THE Volume 91, Issue 7
Q
UADRANGLE A Student Publication of Manhattan College Since 1924
March 3, 2015
New Assistant Director of Student Activities Is Hired Daniel Ynfante Assistant Editor
Michael Steele has been hired as the new assistant director of student activities, taking over the position that Gabrielle Occhiogrosso left behind in November 2014. A three-month hiring process that John Bennett, director of student activities, said garnered hundreds of applicants, culminated with the decision to hire Steele, formerly the director of campus life and operations at Lehman College. Steele, as are many people who begin new jobs, is full of excitement for his newest endeavor. “It’s a good challenge,” Steele said. “Coming from an urban school background from Lehman College and coming here is a different environment. So it’s a good challenge. I like that. I just look forward to working with the students and seeing what they’re all about.” Steele comes to Manhattan College with prior experience in working with students and helping with organizing events and budgeting. A graduate of the College of Mount Saint Vincent, Steele also took a class one semester at Manhattan College and knows the surrounding area well. His familiarity with the job was what made him stand out among the other applicants according to Bennett. It is something Bennett said he hopes Steele can use to pick up right where Occhiogrosso left off. “Not to skip a beat,” Bennett said about his expectations for Steele. “In terms of what would be ideal for us is that the students don’t notice any difference and that’s a seamless transition.” “It reminds me of the NBA. When you notice a referee, they’re not doing their job. When the game is over and you didn’t notice the referee, that means they did their job,” he said. “So a seamless transition to that effect.” The desire to employ someone who could step right in without much introduction was the main reason why Bennett decided to hire Steele. When Occhiogrosso stepped down in November, Bennett was left with the tough task of finding a replacement with just two months left in the fall semester. But Bennett and the rest of the student
www.mcquad.org
Free Game Room Opens in Kelly Commons Kieran Rock & Kelly Burns Editors
activities staff decided it was best to wait until the start of the spring semester to introduce a new assistant director. In an email to The Quadrangle in February, Bennett explained the reasoning behind his decision. “Our first concern and priority was the current student body,” Bennett wrote in an email. “I felt us reading resumes [and] interviewing people….could wait until winter break. We had to put the students first and if that meant working more hours, then so be it, but the office comes second after the students.” Therefore, Steele was interviewed in December—albeit in an unconventional way through Skype—and then visited the campus in January. He began on Feb. 23, so he has only been in office for a little more than a week. But with what he has seen so far, Steele thinks he made the right decision in coming to Manhattan. “It’s been good, a lot of information,”
Daniel Ynfante/The Quadrangle Steele said. “Of course, with a new job you just have to get used to the inner workings of the office because even if it’s the same field, each school might have their own system on how to do things. But it’s been great so far.” Bennett set out to hire a qualified replacement who could make Occhiogrosso’s departure less apparent. He landed his target in “The Man of Steel,” as Michael Sullivan, director of campus life and operations at Lehman College, said Steele was referred to at Lehman. “I think [Manhattan College] can expect excellence,” Sullivan said. “He’s very involved… He’s very wellliked by the students,” Sullivan said. “I would say loved by the students because of his genuine, good, sheer, deep commitment to I think higher education, and availability. He’s just an easy guy to get to know and very effective as an administrator.”
Months after its opening, the Kelly Commons has become an important fixture in campus life. Now, the building has a brand new addition--a free game room-that promises to draw more in more traffic from students. Situated on the first floor of the commons is the new game room. Inside, students can play two “Fast and Furious” racing car games, a Big Buck Hunter shooting game and the classic arcade staple, Pac Man. All games are completely free. The room also houses a jukebox stocked with current Top 100 CDs, including the latest albums from Taylor Swift and Beyonce, to name a few. The jukebox is also free for students to use. “Everything is free. Do not put a quarter in the machine,” John Bennett, director of student activities said. Bennett pointed out that the games are made for arcades and come with coin slots, but they are programmed for students to use free of charge. “For years it has been part of the architectural plans and something that was discussed,” he said. “We were hoping that it would be open when the commons was opened.” The game room opening was delayed because games were still being delivered and workers on the Kelly Commons were still utilizing the room. “For the first few months the architects and the contractors were working out of the game room. Ordering the games was a process too,” Bennett said. The addition of the game room was, as Bennett said, part of the overall architectural plan for the college. Its placement in the new building came with the planning phase of the Kelly Commons project, according to Andrew Ryan, vice president for facilities. “There were a number of student functions that were selected during the programing phase to be moved into the build-
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From Silence to Conversation: The LGBT Community on Campus Jonathan Reyes Editor
It’s 2015, and there are still people who have a problem with homosexuality. Those who have already come out of the closet as LGBT often advocate for high-school and college students struggling with their identities. They know from experience how difficult it can be when it feels as if there is no safe place to go or people to confide in. “It’s an identity,” Rebecca Kern, Ph.D. and Manhattan College associate professor of communications, said. “To me it’s an identity as much as race, ethnicity, class, gender, all of these things that are part of
people’s identities, and it needs to be discussed. I want to try to break any myths people have and to also make people not feel uncomfortable and to try to make them understand that they can ask questions, to know that asking questions is okay.” “Not only in just my everyday life, I’m not this overly political person about it at school because I don’t necessarily think that’s the way it needs to be,” she said. “It’s just for me, just like with everybody else, you have a partner, a spouse or whatever. It’s part of who I am.” Kern was married to and divorced from a man before she finally decided to be herself at 27 years old. She is now 42 years old. She reminisced about her time in high
school when she didn’t date. It was a different time than today, when society’s feelings toward homosexuality were more hostile. Besides all that, thinking back she laughed and wondered what took her so long to come out. Fast-forward to today, and she is married to her wife. She cautioned though that it didn’t go so well at first but that it got better with time. “It’s easier to come out now, but not always because we still are dealing with family issues, religion issues, there’s still cultural issues that definitely play a role,” Kern said. “It does take time and things have changed, but I don’t think it has changed for everybody equally. It’s still complicated and scary.”
“If you’re gay and you don’t fit into those neat little boxes, which then people get very confused about,” she added. “And that is kind of part of the problem. It’s getting better,” she said. “Younger generations don’t see it quite as boxed in that way. Older generations were brought up with very specific sets of beliefs and they’re trying to see beyond that. They’re learning otherwise and all they can do is you can constantly keep proving them wrong.” Kern is a professor at a Lasallian Catholic college that heavily advertises itself in those two distinct but intertwined areas of
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The
Opinions & editorials
Quadrangle www.mcquad.org
Letter to
The Editor
Vol. 91 Issue 7 March 3, 2015
Sean Sonnemann Editor-in-Chief Michelle DePinho Managing Editor/News Editor Anthony Capote Asst. News Editor Kieran Rock Managing Editor/Features Editor Ally Hutzler Asst. Features Editor Lauren Carr Arts & Entertainment Editor Lindsey Burns Asst. Arts & Entertainment Editor Jonathan Reyes Sports Editor Jaclyn Marr Asst. Sports Editor Daniel Ynfante Asst. Sports Editor Sean McIntyre Social Media Editor Victoria Hernández Kristie Killen Asst. Social Media Editors Kevin Fuhrmann Photography Editor Christian Roodal Asst. Photography Editor Kelly Burns Luke Hartman Natalie Heinitz Production Editors
March 3, 2015
Dear Seniors, Can you believe there’s less than one hundred days left before we graduate? Pretty soon we’ll be celebrating our last event formerly known as Springfest, eat our last Tom Kelly, and have our last night at River City. Take a second and think about all of the friendships you’ve made and how far you’ve come since you started at Manhattan. Even though you’ll be getting your diploma in May, and you’ll likely be leaving the Bronx behind, you’ll be a Jasper for life. Right now, you have the opportunity to leave behind a legacy for future Jaspers to follow with a small donation towards the Senior Class Gift. We are happy to announce that this year’s gift is NOT a bench. Because the Class of 2015 is so unique, we thought it was only appropriate to have a gift that is as exceptional as we are. This year’s Senior Class Gift will go toward the Barrytown Stained Glass Window project in the Chapel. For those of you not familiar with the project, there will be a series of stained glass windows being installed in the Chapel that will depict the life of Saint John Baptist de La Salle. Since every Jasper starts and finishes their four years in the Chapel, every student will witness the legacy we have left. We will be the first and only class to have the opportunity to leave our mark in this way on the Chapel. If you weren’t jumping out of your seats yet...just wait. If you donate $20.15 (get it?), you will receive admission to the first ever 50 Days Party. This event is happening on Saturday, March 28th. At the party, there will be a DJ, specialty desserts (from a real bakery), a Senior Class toast, giveaways, and a ton of free raffles throughout the night. 50 DAYS PARTY RAFFLE PRIZES INCLUDE: 2 VIP Jimmy Fallon tickets, a Senior Week package, an iPad Air, a one-year Zipcar membership, and many, many more!! Please donate today! You must donate $20.15 ASAP for admission to the 50 Days Party and the chance to win amazing prizes! Any size donation will still make a big impact so leave your legacy today! Check out the link below where you can pay with a debit or credit card (your parents can even pay for you!). www.manhattan.edu/seniorclassgift Happy Last Semester! Senior Class Gift Committee
Daniel Molina Distribution Manager Tom Callahan Faculty Adviser A tradition since 1924, The Quadrangle is a news organization run by the students of Manhattan College. We strive to cover news around campus and the greater community, publishing weekly in print and daily online. Our goal is always accuracy, relevancy and professionalism. The staff of The Quadrangle meets every Tuesday at 4:00 p.m. in room 412 of the Student Commons. Contact The Quadrangle at thequad@manhattan.edu The opinions expressed in The Quadrangle are those of the individual writer and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editorial Board, the College or the student body.
John Abbatangelo/The Quadrangle
news
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Working-World Reality:
Bernadette Blocker/Courtesy
Recent Alumni Shed Light on Post-Grad Life at Communication Career Panel Sean McIntyre & Claire Leaden
Editor & Senior Staff Writer Though senior year is often dubbed as the “fun year,” when class schedules are a little less daunting and college responsibilities are starting to dwindle, the pressure to find a job is as undeniable (and as unavoidable) as ever. Hearing from recent graduates about life after graduation can definitely help ease some of the stress, and the Center for Career Development has been aiming to do just this with their new industry-centered career events for students. “About a year and a half ago I planned a panel with all different majors from the School of Arts and the turnout wasn’t that great, but the panel was really excellent,” Associate Director of Career Development Sharon D’Amelia said. “It was from that panel I realized it would be a better idea for me to target each industry.” The second of these targeted panels
occurred on Thursday, Feb. 26 and was aimed at students interested in working in the communication industry. The panel drew over 60 students, consisting mostly of communication majors but also including business and marketing students. The Center for Career Development partnered with Acting Chair of the Communication Department Rebecca Kern, Ph.D, and Michael Grabowski, Ph.D., associate professor of communications, to plan the event. The panelists worked in all different facets of the field—from advertising to television production to fashion. They included Maria Del Russo, a beauty writer for Refinery 29; Claire Reinhard, a production assistant for Optomen Productions; Elizabeth Schumann, a senior media planner at ZenithOptimedia Group; Lindsay Bailey, a publicist at Stunt Company; Joshua Mills, a public relations assistant at Calvin Klein and Joseph Murtagh, a junior data specialist at OMD Worldwide. Grabowski hosted the evening by introducing the candidates and then asking them general questions about how they
found their first internships and jobs. Del Russo and Schumann said that they applied to “everywhere” for internships, while Reinhard and Murtagh credited professors for helping them find and secure their first gig. Mills found his post through the career development organization INROADS, and Bailey said she was just “lucky.” Four out of the six panelists got their first jobs from interning at the company, and though some have already started their second jobs, those internships provided valuable networking opportunities. Most of them got their second jobs from connections they made at the first. After, Grabowski opened up questions from the floor, which included questions about when to start looking for an internship and how to boost a resume. “If I could give myself advice I would say ‘you don’t know what this industry needs, so over-sell yourself,’” Del Russo said. “You’re more talented and you have more experience than you think, definitely.” Reinhard also had realistic advice
when asked about living and working in the expensive city of New York. “Your happiness is just as important as paying your bills,” she said. “So you make it work. You figure it out. I’m not rolling in dough by any means, but I’m happy. I love my job.” All of the other panelists echoed the same sentiment. When the questions ended, students in the audience were invited to go up and network with the panelists, share contact info and learn even more about their interests. D’Amelia said the industry-concentrated career events are going to become more of the norm for the Center for Career Development. The first overall industry-based event was the technology career panel held on Feb. 17. A similar panel for careers in government will be held on March 26 and a pharmaceutical career panel will be held on March 24. There is also an event for careers in non-profit planned for April. “I can’t tell you yet, but I already have ideas for the fall, for what the next two will be,” D’Amelia said.
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News Free Game Room Opens in Kelly Commons
March 3, 2015
Continued from page 1 ing and the game room was one of them,” he said. The game room will also host the college’s game club which previously was housed in Thomas Hall in a room across from Cafe 1853. The student reaction to the game room has been mostly positive so far. “I come here often with my friends,” Dasny Castillo said. “I absolutely adore this Pac-Man game, in fact I have the high score. And the jukebox is great, they have new music and old music so it has got everyone’s interests.” Chris Laucella has also been making use of the game room since it opened. “I can come in here and challenge my friends to a racing game. It’s really nice. It’s a good atmosphere,” he said. For now the game room is completed, but Bennett said the student activities office is looking into different seating options and possibly additions based on student interests. “It’s done in the sense that it’s ready to go, but we are always willing to add and improve,” he said.
Christian Roodal/The Quadrangle
Annual Peace Week Focuses on New York City
Melanie O’Connor Contributing Writer
Manhattan College hosted its annual Peace Week on campus last week which featured lectures, events and discussion about the importance and understanding of peace movements. This year, the week highlighted issues of peace and conflict in New York City. “The main goal this week was to highlight the role New York City has played, and continues to play, in the quest for
world peace,” Tom Ferguson, Ph.D. and peace studies program director, wrote in an email. “Everyone who attends an event leaves with that goal firmly reinforced in their minds.” Given today’s local and international conflicts, president of the Just Peace club Ryan Waters said the topic of peace is and always will be equally important. “For our generation, we have almost always lived in a time of war,” Waters said. The junior has participated in Peace Week and the club for the past three years. Peace Week at Manhattan College has
a different theme each year. This year, the peace studies advisory committee agreed to base this week upon movements based exclusively in New York. Some of the lectures held during the week included the topics of immigration policy and refugee communities in New York City and New York as a center of peace movement activism. Waters said that the benefit of this week is that it is mainly based upon bringing people together and educating them on what peace is all about. “It is more about advocacy toward the
issues than it is necessarily about the direct impact,” Waters said. As Waters said, the goal of this week is always “to get people driven enough to want to create change.” However, creating change isn’t easy. “It’s hard when you cannot visualize the issues to actually make change about them,” he said.
From Silence to Conversation: The LGBT Community on Campus Continued from page 1 thought. Lasallian Christian Brothers work and teach on campus. Catholicism is visible at the college, as crucifixes can be seen hanging above the chalkboard in most, if not all, classrooms. Arguably the most well-known of the brothers at the college is Brother Robert Berger. “It’s gone from no conversation or even mentioning different sexualities to now embracing a more mature conversation about it,” Berger said. “It’s gone from silence to a conversation.” He pointed to the somewhat new and refreshing attitude Pope Francis has taken: the Catholic Church is supposed to welcome all to become part of the conversation and reality of weaving people’s lives together. This new attitude can begin to bring together different groups within society and end isolation of marginal groups. “It’s pretty amazing that there’s a symbolic nod to, ‘Well, we are going to now deal with these issues a little bit differently than we have in the past,’” Joseph Zolobczuk, director of education and research at the YES Institute in Miami, Fla., said. “As has the whole world and all other major world religions. Things are changing,” Zolobczuk said. “When people are rejected, especially from people that they view as their religious and cultural leaders, because of one
Courtesy of Seth Adams, director of communications at GLAAD. part of who they are, it can lead to selfharm and an internalized sense of rejection,” he said. Berger said that we have to somehow find and give time, consideration, fullfocus and availability to support anyone’s feelings, especially in today’s fast-paced society. Although he isn’t the only openly LGBT student at Manhattan, Ivan Rios is at least one person who can relate to what Berger said. Rios came out in the time between his freshman and sophomore years to his friends and came out to his mother and sister last year. He said he remembered leading up to his decision to start telling people that he questioned if he would be looked at and
thought of differently. Since then, he has had people who support him in his life so that his worry has turned into being himself. However, it wasn’t always easy for Rios. During the spring semester of his sophomore year, he returned to his dorm room to a door full of post-its with the words “fag,” “homo” and “cocksucker” written on them. “I actually know people who are gay and use those terms. It’s awful,” Kern said. “I used to tell them I’m not friends with them anymore.” “I said, ‘For every time you use that word I’m going to ask for a quarter. I’m going to be very rich, very quickly.’ It’s terrible when we use words like this because
we just think, ‘It doesn’t matter,’ but it does sting,” Kern said. “There’s faculty here and there that help and are amazing but overall the vicinity of the school, the general population I feel like they don’t even know half of (us),” Rios said, “and then the other half are just like whatever or they don’t even give a s---. But like everywhere, there are going to always be people who accept and those who don’t.” “I feel like there’s nothing,” he said. “I feel like I’m so lonely sometimes like there’s no one.”
Features
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MC’s Most Influential: Atiya Raja Tara Marin Staff Writer
From the moment that Atiya Raja arrived to Manhattan College as a freshman, she was determined to make the most of her four years here - and that she did. As a senior international relations major, Raja is currently in the process of applying to jobs. She hopes to work for either a non-profit or as a paralegal before eventually attending graduate school for economics or international affairs. Her journey to this point has been a series of selfless acts and extreme dedication to her education and involvement on campus. Her very first endeavor was becoming a part of Campus Ministry and Social Action. She calls this “a happy accident” which occurred when she called Lois Harr, the director of CMSA, and asked her how she could volunteer. “The next thing I knew, I was a member of Just Peace and the leader of a group of students with Habitat for Humanity,” Raja said. Harr admits that it didn’t take long for her to see that Raja was a dependable person who took initiative and made things happen. “She was very enthusiastic, and she really dove in head first - no, everything first. I asked her to keep track of the Habitat trip and she took charge right away. That was when I really knew this was someone I wanted to have around… someone I wanted to be in our sphere of influence,” Harr said. Her experiences with CMSA include being a Catholic Relief Services Campus Ambassador and Liaison, a presenter for MC at the Fair Trade Campaigns Confer-
ence in Chicago, an MC representative at the United Students Against Sweatshops Conference in Wisconsin, and a co-presenter at the Huether Conference in D.C., just to name a few. A large amount of her time has been dedicated to The Fair Trade Movement, as she has planned multiple events and done advocacy work on campus. “We are the first Fair Trade college in New York City, and fifth in the country. I am honored to be part of such an achievement,” Raja said. Becoming such an accomplished and admirable person is not something Raja credits entirely to herself, however. “Lois Harr is my inspiration, role model and savior. She helped me get back in touch with my Islamic faith and showed me that I could be a Muslim, Lasallian and a Jasper,” Raja said. She also credits her experience with CMSA for giving her a better outlook on life and the world as a community - “a community that can be preserved through Lasallian values.” In addition to this, Raja is a sister of the Alpha Upsilon Pi Sorority on campus. She feels that her involvement has made her wiser, stronger and well-rounded by acquiring a greater sense of teamwork and people skills. Katherine Encarnacion, one of Raja’s sorority sisters, says that Raja has helped her through rough times and always motivates her to keep going. “Atiya is a great friend and my experience at MC has been amazing because of her,” Encarnacion said. These kinds of friendships and the diversity of her sisterhood has allowed Raja to broaden her circle of friends and also expand her network. “I have a couch to sleep on in Morocco, France, the Dominican Republic, Queens,
Atiya Raja/Courtesy California, Ecuador and many more,” Raja said. Being an Orientation Leader in 2012 introduced her to a new variety of people as well. “This woke me up, and made me realize how much of an impact I can make by getting to know people, it is really as simple as that. Who you know and how well you know them can make a major difference when you are trying to get something done or build community,” Raja said. Krystine Melicio, colleague and friend of Raja, attests that she is as great a friend as she is a student and worker. “Atiya is always willing to go above and beyond to help others. Whether it’s at work, with her sorority, or working on promoting Fair Trade awareness around campus, she really puts her heart into everything that she does. She’s the type of person you can call at two in the morning with a problem and she will do everything in her power to help. Atiya is one of the
most genuine people I have met, not only at my time here at MC, but in my entire life,” Melicio said. Another huge responsibility on Raja’s plate is being a resident assistant - something that she says is one of the most important positions she’s ever held. And as time consuming as it is, it’s extremely rewarding for her. “As an RA it is my job to ensure a secure, safe and fun community for my residents to live in. It’s a job that requires an immense amount of quality customer service, because you want your residents to be satisfied.” For her, the hardest part of being an RA is being in a authoritative position while also trying to be the friendly figure. “There are times in which you have to make a tough decision in an awkward situation. Still, working with the Residence Life staff on our campus and the Dean’s Office makes it a position that is well worth it.” With all of this going on as well as an internship, it is understandable that sometimes life can be chaotic for Raja. “There are moments in which I feel overwhelmed with the many responsibilities I have chosen to take upon myself or have been given to me, but that is why sleep and ‘me time’ are extremely important, or I can go vent to friends or Lois,” Raja said. Looking back, Raja reflects on the importance of just being helpful for others, even in simple ways. “A smile, a handshake or a ‘how are you’ can go a long way. It shows that we are a community and that is what it means to be a Jasper,” she said. “If I have influenced anyone on this campus, I feel as though it was and is through my presence and acknowledgment of theirs.”
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Features
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Features
March 3, 2015
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Potpourri: From Open Mic to “Open House”
Sean Sonnemann Editor-in-Chief
Meet the Band Most recording studios don’t include a whiteboard covered with equations and mathematical functions. But when the guitarist’s day job is studying as an undergraduate math major and two other members of the band are engineering students, it’s not all that surprising. For the band Potpourri, finding the time to both create and perform original music in between going to class is a challenge they face that most other musicians don’t have to deal with. “It’s hard, but if you like it enough you’ll do it,” drummer and chemical engineering senior Ray Lumokso said while sitting behind his drum set at one of the band’s recent practices. On the other side of a living room cluttered with speakers and backpacks, his fellow band members were tuning their guitars and comparing musical notes with
each other. Lumokso finished checking Snapchat, shifted his charging iPhone out of the way and grabbed his drumsticks. “There’s gonna be a part when I cut out, because I don’t know what I’m playing,” he said in warning as the group got ready to work on a new song. When the first guitar chords rang out through the amps, bandmate Josh “Toasty” Perez sat back on the couch without his usual saxophone. He couldn’t stay long, but was waiting to hear the rest of the new song before hurrying off to one of his graduate-level environmental engineering classes. Although missing his instrument, Perez couldn’t resist miming along to the music. He puffed out his cheeks as his gloved hands shifted in mid-air through different finger positions on an imaginary saxophone. Over beneath the whiteboard, Peter Morrison alternated between standing up and leaning on one of the speakers as he played bass. Unlike the rest of the band members who are Manhattan College stu-
dents, Morrison studies business at nearby Fordham University. He became involved with Potpourri through his friendship with lead singer and guitarist Vincent Harris. The two knew each other back home in Connecticut before both coming to The Bronx to go to school. While hanging out in his basement one day a little over a year ago, Harris saw Morrison play. He decided to ask him to join the band as a bassist, even though Morrison was still relatively new to the instrument. “I’ve only played bass for less than two years,” Morrison said. But with his trendy thick-framed glasses and laid-back attitude, he fits the part. Harris, an English major at MC, was the founding member of the band. He first started Potpourri as a solo project consisting only of an acoustic guitar, his voice and the GarageBand program on his computer that he would use to create original songs. “I took them offline though because they were not good,” Harris said. The story of how the band then grew
to a five-man operation depends on which person you ask. Harris and Lumokso give Perez the credit for bringing most of the group together. But guitarist Rocco Pascale is quick to challenge that claim and take some of the responsibility himself. Pascale, the math major, actually started out playing the bongo alongside Harris rather than guitar. But after spending time watching Harris and Lumokso play the guitar, he decided to switch over from percussion to strings. “We always say, that the joke is, the best guitarist in the band doesn’t play guitar,” Pascale said, referring to Lumokso, who now sticks to the drums despite also having talent on a six-string. The most vocal member of the group, Pascale is also seemingly the band’s organizer. When he grew tired of struggling to get everyone together to practice, he collected everyone’s schedules and marked out the mutual times they had free. “It’s like going to practice like a sports team,” he said. “You know when it is and can schedule your homework and every-
thing around it.” Now the band meets twice a week where they plan for shows and work on new material—like the song they were debuting for Perez before he left practice early to go to class. “That was rough,” Pascale said as the final notes died out. The new track had potential, but was still a work in progress. From Open Mic to “Open House” Since the beginning of the spring semester, Potpourri has kept busy playing about a show a week. Back on a chilly Thursday night in early February, they fittingly performed at An Beal Bocht Cafe to release their first EP, “Open House.” The cozy pub and popular venue for local artists was the spot where the group first began performing together, taking advantage of the Open Mic nights. “We kind of got together through An Beal, honestly,” Lumokso said. “We don’t take classes together, but we shared that common interest.” That night, friends of the band and mostly other upperclassman packed in to
hear the band play. By the time Potpourri was going through their sound check, the windows of the bar had already fogged up in stark contrast to the bitter cold outside. With an opening drumbeat from Lumokso and a beachy guitar riff from Pascale, the band quickly got the crowd nodding their heads along to the music. A little jazzy, a little ska and a little punk, the band’s sound style is hard to categorize—fitting for a group known as Potpourri. Pascale pegs their music as “Modest Mouse in the style of Morrissey,” referring to the frontman of 80s band The Smiths. But he also acknowledges that “the solos are very surf rock.” When they play, the group sometimes resembles more of a jazz ensemble than a rock band, building off each other and taking turns with solos and sharing the spotlight. Each bandmember writes the music for his respective instrument. “It’s not like we tell each other what to play. It’s a collaboration,” Lumokso said. “More like a jam basically.” At An Beal, Perez chose to stand on a
Kevin Fuhrmann /The Quadrangle
chair to perform his sax solos, much to the delight of the audience repeatedly calling out his nickname “Toast.” Taking a break between songs, he ordered a Guinness from the bar while other members of the band passed out free copies of their CD, complete with “Open House” scrawled in black marker on the front. The no-frills, homemade touch suits a tape that the group produced themselves at the off-campus house where they practice. The guitars were recorded in the living room of the house, while the drums were done in the kitchen. They met this past winter break throughout the course of a week to put together the eight track, halfhour long demo. “We call it a demo. An album is a lot more work,” Pascale said. “But, I think it’s a damn good demo.” While it is the band’s first release and is also available for download online, their fans have already heard the songs at different shows throughout the past year. Some of the tracks even include lyrics written by Harris before the entire current lineup was assembled. Now, Potpourri is working on new
material and wants to take a hiatus from performing in order to finish making more music. “Hopefully we can get all these songs recorded,” Harris said. “Don’t know when, but hopefully soon.” Even if that doesn’t happen before graduation, the band plans on continuing playing and performing together if geography permits.
…
“Thanks to my lab partners for coming out tonight,” Perez said over one of the microphones after Potpourri finished their Thursday night set at the cafe. “Shoutout to the lab rats.” As friends came over to congratulate the band on their performance, an An Beal employee worked his way through the crowd to collect donations. Quite a few people reached into their wallets to toss some singles in the basket. Meanwhile, the band members were busy packing up their instruments and speakers. Five college students enjoying making music with each other and performing for their friends, there were no roadies for this rock band—at least not yet.
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Arts & Entertainment
A Fresh Face For Fall
March 3, 2015
Luke Hartman Editor
On so many occasions fashion articles turn into trend reports and a overview of what the top designers did. While those are great and important things when navigating the entire cacophony that is fashion, it seems more interesting to point out the smaller nuances that are usually not highlighted (and that’s why the good people at style.com have jobs). What was heartwarming? What made attendees gasp, or leave them breathless? What was new, exciting, innovative and eye catching? This season, especially at Lincoln Center, different designers were brought in and given an avenue to display their art and express their message on a grand scale. Also established designers displayed something completely different that was so unexpected. Catalan brand Desigual has been an international success and has only recently started showing at MBFW. For their first few shows, critics came out in full force and made it evident that they thought the brand didn’t understand what was going on. Honestly, it was a little odd watching models literally dance down the runway, smile and just step out of the little expected fashion show mold. It was on the verge of cringe worthy. Also, Desigual’s garments are very…subjective. It takes a certain person to appreciate five thousand patterns and colors all mashed into a single garment. However, for their Fall/Winter 2015 show, they certainly shocked the general public. The runway and esthetic were simpler, the pattern mixing worked better, the garments exuded a different vibe and the models simply walked. The gimmicks were done away with and Desigual put forward an extremely strong collection that will be sure to launch their brand forward and make the New York fashion nazis lower their sunglasses and lean to get a better look. August Getty, who presented his second MBFW collection for Fall 2015, has already been called the next McQueen and is only 20. It is people like him that make the rest of us look like helpless slobs. Getty is of the Getty clan aka American royalty so he has that also in his favor. His garments are every soulless New Yorker’s dream. Black, leather and minimal but beautiful patterns. This collection was a dream and just so innovative. He dubbed this collection as “The Other Woman” and meant to let every woman unleash her inner vixen. Produced by People’s Revolution, the show itself was a beautiful story and had the creative stamp of Kelly Cutrone all over it. Getty utilized extremely luxurious fabrics and intricate structuring to put forth a collection that was wearable couture. Needless to say when the finale cape dress floated down the runway was a breathtaking moment. Lastly, it is extremely refreshing to see the future of fashion on the horizon and get extremely excited. Every season The Academy of Art gives its design students the opportunity to show their thesis collections at Lincoln Center. The show was composed of 14 designers, some of which collaborated their skills to produce a collection. Ten different mini collections were shown and some were insanely beautiful and some were insanely not. However, these not so great collections just made the amazing ones dazzle in comparison and it was made evidently clear who would go on to have successful lines and brands, and who would be working as assistant designers. Designer Christian Wilman understands
structure and how to exaggerate shapes and still create an attractive silhouette. Her collection consisted of classic wool pieces but each with a unique structural element that created beautiful volume. Iranian designer Farnaz Golnam was another standout in the presented collections. Her collection was walking art and consisted of threedimensional sculptural techniques, which produced something truly magnificent. She used floral dimensional embroidery to turn a simple black sheath dress into something one of a kind as well as pleating to make a wool coat-dress into couture. Turkish designer Ozanhan Kayaoglu is a gifted textile designer, and this was evident in his collection. Drawing inspiration from rust and
prison architecture, Kayaoglu developed a technique of dying his fabric with rusted metal in order to create something magnificent. His garments were simple, but cut perfectly which let his textiles be the star of the show. The designer that was just in another league was Paulina Susana Romero Valdez. There are just not enough words to talk about how beautiful and well thought out these garments were. Valdez’s collection is a visual representation of her Mexican heritage and incorporated traditional embroidery and colors into clean and modern designs. Her collection was a journey through the décor of the Baroque, the culture and passion of Mexico and body that
Luke Hartman/The Quadrangle exuded strength. She drew inspiration from her past and used it to launch herself into the future. Fashion is about looking to the past to define the future. It is not merely just another economic industry, but a cultural entity that lets us examine and be a part of art. Based on the collections examined, fashion is about letting voices be expressed, and praising the creativity and ingenuity of young designers. In a world where so much energy and cognitive effort is devoted to destruction and creating pain, it is refreshing to see the opposite in the creation of fashion. It is a beautiful and practical art constantly surprising and certainly never disappointing.
Arts & Entertainment
The Book Nook
9
Title: “Flower Confidential: The Good, the Bad, and the Beautiful in the Business of Flowers” Author: Amy Stewart Genre: Non-fiction Madeleine Schwartz Staff Writer
They’re given on a first date, carried by a bride on her big day and used as peace offerings around the globe; no matter the definition, we’re talking about flowers. Now, if reading a book about the history and anatomy of flowers doesn’t sound fascinating, you would be having the same reaction as I did when I first picked up this book. However, once Amy Stewart gets to talking about the flower industry and the personal stories behind these plants, it became obvious that there is much more to flowers than meets the eye. Stewart starts her book in the San Francisco Flower Mart, one large gathering place for flower vendors. Here, she discovers that the origins of the flower trade began long ago in Ancient Egypt and grew steadily through the Roman times. Today, Americans buy about 4 million flowers a year. Stewart says that we buy more flowers than Big Macs, which in 2007 when this was published, was probably true, although I’m not so sure about that today. In retrospect, it is not so surprising that we go through this many flowers each year. We have holidays specifically created around them like Valentine’s Day for roses and Easter for lilies. However, it is the back story behind these plants that is the interesting part. Stewart explains that one hundred years ago, nearly all the cut flowers sold in the U.S. were also grown here; now close to three-fourths of our flowers are imports. If this doesn’t seem like a big deal, let me
explain. This global shift in the flower trade has caused the flowers themselves to adapt. Growers now have to breed them for sustainability and strength so that they can fly from Latin America or Europe and not die in the air. To change the flowers internal make-up, flower breeders must sacrifice some external features such as delicacy and fragrance. While this might seem like a loss to some, this industry has survived because today, flowers are judged on beauty rather than smell. Another change that has swept through this industry is how the flowers are grown. If you look back five or six decades, flowers had been grown in fields by farmers. To these people, their flowers were like children; they nurtured them and gave them the best care and attention they could. When they were in bloom and ready for harvest, they would cut them and send them off. However, people buying flowers today have gotten impatient. No one wants to wait until April for tulips or August for sunflowers. To keep up with the demand, farmers had to move their flowers into greenhouses in order to control the blooms. With this move came a more technological process for growing flowers. The farmers no longer gave each plant the individual attention and care as they once did. This shift in the growing of flowers is due to how fast technology is evolving and how heavily we as society rely on it. I chose to review Flower Confidential because no one thinks of cut flowers as an industry or a money maker. I think that this book sheds some light onto the business and the background of where it started.
Locke’s Survival Guide
Madeleine Schwartz/The Quadrangle
Joseph Vitale
Contributing Writer We all know what to do when life hands us lemons, but what do we do when Locke’s hands us fried catfish and “lasagna”? The home cooking station is what we do and all Jaspers need at least a few recipes in their back pockets for Locke’s on its off days. The trick is to not see it as a dining hall but as a grocery store. Instead of looking for meals, you should be treating everything as ingredients. With this in mind, the salad bar is going to be your best friend. While Locke’s does a lot of things well (especially recently), these tips will help for those nights when the Tex-Mex line is a bit too long or you just want a change of pace. Tip 1: Vegetables are a game changer The salad bar and home cooking station are both wells of fresh vegetables. They add flavor, texture and nutrition to almost anything and we are actually offered a wide selection of them. Try adding some tomato and red onion to your next bagel with cream cheese (add a bit of salt right on the tomato). Tip 2: You can make literally anything into a sandwich This is especially true with access to a panini press. A little bit of warmth to melt the cheese or peanut butter elevates your sandwich to a whole new level. Try a pressed peanut butter and banana on multigrain bread or a veggie wrap. Also stay on the look out for the days they put out Italian meats and fresh mozzarella—any
combination of these makes great paninis. Tip 3: Never forget about the grill/griddle station The grilled chicken they make is actually very tasty. It goes great on top of a salad or in a sandwich. You can also avoid the scrambled eggs in the mornings by getting fried eggs at the griddle. Tip 4: Most everything goes well on a salad Combine your lettuce of choice with any of your favorite vegetables and toss on some steak or chicken from the carving station. Keep it healthy by replacing the croutons with a crunchy vegetable like peppers or carrots and holding back on the dressing. A bit of oil and vinegar is always good and a small amount of salt does wonders for a salad. Tip 5: Jump around Don’t stick to just one of the stations. Mix mashed potatoes and gravy from the
carving station with the popcorn chicken and corn from the main line. Mix rice from the main line with beans or roasted veggies from the vegetarian line and rotisserie chicken from the carving station. Tip 6: Use the home cooking station The home cooking station lets us create something out of nothing on days when Locke’s is lacking. Here are some quick recipes for it: Veggie Stir-Fry with Poached Eggs For this one, the ingredients are carrots, onions, celery and snow peas, but you can add or omit any vegetables you prefer. I sautéed them with a bit of oil and then tossed in the rice to let it toast up quick then hit it with a small amount of soy sauce. You can spice it with your favorite Annie Chun’s sauce (because that’s all they give us for sauces) but don’t go overboard. To poach the eggs, crack them into a bowl to make sure the yolk doesn’t break. Boil water and then turn the heat down before swirling the
Erlis Martinez/The Quadrangle water with a fork and then dropping your egg gently in the middle. The pans are a lot shallower than is ideal so you may have to carefully flip the egg over. When you can tell that the white is just solid, remove with one of the slotted spoons from the drawer and drain on a paper towel; serve on top of the stir-fry. Creamy Pesto Chicken Once again, sauté your vegetables of choice in some oil. Shred chicken from the grilling station and add it once your vegetables are caramelized. The chicken is already cooked so you’re just looking to combine everything. Add pesto from the sandwich station, just enough to coat everything. Turn the heat down and add handful of tomato chunks; finish with a splash of half and half. This is a good thing to make on Sunday nights when you can eat it with the plain pasta but it’s also great over rice.
10
Sports
March 3, 2015
Between the Base Paths: Growing Pains
Jonathan Reyes Editor
The Lamar Cardinals’ sweep of the Manhattan Jaspers last weekend showed off Manhattan’s expected slow start. For starters, they haven’t practiced outside since October and are now facing live pitching for the first time. So their early rusty play is understandable. Plus, it’s simply too early in the season to nitpick. “(The series) was certainly productive, but the numbers wouldn’t tell you that,” Jim Duffy, Jaspers head coach, said. “All in all the numbers they look disappointing, but I kind of I like some of the things that I saw and, in the same vein, we have a lot of work to do. That was totally anticipated.” The most productive part of the weekend at Lamar for Duffy was that everybody played. Right now, he wants his team to focus more on the process of play, body language, effort and execution as opposed to results. Results to him are meaningful, but don’t become important until MAAC play. Cardinals’ head coach, Jim Gilligan,
happened to agree with Duffy. He thought the series between the two teams wasn’t what it looked like and misleading. He reiterated Manhattan’s not practicing outside all winter long, which is automatically advantage Lamar being based in Texas allyear round. “This time of year it’s a matter of getting to play, find out what you got to fix and fix it,” Gilligan said. “You don’t know that playing intersquad games. You do that playing other people where you get a chance to, especially if you get to play good teams, see where your shortcomings are and then fix.”
“(Manhattan) should have gotten information out of the weekend,” he added. “We did about us.” There were three Jaspers and an overall position Gilligan took a liking to: Jose Carrera, Tom Cosgrove, Joe McClennan and the outfield. “I was impressed with the players. Good group of kids,” Gilligan said. “They have some good arms. Their left-handers, they got quite a few left-handers, that are decent pitchers. If they step up and do it, they can be a pretty strong team in their conference. They have got enough pitching to do it.”
With comments like that coming from an out of conference head coach, the young talent of Manhattan is already making its mark across college baseball. “A lot of confidence from them,” Mikey Miranda, Jasper catcher, said of the freshman pitchers. “They came out and competed with confidence. It showed a lot from them. All our pitchers looked really sharp, really good.” “I was thrilled,” Duffy said of all his freshman players. “They all held their own on the mound and at the plate. The young guys held their own exceptionally well. Now they’re ready to go.”
Sports Highlights Lacrosse
Basketball
Men’s basketball traveled to Marist on Feb. 23 and earned a 67-54 win over the Bobcats with help from Jermaine Lawrence’s career-high 19 points. The team shot 65% after halftime to secure the victory.
Men’s lacrosse fell to Hofstra in a non-conference game on Feb. 24. The Jaspers were struggling with face-offs, going 2-22, and fell to Hofstra 18-0. Manhattan falls to 0-4 on the season so far.
As for women’s basketball, after coming off a win against Saint Peter’s, the Jaspers put up a strong game against MAAC regular season champion Quinnipiac on Feb. 24. And despite Shayna Ericksen’s 17 points and Ashley Stec’s 16, they still fell 82-71.
While women’s lacrosse came out strong scoring four goals in the first and three more in the second, but they were not able to get past Albany and their second consecutive 20goal game on Feb. 25. Manhattan fell 25-7 despite Megan Yarusso’s hat trick.
On Feb. 26, Kayla Grimme scored a career-high 19 points and collected seven rebounds. The final was an 84-67 loss in their last road game of the season.
Yarusso and Donna Jo DiNorcia were the only Jaspers able to find the net in their 17-2 loss against Bryant on Feb. 28. Both players are tied with nine points on the season so far. Yarusso has eight goals and one assist while DiNorcia has seven goals and two assists.
On Feb. 28, the Jaspers honored their two seniors Alexis Crist and Ashley Stec before their game against Fairfield. Crist played for her first time after being out all season due to injury. The Jaspers concluded the regular season with a 72-54 loss
Compiled by Jaclyn Marr, Assistant Sports Editor
Follow @mcquadsports Your New Home for Manhattan College Sports!
sports
Inside the Numbers:
11
Jaspers Clinch Third Seed
Rich Williams knocks down a three to help his team beat Quinnipiac and also secure the third seed in the MAAC Tournament. Kevin Fuhrmann/The Quadrangle
Daniel Ynfante Assistant Editor
Before the season started, the Manhattan Jaspers were picked to finish third in the MAAC Preseason Coaches’ Poll. The end result of Manhattan’s 20142015 regular season: third-place. The Jaspers head into the MAAC Tournament as the third-seed after defeating the Quinnipiac Bobcats, 69-65, on Sunday in the last home game of the season. For senior Donovan Kates, the postseason could not come at a better time. “I feel like we’re coming along great,” Kates said. “I feel like we’re right where we need to be right now. We’re starting to mesh, starting to gel. The younger guys are coming along, and we can go up there and throw 10 or 11 bodies at each team. We’ll be ready to go. We’re going to be fresh. We’re going to keep applying pressure on teams, and just have fun and win, hopefully.” Many might see a third-place finish as a step down for the Jaspers, especially given the fact that they finished second in the standings last season and then went on to win the MAAC Tournament. But this thirdplace finish is worthy of an asterisk. The way the Jaspers were able to bounce back after a rough 2-7 start to the season merits some praise. During the first nine games of the season, there was not much to like about Manhattan. Its defense was fairly decent but not as good as it was last season. In the first nine games this season, the
Jaspers allowed opponents to score 64.8 points per game, but to their credit they forced 18.3 turnovers per game. On the offensive end was where the team struggled the most. The absence of Michael Alvarado, George Beamon and Rhamel Brown was felt heavily as the team averaged just 61.2 points per game during its 2-7 start. All the scoring came from three players in Emmy Andujar, Ashton Pankey and Shane Richards, and the team lacked a consistent fourth or fifth option. Whereas last season, Andujar; Pankey and Richards took turns being the fourth, fifth, even sixth option at times. Not one player on the team during the first nine games made his case to be that guy. But throughout the rough start, one thing was clear: once the MAAC regular season kicked into gear, things would change. Manhattan finished its brutal nonconference schedule at 4-7, but had much to look forward to heading into MAAC play. That was made apparent with a 5-2 start to the MAAC regular season. Fast-forward to now, 20 games after the 2-7 start, and Manhattan has finished its regular season 14-6 after starting-off so poorly. Its reward for a third-place finish: a first-round bye and the luxury of avoiding Iona all the way until the MAAC championship game. It is no secret that both teams, given the rivalry that has built up over the last few years, prefer not to meet each other early in the tournament. Had Manhattan finished
fourth, it would have potentially met Iona in the MAAC semifinals. After the loss at Iona last Friday, Masiello blatantly stated how he felt about meeting Iona again. “I’m not a guy that believes in seeing good teams three times,” Masiello said. “I’ll be much happier not playing Iona again and seeing them go out early. I’m not into the sizzle factor. I’m into trying to win games.” Of course, all the talk about a potential third game depended on Manhattan and Iona winning its quarterfinals matchups. In fact, a potential encounter in the championship game also depends on both taking care of its respective business. The games are not won on paper and Manhattan still will certainly be facing tough opponents in the tournament. However, now as the third-seed, Manhattan has a much more favorable path to the title. Its first game will be on Saturday March 7 against the winner of Marist and Quinnipiac. Marist comes into the tournament as the last seed (11) and Manhattan will be perfectly fine with having to face it instead of Quinnipiac. But if it’s the Bobcats the Jaspers have to face, they proved in the last game of the season that they can beat them. The Bobcats are known for their rebounding prowess and that will be a scary proposition for Manhattan, especially since the team lacks height. However, as it proved last season, Manhattan can handle Quinnipiac. In their run to the MAAC champion-
ship last season, the Jaspers defeated Quinnipiac in the semifinals and that team had a rebounding machine in Ike Azotam who averaged 10.2 boards per game. The matchup will be tough, regardless of who Manhattan plays, and that is for sure. The semifinals are where things can get a bit weird though. On paper, the favorite to reach that stage is the No. 2 seed Rider Broncs. However, no one would be surprised if the Broncs were knocked off in the quarterfinals, now that Matt Lopez, their leading scorer and rebounder is out for the season with a torn ACL. Who will knock them off is uncertain, as the Broncs will face the winner of Saint Peter’s and Fairfield. But if Rider does live up to expectations and reaches the MAAC semifinals, it is definitely a game that Manhattan can win. Rider swept the season series against Manhattan, but both games went into overtime and were tightly contested. Now, without the 7-footer Lopez, Rider will become much more of a guard-oriented team. That will play perfectly into the hands of the Jaspers, who will look to press Rider’s guards to create turnovers. The path is not set for Manhattan to reach the championship game. No team’s is. But the fact remains that as the thirdseed, the Jaspers have a much better chance to make some noise than as the fourth-seed.
sports
12
Seniors, Masiello Show It’s More Than Just Basketball
Emmy Andujar and Ashton Pankey embrace after their final regular season game as Jaspers. Kevin Fuhrmann/The Quadrangle
Chris Cirillo
Senior Staff Writer After an emotional win on Senior Day against Quinnipiac, Manhattan head coach Steve Masiello sat in between the team’s three seniors, and Ashton Pankey, as they addressed the media. It was not an ordinary press conference for Masiello, who is known for his jokes, analogies and money quotes after a win that could turn an empty room with three reporters into “The Steve Masiello Show.” This one was different. An emotional Masiello sat in his chair, looking down, without saying a word. Nearly one year ago, he was the most scrutinized man at Manhattan College. After taking a head-coaching job at the University of South Florida, news broke that Masiello had never graduated college, prompting USF to rescind its offer. The scandal received national attention and even more controversy on campus. A satirical edition of The Quadrangle ran a parody of the head coach on the front page, while faculty at the school sent letters to
the school president asking for further explanation on the decision to allow Masiello back. Masiello later went on to tell The New York Post that he did not want to leave his house, as he was uncertain if he would ever coach again. But 11 months later, Masiello has led Manhattan to another winning season and will have a chance to win his second consecutive MAAC championship and third straight finals appearance. While Masiello has faced his own off-the-court adversity, it is just the beginning for a team that has overcome a myriad of troubles. Regardless if the team wins another MAAC championship, they have proved something bigger. They have won over each other. “I can’t put it into words,” Masiello said about what his team has done for him. “With everything I’ve been through – from my degree situation – these guys are the reason I’m back. They never left my side. It’s tough. It’s tough to explain because the highs are easy, but when you got guys like this during the lows, you know, it’s special.”
“I’m going to miss these guys [three seniors and Pankey] so, so much,” he continued. “They believed in me when no one else did.” During Emmy Andujar’s freshman year, his brother was murdered. When Andujar went to court this past December to testify for the prosecution of the three men charged with murdering Andujar’s older brother, Masiello went with him, according to The New York Daily News. This was just one day after Andujar recorded 15 points, 15 rebounds and eight assists in a win against Marist at Draddy Gymnasium. Just last month, sophomore Carlton Allen’s father passed away. The team came together and defeated Siena, 80-74, in his honor. “I can name each family member that passed away my four years here,” Andujar said about how the off-court adversity has turned the team into family. “It’s just crazy. But we just stuck together and that’s what made us stronger.” “We all we got,” senior RaShawn Stores said. “We know that at the end of the day. It don’t matter about the refs, the fans, anyone. At the end of the day when
we get on that bus, it’s all of us on that bus. It’s 22 strong.” For Masiello, being accepted back into Manhattan was never an issue. It was bigger than basketball for the players on the team. He became a father away from home for some of the players on the team who were forced to grow up quicker than they expected. If the adversity didn’t turn the team into family, Masiello sure did. This weekend, the Jaspers will travel to Albany as defending champions, a title that may feel forgotten due to Iona’s prowess in the MAAC this season. Manhattan will not be the favorite to win it all, but to the players on the team, it will not really matter. All they need is each other. “I think our brotherhood makes us even better players,” Pankey said. “We’re all so close. We go through struggles together and we fight together. Obviously, I came in as an immature kid who transferred from Maryland, obviously for my family, but just being here for a couple years, I learned to love these guys. They’re my second family…I love all of these guys.”