transmitted diseases,” Rieker, who specializes in gender and health issues, said. The study’s results discuss young women’s use of condoms as related to their sexual encounters. Condoms were not used with all types of part-
Boston University School of Management senior Paul Hlatky had been working for Greenhorn Connect, a website that connects entrepreneurs in the Boston area, when he realized he could create a similar resource for college-aged entrepreneurs. “People are doing a lot of really awesome things, but it’s fragmented,” Hlatky, the director of community and student relations at Greenhorn Connect, said. While Hlatky said the environment for entrepreneurs is great in Boston, the major problem within the community is the lack of communication. Hlatky said the problem is no one knows about the great entrepreneurial environment and college students feel like they have nothing to contrib-
3
Union supports idea of Rape Crisis Center By Rachel Eides Daily Free Press Staff
RACHEL PEARSON/DAILY FREE PRESS STAFF
Studies show that female college freshman are increasingly less likely to use condoms. Factors such as alcohol and drug use and socioeconomic status predict condom use.
ners, even in romantic relationships. “It probably has something to do with gender relations and the power relationships,” Rieker said. “Wanting to trust the male and wanting to please the male and so theoretically it indicates to me that women are not exercising any kind of autonomy and a sense of self-determination by giving up the request to have safe sex.” BU students said the trend might be prevalent among the women on campus. Taylor Stevens, a CGS freshman, said she thinks BU would not stand out from any other college in terms of the how many girls practice unsafe sex. “I’m pretty sure it’s at all colleges that this happens,” she said. “BU, it’s a big school and there are a lot of different people and a lot of girls willing, I guess.” Chip Foarde, a freshman in CGS, said he has not heard of freshmen girls at BU having unprotected sex, but that he would not be surprised if
he did. He noted the higher femaleto-male ratio as a factor that is unique to BU, which could create pressure for girls to date and have sex. “It’s a lot harder for girls because they feel as though they don’t have many options,” he said. School of Education sophomore Colin O’Neil said the study’s results are probably part of a national trend. “I always think of the condom as the guy’s responsibility, but obviously it’s a responsibility on both parts,” he said. “There’s a lack of sex education in public school systems, which I think could be part of the issue.” Aditya said she and her friends do not fit within the party-girl persona that is associated with the study’s conclusions. “I have a boyfriend, so I’m not going out and hooking up with a bunch of guys,” she said. “A lot of my friends don’t have boyfriends, and they hook up once in a while, but it’s not like an every night or weekend type of thing.”
Student Union unanimously voted to endorse the Center for Gender, Sexuality and Activism’s initiatives to establish a Rape Crisis Center at Boston University. The CGSA proposed a center apart from Student Health Services that would include two full-time counselors, said College of Communication senior Becca Wilkinson, a CGSA volunteer and Feminist Collective member. “The need for a physical space and presence on campus has become acutely clear,” Wilkinson said. “A number of physical and financial resources will be necessary in order to implement such a center on BU’s campus.” CGSA members continued to discuss the center’s hours, which were not finalized at the time of the meeting. The final draft of the proposal is expected to be completed by March 18, after which point Union is expected to put the measure to a vote. Wilkinson said the space would allow the Center to be a better resource and serve as a way to educate students. “There would be a community feel and then another private area with a different entrance,” Wilkinson said. “There is a safety and confidentiality concern that we need to be aware of.” Union President Howard Male said members should take into con-
Union, see page 4
Direct correlation between AP courses and long-term success, study says By Alex Diantgikis Daily Free Press Staff
Claire Young, a College of Communication and College of Arts and Sciences sophomore, said her 29 credits from Advanced Placement exams placed her ahead of her peers. “I took them in high school mainly to get credit,” Young said. “I’ll be graduating early. Some of them actually counted toward my major. They’re actually really useful.” In a study by the National Bureau of Economic Research and Northwestern University, researchers found inner-city students who took part in college-preparatory programs
were more likely to attend college in greater numbers, remain in college past their first year and secure employment. The study, published in February, focused on the AP Incentive Program, a high school initiative that includes cash incentives for teachers and students with passing AP exam scores. The results reflected a general correlation between taking and excelling in AP classes and long-term success. “Students [who take AP courses] are more likely to go to college and graduate,” said Devon Wible, executive director of academics at Kaplan Test Prep and Admissions.
Student entrepreneurs expand opportunities By Becca Shipler Daily Free Press Staff
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
ute, which is just not the case. “Even if it’s just a discussion or a networking event you can just hang out and meet people with similar interests,” he said. A few months ago, Hlatky contacted the student leaders of business and entrepreneur groups at most of the city’s major universities. After connecting with the leaders individually, Hlatky organized a meeting at the Cambridge Innovation Center. This was the beginning of the Student Tech Startup Group, comprised of college entrepreneurs from BU, Brandeis University, Northeastern University and other institutions. “Our goal is to connect the students leading entrepreneurial efforts on their respective campuses in one organization,” said Cory Bolotsky, a Northeastern sophomore concentrating in business administration, and an executive board member of
Northeastern’s Entrepreneurs Club, in an email. “The students all want to know each other and learn from each other, but because there are so many schools in the Boston-area each working on dozens of different projects it’s hard for them to connect.” Brandeis junior Todd Kirkland, who is concentrating in computer science, said the group centralizes its goal around entrepreneurship, and Boston is a blooming area for that field. The group feels that students do want to have input and get involved, so it seeks to tell members about business opportunities, Kirkland said. “It’s an incredible place for a student to be involved and something that people definitely want at the university level and beyond,” Hlatky
Entrepreneurs, see page 4
AP courses offer a rigorous curriculum designed similarly to college courses, Wible said in a phone interview. “It prepares students for the rigor that they will face in college,” she said. “[AP courses have] more reading, more writing and more inquisitive thinking, opposed to standard memorization.” More than half of the students who enrolled at BU had with AP credits, BU spokesman Colin Riley said in a phone interview. On average, a prospective student applied with having taken one or two AP courses, but some students took many more.
Riley said admissions looks at an applicant in a holistic way, but the most important component is their academic transcript. “What an academic transcript shows is that students challenged themselves with the most rigorous curriculum available to them in high school, meaning AP and honors courses, and [had] done well in them,” Riley said. Admissions look to see what the students selected for classes in high school, Riley said. “People who are high achieving, challenging themselves, . . . are go-
AP, see page4
THE WAY WE WERE
AUDREY FAIN/DAILY FREE PRESS STAFF
American Sign Language Professor Kelly Kim tells the audience a story about this childhood at Deaf Deaf World, an event hosted by the Boston University deaf studies program.
4
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
Not everyone ‘sure people are consciously aware’ of rape culture Sports, military celebrate ‘aggressive
masculinity,’ program director says
Meme: From Page 1
posted on March 1 that reads “took the rape stairs and a hockey game broke out,” are good evidence for the idea that there is a rape culture at BU, Tsiakaros said. “It’s said that there’s truth in humor,” she said. “Some of [the memes] are tasteless, but I think that they’re almost a good way to read the temperature of the campus and that people are thinking about it.” BU spokesman Colin Riley could not comment on whether or not a rape culture exists at BU. “I think [memes] can be clever,” he said of BU memes in general. “They can be opportunistic.” Tsiakaros said the memes are a result of the problem and show how people on campus are thinking about the assaults. “I try to understand where the people are coming from,” she said. “I don’t like to flat out judge someone if they’re unaware or have grown up with certain beliefs because part of rape culture is you grow up thinking a certain way.” Despite the attention memes have been getting, Katz said she didn’t consider them as much of an issue as other things. “I’m less troubled by BU memes than I am seeing people speak on videos . . . saying that they think BU is doing enough,” she said. “That’s more troubling to me than BU memes because [memes] are the faceless Internet that’s full of nonsense.” Jack Long, a freshman in Sargent College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, said he doubts people con-
Sex: From Page 1
COURTSEY OF BU MEMES
Some students see these memes as insensitive towards the assault victims.
sciously think about rape or raping people and does not really see a rape culture on campus. “I’m not sure people are consciously aware of [rape culture],” Long said, “but when people are under the influence it kind of comes to the surface.” CAS freshman Dan O’Halloran said he feels strongly about the issue and has been actively following the news on the issue. “The way I see it is that D1 athletes get huge egos because they’re treated differently by girls their
whole careers,” O’Halloran said. “Eventually some feel so entitled that they think they can behave however they like. “There is no culture though. It’s irrational to say that there is this overwhelming ‘rape culture’ when it’s just certain guys who behave in extremely inappropriate ways. No one at BU or anywhere thinks rape is okay or supports it. “The media is portraying all women as being in constant fear and all men as having the potential to behave this way. That’s just not true.”
Union e-board looks to drive productivity for rest of semester Union: From Page 3
sideration that the proposal is still in development. “Do people feel comfortable voting for a proposal that has yet to be drafted? It seems like there are a lot of moving parts still,” Male, a School of Management and School of Hospitality senior, said. CGSA members approached Union for support before their meeting with BU officials on March 19, Wilkinson said. Union’s support may reflect students’ interest for the center. Several senators suggested ways to amend the proposal so Union could vote to support it when they see the final proposal in late March. Union Adviser John Battaglino stopped by as a guest speaker and discussed the issue of student involvement in a number of issues on campus.
Battaglino, executive director of Student Activities and Operations, who does not interfere with Union to allow students to work independently, told students to focus on creating “meaningful conversations” with other BU students. Senators should focus on Union’s purpose, as well as how they govern themselves and cooperate to best represent students, he said. Battaglino said he was proud of the measures Union passed, including the election timeline change, the smoking courtesy campaign and support for the cage-free eggs initiative. “I’m probably most proud that you folks continue dialogue on community issues such as genderneutral housing,” Battaglino said. Battaglino noted the challenges and responsibilities that come with serving as a student representative. “You’ve got to have conversations with students that you can
share,” he said. “You’ve got to go back to your community and ask what they need and widen the umbrella.” Senators asked Battaglino about a number of ideas and proposals and how to execute them. Sen. Tarif Ahmed, a College of Arts and Sciences junior, asked why the gender-neutral housing proposal has not gone through despite years of effort. Battaglino said universities work slowly by nature. He used example of the amount of time that it took BU to change the old guest policy. “Now that we know students are interested [in gender-neutral housing], we have to find a way to implement it,” Battaglino said. “We are being conscious of how we implement it. I do suspect that within the next year, you will see some form of gender-neutral housing.”
Multi-school entrepreneurial group seeking structure come fall Entrepreneurs: From Page 3
said. Northeastern senior Greg Skloot, president of the school’s Entrepreneurs Club, said Boston is probably one of the best places a college entrepreneur can be. Bolotsky also said entrepreneurialism coincides with the concentration of colleges in one area. “It’s not a coincidence that we have the most densely concentrated entrepreneurial communities in the world,” he said. “The innovative work in Boston is a byproduct of the [more than] 65 outstanding colleges and universities in the area and the community understands that and supports and embraces student entrepreneurs.” Hlatky said while there were between 10 and 13 students at the first
meeting, the group has been receiving more than 15 requests a week on Facebook. The group has committed leaders and some defined goals, but they also have a lot to figure out in order to be an organized and connected group. Skloot said some things to consider are whether every student entrepreneur in Boston will be involved or only people heading off the organization at each school. “Do they want it to be a real organization with a brand or is it just kind of an informal thing?” Skloot said. “I think these are all challenges that somebody’s going to have to figure out in the next couple months.” In the near future, the group will try to answer some of these questions and better define the group’s purpose. “Right now we are working to develop a name, mission, leadership
structure and legitimize ourselves as a formal association,” Bolotsky said. Bolotsky said when the fall comes, the group will probably host monthly or bi-monthly board meetings. “The main thing is that we’re trying to address issues at each respective school and seeing how we can better solve those issues and collaborate more,” Kirkland said. Hlatky said that the members want this to be a very supportive, open group. “This group’s main purpose is to build relationships,” he said. “We’re trying to just keep as many people involved in startups in Massachusetts as possible, and if anything, just raise awareness for it. So we’re all just very excited for what’s going to come of it.”
Issue, which argues that sexual violence should also be a men’s issue, according to the its website. Like BU, Syracuse also offers the Rape Aggression Defense program, which teaches women self-defense techniques. As a religious school, Brigham Young University has an honor code that prohibits consumption of alcohol, tea and coffee and focuses on dressing and residential standards, according to the BYU Honor Code website. The code also requires students to “manifest a strict commitment to the law of chastity,” and students who violate the Honor Code may be separated from the university, according to the website. Although LaNae Valentine, the director of Women’s Services & Resources at BYU, said not everyone might be following the religious faith or the honor code, she said it is a factor that prevents some of these incidents from happening. “The positive side of our BYU culture is it is a religious university and we have a pretty strict honor code so we don’t have drinking on our campus,” Valentine said. “At least, they’re not supposed to. We know it happens.” The BYU Women’s Services & Resources works closely with BYU’s counseling center, student health, university police and other student life entities, Valentine said. The Princeton Review has rated BYU as the most stone-cold sober university, she said. But Valentine said the downside is that if students do not adhere to the honor code, there is a sense of shame and unwillingness to come forward and report things.
“I think that probably things go on that don’t get reported and things go on that [students] don’t come to us [about],” Valentine said. “I think that we could do better about talking about especially the sexual assault issue more openly than we do.” Out of forcible and non-forcible sex offenses occurring either on campus, in residence halls or in a non-campus building, BYU’s Provo, Utah, campus had 11 reported incidents in 2009, while BU had two on and off campus combined. Linda Blum, the interim director of Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies at Northeastern University, said in an email that unfortunately, the rape culture pervades many realms of society. “Sports, as a site which celebrates a particularly aggressive masculinity, is a very visible site,” Blum said, “but consider the pervasiveness in our military as well.” As a graduate student at the University of California, Berkeley, Blum said her early activism centered on the issue of sexual harassment on college campuses. Blum fought with other graduate students to have the university name and address the issue as discrimination, she said. Debra Robbin, the deputy director of Jane Doe Inc., a statewide coalition against sexual assault and domestic violence, said every college needs to have a comprehensive program that ranges from intervention to prevention. “What’s really important on a campus, in a community,” Robbin said, “is that people that hold power in that institution . . . also need to send a very strong message that sexual violence is unacceptable on this campus and it’s not a value that we will tolerate.”
AP, other challenging classes important for admission to BU AP: From Page 3
ing to take every opportunity gain more knowledge and succeed,” Riley said. “It’s not surprising to see high achieving students succeed and then go on to succeed in college and the business world.” Wible said the APIP seemed like a good way to motivate student, but that the “best reward” is to gain knowledge from having taken the course. COM freshman Ross Huston said he took the AP U.S. History and AP English classes, but did not take the exams. “[The classes] would look good
on a transcript, granted I received a good grade, so I chanced it,” Huston said. “I took neither of the tests because I didn’t want to spend money on only a possibility of credit.” Anneliese Scheck, a sophomore in COM, said she took the AP Language and AP Literature exams, both of which she passed. “We didn’t get rewarded for taking the tests, but we got penalized if [we] were in an AP class and didn’t take the test,” she said. “I definitely feel like AP Literature class and preparing for AP Language helped strengthen my writing skills, so I was well-prepared for college.”
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5
The Search for Immortality Researchers may have found a protein that can extend the life span of animals. By Kimberly Clark
D
Features Staff
uring ancient times, alchemists sought the elixir of life; a legendary potion believed to bestow eternal life upon its drinker. Alchemy has since given way to modern-day chemistry, but the quest for eternal life—or at least longer life—persists. While science has proven that the secret to longevity is not a potion, research has suggested that a protein might hold the answer. A study published in Nature Journal of Science details the latest research on aging proteins, called sirtuins. A team led by Haim Cohen, a molecular biologist at Bar-llan University in Ramat-Gan Israel, has found that increased levels of SIRT6, one of the seven sirtuin proteins, can extend the maximum lifespan of male mice by about 15.8 percent. Earlier research on the link between sirtuins and longevity focused on another member of the protein family. Researchers theorized that SIRT1, a protein in mammals closely related to a gene that promotes longevity in yeast, could extend the lifespan of mammals. In 2001, a study published in Nature Journal of Science reported that SIRT1 increased the longevity in nematodes and fruit flies. The interest in this research was so high that in 2008, GlaxoSmirthKline, a drug company in London, invested $720 million in research targeting SIRT1 as a potential treatment for type 2 diabetes. Later research found the SIRT1 study to be incorrect. The increased longevity was not an effect of SIRT1 but a result of unrelated mutations in the studied species. PROTEINS WITH POTENTIAL The hype surrounding SIRT1 was just the encouragement Cohen needed to begin his study of SIRT6. “People were mostly interested in SIRT1,” Cohen said in Nature Journal of Science. “So I thought it might be better for us as a new lab to work on something that is less crowded.” Previous studies had demonstrated that the aging process in mice lacking SIRT6 was accelerated. Cohen and his team decided to study the effects of higher than normal levels of SIRT6 in mice. While their results showed no effect on the maximum lifespan of the female mice, the male mice experienced an increase by as much as 15.8 percent. The way in which SIRT6 functioned to increase the lifespan of the male mice is not clear, but Cohen thinks it has to do with the effect of SIRT6 on a hormone which previous studies linked to aging. “[We] have shown that SIRT6 decreases the hormone Insulin-like Growth Factor 1 (IGF-1) signaling,” Cohen said, assisted by Shoshanna Naiman, in an email interview. “This hormone, while beneficial for growing in early years, might cause detrimental effects later in life, causing increased reactive oxygen species, DNA damage, and ultimately cell death,” Cohen said. “A reduction in this hormone is known to increase lifespan in a broad range of organisms, including yeast, worms, flies and mice. In addition, decreased IGF-1 levels were observed in aged humans as well, and centurions were shown to have decreased IGF-1 levels.”
the same as females,” he said. “Therefore, we would only expect to see a difference in male lifespan, as females have no need of SIRT6 to ‘feminize’ their genes.” Cohen explained that the male mice only experience femininity in their genes. He said he theorized that SIRT6 changes the levels of certain hormones in male mice to match those in female mice thus leveling the lifespans between the genders. UNCERTAINTY OF SIRT6 Researchers continue to question the link between SIRT6 and the aging process. Newer studies have suggested that metabolic defects were the cause of the accelerated aging process that had earlier been attributed to a lack of SIRT6. Other researchers attribute the increased lifespan of the male mice to an anti-cancer effect of SIRT6. Since the mice used in Cohen’s experiment tend to have tumors, their extended lifespan could have less to with an anti-aging effect and more to do with the anti-cancer effect of SIRT6 explained Richard Miller, a researcher of aging at University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, in Nature Journal of Science. Cohen said he acknowledges the validity of this claim, but noted that his team did not find there to be a connection between the occurrences of tumors and the increased longevity in the male mice. “It sounds like a worthy investment, but how long will it take before it can actually be used in humans?” said Samantha Flick, a senior in the College of Arts and Sciences. “Science is a very tricky field because there are so many steps between what a drug can do for mice and what it can do for humans.” MULTI-PURPOSE PROTEIN
WIKI COMMONS/ PHOTO COURTESY
“The Alchemist Discovers the Philosopher’s Stone” by Joseph Wright, 1771
MALE MIMICKERS Another major focus of Cohen’s team is to discover why SIRT6 affected the lifespans in male mice, but in not female mice. Since the female mice used in the research usually live longer than females, Cohen speculates that the increased levels of SIRT6 allowed the male mice to catch up to the female mice. “SIRT6 appears to have a ‘feminizing’ effect on the male gene expression profile, changing male gene expression to be similar to that of females,” Cohen said. “Several of these genes whose expression was altered could be longevity genes, which would normally only increase female lifespan. SIRT6 normalizes the levels of these longevity genes in males to be the same as females, thereby increasing male lifespan to be
SIRT 6 is not the only sirtuin with demonstrated utility outside of the aging process. David Lombard, a mammalian sirtuin researcher at U of M, explained in Nature Journal of Science that all of the sirtuins have been shown to have salubrious effects on the ‘health span’ of mammals by multiple labs and in many different cases. Although much of the attention and funding has surrounded the research of sirtuin application in the aging process, the usefulness of sirtuins does not end there. Much of the antiaging research has shown that SIRT6 retains a possible application to cancer treatment research. “There have been several papers published recently demonstrating that SIRT6 specifically inhibits or kills certain types of cancer cells,” Cohen said. “It is possible that under certain conditions which cause cancer—such as exposure to UV rays—SIRT6 will prevent the spread of cancer.” This idea of a wider application of sirtuins is encouraging. “I think that even if the scientists find out that the protein has no effect on the aging process, it is still worth studying for what it could do for cancer,” said Gabrielle Kovarie, a sophomore in the College of Arts and Sciences.
The Elixer of Life • The Ancient Chinese believed that injesting substances such as jade and mercury would lead to immortality. It turned out most of these substances were just toxic poisions. • Hindu myth tells how elixer of life, Amrita, was obtained by churning the ocean of milk with a mountain as a churning pole • The word elixir was not used until the 7th century A.D. and derives from the Arabic name for miracle substances, “al iksir.” • Frenchman Nicholas Flamel was believed to have successfully created the elixer of life. Source: Encyclopaedia Britannica
6T
hursday,
Opinion
March 6, 2012
The Daily Free Press
The Independent Student Newspaper at Boston University
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42nd year F Volume 82 F Issue 78
Chelsea Diana, Editor-in-Chief Tim Healey, Managing Editor Steph Solis, Campus Editor
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Valerie Morgan, Office Manager The Daily Free Press (ISSN 1094-7337) is published Monday through Thursday during the academic year except during vacation and exam periods by Back Bay Publishing Co.,Inc., a nonprofit corporation operated by Boston University students. No content can be reproduced without the permission of Back Bay Publishing Co., Inc. Copyright © 2010 Back Bay Publishing Co., Inc. All rights reserved.
Super Tuesday
There has been no shortage of scathing exchanges, surprising twists and heightened drama in the Republican race that will decide the party’s presidential candidate. At this stage of the primaries, four potential victors are still battling for votes. Mitt Romney, Rick Santorum, Ron Paul and Newt Gingrich have all reportedly spent millions on advertisements, as well as participated in widely publicized debates. As Super Tuesday commences, the decisions of ten states will bring the American public a step closer to deciding who will run against President Barack Obama. The strong surge of “super PACs” and the monetary support they provide has perpetuated this race, fueling uncertainty and schisms in the party. Georgia, Idaho, Massachusetts, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia and Alaska will be the battlegrounds. According to an article in The New York Times published yesterday, Santorum and Romney consider Ohio especially critical. Romney, who will remain a strong favorite to win Massachusetts, will probably rely on his moderate conservatism to draw in a wider net of voters; however, his incon-
sistency between his conservative values before, during and after the nomination race will raise questions about his proposed policies. Nevertheless, while the fervor surrounding the potential nominees has remained intense, overall this enduring race has spawned a wider anti-Republican sentiment throughout the nation. According to a study conducted by MSNBC and The New York Times published yesterday, only one in 10 adults have a more positive view of the Republican Party as a result of the race. Romney will likely find an obstacle with the independent vote. Ron Paul has enjoyed a renewed success with his Libertarian platform, which may add to the increasing identity crisis the Republicans are currently struggling to reconcile. If this race has indicated anything, it is that a cohesive idea of who the Republicans want to pit against President Obama does not exist. While the results of Super Tuesday may indicate a more concrete idea of who could fulfill the role, it would be premature to assume these results will provide a conclusion to this everchanging political contest.
Equality in the EU
The workplace has continued to be controversial with regard to gender equality, particularly concerning the debate over equal opportunity for men and women in more prestigious positions within corporations. According to an article published on BBC’s website yesterday, the European Union wants to implement measures to ensure women are adequately represented in the higher strata of professional success. The EU’s Justice Commissioner put forth a pledge firms could sign to implement these quotas voluntarily. However, just more than 20 firms cooperated with the new scheme. Data from the European Commission shows only 13.7 percent of board members in top European firms are women. Placing potentially ill-qualified women in managerial positions to satisfy a quota will aggravate the issue. Respect for women in the workplace will severely diminish, as men could feel marginalized by such changes. Theoretically, sanctioning a certain percentage of employees who have to be women will decrease gender inequality in the workplace. Realistically, these quotas will discriminate against individuals who deserve to hold po-
sitions based on merit. A different kind of inequality will be bred from a society where the success of one’s career is based on one’s gender. Obviously, a prevalent reason for this imbalance is the question of children. Naturally, companies are less inclined to hire women expecting children due to higher costs and lower efficiency due to potential time taken off. Unfortunately, companies are obliged to hire an individual who will best serve their job requirements and not vice versa. While incorporating more women into these esteemed jobs should be a priority, forcing change in such an authoritative manner will only worsen women’s reputations in the workplace. Furthermore, quotas to prevent gender inequality will prompt questions over racial and cultural equality in top firms. If quotas are implemented to account for every discrepancy, procuring a job will be drowned in so much bureaucracy that qualifications will be obsolete; the only deciding factor in job selection will be physical and cultural categorization. Measures that were intended to promote equality will only drive us further from it.
Here’s what some of them said.
MIKE MCCORMICK
“Mitt Romney is pulling ahead for sure. I mean there could be some competition from Rick Santorum, but I think Romney will win in the end.” - CAS Sophomore PHOTOS AND INTERVIEWS BY RACHEL PEARSON AND AUDREY FAIN
Get angry
e do not live in a perfect world. Anybody who tries to tell you reality is full of rainbows and butterflies is lying. Our world encompasses the full spectrum between good and bad. There is no sense in ignoring the negatives. The only thing that matters is our reaction to them. If we lived in a perfect world, there would be no injustice. There would be no hate. There would be no war. There would be no ignorance. Unfortunately, all of these things are in our soDANY VASQUEZ present ciety. Sometimes they scream at us from the caps-locked headlines in a newspaper. Other times they are a subtle whisper barely louder than the wind that floats through the cracks of our homes. It doesn’t matter what form they take in our lives. They seep through the fissures in our minds and float through our bloodstreams into our hearts. They are as much a part of us as the limbs that hold us together. It’s daunting to realize how much of an impact these things have on us, but it’s even more disconcerting to realize how much we actually influence them. They are a part of our society because we created them, fostered them, and let them run free. But it doesn’t have to be this way. The extremities on the negative side of our spectrum can be fought. We created them. We can defeat them. How? Through action. Through words and protests. By not accepting ignorant irrationality. By refusing to submit to the status quo. By getting angry. Really angry. I often wonder why people do not get more involved in important issues and causes. It proves that there is a desensitization of our society. We think someone else will stand up for that. We delude ourselves into thinking things will take care of themselves. We’re afraid or pessimistic or apathetic. We don’t think things will change, so why bother kicking up a fuss? We don’t want to expose ourselves with an opinion that will invite floods of criticisms and insults, regardless of how just and noble the
cause is. This is wrong. This only encourages the negatives. They feed off of our indifference and grow in the emptiness of our voices. Our world needs to change. We are the dormant superheroes of our society. We need to wake up and realize this is our future. Unless we do something, it is not going to change. It is time to let the anger at the injustice and ignorance fuel our brains and our words. This is not the time to be silent. This is the time to shout from the rooftops into the core of inhumanity. Let yourself get swept up in a cause. Allow yourself to be carried forward to the other end of the spectrum. Work to restore our world and eradicate its nastiest details. Don’t hold back because you think you won’t make a difference. And definitely don’t stop yourself out of fear. Find something that sparks your passion, something that is contributing to the wrongness of society, something that be changed through powerful action and awareness. Get your facts straight and then kick up a storm. Get angry about the way things are. Encourage everyone around you to join you in your efforts. We are not going to get anywhere unless we actively show our strength. We have so much power and potential. We can do something worthwhile with our time. We can decrease the negativity in our world. We can be the start of a better era. We cannot afford to be dormant any longer. We are the voice of the future. The actions of our generation will determine the course of the world. We cannot passively watch these years go by and casually observe from the sidelines. Do not let the chips fall where they may. Pick them up and drop those chips in strategic locations. Make sure they cause plenty of chaos. Don’t ever let them silence you. What you have to say is important. It is relevant. It is revolutionary. To quote one of my favorite movies, “No matter what anyone tells you, words and ideas can change the world.” So walk outside and shout at the top of your lungs. Make a mess of things. Stand up for what you believe in. Never stop fighting.
Dany Vasquez is a sophomore in the College of Communication and a weekly columnist for The Daily Free Press. She can be reached at vasquezd@bu.edu.
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Super Tuesday The FreeP asked students what they think will be the outcome of Super Tuesday?
Stream of Consciousness
ELENA HERNANDEZ
“Mitt Romney because he is the the most electable candidate. He believes in America and he’ll turn around the economy.” - COM Freshman
Terriers Talk
BOBBY HEGHMANN
“Mitt Romney has more popularity. As long as it’s not Santorum I’ll be fine” - COM Freshman
JENNIA IORDANOU
“Mitt Romney will win based on recent events. I can see Santorum winning a couple of states, but I think Romney will win overall” - CAS Freshman
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
7
Rychcik: Terriers played best game of season during loss to Louisville Softball: From page 8
the tournament. The Terriers claimed their second victory early Sunday morning when they defeated University of Memphis 7-3. Floetker secured another win, her fifth of the season, allowing three runs in a complete game effort. She remains the only Terrier pitcher with a victory this season. “I’d like to get Erin and Whitney the wins too,” Rychcik said. “I’d like to have all three of them going, not just Holli, because teams that have multiple pitchers are
teams that are really running up their win total.” The Terriers offense dominated, with Roesch going 3-for-3 with a double and a home run. Mask continued her successful streak at the top of the Terrier’s batting order, going 3-for-4 and scoring three of the Terriers’ seven runs. Mask and O’Connor opened the game with two singles and Ekart soon brought Mask home on an infield ground out. Mask scored again in the third inning when Volpano drove her home with an RBI single. Although Memphis (4-15) scored in the
bottom of the fourth, coming within one, the Terriers broke free with a three-run fifth inning after Ekart hit a two-run homer. Memphis tacked on two more runs in the bottom of the sixth but did not catch up after a two-run homer from Roesch in the top of the seventh. In their second game of the day against Louisville (15-0), the Terriers struggled at the plate and only had four hits in their 2-0 loss. After Floetker allowed two runs in the first, neither team got a player across home plate for the rest of the game. “We had a really, really good game,
probably the best we’ve played all year against the Louisville team,” Rychcik said. The Terriers’ only scoring opportunity came in the top of the fifth. Singles put Roesch and senior Melanie Delgado on base, but the next two batters struck out swinging as the Terriers were shut out by one of the top-20 teams in the country. “I was disappointed that we didn’t get 3 [wins] and 1 [loss] out of the weekend but you know, [there were] some good signs again,” Rychcik said. “Not a bad weekend.”
BU scores nine unanswered goals in Women’s hockey leads nation in 13 minutes, defeats George Mason short-handed goals with 13 on season Lacrosse: From Page 1
The second half got off to a modest start for both teams, with senior attack Molly Swain scoring the fifth goal of the game for BU and her first goal of the season 3:41 in. Patriot midfielder Emily Ellisen responded with a goal off of a free position shot 13 seconds later. But then the Terriers broke the game open. BU scored nine unanswered goals in a stretch of 13 minutes, stopped only by GMU sophomore attack Rachel Obregon’s fifth goal of the season off of another freeposition shot with 10:58 left in the game. In the stretch from 24:59 to 12:14, Collins scored four of her five goals and Etrasco scored three times. “We were getting draw controls, setting the fast-paced tempo that we like to play and getting the looks on attack that we planned out,” Robertshaw said. “The misconception was that we were just scoring; the truth is we were scoring how we wanted to score.” Etrasco and Collins both scored one more time each to close out the win, with 3:29 and 1:29 remaining in the half, respectively. Both goals were assisted by senior attack Catie Tilton. All four of George Mason’s goals in the second frame came off of free-position shots, three originating with Ellisen. BU shot 17 times in the second half, with George Mason taking 13 shots, one more than its first half total. The Patriots had only two saves and picked up two ground balls, one less than the Terriers, but did win the second half draw control battle, nine to eight. BU finished with 30 fouls, double George Mason’s total. Robertshaw believed the foul total gave the Patriots an opportunity to press back against the Terriers.
“I wasn’t pleased with the amount of fouls we had because I think it gave Mason confidence attacking us,” Robertshaw said. “We need to do a better job off ball getting out of three seconds and shooting space to limit the free-position shots our opponents have, but on the flip side I do have confidence in our goalkeepers to make saves when put in that position.” Tilton had one more assist in the firsthalf to lead the Terriers in that statistical category. Collins took the most shots for BU, eight, followed by senior midfielder Annie Stookesberry at six and Etrasco and senior attack Hannah Frey at five. Stookesberry and junior defender Brittany Carlin combined at three apiece to win half of the Terriers’ 12 draw controls. After guarding the net for the entirety of the season’s first two loses, sophomore goalkeeper Christina Sheridan also got her first win of the year. She stopped 10 of the Patriots’ 25 shots, holding them to eight total goals. Ellisen was the Patriots’ leader in goals, with three, and shots, with seven. She also led her team with seven draw controls. George Mason’s only two assists were the work of attack Mary Schwartz, while attack Anna Kopecka picked up four of the Patriots’ 14 ground balls. Goalkeeper Brittany Pastrana played 50:42 in net for George Mason, allowing 14 of BU’s goals and stopping seven shots. Katie Teague replaced Pastrana with 9:18 left in the game. Teague allowed two goals and made zero saves. Ultimately, the second half was where Robertshaw thought her team came together. She said, “Everyone felt good about putting together a strong second half and making the changes needed to win the game.”
from the field and finished with 20 points. BU struggled in the first half of the dogfight, but the resultant half-time deficit of 33-23 was by no means a significant prediction of defeat. The Terriers had played excellent second-half basketball all season, executing comebacks against America East opponents such as the University Hartford and the University of Vermont. Ultimately, UMBC prevented another such victory by steadily creating a cushion for its lead about six minutes into the half. A series of layups and converted free throws allowed the Retrievers to build their advantage up to 26 points on multiple occasions. Not even the combined inside presence and rebounding abilities of forwards sophomore Rashidat Agboola (eight points, 12 rebounds, three blocks) and senior Caroline Stewart (12 points, 10 rebounds) could prevent the opposition from getting clean op-
When BU won the title in 2010, the Terriers defeated the University of Connecticut 2-1 in a single overtime. All-Tournament Terriers After defeating the University of New Hampshire, Boston College and the Friars in the Hockey East Tournament, three members of the BU team were named to the Hockey East All-Tournament Team. Sophomore forward Marie-Philip Poulin, junior defenseman Kathryn Miller and Wakefield each earned the honor. It was the first time Poulin and Miller have been named to the team. Poulin accumulated eight points during the tournament, including two goals against BC on Saturday. Miller, who has 16 points in 37 games this season, earned four points during the tournament. The Milverton, Ontario native tallied two assists in each of the first two games of the tournament. Meanwhile, Wakefield was placed on the All-Tournament team for the third time in her collegiate career. Wakefield had seven points during the tournament, including a hat trick during the quarterfinals and the game-tying and game-winning goals against Providence on Sunday. Wakefield was also named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player. “She’s a kid with talent, a kid with size and a kid with a competitive nature,” Durocher said. “She wants to score goals, she wants to win games and all those things add up to a very dangerous person, who not only helps our team, but I think quietly puts fear in the opponents most of the time.” Short-handed savings
Terriers earn automatic WNIT berth after winning regular season conf. title W. basketball: From page 8
Notebook: From page 8
portunities inside. Greenberg said the team’s defense was uncharacteristically uncommunicative in the loss. “When they went on that run in the second half, a lot of that was due to [our] not talking on defense,” Greenberg said. “We didn’t talk on out-of-bounds plays, wideopen layups, and our guards let them go back-door.” The Terriers attempted a comeback toward the end of the game, but could not come any closer than 14 points. Despite the disappointing loss, BU’s first-place finish in America East regular season play grants it at least one more game, as they automatically earn a spot in the Women’s National Invitation Tournament. “Our seniors will make sure we are ready . . . for that first game in the WNIT – which I’m really glad we have,” Greenberg said. “We don’t want to finish our season not playing the way we have been all year.”
During BU’s 9-1 domination over New Hampshire in the quarterfinals, the Terriers scored three short-handed goals in a fourminute span of time. Wakefield, Poulin and senior assistant
captain Carly Warren’s short-handed tallies put BU up 8-1 in the third period of the win. The effort marked a record for most short-handed goals scored during a Hockey East Tournament. The Terriers lead the nation in shorthanded goals with 13 this season. Freshman forward Kayla Tutino and Wakefield lead the team with three short-handed goals apiece. Counteracting Cornell After defeating Providence in the title game on Sunday, the Terriers move on to the NCAA regional round. BU was named the sixth seed and will face off against third-seeded Cornell University on Saturday in Ithaca, N.Y., at 2 p.m. “I give a high percentage of credit to the Providence team and how well they played,” Durocher said. “But now we’re planning to go to Cornell, and we’ve got something to be real proud of.” BU competed against the Big Red twice earlier this season in a series that the Terriers likely wish they could forget. When they first met on Nov. 25, Cornell defeated BU 3-1. The next day, however, BU’s first-semester struggles were magnified in a 7-1 loss to the Big Red. Since the teams last met, the Terriers have regained their health and seen a drastic change in success. After a rough first semester, BU has gone 12-4 since coming back from the winter intercession. The Terriers currently find themselves in the midst of a seven-game win streak. They have not lost since they fell in overtime to Northeastern during the Beanpot Championship. “I looked in the second half and thought we were in a position to make a run because the schedule seemed favorable,” Durocher said, “and the recovery of a couple student-athletes seemed like it was going to come about. “Talent coming back makes a difference. The experience some of the players got while we had injuries went a long ways.”
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Quotable
We don’t want to finish our season not playing the way we have been all year. -Women’s basketball coach Kelly Greenberg on playing in the WNIT
Page 8
Sports
Near-perfect
The Daily Free Press
pitching
Sophomore Holli Floetker is the only pitcher to win a game thus far for the Boston University softball team. Floetker is 5-2 on the season., p. 8
[ www.dailyfreepress.com ]
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
Softball Terriers falter in America East semifinals splits fourgame set By Tyler Lay Daily Free Press Staff
By Sam Simmons Daily Free Press Staff
The Boston University softball team went an even 2-2 this weekend at the University of Tennessee Tournament, keeping its record above .500 in the process. After dropping the first game of the tournament to Eastern Tennessee State University, 7-3, the Terriers won two straight before suffering a 2-0 loss to No. 17/19 Louisville University. The tournament opened Friday afternoon as the Terriers (5-4) fell to East Tennessee (4-11). Despite scoring the first two runs of the game, the Terriers struggled offensively for the last five innings, putting up only one run. Sophomore outfielder Jayme Mask opened the game with a triple, and two batters later sophomore third baseman Megan Volpano sent her home with a single to left. Senior pitcher Erin Schuppert made it through the first two innings of the game unscathed before allowing a three-run home run that put the Buccaneers on top for good in the top of the third. After loading the bases in the fourth, Schuppert was relieved by junior pitcher Whitney Tuthill. The Buccaneers continued to build up their lead, scoring one run in both the sixth and seventh innings. “We kind of gave a game away that we really should have won,” said BU coach Shawn Rychcik. “It’s one that I think we’re a better team but gave it away.” The next day sophomore pitcher Holli Floetker claimed her fourth victory of the season as the Terriers won a 3-1 contest against Murray State University. She pitched a complete game and did not allow a run until the seventh inning. The Terriers started off the bottom of the first well as Mask and sophomore center fielder Chelsea O’Connor reached base with BU’s first two at bats. After stealing a base apiece, Mask and O’Connor were driven home by sophomore catcher Amy Ekart and sophomore shortstop Brittany Clendenny, respectively. Neither team put another run on the board until the bottom of the sixth inning as BU failed to capitalize on scoring opportunities in the second and third innings. The Terriers scored their third and final run of the game after a hit from senior outfielder Erica Casacci drove junior second baseman Emily Roesch home. Murray State (5-4) could not put more than one run up in the top of the seventh, and the Terriers claimed their first victory of
Softball, see page 7
Tuesday, Mar. 6
In two regular season matchups between the University of Maryland-Baltimore County and the Boston University women’s basketball teams, the Terriers earned a pair of victories by a combined margin of 11 points. Needless to say, many BU fans were surprised 77 UMBC when the fifthseeded Retriev61 BU ers in a 77-61 decision Sunday afternoon forced the America East regular season champions out of the America East Tournament. The Terriers (23-8, 15-1 America East) were successful in the opening round of the tournament, when they defeated the University of Maine, 52-43. Chantell Alford, who was chosen as the America East Player of the Year for the second straight year, led BU in the victory over the Black Bears (8-23, 4-12 America East) with a game-high 18 points. Alford’s performance in the quarterfinals was a catalyst of positivity for BU, as she had been battling wrist problems in the few games prior to the tournament. However, UMBC (17-14, 9-7 America East) quickly extinguished any immediate hope with the upset win over the Terriers in the semifinals.
W. basketball, see page 7
DAILY FREE PRESS FILE PHOTO
America East Player of the Year Chantell Alford scored 27 points during BU’s play in the America East tournament.
Lacrosse earns first win of season over Patriots By Shep Hayes Daily Free Press Staff
Senior attack Danielle Etrasco and freshman attack Mallory Collins scored five goals apiece on Satur16 BU day to lead the 8 George Mason Boston University lacrosse team to a 16-8 win over George Mason University. The victory is the Terriers’ (1-
2) first of the 2012 season, which began with two road losses and a postponed home game. BU coach Liz Robertshaw said her team felt great for finally putting a mark in the win column. “I do think there was a sense of relief for the girls and more so a sense of confidence in finishing the game and getting the win,” said Robertshaw in an email interview on Monday. The two teams were relatively even in the first half, as they were
tied at four apiece by the end of the frame. George Mason (1-4) got on the scoreboard first when senior Kara Bowman tallied the first goal less than two minutes into the game, setting off a streak of the two teams exchanging the lead throughout the half. BU junior midfielder Kristen Mogavero capped off the frame with her third goal of the season to tie the contest with 2:38 remaining. “The first half we were slow
- slow to the ball, slow to react, slow to slide defensively and not playing the game we set out to play,” Robertshaw said. The Terriers took 15 shots in the first half to the Patriots 12. George Mason picked up two more ground balls than BU, however, and won one more draw control. The Terriers were also called for 13 fouls in the first half, four more than the Patriots.
Lacrosse see page 7
Women’s hockey heads to NCAAs for third straight season By Meredith Perri Daily Free Press Staff
RACHEL PEARONS/DAILY FREE PRESS STAFF
Sophomore forward Marie-Philip Poulin was one of BU players named to the Hockey East All-Tournament Team.
The Bottom Line
No Games Scheduled Carl Crawford is likely going to miss Opening Day due to his wrist injury. It feels like J.D. Drew never left.
“We didn’t come out and look like the BU team we have been all season,” said BU coach Kelly Greenberg. “I think they definitely outmatched us with energy.” The Terriers were evenly matched with the Retrievers in the category of two-point field goals, converting 18 to their opponents’ 17. UMBC relied on 3-point shooting and success from the stripe to overcome BU. Of the Retrievers’ 77 points, 43 came from these two categories, as they finished 7-of-13 (53.8 percent) from deep and 22-of-28 (78.6 percent) from the free-throw line. “I thought all year long we did a good job of taking the other team’s strengths,” Greenberg said. “We did not do that in [Sunday’s] game with our defense. We allowed some of their scorers to get good looks.” UMBC’s second-leading scorer on the season, senior Michelle Kurowski, certainly got her fair share of “looks.” The 5-foot-9 guard finished with a game-high 25 points on 8-of-18 (44.4 percent) shooting, including five treys. Senior guard Alex Young did all she could to counteract Kurowski’s effort in the final America East Tournament game of her career. Young shot 50 percent
Wednesday, Feb. 7 W. Lacrosse @ Dartmouth, 3 p.m.
Thursday, Mar. 8 W. Tennis vs. Yale, 3 p.m. Swimming @ Zone A Diving Championships, TBA
For the third straight season the No. 5/9 Boston University women’s hockey team has qualified for the NCAA Tournament. Last season, the TerriWomen’s ers earned the Hockey at-large bid Notebook after winning the Hockey East regular season title. During the 2009-10 season and this season, however, BU earned the berth after taking the Hockey East Tournament title game in overtime. On Sunday, the Terriers (2313-1, 14-7 Hockey East) came
Friday, Mar. 9 M. Hockey vs. New Hampshire, 7 p.m. Softball @ Northern Iowa, 9:15 a.m. Softball @ Bradley, 11:30 a.m.
back in the fading seconds of the third period to tie Providence College. At that point, BU had showered Friar netminder Genevieve Lacasse with 32 shots to no avail. After heading into overtime, neither team found the back of the net, leading to a second overtime. Senior captain Jenn Wakefield, who also scored the game-tying goal, notched the game-winner 2:15 into the double overtime. “I think it was an unbelievably hard-fought battle. Providence played a near perfect game,” said BU coach Brian Durocher after the title game. “I think it was a combination of momentum and also our talent.”
Notebook, see page 7
Saturday, Mar. 10
M. Hockey vs. New Hampshire, 4 p.m. W. Hockey @ Cornell, 2 p.m. W. Lacrosse vs. Notre Dame, 3 p.m. Softball @ Syracuse, 4:15 p.m.