The Miami Hurricane -- March 9, 2009

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THE MIAMI HURRICANE

NEWS

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The Miami

HURRICANE Founded 1929 An Associated Collegiate Press Hall of Fame Newspaper NEWSROOM: 305-284-2016 BUSINESS OFFICE: 305-284-4401 FAX: 305-284-4404

ChabadUM to present Purim concert on UC Patio this Tuesday Chabad at the University of Miami presents “Purim Concert on the Patio” in celebration of the Jewish holiday Purim this Tuesday on the UC Patio.

For advertising rates call 305-284-4401 or fax 305-284-4404.

EDITOR IN CHIEF Matthew Bunch

BUSINESS MANAGER Nick Maslow

FACULTY ADVISER Bob Radziewicz

FINANCIAL ADVISER Robert DuBord

NEWS EDITOR Chelsea Kate Isaacs

OPINION EDITOR Joshua W. Newman

SPORTS EDITOR Pravin Patel

EDGE EDITOR Hilary Saunders

ART DIRECTOR Shayna Blumenthal

PHOTO EDITOR Chelsea M. Matiash

WEBMASTER Brian Schlansky

COPY CHIEF Nate Harris

MULTIMEDIA EDITOR Lauren Whiddon Daniel Bull

ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR Erika Capek Ed S. Fishman

ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR Christina De Nicola

ADMINISTRATOR ASSISTANT Maria Jamed

DESIGNERS Felipe Lobon Laura Patricelli

PUBLIC RELATIONS Jacob Crows

ASSISTANT PHOTO EDITOR Tanya Thompson

PRODUCTION MANAGER Jessica Jurick

ASSISTANT WEBMASTER Shayna Blumenthal

ACCOUNT REPS Nico Ciletti Brian Schuman Elliot Warsof Katie Norwood Carolyn Babbitt

COPY EDITOR Sarah B. Pilchick

©2009 University of Miami

ChabadUM is sponsoring the free event. Organizations including Hillel, Zeta Beta Tau, Sigma Delta Tau and Sigma Alpha Mu will be participating in the proceedings. Live music will be played by Hasidic rap star Dr. Laz. David Lazerson, also known as Dr. Laz, has been featured on CNN, ESPN, the USA network and many others. His music features an eclectic blend of rap, rock, blues, reggae, jazz, bluegrass and gospel.

“We want people to come out and celebrate Chabad,” said Rabbi Mendy Fellig, a Jewish chaplain at UM. “Having the event on campus helps foster the Jewish community. We also invite those people who are not Jewish so

they, too, can learn something about the culture.”

There will be a raffle, a falafel lunch, an all-you-can-eat Hamentash bar and Megillah readings.

The reading of the Megillah, or scroll, is the first religious ceremony for the celebration of Purim and, according to Fellig, is customarily read every night. The readings will be held in the upstairs of the UC and will be read on the hour, every hour, beginning at 11 a.m.

Purim is a holiday that honors the deliverance of the Jewish people from the Persian noble Haman’s plot to destroy them as recorded in the Book of Esther.

The event is Tuesday and will take place from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

– Erika Capek

ON THE COVER: Lindsay Crouch, Anjoly Ibrahim, Daniella Suarez and Hillary Gorski play tug of war on behalf of the Alpha Delta Pi team on Greek Olympic Day.

SHREDDING: Umphrey’s McGee performed a free show on Saturday night on the UC Patio for a large turnout of listeners.

One of several bands that were scheduled to perform in the canceled Langerado Festival, Umphrey’s McGee decided to perform locally on the designated weekend.

JESSICA HODDER // Hurricane Staff

NEWS

THE MIAMI HURRICANE

March 9 - 11, 2009

College of Arts and Scienced Dean Michael Halleran talks with Lilliam Albizu-Campos about possible changes to general education requirements.

Like Watchmen (review of movie, soundtrack in EDGE)?

Check out Carly Ehrlich’s story about the Richter Library’s new Comics Collection.

Umphrey’s McGee rocks the UC Patio

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Check out what’s exclusively available at TheMiamiHurricane.com.

Find out from Lonnie Nemiroff what some students are doing to change the world thanks to the Clinton Global Initiative University.

Performance artist, poet and professor Gina Athena Ulysse will be coming to campus this week to discuss Haiti. Find out more from Samantha Hickey.

Learn more from Elena Schmidt about theological scholar Jacob Neusner and his recent lecture.

Got a bike? Find out from Johnathan Beauchamps what UMPD is doing to protect your ride from theft.

The Baptist Collegiate Ministry will be screening an awardwinning film Tuesday on the current struggle of children in the Sudan. Find out more from Jenna King.

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A night of cultural mayhem

Freshman’s initiative launches free lecture series for students Profs speak on topic of expertise

BY JUSTIN ANTWEIL CONTRIBUTING NEWS WRITER

COURTESY DAVID GOLDBERG

DANCING MACHINES: The University of Florida’s Gator Raas dance team performs at Miami Mayhem, a national cultural dance competition. A sold-out crowd of more than 950 people looked on at the Julius Littman Performing Arts Center in North Miami-Dade.

Penn State wins raas competition

BY PRAVIN PATEL OF THE STAFF

The University of Miami and the South Florida community came together for a night of sheer mayhem at the Julius Littman Performing Arts Center in North Miami Beach on Saturday night.

Miami Mayhem, a national cultural dance competition in its second year, featured 10 of the nation’s top raas teams – Case Western, Duke, Florida, George Washington, Maryland, Penn State, University of California Riverside and Stanford. The competition also had exhibition acts from USF Garba, Hurricane Bhangra and Hurricane Raas.

“Raas is a form of Indian cultural dance, which originated from Western India,” said senior Shawn Shah, a pre-medical student and one of the executive cochairs of Miami Mayhem. “It is a very energetic dance form, which utilizes dandiyas [dance sticks].”

The competition was highlighted by three teams in particu-

lar. UF’s Gator Raas finished in third place and took home $750.

The GW Raas Team left the audience asking for more, as they put together a second place performance, which allowed them to walk away with $1,250.

When it was all said and done, though, it was the Penn State Ghaamudyaz who left the audience with their jaws dropped, as they danced their way to a first place finish, $2,000 and an automatic bid to Raas Nationals.

“It was an amazing event,” sophomore Christine Smith said.

“I knew nothing about raas before coming to this event. I just came along because my friends were going. I am really glad I came, though.”

This year’s Miami Mayhem Committee included 25 University of Miami students, who have been putting time and energy into assuring that this event be a success since last March.

“Our executive board has worked extremely diligently in fulfilling all of their responsibilities,” said senior Amar Mandalia, a pre-medical student and one of the executive co-chairs of Miami Mayhem. “They are the real reason the event was such a big suc-

cess, not to mention all the help given to us by the Indian Students Association, the Hindu Students’ Council and some UM alumni.”

The show, itself, ran very smoothly and featured many innovative and interactive ideas, such as live interviews with the teams and team introduction videos, which captured the audience.

In addition to simply putting on a show, the competition also featured a charity component.

“We are donating a portion of our budget to the Ratna Nidhi Charitable Trust,” Shah said.

“Ratna Nidhi is a non-profit organization that is striving to raise money for the children who were recently orphaned by the recent terrorist attacks in Mumbai.”

The night and the event was best summed up by Mandalia, who said, “We are all very fortunate. We have been given the opportunity to spread our culture to the University of Miami and to South Florida. Our goal was to bring some excitement and happiness in the lives of those here and the children in India. I think we met that goal.”

Pravin Patel may be contacted at ppatel@themiamihurricane.com.

For freshman Michael Kaplan, hearing lectures from professors in the classroom was not enough.

This semester Kaplan, an undeclared College of Arts and Sciences student, established a new club at the University of Miami. He realized the great stories and unique anecdotes professors from the nine different schools at UM had to share.

Every Wednesday from 7 to 9 p.m. in room 184 of the Whitten Learning Center, Kaplan has arranged for a professor to come lecture to students free of charge on something pertinent to their specific field of study. The new club is called ULecture.

“First semester I took a freshman seminar class called ‘Books That Matter,’” Kaplan said. “The class was taught by professor [William] Green and each week we would have a different professor come in and speak to our class about a book that was important to them. I thought the class was great and thought these kinds of stories should be open to more than just 15 to 20 students.”

After the class was over, Kaplan emailed various professors to see if they would be willing to

lecture outside of the classroom.

He received an overwhelming response and soon the idea by the freshman came to reality.

This past Wednesday, Sam Grogg, dean of the School of Communication, opened the lecture series with a presentation about the digital divide between his generation’s use of the media verse the current generations’ use of the media.

“ULecture is an excellent way to let the students interact with faculty outside their majors or schools,” Grogg said. “There is such a wealth of talent and expertise at UM and this series is a way to take advantage of it.”

Despite the fact that the lecture went well, Kaplan was disappointed in the turnout. Only ten people showed up for the first lecture.

Freshman Alex Kurtz was one of the few in attendance.

“ULecture was a really great experience,” Kurtz said. “Dean Grogg’s topic really resonated with us and dealt with things we experience in everyday lives, like why our parents don’t [understand] texting or Facebook.”

Kaplan is excited about the foundation of the club and feels that publicity from the weekly email of Ibis News and The Miami Hurricane will help bolster attendance.

Justin Antweil may be contacted at jantweil@themiamihurricane.com.

Schedule of ULecture Series DATE

PROFESSOR

FIELD OF STUDY

March 11

Arthur Simon

Political Science

March 25

Vince Cardinal

Theatre Arts

April 1

Roderick Gillis

Psychology

April 8

David Wilson

Biology

April 15

Shelton Berg

Music

April 22

John Paul Russo

English/Classics

April 29

Michael Halleran

College of Arts and Science

March 9 - 11, 2009

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Gross and Della Guardia crowned Greek God and Goddess in pageant Competition held as part of Greek Week

BY ANDY ROVIRA CONTRIBUTING NEWS WRITER

Crowds of University of Miami fraternity and sorority members gathered in the School of Communication courtyard for the Greek God and Goddess Pageant on Friday. The winners of this year’s pageant were senior Brandon Gross, the president of Student Government and a brother of Sigma Chi, and junior Michelle Della Guardia, a member of Zeta Tau Alpha.

“It was a really fun experience, all of Greek life came to the event and to go up there and have fun in front of my brothers and everyone else in Greek life was a really fun time,” Gross said. “It was cool to be

DOMINIQUE RIOFRIO // Hurricane Staff

HIGHER BEINGS: Zeta Tau Alpha’s Michelle Della Guardia, the newlycrowned Greek Goddess, crowns Brandon Gross as Greek God.

BY MIKAELA GREEN CONTRIBUTING NEWS WRITER

This year’s annual Greek Week blood drive, themed “Blood Wars,” came to a close Thursday with a turnout of approximately 1,200 participants, including students, faculty, staff, alumni and members of the local community. Last year’s turnout was around 900 participants.

One of the core sponsors of the event, Blue Bell Ice Cream, provided a new aspect of the drive this year: the Pint for Pint program. Students received a pint of ice cream for donating a pint of blood. With a goal of collecting 1,000 units of blood, the Greeks succeeded in collecting a total of 1,015, compared to last year’s 849 units collected.

A unit of blood comprises whole blood, platelets and plasma donations. It is reported that the last time Greek Week collected 1,000 units of blood was seven years ago, according to information from Community Blood Centers of South Florida.

The sorority Delta Phi Epsilon and the Alpha Sigma Phi fraternity had the highest NEWS

THE MIAMI HURRICANE

March 9 - 11, 2009

Andy Rovira may be contacted at arovira@ themiamihurricane.com.

For more photos from Greek Week, go to www.TheMiamiHurricane.com.

Greeks collect 1,015 units of blood during drive Beats 900 units collected last year

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crowned.”

Surrounding the courtyard, three floors of people represented their Greek letters and cheered on their chosen delegates as they competed in the pageant.

“The Greek God and Goddess Pageant is one of our best events,” said Michael Menendez, a sophomore and member of Alpha Sigma Phi. “It’s great to see all the different fraternities and sororities getting together to support their representatives.”

The event, which serves to raise funds for philanthropic causes such as United Cerebral Palsy as well as unite the Greek community on campus, marked the last event of Greek Week 2009 before the climactic Olympic Day on Saturday.

participation rates and were awarded trophies from Blue Bell Ice Cream, according to Leslie Elus, a senior and a Greek Week blood drive co-chair.

“A lot more people were involved this year and I’m very pleased with the turnout,” said Megan Anderson, a co-chair of Greek Week. All of the proceeds will go to United Cerebral Palsy of South Florida.

The blood drive is one of many events during the week-long Greek competition between numerous fraternities and sororities.

The Greek organization with the highest percentage of donated blood would win the war.

“It’s my third time giving blood. It helps out my sorority but I always did it in the past since it’s for a good cause,” sophomore Liz Agans said.

Students and faculty donated blood at the UC Flamingo Ballroom beginning on Monday.

“This year, we focused on encouraging Greek and non-Greek students alike to come out and donate their time and blood for the cause,” Elus said.

Mikaela Green may be contacted at mgreen@ themiamihurricane.com.

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TIFFANY MILAKOVICH // Hurricane Staff

SORORITY LIFE: Delta Phi Epsilon members Alyssa DeMartino, Katie Zydel, Hilary Barr, and Wendy Gross cheer on the competitors during the O-Cheer competition on Tuesday night. Delta Phi Epsilon and Beta Theta Pi were the week’s victorious Greek organizations.

TANYA THOMPSON // Asst. Photo Editor

GIVING FREELY: Greg Roesch donates blood on Thursday afternoon. The blood drive is part of Greek Week, a week-long series of events in which University of Miami sororities and fraternities compete in games and philanthropic events.

TATIANA COHEN // Hurricane Staff

NEWLY CROWNED: Michelle Della Guardia celebrates being named Greek Goddess after the Greek Week Greek God and Goddess competition on Friday night.

March 9 - 11, 2009

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opinion

“...you remember your iPod, so you can remember your towel.”

– Ed S. Fishman, Contributing Columnist

Editorial

by ed s. fishman

ACC tourney chance to save lost season

Bring a towel when you work out

We don’t know what else to talk about but the economy and UM sports.

While everything looks fine and dandy with the baseball team (except for that slip-up against Rhode Island last week), the high hopes initially riding on Jack McClinton and the basketball squad seem to have been forgotten.

This season has not gone where it was supposed to go. Our first loss to UConn was upsetting but expected. Things really began to slip when McClinton slapped an Ohio State player 10 minutes into the first half of that game. We blew a 14-point halftime lead and lost by five.

About two months and two losses later, we lost to Virginia Tech in overtime, starting a three-game losing streak, all of which were winnable games. The inconsistency is upsetting to fans. The worst part is there is no sense to be made from all of this. The team has the talent and (we thought) the motivation to be winners. After enduring four years of rough football, we finally thought the basketball team was on the rise.

The kicker? This team isn’t bad.

Perhaps they couldn’t recapture the lightning in a bottle that fueled last season’s run to the second round of the NCAA tournament, but veteran presence should have been enough to get this squad primed for another run. Instead, like so many past Canes basketball seasons, we fans sit and wait for the results from the ACC tournament, wondering if we can win enough games to hit that magic number.

Enough disappointment. It’s time for the ACC tourney, and it’s time to step up. There is no doubt in any Hurricane mind that we have the talent to beat any team in our conference. The opportunity for redemption is here. We’ll be playing Virginia Tech (again) in the first round Thursday at noon. It’s now-or-never time.

Editorials represent the majority view of The Miami Hurricane editorial board.

Bring a towel to the Wellness Center. It will help you avoid being one of the 90,000 people that get a staph infection every year.

Staph infections occur when the Staphylococcus bacteria gets under an individual’s skin through a wound, and they can cause a range of problems from skin irritation to death. This bacterium thrives in warm and moist places like gyms. The grips of exercise equipment could be one home to these bacteria.

How is a towel the difference between being healthy or developing a skin condition? A towel can be used to separate your hands from the handles, preventing contact between your skin and the potential bacteria.

The Wellness Center is very proactive in preventing staph infection outbreaks. It uses Virex, the disinfectant that is in those spray bottles in the cubbies in the Fitness Room, which kills many viruses and bacteria.

UM’s gym also has a daily schedule for Fitness Room employees to wash every piece of machine each day.

Even with these precautions you still should be responsible and bring a towel.

It’s the same logic as using a condom.

A guy might be able to get away with not wearing a condom and not getting a lady friend pregnant by using a slew of different

techniques (none appropriate to talk about in this piece), but one more precautionary step could not hurt.

Granted, the chance of getting a staph infection at the gym is low. According to a 2007 New York Times report titled “Staph at the Gym? Not if You’re Careful,” getting staph infection at the gym is small, but using a towel will decrease your chances further.

I do have a bias. I work in the Fitness Room. It would make my job easier if everyone brought towels and I would not have to worry about sitting at a chair at the front of the Fitness Room calling out people that did not have their own.

However, this is not a selfish plea. If I wanted to write a purely self-interested piece I would ask everyone to wear deodorant to the gym or tell patrons to please re-rack their weights by putting them back where they found them. Both, in my opinion, would improve the gym.

The main point of this is that I want people to know there is a reason we require a towel.

You remember your Cane Card, you remember your iPod, so you can remember your towel.

Ed S. Fishman is the assistant news editor of The Miami Hurricane and an employee at the Patti and Allan Herbert Wellness Center.

He is a junior majoring in print journalism and political science. He may be contacted at efishman@themiamihurricane.com.

speak

UP!

If someone injected you with truth serum, what would you say is your guiltiest pleasure?

ESTHER WEINBACH junior “Gossip Girl.”

TOM VASILIU freshman “Mean Girls.”

letter to the editor

A

lumnus Ben Brislawn’s attack on UM sportscaster Joe Zagacki (Feb. 23-25) crosses the line of opinion or taste, into the realm of character assassination, and demands a response.

In my 23 years of teaching at the University of Miami, I have listened to countless games broadcast by Mr. Zagacki (who I do not know personally), and have always found his announcing crisp, efficient, informed – utterly professional. His devotion to the university is absolutely unquestioned, yet he will report with candor on a team’s deficiencies as well as its successes. His delivery is clear, entirely listenable, and not without humor. The young WVUM

talent would do well to “go to school” on Joe Zagacki’s many strengths.

Finally, since Mr. Brislawn takes a potshot at him too, let me put in a word for Don Bailey, Jr., whose color analysis is a fine, enthusiastic complement to Zagacki’s steady play-byplay. The university is fortunate to have both gentlemen announcing its athletic events, and I hope they’ll continue do so for a long time.

PAUL SMITH senior “Listening to Taylor Swift!”

– Peter Schmitt Department of English Speak Up answers are edited for clarity, brevity and accuracy.

compiled by JOE ALTIERI

March 9 - 11, 2009

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The Vagina Monologues sponsored by QuantUM March 11-12, 8 p.m.

The Rock FREE!

An unnuanced parody of the original novel

BY GABE HABASH SENIOR EDGE WRITER

The film adaptation of Watchmen, one of the most famous graphic novels ever, comes with much anticipation to see if the supposedly unfilmable novel can somehow work. Though it looks great and retains some of the novel’s essence, it feels misguided and, even worse, boring.

Set in an alternate-universe 1980s, the world of Watchmen is an unstable

place teetering on the brink of nuclear armageddon. Richard Nixon is well into his fifth term as president and the Cold War is dangerously close to turning hot. Costumed heroes, once mainstays in the United States, have been banned and chaos reigns in the streets. If that’s not bad enough, someone begins knocking off the retired heroes as the Doomsday Clock (meant to estimate humanity’s proximity to total annihilation) ticks closer to midnight.

This is an unfair distillation of the rich and deep source material, but the film provides just that. It’s unreasonable to expect all the nuances to translate to the screen because the novel itself is so dense and thrives on ambiguity. The film makes a noble effort to cover most of the bases, but when a movie tries to summarize and remains nearly three hours long, the result tends to be confusing.

And, because the mind’s not engaged, bore-

dom starts to set in.

The film is technically stellar and the opening credits sequence is incredible. While the central issues of morality and responsibility are included, the film tries to include too much in too little time for the result not to become muddled.

Watchmen may please diehard fans, but it’s very unlikely to make new ones. Pick up the novel instead; it’s one of the best books one could read.

1.5 out of 4 stars

Gabe Habash may be contacted at ghabash@ themiamihurricane.com.

‘Watchmen’ soundtrack thrills, even if film doesn’t

BY SARAH B. PILCHICK OF THE STAFF

In the case of Watchmen, the soundtrack is far superior to the film itself. While Watchmen had a great concept that translated poorly, the eclectic and mostly brilliant musical choices seemed to fill the gaps of the boring film.

Watchmen’s soundtrack is reminiscent of Children of Men, in which Donovan and the Rolling Stones cover were paired with songs by the Libertines and John Lennon. Here, KC & the Sunshine Band stands alongside songs by Nat King Cole and Nina Simone.

The best-utilized songs are Simon and Garfunkel’s “The Sound of Silence” and Janis Joplin’s “Me & Bobby McGee.” Bob Dylan’s “The Times, They Are A-Changin’” is part of the most outstanding opening sequence in recent memory. While not heard March 9 - 11, 2009

in the movie itself, Massive Attack’s stunning “Angel” was featured in television advertisements, which, sadly, were one of the best things about Watchmen. Unfortunately, the movie is forever tainted by awkwardly using Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah” as background music while Nite Owl II and the Silk Spectre get it on.

The Watchmen soundtrack also loses serious points for including My Chemical Romance’s abysmal cover of “Desolation Row,” a song that sounds so utterly out of place in the company of Dylan, Joplin and Simone. Perhaps it was a play for the younger age bracket that did not grow up obsessing over the original graphic novel, but it was simply a poor choice for the coveted spot of the last song of the film.

Sarah B. Pilchick may be contacted at sbpilchick@themiamihurricane.com.

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Rathskeller and Hurricane Productions make it a Wii night

BY CHRISTINE WILLIAMSON CONTRIBUTING EDGE WRITER

The Rat has caught Wii fever. The beloved campus restaurant will host Wii tournaments for anyone who dares to compete. John Creagh, a junior who serves as the Rathskeller Advisory Board’s special events chair, hopes students will enjoy the new event sponsored by the organization.

“We just wanted to come up with an event that would be hosted the Rat and decided we would come up with something that would really interest the gamers,” says Creagh.

The Wii tournaments are not limited to hardcore video game players. Members of Hurricane Productions, RAB’s parent organization, selected the Wii as

the game console of choice because the system is arguably simpler than the Xbox or PlayStation.

“We chose the Wii because it is very user friendly,” Creagh said.

The tournaments will begin tomorrow with Super Smash Bros. Brawl. A “Wiimbledon” Tournament with Wii Tennis may happen in the future.

Interested participants are required to sign up when they arrive at the Rat before the tournament begins. The matchups are chosen at random and those who lose are eliminated until the final two compete for the first place prize. Winners will receive gift certificates of varying amounts to the Rat, depending on what place they finish.

In the final tournament of the semester, the winner will receive the ultimate

prize. Although HP originally planned to give away the Wii game console itself, budget cuts changed the final prize to a $60 gift certificate to Best Buy. “I like the idea of a Best Buy gift certificate somewhat better because it gives a wider variety of people the encouragement to try their luck at the Wii tournaments. This way more people will at least go to try to compete for the gift certificate, and if they win they are able to get something else from Best Buy if they choose to,” said Ariell Cooke, a sophomore who admits she not much of a gamer.

Since Wii consoles are inexpensive compared to other game systems and Creagh got a discount from one of the employees at Best Buy, the budget for the Wii tournaments fits very nicely with plans for the future.

“If there is a good enough turnout we will definitely do Wii tournaments at the Rat in the future,” Creagh said.

Christine Williamson may be contacted at cwilliamson@themiamihurricane.com.

If You Go What: Wii Night When: Tuesday, March 10th at 7:30 p.m. and Tuesday, March 24th at 7:30 p.m.

Where: UM Rathskeller Cost: Free

Britney’s ‘Circus’ tour hits AAA, but pop star’s groove still MIA in Miami

BY NICK MASLOW OF THE STAFF

Britney Spears is touching herself on a couch at the American Airlines Arena in downtown Miami.

“I find myself flirting with the verge of obscene,” she fake-sings.

Two male dancers descend from the ceiling and intertwine their legs and arms with her limbs.

Within seconds, the threesome shoots 20 feet into the air as Britney continues to

perform “Touch of My Hand,” a song about masturbation.

You scream with shock and excitement, until you remember there are 8 and 9-yearold children behind you who came to the concert with their mothers.

But Britney’s overt and predictable sexual antics during her “Circus” tour are just one of the reasons why she is one of the world’s guiltiest pleasures.

Reason number two: On Saturday night, thousands of Miami fans each paid hundreds of dollars to watch arguably the

PHOTO COURTESY OF TOTAL ASSAULT PRESS

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March 9 - 11, 2009

most notorious train wreck ever strut across the stage while lip-syncing the entire time.

During the “Britney as General” dance routine, the pop princess didn’t even count from one to 10 live. Everyone knows she’s vocally challenged, but surely she can count! Right?

Another gripe was that Britney only performed three original songs from her new album. Yes, there was a three-ring circus. Yes, there were magic tricks. Yes, tassels hung from Brit’s nipples. But don’t call it “Circus Live” if old songs like “Do Somethin,’” and “Baby...One More Time,”are played instead of the fresh material from the Circus album.

Yet, as embarrassing as it is to admit, every second of the 90-minute concert/live music video was captivating. Whether Britney was a Bollywood dancer during “Me Against the Music” or gyrating against the bars of a cage during “Piece of Me,” every-

one’s eyes were glued to this woman. Even if her dance moves weren’t as intricate as usual, it was enough for hardcore Britney fans that she was back in shape, could stand up straight, and was actually smiling. After all, little more than a year ago she was strapped to a gurney on live television.

All things considered, is Britney back?

Has she reminded the public that she is one of the world’s most talented stage performers? Sadly, no. Brit has got a long way to go before she’ll be able to match the young woman who received a standing ovation for “Oops!...I Did It Again” at the 2000 MTV VMAs. However, “Circus Live” is a good way to start.

Nick Maslow may be contacted at nmaslow@ themiamihurricane.com.

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SPORTS 60/200

The two events (60-meter and 200-meter) that Murielle Ahoure captured ACC Titles in, on her way to becoming the ACC Indoor Track and Field Performer of the Year

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BASKETBALL

BASEBALL

Seniors celebrate win over N.C. State

UM sweeps Wolfpack

Canes storm back after being down at halftime

Canes come from behind

BY LELAN LEDOUX SENIOR SPORTS WRITER

BY JUSTIN ANTWEIL SENIOR SPORTS WRITER

ALEX BROADWELL // Hurricane Staff

Lelan LeDoux may be contacted at lledoux@ themiamihurricane.com.

For an analysis of the Women’s Basketball game, go to www.TheMiamiHurricane.com.

Points

I AM

TEAM STAT COMPARISON

MI

things one game at a time, and, against N.C. State, it was all about his seniors.

“They laid the foundation for Miami basketball,” he said. “I’m very honored to have coached these young men.”

TA TE

IS IT THE SHOES: Hurricane Brian Asbury slams the ball home against N.C. State. Asbury was one of four UM seniors that were saluted for senior day.

N. C. S

On senior day, Jack McClinton didn’t carry the Miami Hurricanes by himself. Key baskets by guard Lance Hurdle, aggressive rebounding by Brian Asbury and tough defense by Jimmy Graham propelled the Hurricanes to a crucial 72-64 victory over North Carolina State.

“It was a great win for us,” head coach Frank Haith said. “Just time and time again, the seniors, all four of them, had a play to contribute to us winning that ball game, in the last five or six minutes of the game. That was great to see.”

But Miami (18-7, 7-9) didn’t control N.C. State from the start. The Canes trailed 30-21 at halftime and looked like they didn’t have any fight left in them. However, the Hurricanes came out of halftime with force, going on an 11-0 run that put them up 31-30.

The separation really came when Hurdle hit a 3-pointer to extend Miami’s lead to 60-53 with 1:53 and end N.C. State’s (16-13, 6-10) hopes.

“I just didn’t want to go out with a loss,” Hurdle said. “This [senior] class is very special. I want to cherish their last time, so I had to leave it all on the floor.”

Miami will be the No. 9 seed in ACC play and will play Virginia Tech in the first round at the Georgia Dome. The Hurricanes probably need at least two wins in the confernce tournament to secure an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament. If they win all three in ACC play, they will get an automatic bid.

“I want our guys to go to that tournament feeling like we’re going to win the championship and try to win the ACC tournament,” Haith said.

“We have to worry about what’s in front of us.”

In order to keep their hopes up for a successful run in the ACC tournament and keep their NCAA tournament bid alive, one thing the Canes should worry about is the play of McClinton. McClinton, against N.C. State, again struggled with his shooting touch, hitting three of 15 shots, and he didn’t have a field goal in the first half.

“We need him,” Haith said.

Despite all that the Canes must do in order to keep their tourney hopes alive, Haith is looking at

64

72

FG MadeAttempted

19-49 (.388)

20-56 (.357)

3P MadeAttempted

7-20 (.350)

7-21 (.333)

FT MadeAttempted

19-21 (.905)

25-34 (.735)

Fouls (Tech/ Flagrant)

26 (0/0)

18 (0/0)

Largest Lead

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March 9 - 11, 2009

For the second time in as many weekends, the No. 8 University of Miami baseball team opened up their closet doors, took out their brooms and swept their weekend opponent.

UM (10-2, 3-0) began ACC play in style, as they swept the weekend series against North Carolina State University (7-5, 0-3) at Alex Rodriguez Park at Mark Light Field.

The Canes overcame a seven run deficit on Sunday for the first time since April of last season, when they beat FAU 12-10 after being down 10-3 through four innings.

“That is Miami baseball,” head coach Jim Morris said. “I have seen it so many times since I have been here. I have seen it from both dugouts. I have been on the wrong dugout when that happens. Miami baseball...unbelievable.”

Heading into this weekend, it seemed like Mother Nature was the only thing that could slow down the Wolfpack. They came into South Florida riding a seven-game win streak. Last weekend, two of their games were postponed due to rain and one was postponed because of snow. Mother Nature has still been unkind to N.C. State as the Hurricanes swept the Wolfpack right out of Florida. It was the first time UM has beaten N.C. State in a three game series.

SEE SWEEP, PAGE 13

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Bullpen’s play impressive during series

WOMEN’S TENNIS

Canes split against foes in top 10 Beat Clemson, lose to Ga. Tech

BY CHRISTINA DE NICOLA ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR

After moving up to sixth in the ITA poll, the University of Miami women’s tennis team faced a daunting weekend: two in-conference road matches against top-10 opponents in backto-back days.

The Hurricanes (12-3, 2-1) overcame a 5-2 loss to eighthranked Georgia Tech (7-4, 2-1) with a 5-2 victory over ninthranked Clemson on Sunday afternoon.

Despite losing two of three in doubles competition for an early 1-0 deficit, Miami won five of six singles matches against the Tigers (8-5, 1-1). Both teams have four nationally-ranked singles players.

“Even though we didn’t get the doubles point, I thought we played really good doubles at the first and second position,” said head coach Paige YaroshukTews, whose No. 1 tandem fell 9-7 in the deciding point. “I think that really got the team focused, and they were just ready to play singles after that.”

No. 39 Laura Vallverdu took down fourth-ranked Josipa Bek, her highest-ranked opponent of the year, 6-2, 6-2, to tie the match at one apiece. When Clemson took a brief 2-1 lead with a win at number five, sophomore Julia Cohen, who is ranked No. 13, upset top-ranked Ani Mijacika in straight sets, 6-4, 6-1.

“Julia is getting comfortable, and she’s starting to believe in herself and her game,” YaroshukTews said. “She understands now that she has the ability to compete with a lot of players. A lot of kids don’t see her particular style of play, and it makes her a very difficult opponent to play against.”

No. 40 Bianca Eichkorn won 7-5, 6-3 at number four, while

No. 63 Michaela Kissell continued her hot streak with a 6-3, 6-3 victory. It was her fourth win in her last five outings, and her third against a ranked opponent on the season.

Junior Claudia Wasilewski took the only three-set match, 5-7, 7-3, 10-2, for her fourth win in five matches.

“Each of the girls really showed up and persevered mentally after a tough loss yesterday,” Yaroshuk-Tews said. “I thought yesterday was a well-fought match, and we just fell short. We had to turn it around in less than 24 hours and play another top 10 program today. We just showed a lot of mental perseverance today to get the win.”

On Saturday, the Yellow Jackets snapped the Canes’ threegame winning streak. Cohen and freshman Gabriela Mejia collected the only two Hurricane points.

All but one of the singles matches were decided in three sets. Cohen grabbed her first of two matches against top-five opponents on the weekend with a 5-7, 6-3, 6-1 comeback against fifth-ranked Irina Falconi. Mejia stretched her winning streak to six before Sunday’s loss with a 6-7, 6-2, 6-4 comeback against Sasha Krupina.

Miami returns home to the Neil Schiff Tennis Center to host rival and No. 17 Florida State (63, 0-1) at 2 p.m. Wednesday.

“For all of our girls to come out and play great tennis today was phenomenal,” YaroshukTews said. “It was really an incredible team effort today. To beat teams like Clemson we’re going to need the entire team to show up. That’s what they did today.”

Christina De Nicola may be contacted at cdenicola@ themiamihurricane.com.

For a recap of the Men’s Tennis match, go to www.

TheMiamiHurricane.com.

ALEX BROADWELL // Hurricane Staff

HUSTLING: Second baseman Scott Lawson and shortstop Ryan Jackson attempt to turn a double play for UM. The Hurricanes won, 4-0, against the N.C. State Wolfpack.

SWEEP FROM PAGE 11 Despite the fact that UM is a young ball club – the team features 12 freshman and three new transfers – this team is resilient.

UM battled back twice Friday night in order to win, as the team was down 5-2 in the eighth and 6-5 in the 12th. Jason Hagerty’s home run swing in the 12th sealed a 7-6 victory for the Canes.

“I was just really happy,” Hagerty said. “It was a back and forth game, and any way I can help us out was awesome. It was the best swing I took all day, so I knew it was gone.”

Saturday, David Gutierrez was dominant. The reigning ACC pitcher of the week picked up the win, as Miami cruised 4-0. His ERA is now a microscopic 0.50.

“Being mentally tough and confident [helps me get out of those situations],” said Gutierrez, of the jam. “I was a reliever my freshman year and would come in with guys on base all the time, so I have some experience.”

Just when you think the Hurricanes had run out of magic, they had an even more impressive come-from-behind victory Sunday.

Down 7-0 after three innings, the Hurricanes looked like they were going to hand N.C. State

STEVEN STUTS // Hurricane Staff

ROUNDING THE BASES: Hurricane Harold Martinez steals second base during the game against N.C. State on Sunday. a victory, but Morris decided to put the baseball in the hands of his bullpen. The bullpen pitched seven innings of scoreless baseball. In the last 36 innings pitched, the bullpen has only allowed three earned runs.

This helped control the game until the Canes bats caught fire.

Hagerty had an RBI triple in the fourth. Then the Hurricanes batted around the order and scored seven times on seven hits in the fifth inning.

“Everyone knows we have a young team,” said Bellamy, after

March 9 - 11, 2009

Sunday’s performance. “For us to bounce back like that was huge, and it shows that we have a lot of character. Being down seven runs early, we could have just given up and thrown in the towel.”

Justin Antweil may be contacted at jantweil@themiamihurricane.com.

For the extended version of this recap, go to www.TheMiamiHurricane. com. Just click “Sports.”

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BRIEFS FOOTBALL Harris and the offense score in spring practice Starting quarterback Jacory Harris completed his first 17 passes as he alternated series with quarterbacks Cannon Smith and Taylor Cook. He led the first team offense on a scoring drive during its first possession, which was capped off by a Graig Cooper one-yard touchdown run. The offense also scored on a Lee Chambers oneyard run in a goal line situation.

Safety Vaughn Telemaque and cornerback Brandon McGee each recorded interceptions. McGee, who joined the team in January, returned his 35 yards for a touchdown.

Miami’s first open scrimmage will take place at Traz Powell Stadium this Thursday.

TRACK/FIELD Ahoure named ACC Performer of the Year Senior sprinter Murielle Ahoure was named the ACC’s Indoor Track and Field Performer of the Year after her performance at

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SPORTS

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the ACC Indoor Championships during the last weekend of February.

Ahoure won both the 60 and 200-meter conference titles. She set the 200-meter meet record in the qualifying run with a time of 23.16, but broke it in the finals at 23.14.

The Bristow, Va., native will compete at the NCAA National Indoor Championships in College Station, Texas, March 13-14.

SOCCER Former Hurricane Ta joins Washington WPS team Former University of Miami women’s soccer player Sheuneen Ta has been added to the roster of the Washington Freedom of Women’s Professional Soccer (WPS).

Ta was a Hurricane from 2003-2007 and played in 66 matches. She is tied for sixth place with 13 assists on the program’s all-time list. As a captain in 2007, Ta led the Canes to the team’s first NCAA tournament appearance since 2001.

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I ‘accidentally’ slept with my roomie’s boy...do I come clean?

, I don’t know what to do. I accidentally slept with my roommate’s boyfriend while she was working. It just happened naturally during the drowsy wee A.M. hours. He has the key to our apartment and entered one night. For me, the night was dreamlike. As I remember the encounter it was pure drunken sensuality.

Now, I am suffering. I am always paranoid that my roommate will find out. The worst for me is when he is visiting because I am wildly attracted to him now. Am I

guilty of betraying my roommate’s friendship? This was not premeditated by me and besides, I was in a deep sleep when the episode started.

Should I tell her?

-Guilty Dear Guilty, You answered your own question when you signed this letter. Yes, you are guilty. It seems like you are more concerned about how to handle the aftermath of this sticky situation.

Before you do anything, you need to take responsibility for your own actions. It takes two to tango, baby, even if you feel like

pawning it off on drunkenness or drowsiness. You made the mistake of sleeping with him. But if a guy has the key to his girlfriend’s place, shouldn’t he know her well enough to know when she’s working? This dude came in with the idea of seducing you, and he had his way. He is a creep. Wait – a scummy creep, who is also at fault here. So despite your utter indiscriminateness, the boyfriend’s a cheater! If you hadn’t allowed him in your pants, who’s to say he wouldn’t have found another pair? Who’s to say he hasn’t already? I’m not one to pick and choose for

dear ...

others, but don’t be attracted to this guy. If he burned your roommate, he’ll burn you too.

I guess we could argue that you are the lesser of two evils.

He actively took advantage of you in a vulnerable state, and you actually recognize the fact that this encounter was wrong.

That being said, would you rather your roommate hear the news from you, or a cheating pervert? Even worse, she could find out on her own.

If you confess, I can’t promise you rainbows and sunshine as the two of you kiss and make up. You did something

hurtful to your friend, and have to accept the consequences of your deviance.

However, coming clean increases the odds of eventually restoring your friendship. You need to show your roommate how much you care about her, and lying to her while allowing her to date a cheater is certainly not the way to accomplish that.

Best of luck!

-V Have a question for V? Hit up DearV@themiamihurricane.com.

Get updates from the ACC Tournament starting Wednesday at blogs.TheMiamiHurricane.com.

Help Non-profits – Get Free Cool T-shirts – Make $$.

Looking 4 spirited socially conscious/ fashionable students to represent new company.

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DEAR V

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