March 5, 2013 | The Miami Student

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The Miami Student Oldest university newspaper in the United States, established 1826

TUESDAY, MARCH 5, 2013

VOLUME 140 NO. 43 TODAY IN MIAMI HISTORY

In 1929, The Miami Student reported that Miss Hamilton, dean of women had sent letters to each of the Oxford restaurant proprietors urging them for cooperation in maintaining “high standards of dignity and conduct among students.” The letter concluded that the college would create a list of restaurants “who are interested, not alone in the food and drink they sell, but also in the conditions of the dignity and good taste which prevail in their places.”

Women’s swimming and diving captures MAC title BY CONOR SEMPLE FOR THE MIAMI STUDENT

The Miami University women’s swimming and diving team captured its 17th Mid-American Conference (MAC) championship in a dominant performance. It is the team’s first MAC title since 2009. “It was our goal all year to win a MAC championship,” Women’s Head Coach David Jennings said. “It was kind of the thing that kept us going all year and I think our team is very satisfied with the results from this weekend.” The RedHawks won despite not taking first place in any of the 20 events. It is the first time a team has won the MAC title doing so. “I really feel like our depth made the difference this weekend,” Jennings said. “Throughout the 13 swimming events and the diving competitions, our girls were very consistent with getting high scores which ended up helping our team out a lot in the end.” The team’s 621 overall score gave it a comfortable 116 point margin over second place. The RedHawks got off to a fast start and never looked back,

MIAMI UNIVERSITY OXFORD, OHIO

as Bekka Westrick, Maegan O’Connor and Leah Thornton provided key senior leadership to guide their team to victory. Westrick and Thornton finished in second place along with senior Maddie Kete and junior Nicole Wagner in the 200m relay and O’Connor grabbed a fourth place finish in the 100m butterfly. “It just really shows our guts,” Thornton said. “We stuck to what we wanted to do all season which is do what we’ve always done and it’s very satisfying to see us come through with it in the end… It is hard to believe that it is all over, but it definitely feels good to get sent off on a note like that.” Other notable finishers were freshman Aubrey Kluth, sophomore Courtney Collett and junior diver Nikki Craft. Kluth placed fourth in the 400 individual medley, Collett finished sixth in the 200 freestyle and junior Nikki Craft took home fourth in the three-meter board with a score of 331.9. Rival Ohio University took home second place with 505 points, while Bowling Green State University finished third. The University of Toledo, the

defending conference champions, finished in the middle of the pack in sixth place. The team closes an impressive season having not lost a meet since its season opener against Purdue University. The ’Hawks also recorded a perfect 6-0 conference record. Several individuals took home awards to cap off the season. Westrick ended up getting firstteam All-MAC honors, while Thornton, O’Connor, Collett, Kluth and Wagner received secondteam All-MAC honors. “It is definitely neat to get those individual awards and it makes us that much more special,” Thornton said. Coach Jennings commended the senior talent. “The seniors have really done an excellent job all year of leading this team,” Jennings said “They really worked hard and deserved this.” Although sad to see the seniors go, Jennings is still very confident heading into next year. With the current members of the team plus the talent coming in next year, he thinks they still have a good chance to repeat as MAC champs.

BLAKE WILSON THE MIAMI STUDENT

The Miami University women’s swimming and diving team earned its 17th MAC championship title Saturday.

Note to our readers: Every spring leadership of The Miami Student changes hands. This marks the last issue with Lauren Ceronie as Editor in Chief. Starting March 19, Hannah Stein will be Editor in Chief. This is also the final issue for Sarah Sidlow as News Editor, Allison McGillivray and Katie Taylor as Campus Editors, Olivia Hnat as Community Editor, Rachel Sacks as Editorial Editor, and Reid Groth as Managing Editor.

Synchronized team ties US figure skating record

BLAKE WILSON THE MIAMI STUDENT

The Miami collegiate synchronized skating team earned its ninth straight national title Saturday. It is the program’s 15th national title in its 17-year history.

BY ALYSSA ZEDIKER FOR THE MIAMI STUDENT

The Miami University collegiate synchronized skating team took home its ninth straight national title, which ties the U.S. figure skating record. It is the program’s 15th national title in the 17 years Miami has had a collegiate team. “The collegiate team here at Miami has something really special, and we have this legacy or dynasty within U.S. figure skating, and for next year I am just ready to claim the title as our own,” collegiate and junior skater, sophomore Jennifer Stewart said. “Each year we are stepping up and showing the world how incredible this program really is.” The collegiate team’s Rock ‘N’ Roll themed show amassed a 92.26 score for a RedHawk victory, which beat out second place by 8.51 points. The team also extended its winning streak to 11 first-place finishes, which began at the start of the 2010-11 season. “Afterwards, when we heard our results, it was that final exclamation point on the season,” Stewart said. “It made this season so incredible and this team such a strong force.” The senior and junior teams also performed well, with the senior team earning a berth to the World Competition held in Boston Mass., after it earned a second place finish from its Nationals performances. The Professional Figure Skaters Association also awarded the team’s short program. “The senior team took the ice and they took it to win and both their programs were really fast and energetic, and they were really in the zone,” Head Coach Carla DeGirolamo said.

The Redhawks’ senior team was the last to perform Saturday evening and finished with a total combined score of 191.28. They greatly improved upon their previous seasonbest 148.33 score, giving them a 42.95 point improvement over the past month. “Being in top form at the National Championship is crucial to qualify for the World Championship, but there is definitely more that we can do to grow, so I am excited to see where the next four weeks will take us and where we will wind up in the end,” DeGirolamo said. They will be joined at the World Competition by fellow U.S. team the Haydenettes, who placed first at the Nationals Competition with a combined score of 206.33. The junior team finished Friday following its long program and placed sixth overall in a field of 12. The level at which the RedHawks competed earned them the opportunity to return to the international stage next season by earning a team USA bid. “Getting our team USA bid back is very cool and it is something that we can do for the skaters that are coming to Miami,” Stewart said. The team’s combined score for the competition was 132.40 and it also placed sixth for its short program with 46.12 points. Both scores were season-bests for the junior team, which earned 8.37 more points on top of its combined score from the Junior World Qualifier. “We went in with the intention to just dominate the entire competition, and coming away from it now I feel like we did just that,” Stewart said. “We really closed out our season in the perfect way.”

Brotherhood barrels Buckeyes to clinch final CCHA regular season title BY JOE GIERINGER SENIOR STAFF WRITER

It took all 28 matches of Central Collegiate Hockey Association (CCHA) play, but when all was said and done, the Miami University men’s hockey team was at the top of the standings with 59 points. It can now be said that in its final season of existence, the RedHawks were CCHA regular season champions. Miami needed just one win to seal the first place finish, but Friday night proved tough. Nine RedHawks compiled 30 shots on goal, but it was not enough to find a way past senior goaltender Brady Hjelle, who earned a shutout in Ohio State’s 3-0 win. As the rematch came into focus, it had all the earmarks of a classic. Miami needed a victory to assure the regular season title, and the last regular season game in CCHA game to ever be played at Goggin Ice Center was also Miami’s senior night.

The elder RedHawks wasted no time making their presence felt, as senior forward Curtis McKenzie struck just 10 seconds into the first power play of the night. “We weren’t too happy about last night’s power play,” McKenzie said of Friday’s 0-for-4 man-advantage efforts on Friday. “We just had to refocus tonight. Right away we got the opportunity to get the puck in front of the net, and we had to capitalize on it. It was nice getting one behind the goalie tonight right away.” CCHA leading scorer Riley Barber added to his team’s lead halfway through the second period on a 4-on-4 chance as the freshman phenom danced his way through a pair of OSU defensemen. “That was such a pretty goal,” McKenzie said, shaking his head as he recalled Barber’s strike. “I was going crazy in the penalty box.” The Buckeyes wouldn’t go quietly however, as just minutes into

the third period they were handed a 5-on-3 power play opportunity off of freshman forward Sean Kuraly’s major penalty. The RedHawks killed the penalty off to thunderous applause, after which sophomore forward Blake Coleman intercepted a pass and capitalized on the turnover, giving his team a commanding 3-0 lead.

That trophy is forever ours now. It is a special, special win.” CURTIS MCKENZIE SENIOR FORWARD

Sophomore forward Cody Murphy would buried a laser of a shot with just under five minutes remaining in the game to seal the game. The Buckeyes scored twice as the clock ticked away, but it wouldn’t matter. When the dust settled, Miami

had earned its fourth CCHA regular season championship banner. “Ohio State played great all weekend,” Head Coach Enrico Blasi said. “It feels good to win a championship, and obviously it’s a big deal. I’ve said it before that the regular season championship is a difficult one to win because you have to be good consistently for six months … if you’re fortunate enough to be in position to win one it’s pretty amazing.” This is Blasi’s third league crown, and his first since the 2009-10 season. Being at the helm of such a young team, this one might have a special spot in the head coach’s heart. “As far as this team is concerned, I don’t think anyone would have picked them to do anything,” Blasi said. “For them to set themselves up at the beginning of the year to just go out and play and have fun for each other, I’m so proud of them and the way they’ve conducted themselves. That’s season one, and now we’re

getting ready for season two.” As far as the players are concerned, this is just the beginning – and it all started with the mindset in the Miami locker room. At the beginning of the year, the team bought into the system that the coaching staff put in place, and it’s paying dividends now. But as Blasi is fond of reminding his team, there’s a lot of hockey left to be played. The concept of The Brotherhood is alive and well in Oxford, and that’s what makes the team so special in the eyes of its players. “That’s why we play so hard for each other,” Barber said. “All of us just love each other so much. It’s kind of cliché to say you love your brother but it really is true.” Miami will have two weeks of practice before its second round entry in the CCHA tournament, thanks to a first round bye. The best of three series will be held March 15-17 at the Goggin Ice Center, against a yet-tobe-determined opponent.


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