The Quinnipiac Chronicle, Volume 92, Issue 1

SEPTEMBER 8, 2021 • VOLUME 92 • ISSUE 1

The official student newspaper of Quinnipiac University since 1929

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Parking Woes p. 3

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OPINION P.5: MISINFORMATION ON SOCIAL MEDIA The importance behind social media pages responsibly reporting news

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A&L P.6: ADVICE FOR NEW STUDENTS The Quinnipiac Chronicle’s editorial board shares tips for first-year students about adapting to college life

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SPORTS P.10: SIX STORYLINES IN 2021-22 Riley Millette shares this year’s most interesting athletic topics

Club sports teams face budget cut after expansion

By CHATWAN MONGKOL News Editor

In 2019, the first 10 club sports launched with a $5,000 budget per team. In 2020 with two additional teams, they received around $3,580 each. In 2021 when Quinnipiac University recognized 21 club sports, each team received an average of $3,364.

Club sports leaders asked the university for over $100,000 this year but only got $74,000 altogether, according to multiple sources. The leaders were offered two options — to take $43,000 while the university agreed to pay for athletic trainers or to take $74,000 with an additional $75 in membership dues to cover some of the training themselves. The club sports advisory board voted for the latter.

First-year law student and Club Rugby President Drake Marchese explained that his team first came up with a list of what it needed and wanted that totaled around $5,000. The team narrowed it down to $4,500, but it ended up receiving only $3,333 from the university. Marchese said it was not enough.

“It was basically the skin and bones of what we needed to successfully run our club organization,” Marchese said.

Marchese said he needed to increase the dues to pay for trainers and to cover the extra $1,000 that the team needed. Even though the season has not begun, Marchese said he has already felt the

impact of unexpectedly low funding.

“We can purchase things with the money that we had been allotted, but we have to be hesitant because our main season is in the fall and we’re going to be using a majority of our budget for this season,” Marchese said. “But then we also have sevens in the spring. So we’ve been thinking about how are we going to make it so that our players who are paying even more now can get at least two different seasons of rugby.”

Director of Campus Life for Recreation Michael Medina explained that the 10 initial teams received an allocation of $5,000 in 2019. He said those teams don’t need that much money in their third year. Instead, the student representatives on the board focused more on the start-up costs of the new teams.

“We were very strategic about how we allocate that money because our allocation goes through our students,” Medina said. “The club sports advisory board does all of the allocating of funds to our student groups.”

Even though Medina acknowledged that students wish for more money, he said this is a “very healthy” amount compared to other institutions.

The average membership due for every team is around $250 or less, Medina said. After setting up new teams off the ground, he believes there will be more money for club sports next academic year.

“Start-up costs are very difficult to fully cov-

er every team’s expenses,” Medina said. “We’ve really focused on what are the necessities of teams versus what are luxuries and making sure that we try and cover as much of the necessities as we possibly can.”

Medina clarified that $74,000 was the amount handed to the 21 teams, but there was another large chunk from the university for club

sports that went to athletic training. Even though he said the total fund was larger than in 2019, there are also more teams.

Junior graphic and interactive design major and Men’s Club Soccer President Jonah Cohen told The Chronicle that the newly-recognized See CLUB SPORTS Page 2

PHOTO CONTRIBUTED BY DRAKE MARCHESE

Despite a larger overall budget, club sports teams are receiving less money individually.

The Quinnipiac Chronicle

2| News

MEET THE EDITORS EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Michael Sicoli MANAGING EDITORS Emily Flamme Toyloy Brown III CREATIVE DIRECTOR Connor Lawless NEWS EDITORS Nicole McIsaac Chatwan Mongkol ASSOCIATE NEWS EDITOR Melina Khan OPINION EDITOR Xavier Cullen

September 8, 2021

Esports room to open on York Hill campus

By CHATWAN MONGKOL and XAVIER CULLEN

Quinnipiac University is turning a room in the Rocky Top Student Center at the York Hill campus into an esports suite. The space will open in October.

According to permits issued by the Town of Hamden, the renovation costs at least $360,000. The room, located next to the fitness center, will feature 24 Alienware computers and several gaming consoles including Nintendo Switches, PlayStations and Xboxes.

Director of Campus Life for Recreation Michael Medina said that while the suite will be reserved for club esports during practices and games, it will be a place for any student to come and enjoy the games and devices there.

“We will have all the equipment in the room,” Medina said. “There’ll be somebody who will be there to help check out (equipment)

but students are free to bring their own controllers, bring their own keyboards if they’re in the gaming community and they have a specific system that they like to play on.”

Before the construction of the suite, Club Esports President Theo Offerman said almost all players competed in their own dorm rooms or homes, excluding Super Smash Bros. players who gathered in the School of Communications for offline events.

“We absolutely ran into a bunch of issues last season,” Offerman said. “A lot of it rides on internet stability, which can be very unpredictable, and can even change depending on who we’re playing against. ... The esports suite is definitely going to make a lot of things easier, as team members will be able to directly communicate with one another in the same room.”

Offerman said the new practice space will be a great addition to the esports community on the Quinnipiac campus.

“I feel like it’s important to college life because esports has gained a dramatic growth in popularity over the past few years,” Offerman said. “There’s never been a better time to capitalize on that than now.”

Quinnipiac recognized esports as an official club sport in the fall 2020 semester. Offerman thanked all the help from the administration for its support from day one, and hopes to see the club expand even more in the future.

“It’s been an amazing journey to be a part of,” Offerman said. “I couldn’t be more happy than I am now to see that esports has come so far and that there’s still so many places that we’ve yet to go.”

ARTS & LIFE EDITOR Ashley Pelletier ASSOCIATE ARTS & LIFE EDITORS David Matos Neha Seenarine SPORTS EDITOR Riley Millette ASSOCIATE SPORTS EDITOR Peter Piekarski PODCAST PRODUCER Kalleen Rose Ozanic ASSOCIATE PODCAST PRODUCER Brendan Samson COPY EDITOR Katie Langley

THE QUINNIPIAC CHRONICLE recipient of the New England Society Editors’ award for College Newspaper New England for 2011-12, 2012-13

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Once completed, the esports suite will have 24 PCs and a variety of gaming systems such as XBoxes and Nintendo Switches.

Marchese: ‘It was basically the skin and bones of what we needed to successfully run our club organization’ CLUB SPORTS from cover clubs received an extra $1,100 on top of the allotted $74,000 for every team.

Cohen said his men’s soccer team, one of the new clubs, asked for around $4,000 but only got $2,750, plus an additional $1,100 for new teams.

He said it was enough to operate the club. “(The amount the men’s soccer team got) still gave us a little bit of extra money to work with,” Cohen said. “Every team estimates a little bit high just to see, and then we work together to lower it accordingly.”

In terms of team dues, the board voted for an additional $75 charge in exchange for more

money from the university. Cohen said that helped new teams to get started, otherwise, they would have to double their membership dues to cover many expenses.

“A lot of the old teams were pretty sympathetic to that,” Cohen said. “We had all these high expenses come in so everybody was really nice about our perspective on it.”

He confirmed that club sport directors, who are the university’s employees, did not get involved at all during the allocation process. He said they waited for students to figure everything out.

Marchese said the university’s club sports staff has been “amazing” and that they have done everything they can to repre-

sent the students. For the administration, it’s a different story.

“Especially in light of how other money has been spent already, I don’t think that (the administration) has some of the students’ organizations in (its) interests, I guess,” Marchese said.

Quinnipiac added two new teams — esports and women’s running — in the fall 2020 semester.

This year, the university recognized 10 more teams — baseball, men’s basketball, climbing, field hockey, golf, powerlifting, men’s roller hockey, men’s running, men’s soccer and men’s volleyball. The men’s running team merged with the women’s running team.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR should be between 250 and 400 words and must be approved by the editor-inchief before going to print. The Chronicle reserves the right to edit all material, including advertising, based on content, grammar and space requirements. Send letters to thequchronicle@gmail.com. The opinions expressed in this paper are those of the writers and not necessarily those of the Chronicle.

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September 8, 2021

The Quinnipiac Chronicle

News |3

Lack of campus parking frustrates students

By NICOLE MCISAAC News Editor

As Quinnipiac University returns to a fully in-person semester, many students are complaining about the lack of parking spaces available on campus.

“I’ve basically operated under the function that past 9 a.m., you are not getting a spot in the North Lot,” said Billy Schilinger, a senior film major. “It can be a little stressful because if I miss my mark even by a little bit, I can be almost an hour late to class trying to find a spot.”

Associate Vice President for Public Relations John Morgan said there are 4,541 parking spaces on the Mount Carmel and York Hill campuses as well as at nearby off-campus lots such as the Whitney and Westwoods lots. For the Mount Carmel campus, The Chronicle reported in May that there were 2,702 parking spots for students.

The university reopened Hogan lot as there will be fewer parking spaces due to construction and a proposed relocation of campus tennis courts that will reduce 145 spots in the North Lot. Morgan declined any interview with Public Safety.

As a result, many students have adjusted

their daily commute times to find a parking space anywhere on campus.

“I left 30 minutes in advance for my first class on my first day and was almost late because I had to park in Hogan (lot),” said Katie Mone, third-year media studies major. “For the rest of the week, I left a whole hour early and managed to maybe find a spot or just park in areas that are not actually marked parking spots.”

Mone also said problems finding spots consistently persist throughout class hours.

“I feel that the 8-10 a.m. block is a bad time where everyone is trying to come into campus,” Mone said. “Then 5 p.m. is a very busy time where everyone is trying to leave and come in.

It took me a half hour to leave campus at 5.”

Morgan Clarke, a junior law in society major who lives on the York Hill campus, said she has been frustrated that despite having the privilege to park on campus, she is instead forced to depend on other options to commute.

“The school shuttles are not that reliable, so I have to rely on my car to get me to class,” Clarke said. “If there isn’t enough parking, then the school should find a way to add more parking spots.”

In an effort to get around the parking situation, other students have relied on parking their cars in areas that are not affiliated with the university to get to class on time.

“The line just to get on campus is at least a 30-minute wait and when you’re finally able to get past the guard gate there is no available student parking,” said Caprice Williams, junior computer science major. “One time I had to park at Sleeping Giant (State Park) and walk across to the school just so I could get to class.”

Students also emphasized the direct impact the situation is having on their academic life due to the trouble of arriving late to their classes.

“The first week, it was very stressful and I was running to get to my classes,” said Kayleigh Joynt, a sophomore health science major. “I just sneak into the back of my classes and it kinda just makes me feel bad because I’m disrupting the class.”

In addition to the lack of availability and the anticipated $90 commuter parking fee for the spring semester, students are now feeling overlooked and neglected by Quinnipiac’s parking system.

“It honestly makes me feel that they don’t really care about their students,” Mone said.

“Having enough convenient parking spaces should be a priority, so the fact that they are now going to start charging us for bad parking is a little ridiculous.”

Any student with a registered permit who parks in a prohibited space will be subject to pay a fine within 30 days and repeated violations result in loss of campus parking privileges.

Morgan said students who may be struggling to find parking on the Mount Carmel campus can park on the York Hill campus or nearby Whitney and Westwoods lots, as well as finding alternative forms of transportation.

“Students living in both QU and non-QUowned housing, including those living on York Hill and Whitney Village, are strongly encouraged to take advantage of the shuttle bus system and to use these lots when traveling to the Mount Carmel Campus,” Morgan said.

Until then, students will continue to fight for a parking space on campus in order to attend in-person classes.

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Students wait in long lines to find available parking spaces in North Lot.

SGA multicultural and identity senator resigns, citing ‘perverse power dynamic’

By MELINA KHAN Associate News Editor

Following a Student Government Association (SGA) election season that yielded an all-white male executive board (e-board), the multicultural and identity (M&I) senator for the 2021-22 school year has resigned, in part due to inequitable conditions.

Gabriella Colello, a senior political science major, was the sole candidate for two M&I positions in the spring election. The M&I senator represents students of minority races, ethnicities, sexual orientations, gender identities and religion. According to SGA’s constitution, the senator’s role is expected to “advocate for the needs of their respective constituency in the most representative form possible.”

Colello submitted her resignation letter on Aug. 18, to the SGA e-board. In her letter, she cited her reasoning as twofold: the first, that she could not commit to the demands of the position.

“Another point that informed my decision to resign was my inability to justify filling another uncompensated equity role on campus,” Colello wrote in her resignation letter.

Each member of SGA’s e-board receives a $5,000 tuition scholarship per semester of their incumbency. No other members of SGA receive financial compensation.

Colello, who also serves as the vice president of the Indigneous Student Union (ISU), said when she

ran for the M&I position, she was unaware of the compensation the e-board members receive. When she found out about the scholarship, she said she found it “really difficult to justify.”

“I know students in the (multicultural) community who deserve a $10,000 scholarship fo1r the crazy work they’ve been doing, and the identity that they cannot walk away from,” Colello said.

As a Pacific Islander, Colello emphasized the taxing nature of equity work, especially on students from marginalized backgrounds.

“A lot of the students in multicultural orgs aren’t just having fun at their meetings, they are working, and they’re working for the benefit of students after them,” Colello said. “A lot of us are working on things that we’re never going to be able to enjoy. That’s a demand, and it’s a demand that you’re forced into because of your identity.”

As one of ISU’s founding members, Colello said she wants to spend her time working on developing indigeneity initiatives on campus.

“At the end of the day, I realized that I don’t think me being in (the M&I) position is going to be helpful,” Colello said. “I also just couldn’t justify doing equity work in a position where I felt like there was a perverse power dynamic and inequitable compensation for a role that is extraordinarily taxing.”

Ambar Pagan, a senior political science major,

served as M&I senator for the 2020-21 school year.

She echoed the demanding nature of the position.

“It’s not an easy position,” Pagan said. “You have a huge weight and a huge responsibility of making sure that you represent so many cultures, so many identities, so many languages, so many students.”

When it comes to receiving a scholarship or other financial benefits, Pagan said she thinks SGA will always have a structure that will benefit some over others, but that it is always evolving.

“If something isn’t working, then we need to find a way to make sure that other voices, including students of color that are running for these positions ... can also gain opportunities like e-board members are also having,” Pagan said.

Colello said she received positive responses from the e-board upon her resignation.

Jeremy Gustafson, SGA’s vice president for diversity and inclusion, said he is sad to see Colello resign, but that the concerns she outlined would be taken under advisement.

“The points she makes, all of them are very valid, and they’ve been talked about before within SGA,” Gustafson said.

In regard to the scholarship money received by the SGA e-board, Gustafson hopes the benefits for underrepresented students involved on campus will

be improved in the future.

“It’s going to be a part of a much larger conversation, I feel, this year, on ways where we can ensure that students are receiving the recognition that they need for their work that they do on campus,” Gustafson said.

When it comes to the criticism of the lack of diversity on the e-board, Gustafson recognized the privilege they hold.

“I mean it’s quite obvious that we are all white males,” Gustafson said. “The student population did vote us in, however we have to recognize that we come from all privileged backgrounds and we must talk to people to figure out what the actual problems are that we’re not facing on a daily basis and ensure that we can represent all students no matter their backgrounds and identities.”

Gustafson said he is working on improving SGA’s relationship with underrepresented students on campus by being “proactive when stuff arises,” such as helping organize guest speakers for multicultural organizations. He said he is planning to meet with executive board members of the Multicultural Student Leadership Council (MSLC) every month.

With fall elections coming up, SGA is hoping to fill all vacant positions, including the M&I senator position. Gustafson said the e-board is working to have a diverse pool of candidates.

The Quinnipiac Chronicle

4| O p i n i o n

September 8, 2021

Opinion Crypto’s killing the planet

Technological progress is overshadowing environmental concerns

BY XAVIER CULLEN Opinion Editor

The world is currently in a climate crisis.

According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, there were a record-breaking 22 seperate billion-dollar natural disasters in the United States in 2020, costing a combined $96.4 billion. In 1980, only 40 years prior, there were three.

New culprits of these rapidly rising temperatures are cryptocurrencies and non-fungible tokens (NFT).

The energy used to mine crypto alone is enormous. In fact, if Bitcoin were a country, it would rank No. 33 in the world in energy consumption, right behind the Netherlands and the United Arab Emirates, according to the Cambridge Bitcoin Electricity Consumption Index. That’s not even counting Ethereum, a cryptocurrency used in NFT transactions.

And this isn’t mining like you would see at the side of a mountain. It’s using thousands of high-performance computers solving very difficult and complex math problems.

These aren’t just regular laptops or PCs mining for crypto.

Computers mining crypto use top-of-the-line graphics processing units (GPU) that cost thousands of dollars each.

This has led to a worldwide GPU shortage, with the average buyer not being able to purchase an integral part to a new computer. This has driven up prices, and caused manufacturers to scramble for a fix.

All of this mining creates massive amounts of carbon dioxide which is polluting our air, destroying what’s left of our ozone layer and warming our atmosphere. Crypto uses so much energy that Elon Musk, who was a staunch supporter of crypto, announced that Tesla will no longer accept Bitcoin as payment, citing the “rapidly increasing use of fossil fuels for Bitcoin mining and transactions.” After that, Bitcoin’s price dropped by 10%.

The same can be said for NFTs. NFTs are meant to show the originality of a unique item.

For example, an image online can be replicated thousands of times by random users, but an NFT denotes the original file or image. It’s like the difference between the real Mona Lisa, and a poster of it that you can buy at a gift shop. However, that’s not what it’s like in practice.

If you buy an NFT, you still get the same JPEG that everyone else can download, except you also get a line of blockchain that says you alone own the original. That’s it, just some random letters and numbers in a big line of code.

NFTs have been heralded as a great way for digital artists to monetize their work, and that part is true. Digital images have been sold for tens of millions of dollars, all for just a digital proof of ownership. If that is worth millions of dollars and tons of carbon dioxide through the transaction, then the world is doomed.

Because therein lies the problem. NFTs and cryptocurrencies were heralded as a great way to break the limitations of our physical world. The thought was that as we move into a more digital era, so should our art and our money.

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Instead, what they turned into was just a get-rich-quick scheme that is destroying the planet.

NFTs are sold at ridiculous prices, similar to that of classical paintings in auctions. Companies and influencers can slap together a few pixel images, call it high art, gain a reputation through their fans or investors and sell it for millions to some rich person with money burning a hole in their pocket.

Take the incredibly famous CryptoPunk NFTs as an example. CryptoPunks are 10,000 randomly generated pixel images of different cyberpunk faces. The lowest price for one is currently at $378,725.30, according to Larva Labs.

In total, over 13,000 sales are valued around $1.24 billion.

So much could be done with that money. That money could house the over 23,000 homeless people in Los Angeles.

Instead, it’s used for practically worthless lines of blockchain.

Cryptocurrencies are similarly useless, as they’re treated more as a stock on the New York Stock Exchange than they are some revolutionary way to transact money.

Take the infamous DogeCoin for example. When people were chanting “To the moon,” in hopes of DogeCoin hitting one dollar in worth, do you think they were doing that in hopes that it would lead to the decentralization of banks?

No. A majority of investors just wanted their stock to soar and to make more money in turn.

Most recently, the famous esports organization FaZe Clan was caught in a large scandal after several of its members were promoting a scam cryptocurrency that was marketed as a way to “save the kids.”

When it grew in price and popularity, they quickly sold

Over 13,000 sales of 10,000 CryptoPunk NFTs sold for a combined $1.24 billion, according to Larva Labs.

their stock, making hundreds of thousands of dollars, while their fans who bought into it were left with nothing.

The truth of cryptocurrency is that the people profiting from Bitcoin’s stock soaring are not the everyman who has a few bucks in the currency, it’s the millionaires who can afford to pay egregious prices on a volatile market.

In typical rich-people style, temporary monetary gains outweigh permanent environmental losses. And who will pay the price for their actions? Poor people, of course.

When Hurricane Katrina ravaged New Orleans in 2005, homes were completely destroyed and thousands of lives were lost, and poor Black residents were hit the hardest, with years of their lives washed away. This was seen as a once-in-a-generation type of storm — until Hurricane Harvey made landfall in the same area again in 2017, and then Hurricane Ida came just over a week ago.

If a hurricane approaches, wealthy people are able to move out and find a safe place. Everyone else is left behind. When that hurricane hits, expensive houses have the infrastructure to withstand the wind speeds. Everyone else has to pray that their house isn’t blown away. After the hurricane leaves, rich people can pay their way out of the economic losses. Everyone else is left in decades of generational poverty.

“In typical rich-people style, temporary monetary gains outweigh permanent environmental losses. And who will pay the price for their actions?

Poor people, of course.”

– Xavier Cullen

OPINION EDITOR

Climate change, and by extension these cryptocurrency and NFT operations, will make these disasters worse and much more frequent. As our atmosphere and oceans get warmer, wind speeds will increase and hurricanes will grow larger.

Cryptocurrencies, as of right now, are burning away too much energy to be worth the benefits, and it seems that these concerns are an afterthought in the push for technological progress. Creators of cryptocurrencies are too busy thinking of whether or not they could, but they didn’t stop to think if they should.

Maybe the future really is in crypto, and this is the start of the future. But in today’s world, crypto is a carbon-emitting powerhouse, and it needs to be stopped before we cause any more harm to our already ravaged environment.

IMAGE FROM LARVA LABS/WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

The Quinnipiac Chronicle

September 8, 2021

Opinion|5

Opinion Full Send-ing misinformation

Social media pages should report news responsibly, or not at all

BY MICHAEL SICOLI Editor-in-Chief

The importance of correct reporting and information have never been more vital than it is right now.

For years, with a notable change after Donald Trump was elected president in 2016, the news has been consistently under fire for its jaded coverage of current events. Companies will cover the same story in different ways in an effort to capture the facts in a perspective that is appealing to its viewership. As a result, traditional news sources have become a source of distrust among younger populations, and that distrust gave birth to a very real problem in America — disingenuous reporting.

The rise of social media news platforms has allowed teenagers to track current events through their accounts on Instagram or Twitter, and not everyone is following reputable news organizations.

Full Send, a group owned and operated by prank channel Nelk, is a major contributor to misinformation disguised as bluntness. The success of Nelk led to over two million people following Full Send on Instagram. Although the account is no longer available on the platform, it still commands over 20,000 followers on Twitter.

It began by posting content one might expect of a group with a teenage demographic that is 88.7% male according to StarNgage — sports and nostalgic content that I know I always appreciated. It’s what I expect of a brand that was created to sell merchandise around reckless, yet fun, behavior.

What I don’t expect is news. Full Send always dabbled in trending topics but that was typically reserved to sports, crazy stories or tragedies.

The change occurred around when President Joe Biden took office. Since then, Full Send went “full news” and changed course. The Instagram account frequently posts screenshots of their own headlines from Twitter that sensationalize the actual story by warping facts.

SCREENSHOT FROM TWITTER/@FULLSEND

Full Send frequently posts headlines on its social media accounts with no context or link to any website.

Bobcat Buzz Say ‘thanks’ to cafeteria workers

Now, that’s not the biggest problem. But the issue arises when Full Send posts primarily rightleaning narratives with no actual story to follow.

See, Full Send doesn’t cover news, or write stories about it. They just copy headlines and post it to a young audience who read the headline and don’t follow-up. It promotes the same disingenuous news content that my generation is so tired of.

Sharing content from one side of the political fence is an insult in itself, but to do so with a vulnerable demographic presents a danger to this country. It can be downright brainwashing to have your feed flooded with content about the current situation in Afghanistan with literally zero reporting to read about. It’s far too complicated to only read headlines about it, yet Full Send does it with reckless abandon.

Here’s a headline from Aug. 20 on Full Send’s Twitter that says “Kamala Harris tanks in polls as Afghanistan crisis continues.” As simple as that, zero context. On Instagram, before the account became unavailable, it read “NEWS: According to a survey released Thursday, 55% percent of voters believe that Harris is ‘not qualified’ or ‘not qualified at all’ to become the future president.”

What survey? There’s no hyperlink to see, nor any clarification in the caption. There’s no comparison to what it once was to what it is now. How many people were actually surveyed? A headline claiming 55% of voters is misleading in itself.

How many voters thought she was “very qualified” to be the next president?

If you do the slightest bit of research, here’s the real story.

Of the voters surveyed, 43% believe Harris is qualified to assume the presidency, with 29% thinking she is “very qualified.” In comparison, 55% of those surveyed believe Harris is not qualified to assume the presidency, with 47% believing she is “not at all qualified.”

So the headline definitely skewed to the right, but that’s not uncommon as mentioned before.

Where’s this poll actually from? That would be Rasmussen Polls, a pollster that traditionally leans to the right and as a result would have a larger right-leaning following taking its polls.

That’s not my opinion, by the way. FiveThirtyEight and Ad Fontes Media, two moderate groups that are known to evaluate bias in poll groups and news organizations, both have Rasmussen leaning to the right by a considerable margin. This is to speak nothing of the numerous credible news organizations who have dubbed Rasmussen as a “conservative pollster.”

If Full Send wants to quote a biased poll, it should have the decency to include a link to the poll, or at the very least the name of the poll instead of just “survey.” Continuing to push out biased headlines to millions of youths is an irresponsible way to get traction and clicks.

This, of course, applies to both sides of the political spectrum.

Full Send is an example of this, and the biggest one I’m aware of.

Don’t take this as a discredit to what social media can do.

BY BRENDAN SAMSON Associate Podcast Producer

Returning to campus this fall meant a lot to me. I was able to see my friends and suitemates that I missed over the summer, witness the Quinnipiac University community back in action with in-person classes and reunite with all of the faculty and staff that I have met throughout the past two years.

Among them are the people who work tirelessly in the dining halls on a daily basis.

Being a server at the university is a thankless job. They prepare and dish out food to thousands of students every day. Some of those students are rushing between classes or even listening to music while they order. The least you can do is say “thank you,” but I would urge students to go a step further and ask them about their day.

Striking up a conversation with a cafeteria worker can brighten both their day and yours, and you would be surprised by what can come out of it. In my case, I gained a valuable friendship.

The deli on Mount Carmel campus was run by three people during my freshman year, one of which, Lorenzo Vincent, is

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It can and should serve as a medium for unbiased and reliable coverage that reaches a younger audience who does not check the Apple News app as much as their feed on Instagram.

Comparatively, take a look at Jerry News. The Instagram account may have half the followers Full Send does, but it produces infinitely better content. Their headlines are short and informative, devoid of opinion and the Instagram captions aren’t just reiterating the banner with the line “Thoughts?” as Full Send does on occasion. The captions consist of captivating ledes and a couple paragraphs explaining the story. It even updates the captions quickly if new information becomes available.

Nowadays, Americans must be diligent to check their news sources and stay up to date. Full Send and accounts like it should be more responsible with how they “report” given its audience and notable bias.

now my friend. Each day they showed up excited to make sandwiches for students, wearing silly glasses, using funny accents or simply just radiating positive energy.

There was even a sandwich called the “Lorenzo Special.’’

The famous sandwich consisted of buffalo chicken, salami, banana peppers, onions, pepperjack, lettuce and whatever dressing he was feeling that day.

I started ordering it daily and we chatted as he made the sandwich. No matter what was going on, good or bad, my sandwich order was met with complete positivity.

Last year, I did a feature story about Lorenzo for my Reporting for TV 1 class, and he was more than happy to help in any way possible. Now, we still text from time to time about each other’s lives.

I’m not here to brag about finding friends on the Quinnipiac staff, I’m writing to tell you that all of the workers here are great people. You never know who you might impact, so try your best to make their work days as enjoyable as possible.

And as Lorenzo always tells me, “treat others how you want to be treated.”

6|Arts & Life

The Quinnipiac Chronicle

Arts & Life

September 8, 2021

QUCHRONICLE.COM/ARTS-AND-LIFE ARTSLIFE@QUCHRONICLE.COM

Welcome to Quinnipiac

The Chronicle editorial board shares what they wish they knew when they were first-year students "Join a club. It's been the best decision I've made here as someone who never joined one in high school. But since that may come across as an advertisement, be organized. Have a Google Doc of your classes, deadlines or just something to keep yourself on schedule. It's easy to let assignments fall through the cracks when you don't have a way to quickly check what's due." ~Michael Sicoli, Editor-in-Chief

PHOTO CONTRIBUTED BY MICHAEL SICOLI

"Go out and join clubs or organizations!

You’ll make so many friends and have activities/events to attend!" ~Emily Flamme, Managing Editor

PHOTO CONTRIBUTED BY EMILY FLAMME

"Run your own race. Don't feel a need to do the same things others are doing in any aspect really. Your college experience, your education is unique to you." ~Toyloy "TJ" Brown III, Managing Editor

PHOTO CONTRIBUTED BY TOYLOY BROWN III

"Meet everybody you can, there's a ton of people to meet and you aren't going to gel with all of them but you'll meet lifelong friends the first month at college." ~Connor Lawless, Creative Director

PHOTO CONTRIBUTED BY CONNOR LAWLESS

"Try not to wait until the last minute for everything. You'll enjoy the rush of procrastinating at the time, but then it'll be four in the morning and you're working on a paper that's due at nine while your roommate is asleep." ~Ashley Pelletier, Arts & Life Editor

PHOTO CONTRIBUTED BY ASHLEY PELLETIER

"Do something you've never done before. If that means joining a club, playing an intramural sport you've never tried, whatever it may be, you'll meet so many new people and I think that's the No. 1 reason that living on a college campus is important." ~Riley Millette, Sports Editor

PHOTO CONTRIBUTED BY RILEY MILLETTE

"Figure out the organization method that works best for you!! Buy a planner, use Google calendar, ask your friends what they do. If you’re not organized you will definitely forget stuff. Also, READ THE SYLLABUS!" ~Melina Khan, Associate News Editor

PHOTO CONTRIBUTED BY MELINA KHAN

"Go out of your comfort zone, meet as many new people as you can and try things that you never have." ~Brendan Samson, Associate Podcast Producer

PHOTO CONTRIBUTED BY BRENDAN SAMSON

The Quinnipiac Chronicle

September 8, 2021

Arts & Life|7

Keeping it professional

By NEHA SEENARINE

Associate Arts & Life Editor

Television series constantly throw “the perfect couple” trope in our faces. It seems like the person you see every day is your soulmate after five seasons. Your soulmate is ideally someone in your circle like a co-worker. However, after the end of the credits, your love story is not as perfect as Jim and Pam's workplace relationship from "The Office."

A romantic relationship amongst co-workers doesn’t seem too bad in the beginning. However, that’s the case with most romantic relationships. You see the person about 40 hours a week, more than you see your friends and family. When you date a co-worker, the true benefit is saving money on coffee because they will get one for you on their own coffee run. You also know they are employed, so you do not have to check their LinkedIn. The tricky part of dating a co-worker is not knowing their true colors. Their beliefs and political views may not align with your own. You think they’re nice because being polite is a part of their job. If you like your co-worker, it’s probably because of their professionalism. In reality, they just might be the person

“Some companies frown upon romantic relationships in the workplace and honestly, they have a point.”

Neha Seenarine,

Associate Arts & Life Editor

who does not say “Thank you,” when you hold the door for them.

You don’t really know who your co-worker is beyond a professional setting. You can always find them on social media, but how true is the internet? My Twitter bio says I am writing for “The Daily Bugle,” the newspaper from Spider-Man. There are people who lie about their identity all the time on social media.

It does not make a difference because you see them at work. When they clock out for the day, they can have a different life outside the workplace.

For all you know, they could be running a pyramid scheme.

Most workplaces currently require their employees to wear masks. You are left with tons of imagination to guess if your co-worker is attractive or PHOTO FROM PIXABAY.COM not. Their eyes may look dreamy, but Employees can struggle keeping their workplace relationship professional while you have no idea what is underneath on the clock. the mask. Attraction can come from workers. “How did this start? What if this doesn’t work? What if spending too much time with one person. You’re constantly working on projects, so you grow one of you quits?” They will target every move the relationship takes, and create their conspiracies. closer. It’s not true love; it’s just you are both on the clock.

There is a possibility that a romantic workplace relationship A romantic workplace relationship is a privacy issue. There can last. It would be awkward to not invite your co-workers to will be other colleagues who notice a gravitational pull between a wedding.

However, workplace relationships can go south. For two co-workers. Rumors start flying, and the last thing you want is everyone in your business. This can start paranoia like example, the person you’re seeing could be dating someone else being careful of how much interaction you share. A workplace outside of work. The worst part about breaking up is how you rendezvous can leave you in an awkward position of waiting for treat each other. There could be retaliation in the workplace, and that can damage the company’s environment. You can also everyone to leave so you can smooch in the parking lot.

Secrets tend to reveal themselves eventually. Another co- pretend like it never happened. The best part of working with worker can assume or one person may get too excited and tell someone you had romantic feelings for is that you see them all everyone about their brand new relationship. The crucial part of the time. There is no opportunity to miss the time you spent the workplace is people talk. There will be some who are happy together, and you are constantly reminded why it did not work or will disapprove or even give you advice. However, you have out. Some companies frown upon romantic relationships in the to be prepared for the conversations you will have with other co- workplace and, honestly, they have a point.

Yet another Cinderella story The 2021 film, ‘Cinderella,’ joins a long history of adaptations of the same name

By DAVID MATOS

Associate Arts & Life Editor

The inevitable progressive take on the classic fairytale “Cinderella” shows that a film made to fix the flaws of the glass-slipper-wearing servant is not free from criticism.

The musical is written and directed by Kay Cannon, who is best known for producing and writing the “Pitch Perfect” series. It stars Cuban-American singer Camila Cabello in her acting debut, alongside Billy Porter, Nicholas Galitzine, Minnie Driver, Idina Menzel, Pierce Brosnan, and James Corden.

The adaptation loosely references the original characters and plot. It takes a more modern approach to remedy criticism from angered parents who banned the story from their homes due to the lack of a goal-driven female character.

“Cinderella,” released on Amazon Prime Video on Sept. 3, was perfectly imperfect in every way. I refuse to write it off as a “bad” movie due to its occasional fun moments, a strong diverse cast and a unique message and twists. However, many of the other choices made seemed more forced and amateur rather than clever and innovative, which makes it extremely hard for me to classify it as a “good” movie either.

One of the most painful attributes of the movie are the inclusion of the covers of popular songs from decades prior.

Since the songs were not made with the film in mind, they seemed out of place and loosely connected with the ongoing plot. I also imagine children being very frazzled with this as many of the songs are outdated enough that only parents or grandparents can appreciate it. Needless to say, it’s jarring seeing people in sad attempts of historically accurate clothing singing and dancing to songs popular 10 to 40 years ago. It’s much like a glorified Todrick Hall music video with slightly worse visual effects.

Despite its star-studded cast, the acting was quite lousy. Though not entirely the fault of the actors, as much of the script was laughably unrealistic, the acting simply was not believable across the board. The evil stepsisters, played by Maddie Baillio and Charlotte Spencer, and Cinderella’s evil stepmother, played

by Menzel, were strangely very nice to Cinderella in this adaptation. They rarely give the titular character a hard time which makes it difficult to root for Cinderella to escape her current situation.

Cinderella is also always dressed in seemingly normal clothing with no

visible wear and tear and had well-kept hair and makeup. The orphaned servant also had a nice-sized room with seemingly unlimited access to materials to support her passion of dressmaking. Since she lives a very normal lifestyle with what appears to be a friendly stepmother and stepsisters, all empathy for the protagonist was lost.

The lack of chemistry between the prince, played by Galitzine, and Cinderella, played by Cabello, was also a major flaw. Their mutual decision to take things a bit slow was refreshing, but I would often forget they were supposed to be in love until I’m bluntly reminded by a line of dialogue. They appear to be more like good friends than lovers. I wish they committed to being buddies as their partnership is surprisingly not very relevant to the story.

The best part of the whole movie is when Cinderella’s fairy godmother, played by Porter, begins his scene. Porter arrives at Cinderella's rescue in an orange and gold over-the-top outfit bringing the magical and upbeat character to life. He easily brings a new bright and fun energy to the film the moment he appears on screen. Even Cabello seems to be at her best in this scene as her lines are suddenly spoken more naturally, and she appears to be having a good time with her co-star. Porter and Cabello’s singing voices undoubtedly go great together to top things off. This scene alone is worth your time, though I wish the scene lasted a bit longer as it felt a bit rushed.

Though the film has many drawbacks, it is worth seeing if you’re a fan of any previous adaptation of “Cinderella” as it is unlike any other that shares its title. However, it unfortunately did not live up to the hype, and I was left partly disappointed.

I can appreciate the more independent version of Cinderella, but the film didn’t do a good job at having us feel particularly bad for the character. The lack of original music was the worst choice of all and prevented the movie from being what it could've been; a great film.

2/5 glass slippers

PHOTO FROM WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

Billy Porter played 'Fab G', a genderless fairy godmother, in the 2021 adaptation of 'Cinderella.'

ILLUSTRATION BY CONNOR LAWLESS

The Quinnipiac Chronicle

8|Arts & Life

September 8, 2021

Double Roses

Promos for the first back-to-back seasons of 'The Bachelorette' show stark contrast in quality

By ANYA GRONDALSKI Staff Writer

On Aug. 31, ABC released the official trailer for Michelle Young’s Bachelorette season.

Every show in “The Bachelor” franchise proves to enter uncharted territory and be full of wild surprises.

In 2020, “Pilot” Pete Weber left with Hannah Ann Sluss, only to call off their engagement so that he could date runner-up, Madison Prewett. After the break-up, he got together with another contestant from his season, Kelley Flanagan, who he dated for eight months. Clare Crawley left her season on “The Bachelorette” with Dale Moss just 12 days into filming, so Tayshia Adams jumped in to finish the season during the height of COVID-19 last summer. Matt James was cast as the first-ever Black bachelor in January of 2021, but had a complicated ending as his final pick Rachael Kirkconnell fell under scrutiny as a photo recirculated of her attending an antebellum-themed party in 2018.

As you can see, anything #bachelornation is always messy, which is why I love the franchise.

At James’ “After the Final Rose” television special, it was announced that for the first time in history we would have two “Bachelorette” seasons back-to-back. The first season just aired, with Katie Thurston getting engaged to Blake Moynes, a competitor for both Crawley and Adams — third time’s the charm, I suppose.

The second season will star Young as the lead, James’ runner-up who joined the show in week 3. However, her delayed entrance didn’t put their relationship at a disadvantage. At the “After the Final Rose” special, James said “And I always tell people who ask that you weren't late — you were right on time."

I was very excited about this news, as I loved both women on James’s season. I was especially attracted to Thurston’s energy, as she came across as a very boss girl on television.

I could only imagine how great a season dedicated to her love story could be.

Young is projected to finish filming her season two weeks into September, and it will debut Oct. 19.

Aside from the excitement surrounding the new #bachelornation content, many have noticed the glaring

differences between Young’s clearly highly budgeted promo and Thurston's white wall and a t-shirt. Young is seen glimmering from head to toe, walking through a path from flower adorned halls, to a diamond basketball hoop, ending off in a classroom with bursting red apples. Not only is the setting and editing more high-end, but Young is also seen wearing a custom designed gold gown. Thurston wore a white top and purple leather skirt, which many people commented was worn backwards. She does a quick outfit change, which Young did not do, into a tacky prom dress and a white t-shirt that says “Be a Katie.”

One Instagram comment from user @steph.ferriswheel on Sept. 2, read, “they spent more money on flowers for Michelle’s promo than they spent on everything for Katie’s season.”

There has been speculation that producers disliked Thurston during her season. Fans quickly noticed that no producers took to social media to congratulate Thurston and her fiancé Moynes on their engagement, as has been tradition for previous bachelor couples.

Thurston is also known for her brutally honest nature and sex positive attitude. Her “night one” entrance on James’s season was complete with a purple dildo. During the season she was presented as someone who did not tolerate bullying from the other contestants. She approached her own Bachelorette journey with what #bachelornation described to be a “takeno-nonsense” attitude, sending home any man that she had reservations about without discussion. Fans of the show remember her infamous handling of a situation regarding contestant Thomas Jacobs, whom she sent home week four saying “Your bachelor audition ends tonight. So get out.”

However, Thurston seems relatively unbothered by the difference in fashion and video quality between the promo videos, posting a tweet that read “Y’all – I wore a rubber purple skirt (backwards) which was a shoutout to my vibrator. Regardless, I found love and I hope Michelle does too.”Regardless of the differences between these two promotional videos, both Thurston and Young were great picks for Bachelorette. While Thurston refreshed the franchise with a more liberal and real approach, Young will bring a fun, athletic and honest energy to her season.

ILLUSTRATION BY CONNOR LAWLESS

Book of the Week

The 'Truly Devious' series engages even the most experienced mystery readers

By EMILY FLAMME Managing Editor

The “Truly Devious” series written by Maureen Johnson is not only some of the best mystery novels I’ve read, but also my favorite book series.

The first book, “Truly Devious” came out in 2018 and was followed by three more: “Hand on the Wall,” “The Vanishing Stair” and “The Box in the Woods.”

I have read all four and decided that Johnson writes mystery in the best way possible. The stories are intriguing and intense at times, but it’s well-balanced by characters who have large personalities.

Stevie Bell, the main character, is a self-proclaimed detective. I know how that sounds, but stay with me. She finds out about a private prep school called Ellingham Academy where students who excel in a certain skill can apply to receive specialized training and opportunities to work on those skills. However, the school was not up and running for several decades due to murders that happened there in the 1920s. The murderer’s alias was “Truly Devious.”

Bell applies to the school, explaining how she’s a true crime fanatic, but also has excellent detective skills and wants to help finally solve the “Truly Devious” cold case.

The school accepts her, and thus begins the journey of the next three books. Another murder happens a few weeks into school, sending Bell on a crazy path of trying to solve the two seemingly unrelated events. By the end of the third book, Bell solved the mysteries, but not without almost being murdered herself.

Despite the terror she faces at school, she makes several friends along the way and still manages to have fun.

Bell has so much fun that Johnson wrote a fourth novel, “Box in the Woods,” that features the same cast of characters, but in an entirely new setting with a new mystery to solve.

As someone who reads a lot of mystery and thrillers, I have a tendency to figure out what happens before the ending, and if I don’t, it’s usually because the twist doesn’t make sense.

However, with Johnson’s writing, there are twists throughout that make sense, but are still shocking to read. By the end of all her stories, I started to piece things together, but I didn’t have the full picture, which is what makes this the best mystery series I’ve read.

Aside from how well the mystery is written, the character development makes the stories, and Bell seems like a very realistic character. She is a sure and confident person, but what I like most is that Johnson shows her battle with anxiety.

I’m sure a lot of people can find comfort in a character who escapes death several times and solves a decades-old mystery, but also deals with anxiety like 19% of the U.S. population, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness.

The book is inclusive without feeling forced. For example, this is the first novel I’ve read that has a nonbinary character and goes by “they/them” pronouns. The book introduces the character, Vi, and doesn’t make a big deal over the fact that they are nonbinary. It’s only used for how they identify themselves. I really appreciated how casual it was, and I’m confident many people would agree.

If you’re looking for a great mystery that has a lot of twists and a satisfying ending while featuring a great group of characters, this is the series for you.

PHOTO CONTRIBUTED BY LISA FLAMME

'Truly Devious' is a modern mystery series that everyone can enjoy.

September 8, 2021

The Quinnipiac Chronicle

The Vampires ' Resurrection

Arts & Life|9

After years of ridicule, the ‘Twilight’ saga confirms its place in society as a cult classic

By ASHLEY PELLETIER Arts & Life Editor

In October 2005, Stephanie Meyer released a book that would ignite a love of reading for an entire generation. Over 15 years later, “Twilight” is seeing a year of resurgence in popularity that it hasn’t seen since “Breaking Dawn: Part 2” came out in 2012.

The late 2000s through the early 2010s were the peak of the “Twilight” craze. All the films did well in the box office, with fans going so far as to camp out in front of theaters in advance of the premieres. Admirers would horde to wherever the beloved stars were, even if it was clear they wanted privacy.

There were viewers who openly hated the series for many reasons, including the “feminizing” of classic monsters like vampires and werewolves. This so-called feminization has to do with the two main audiences for “Twilight”: teenage girls and middle-aged mothers. Others had issues with the plot of the saga, which heavily revolved around Bella Swan’s choice between Edward Cullen and Jacob Black, the two love interests.

Some reasons for disliking the series are valid, including the treatment of the indigenous Quileute tribe. The Quileute people are a real indigenous tribe on the Pacific coast. However, a fictionalized version of the tribe that can shapeshift into werewolves takes their place in the story. According to the tribe itself, Quileute people received no compensation for the use and perversion of their stories in the “Twilight” saga.

Despite the flaws in the series, “Twilight” has had a revival for multiple reasons. Fans initially began revisiting the four-book, five-film series at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Then, a new book, “Midnight Sun” came out in August 2020. “Midnight Sun” follows the same events of “Twilight” but from Cullen’s perspective. It provides new insight to many of the characters as Cullen has the ability to read (most) characters’ minds.

SCREENSHOT FROM TWITTER @TWILIGHT

Bella Swan's decision between werewolf Jacob Black (left) and vampire Edward Cullen (right) is central to the 'Twilight' saga.

PHOTO CONTRIBUTED BY ASHLEY PELLETIER

There are five novels in the 'Twilight' saga, published from 2005 to 2012.

The latest reason for “Twilight's" resurgence is simple: the series was put on Netflix. Prior to July 16, the saga was available on Showtime, which has less than 40 million subscribers compared to Netflix’s 209 million.

Social media, primarily TikTok and Twitter, has become a channel house for all things “Twilight.” Several TikTok users have dedicated their social media presence to the series, but Lionsgate, the production company that owns Summit Media, has also joined in on the “Twilight” Renaissance.

Every kind of social media post can be seen in regard to “Twilight.” Fans cosplay as popular characters. People make jokes about awkward scenes or controversial plot points. People travel to Forks, Washington, the town where the series is based, to visit the original Swan house and other locations from the first “Twilight” film and to attend the Forever in Twilight Forks Festival. Even one of the creators of the “Twilight” Lexicon, a website dedicated to summarizing, explaining and understanding the series, has made a TikTok for talking about “Twilight.”

While Twilight is having its resurgence, new and returning fans are using a more critical eye when they consume the films and books. The parallels between the story and Meyer’s Mormon beliefs are pointed out and criticized. Plot holes are now being addressed by fans since the movies are streaming on Netflix.

This sudden surge in popularity for the beloved series shows how the original fan base has grown in the nine years since “Breaking Dawn: Part 2.” Rather than rabidly obsessing over Robert Pattinson, Kristen Stewart and Taylor Lautner, “twihards” are looking deeply at the media they enjoy.

Bringing critical thinking into the “Twilight” discourse shows a true love of the characters. Fans are looking at stories written by a flawed human, acknowledging those flaws and having conversations about how they affect the work itself, which allows

SCREENSHOT FROM TIKTOK @JORDANWINANS

The house used for Bella Swan's home in 'Twilight' is an Airbnb rental that has been frequented by fans of the series. them to assess their own relationship with the saga. As those who first found the series when it was coming out and new members of the fandom unite out of love for five books and five movies, they cement the “Twilight” universe into its place as a fan favorite for years to come.

'Shang-Chi' brings new life to the MCU

By LACHIE HARVEY Staff Writer

With cinemas opening back up, the latest installment of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is out for Marvel fans to see. “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings” is the latest and greatest superhero film on the block, featuring the first lead Asian superhero in a film in the MCU. I had the chance to see the film’s debut on Sept. 3, so I’ll share my (spoiler-free) thoughts on it. Unlike most reviews, I won’t spend any time here going over the plot, as it follows the standard superhero movie plotline. It’s not what gives “ShangChi'' its magic; the characters and visuals do. So I’ll be talking specifically about these aspects, alongside the film's dialogue.

First, the characters. Shang-Chi, played by Simu Liu, is one of the most intriguing characters I’ve seen in an MCU project for some time. His story is interesting, and his superpowers are also unique. He derives his power from a set of ten rings, alongside his very refined martial arts skills.

Unfortunately, despite him being the titular character, Shang-Chi is sidelined for much of the film in favor of several side characters.

Katy, played by Awkwafina, and Fala Chen, played by Leiko Wu, both have story arcs which take up screen-time which should have been used to better develop Shang-Chi’s story. These characters are not poorly written, but they simply take up too much of “Shang-Chi’s” runtime. Aside from these two, the remainder of the supporting characters are fantastic. Tony Leung Chiu-wai’s Mandarin is a wellcrafted villain who the audience can sympathize with at times. Leung’s performance is easily the best in the film, and

stands out above his fellow cast members consistently throughout the movie.

The visuals in “Shang-Chi” are a roller coaster ride.

Shang-Chi’s fighting sequences often had flawless and entertaining choreography. There are also sequences where the audience's eyes are simply unable to decipher the shaky camera. The color choices were great, with a combination of dazzling blues, reds and greens that help to emphasize characters choices, thoughts and emotions.

The film could have benefitted from more practical scenes set in traditional Asian settings. The sequences shot in San Francisco early in the film are very accurate and appear devoid of CGI. Many of the sequences shot later in the film in a traditional Asian temple appear far more doctored and less realistic.

Finally, the dialogue. There are some lines in “ShangChi” that caused me to violently slap myself in the face. It’s not a constant issue, however, every so often a character will stop speaking like a human being and turn into a generic video game character. The characters also seem to slip from comical to serious in a heartbeat. This causes a lot of scenes to lose their emotional impact, but most MCU films have this issue. It does a much better job when compared to a film like “Avengers: Age of Ultron,” where characters on the brink of death constantly crack jokes. In other words, there will be times where you will be caught off guard by bad lines in an otherwise solidly written film.

Overall, while the film isn’t perfect, it’s worth watching.

Shang-Chi, as a character, has the potential for a very bright future in the MCU. I’d give “Shang-Chi” six out of 10 rings.

“('Shang-Chi') follows the standard superhero movie plotline. It's not what gives 'Shang-Chi' its magic; the characters and visuals do."

Lachie Harvey, Staff Writer

6/10 rings

The Quinnipiac Chronicle

10|Sports

September 8, 2021

Six storylines to watch during the Quinnipiac sports 2021-22 season

By RILEY MILLETTE Sports Editor

A lot of people were itching to flip the calendar to the 2021-22 school year. Of course, there were several events last year that took precedence over sports.

But Quinnipiac athletes got it pretty rough.

The vast majority of teams were only allowed to play in-conference games, severely limiting travel. Seasons were shortened for some, like the men’s and women’s basketball teams. They both played around 20 games, a significant abbreviation to their usual 30-game schedule.

Some teams had their season shortened and pushed back to an entirely different part of the year. The rugby team played only two games last year, and they were in the spring instead of the fall.

But, barring some sort of pandemic, everything looks to be back to normal for Quinnipiac athletics. The fall sports teams are actually playing in the fall, their seasons don’t appear to be in danger of postponement, and fans are allowed to file into stadiums, indoor or outdoor, to cheer on their Bobcats.

As the calendar moves swiftly onward, here are some of the most important storylines to follow for the 2021-22 season.

1. The rebounding champ is back Graduate student center Kevin Marfo’s name probably sounds familiar for those who have hung around the Quinnipiac campus, although he wasn’t on the basketball team last year. That’s because Marfo was a dominant force for the Bobcats a year prior.

He began his Quinnipiac career in the 2017-18 season as a redshirt sophomore. Towering at 6-feet-8-inches, Marfo was the rock of the lineup. He was a straight center who could pull down double-digit rebounds on any given night.

But he blossomed in a big way as a redshirt junior, and his name became known far beyond Hamden. His 13.3 rebounds per game led the entire NCAA in 2019. He had 17 doubledoubles in the 30-game season, pacing the MAAC. Riding his historic season, he transferred to Texas A&M to play his final undergraduate season. At a school with a higher profile, Marfo served as a rotation player, averaging 12.8 minutes and 3.7 rebounds per game.

But the COVID-19 pandemic granted athletes an extra year of athletic eligibility, and Marfo decided to take advantage of that opportunity. Now rejoining the squad that was denied its opportunity to play in the 2019-20 MAAC tournament due to the pandemic, Marfo is ready to run it back one last time in Hamden.

2. No injuries, no problem The offseason for the women’s soccer team was rather short. Normally, in a season unadulterated by pandemics, the team plays its season in the fall, rests until the next fall, then repeats. But since last year’s season was pushed until the spring, the turnaround is much harsher.

And given that injuries were an issue for last year’s team, that’s not great news.

Yet, the Bobcats emerged as one of the best teams in the MAAC preseason coaches’ poll. The team ranked second among the eight teams due to its incredibly strong young core that’s ready to take the reins from the departed seniors.

Junior goalkeeper Meaghan Phillips, a former MAAC Rookie of the Year, has worked her way back from an injuryplagued 2020 campaign, as evidenced by the MAAC Defensive Player of the Week she brought home on Aug. 30.

Sophomore forward Rebecca Cooke is already a star, with a MAAC Rookie of the Year award to show for her four goals

CONNOR LAWLESS/CHRONICLE

Junior forward Brage Aasen was named MAAC Preseason Player of the Year in the 2021 Preseason Coaches’ Poll. through seven games, which ranked third in the MAAC. Her emergence was one of the main reasons the Bobcats were able to weather the storm last year.

After struggling with injuries in 2020, the Bobcats still rode a talented group to a semifinals appearance. Now that the team is healthy once again, the sky’s the limit.

3. Loaded trophy case Only two years ago, the men’s soccer team graduated forward Eamon Whelan. He was one of the most prolific goal scorers the Quinnipiac pitch had ever seen. But the Bobcats still led the MAAC in goals scored last season (18 goals in nine games).

The Whelan-sized hole was plugged in part by junior forward Brage Aasen, who broke out in a big way as a sophomore in 2020. Aasen led the team in both goals (5) and assists (4), averaging 1.5 points per game. And he has the accolades to back it up.

He landed a spot on the All-MAAC team and on the United Soccer Coaches All-East Second Team as a sophomore and was a member of the All-Rookie Team as a freshman. That’s an impressive amount of success for a player with only two years of experience under his belt.

Aasen is just faster than the defenders he’s matched up against, and it’s that simple. The Bobcats liked to utilize the wing a lot in the 2020 season, which can only be done when you have a burner like Aasen on the pitch. Couple that with his spatial awareness and passing ability, and you get a player chosen as the MAAC Preseason Player of the Year in the 2021 preseason coaches’ poll. His best might be yet to come, and he’s only two years into his Quinnipiac campaign.

4. Women’s basketball ready for payback The women’s basketball team was riding high going into the 2021 MAAC tournament in Atlantic City, New Jersey. It en-

tered the playoffs ranked as the No. 2 seed, squaring off against No. 7 Rider. Despite its low seeding, the 2021 Rider team had a lot of young talent that struck the iron at the right time, sending the Bobcats home far earlier than they were expecting.

Leading the Bobcats’ all-conference attack is senior guard Mackenzie DeWees, the reigning MAAC Player of the Year, and junior center Mikala Morris, who took home MAAC Defensive Player of the Year.

Based on recent history, a loss like this is an outlier. The women’s basketball team went on a historic run in which it won the MAAC tournament in 2015 and from 2017-19.

There’s no reason to think this team can’t once again produce when the games count the most. Although it’s not ideal to graduate guard Shaq Edwards, who averaged 12.5 points per game in her last full season and guard Vanessa Udoji, who was one of the better perimeter defenders on the team, the award-winning core is returning. Time will tell if this team is hungry enough to overcome last year’s disappointing finish.

5. Darkest before the dawn After winning the first game of the season, the softball team went on to drop 11 straight contests. The team then lost 14 of its last 16 games.

The team collectively hit .249, but as the age-old saying goes, pitching and defense wins games. The Bobcats had a 5.74 ERA, second worst in the MAAC, and made the most errors in the conference (63).

The only bright side for the softball team is that the team’s best players are returning. In fact, it was last year’s freshmen who did a lot of the heavy lifting for the Bobcats. Sophomore infielder Kayla Thomas was the middle-of-the-order bat the Bobcats sorely needed, racking up a team-leading 33 RBIs and three home runs.

On the other side of the ball, sophomore pitcher Tori McGraw held a 4.75 ERA and pitched to a 5-7 record. Her ERA was the lowest of any pitcher on the team with more than four appearances. It works in this team’s favor that it boasts youth, but it will likely be hard to shake last year’s 8-28 overall record.

6. Fans are all the way back Not a single student enjoyed having to full-on rush to get student tickets for men’s ice hockey games. It was nerveracking, suspenseful and flat-out not fun.

But something tells me that’s all today’s students want to do.

Indoor athletics were closed to fans and spectators, leaving students on the outside looking in when it came to a certain Saturday night pastime. Yes, Toad’s Place was closed, but that’s not what I’m talking about.

Students have missed packing into the student section at hockey games and losing their minds. Students have missed watching the Teletubbies dance around. Students have missed the utter thrill of watching their nationally-ranked hockey team perform right in front of them every week.

The 2021-22 school year has afforded fans that opportunity once again. And after a long year, it comes not a second too soon.

CONTRIBUTED BY STEVEN MCAVOY

Fans haven’t been able to attend ice hockey games in person since Feb. 29, 2019, Quinnipiac’s last game of the regular season.

September 8, 2021

The Quinnipiac Chronicle

Sports|11

Pecknold: ‘Just a great person and a great ambassador for the university’ TOEWS from Page 12 we were little kids and have had many coaches along the way, so most of the time when you go to a new team with a bit of a different system, the chances are you had done that somewhere along in your hockey career.”

After scoring 46 points in 116 games, Toews had a career year with Colorado, solidifying one of the best defensive cores in the NHL. In his first year with the Avalanche, Toews logged 24:46 minutes of ice time, which is just under five and a half more minutes of average ice time than his tenure with the Islanders. Not only that, but he also netted nine goals, tying him for No. 7 among defensemen and collected 31 points in 53 games.

As stated in a previous Chronicle article produced on Toews, his advanced analytics were nothing special. They were solid middle-pairing stats for an up-and-coming defenseman. The analytical difference in Toews’ play from 2018-20 and 2020-21 looks like two completely different players.

“I still prepare the same way and train the same way regardless of the team,” Toews said.

“It’s a business so you know there is always potential for it so when it happens you have to run with it. It’s never easy leaving a great organization like the Islanders and I have made many lifelong friendships with players and staff there which I am grateful for.”

The three simplest metrics to use for more casual hockey fans or even for people that don’t know the game all that well are Goals Above Replacement (GAR), Wins Above Replacement (WAR) and Standing Points Above Replacement (SPAR determines how many points a player adds to his team in the standings, not scoring points). It gives a more complete picture of how useful a player is for a team’s success.

While playing in New York, his highest totals for each given category were as follows: 4.9 GAR, .9 WAR and 1.7 SPAR, which all came during his 2019-20 season. Then when it came time to suit up in Colorado, Toews’ stats sky-rocketed, producing a 14.7 GAR, 2.6 WAR and 4.9 SPAR. Comparing that to his teammate and Norris candidate runner-up Cale Makar, it was almost identical. Makar finished with a 16.5 GAR, 3.0 WAR and 5.5 SPAR. The biggest difference between the two players is the offensive prowess that Makar holds.

Toews is a much better defender than Makar and was nearly unbeatable on defense at even strength. Diving deeper into how good

Toews was last season, looking at Evolving Hockey’s GAR chart for all defensemen last season, Toews finished third in the league in total GAR. Makar finished first.

The GAR chart evaluates isolated impacts of a player at any given on-ice situation. More specifically, it takes into account a player’s impact at even strength on offense and defense (EVO and EVD respectively) on the power play, while short-handed and their ability to draw penalties versus taking penalties.

In total, even looking at GAR among all forwards and defensemen in the league, Toews finished No. 10 overall.

It was a long grind to get to this level of productivity, but Toews made the best of it.

After three seasons with the Bobcats, Toews joined the Islanders’ AHL affiliate — the Bridgeport Sound Tigers — from 2016 until midway through 2019 when the Islanders decided to promote him to the NHL. During his fifth game with the Islanders, Toews netted his first career NHL goal in overtime against the Chicago Blackhawks.

“First goal was incredible,” Toews said.

“Having the opportunity to be on the ice in overtime is a privilege in itself. I’ve been fortunate to have a few and each one is uniquely special. One of the cooler gestures was Johnny Boychuk gifting me an engraved wine bottle with the final score and my name next to ‘OT winner’ on it. That is something I will keep forever.”

He then got his first taste of playoff hockey at the highest level. And so far, he has appeared in the postseason all three seasons of his NHL career.

“Only the first year was really a normal playoff environment,” Toews said. “The conference finals year was in the bubble with no fans so that was different, but the moment and the circumstances were the same. Having an empty building didn’t change how we prepared or attacked each game in that atmosphere. Obviously, this past year got close to full capacity again near the end of the year so it was nice to have the buzz back in the arena and be able to play in front of your home fans.”

All in all, it’s been a continuous grind for Toews — Quinnipiac’s most successful NHL player ever. And there’s more to come.

PHOTO FROM WIKIMEDIA COMMONS “Just a great person and a great ambassador Devon Toews signed a four-year, $16.4 million contract with the Colorado Avalanche as a for the university,” Pecknold said. restricted free agent in 2020.

INFOGRAPHIC BY CONNOR LAWLESS, STATS COURTESY OF EVOLVING HOCKEY

12|Sports

The Quinnipiac Chronicle

September 8, 2021

Sports

@QUCHRONSPORTS

CONTRIBUTED BY QU ATHLETICS

Pete’s pond: Quinnipiac’s finest

Devon Toews is QU’s most successful hockey alumnus, and he’s still ascending

By PETER PIEKARSKI Associate Sports Editor

For the first time ever, a former Quinnipiac Bobcat, Devon Toews, received votes for the James Norris Memorial trophy, an annual award given to the best overall defenseman in an NHL season.

Not only that, but he secured more votes than two early season favorites in the Washington Capitals’ John Carlson and the Nashville Predators’ Roman Josi, who won the Norris trophy the previous season.

“I just feel like I had a consistent year from a playing aspect, whether you want to contribute that to taking a step in my game or the team I was playing for,” Toews said. “It does not matter to me, I just try to do my job to help my team win. Would I have had Norris’ votes if I was in New York? I couldn’t tell you the answer to that, but I loved playing for Barry Trotz there and I equally love playing for Jared (Bednar) in Colorado. Both coaches and organizations have put me in good positions to succeed.”

Toews was dealt in the 2020 offseason from the New York Islanders to the Colorado Avalanche, less than a month after assisting the Islanders in reaching the conference finals for the first time since 1993.

The Islanders are well known for their defensive scheming and shutting down the premier offenses in the league. However, it severely limits the impact defensemen can make on the offensive end, which in turn limited Toews’ ability.

“I thought it was going to be great for his career,” Quinnipiac men’s ice hockey head coach Rand Pecknold said. “I just thought in New York they had him slotted in a certain role and I thought he was better than that. I think Barry Trotz is one of the best coaches in the NHL, but they had a lot of depth at (defense) and I thought going to Colorado might be a new opportunity for him to get even more ice time.”

Joining Colorado, whose system allows its defensemen to produce more offensively, was the perfect match for Toews. He established his ability to be a two-way defenseman at every level, and the 2021 season personified that.

“Anytime you change teams, it’s a different group of players that you have to learn to understand,” Toews said. “The playstyles aren’t entirely different, but the personnel is and that is what takes time to learn. We have all been playing hockey since See TOEWS Page 11

Devon Toews became the first Bobcat to receive votes for the James Norris Memorial Trophy.

COURTESY OF QU ATHLETICS