ROUNDUP

The Pierce College women’s volleyball team defeated Bakersfield College in the championship game of the Brahmas’ 3rd Invitational Volleyball Tournament Saturday in Pierce’s South Gym, extending their winning streak to 47 matches.

Pierce defeated Bakersfield 25-17, 2518, 19-25, 25-22, marking the first time the Brahmas had lost a set all season.

The Brahmas are currently ranked first in the state and viewed this tournament as their greatest achievement of the season so far.

The Brahmas defeated Saddleback College 25-11, 25-5, 25-17 on Friday, advancing them into the semifinals of the tournament Saturday afternoon.

Sophomore outside hitter Danetta Boykin continued the team offensively, collecting 18 kills in the championship match.

“This tournament was far more competitive than the others, and made me a little frustrated,” Boykin said. “But we continued to play our game.”

Golden West College played their best game of the tournament against Pierce Saturday afternoon, keeping the scores close.

The Brahmas held together, defeating Golden West 25-16, 25-22, 25-22, advancing them to the championship game of the tournament being played on Saturday night.

Head coach Nabil Mardini was very pleased to see the way his team had played, using teamwork and skill to defeat their opponents.

“Our girls did their jobs, passing and setting each other up for scores, and played their roles well,” Mardini said.

Sophomore setter Janelle Futch lead the Brahmas in assists in the tournament, compiling 82 assists combined in the two matches on Saturday.

Bakersfield came into the championship game determined for revenge after their loss to Pierce in the championship game during the San Diego Mesa College 27th Invitational

Volleyball Tournament on Sept. 15.

While Bakersfield managed to take a set from the Brahmas, it wasn’t enough as Pierce won their second tournament of the season.

According to sophomore outside hitter Sakurako Fujii, the loss of the third rattled the Brahmas, but only momentarily.

“Their defense was good, and they made me nervous after winning in the third set,” Fujii said. “But we were focused on winning in the next set.”

Fujii attributed the difficulty with Bakersfield to great defense and possible fatigue factors.

“We play to win, though we were tired and fatigued,” Fujii said. “Our coaches put our heads back in the game.”

Mardini was pleased to see the success of this team, but felt his girls still have things to improve on.

“Our team did an excellent job, though we could have assisted and positioned the ball a bit better,” Mardini said. Their next match is Wednesday, Sept. 26 at 7 p.m. in the South Gym at Pierce College.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of California announced the indictment of 21 individuals on Tuesday for their alleged participation in various fraudulent financial aid rings that produced hundreds of thousands dollars for the suspects.

Since August, 17 people have been indicted in six cases for their involvement in federal student aid fraud schemes at 15 California college campuses and generated more than $770,000 in illicit funds, according to a statement released on the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s website. “As I understand, they go from one college to another, working their way through the state,” said Anna Davies, the vice president of Academic Affairs at Pierce College. “Because there are 112 colleges in California there are plenty of opportunities for them to repeat their crimes.”

A September 2011 investigative report published by the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Inspector General states that more than $7.5 million in restitutions and fines had been ordered in the six years leading up to the report, resulting in the criminal convictions of 215 distance education fraud ring participants.

Schools involve everyone from the sheriff’s office to the dean of student services in its attempt to discover fraudulent activity.

“If we are aware of fraud, we will right away notify the Office of Inspector General of the Department of Education, work with them, provide them the information that we have and then there could be an investigation,” she said. “If that particular student is guilty, they could go to jail and get a hefty fine.”

According to the U.S. Department of Justice, those charged with theft of government funds may face a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, or both.

Vice President of Academic Affairs Anna Davies expressed concerns that financial aid fraud and abuse may result in government restrictions and regulation of financial aid, limiting access to funds for students.

“Because the college has to repay financial aid to the federal government for students who commit fraud, we end up having less money to support the students who are here and working very hard to be successful,” Davies said.

Besides the economic toll financial aid scams may have on students, they may also impact them academically.

“Students who are committing financial aid fraud do initially register for classes, so they are taking a seat away from someone who is waiting and committed to attending courses,” Davies said. “Typically the fraud will occur when the student does not show up to class, but has collected an initial disbursement of aid.The impact this has on the average student is that it does take away available seats.”

Pierce tracks all students who drop classes after receiving financial assistance, also placing a hold that restricts those who did not return the funds from registering for financial aid nationwide, according to Robinson.

Robinson advised students to reduce the possibilities of becoming victims.

“I always tell students to not ever – never, never, never, never – provide anybody their personal information,” she said. “It does not matter whether it’s your girlfriend or boyfriend, friend, best friend – that person, the other person, should not have all that information about you. You should not divulge all that personal information to a stranger, because that’s how it all starts.”

More information can be found on the Pierce Financial Aid Office website, or students can visit Student Services.