April 18, 2022

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N • A house divided

C • Secondhand Style

S • Unafraid

Rep. John Katko reflected on his tenure in public service, bipartisanship in Congress in a conversation held by the Maxwell School on Thursday.

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SUNY-ESF sophomore Paul Sausville has been growing his clothing company called The Pits Vintage since its inception in 2019.

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Saam Olexo developed a unique toughness after growing up the youngest of three brothers, helping him become a physical player for SU. Page 12

crime

Moving ahead An environmental impact statement from the state revealed that the community grid’s construction will take six years

SPD involved in Westcott standoff

By Danny Amron and Kyle Chouinard the daily orange

The community grid plan was approved by NYSDOT in 2019 and has garnered widespread support from community leaders across the city and state. meghan hendricks photo editor

By Richard Perrins

T news editor

he community grid alternative of the Interstate 81 viaduct project will take six years to construct, according to the project’s environmental impact statement.

The report, which was released on Friday, detailed the environmental and economic impact the viaduct removal and its alternatives would have on the surrounding community. The community grid was identified by the report as the “preferred alternative” for the project by the New York State Department of Transportation.

The six years of construction would follow two phases, according to the statement. The first involves all work necessary to re-designate Interstate 481, which runs through Syracuse’s eastern suburbs, as I-81. The designation would mean directing traffic usually traveling along I-81 onto I-481. The two intersect in north Syracuse.

The second phase involves closing segments of the eastbound Interstate 690 and using a local street detour between West Street and Crouse Avenue for the disrupted traffic. Afterwards, the phase would see I-690 reconstructed, the viaduct demolished and local streets,

including Almond Street, reconstructed into the community grid.

The NYSDOT announced its approval of the community grid option to replace the viaduct in 2019. The plan has been widely endorsed by members of the community, including Mayor Ben Walsh and Syracuse University Chancellor Kent Syverud.

Gov. Kathy Hochul has also spoken in favor of the community grid. New York’s state budget, released on April 7, included $1.1 billion for the viaduct project.

Local residents have also expressed their support for the return of the community that was lost with the initial construction of the viaduct.

While the community grid has garnered widespread support within Syracuse, residents have been working to ensure the project doesn’t further displace people in the area, as well as to create more local hiring opportunities in the construction. The construction of I-81 in the 1950s and 1960s devastated the historical 15th Ward, a predominantly Black neighborhood.

Blueprint 15 is a local nonprofit that has been collaborating with Purpose Built Communities, an organization that deals with community revitalization, to see

i-81 page 4

A man barricaded himself inside a convenience store on the 500 block of Westcott Street on Sunday night.

The street has been blocked off by police, and officers with guns and shields were reportedly called to the scene. Dispatches have said that two other people were in Pop Shop and the man appeared to be armed, SPD said.

Officers were huddling behind two cars as they yelled at the man to come out, syracuse.com reported.

An ambulance was reportedly dispatched to the area, and helicopters have been flying overhead.

Three police negotiators arrived on the scene at around 9:45 p.m., syracuse.com said.

Two people left the store shortly after 10 p.m., and a SWAT team has since arrived on the scene.

Syracuse University’s Department of Public Safety asked students to stay away from the area at this time in a campus-wide email at around 9 p.m.

At 11:04 p.m., DPS reported in a campus-wide email that SPD had taken a suspect into custody following the brief standoff, but police activity will continue in the area.

According to an email from SPD at 11:29 p.m., the department responded just after 8:47 p.m. to the area of South Beech Street to reports of a suspicious person. A man was walking around waving a handgun with a woman and two dogs.

When police arrived at the scene on Westcott Street, the man, along with the woman and two dogs, retreated. He then barricaded himself in the corner store, according to the email. The only other person in the store was a clerk. Officers surrounded the building and the Emergency Response Team arrived to assist.

The suspect, who is a 45-yearold man, emerged from the store and was taken into custody without an incident after a little more than an hour. The weapon was later recovered and no injuries were reported, the email wrote.

Sergeant Thomas Blake told The Daily Orange that the woman and the store clerk were questioned

by SPD’s Criminal Investigations Division as of 12:13 a.m. news@dailyorange.com

2 april 18, 2022

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“Being a moderate means you have to understand one fundamental thing — if the left is pissed off at you and the right is pissed off at you, you are doing a good job. ... Based on that, I’m doing a pretty damn good job.” - Rep. John Katko, R-Camillus Page 3

OPINION “Technology and social media will allow further communications and strengthen the economy.

We’ll just have to learn and make sure we aren’t taking it too far.” - Daniela Dorado, columnist Page 5

CULTURE “When I’m shopping, I’m really shopping for myself. ...

And then I found that a lot of people like the same things I like.” - Paul Sausville, founder of The Pits Vintage Page 6

SPORTS “He has the versatility to go short, long, whatever it might be because of his athleticism, his stamina and his mental toughness.” - Brian Phipps, Saam Olexo’s high school coach Page 12

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april 18, 2022

on campus

on campus

Rep. John Katko discusses public service at SU Student vote affirms NYPIRG funding

By Danny Amron asst. news editor

Katko (right) discussed topics such as bipartisanship in Congress, the Capitol riot on Jan. 6, 2021, economic development in central New York and the reasons he will not be seeking reelection in 2022. francis tang asst. news editor

By Francis Tang asst. news editor

Rep. John Katko, R-Camillus, attended a conversation with Gretchen Ritter, Syracuse’s vice chancellor, provost and chief academic officer, at the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs on Thursday afternoon.

Katko has been representing New York’s 24th Congressional District since 2015, after succeeding Dan Maffei, a Democrat. He was reelected three times, defeating Democratic challengers Colleen Deacon in 2016 and Dana Balter in 2018 and 2020, though the district

favored the Democratic candidates Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden in the past two presidential elections.

In the conversation, titled “Healing the House Divided,” Katko discussed topics such as bipartisanship in Congress, the Capitol riot on Jan. 6, 2021, economic development in central New York and the reasons he will not be seeking reelection in 2022.

Katko emphasized the significance of understanding different points of view and working with people across the aisle. He said he is proud to be an advocate for moderation in Congress, and he

was adamant about certain things when he was first elected to Congress in 2014.

“Number one is I was never going to introduce a bill without a Democratic original co-sponsor,” Katko said. “Number two is I was trying to look at the other side and understand that I’m not always right.”

The Lugar Center of Georgetown University ranked Katko the second-most bipartisan member of the House of Representatives in the 116th Congress. The Center for Effective Lawmaking, a collaboration between Vanderbilt University and the Univer-

sity of Virginia, ranked Katko as the third-most effective House Republican in 2021.

Throughout the conversation, Katko repeatedly highlighted the importance of voting according to one’s conscience instead of saving one’s job.

“Being a moderate means you have to understand one fundamental thing — if the left is pissed off at you and the right is pissed off at you, you are doing a good job,” Katko said. “Based on that, I’m doing a pretty damn good job.”

Kakto drew the importance of see

katko page 4

on campus

Meg Lowe reflects on time, progress at Syracuse

By Lilli Iannella staff writer

When Syracuse University’s campus bee hives were damaged by a car in July 2021, Lisa Olson-Gugerty was amazed by her colleague Meg Lowe’s determination to help move the hives to a secure location, despite the 90-degree heat and an injured wrist. “(Lowe) made sure everything was running smoothly for me when I could have done it myself.” said Olson-Gugerty, an associate teaching professor at SU’s Falk College of Sport and Human Dynamics. “Every step of the way, she has been there in supporting me beyond what anyone would expect a colleague at work to do.”

Lowe will be leaving her role as a sustainability coordinator at SU this Friday, which happens to be Earth Day. She will be joining

Montera Health, a health care company, as a graphic designer.

“I’m eally sad to go because I think I’ve poured a lot of myself into my work at the university, so it’s bittersweet,” Lowe said. “I’m ready for something different, and I’m ready to see what else the world has to offer, but at the same time, it’s kind of hard to go.”

Lowe has aimed to spread sustainability awareness and community engagement on campus, including making SU a Bee Campus USA affiliate and establishing Pete’s Giving Garden .

Those who have worked with Lowe at SU, including Olson-Gugerty, said they will miss her constant support, energy and character.

After earning a master’s in nutrition sciences at SU in 2018, Lowe applied her skills and passions to take on different sustainability projects across campus.

She was also the first summer student intern for SU’s sustainability management team in 2016. Following her internship, Lowe was hired as a sustainability coordinator in 2017, helping the university strive toward its climate action goals.

“I think we all recognize the current state of the world, and climate change, and that we all play a part in that too,” Lowe said. “(SU has) been here over 150 years. We should be here another 150 years, and so forth, so continuing our longevity and our influence on the community, helping our community, there’s no reason not to do it.”

Melissa Cadwell, SU’s other sustainability coordinator, said she interviewed Lowe for her intern position. She said the department’s internship program aims to figure out a project that each student is passionate about and will help them

reach their sustainability goals.

“I think if you’re going to nurture students the way that we do, you either have it or you don’t, and she’s one of the people who has that,” Cadwell said.

Cadwell said the department created a position to fit Lowe’s skills at the time, as Lowe came to the university not knowing exactly what she wanted to pursue.

Lowe has led the sustainability department’s social media, has illustrated graphics and spent the last year revamping the department’s website. She reduced the site’s page count from 144 to 23 to streamline the site’s information.

Lowe said she wanted to focus her work on social issues incorporated with environmental issues. She wanted to start a community garden to address food insecurity, and in 2019, she see

lowe page 4

Syracuse University students affirmed a referendum for the New York Public Interest Research Group with 71.76% of the vote as part of the Student Association’s election, Richard Kaufman IV, SA’s board of elections chair, wrote in a campus-wide email April 9.

The referendum approves the allocation of $3 from each student’s student activity fee to NYPIRG, which funds all of the operations of the SU and SUNY-ESF chapter, said Ethan Gormley, the project coordinator for the chapter.

NYPIRG is a nonpartisan and nonprofit organization primarily led by students that organizes students and advocates for causes across the state of New York, including voting rights, energy and the environment, government accountability, public health, consumer protection, higher education and mass transit.

“What our funding allows us to do is run a robust program here at Syracuse and ESF for our students, whether it’s interns, volunteers, or just student leaders,” Gormley said.

“And it allows a full-time project coordinator here every single day to work with those students, teach them through workshops and basics of grassroots organizing and to be an advocate and to really engage the campus and greater Syracuse community in meaningful ways to empower students.”

The $3 allocations from student activity fees are still beholden to the SA budgeting process — like all other registered student organizations — and are therefore not guaranteed by the vote, Gormley said. The vote, however, ensures that students routinely have a say in whether the organization receives the funding, he said.

“We’re really happy that we’re allowed to do this referendum at Syracuse (University and SUNYESF) because it’s an exciting thing that allows students to be really engaged and to show their support for this service,” Gormley said.

“That’s how we were founded in ‘73, is on this idea that students decide what they want, and this referendum holds us accountable and allows the student voice to be really strong in saying, ‘Look, we want to continue this or not.’”

Kaufman said in a message to The Daily Orange that the referendum has “never been denied.” Students may request a refund of their student activity fee allocation if they wish, SA President David Bruen said in a statement.

NYPIRG is a student-led organization that is able to localize issues that are decided by a statewide board of directors, Gormley said. Students in the see

nypirg page 4

4 april 18, 2022

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i-81

ensure those living in the East Adams neighborhood are not further displaced. The statement claimed that the presence of a more local street network in the community grid plan would neither affect the accessibility of local businesses in the area or displace residents.

According to the statement, 55,851 people live in the central study area — the land immediately adjacent to the viaduct — that the project would affect as of 2019.

Part of the statement was an analysis of the effect to the surrounding community that the construction of the community grid could bring.

According to the statement, the NYSDOT anticipates temporary increases in noise, emissions from construction equipment, traffic detours and changes in the visual appearance of the neighborhoods near construction zones. from page 3

katko dynamic leadership that can appeal to and work with the other side. He mentioned former presidents Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton as examples from both parties whom he said have managed to achieve that goal.

“We don’t have that anymore, and both sides are guilty of it,” Katko said. “The Democratic Party now is not what it was a few years ago, and the Republican Party now is not what it was a few years ago. I’ve often said I think the Republican Party has become more of a party of personality than principles. And we got to get back to the party of principles.”

As one of the 13 House Republicans who voted in favor of President Joe Biden’s $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill, Katko said during the conversation that pushing for the passage of the bill in a bipartisan manner is among the accomplishments of which he’s most proud.

“We got it done in a bipartisan manner.

That’s incredibly important going forward,” Katko said. “I’m very proud of that because I

The statement said the construction will be coordinated with Dr. King Elementary School, which lies adjacent to the viaduct.

The NYSDOT will conduct regular outdoor ambient air monitoring at the school to monitor construction emissions. While the statement said the department will implement “corrective measures” should emissions exceed projected levels around the school, it did not specify what those measures would be.

Any asbestos, lead-based paint or hazardous materials that are encountered during the project’s construction would be transported to licensed handling facilities, the statement reads.

While the NYSDOT will open detour routes for businesses that may have less accessibility because of construction, the department will not relocate those businesses except for properties that will be permanently acquired.

If a property is permanently acquired, the state will pay “fair market value” for

the property.

The statement anticipated four buildings, with 35 employees, would be displaced by the construction of the community grid.

In addition to the detours, the statement detailed local street improvements that would be implemented under the project, including the reconfiguration of travel lanes, addition of turn bays, installation of temporary signals and ramp modifications.

The statement also said that Van Buren Street would be permanently rehabilitated as a result of the project, and Crouse Avenue would be converted from one- to two-way traffic.

The department will also not relocate residents who live in or near construction areas, unless it permanently acquires those properties.

The department will close a 20-foot portion of Wilson Park, which is next to the viaduct, to provide a safety buffer between the

park and construction. The buffer would be in effect for less than a year of the community grid option, the statement said.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said on March 21 that the statement could mean breaking ground on the community grid project by the end of 2022. The NYSDOT’s website for the viaduct project sets out the schedule to break ground on the project in the fall of 2022.

Both the statement and the NYSDOT website list two other main proposals for the project — a “no build” option, which would maintain the highway in its current condition, and a “viaduct alternative” that calls for a complete reconstruction of the viaduct.

The release of the statement triggered a 30-day public review period, following which the state will issue a record of decision.

know going forward, what that’s going to do for the physical infrastructure of our country is (going to) be profound.”

He said, however, that the bill faced partisan pressure for reasons beyond him.

“When I cast that vote, many of my party tried to remove me as the head of the homeland security committee as punishment — for infrastructure. That’s bridges, water systems, things we are supposed to be doing,” Katko said. “That’s a fundamental job task of the government, and that’s an example of how bad it’s got.”

Katko was also the first House Republican who publicly supported the second impeachment of former President Donald Trump for inciting the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.

Reflecting on Jan. 6, 2021, when he witnessed the “deeply troubling” situation unfolding in front of him, Katko said it was the saddest day of his career in public service.

“I looked at the evidence, I looked at the charge and I voted accordingly. And I don’t regret it for a second,” Katko said. “It’s a very painful thing to do, a very sad thing to do and

something I wish I never had to do. But I did what I thought was right.”

“I’m a firm believer in the term limits.

And I said I’ll never go more than 12 years,” Katko said.

He also said that both he and his wife lost each of their two parents in the last four years, which gave him “some perspective” when it comes to life decisions.

“I’m 59 years old, and you say how many good years do I have left? And then I looked over at the far left in Congress … and I said, ‘Do I want to spend them with these guys?’ And I said ‘no,’” Katko said with a chuckle.

When asked about his message to his potential successors, Katko said he would be happy if what he’s done could set an example for his successors to follow in terms of “dealing with the other side.”

Looking at the future, Katko said while he hasn’t decided what he will be doing after Congress, he wants to stay in the public service and homeland security realms.

“Maybe I’ll guest lecture here once in a while,” Katko said.

Being a moderate means you have to understand one fundamental thing — if the left is pissed off at you and the right is pissed off at you, you are doing a good job Rep. John Katko r-camillus

The Republican congressman announced in January that he would not seek reelection this year. During the conversation, Katko explained the reasons behind the decision.

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helped establish Pete’s Giving Garden, which provides fresh produce within Hendricks Chapel Food Pantry.

“Making sure that our people are fed and taken care of is something that’s really important to me,” Lowe said. “Maybe it’s the hospitality aspect that I grew up with, but there are a lot of ways that you can take sustainability. You can go all corporate with it if you want, but I’m definitely not; I’m hippie by all means,” she said.

Growing up in Michigan and North Carolina, Lowe spent much of her time at her grandparents’ farm in Michigan, where her passion for sustainability developed. She watched her grandpa rotate his crops, limiting his use of pesticides, and helped her grandma grow vegetables out of her garden.

Inspired by Lowe’s work, Grace Cho, a student intern in the program, has been working on a garden guidebook for Pete’s Giving Garden to ensure proper sustainability management.

“I want to make some type of difference. I feel like Meg has been a good inspiration,” Cho said.

“She’s made a lot of good impacts that are going to be lasting here after she leaves the university, so that’s something I want to do too.”

Cho said she has noticed how Lowe reinforces inclusivity and accessibility within the interns’ projects, both when it comes to design and community engagement.

She mentioned the Three Sisters gardens, which brought traditional seeds used by the from page 3

nypirg Syracuse chapter have used the funding for advocacy and aid projects such as two food drives and workshops for student health care access and voting rights in addition to other student organizing campaigns, he said.

rcperrin@syr.edu @RichardPerrins2

btang05@syr.edu @francis_towne

Haudenosaunee Confederacy to the land that SU occupies, and the importance of bringing this recognition to campus.

Christopher Kalaw, another student intern in the department, wasn’t sure if his internship placement would be a good fit, but he now feels it is a perfect placement. He said he looks up to Lowe and her personality.

“She’s a model leader,” Kalaw said. “Not in-your-face, very knowledgeable, and shows you that this can still be a form of leadership and guidance.”

Lowe has collaborated with departments across campus, including the School of Design.

Seyeon Lee, an associate professor focusing on environmental and interior design, worked on projects with Lowe including one that utilized a Campus as a Laboratory Grant to reduce waste produced by the studios at the Nancy Cantor Warehouse. Lee described Lowe as proactive and said she strived for a better environment for everyone.

“She is definitely a go-getter,” Lee said. “She will try to make everybody succeed and if she says she is going to do it, we know for a fact she is going to do it.”

Lowe hopes the university continues to strengthen its sustainability goals.

“I think the university is at the cusp of something big with sustainability. What exactly that will look like we’re not sure yet, but we know that we have big carbon neutrality goals to accomplish,” Lowe said. “And I’m excited to stand back and see what they can do.” laiannel@syr.edu @LilliIannella

“That’s exactly why we keep the student voice front and center every single year that we advocate for at the statewide level,” he said. “And then locally by the Syracuse funding, that allows our chapter to continue and to work on these statewide issues and also bring it to (a) local level.” ddamron@syr.edu @dannyamron_

OPINION

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column

PAG E 5

april 18, 2022

column

Our reliance on phones is beneficial WhatsApp is more effective than GroupMe

By Shriya Anitha Vinod Menon columnist

W

We do use our phones too much, but it’s not all so bad. Technology and social media will allow further communications and strengthen the economy. wendy wang staff photographer

By Daniela Dorado columnist

A

s a fellow habitual phone user and a member of Generation Z, I know that we have an obsession with our phones. I know this generation would struggle to spend a month without social media and have never lived without the internet. That is the main reason why Gen Z and millenials are two different generations: Gen Z grew up with the internet; millennials adopted it into their daily lives.

I understand the hardships of the other generations and what has allowed us to get to the point we are now, but it’s time to acknowledge the reliance on phones and how this may not be so bad for what Gen Z may accomplish. We are still growing, and so much will change for us and what it means to be a part of this generation.

People often label us as impatient thanks to our dependence on things such as movie streaming, food delivery and services being fast and always ready for us, and we frequently communicate through our phones rather than interacting in person.

But our dependence on phones doesn’t mean that we aren’t as

News Editor Richard Perrins Editorial Editor Micaela Warren Culture Editor Nathan Fenningdorf Sports Editor Connor Smith Presentation Director Shannon Kirkpatrick Photo Editor Meghan Hendricks Video Editor Maya Pow Video Editor Maddy Kramer Podcast Editor Marnie Muñoz Illustration Editor Yiwei He Enterprise Editor Christopher Cicchiello Asst. News Editor Kyle Chouinard

social, responsible or emotionally strong. Many teens don’t share the idea that phone usage is negative. According to the Pew Research Center, 76% of teens questioned claim social media and technology does not have had a completely negative impact in their lives, with 31% claiming social media has been predominantly positive.

Every generation has contributed to major developments in technology and communication, including the advancement of computers, cellphones and social media. We have come a long way from the 1973 Motorola cellphone to today’s iPhones.

Phones actually help boost communication, education and labor as well as help people stay informed with world events and connect with faraway friends and family. Although many say that mobile phones are having a negative impact on our generation, people tend to focus on the negative impacts more than the positive ones. Now we are staying at home more, drinking less and being more responsible, therefore, we shouldn’t bear the brunt of criticism for being on our phones, something baby boomers, Gen X and millennials innovated.

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Francis Tang Danny Amron Rainu George Julia Kahen Dakota Chambers Siron Thomas Anish Vasudevan Alex Cirino Maya Goosmann Danny Kahn Morgan Sample Megan Thompson

Social media, which is often criticized as the root of most of the problems involving Gen Z, is not all bad. “Social media is a new forum that brings people to exchange ideas, connect with, relate to, and mobilize for a cause, seek advice, and offer guidance,” Jacob Amedie writes in the article “The Impact of Social Media on Society.”

Social media has aided entrepreneurships, the growth of small businesses, supported us through the pandemic and has kept us informed during Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Without social media, we would not know as much about what is going on in the rest of the world, and we would not be able to give as much aid as we are right now. It is a source of rapid communication and innovations that support us as a society.

We do use our phones too much, but it’s not all so bad. Technology and social media will allow further communications and strengthen the economy. We’ll just have to learn and make sure we aren’t taking it too far.

Daniela Dorado is a sophomore creative writing major. Her column appears bi-weekly, and she can be reached at ddorado@syr.edu.

hen I came to the U.S. in 2019, I quickly learned that here people prefer using SMS/text messages to chat.

Many Syracuse University students use iMessage to communicate because many are iPhone users, which leaves out students who prefer platforms such as WhatsApp and WeChat.

I noticed the conflict between messaging platforms when in my public communications class during group work. While trying to complete projects together not everybody had an iPhone, therefore we couldn’t use iMessage. This was my chance to step up and warm my friends up to the idea of using the lesser-known WhatsApp. But before I could do that, they introduced me to GroupMe, a supposedly ideal app for group conversations and inclusive of all mobile operating systems.

My journey to familiarizing myself with the app came crashing down when I traveled back home to India when COVID-19 hit the U.S. in March 2020. I switched from my American phone number to a local one, so I had to re-enter GroupMe with a different account. For me, even though I had the GroupMe app, the messages being sent on the app started appearing hours later as text messages on my phone. Any message I sent to the group would reach them hours later too, as though they were traveling through time zones to reach my friends in the U.S. Additionally, links and photographs wouldn’t load fast enough for me. The entire process was downright inconvenient.

I learned that it’s much more convenient to use WhatsApp when you are an international student. WhatsApp allows audio and video calls that can be made through mobile data or Wi-Fi, which are features that GroupMe does not have that make networking and connectivity so much easier. So as long as you have an internet connection, you can connect with anyone across the globe, making

it a lot less expensive than international mobile plans. I genuinely don’t know a single international student from India who does not use WhatsApp to connect with their family and friends back home.

When it comes to group chats, GroupMe can accommodate up to 5,000 members in a single group chat, while WhatsApp can accommodate 256 users in every group formed, but having more than 50 people in a group can get noisy and difficult to keep up with anyway. A limit of 256 members on WhatsApp seems ideal and efficient for students, family members or friends to connect from different parts of the world.

Additionally, WhatsApp is more inclusive of international numbers, as one can actively participate in a group chat with a non-local number without re-entering the group, which is a weak point for GroupMe. However, both apps are usable with all types of mobile operating systems.

GroupMe allows people to participate in groups even if they don’t have the app which allows people to reply to others, RSVP to events and participate in polls. However, the app comes with its disadvantages of being ineffective in getting the messages across instantly. I remember trying to respond to a group member before I downloaded the app — by the time I could reply to a question or suggestion, the conversation had already moved on.

All students should try using WhatsApp instead of GroupMe as it offers a range of features that makes it more efficient, accessible and technical. The availability of WhatsApp makes it most ideal for students with international numbers and varying mobile operating systems, hence improving communication for students to use for group projects, events and the workplace.

Shriya Anitha Vinod Menon is a junior television, radio and film major with a minor in psychology. Her column appears bi-weekly, and she can be reached at svmenon@syr.edu.

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culture

6 april 18, 2022

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from the stage

Vibrant vintage clothing

Poetry finalists explore identity

By Anthony Bailey asst. digital editor

The Pits Vintage mainly runs through the business’ Instagram account, but it also hosts occasional pop-up shops. courtesy of paul sausville

By Rachel Raposas asst. copy editor

P

issues around shopping at secondhand stores just to resell what you bought.

Of course, as the business was born from Sausville’s personal tastes and style, hunting for pieces often goes the same way, he said.

“When I’m shopping, I’m really shopping for myself,” Sausville said. “And then I found that a lot of people like the same things I like.”

For all his merchandise, Sausville implements a meticulous cleaning and upkeep process to make sure each item is shiny and new when he sells it. For cotton items, a simple toss in the washer and dryer will suffice, but less common fabrics — “there’s been days where I’m washing silk jackets in my kitchen sink” — require a bit more attention, he said.

While Sausville puts out bags and shoes every once in a while, at least for now, The Pits Vintage mainly focuses on clothing items. But clothes can be especially versatile, which is helpful for the varying tastes of his customer base.

“I can put an XL or 2XL sweater up, and some 6-foot5 guy with a 6-and-a-half-foot wingspan could buy it, or a 5-foot-2 girl could buy it who just wants the oversized look,” Sausville said. “But if I put a pair of size 12 shoes on, someone with size 12 feet has to buy it.”

SUNY-ESF sophomore Paul Sausville started The Pits Vintage in 2019 after deciding to sell some of his vintage pieces

aul Sausville’s room at home was completely full — a bulging closet, stacks of clothes in every corner, even boxes in the basement because his passion for vintage pieces couldn’t fit into just one room. When his parents begged him to downsize his overwhelming wardrobe, rather than just get rid of clothing, he decided to sell them — and thus The Pits Vintage was born.

“It’s funny, what’s old is new, and people love it,” Sausville said. “I love it.”

Sausville, a sophomore studying chemical engineering at SUNY-ESF, started The Pits Vintage in 2019, but the business really started to take off this past winter break. Run from an Instagram account, The Pits Vintage features a wide range of clothes, shoes and accessories, all with a classic vintage touch.

The Pits Vintage’s clothes come from all over — Sausville said he loves going to estate, garage, church and tag sales to find hidden gems. Many times, when consumers think of vintage clothes, thrift stores come to mind. But Sausville added that he tries not to rely on those for his merchandise, considering the ethical

see vintage page 7

Something that started off as a total hobby has turned into something that people care about. They’re into what I’m doing, and I think that’s awesome.

Paul Sausville the pits vintage founder

The Underground was filled with music and a chattering audience. DJ Jill, a student DJ who has played at events like Bandersnatch, stood to the side of an empty stage playing bass-booming songs, and the crowd shared hugs and conversation as they slowly filled in. The excitement was building, and the noise matched it.

On April 13, the Office of Multicultural Affairs hosted the Take the Mic Poetry Slam Finals, which has been hosted at Syracuse University since 2009. The finals featured six poets, each reciting two poems each for a panel of judges, who scored the poets on a scale of 1-10.

The host of the night, Rudy Francisco, walked onto the stage and kept the crowd lively with jokes and proper phrases like “Let’s go” and “Amen.” He introduced the five judges, including Jillian Hanesworth, Buffalo’s first ever poet laureate.

Francisco finished with a call and response from Verbal Blend.

“One mic,” Francisco said. “One voice,” the crowd responded.

Francisco ended his introduction by welcoming the first performer to the stage, and the room fell silent.

Grace Tu-Sekine, a sophomore at SU, walked up. She started stomping her feet and then recited a poem on beat.

Tu-Sekine was the sacrificial poet, the first poet to perform and not a participant in the actual competition. However, she did set the tone for the night, which was full of stories of pain and loss but also selfdiscovery and perseverance.

After Tu-Sekine’s poem was scored by the judges, Francisco introduced the first poet to compete, SU sophomore MJ. Her poem touched on themes of abuse and religion.

“It was in surviving that I forgot how to feel, I thought,” she said. “But no, it was in these rights: baptism, first communion, confirmation.”

Powerful statements like these were prevalent throughout the poetry slam, as the participants delved into narratives about racism, love, identity and acceptance. Snaps, claps and shouts encouraged the poets as they revealed intimate and personal information about themselves through poems.

Next to the stage was Tyler Gentry, a freshman at SU, who recited a poem called “I Listened to Too Much Rap Music and Now I Think I’m Gangster.” In his poem, Gentry worked through both positive and negative stereotypes of Black men.

Following Gentry was Arianna Wilson, who recited a poem titled “Black Girls Must Die Exhausted.”

Wilson spoke about the challenges and power of Black women in a poem that was exalted by both the audience and the judges, who awarded it with one 9.7 and three 10s. see poetry page 7

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pag e 7

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april 18, 2022

disability pride week 2022

SU to host events for inaugural Disability Pride Week

By Dakota Chambers and Nathan Fenningdorf the daily orange

This week, Syracuse University will present its inaugural Disability Pride Week, which will celebrate people embracing their full identities, including their disabilities, according to SU’s website. The campus community will have the opportunity to participate in a variety of in-person and virtual events to celebrate and learn from people with disabilities.

Disability Pride Week is coordinated by the Office of Di versity an d In clusion, Di sability Cultural Center, Center for Disability Resources and the Office of Interdisciplinary Programs and Outreach. SU students, staff and faculty members also participated in the development of the week. from page 6

vintage

Risa Fromowitz, a natural resources management sophomore at SUNY-ESF, said she really enjoys shopping with The Pits Vintage.

She picked up an oversized teal and yellow London Fog jacket, a pink crewneck with snowflakes and ice skating bears and a buttondown shirt with a leafy pattern on it, all of which she said she loves.

“Naturally, because I go to ESF, I love clothes with cool nature patterns on it,” Fromowitz said.

Although his business mainly functions through Instagram, Sausville has started doing pop-up shows, including one at the recent Bandersnatch concert at Goldstein Auditorium.

Sam Stehle, a friend of Sausville and a forest resources management sophomore at SUNY-ESF, is a frequent customer of The Pits Vintage. He said his favorite pieces he has bought from Sausville include a green, red and blue plaid crewneck and a navy and green colorblocked, floral collared shirt with a quarter button.

Stehle also helps run The Harrington with

In the Peter Graham Scholarly Common (Room 114) at Bird Library on Monday, Disability Pride Space will host a place of reflection and community for all visitors. Attendees will learn about the disability community, its culture and its history. The space will be open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

From 4:30-5:30 p.m. on Monday, a workshop called Neurodiversity Community at SU: Tips and Strategies for College Success will offer ways to support neurodivergent SU students. Dr. Scott Michael Robertson will discuss strategies for issues such as self-advocacy, engagement in college life and executive functioning and time management.

Taking place on Tuesday is The Ethics of Passing and Disability Disclosure in Higher Education, with Joseph A. Stramondo. This talk will delve into whether a person should

have to disclose their disability in a higher education setting. The event is virtual and will take place from 5-6:30 p.m.

Additionally, the Office of Diversity and Inclusion will host Game Night on JackBox on Tuesday. The online event will be held on Zoom from 7-9 p.m.

On Wednesday, there will be a virtual interactive session called Reasonable Accommodations for Qualified Employees with Disabilities. It will give faculty and staff an understanding of what is and is not a reasonable accommodation, why these accommodations are provided and how to acquire them. The event will be held from 1:30-2:30 p.m.

There will be a virtual conversation on Thursday with Haben Girma titled Disability, Diversity and the Law. Grima, a human rights lawyer advancing disability justice, will take

attendees through her life as a daughter of refugees, a Black disabled woman and Harvard University’s first deafblind graduate.

The Disability Resources Fair will take place on Friday from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the first floor atrium of the Schine Student Center.

Attendees can learn more about the many opportunities and resources offered to people with disabilities at SU. On Saturday, the Documentary Screening and Discussion: “Deej - Inclusion shouldn’t be a lottery” event will take place at 316 Waverly Avenue from 7-9 p.m. The film is about the life of Deej, a non-talking autistic man who was abandoned by his parents at birth. Following the screening, there will be a Q&A session hosted by Benjamin Jones and Alexis Wilner.

his five other roommates. The venue leans on Syracuse’s vibrant underground music scene but is always open to hosting pop-up shops and food vendors. Stehle offered to host The Pits Vintage at a recent show and said he was happy to see Sausville’s business flourishing.

“Every time I come by, Paul is just completely swamped with people crowding his stuff,” Stehle said. “From what I’ve seen so far, he’s done really well.”

Toward the beginning of The Pits Vintage, Sausville added his own personal touches — patches, embroidery, painting — to the pieces he resold. He even transformed a jean jacket by painting on crayons.

But because of the amount of time personalization takes, he hasn’t made as many of these pieces recently. Over the summer, however, Sausville said he hopes to invest in a silk screen so that he can get back to sprucing up his items with a little creativity.

His favorite item of clothing from his The Pits Vintage collection was a silk, quilted, floral puffer jacket. Sarah Skalski, a Syracuse University freshman majoring in illustration, bought the jacket and then later posted a

drawing of herself in the piece.

“I love puffer jackets,” Skalski said, “and this piece was so wild and unique. I was all for buying it.”

Sausville attributes his sense of fashion to his three older sisters, all whom he said had “phenomenal vintage style.” Sausville said that in high school, he disregarded gender norms around fashion and wore a few traditionally feminine pieces; he liked the look and decided that if anyone had a problem with this, it was their problem, not his. Right now, Sausville said he gravitates towards the workwear or American heritage look with pieces from Carhartt and L.L.Bean — “ESF brands,” he said.

Sausville also loves finding obscure vintage brands that went out of business, because the pieces are so original, he said. One of his favorite pieces is a pair of ‘80s jeans from a brand called NIXIT — they’re paneled and baggy and have tapered cuffs, zippers and a creative wash. But when he tried to search the brand online, other than one solitary sweater, he found no trace of NIXIT. Although most of his customers come

from SU and SUNY-ESF, every once in a while, someone across the country who is interested in his clothes contacts him.

He’s happy to ship — so those who won’t be in central New York for the summer can still shop with The Pits Vintage — which has allowed him to meet some fun people along the way.

“Not only am I selling to my friends and my peers around me, but there’s some lady in California, there’s some dude in Utah, there’s a guy in Oregon who’s wearing something that I found and they liked,” Sausville said.

Sausville’s vision for the future of The Pits Vintage is a bit unclear for now, he said, but he would love to expand, even if it’s just setting aside a room to shoot photos and store pieces.

For him, his business is an outlet outside from his STEM major as well as a great way to express his creativity.

“Something that started off as a total hobby has turned into something that people care about,” Sausville said. “They’re into what I’m doing, and I think that’s awesome.”

culture@dailyorange.com

rlraposa@syr.edu @rachel_raposas

from page 6

poetry Before each poet was announced, Francisco returned to the stage to do call and responses with the audience by asking them to repeat phrases like “Let’s Go!” after him.

Following Wilson, Francisco introduced Ameya Vinod Mahalaxmikar, a graduate student at SU. Mahalaxmikar was the winner of the Take the Mic Poetry Slam Preliminary round on March 9. He returned to the stage with a poem entitled “A Eulogy to my Lover’s Love,” which dealt with passion, sexuality and the acceptance that some love can only hurt.

Mahalaxmikar preceded Kayla Turner, a junior at SU, who began her poem by singing a song. Her poem then followed a hypothetical: “If God had decided she did not want this Earth anymore, would she drown it again?”

She explored her own self doubt and difficulties through this and ended with a powerful conclusion.

“I wish I could carry the weight of waterbattered bones under my young tongue. My eyes filled with remembering. It is heavy enough. It is heavy enough.”

Phoebe Sessler, a senior at SU, was the next to perform. Their poem was called “Hypnotize,” and it revealed her difficulties with dialysis and also seeing his brother deal with the challenges of the procedure.

To complete the final round, Toyin Oluyede, also a senior, came on stage and recited her poem “I’ve Died Three Times.” In her poem, Oluyede went through three significant moments in her life where she came close to dying and how each changed her perspective on herself. She spoke about difficulties with self-love and acceptance and how certain moments in a person’s life can affect this.

After the first round, Francisco returned to the stage to let the audience know what

Rudy Francisco, a professional poet from San Diego with four published books, hosted the competition. He also recited some of his own poetry during the event. anthony bailey asst. digital editor

they were in for next — the second round was a “lightning round” in which each contestant was told to write a one-minute poem about a selected prompt, which was the environment.

The contestants performed in the same order as the first round and touched on topics like pollution, racism and hope.

Following the lightning round, Hanesworth came to the stage and recited a poem entitled “Little Black Boy.” This poem detailed the difficulties young Black men face growing up in a country that frequently stereotypes them as unruly and dangerous.

“In case y’all hadn’t noticed, we’re still singing that same song,” Hanesworth said. “See, we’ve

always been chosen when it was time for the killing, the way you choose a tomato that’s ripe for the picking. I thought targets were red, when did they become Black? I thought the abuse of power was dead, when did it come back?”

Thunderous applause sounded out for Hanesworth, and then Francisco recited some of his own poetry. His poetry spoke about his experience with depression and connecting with his father, as well as his love and worries about his daughter.

The winners were announced after Francisco finished and brought Cedric Bolton, the organizer of the event and coordinator of student engagement at the Office of Multicultural Affairs, onto

the stage. Turner won third place, Mahalaxmikar won second and Wilson won first.

After the slam, Bolton spoke about the importance of students being open with themselves and being vulnerable.

“When students get the chance to express themselves and show their talent, it’s important. They’re talking about their truths, they’re talking about things they experience,” Bolton said. “So when you have students that have not had the opportunity to showcase themselves, something changes in their spirit.

They have a certain kind of glow.” anthonybailey@dailyorange.com @anthony77654539

8 april 18 , 2022

dailyorange.com

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PAG E 9

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from page 12

limam grew up,” Boustani said. “His father worked for the same company as my father. … I knew Younes pretty well.”

After arriving at Drury in 2000, Limam played a major role in transforming the Panthers’ program into a Division II powerhouse. Limam played at Drury for four years and produced an impressive 87-17 singles record. Boustani said he was astounded by Limam’s ability to easily finish his matches.

“We called him ‘Flipper,’” Boustani joked. “He always did such a good job to win his matches quickly, so when he switched sides after winning a game, he’d take care of business by flipping the scorecards all the time.”

“Flipper” ended his playing career from page 12

swider Now, Swider is preparing for the NBA draft, which will be held on June 23. His preparation includes playing in the Portsmouth Invitational Tournament — an annual, four-day tournament for 64 of the top college seniors in front of NBA and overseas scouts. Swider’s shooting coach Tim Glover said that Swider’s invitation was “confirmation” of his decision to declare for the draft.

“It’s kind of a stepping stone and a thing for him to kind of see where he is compared to these other guys,” Glover said. “It’s a chance for scouts to get to see him play more and do some things that he’s capable of doing and some things that he’s been working on.”

The PIT featured plenty of familiar faces from the ACC, including Miami’s Charlie Moore, Virginia Tech’s Keve Aluma and Swider’s Syracuse teammate Jimmy Boeheim. In his first game at the PIT, Swid-

april 18, 2022

notching the second-most victories in Drury history, but Boustani said that he’s always been impressed by the way that Limam carried himself.

After his time at Drury, Limam began coaching two seasons as a graduate assistant at the University of Central Oklahoma followed by a couple more as an assistant coach at the University of Texas at Arlington. His work for both programs impressed Rice head coach Elizabeth Schmidt, who hired him in 2009 to be an assistant coach.

While Limam was in Houston, Schmidt said his positivity and his tireless work ethic played a huge part in the Owls’ success from 2010-14.

“The college season has so many ups and downs but he was always able to put a positive spin on things during a practice or a gameday,” Schmidt said.

In 2012, after winning the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Assistant Coach of the Year in the Texas Region a year earlier, Limam was an integral part of a Rice squad that made a surprise run to the Sweet 16 in the NCAA Tournament. After losing the conference finals at home, the Owls received an at-large bid and traveled to the University of Mississippi for their first tournament game. At Ole Miss, they upset the University of Illinois in the first round before beating the hosts.

This year, Syracuse’s squad consists only of international students and features players from five different countries. Kimoto, one of two Japanese players who Limam most recently recruited, said that he took the time to come halfway across the world to her small town, Oita, to offer her a place on the roster.

“He’s always very kind and very energetic,” Kimoto said. “He’s why I chose Syracuse.”

During his tenure at Syracuse, Limam has earned four NCAA Tournament berths with the Orange and was named the ITA Northeast Region Coach of the Year in 2019. He helped Syracuse earn its first-ever NCAA Tournament win in 2016 and has developed six All-ACC team members.

“He hasn’t built a one-year wonder.

He’s built a tennis powerhouse in a tough conference with a team that, when he took over, was at the bottom of the conference,” Schmidt said.

Syracuse’s last regular-season match was on Sunday, and it secured a big win over No. 35 Florida State. Limam and the Orange will now prepare for a trip to Rome, Georgia, for the ACC Tournament, hoping to add even more success to the program.

“I know him. He’s not done,” Boustani said. “Eventually, he’s going to fi nd a way to get to the top.”

er was named Player of the Game after scoring 18 points and grabbing nine rebounds.

One thing that Swider has been working on is being more aggressive offensively and finding spots where teammates can set him up, Glover said.

Glover noted that stylistically, at both Villanova and Syracuse, Swider played with point guards who were ball-dominant and liked to score themselves rather than being pass-fi rst. Swider’s experience at SU helped him identify some weaknesses, like getting to spots off the dribble and making midrange shots, Glover said.

“Once he got to a spot, he could just rise up over people and shoot it,” Glover said about Swider’s Syracuse play. “That’s just going to get more and more available as he gets older and bigger and stronger and gets to that next step of playing against professionals.”

For Swider, a part of getting bigger and stronger is on the other side of the ball, too. But in preparation for the NBA draft, Swider has reduced his offseason workload compared to

during the season, according to his strength coach Anthony Tingley. After the taxing college basketball season, Swider is using this time to rest before presumably playing another long basketball season, likely beginning with the NBA Summer League.

A lighter workload features more shooting rather than attacking the rim, Tingley said. It also focuses on managing minor aches and pains, especially in the ankle area after Swider rolled it early in the season. But the strength will also impact Swider’s defensive game, which is an area Tingley said they both know must improve.

“We know that his defense is where he needs to improve, so just his first step, lateral quickness and reaction time,” Tingley said. “Now it’s just a matter of fine-tuning everything. Everything at the NBA level gets so specialized that you need to be really good at what it is that you’re bringing to the table.”

Tingley said that Swider’s time at SU helped him become better prepared to make the jump from Division I to the professional level,

whether it’s in the NBA or elsewhere. At Villanova, Swider saw spare minutes, but at SU he was a regular part of its starting five, averaging around 35 minutes per game.

Even after the season, Swider still aims to have two or three workouts per day, whether it’s shooting or doing quick workouts in the gym, Tingley said. If Swider was allowed to, he’d be in the gym “nonstop,” he said. But at this point, the key is to manage the intensity of his workouts to avoid any injuries and allow his body to rest.

In the weeks leading up to the NBA draft, Swider has a chance to showcase his NBA potential to scouts. As Syracuse’s leading 3-point shooter this season, Swider brings a combination of size and accurate shooting that could translate well to the professional level.

“The way he finished off the year shooting the ball, I think it kind of opened up a lot of scouts’ and NBA people’s eyes that ‘Hey, this kid can put the ball in the basket when given the opportunity,’” Glover said.

trschiff @syr.edu

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10 april 18 , 2022

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softball

Syracuse falls to Louisville 3-2 to complete series sweep

By Matthew Hassan staff writer

Kaia Oliver put out the first seven batters she faced in the relief position for the Orange. But Louisville got in a groove in the fourth inning, landing runners on the corners and two outs in a tie game.

Oliver had two strikes on Louisville’s Jenna Servi when she lost control of a fastball that sailed over catcher Laila Alves’ glove.

This let Cardinal freshman Dylann Cravens run home and break the tie, which ended up being the winning score.

Syracuse (20-18, 3-13 Atlantic Coast) fell to Louisville (24-17, 8-7 Atlantic Coast) for the third time this weekend. The Orange have now been swept in four of their last five ACC series.

But Sunday’s game was the closest they’ve gotten to knocking off Louisville, as they had a chance down one run in the seventh inning.

Louisville’s Taylor Roby got the start

for the Cardinals for the second time this weekend. She had a rocky start as Syracuse’s first two batters got on base with a walk and a Cravens fielding error at second base. The Orange weren’t able to capitalize, though, as they scored no runs and left two runners on base.

Like Friday, Louisville got going early with two runs in the opening inning. Ariana Adams was able to quickly put out two batters, but Carmyn Greenwood ended up on second after a walk and a fielder’s choice.

Then, Cardinals catcher Kendall Smith launched a ball to deep left field past Olivia Pess, and Greenwood ran home.

Adams pelted Hannah File with a pitch and threw another past the catcher on the next at bat. This put File and Smith in scoring position when Cravens made her way to the batter’s box. Cravens found a hole in shallow right field, and Smith scored to put the Cardinals up 2-0. Adams caught Vanessa Miller swinging

on a 1-2 pitch to retire the side.

Syracuse fired back immediately as Geana Torres dropped a ball in front of Miller in right field for a single. Then, Ally Alexander fumbled a choppy Pess grounder, and runners were safe at first and second.

Rebecca Clyde laid down a sacrifice bunt and was thrown out at first, but Pess and Torres were now both in scoring position.

After a shaky first inning, head coach Shannon Doepking put in Oliver for Adams to start the second. She put away seven batters in a row, but Cravens broke that streak in the fourth inning on a perfectly placed bunt that Oliver couldn’t reach in time to throw her out at first. Miller followed that up by dropping a single in front of Pess in left field.

The Cardinals got runners on the corners after a fielder’s choice on an Alexander ground ball to second base. That’s when Oliver threw a pitch over Alves’ head

and Cravens sprinted home to give the Cardinals a 3-2 lead.

Both offenses cooled down after that play as there was only one hit the rest of the game. Oliver bounced back and put out seven of the next eight Louisville batters.

Syracuse had a chance to even the game in the top of the seventh.

Although Roby got the first two Orange batters out, she walked Tessa Galipeau and the tying run was on first. Doepking put in Angie Ramos to pinch run for her, but Neli Casares-Maher hit a routine grounder to third base to end the game.

Angel Jasso recorded the only RBI of the contest for Syracuse on that liner to left field, but neither of those two runs were earned.

Aside from the wild pitch that led to the winning run, Oliver filled in well for Adams after she struggled in the first. She only allowed three hits on 18 batters. mahassan@syr.edu

tennis

Syracuse finishes regular season with 4-3 win over FSU

By Tyler Schiff staff writer

Syracuse closed out the regular season Sunday with a 4-3 win over Florida State on the road. The Orange finished the season with an even 10-10 record, and the conference tournament begins later this week.

Despite being Syracuse’s most impressive single season player throughout this season, Polina Kozyreva starred in the doubles competition on Sunday, working with Miyuka Kimoto to take down Florida State pair Petra Hule and Anna Arkadianou 6-4, securing the doubles point for the Orange.

Syracuse’s doubles play had started from page 12

olexo think Saam’s afraid of anything.” Olexo’s also used that same mindset on offense, notching four goals, the most scored by a non-offensive player this season.

Bijan said he and Kian gave their younger brother “a little push in the right direction” in terms of building Olexo into the tough player he is for Syracuse. But the rest is a result of Olexo’s personality and work ethic, his brothers and parents said.

“Maybe it’s survival of the fittest, because he always used to get picked on,” Moghadam said. ”He always had to stand up for himself.”

Around the same time as the slide incident, the three brothers and their dad dug a pond in their yard. Kian said they liked watching “The Three Stooges” at the time, so they replicated one of those pranks on their youngest brother.

They stepped on the spade-end of a shovel and the handle flew up and hit Olexo in the face, giving him a “huge black eye,” Kian said.

The family used a photo of a black-eyed Olexo, with stitches on his forehead, as a joke when he graduated high school, Moghadam said.

“He was perfectly fine afterwards,” Moghadam said of the two incidents. “He’s always been tough.”

That toughness has shown through Olexo’s first two years at Syracuse when he shifted to short-stick defensive midfielder in 2021. Then-defensive coordinator Lelan Rogers needed a short-stick due to injuries, and though Olexo hadn’t played the position competitively, he knew the shift was feasible. He’s owned a short stick all his life, though he played close defense at Archbishop Spalding (Maryland) High School. It just required covering an extra yard in each direction because he didn’t have his long pole.

with a loss, though, as sophomore duo Viktoriya Kanapatskaya and Ines Fonte fell to FSU’s Olympe Lancelot and Lesedi Jacobs 6-1.

Senior Sofya Treshcheva and freshman Shiori Ito won their No. 2 doubles matchup against Victoria Allen and Kianah Motosono with relative ease. A 6-2 victory put the pair back in the win column after a disappointing 6-0 loss to Miami’s Daevenia Achong and Eden Richardson just two days ago.

After clinching the doubles point, Syracuse carried its hot start into the singles competition as Kimoto continued her dominance in the No. 2 singles matchup.

The Japanese native downed Allen 6-2, 6-1

to obtain her 21st win of the season and her 10th win in the top two singles positions.

Ito then recorded a win in straight sets 6-3, 6-1 over Motosono. Ito’s win allowed her to join Kimoto and Kozyreva as the only three players on the team to have at least 20 wins this season.

FSU roared back from a 3-0 deficit in the next three singles matches, though.

Kozyreva was unable to reach her 22nd win of the season, losing to Jacobs 7-5, 6-4.

Zeynep Erman was the next Syracuse player to drop a potential point in the singles competition as she won the opening set against Arkadianou before losing the last two 6-2, 6-3.

Kanapatskaya finished her match simi-

larly, winning the first set but losing the final two against Hule, the seventh-ranked singles player in the country. The loss left the overall dual score at three points apiece for the Orange and the Seminoles.

The matchup ended up falling on the shoulders of the No. 6 singles matchup between Fonte and FSU’s Lancelot. Fonte ended up winning the first and the third sets in thrilling tiebreaker fashion to help propel Syracuse to the win.

Splitting their third conference road trip of the season with one win and one loss, SU now returns home before heading to Rome, Georgia, for the ACC Tournament, which starts on Wednesday.

“He has the versatility to go short, long, whatever it might be because of his athleticism, his stamina and his mental toughness of ‘I don’t care what’s happening.

You’re not going to beat me,’” said Brian Phipps, Olexo’s high school coach. “He could tape his hands together and he’d still fight you to the end.”

Now, Olexo is using his experience from playing close defense in high school and short-stick last year. Combining those experiences is perfect for a long-stick midfielder, Olexo said. He’s more confident, more focused and more aggressive on the field this season, his family said.

“He leans into the attacker, so he starts the aggression rather than the offense starting it on him, which allows him more control,” Kian said.

Part of that aggressiveness also manifests offensively when Olexo pushes SU in transition, said Evan Hockel, Olexo’s junior varsity coach at Spalding. Olexo’s highlight-reel goal against Cornell — where he yard-saled the faceoff specialist from behind, sprinted the length of the field, caught a pass and scored with his non-dominant right hand — epitomized his abilities “to a T,” Phipps said.

It was a play Olexo couldn’t make five years ago, Kian said. Shooting with a long pole takes practice because it’s difficult to aim precisely, requires perfect timing on the shot release and needs to account for the weight of the 6-foot pole, his family and high school coaches said.

At Spalding, Hockel had the players do a “fun, competitive” drill at the start of practices where he rolled out a ground ball and whichever unit collected it was on offense.

That meant Olexo, a defender, scored countless times. At Syracuse, he’s been practicing on goalie Bobby Gavin too.

Growing up, that toughness started when

Olexo lost wrestling matches against Bijan and Kian, who are four and two years older, respectively. Their parents would break up the altercations, but even though Olexo was much smaller than his older siblings, he always got up after he was knocked down, Bijan said.

“There’s not a single argument or day in my life that he’s backed down from anything,” Kian said.

Olexo and both his brothers also played ice hockey, and Olexo loved the physicality of the sport, Steve said. Coaches told him to “make (opponents) think twice about coming in your direction towards the goal,” and Olexo did just that, Moghadam said.

A hockey stick is the same length as a lacrosse long pole, Olexo said, so the skills translated well between both sports. Hockey taught him to use his body to shield the puck, which helped him scoop up ground balls as a wing on faceoffs.

Olexo’s development also continued when he didn’t make the varsity lacrosse team during his sophomore season at Spalding. He was good enough, said Hockel, but the varsity team had a lot of experienced defenders, Phipps said.

Instead, he led the JV team to its first-ever championship, Hockel said. The team only lost one regular season game in 2017-18 to its rival, St. Mary’s High School. But during a rematch in the playoff semifinals, Olexo’s physicality in the first quarter set the tone. He threw a “phenomenal” back-check and yard-saled one of their best players, Hockel said.

“You knew it was going to be a long day for that kid,” Hockel said. The bench got riled up by the play, and St. Mary’s scored just three goals in the loss. That summer after his sophomore JV season, Olexo was recruited by Rogers to play at SU. For multiple summers before college, Olexo, Bijan and a few friends paved roads for

American Paving Fabrics Inc. In the summer heat, they laid down tar-and-chip roads or mastic ones. A typical day started at sunrise and lasted until sundown, Bijan said.

Mastic was more labor intensive because it involved carrying pails of “hot, black putty” and pouring it into cracks on the highway. They’d walk around 10 miles while carrying the buckets of hot sludge, Bijan said. The job also included shoveling and carrying stones. You’d be sore the next day, Bijan said, but Olexo still managed to work out at home in addition to paving, Moghadam added.

“I remember him saying one time that he likes it because he’s getting paid to work out,” Kian said.

This past offseason, Olexo didn’t do any paving though. Instead, he was re-adjusting to his long pole at the park near the family’s house. Olexo was always in-season during high school because of football, ice hockey and lacrosse, so he’s learned to take advantage of full offseasons in college.

“I knew what I had to do,” Olexo said. “And it paid off.”

Olexo was tough almost 20 years ago when Bijan pushed his younger brother down the jungle gym slide, and he still is. Bijan laughs periodically as he recalls the story, adding that he was in big trouble with his parents after the incident.

The re-telling gets foggier regarding why Olexo hit his head in the first place though. Kian says Bijan convinced Olexo to let him push him down. Their father says Olexo was taking too long to go down the slide, so Bijan just pushed him. And when asked why he did it, Bijan says he doesn’t really remember.

“We were so young,” he said. “Just brotherly love, I guess.”

trschiff@syr.edu

rferna04@syr.edu @roshan_f16

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april 18, 2022 11

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Sports

dailyorange.com sports@dailyorange.com

pag e 12

april 18, 2022

‘Always been tough’ Saam Olexo is the youngest sibling in his family and has developed into a tough, physical lacrosse player

saam olexo, a long-stick midfielder, has scored four goals this season for the Orange, which is the most of any nonoffensive player on the team.

courtesy of larry french su athletics

By Roshan Fernandez senior staff writer

B

lood gushed from a gash on Saam Olexo’s forehead, but the almost 3 year old wasn’t crying. His oldest brother, Bijan Olexo, pushed him down a twirly, old slide while they were at their cousins’ house for a birthday party and Olexo hit his head on a pipe at the bottom.

His dad, Steve Olexo, said he could see his skull through the wound. A plastic surgeon later sutured 10-15 internal stitches and 17 external ones, said Faranak Moghadam, Olexo’s mother. But lying on the

Maybe it’s survival of the fittest, because he always used to get picked on. He always had to stand up for himself.

Faranak Moghadam olexo’s mother

ground, while his parents were panicked and worried, Olexo was calm, his middle brother, Kian Olexo said.

Only when his dad said they’d have to go to the emergency room did Olexo start to cry — not from pain, but because he didn’t want to leave without having a slice of cake.

“He didn’t care about the stitches, he just wanted the cake,” Steve said. “I’m like ‘Jeez, this kid’s tough.’”

Olexo’s play as the Orange’s leading long-stick midfielder has been defined by aggressive on-field defending. Head coach Gary Gait said with a laugh that “I don’t see olexo page 10

tennis

men’s basketball

Younes Limam’s road to Syracuse How Swider is preparing for NBA draft

By Tyler Schiff staff writer

Head coach Younes Limam stood with his hands behind his back as freshman Miyuka Kimoto dropped her first set to Louisville’s Rhea Verma 6-2 in the No. 2 singles matchup on April 1.

As Kimoto walked dejectedly toward the bench, Limam put his hand on her shoulder and gave her some words of encouragement. His look was stern, but his tone was soft. Limam continued to stand stoically as Kimoto opened the second set with a thundering shot toward her opponent’s right-hand side.

Kimoto won the second set in a close contest, and in the third

and final set, she went up big early, eventually securing the win. Throughout Kimoto’s comeback, Limam stayed by her side, occasionally turning his head to check on his other players. Whenever he noticed Kimoto tilt her head down or show the slightest bit of frustration, Limam was quick to support her, motivating Kimoto to play at the level she was capable of.

“She handled it like a champ,” he said.

The ending of this year’s regular season marks Limam’s eighth season at Syracuse. After his playing career at Drury University, he bounced around for a few years before securing an assistant coach-

ing job at Rice University in 2009.

Following a number of successful seasons in Houston, including a surprise NCAA Sweet 16 Tournament run, Limam has found his home with the Orange.

Limam’s relationship with tennis started in his hometown, Mohammedia, Morocco, where he was a promising junior tennis player on the Moroccan national team. In his late teens, Limam was approached by then-Drury University head coach and fellow Moroccan Amine Boustani. Limam was one of the first Moroccans he recruited because of their proximity, Boustani said.

“He lived about three or four hundred yards from my house where I see limam page 9

By Gaurav Shetty staff writer

After only one season with Syracuse, Cole Swider decided to forgo his final season of NCAA eligibility and declare for the NBA draft.

Swider finished the season second on the Orange with 13.9 points per game and first with 6.8 rebounds per game.

“It was a 50-50 decision, but after the season, I got some really good information from the NBA guys … it made it hard to turn down that option,” Swider told Cuse Sports Talk. “Coach

Boeheim relayed that message to me of, ‘If you’re going to go make some money playing basketball, coming back would only be for what you want to accomplish in college, it wouldn’t be for your professional (career).’”

Swider’s best games came near the end of the 2021-22 season, which included a careerhigh 36 points from seven 3-pointers against North Carolina. He followed that up with 28 points against Florida State and 15 against Duke in the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament.

see swider page 9