The Quinnipiac Chronicle, Volume 92, Issue 5

OCTOBER 6, 2021 • VOLUME 92 • ISSUE 5

The official student newspaper of Quinnipiac University since 1929

‘A slap in the face:’ Nurse anesthesia program’s closure comes with unclear plan ILLUSTRATION BY XAVIER CULLEN, PHOTO BY JARED HOLT

OPINION P.4: ALEX JONES OVERLOAD Opinion Editor Xavier Cullen explains why Alex Jones doesn’t deserve attention

CONNOR LAWLESS/CHRONICLE

By CHATWAN MONGKOL News Editor

Nurse anesthesia students are facing an uncertain future after Quinnipiac University abruptly announced their program’s closure earlier this year without a blueprint for what’s next.

Following the School of Nursing’s “careful analysis” of its offerings and how to best allocate its resources, it decided to begin a process to discontinue the nurse anesthesia program, according to an email the school’s Dean Lisa O’Connor sent to 43 students in June.

After multiple failed attempts to schedule a meeting with the nursing school’s leadership to receive some clarification, second-year nurse anesthesia student Jasmeet Mahandru and other students asked the Connecticut Office of Higher Education (OHE) for help.

The Chronicle obtained emails exchanged between July and August from the OHE through the Freedom of Information Act, which suggest that Quinnipiac administration did not respond to students until after they wrote to the OHE. Emily Bjornberg, OHE senior consultant, wrote in an email to Quinnipiac Vice President for Academic Innovation and Effectiveness Annalisa Zinn after receiving student complaints

asking her to contact Mahandru directly.

“I am hoping you can help me avoid a repeat of last time and try to nip this in the bud,” Bjornberg wrote.

Zinn later reached out to Mahandru, saying that the OHE informed her of the complaint and that she was pleased to answer questions and resolve any concerns.

“It is unfortunate it took the state of CT Office of Higher Education when someone could’ve done their job at QU and just responded to us,” Mahandru wrote to Zinn. “It took a (state) office to step in for a response but I’m grateful for their advocation for the students in our program.”

In an interview with The Chronicle, Mahandru said another student in her class filed a complaint with the OHE, and she contacted two Connecticut senators about her concerns before they directed her to the OHE. Now, she said she remains distrustful of Quinnipiac and the School of Nursing.

“It appears that there hasn’t been a lot of transparency between administration and our program,” Mahandru said. “They, not our directors, but the school itself has let, personally at least me, down.”

OHE Chief Academic Officer Sean Seep-

ersad confirmed his office received complaints from students and has communicated with university administration to assess the situation and ensure that students can graduate.

Seepersad said the OHE will continue to work with Quinnipiac “to keep students informed as QU fulfills its obligations and graduates their current enrollees.”

Mahandru described her experience with Quinnipiac, in an email to Zinn, as “overwhelming” because they had to deal with getting clarification from the university while taking care of their patients outside of the classroom.

“We’re upset, frustrated and tired,” Mahandru wrote. “Just because our program is closing, stop taking advantage of it. Because that is what it feels like.”

Mahandru told The Chronicle many people don’t know that nurse anesthesia students had to sacrifice a lot to be in the program.

The Chronicle reached out to multiple students in the program in recent months and has not received any responses.

Provost Debra Liebowitz told The Chronicle that the university met with students during the See NURSE ANESTHESIA Page 3

DANIEL PASSAPERA/CHRONICLE

A&L P.6: FRESH CHECK DAY Quinnipiac’s Counseling Services held its annual mental health awareness day

CONNOR LAWLESS/CHRONICLE

SPORTS P.11: WOMEN’S HOCKEY RANKED NO. 8 Depth and chemistry makes Lexie Adzija and the Bobcats hungry for an ECAC Hockey title

Hate crimes and violence against women at Quinnipiac increase in 2020

By CHATWAN MONGKOL News Editor

NICOLE MCISAAC/CHRONICLE

Quinnipiac’s Public Safety Department works with the Hamden Police Department to help handle crimes that happen on campus.

Quinnipiac University reported an uptick in hate crimes, violence against women, burglaries and liquor law violations in 2020, according to the 2021 Security and Fire Safety Report the university released on Friday.

The university initially reported on Friday nine hate crimes in 2020. Associate Vice President for Public Relations John Morgan told The Chronicle on Tuesday that the Clery Center did an audit and only qualified three of the nine “preliminary” reported incidents as hate crimes.

Among the three, two were hate crimes against national origin, and one was against race. All were reported as intimidation acts.

Vice President for Equity, Inclusion and Leadership Development Don Sawyer clarified that the other six incidents could be considered as bias incidents, not Clery Actdefined hate crimes.

Ali Vidallon, senior nursing major and president of the Gender and Sexuality Alliance (GSA), said the increase is disappointing and reflects irresponsibility. As a student of color and a member of the LGBTQ community, she

said she always has to be more aware of her surroundings, especially with how she interacts with others in different settings.

“These events are not completely detached from one another,” Vidallon said. “They are cultivated from the campus’s culture and reluctance to prevent this unwanted behavior.”

With national hate crimes also on the rise, according to the FBI, sophomore sociology major and Asian Student Alliance (ASA) Public Relations Officer Naomi Gorero said it’s unsettling to see the increase on campus.

“I still even feel unsure and even scared to be in public even though in the recent months, it’s been rather quiet or it’s probably because the media are no longer wanting to cover these hate crimes anymore,” Gorero said.

Students think the official numbers don’t reflect what really happened. Vidallon said there is no doubt that there are more incidents that went unreported.

“I hear countless stories of both microaggressions and overt prejudice from people around me that are not only disheartening See CLERY REPORT Page 3

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

The Quinnipiac Chronicle

Faulty COVID test results, dismissive staff: Students face health care obstacles

By BRIANNA MCELDOWNEY and MELINA KHAN

Quinnipiac University students say receiving medical care on campus has been especially difficult this semester because of inaccurate COVID-19 test results, dismissive staff and challenges scheduling appointments.

Christy Chase, director of Student Health Services, said the health center has seen a 23% increase in visits this semester and some days the health center has over 120 patients.

“Most students are experiencing an upper respiratory viral illness that is not COVID,” Chase

quent negative results, Student Health Services officials required her to quarantine for a day.

Freede said the workers at the health center told her faulty COVID-19 tests have been a problem, which has led students to be forced into quarantine.

“They knew themselves, they were like, ‘this is an issue,’” Freede said. “The lady then tested me with another box ... and I was fully negative.”

Associate Vice President for Public Relations John Morgan said Student Health Services uses a three-step process when testing students

OPINION EDITOR Xavier Cullen 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 ASSOCIATE PHOTO EDITOR Daniel Passapera THE QUINNIPIAC CHRONICLE is the proud recipient of the New England Society of Newspaper Editors’ award for College Newspaper of the Year in New England for 2011-12, 2012-13 and 2015-16.

Sign up for our weekly newsletter, by emailing Michael Sicoli at michael.sicoli@quinnipiac.edu.

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Students said they had negative experiences at the Health and Wellness Center. said. “As life starts to return to more normal, we will all continue to see viral illnesses and possibly flu as restrictions on masking and spacing are lifted.”

However, students who were recently sick said receiving adequate treatment at the health center is difficult.

Alexa Freede, a sophomore interdisciplinary studies major, went in with cold symptoms and was tested for COVID-19. She said her test came back as a false positive and despite two subse-

for COVID-19. Students are first tested with a 15-minute antigen BinaxNOW test. If that result is positive, the student will be tested with an Abbott ID molecular test. If that result is negative, a PCR test will be administered and is sent to an off-campus laboratory for testing.

Other students said they have had similar experiences to Freede’s. Emily Butler, a sophomore nursing major, sought care at the health center last week for a common cold.

She said she did not have a good experience

during her appointment.

“The (physician’s assistant) I spoke to was very dismissive about my symptoms and stuff and was like, ‘oh you’re fine, you’re fine,’ and I was like, ‘I don’t feel fine, I have a fever,’” Butler said.

The physician’s assistant gave her decongestants and cough drops, but Butler said they have not improved her health. She said she has been borrowing cold medicine from her roommate instead.

In the future, Freede said she would rather travel off campus for care. After seeing what she experienced, one of Freede’s friends, sophomore education major Alesandra Sicuranza, already did so.

“After that experience, I drove home to my own doctor,” Sicuranza said. “I was like, ‘I’m not having that happen to me.’”

Chase said “students should continue to be diligent regarding basic hygiene practices, including good hand washing, getting enough rest, following a well-balanced diet, not sharing any items and continuing to wipe down surfaces.”

In past years, students have also faced challenges with the health clinic.

Gabriella Angeletti, a graduate occupational therapy student, visited the health clinic right before last year’s Thanksgiving break in order to receive medication.

“She never sent the prescription to my pharmacy and then when I tried calling back the phones were off for a week because it was (winter) break,” Angeletti said. “I had to go to my doctor at home who had to squeeze me in last minute.”

Making appointments has always been a difficult process, Angelleti said.

“I know they used to do it online and that was complicated, and now you have to call, you can’t walk in, it’s not as accessible as it should be,” Angeletti said.

Chase said appointments are scheduled based on the urgency of the care needed.

“Our staff strives to offer every student the same comprehensive care,” Chase said.

Latin fraternity discusses importance of Black and brown unity

By JACKLYN PELLEGRINO and ALEXIS CERVANTES

President of the Lambda Theta Phi Latin Fraternity Derek Hernandez spoke on his experience at Quinnipiac University and how cultural organizations can bring out conversations about unity between Black and brown communities.

Hernandez organized an event on Sept. 30, to show the history of various social movements. This was followed by a discussion with audience members about what Black and brown unity means to them.

The event was held to further educate students about the history of various movements and to engage in conversation with peers about the challenges that they may face. He does this through his role as Lambda Theta Phi president.

“We are at a predominantly white institution, and I want to educate our broader community and make sure that everyone is having the opportunity and the chance to not only learn about different people but speak to different people that may not look like them and have the same ideology as them,” Hernandez said.

As a Brooklyn, New York native, Hernandez said his social environment before coming to Quinnipiac was diverse.

“They call New York the melting pot for a reason,” Hernandez said. “I went to public school in New York City and there was a mix of everyone in school: white, Black, Asian, Hispanic and Caribbean students. It was kind of a culture shock coming here.”

Hernandez encourages students to get involved in the Quinnipiac community to make a change. He said it’s up to people to create the experience they want.

“College is the time when you’re continuously challenging your peers and continuously challenging your ideology,” Hernandez said.

Ja’Vielle Foy, a senior political science major and president of the Black Student Union, attended the event and explained the importance of having these organizations on campus for students of color.

“There (is) a small concentration of Black students at a predominantly white university,” Foy said. “There’s a lot of Black and brown faces that just need somewhere to express their experience on campus. These organizations were created as a safe space.”

Hernandez spoke on the history of social movements where both the Black and brown communities formed organizations to increase resources and representation for minorities in the U.S. He discussed the importance of history in relation to present-day issues.

“I feel like we can’t have these conversations without knowing where everything started,” Hernandez said.

Two college students founded the Black Panther Party on Oct. 15, 1966, in Oakland, California. They created a 10-point program that would serve as a new way of operating to provide freedom, employment benefits, better education, housing opportunities and solutions to end police brutality.

The 1960s saw the emergence of another liberation organization. The Brown Berets formed in California to push for educational reform, farmworker rights and the end of police brutality.

Hernandez explained how both organizations became aware of each other’s efforts and formed an alliance.

“In 1976, brothers from the Black Panther Party and the Brown Berets came together and realized we’re going through the same struggles, the same oppression and we’re parallel to each other right now in everything that we’re fighting for,” Hernandez said.

PHOTO CONTRIBUTED BY DEREK HERNANDEZ

Derek Hernandez is president of the Lambda Theta Phi Latin Fraternity.

The event ended with a discussion of unifying both parties as an official agreement and touched upon their treaty titled “The Treaty of Peace, Harmony and Mutual Assistance.”

The Black Panther Party and the Brown Berets communities came together organically.

Hernandez said understanding the historical impact these organizations had after their unification can influence a new connection among today’s generation.

“Obviously these organizations no longer exist today,” Hernandez said. “... but we know we could make that change and bring back this Black and brown unity that happened in our communities.”

October 6, 2021

The Quinnipiac Chronicle

News |3

Mahandru: ‘ They want us to feel like this is a losing battle and to kind of keep our mouths shut and keep quiet and just bow our heads down and graduate’ NURSE ANESTHESIA from cover first week of September and the school had more answers to their questions.

“I don’t think it’s true that we haven’t been responsive,” Liebowitz said. “I think it is true that in the beginning, (we) did not have all the answers they wanted, that is true, and I understand why that was very hard.”

Liebowitz said the closure will not affect their education because the university is still committed to giving current students what they expected when they enrolled.

While the provost said the meeting went well, Mahandru told The Chronicle she disagreed. She explained the leadership in the room did not seem happy when the students came well-researched and prepared to ask questions.

During the meeting, Mahandru said she thought people from the university had “no intention of answering our questions,” but they were there just to “show their face.”

“They don’t care about us, clearly evident by how unhappy the rest of the student body is at Quinnipiac, both graduate and undergraduate,” Mahandru said. “They want us to feel like this is a losing battle and to kind of keep our mouths shut and keep quiet and just bow our heads down and graduate.”

Mahandru said a lawyer from Quinnipiac was also present at the meeting, whom she said attempted to talk over her when she asked questions.

“I cannot imagine why the school thought it would be appropriate to attempt to intimidate the students and bring their attorney, which also seems like they have something to hide or to cover,” Mahandru said.

In February, the School of Nursing implemented a “clinical education fee” for nurse anesthesia students of $15,750 per year for first-year

students and $1,200 per semester for second and third-year students over the remaining semesters beginning in the previous summer.

In an email The Chronicle obtained, Mahandru wrote to Zinn stating that O’Connor told them their fees did not go directly to their program but went to the School of Nursing at large. “(O’Connor) told us she would give us more information in regard to our program and (its) funds but that has seemed to fall on deaf ears,” Mahandru wrote in the email to Zinn.

Zinn explained in the email that the money will go toward stipends to clinical preceptors and clinical liaisons, anatomy lab and cadavers, standardized patient encounters, clinical practice resources, clinical databases and technology for student management of hours and experiences, equipment and mandatory student professional development.

Based on Zinn’s explanation, Mahandru told The Chronicle the fees were still not justified.

“Cadaver lab was already paid for during our anatomy lab class tuition,” Mahandru said.

“Standardized patient encounters is also shared with NP (nurse practitioner) students who do not have this additional fee. Clinical database website is only a one-time $100 fee. We paid a technology fee every semester.”

Mahandru said it was “a slap in the face” being told that the program is closing because of financial reasons, while being charged a new fee and seeing the university spending money on other things.

The provost told The Chronicle that all the money collected went specifically to the nurse anesthesia program. She also said the fees are low compared to other institutions.

Yale New Haven’s School of Nurse Anesthesia charges $18,000. The Nurse Anesthesia Pro-

gram of Hartford charges $14,000.

Nurse Anesthesia Program Director Karita Kack declined to comment on the closure and said she doesn’t have the information to confirm or deny that the clinical education fees went directly to the nurse anesthesia program.

Mahandru also told The Chronicle that the provost said twice at the meeting that she would not discuss where the money went with her.

“The school has to provide us with a breakdown of the funds,” Manhandru said. “That’s a part of their job.”

Regardless of the fee, the program will face closure. There were two things that students wanted, according to the emails. One was an itemized allocation of the funds for the program and the other was a formal meeting with the school to discuss their issues. The latter already happened.

“I hope that (the university) learns to treat their students with a little bit more integrity and respect, I think that we’re all adults,” Manhandru said. “Stop taking advantage of us. When we ask for the budget, we’re asking for the budget.”

Liebowitz said the university will submit a teach-out plan to the Council on Accreditation of Nurse Anesthesia Educational Programs (COA) in the coming weeks, in which the council will review the plan in mid-October and respond within 30 days. She said the university will also send the finalized plan to the OHE. “Our teach-out plan about this program is to teach-out the program, let the students continue the degree at Quinnipiac,” Liebowitz said.

“The answer, in that case, is yes, we’re submitting

a teach-out plan that is an in-house, continueyour-degree-at-Quinnipiac teach-out plan.”

Mahandru said this came after the school was going back and forth on whether or not the 43 students will be able to graduate from Quinnipiac. As a student in the program, Mahandru said the university should loop them into the deciding-making process.

“When they make up this plan, we deserve to be a part of that plan, because we know about this program more than they do,” Mahandru said.

COA Chief Executive Officer Francis Gerbasi did not comment on where Quinnipiac is in the discontinuation process and what feedback the council has been hearing from students.

According to the COA policies and procedures, the university is required to submit a teach-out plan to the council to ensure that students in the program can graduate in a timely manner.

ILLUSTRATION BY CONNOR LAWLESS

Brackley: ‘They say ignorance is bliss, but when it comes to safety for students and faculty, Quinnipiac should let us know’ CLERY REPORT from cover but incites anger and division amongst the different communities,” Vidallon said.

When it comes to reducing hate crimes, Vidallon calls for transparent and accessible discrimination policies and diversification of the Quinnipiac community as a whole.

“I think it’s important to look at past events and recognize the similarities in order to understand why they escalated the way they did,” Vidallon said.

Sawyer said the university can’t prevent hate crimes because racism, sexism and homophobia exist in the world. He said Quinnipiac is just a “small microcosm” that rep-

resents the same things as the outside world.

“When students apply to come here, no one put in the application ‘hey, by the way, I’m a racist,’” Sawyer said.

However, he said the university needs to educate students to be preventative.

Quinnipiac has been criticized in the past for its poor response to racism allegations.

Gorero said the university is always late on spreading awareness against hate crimes, which she said was different from when Chief Experience Officer Tom Ellett’s apartment was vandalized.

Students received two emails about the vandalism. One was from President Judy Olian the night of the incident stating that

“this behavior won’t be tolerated.” Another was from Public Safety Chief Tony Reyes two days after updating on the situation.

“When the hate crimes occurred, the administration was late to address the hate crimes,” Gorero said. “Meanwhile, they addressed the vandalism almost immediately.”

Vidallon said the university should apply the same sense of urgency and concern as it did for the vandalism at Ellett’s apartment to all incidents that target the safety of people on campus.

In response, Sawyer said he believes that the university responds in the same way as hate crimes are reported. He also said those are two things that can’t be compared “apples to apples.”

INFOGRAPHIC BY CONNOR LAWLESS

“I don’t think it’s vandalism, I think it was an act of aggression, intimidation,” Sawyer said. “We would take that as seriously if it happens to a student or faculty member.”

Sawyer said sometimes students are not aware of everything that happened. He explained that the university responded to hate crimes with statements and actions in the past.

The university also reported seven stalking incidents in 2020 under violence against women, a 40% increase from 2019. Dating violence in 2020 remained the same as 2019 at two reported incidents.

In terms of criminal offenses, the university reported three rapes and two fondling cases. Nine burglaries were reported in 2020.

Liquor law violations were at 487 cases and drug law violations were at 121 cases.

Sawyer said he doesn’t think students should be concerned about the increase, but students should be concerned about safety “all the time.”

As a woman on campus, sophomore undeclared major Faith Brackley said it’s alarming that violent crimes against women increased.

She said Quinnipiac should notify students.

“They say ignorance is bliss, but when it comes to safety for students and faculty, Quinnipiac should let us know,” Brackley said.

Even though Brackley feels safe at the university, she said the only thing that bothers her is that anyone could come on campus during the day by saying they’re visiting friends or family.

“Maybe I’m a little paranoid because nowadays, we’re taught in school what to do in the case of a school shooter, but something could happen,” Brackley said.

The university hired a full-time Title IX coordinator and a civil rights investigator to deal with hate crimes and violence against

T hTeh eQ Q uu i ni nnni i pp i a cc CChhr or no inc il ec l e

44 | O p i n i o n

October 6, 2021

Opinion Don’t give Alex Jones attention

Social media and memes have let conspiracy theorists run rampant

BY XAVIER CULLEN Opinion Editor

I don’t think it’s controversial to say that Alex Jones is insane.

From calling tap water a “gay bomb” to accusing Oreo cookies of having pedophilia symbolism, Jones is one of the craziest — and funniest — alt-right conspiracy theorists on the internet.

However, while we can all laugh at his ramblings about 5G internet towers and how Hillary Clinton is a biblical demon, we have to remember that his words have severe consequences.

On Oct. 1, a Texas judge ruled Jones responsible for damages caused by his egregious claims that the Sandy Hook Massacre was a “giant hoax.” Jones will now have to pay some of the family members of the 26 people killed on one of the most horrific days in American history.

This decision is a grim reminder of the harm Jones’ antics can have on real-life people. For the families of those 26 people, Dec. 14, 2012 is a day that they will never forget. Jones put their relatives’ deaths into question, accusing them of faking death certificates and lying to the public.

Finally, justice has been served, but we still face a harsh reality.

A major reason why Jones became so popular was because of the many memes, jokes and news stories about him.

So many people have heard of his rants about “chemicals in the water that turn the frickin frogs gay” or the famous TikTok audio of Jones screaming “come on over here” as he chases down a man who gave him the middle finger.

It’s funny to see how crazy one man can become, but not everybody is laughing. Some are taking what he says quite seriously.

Before it was permanently suspended, “The Alex Jones Channel” on YouTube had over 2.4 million subscribers, and Jones’ short-lived TikTok account garnered millions of views. His TikTok video containing false claims of a child-smuggling facility at the southern border passed 6.1 millions views, according to Media Matters.

“It’s funny to see how crazy one man can become, but not everybody is laughing. Some are taking what he says quite seriously.”

– Xavier Cullen

OPINION EDITOR

We can all sit back and act like what Jones says is a big joke that nobody would truly believe, but that’s just not true.

Only eight months ago, thousands of rabid Donald Trump (and probably Jones) supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, breaking through police barricades and forcing an evacuation of the senators inside. Jones said he donated $500,000 for the rally that led to those events.

While many social media and content sharing plat-

Bobcat Buzz Finding home away from home

ILLUSTRATION BY XAVIER CULLEN, PHOTO OF ALEX JONES BY JARED HOLT/WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

forms had already banned Jones at that point, the seeds that Jones planted had grown into a giant forest of right-wing conspiracies. These websites allowed Jones to build an audience for far too long. In fact, Jones himself thanked Facebook and YouTube for letting him get billions of ears to hear his brain-destroying propaganda. “(I) was a joke to the elites,” Jones said on the Sept.

23 edition of “The Alex Jones Show.” “Now they saw people are actually listening, so they took us down. But now thank God we got a good shot at them because that had spurred so many other people like ripples in a pond.”

He’s laughing in our faces. Jones knows that Facebook and YouTube helped him foster a large audience, and he uses that advantage to preach this violence and death. We’ve already seen how far QAnon believers and Trump supporters will go to fight for their fake conspiracies, do you really think it will get any better?

Even if Jones disappeared forever tomorrow, his legacy would still be seen in the political sphere. Jones himself said that he “awoke” political commentators like Fox anchor Tucker Carlson and podcaster Joe Rogan.

Carlson’s prime-time show, “Tucker Carlson Tonight,” is the most popular show on cable, with an average of 3.242 million viewers, according to Nielson. Rogan’s podcast, “The Joe Rogan Experience,” is the No. 1 podcast on Spotify in the U.S., according to Chartable.

At the end of the day, we made Jones, and we made this mess. Whether it was laughing at his outlandish antics or making memes of his out-of-context quotes, we all played a part in keeping Jones in the mainstream consciousness.

Once we admit this, the next question is this: what do we do now?

We have mobs of right-wing nutjobs who will do anything for their deity figure Trump, and we are staring down another three more years of the Joe Biden administration, which will surely piss these people off even more.

The first thing that people can do is doing nothing.

BY NICOLE MCISAAC News Editor

When I started my journey here at Quinnipiac University, I was looking for clubs and organizations to join that would ease my transition into college. I was already homesick two days in, and wanted to feel a part of a community on campus.

I knew I had to start somewhere, and I immediately dove into organizations that suited my major and career, finding my humble abode in student media. The Quinnipiac Chronicle quickly became my favorite organization, teaching me career skills and giving me some of the best friends that I could ask for.

However, I still felt like something was missing.

I was looking to meet more people and a larger support system to turn to when things got rough. When my freshman year abruptly ended from COVID-19, I sat in my room during quarantine and knew I had to do something more.

It was at that moment that I realized I wanted to be a part of something more than just myself and decided to sign up for recruitment with the Panhellenic Council.

The process was not anything like what I prepared for, with Zoom links, mute buttons, virtual backgrounds and an email that told me which organization I was a part of. Call it a

Don’t share funny clips of Jones on social media, don’t engage with him by debating him or going on his show and don’t treat Jones with the respect that he does not deserve.

Jones is a monster who only cares about mass chaos.

The more we treat him like an honest political commentator, the more people will view him as a legitimate pundit.

The worst thing that can happen to an internet celebrity is becoming irrelevant. If we treat Jones like a threat to our well-being that should be shunned from every corner of the world, he will fade into irrelevance.

Even if we are successful with that, we should never forget the lessons that we have learned. Carlson and Rogan have risen to fame in similar ways to Jones.

Both were laughed at for their horrible opinions, like when Carlson called Iraq a “crappy place” filled with “primitive monkeys,” or hilarious clips, like when Joe Rogan smoked weed with Elon Musk.

There’s a stark similarity between Carlson, Rogan and Jones, yet no major network or platform is doing anything about it. In fact, Spotify decided in May 2020 to sign Rogan to an exclusive licensing deal worth over $100 million, and Fox News is continuing to air “Tucker Carlson Tonight” despite severe backlash and boycotts of his sponsors.

At this point, it might be too late to stop these two media giants. They are far too popular to be erased without a trace.

Maybe the lesson from all of this is not that we should prevent the next Jones — that ship has sailed long ago — but that we should do everything in our power to stop the spread of these inflammatory figures, even if it is futile.

When facing down the barrel of inevitability, the answer is not to surrender, but to fight back with all your might.

I hate having this as my final message, but if someone like Jones can get millions of supporters, maybe we are reaching a depressing, destined fate.

However, we must fight on. This might be a losing battle, but at least we can tell our future generations that we tried.

“pandemic pledge class,” if you will.

I didn’t care. So much excitement rushed through my body when I read the words “Phi Sigma Sigma.” My laptop nearly flew off my desk. That was only the beginning of one of the best decisions I have ever made.

I made the most out of my first year in a sorority.

Becoming a part of the most welcoming “family” in Phi Sig was one of the best experiences. As a new member, I was paired with my “big” Jaysa, which is similar to having a big sister. She quickly became someone I looked up to and went to for any advice, as well as my school “mom.”

Recently, I switched roles when I received my “little,” Angie, who pushes me to want to better and reminds me of myself at the beginning of my college journey. Having these two girls in my “family” makes college feel a little bit more like home.

I created bonds with each and every girl in the chapter, even if it simply consisted of a quick “hello” in the hallway.

My time quickly filled up with events, chapters, community service and Chipotle runs to grab food with my sisters.

If I never joined this organization, I would have never become the powerful and confident woman that I am today nor have anywhere near the same college experience I have now.

T hT eh eQQu ui innnn ii p ii aacc CCh h r or noi nc li ec l e

October 6, 2021

Opinion|5

Opinion First-year blues

Homesickness and seasonal depression make life hard entering college

BY SANIYA POWELL Contributing Writer

It’s getting to that time of the semester where most freshmen — including myself — start to feel homesick.

This is the first big adventure on our own terms. There are no parents to tell us to do things, no more bells ringing when class ends and most important of all, no more home-cooked meals.

It’s true what people say, college is supposed to be the best four years of your life, but partying, going out and staying up until 4 a.m. gets boring after a while.

According to Hap.org, “over 30 percent of college students experience low-level homesickness. And about 69 percent of first-year college students experience severe homesickness.”

Something that doesn’t help is not having a support system at school. When I first got to Quinnipiac University, I felt like everyone else already came in with friends in our class, while freshmen like myself were just meeting people for the first time. I recently observed this in my dorm building. Everyone knows everyone, but when someone doesn’t socialize on the floor, they feel out of the loop.

Homesickness also coexists with seasonal depression, which is a mood disorder characterized by depression that happens at the same time annually. Mine is usually around the start of school, while someone else’s could be around spring and summer. As someone with seasonal depression, it is really hard to find any motivation sometimes. It creates a numbness and manic feeling of not wanting to do anything.

My emotions run on the sunlight hitting my skin. I tend to sit out while it’s a sunny day, but rainy days make me want to curl up in bed and take a nap Seasonal depression affects many people, but college students are hit harder because they stay up later and wake up early for class. Students spend so much time doing home-

work and getting involved in clubs that they often don’t spend much time outside during the colder months.

Seasonal depression for first years isn’t uncommon. I hear countless times in the halls from first-year students about the sunny days we had at the beginning of the year compared to these sad, gray days.

New college students also experience a lot of stress as they are living in a new environment for the first time, typically with someone that they have never met before.

“Students have experienced a change in their normal biological circadian rhythms in college,” said Gabrielle Fiorella, editor-in-chief of The Monitor. “Going from being with family everyday, to being independent, to living with strangers who hopefully become close friends, to choosing close friends to live with if possible.”

It is depressing not being in the family environment that I have grown to love or not seeing the friends from home everyday like I used to. It is hard to live with strangers for the first year you are at a college or university. Most people choose to have a roommate randomly selected for them, hoping to find their best friend, support system or just someone to talk to.

I was nervous about having a random roommate since I

ILLUSTRATION BY CONNOR LAWLESS

had no idea who I would be living with. I answered various questions like what time I went to bed, if I like the room cold or hot or if I am messy or neat. I was so happy when I met my roommate for the first time, and now we get along so well.

Going home this weekend made me realize how many things I miss while I’m at college. I miss hanging out with my high school friends, sleeping in my own bed, driving, being with my family and, most of all, I miss having the privacy in my home.

I now realize the simple things I took for granted.

Rumor has it: Gossip is good

Gossiping is a social skill that gets misconstrued as malicious

BY EMILY FLAMME Managing Editor

Do you want to know what separates humans from animals? The fact that we can gossip, and I am so glad we do.

When the definition of gossip really gets broken down, it’s telling stories or relaying information about other people. That may sound like a negative thing, but why? Gossip shouldn’t automatically be perceived as mean-spirited.

I come back at the end of my day and tell my roommates about my entire day, making sure to include the funny or interesting encounters I’ve had.

“The Starbucks barista told me they loved my nails,” I said “They want to get this color next time they go to the salon.”

Some may not consider that a piece of gossip, but ultimately, it is. I told a story about someone who wasn’t present in the room.

Of course, some gossip is more interesting and exciting than other details, but people ignore the fact that not all gossip is meant to be harmful. It can be as fun and anecdotal as someone copying your nail color. Now, when my roommates go to Starbucks and see the barista with the same nail color as me, they know why.

Gossip should rarely be secretive or include false information.

In fact, in the social science field, it is well known that gossiping is part of the human experience, with research being conducted on how it is a social skill that humans develop.

In an interview with NBC, Frank McAndrew, a psychology professor at Knox College, said gossip is likely a skill that helped certain humans outlive others. The social skill has been passed down generationally and even genetically, since those who were good at gossiping were essentially good at being humans.

People who were not interested in the going-ons of those around them were at a competitive disadvantage.

“They were not good at attracting and keeping mates or maintaining alliances,” McAndrew said. “The ones who weren’t interested in the goings-on of other people sort of got weeded out.”

Since people who were uninterested in the lives of those around them had less of a chance of reproducing, that means we all come from a long line of gossipers.

Another reason gossip should be considered a positive thing is that it can benefit people mentally. Sharing your thoughts and feelings with people is a healthy way to vent, and that’s essentially what gossip is.

Having a safe space to share your thoughts and opinions is the most important thing in any relationship. Therefore, being able to gossip about your day should be the norm.

It’s also how people form connections. For example, my closest friend from home and I are friends because other people told her I was “crazy but fun.”

My friend wanted to find out for herself what our mutual friends meant, and now we’ve gone on nearly six years of friendship. If those other people hadn’t gossiped about me, she probably wouldn’t have wanted to get to know me.

Gossip is often used in this way. People can share their thoughts about someone else and

if they are in agreement, it strengthens that bond. People love when what they’re feeling is true, which is what makes gossip such a valuable tool in relationships.

A study from the Journal of Social Psychological and Personality Science tracked the conversations of 467 people and determined how much of the gossip was either positive, negative or neutral.

The study showed that 75% of gossip that the participants said was neutral. This supports the reason gossip should not have the negative connotation it does. If most of the gossip shared amongst people is neutral, it should start being seen as the tool for connection that it is.

Something else to put into perspective is that even when gossip is considered negative, it still should not be seen as an evil activity.

McAndrew said that if someone shares negative gossip, it means they trust the person they’re speaking to. The purpose of gossip is to share information, and sometimes that information is valuable.

A good example of why negative gossip is important to society would be to warn someone about a potentially harmful relationship they are in, since gossip is a sign of trust.

Obviously, there are people who can break this act of trust. Those people are bad gossipers who share false information about others or tell people something personal about one of their friends.

These people are the reason gossip is unfairly viewed. McAndrew pointed out that people who gossip using incorrect or inappropriate information are considered to have poor social skills, according to social scientists. People who know when and how to aptly gossip will likely have stronger connections to the people in their lives.

Gossiping is definitely my favorite activity, and now you don’t have to hide that it is also yours.

ILLUSTRATION BY CONNOR LAWLESS

6|Arts and Life

The Quinnipiac Chronicle

October 6,2021

Arts & Life A fresh look on mental health

By KATIE LANGLEY AND DAVID MATOS

With the mental stability of students often put on the back burner in favor of a busy schedule, a day to learn and engage in self care is necessary as students enter the sixth week of classes.

Quinnipiac University’s Counseling Services held its annual Fresh Check Day on Oct. 5, on Bobcat Way. The event raised awareness around mental health issues and suicide prevention.

“Fresh Check Day offers students a fun, relaxing atmosphere, to learn about mental health and suicide prevention,” said Mary Pellitteri, a counselor for the university’s and the event’s organizer.

“We hope to increase knowledge regarding mental health issues and introduce steps to take to improve mood and functioning.”

Fresh Check Day has been a fall semester staple at Quinnipiac since 2015. It is associated with the Jordan Porco Foundation, a Hartford-based nonprofit that aims to “challenge stigma by talking openly about mental health.” The organization was founded by the parents of Jordan Porco, a first-year student at Saint Michael’s College who killed himself in 2011.

The lively atmosphere featured interactive booths that each held an important message about mental health. A volunteer instructed students as they checked in to visit five of the 10 booths in exchange for eligibility to win some prizes.

“I think an event like this is important because you never really know what somebody’s going through,” said Abigail Federico, a first-year health science major. “If somebody is struggling in silence, and if they walked outside and see an event going on like this, they’re going to instantly have a bunch of resources and people to talk to and a ton of information about where they can get help if they need it.”

After check-in, every guest was required to attend the booth “nine out of 10,” in recognition of the statistic that one out of 10 college students contemplate suicide. Its goal is for those who do not deal with suicidal thoughts to provide support for those struggling with the far-too-common issue.

Katie Castell, a graduate biomedical sciences student, checked visitors in at the event. She said that she looks forward to Fresh Check Day every year. “(Mental health awareness) is so important,” Castell said. “I think on college campuses it’s not talked about enough, especially people coming from far away and maybe being far away from their families for the first time, I think it’s really important to make

it a not taboo topic to talk about.”

Many student organizations took part in the event’s activities including the women’s ice hockey team, the Gender Sexuality Alliance, Student Programming Board, Student Government Association, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, the Mental Health Literacy Project and Behavioral Neuroscience Club.

The “elephant in the room” booth motivated guests to anonymously write down something they struggle with and place it alongside other daily stressors.

“I think it’s really important to normalize that it’s OK to struggle mentally and to need support, you know, we live in such a society that kinda stigmatizes mental health,” said Caris Disharoon, a senior nursing major. “Needing to reach out for help and going to therapy and having these connections and having these intimate moments of needing help where I feel like something like this kind of normalizes, like, ‘hey, there’s many ways to cope with stress and other problems like this’ and it makes it a lot more normal and a lot less of an alien concept to normal people too.”

DANIEL PASSAPERA/CHRONICLE Another table spread awareness for eating disorders. Students wrote things they love about Deja Banner, a junior behavioral neuroscience major, attends Fresh Check Day, which was organized by Counseling Services. themselves on mirrors. productivity and creativity and providing opportunities for social “One in five students struggles from either an eating disorder, habits or disordered eating in general,” said connectedness,” Vitelli said.

Different tables at the event, such as the non-traditional Abby Burke, a first-year elementary education major. “We want to raise awareness and give students the resources they need to student table, stressed that mental health is for all members of the thrive in college and not have to worry about that and have those Quinnipiac community.

“We will address mental health and the unique experiences anxieties.”

The organizations addressed not only the larger issue of that different communities face, including sexual assault victims, wellness, but also factors that contribute to mental health, such as LGBTQ (students), the non-traditional student and veterans,” Pellitteri said. alcohol and drug use, physical activity and body image.

The GSA asked attendees to add their names to an “ally One habit that can help improve mental health is exercise.

Gabriella Vitelli, a senior management major, tabled at the event chain” of supporters of the LGBTQ community and write positive with the women’s ice hockey team to advocate for the importance comments on a white board.

“We are here to talk more about suicide awareness in LGBT of physical activity. “(Exercise) reduces stress and anxiety, releases endorphins, communities, since it tends to be a higher rate than other students,” which creates feelings of happiness and improves self-confidence said Satine Berntsen, a sophomore film, television and media and increases relaxation and improves sleep patterns, increasing studies and philosophy double major.

CELEBRATE THE MOON Asian Student Alliance hosts Lunar Moon Festival

By ANYA GRONDALSKI Staff Writer

As the leaves begin to change and nights grow colder, most look forward to the Halloween season. But many within the Asian community are instead eager to celebrate their midAutumn traditions.

Quinnipiac University’s Asian Student Alliance (ASA) hosted a bingo night on Zoom to celebrate the Vietnamese and Chinese Lunar Moon Festival on Sept. 30.

It is known as the Mid-Autumn or Moon Cake Festival, which honors the moon and the season’s harvest. The holiday is celebrated on the 15th day of the eighth month of the Chinese lunar calendar. It is a three-day celebration, and this year, it began on Sept. 21.

The Lunar Moon Festival is ASA’s most popular event of the year, and is the second-most important holiday in China following Chinese New Year.

“The Lunar Moon Festival is one of ASA's biggest events due to the importance of the holiday in Asian culture,” said Dimytra Kowaleski-Pham, co-president of ASA. “Our e-board is very diverse with many Asian cultures so we all celebrate in unique ways with our families, yet we can always come together to give thanks and good fortune.”

The event began with an informational overview of the festival, where ASA’s Event Coordinator Jinxia Lin, explained that the full moon symbolizes the start of the holiday, as well as fulfillment and happiness. Lanterns symbolize a successful future, and the moon lady stands for inspiration to artists. Some even pray to the moon lady for peace and luck.

ASA spent this year making goodie bags containing moon cakes, lanterns and various Chinese candies for students to

reserve and enjoy later on. Moon cakes are typically eaten throughout the festival, and are said to bring completeness and reunion to one’s life.

Evan Chen, a sophomore health science studies major, explained the traditional food as “a pastry with a nice filling inside.” Chen listed some common flavor options as red bean, tarot and matcha.

The organization also hosted three rounds of bingo, making the shapes match the theme of the holiday. To kick off the event, ASA Vice President Ashley Hong played the popular 80s song “Stay With Me” by Miki Matsubara.

In round one, students were playing to cover their boards like a full moon, and the winner was H. Jewel Hu, a senior in the entry level master’s physician’s assistant program. Hu won the tech bundle, which included an Apple Watch, JBL speaker and Airpod Pros.

Next up was winner Emily Balboni, a sophomore computer science major, who was aiming to make the shape of a lantern.

She walked away with the cozy home bundle, containing everything from a Polaroid camera to a moon tapestry. To close the evening, attendees tried to mark their bingo boards in the shape of a basket and winner Colby Ainley, a first-year game design and development major, came out on top. Ainley won the "Shang-Chi" bundle, complete with "Shang-Chi" merch, legos and an action figure.

As more people continue to be vaccinated and cases drop, ASA hopes to continue building on this annual celebration.

“ASA has found our own way to celebrate Lunar Moon Fest with the Quinnipiac community in a way that's both fun and educational,” Kowaleski-Pham said. “We hope to continue hosting such a large annual event in the years to come.”

ILLUSTRATION BY EMMA KOGEL

October 6, 2021

The Quinnipiac Chronicle

Arts and Life|7

Amplifying Latinx Voices creates an environment that promotes inclusion

By DAVID MATOS

Associate Arts & Life Editor

Everyone has a story to tell, and this celebratory event of Latino identity and culture provided a safe space for voices that are often overlooked.

Amplifying Latinx Voices is an educational program that offers a public platform for Latino faculty and students to voice their personal experiences with identity, ancestry and belonging.

The first event took place Sept. 28, and included readings from three students and Dr. J.T. Torres, an assistant professor of English and director of the Center for Teaching and Learning.

Olivia Barrios-Johnson, a sophomore journalism major in the 3+1 program, is Black and Mexican and was taught to celebrate where she comes from. She kick-started the night with a reading from her staggering essay that she wrote for Associate Teaching Professor of English Dr. Jason Koo’s Academic Writing and Research class last spring. Her natural hair is a crucial part of her identity and in her essay, she discussed ongoing racism and discrimination against it.

“Maintaining policies and procedures rooted in white supremacy that discriminate against natural hair enables virtually any establishment to afflict their biases on Black people,” BarriosJohnson read.

Barrios-Johnson claimed that natural hair discrimination is an ongoing issue many Black people face today.

“Since the time of slavery, the hair of Black people, especially Black women’s hair, has been ridiculed and deemed ‘bad hair’ because of its thickness and texture,” Barrios-Johnson read.

A Texas high school suspended a student from school because of his dreadlocks. A Louisiana high school dismissed a student from her cheerleading team because of her hair texture. Both fell victim to the discriminatory hair policies that are often set in place in educational institutions or the workplace.

Black women often undergo damaging processes, like straightening their hair, in hopes of being accepted within a whitedominated society. Barrios-Johnson claimed that the pressure to do so causes immense stress and anxiety. Black women are expected to abandon their natural hair in favor of hair standards better suited for white people.

She ended her essay with a moving message for Black women.

“As a Black woman, you are beautiful when you wear your natural hair,” Barrios-Johnson read. “As a Black woman, you do not have to conform to societal beauty standards. As a Black

woman your hair stands out because you were made to stand out.

As a Black woman your afro defies gravity because you are out of this world.”

The event is part of the creative writing program’s “Yawp!” series and the Latinx Heritage Month programming.

Alisa Mejia, a junior psychology major, read two poems she wrote about her experience growing up in the Bronx. Her first poem titled “Church” is about her time in Catholic school. The poem expressed her complex relationship with religion. Being solely surrounded by Catholic imagery caused Mejia to reexamine her stance within the Catholic Church.

Her second poem titled “An Ode to a Lone Rose” is inspired by her upbringing in the Bronx and Tupac Shakur’s poem, “The Rose That Grew from Concrete.” The poem highlights Mejia’s appreciation and gratitude for where she came from because of its impact on who she is today.

“Here is an ode to the lone rose that helped a young girl keep in mind that there is more to the world to see, past the only street she had known for years,” Mejia read.

JulieRose Rivera, a senior criminal justice major who discovered her love for poetry in Koo’s Intro to Poetry class last fall, read two poems. The first poem titled “It’s Just Me” is about the reality check she experienced on her first day at Quinnipiac University. Rivera revealed that when she walked into her first class, she immediately realized that she was the only Hispanic woman there.

“To continue on a path to a future to allow others to not experience this feeling,” Rivera read. “Allowing myself to open a door so no one experiences the thought, ‘it’s just me.’”

Only 21% of first-year students at Quinnipiac University identify as people of color.

Her second poem titled “Half and Half” is about her experience being mixed race. Rivera is Puerto Rican and Irish and unveiled that people are often confused when they learn this. She claimed that people often have certain expectations when it comes to race and feel they can dictate other people’s identity and appearance because of it.

Rivera expressed that she experiences discrimination from both racial groups she identifies with. Despite people not willing to accept the reality of her biracial identity, she knows who she is and accepts and celebrates her two cultures.

“Either too white or too Spanish and neither group willing to make an exception,” Rivera read. “Neither willing to look past

what they see as truth and experience what the reality is. I know the truth of who I am. I am half and half.”

The night concluded with a reading from Torres’s book, “Taking Flight.” He blends autobiography with fiction in his novel and explores the complexities of family bonds as a Cuban American born in Miami.

His book begins as a memoir and then becomes fiction. Torres used fiction to explore identity because growing up he would often turn simple real-life events into stories people would want to hear.

“Taking Flight” is about a grandmother who emigrated to the U.S. from Cuba and shares stories about her experiences and identity to her grandson, who was born in the U.S. like Torres. The grandson initially challenges the stories and assumes them to be fabricated.

As the grandson tries to understand his grandmother’s stories, their relationship develops as they look at several important topics like guidance, recognition, mentorship, being loved and belonging.

“This is what we’re doing with Latinx Heritage Month, we remember what it’s like to have home even as we travel away from it,” Torres said. “We remember and we celebrate the relationships that are important for us and make us feel validated, make us feel affirmed regardless of the identities we think we have.”

This relationship between the grandmother and grandson is important for Torres. Without the mentorship of real-life Latino scholars, writers and storytellers, he wouldn’t understand what it means to be Latino. Therefore, it’s important to find mentors you can see yourself in and for universities to hire those that represent an abundance of cultures and identities.

“Celebrating Latinx heritage means making those relationships within and across Latinx communities in solidarity, past, present and future,” Torres said. “To honor the stories that got us here and continue shaping the stories that will bring others along as well.”

It’s important for predominantly white universities like Quinnipiac to provide events such as Amplifying Latinx Voices to create a celebratory and inclusive environment. They serve as a safe place for students and faculty of color to share their truths.

The next “Yawp!” event takes place Oct. 6 at 7 p.m. on Zoom and will feature a poetry reading and conversation with John Murrillo, an Afro-Chicano poet from Brooklyn, New York. The “Yawp!” series will conclude with a fiction reading with Nadya Agrawal, a Brooklyn-based writer and editor, on Nov. 15 at 6:30 p.m. on Zoom. Professor Kenneth Cormier will be emailing the Zoom link and password for each of these events to students.

Apple falls far from my wallet

By NEHA SEENARINE

Associate Arts & Life Editor

Apple releasing a new iPhone is like Maroon 5 dropping a new song every month. Intriguing, yet unnecessary.

The new phones hit the market on Sept. 24. The company promoted the iPhone 13, 13 Mini, 13 Pro and 13 Pro Max to be a consumer’s new super power. But what’s really new about the latest iPhone compared to past generations?

The iPhone 13 model features an advanced dualcamera system, a stronger battery life and it comes in pink.

Consumers interested in photography would find this model appealing, as Apple updated its cameras to reveal more detail in the dark and capture 47% more light for better photos.

The camera seems to be a bit too high definition for me, I’d probably never post a selfie on Instagram again.

I’m sure there are people contemplating if they should upgrade their phones. The advertisements are enticing, and the emails from Apple promoting the iPhone 13 are excessive.

The real question people should ask is why do they need the iPhone 13?

Materialism plays a part when new iPhones are released.

Sometimes, we think that when we have the latest and greatest, our social status rises, but an iPhone is just an object at the end of the day. It does not mean we are better than anyone or we deserve all the luxuries in life. However, it is rewarding when you can afford things you never could’ve bought before. There are different types of mentalities that play a role when purchasing expensive items.

The phone models are priced from a range of $699 to $999. The cost can vary based on additional features or the iPhone model chosen. On the release date of the iPhone 13, I can assure you I did not have the money to drop on a new phone. If I were to buy the new and improved iPhone, my bank would put my checking account on hold.

Money aside, the iPhone 13 does not seem too different from past generations. The iPhone 11 and 12 will still give you a longtime commitment considering Apple released iPhone 11 two years ago. If you don’t drop your phone in the sink, I’m sure you’ll be fine.

My iPhone 8 is still going strong. I am in the minority of iPhone users that have a model with a home button. However, it’s not too old to have a headphone jack. My phone does everything I need it to do from sending texts, posting obnoxious captions on social media to checking my credit score. I have never had to deal with the struggle of wearing a mask and trying to open my phone with facial recognition. I don’t feel like I’m missing out on being five generations behind when it comes to iPhone models.

I know my iPhone 8 will run out of system updates eventually. Honestly, I would still be using my iPod Touch from fifth grade if I could. “Flappy Bird” might not be in the app store, but it is on my iPod’s home screen after eight years. If I were to upgrade my phone, I would not purchase the latest iPhone model.

It would be the most expensive phone in the market, and buying a phone from the past few generations would be a better investment.

There are moments where I think Apple purposely slows down my phone when newer models are released. However, I won’t give in to their marketing scheme.

There is a high risk my phone breaks or malfunctions.

There’s a case for it, but that doesn’t mean much considering I’m constantly traveling from place to place. Sometimes, I

ILLUSTRATION BY PEYTON MCKENZIE

carelessly toss it in my hoodie pocket knowing that it can easily fall out. I’m sure there is some type of Apple insurance for the iPhones, but I don’t have it.

Until the day my iPhone 8 gives out or someone kindly buys me a new phone out of second-hand embarrassment — I won’t be upgrading anytime soon.

8|Arts and Life

The Quinnipiac Chronicle

October 6, 2021

Maskfishing: a brand new dating problem

By TOYLOY BROWN III Managing Editor

Looks are important — we can all agree on that — but they aren’t everything. As the saying goes, there’s more to a person than meets the eye. But what if you’re only able to see a person’s eyes when they have a mask on?

If it isn’t obvious, the COVID-19 pandemic has affected many aspects of life, including the dating world. In the heat of the pandemic, more people used dating apps like Tinder, on which users had 11% more swipes and 42% more matches in 2020. People have researched Zoom date ideas, and apps like Bumble have incorporated video and voice chat features since meeting up in person was no longer the safest option.

With the COVID-19 vaccine more available and positive cases dropping in the U.S., society has gradually opened up, bringing some normalcy back into our love lives. One significant but necessary health hang-up we still endure is mask mandates, which have introduced us to the world of maskfishing.

What is maskfishing, you ask? For those who don’t know, this is a situation that occurs when someone takes off their mask and appears less attractive than when they wore it. The origins of the word can be traced back to none other than the cesspool for conceitedness, TikTok. The trend goes like this: a user on the app records themself while wearing a mask and proceeds to take off the mask to ask the lucky soul watching if they are maskfishing. In other words, is my face still good looking?

Maskfishing is derived from the word catfishing, which is when someone uses pictures of strangers to create a fictitious online persona to deceive someone into entering an online relationship.

While catfishing is diabolical in nature due to the intent

of taking advantage of someone else, maskfishing does not possess a nefarious overtone. The way we look with a mask on and what people assume we look like without wearing it is out of our control. If you happen to have an enticing top half of your face, you hit a jackpot no one thought they wanted prepandemic. If your bottom half doesn’t fit the bill, then be ready to disappoint once that mask comes off.

In all seriousness, our faces play a vital role in someone determining our level of attractiveness. There has even been research that shows that the human brain has evolved to find facial attractiveness favorable.

“We can speculate that there is an evolutionary reason behind our brain enjoying to look and wanting to look more at an attractive face,” said Olga Chelnokova, a then-Ph.D. candidate at the University of Oslo in Norway.

A mask that covers the majority of the face, concealing notable features such as our mouth, jawline and smile, interferes with our desire to look at someone cute.

Although maskfishing has TikTok origins, it is a phenomenon that regularly happens in real life. Let’s say you are a college student attending class and see someone that looks interesting from the eyes up wearing their mask. It is only natural to be curious about the mysterious bottom portion of that person’s face. Similar scenarios can occur in the hallways of academic buildings, waiting in line for food and any other indoor spot where people are required to wear masks.

Maskfishing is a silly concept that seems like it possesses only downsides due to the risk of a person getting maskfished.

However, there are some unintended benefits. It’s sometimes convenient to have a reason to cover your face on certain days when you’re out of the house. If you don’t have time to shave or

go through the struggles of trying to get your beard to connect, having a valid reason to mask up is fantastic. The same is true if you’re experiencing a breakout of acne.

Another benefit of wearing a mask is that you aren’t as quickly deemed unappealing by someone you approach in a romantic way. Personalities matter with or without masks, but we can’t act like pretty privilege doesn’t exist and that our looks can’t make or break our chances of successfully shooting our shot. It’s possible that having a mask on during that first impression undermines the importance of beauty and buys the pursuer more time to woo their love interest with their charm.

It also shouldn’t be ignored that it is plausible to want to wear a mask due to an insecure feature. Everyone possesses insecurities of some form about their physical appearance, whether they are small or big. We constantly see pretty people on social media and in real life, and we do eventually compare ourselves to them in some fashion. Prior studies have found that comparisons of any kind account for as much as 10% of our thoughts. So wearing a mask can act as a temporary shield that makes us feel less concerned about whatever we’re insecure about. However, the real cure to that kind of self-doubt is a positive self-image.

Lastly, we can’t fail to explore the possibility of being dumbfounded when the maskfish beats the odds and actually looks better than anticipated. It’s ever so rare, but coming across someone that fits this description is a nice surprise for the person thinking of making their move or is having a move made on them.

Who knows how much longer we will rightfully be obligated to wear a mask. But until the day we bump Future’s “Mask Off” as our faces see the light of day, let’s maskfish away.

ILLUSTRATION BY LINDSEY KOMSON

Book of the Week

Madeline Miller continues her career in classics adaptations with ‘Circe’

By ASHLEY PELLETIER Arts & Life Editor

Ever since I was young, I have loved reading Greek myths. From “Percy Jackson and The Olympians” to myth anthologies from my middle school library, I couldn’t get enough. “Circe,” written by Madeline Miller, is my latest read in a number of mythological adaptations.

The novel follows Circe, the daughter of sun-god Helios.

She is ostracized from her divine relatives because of her overall lack of power. However, she discovers that she is a pharmakis — a witch — and is eventually exiled to an island known as Aiaia after admitting to using her talents to turn the nymph Scylla into a man-eating monster.

“Circe” is not Miller’s first adaptation within the mythology genre. Her 2011 novel, “The Song of Achilles,” focuses on Achilles and Patroclus’ relationship outside of the events of Homer’s “The Iliad.” While her first novel is enjoyable, “Circe” shows clear improvement.

The implications of being a goddess are an alluring aspect of the novel. Circe is forced to watch as mortals she has experienced a close relationship with, including Daedalus, Ariadne and Odysseus, die of old age or at the hands of other gods.

On top of the handling of her divinity, Circe’s femininity is also addressed well. For a majority of the novel, Circe is as morally gray as her other divine peers, however, she has a very human reason for her transgressions. For instance, her turning men into pigs, which is one of the prominent things known about her based on her role in “The Odyssey,” is an act of protection against rape and pillaging from Greek soldiers who pass by Aiaia.

While Circe is a goddess, Miller writes her as a human.

She is flawed, often being portrayed as foolish, especially at the beginning of the novel. However, her humanity shines through as she raises her demigod son, Telegonus. When Telegonus is threatened by the goddess Athena, Circe does anything to defend her son, even though she is considered a much weaker goddess than Athena. If Miller chose to make Circe infallible, the novel wouldn’t be as good. It’s her mistakes and hardships that make the story what it is.

The humanizing of Odysseus is another important factor in “Circe.” Odysseus shares a brief romantic relationship with Circe, which leads to the reader seeing his imperfections.

Odysseus is far from a good man, and that shows as he loses his mind after returning to Ithaca, a series of events that is not in “The Odyssey.” It is realistic that the sole-returning “hero” would go mad, and I like that addition of Miller’s.

However, Miller missed the opportunity for one more moment with Pasiphaë, Circe’s sister. The two had a strained relationship growing up, but there is a moment after Pasiphaë gives birth to the Minotaur where she acknowledges her similarities with Circe. While Circe does not forgive Pasiphaë, the dynamic between them following that moment went underutilized when it could have been more interesting.

Although I believe adaptations saturate our media market, those like “Circe” and Natalie Haynes’s “A Thousand Ships” turn the narrative of male-centric stories enough that they are worth consuming. They get you thinking about society’s treatment of women throughout history in a new lens. Also, both are really fun to read, especially for those who already enjoy Greek mythology and Homer.

ASHLEY PELLETIER/CHRONICLE

'Circe' focuses on the mythological witch from Homer's 'The Odyssey.'

October 6, 2021

The Quinnipiac Chronicle

Arts and Life|9

Rewatch that show Revisiting TV series that bring you comfort is a good thing

By ASHLEY PELLETIER Arts & Life Editor

Growing up, I would rewatch the same DVD copy of four episodes of “NCIS.” Mainly because I lost the other DVDs from the box set, but I enjoyed them nonetheless.

As I got older, I grew away from the series and chose to binge watch other shows like “Supernatural,” “Doctor Who” and “Bones.” However, when we were sent home because of COVID-19 in March 2020, I came back to “NCIS” and spent months rewatching over 300 episodes.

Rewatching these shows over and over again is a comforting thing, particularly with procedural shows like “NCIS” and “Bones.” The formulaic episodes are predictable, so you know that you don’t have to be anxious about whether or not the main characters are going to die. Even if they are going to die, you know it’s going to happen, so it isn’t as emotionally impactful.

I’ve probably watched the episode of “NCIS” where Kate Todd dies at least 10 times.

The predictability of most TV shows can be soothing to those with anxiety and trauma, according to an article in The Atlantic. When I’m feeling anxious, watching my favorite shows grounds me by forcing my brain to focus on the narrative.

While I may prefer more gritty shows, shows such as “Friends, “The Office” and “Parks and Recreation” are generally known for being comfort TV shows. It is often easy to make fun of those watching these shows for their “basic” popularity, but they are clearly popular for a reason. High rewatchability factors are just as important to a show as good writing and acting.

Accessibility is also a significant factor in how soothing comfort TV shows can be. I knew someone in high school who would carry a flash drive with episodes of “Friends” on it so he could watch them whenever he wanted. The idea of having an object of comfort at our fingertips is soothing, and shows are even more accessible with streaming.

We go through a wide range of emotions when we watch TV. When we are watching a new show, we feel suspense on top of the emotions presented by the narrative. We come to associate

nostalgia and comfort with our favorite shows regardless of the emotions presented in the show, which allows shows like “NCIS” and “Supernatural” to be a comfort show just as much as feel-good shows like “Friends” or “Parks and Recreation.”

We feel good watching our favorite TV shows, and it’s backed up by science too. A 2014 study showed that watching noninteractive media such as TV is a great way to reduce stress.

However, our own minds get in the way of this recovery through ego depletion.

Ego depletion is when we lack our usual will power after completing difficult tasks, like how I watched all those episodes of “NCIS” after struggling through online classes. When this happens, we feel guilty about how we enjoy ourselves and it can be hard to work through. In fact, I often struggle to sit still and watch TV because I feel like there is other work I should be doing. Once you realize the importance of recovery and self help, it becomes easier to enjoy the occasional binge watch.

This isn’t to say that you should drop what you’re doing and watch Netflix all the time. On the contrary, you should be using your comfort TV shows as a reward for yourself. I let myself watch an episode or two after I finish my homework on weeknights or during the day and as much as I want at night

ILLUSTRATION BY AMANDA RIHA

on the weekends. Obviously, this system is what I have found works best for me. A balance between my reward system and hard work prevents too much focus on one or the other.

The next time you crack open your laptop or hit the on switch on your TV, don’t feel bad for enjoying the shows that make you feel good. Not only do they make your heart happy, they make your brain feel good, too.

‘Big Brother’ is finally embracing diversity

By MELINA KHAN

Associate News Editor

It only took 21 years and 23 seasons for the American version of “Big Brother” to finally crown its first Black winner.

Not only did this winner make history, the whole cast did. Early on this season, the six Black cast members aligned and vowed to remain loyal to each other in an alliance. The successful move was an effort to ensure the season’s winner would finally be a Black person.

Xavier Prather, a 27-year-old attorney from Milwaukee, walked away with the $750,000 grand prize on Sep. 29, marking a new chapter for the iconic show.

The outcome follows the show’s executives pledge for more diversity. CBS announced in November 2020 that its reality shows, including “Big Brother,” “Survivor” and “Love Island,” would commit to casting at least 50% people of color for future seasons.

The move was long overdue. In “Big Brother’s” history, only three winners out of 22 have been non-white.

That’s why The Cookout, this season’s all-Black alliance, was so groundbreaking. In general, most “Big Brother” alliances combust mid-season, which made the task even more challenging. The fact that the six Black players this season were able to knock out all the other competitors was honestly shocking. Even though I was rooting for them to make it all season, I honestly didn’t think it would happen. But as host Julie Chen Moonves always says, “expect the unexpected.”

Not only did Prather make history as the winner, but another member of The Cookout was also crowned victorious. Tiffany Mitchell, the 40-year old phlebotomist from Detroit, was voted America’s Favorite Houseguest and walked away with a $50,000 prize. Mitchell is my favorite and was my choice to win it all because of her skilled gameplay. She was the one who created The Cookout in the first place, and was the brains behind the alliance’s strategy to stay afloat until the end.

Mitchell is, in my opinion, one of the best to ever play the game. She balanced the personal and game relationships

by cultivating strong social connections which gained her other houseguests’ trust.

She even came up with a plan that would ensure the safety of The Cookout by having each of its members partner up with a non-member of the alliance and build their trust. This helped their game by ensuring that no one would grow suspicious of the alliance, but also so that they had someone to divert a target off of themselves if needed. Even though I wanted SCREENSHOT FROM INSTAGRAM/ @JULIECHENMOONVES Mitchell to win, I knew she The Cookout was the first all-Black alliance in 'Big Brother' history leading to its first was too big of a threat to not Black winner. be taken out. something not all fans of the show could do.

I do think Prather’s win is well-deserved. He played the Allegations of “reverse racism” were spewed online game very respectably, managing to remain a frontrunner throughout the season, with some viewers saying The while staying away from the chopping block when he needed Cookout was discriminating against the white players of the to. This balance was what helped him make it to the end. season. This argument is frankly ridiculous. Historically, The outcome of the season is one to be celebrated, “Big Brother” has not been a welcome place for houseguests but the circumstances around it are disappointing. To me, of color. The 24/7 nature of the show means that no comment having a cast that is 50% people of color should not have goes unnoticed, and unfortunately, past seasons have been been something that needed to be committed to, it should plagued by racist houseguests. The fact that the show has have already been the standard. In previous seasons, an progressed is something to be celebrated, not ridiculed with alliance like The Cookout would have never been possible false allegations. because there weren’t enough Black people in one season to As an avid fan of the show, watching this season was form an alliance this powerful. This means that from here on a breath of fresh air. Not only was it unpredictable unlike out, people of color will have more leverage on the show, as most recent seasons, but it showed how the pop culture we much as their white counterparts have always had. consume has the potential to make the necessary room for Moreover, all of the cast members this season should people of color. Seeing the Black competitors running the be commended for their efforts. Not only did the Black game this season sets an example for other reality shows and cast members ride it out until the end together, the rest of media outlets overall that embracing diversity is not only the cast was supportive when they learned of the alliance. important, but beneficial.

They recognized the history being made in front of them,

The Quinnipiac Chronicle

10|Sports

Scores & Schedule Wednesday 9/29

October 6, 2021

Learning is the focus for the 1-9 Quinnipiac field hockey team

Bobcats trying to find positives after snapping nine-game losing streak

WSOC won 2-1 against Niagara MSOC won 3-2 against Siena VB lost 3-1 against Marist

Friday 10/1

FH lost 5-0 against Liberty WIH won 9-1 against LIU

Saturday 10/2

Golf placed 6th of 13 at Navy Invitational WSOC won 1-0 OT against Marist RUG lost 60-24 against Harvard WIH won 4-0 against LIU MIH won 7-0 against Maine (Exhibition) VB lost 3-0 against Fairfield MSOC lost 2-0 against Marist

Sunday 10/3

FH won 3-2 OT against Yale

CONNOR LAWLESS/CHRONICLE

The Quinnipiac field hockey team won its first game of the season against rival Yale in overtime on Sunday, Oct. 3.

By MILTON WOOLFENDEN Contributing Writer

FRIDAY, OCT. 1

CONNOR LAWLESS/CHRONICLE

SATURDAY, OCT. 2

DANIEL PASSAPERA/CHRONICLE

Upcoming Wednesday 10/6

MSOC vs. Rider 3 p.m.

WSOC @ Manhattan 3 p.m.

VB @ Siena 6 p.m.

Friday 10/8

FH vs. UConn 3 p.m.

MIH vs. Boston College 4:30 p.m.

(Icebreaker Tournament) WIH vs. Saint Anselm 4:30 p.m.

Saturday 10/9

WTEN @ Rhode Island 9 a.m.

MXC and WXC New England Championships WSOC vs. Saint Peter’s 12 p.m.

VB @ Rider 1 p.m.

MSOC @ Canisius 1 p.m.

WIH vs. Saint Anselm 3 p.m.

MIH vs. Northeastern 4:30 p.m.

(Icebreaker Tournament)

Sunday 10/10

VB @ Saint Peter’s 1 p.m.

Monday-Tuesday 10/11-12 Golf- Quinnipiac Classic 8 a.m.

Anyone following Quinnipiac field hockey will admit that the 2021 season has not been filled with many positives. The field hockey team is 1-9, which includes an in-conference record of 0-3. Quinnipiac sits at the bottom of the Big East standings with Providence, the closest team to them, owning a 5-7 record.

There is no lack of experience as the Bobcats have 20 returning players on the roster. The only new non-freshman addition to Quinnipiac’s 2021 roster is junior forward Stella Tegtmeier from Germany.

Quinnipiac has struggled mightily to find the back of the net this season as it has been outscored 39-8 and been held scoreless in seven games. Since 2015, the team has averaged 150 shots in a season with an average of 93 shots on goal, for a team average shooting percentage of .624.

The future looks bright, however, as six of the Bobcats’ goals belong to Argentinian freshman forward phenom Emilia Massarelli. As a result of her scoring output, Massarelli ranks in the top-10 in the Big East in goals. She is among a strong freshman class that totals eight new players.

Massarelli showcased her perseverance and commitment to Sunday’s overtime win against Yale as she played through broken ribs.

In the world of sports, self-critique is important even when reflecting on Massarelli’s impressive season up to this point.

“I think we still haven’t figured out how to play with her,” Quinnipiac field hockey head coach Becca Main said. “That’s something we have to do, but there’s really great things in store for her, in terms of putting the ball in the net for us.”

Massarelli isn’t the only player on the team that should be receiving praise. Another player the offense has built around is Tegtmeier. Capitalizing on her 6-foot frame and long reach, Tegtmeier, along with Massarelli, is typically the

one leading charges into the offensive zone for the Bobcats.

Until Sunday’s game Massarelli, Tegtmeier and senior defender Jess Halley were the only Bobcats to register points this season.

Since her freshman season in 2018, Halley has ranked in the top-10 each season in points for the Bobcats. In fact, last season Halley led the team in assists while being tied for the team lead in goals. In her Quinnipiac career, the senior has three goals and seven assists.

Massarelli is the second international player to lead Quinnipiac in goals since 2015, with Bianca Strubbe of Poland doing the same in 2019. Last year, Halley became the second international player to end the season tied the team lead in goals since 2015. Dayna Barlow of South Africa did so in 2017, also ending the season tied for the team lead in points.

The team has been in a rut since 2013, the last time it finished the season with a win percentage above .500. Since then, the team has a record of 43-71-1. However, while sports like soccer are in the MAAC, field hockey is a member of the Big East. While the MAAC has its own set of challenges, the Big East is a tougher conference that tends to push teams.

“When you’re playing in the Big East game, or an ACC game, or a Big 10 game, you have to be as fit as your opponent,” Main said.

The Bobcats pride themselves on staying fit as the team mantra is “Run every day, run every day.”

With a thrilling win via overtime against Yale, the Bobcats notched their first win of the season as they enter the home stretch. This is the Bobcats first win against Yale since 2017, moving them to 7-12 agaimst their rivals all time.

Next on the schedule, the team hosts UConn on Friday, Oct. 8. This marks the first of four straight inter-conference games. The Bobcats then finish off their season on Sunday, Oct. 31 at home against Sacred Heart.

Eddy: ‘(St. Cyr) is in this new group of guys who are taking advantage of almost being like a free agent’ GOALIES from Page 12 Brady Tkachuk and Philadelphia winger Joel Farabee.

“I was pretty lucky,” St. Cyr said. “I live two minutes away from the rink (in Plymouth, Michigan), so most guys are moving from all around the country, and it was actually closer (for me) than my original hockey team was.”

During the two-year stint, St. Cyr played internationally with the USNTDP in the 2015 U17 World Hockey Challenge in British Columbia and the 2018 U18 World Championships in Slovakia, taking home the gold with a 4-2 win over Finland in the latter tournament.

“I think it’s just a special feeling anytime you get selected,” St. Cyr said. “Because you never know when that next opportunity will come again, or if it is ever going to arise again. That was definitely an experience that I’ll never forget and probably at this point the pinnacle of my career playing wise, so being able to emulate something like that this year would be very exciting if we could win a championship here with Quinnipiac.”

Building upon his championship prowess from junior hockey, St. Cyr’s freshman year with Notre Dame saw the Fighting Irish make a playoff run all the way to the national championship game, falling 2-1 to Minnesota Duluth.

“You never really know when you’re going to get back

there, or if you ever do,” St. Cyr said. “It’s kind of been something that I’ve used as motivation to fuel myself for the last few years. So I’ve been excited to get back to that same point because it’s a pretty awesome experience that not many people are fortunate enough to get.”

While all three newcomers are competing for the same starting spot in the lineup, they all share the same goal, both literally and figuratively.

“I think, just obviously, as a team goal it’s winning championships,” St. Cyr said. “The rest will take care of itself.”

The other two held a similar sentiment.

“For the team, the goal is obviously to win championships,” Perets said. “I feel like we could do that if we put our minds to it, keep working every single day and keep getting better.”

“Team goals for sure are to win the ECAC and then eventually try to win a national championship,” Altman said. “I just want to do whatever I can for this team, whether it’s taking extra shots in practice or whatever it is just to make sure everybody is ready to go.”

The Bobcats open the season next weekend in the Icebreaker Tournament in Worcester, Massachusetts, facing off against No. 6 Boston College Friday afternoon before going head-tohead with No. 18 Northeastern on Saturday.

October 6, 2021

The Quinnipiac Chronicle

Sports|11

Depth, chemistry and a No. 8 national ranking: Women’s ice hockey hungry for ECAC Hockey championship

By BENJAMIN YEARGIN Contributing Writer

The Quinnipiac women’s ice hockey team faced a unique season in 2020-21, unlike any in the program’s long history.

COVID-19 filled the season with uncertainty and challenged this Bobcats team. Instead of the normal 36-game schedule that the team normally plays, the Bobcats had only 16. In those games, they went 10-6 overall, going 4-5 in ECAC Hockey play and lost to No. 6 Colgate in the ECAC Hockey semifinals 2-1.

The players are as excited as ever for a full upcoming season of Quinnipiac hockey.

“I think we’re really looking forward to having that full schedule and playing teams we haven’t played in a long time,” graduate student defenseman and captain Olivia Konigson said.

This season marks the first time since March 2020 that fans can attend games in the People’s United Center at full capacity to cheer for Quinnipiac.

“It’s super nice for us, we’ve been getting some students out to our games … obviously playing in front of fans and getting their energy helps us play better and gets us more excited for games,” senior forward Lexie Adzija said.

Entering this year, the Bobcats lost four key players: forwards Grace Markey, Laura Lundblad, Brooke Bonsteel and Taylor Girard, who was selected first overall in the NWHL draft by the Connecticut Whale.

Girard was second on the team in points with 16, tied for first in goals with graduate student forward Taylor House, and was second on the team in assists with nine.

“Those players cared so much about Quinnipiac hockey and having every play they made on the ice matter,” Quinnipiac women’s ice hockey head coach Cass Turner said.

“They truly added to our culture, they truly changed how we approached the game. If you could be at any of our video sessions so far, it’s been Brooke Bonsteel, Laura Lundblad, Taylor Girard, Grace Markey, the how-to, the little things that make such a big difference.”

The Bobcats added more depth this year to fill in the spaces that these leaders had, especially at forward and goaltender. Quinnipiac brought in eight new players, a combination of first-years and transfer students, to add to an already deep team. The Bobcats acquired junior forward Jessica Schryver and graduate student goaltender Corinne Schroeder from Northeastern and Boston University, respectively.

First-year forwards Veronica Bac, Maya Labad and AnnFrédérik Naud have all earned themselves a point in the Bobcats’ first four games this season.

From a player’s standpoint, the new depth improves the quality of the culture and the team’s chemistry.

“We are really deep this year, they’ve brought in not only great players but great people as well,” Adzjia said. “… In years past, we are practicing now like we were practicing a couple months in.”

Returning key Bobcats include Adzjia, who led the Bobcats in points with 18 last year, Konigson, House, graduate student forward Renee Saltness and sophomore defenseman Kendall Cooper.

The Quinnipiac women’s ice hockey team added eight new players this past offseason.

Konigson, House and Adzjia will provide the muchneeded leadership that this team needs to succeed.

Sophomore forward Olivia Mobley has earned herself eight points, equalling her total from last year. She scored four goals in two days against the Long Island University (LIU) Sharks.

Quinnipiac’s schedule this year began soft, with nonconference play against Maine and LIU, who both had losing records last season.

The schedule then gets progressively more challenging with a two-game set against Providence followed by eight straight ECAC Hockey matchups, seven of which come against schools returning to play after opting out of the 2020-21 season.

Providence earned itself a 12-8-1 record during the shortened 2020-21 season. Following Providence, Quinnipiac faces Princeton twice and Yale, Cornell and Colgate once.

Cornell and Princeton are currently ranked No. 9 and No. 10, respectively, on the latest USCHO women’s hockey poll, right behind of the Bobcats.

No team in the Ivy League played last season but during the 2019-20 season, Princeton finished second with a record of 17-4-1 and Cornell, who finished undefeated in ECAC Hockey play with a final record of 19-0-3.

Colgate, coming off an ECAC Hockey championship last year, has had Quinnipiac’s number over the past year, scoring 17 times compared to the Bobcats’ seven.

ALEX BAYER/CHRONICLE

Quinnipiac then competes in the Nutmeg Classic against fellow Connecticut teams Yale, Sacred Heart and UConn on Nov. 26-27.

After a brief winter break, the Bobcats face Wisconsin, the current No. 1 ranked team in the country by USCHO, for a two-game road series beginning on New Year’s Day. This will be a challenging game for the Bobcats as both teams have incredible depth From then on, the Bobcats play 14 straight ECAC Hockey conference games to close the season.

Dates that the Bobcats should have circled on their calendar during this stretch include Jan. 8, when they play the always-competitive Clarkson, who finished third in the ECAC Hockey in 2020-21.

The Bobcats also have one more game against Colgate, Cornell and a battle of Whitney Avenue against Yale.

A fair prediction for the Bobcats this year is that they will go 25-5-4 overall, and they will win the ECAC Hockey championship.

“To have the entire ECAC back and intact, we have the best league in the country,” Turner said.

Quinnipiac has the depth, culture, and chemistry that can take the throne of the best collegiate hockey league in the country. The locker room for this Bobcats team is connected, focused and ready to compete.

“When I’ve won championships, that’s what it’s felt like in the locker room,” Adzjia said.

Senior forward Lexie Adzija led the Bobcats in points (18) in last year’s 16-game schedule and has five points through four games so far this season.

ALEX BAYER/CHRONICLE

12|Sports

The Quinnipiac Chronicle

October 6, 2021

Sports @QUCHRONSPORTS

PICTURE OF DYLAN ST. CYR CONTRIBUTED BY MICHAEL CAPLES

New team, same goal

After offseason overhaul, all three men’s ice hockey goaltenders share one goal: Keeping pucks out of it

By CAMERON LEVASSEUR Staff Writer

For the first time since the 2019-20 season, the starter between the pipes for the Quinnipiac Bobcats men’s ice hockey team will not be named Keith Petruzzelli. In fact, all three of the goaltenders on the team’s roster heading into this upcoming season were not Bobcats this time last year.

“We’ve got a totally new crew from last year,” Quinnipiac men’s ice hockey goalie coach Justin Eddy said. “Obviously Keith graduated and now he’s in the pro ranks, Evan Fear ended up transferring to Northeastern and Josh (Mayanja) graduated so he’s gone too.”

Of the three goalies joining the team in Hamden this season, there is one returner: sophomore Yaniv Perets. Perets, a Quebec native, joined the team in mid-January of this year after the COVID-19 pandemic shortened his season with the Penticton Vees of the BCHL. “The staff is great, the guys are great, everything’s great,” Perets said. “In terms of school, the teachers have been great also. So it’s been a pretty good transition.”

Perets played 32 minutes in two games for the Bobcats during the latter half of the 2020-21 season, saving all nine of the shots he faced.

“He was just thrown into a team that had already been together for a long time, and I think he handled it really well,” Eddy said. “He’s been on two or three different junior teams, he’s moved around since he was a younger guy, so it was a very easy transition for him.”

Another former BCHL product making the jump to college with Quinnipiac this season is freshman Noah Altman, who played for Wenatchee Wild in 2019-20 before the pandemic forced him to shift gears and play for the Bismarck Bobcats of North Dakota in the NAHL last year.

“For me, this last year was a very difficult year,” Altman said. “I wasn’t able to go back to the junior team I played for two years ago, so I ended up getting an opportunity in the NAHL, it didn’t go super well for me.”

The opportunity to come to Hamden came late for Altman, who was weighing a number of options before committing to

the Bobcats in early August. sarcastic, but I’m going to take it anyways.”

“It kind of came to me needing to make a decision whether Unlike the other two, St. Cyr, the Bobcats’ third addition I wanted to play Division III hockey, club hockey somewhere on the backend, is no stranger to college hockey. Coming in or to continue to try to pursue a Division I spot,” Altman said. this year as a fifth-year graduate transfer, St. Cyr spent the last “It (ended up) being basically last minute, I got a call from our four seasons manning the net for Notre Dame. Appearing in 22 assistant coach and he offered me a spot and at that point, it games last season, he posted an 11-9-1 record to go along with was a no-brainer.” a .921 save percentage and a 2.44 goals against average.

From an organizational perspective, the coaching staff saw “He’s in this new group of guys who are taking advantage the potential that Altman possessed. of almost being like a free agent and going where they want,” “He’s a really interesting character,” Eddy said. “He’s so Eddy said. “So we were extremely lucky that we were in the raw, he started playing (hockey) when he was 13, most guys mix to get him.” start when they’re like five, and he’s already playing Division I Before his career in South Bend, Indiana, St. Cyr. played hockey, so it’s like, ‘Where can he go from here?’ He’s a really junior hockey in the USHL with the USNTDP, competing in good kid and works hard, so I’m looking forward to seeing how the top American junior league alongside current NHL players much he can soak up from Dylan (St. Cyr) and Yanni.” such as Vancouver defenseman Quinn Hughes, Ottawa winger The 21-year-old Los Angeles product is an intimidating figure on the ice, standing at 6 foot, 7 inches, before lacing See GOALIES Page 10 up his skates.

“Obviously, when you’re bigger, you take up more of the net,” Altman said. “I think my size has 100% afforded me a lot of opportunities, because when you see a goalie that’s 6’7, it definitely catches your eye.”

While his size may have granted him opportunities on the ice, it also earned him quite a reputation in the locker room.

“People will comment on how uncoordinated I can look at times, which is pretty funny,” Altman said. “I’ve gotten the nickname of Kevin DuCOURTESY OF QU ATHLETICS rant, which I know is Sophomore goaltender Yaniv Perets, the team’s longest-tenured goalie, came to QU in January 2021.