The Statesman 12-09-19 by The Statesman

Volume LXIII, Issue 15

sbstatesman.com

Monday, December 9, 2019

Bernstein confirms interest in presidency

By Gary Ghayrat Editor in Chief

Interim President Michael Bernstein confirmed his interest in running for Stony Brook University’s permanent presidency position during a student media briefing on Wednesday, Dec. 4. “I have notified the chancellor of the (SUNY) system that I would like her permission to be a candidate in the search, which is part of the SUNY process,” he said. “To be considered for the position and have the committee assess my standing and credentials for the job would be a great honor and a privilege.” Bernstein said that he will be bringing his experience at Stony Brook and nearly a decade of experience as provost at Tulane University in New Orleans, Louisiana to the table; and more importantly, he said, he strives to be a good communicator and a leader who enables the people around him everyday. “[The] president doesn’t get anything done,” he said. “It’s the people around the president who get things done, and the president’s there to

SAMANTHA ROBINSON / THE STATESMAN

The First Presbyterian Church of Smithtown Handbell Choir performs during the Festival of Lights in Student Activities Ballroom A on Dec. 4. The event brought over 100 students of various faiths and cultures together. lead those teams and to facilitate their success.” The search for the sixth president of the university has been underway since a presidential search committee was formed on Sept. 11, after the previous president, Samuel Stanley, announced his departure in May. Bernstein, who started as provost at Stony Brook University in 2016, stepped into the interim president position on Aug. 1.

A panel of representatives from the Presidential Search Committee discussed expectations for the future president with the university faculty senate in a meeting on Oct. 7. One of the submitted comments complained that past administration’s “authoritarian administrative philosophy in a period of tight budgets when some departments were cut, classes became larger or unavailable, professionals were asked to work

harder with fewer resources and morale suffered.” The university went through a series of budget cuts over the past few years to balance a $35 million deficit. Humanities departments, including several foreign language departments and the Writing and Rhetoric program, suffered cuts, and the United University Professions (UUP) Academic and Professional Grievance Officers, Joshua Dubnau and Dom-

inique Barone said during a senate meeting on Monday, Dec. 2 that they received complaints from faculty and staff about being given additional work without compensation. “Do we want a repetition of the last five years?” history professor Kathleen Wilson said to the Presidential Search Committee during a university senate meeting on Oct. 7. Continued on page 4

Students petition for improved accessibility Scientist predicts short winters By Samantha Robinson Assistant News Editor

Students from the School of Social Welfare organized a petition titled, “Help Make the School of Social Welfare More Inclusive & Accessible” last month. Nearly 700 students have signed the petition to add handicap accessibility buttons to the two entrance doors to the School of Social Welfare. “The School of Social Welfare shares a commitment to diversity and thus to addressing any ways in which our institution creates obstacles to diversity,” the petition states. “Currently, the doors to the School of Social Welfare are inaccessible to people who have physical disabilities. As students, faculty, and staff at the School of Social Welfare, the Health Sciences and the larger Stony Brook University, we urge you to match our reality to our institution's ideals!”

MJ Smart, a first-year graduate student studying social work who organized the petition, said that the school “[needs] to reflect our values.” “We're focused on social justice, and at the end of the day, that's what social workers are about more so than anything else,” she said. “We are about removing barriers that people face when they're trying to succeed in life. We're about removing barriers of oppression and alienation and discrimination, and we can't talk the talk. We have to walk the walk, and it has to start with our school,” Smart said. Smart credited Dylan Mangano, a first-year graduate student studying social work, for being very involved in the promotion of the petition. Mangano said that all students should have access to and feel welcome at the school. “In the most ideal scenario, the door would become handicap accessible,” he wrote in an email. “This may not be [the] thing

[that] spurs the change that we seek. It may only be a step, but it is also a reminder that the community has not only a voice, but also expectations.” The petition is addressed to Dr. Kenneth Kaushansky, dean of the Stony Brook Renaissance School of Medicine, but Smart said the petition hasn’t been sent to him yet. She wants to reach 1,000 signatures before she sends it to him. Though the dean hasn’t received the petition yet, University Media Relations Officer Lauren Sheprow said the Facilities Office in the Health Sciences Center “has been working on this project since it was brought to their attention and sought three quotes on costs for automating the door.” “Once that process is completed, the door will be ordered and installed,” Sheprow wrote in an email. “This project is estimated to be completed in about six weeks, commencing very near to the opening of Spring semester.”

News

Arts & Culture

Budget cuts and infrastructure were discussed.

Stoyn Brook hosts annual celebration for the holidays.

Presidential briefing gives updates.

MORE ON PAGE 9

Olaniyi carries Seawolves to win. MORE ON PAGE 12

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NEWS

New permanent president will be appointed during the spring

Interim President Michael Bernstein at the student media briefing on Wednesday, Dec. 4. He confirmed his interest in running for SBU's presidency position.

someone who will make infrastructure a priority. “You have to make sure that whoever becomes the next president understands that this is not a problem that we can grow our way out of by adding more students,” he said. “We need to improve the infrastructure — that means dormitories, teaching places, classrooms, research spaces for faculty and parking.” Bernstein said during the student media briefing on Dec. 4 that although more students have expressed an interest in coming to Stony Brook than the school can accommodate, there is “no evidence” that the university is in “a mad search for dollars at the expense of everything else.” “Are we stressed with older infrastructure and you know, struggling with the number of people who want the things that we can provide?” he said. “Of course. But as I say, that's two sides of one coin. We need more resources to do more of the great things we do. And thank God that we're doing such a great job that more and more and more people want what we have to offer. That's a great thing.” Malcolm Bowman, a professor from the School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences (SoMAS) cautioned the possible environmental impact of continued university growth to the presidential search committee at the Oct. 7 senate meeting. “I teach a class called Prospects for Planet Earth, and it's hard sometimes to be positive about what's happening to our planet,” he said. “What are the limits to growth? And how many more people can we cram out of this campus without sort of destroying the beautiful environment?” Bernstein said at the Dec. 4 briefing that those are tough decisions to make and that it’s a “balancing act.”

uty division leader and research physical scientist at NOAA, said. She explained that Chang’s team uses a high-resolution global climate model; previous studies used a coarser version. Kapnick has no participation in this specific research; however, her research focuses on extreme storms and precipitation. Chang’s work is part of a national project that focuses on the impact of global warming on weather patterns. Older models looked at Long Island as one largely affected area. This new approach looks at the island in approximately 16-mile increments, making the models more accurate for specific places. “We have a global warming signal,” Rui Zhang, a graduate assistant working on Chang’s project, said. The “signal” she’s referring to means accrued evidence that the Earth is warming. “We want to know how to track storm activity to relate it to extreme weather events and extreme temperature,” she said. According to Chang, the U.S. economy, transportation,

such as there will be less snowstorms but still expect as heavy snow, then they would plan differently.” The Suffolk County Office of Emergency Management looks at historical and recent data to prepare for snowstorms. Joel Vetter, chief of rescue and emergency services, said that if the hypothesis is true, “we, as a state” would arrange for longer crisis periods. “We’d prepare for a longer duration snowstorm and posture like we would for a hurricane,” Vetter said. Vetter also pointed out that last winter the county invested $5 million in snow removal preparation, including 12 new 10-wheel dump trucks and payloaders to keep snow off the streets. The Long Island Rail Road installed 60 switch covers to protect track switches from ice, rain and snow and placed new heaters to protect 13,000 feet of electrified rail from freezing over. NOAA, which is funded by the U.S. Department of Commerce, finances projects like Chang’s to support “U.S. national security, economic vitality

Continued from page 1 “No we don't. We have to find somebody that pays attention to what the teaching faculty here do and what our students need to do to graduate.” Several senate members at the meeting suggested looking deep into presidential candidates’ track records to find someone who will honor shared governance at the university. “There have been several themes that have presented themselves quite repeatedly, and the idea of shared governance is one that's been very, very deeply impressed upon all of us as committee members,” Brooke Ellison, a faculty representative for Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, said. “So I think we're going to dig as deeply as we possibly can to ensure that what is being said is

actually what is being practiced by the candidates.” Bernstein said during an interview with The Statesman on Aug. 30 that he wants “to do anything and everything I can to strengthen our structures of shared governance at the university, interaction with the university senate leadership, faculty leadership, student leadership, alumni leadership [and] the wider community leadership.” One of the first topics that came up during the Oct. 7 Q&A session with the presidential search committee was diversity, which multiple senate members said the presidential candidates should be able to prove their commitment to. “What we are looking for is data,” Mark Aronoff, a faculty representative from the English Department, said. “We want some real evidence

that these candidates have a real, demonstrated record of commitment to and real action in relation to a number of qualities, but certainly, especially diversity.” Bernstein emphasized the university’s commitment to diversity during his first address to the university on Oct. 16. “We are committed to diversity and inclusive excellence, first and foremost, because we are committed to equity and fairness,” he said. “We believe that access to the opportunities that our institution represents should not be restricted on any basis that is anchored in bigotry or exclusion.” Infrastructure was another point of contention among the faculty. University Senator and physics and astronomy professor, Frederick Walter, implored the committee to find

GARY GHAYRAT / THE STATESMAN

“What are the costs and benefits of new parking versus maintaining a grove of trees, which is also very important?” he said. “And that's what we talk about in any of our planning meetings.” The university is currently renegotiating its contract with Calpine, a power company that operates the Stony Brook Power Plant. Bernstein said at the briefing that the school has made it clear that the contract won’t be renewed under current terms. “We want to see some improvement in that contract or an alternative that enables us to pursue alternatives to energy generation and transmission on the campus,” Bernstein said. He said that the university is looking “closely” at revising current contracts up for renewal to “involve a commitment to alternative and so-called green energy sourcing or seeking alternative contracting altogether.” Thomas Wilson, an instrument engineer at SoMAS, suggested to the presidential search committee at the Oct. 7 senate meeting that they need to make sure that the presidential candidates have a genuine commitment to “consensus building” and “shared government.” “You need to find a really decent human being,” he said. “My recommendation to you is dig into the references and dig into the off list references and you'll always find somebody who's got a grumpy thing to say.” The presidential search committee aims to send a list of finalists to the SUNY chancellor by mid-February, Bernstein said, and a new permanent president will be appointed in March or early April the latest. “Our future depends on this,” Wilson said. “Which way is Stony Brook gonna go?”

SBU professor hypothesized heavy winter storms for Long Island in study Continued from page 1 the Arctic — is contributing latent heat, a secondary source of energy for winter storms. “So there’s uncertainty,” Chang said. “Would the reduction be more than the increase or would the increase be stronger than the reduction?” Chang plans to tackle this uncertainty using the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase Six (CMIP6). CMIP6 is an international climate data effort in its sixth phase that gathers weather information from countries around the world. The data helps researchers like Chang analyze future climate projections and weather patterns. In September 2019, Chang received a $200,000 grant annually for two years from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Modeling, Analysis, Predictions and Projections Program (NOAA/MAPP) to help fund the research. Part of the grant will fund a 200-terabyte computer to process the data from the CMIP6. “The study has a logical sound and set-up,” Sarah Kapnick, dep-

power and emergency management sectors bear the most impact if his hypothesis of storms growing less in number, but becoming far more intense, holds true.

“If you naively think that it's going to warm and that there will be less snow you won't be prepared for it.” -Edmund K.M. Chang

School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences Professor

“If you naively think that it’s going to warm and that there will be less snow you won’t be prepared for it,” Chang said. “If you can have more accurate information

and public welfare,'' according to its website. NOAA’s grant selection process involves a 3-step reviewal process where respected scientists judge and rank all proposals. Then, the proposals are funded in order of the ranking until that year’s budget runs dry. “It is a highly competitive process, usually with an acceptance rate around one-third,” Dan Barrie, program manager at NOAA, said. Chang’s previous research focused on the factors that drive extreme storms and improvements to forecasting models from “two days out to two centuries” out, meaning betterweekly predictsions as well as discovering more accurate trends in weather patterns. His goal for his research is to improve both short-term prediction and long-term projection. “We are focused on what bad weather brings because that impacts our economy and actually sometimes leads to fatalities,” Chang said. “There’s been less focus on winter storms and how they’ll change,” Kapnick said. “This is a really important body of research.”

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ARTS & CULTURE

Holiday season is celebrated with 19th annual Festival of Lights

Clubs also celebrated their cultures by offering food for the attendees to eat. At a table in the corner of the room, students from the Islamic Society of North America and MSO were serving falafels and baklava.

By Samantha Robinson Assistant News Editor

Stony Brook University held its 19th annual Festival of Lights on Dec. 4 to celebrate the holiday season. Organized by the Office of Multicultural Affairs, the Interfaith Center and several student organizations, the event brought over 100 students of various faiths and cultures together. “The Festival of Lights is a celebration of the Divine messengers of God, and tonight we are celebrating the common thread of our humanity,” Sanaa Nadim, the Islamic chaplain and chair of the Interfaith Center, said. The Festival of Lights featured a crafts table, where attendees painted onto glass candelabras and drew on paper dreidels, and a stage set up in the Student Activities Center Ballroom A, where clubs were allowed to celebrate their holidays through songs, poems and performances. The Newman Club, a student organization that celebrates Catholicism, opened the night with a reenactment of “how Christ came to earth,” the club said before their performance. They were followed by Ginew Benton, Native American Celebrations representative, singer/ songwriter and traditional dancer, who used his traditional drums to perform a “thank you song.” Benton finished his song to a thunder of applause. “Hundreds of years ago, before our people were annihilated from this land that you're sitting on right

“The event brought over 100 students of various faiths and cultures together.” SAMANTHA ROBINSON THE STATESMAN

Students light up candles for Kwanza at the 19th annual Festival of Lights on Wednesday evening, Dec. 4, at the Student Activities Center. now, hundreds upon thousands of people gathered together to feast, singing in unison,” he added at the end of his performance. “I'm happy today that we are sharing that tradition to be able to come together to share food, to share this beautiful life that we are given with one another.” A few different organizations, like the Jewish Student Association (JSA) and the Islamic Society of North America and the Muslim Students Association (MSO), read poems.

Clubs also incorporated music into the event. The Stony Brook Gospel Choir (SBGC), the Asian Christian Campus Ministry and the Islamic Society of North America and MSO each sang a song to celebrate their holidays. Jahlisiah Scott, a freshman sociology major, led the SBGC in singing a mashup of, “Joyful Joyful” and “Come Thou Almighty King.” To celebrate Kwanzaa, three students lit a kinara — a candle holder used in Kwanzaa celebrations — to highlight Nguzo

Saba, the seven core principles of the holiday. As they read one principle at a time, they too lit a candle on the kinara. The night was completed by the First Presbyterian Church of Smithtown, who sent their Handbell Choir to perform for the second year in a row. They captured the audience’s attention for the entire 15 minutes they performed. Several students in attendance, like Jhinelle Walker, a senior anthropology major, and Anuki Liyanage, a senior biomedical engineering student, said the Handbell Choir was their favorite part of the night.

“This is a yearly tradition,” Nadim said. “[These are] delicacies throughout the Middle East, be it in Asia, Lebanon, Syria, Israel [and] Greece.” Walker is not a first time attendee to the Festival of Lights. She came last year, and enjoyed it so much that she came back again this year. “It's very fascinating to learn about all the various cultural traditions that occur around the same time in the year,” she said. “So I love to see people coming forward and representing and sharing their cultures and their beliefs with others because it kind of gives you a perspective and also you get to learn something you didn't know before.”

Emerson String Quartet performs Beethoven and Bartók at Staller Center

By Lajiere Blake

Assistant Arts & Culture Editor

On Wednesday, Dec. 4, the 9-time Grammy winning Emerson String Quartet performed work from Ludwig van Beethoven and Béla Bartók at the Staller Center for the Arts. Bartók’s “String Quartet’s No. 2” and “String Quartet’s No. 5” and Beethoven’s “String Quartet in F Major, Op. 59, No. 1” was played during the evening of music. The Quartet was made up of violinists Eugene Drucker, Philip Setzer and Lawrence Dutton with cellist Paul Watkins. According to the bill, the concert was performed in memory of Hanna Roth Tennen, founder of the Roth Fund, which provides violin students with scholarships. Talking about the Roth Fund, Setzer said, “This fund has helped the school, and especially those students, immeasurably. We will all miss her and I will feel the loss of a long-lasting and loving friendship.” The Quartet has been honored with many awards: two Grammys for Best Classical Album and Ensemble of the Year at the 2000 Musical America Awards. The Emerson String Quartet has undeniable energy, the kind that completely captures and engages. The skill that the group possesses comes from a clear passion for the music they play.

LAJIERE BLAKE / THE STATESMAN

The Emerson String Quartet performs Beethoven and Bartók to a full crowd at the Staller Center for the Arts on Wednesday Dec. 4 Although the group plays well, Bartók's “String Quartet No. 2” doesn’t have as much of an impact as the other works played that night. “Quartet No. 2” is known for its rapidly changing pace, going from slow to fast and back again. Mark Steinberg writes, “The impression conveyed by the work as a whole, though it is from

the musical point of view formally perfect, is that of a spontaneous experience.” These moments of spontaneity are appreciated but soon became slightly tiresome. The strongest moments in the concert were found during their rendition of Beethoven’s “String Quartet in F Major, Op. 59, No. 1” and Bartók’s “String Quartet

No. 5.” Drucker moved to first violin for these two works and delivered a notable performance. Their rendition of Beethoven was strong with the last three movements in the work providing a slow and ethereal feeling. There was an ease within every movement; the quartet was readily able to capture the essence of every sound with

no obvious difficulty. In the second movement “Adagio molto,” the quartet offered a hauntingly beautiful march that seemed to stifle all shifting and movement from the audience. It was a movement that deserved attention, and whose raw and beautiful sound couldn’t be ignored. The quartet was able to play in a very structured manner that allowed them to deliver every work with a specific intensity. It’s clear that there was a kind of communication amongst the group while on stage. It’s hard to miss the moments of eye contact and encouraging head nods — all a testament to their talent and comfort among each other. There is a huge appreciation for the Emerson String Quartet. The Staller Center was full of an audience diverse in age, packed with Stony Brook University students and locals alike. There is a universal appreciation for Bartók and Beethoven, but the audience isn’t just present for their work; they are also there for the intense and passionate execution of the Emerson String Quartet. On April 1, 2020, the quartet will be at the Staller Center for the Arts where they will perform Bartók’s “Quarte No. 4” and “Quartet No. 6” and Beethoven’s “Quartet in C Major, Op. 59, No. 3” ("Razumovsky"). Tickets are available on the Staller Center’s website.

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Binary code for computers. Tech companies like Google or Facebook run on specific algorithms that influence what each individual sees online, such as advertisements.

Teaching students algorithmic neutrality By Rohit Panda Contributing Writer

Rohit Panda is freshman computer science major who is a member of the SBU College Republicans. When someone says they are studying computer science (CS), you don’t normally associate these students with doing anything remotely political in the future. A stereotypical assumption would be that people in the field have no real influence on society beyond coding. Computer science students share the same dream of getting a luxurious job at big tech companies like Google, Twitter or Facebook. However, these outlets run on specific algorithms that are influencing what you see in your day-to-day life; for example, the advertisements you see on Facebook or the top hashtag, like #ImpeachmentHearings, on Twitter. These companies have left-leaning ideologies that are palpable in their workplace cultures. Two leading tech companies, Google and Amazon, have employees who tend to support democrats. The pressure of “being liberal” can essentially coerce new employees to take a specific stance. It is not just limited to workplace banter about left-leaning topics; the real problem is that it creeps over into their actual work, including the people who are designing and creating the algorithms. This is why it is imperative that we teach computer science students at Stony Brook about not only how to create algorithms, but ensuring that they know how to detect bias in their code by being able to completely audit them. The actual process of auditing algorithms generally involves putting various forms of data, such as different search queries, into an algorithm, to analyze the output for biases. In May, the Computational Journalism Lab at Northwestern University undertook an algorithm audit of

Corrections

the “Top Stories” box on Google search. At the end of their rigorous analysis, the study found that overall, the top three news outlets were making a total of 23% of the impressions. Unsurprisingly, these three sources were CNN, the New York Times and the Washington Post — all known as primarily left-leaning sources. Fox News was the only conservative outlet out of the top 20 sources, only accounting for 3% of the total impressions. Knowing that search results greatly influence how people think about elections, it is honestly despicable that it took an outside institution to expose the inherent bias that one of the top search engines put out. Google details their “rigorous process” for testing search algorithms as focusing mostly on relevance in search results as advertising in their numerous experiments in relation to them, rather than the underlying social impact. Software engineers at tech companies like Google should have to do algorithm audits that reflect a level playing field as part of their algorithm design process. It is not surprising that the only real consideration about biased algorithms in regards to ideology in current CS ethics classes seems to be in relation to gender and race. SBU’s most relevant course, CSE 312 — Legal, Social, and Ethical Issues in Information Systems — does not even cover viewpoint discrimination as a major topic. The famous algorithm design class, CSE 373 — Analysis of Algorithms — does not contain a blip on it either. I believe algorithmic practices that affect an entire generation should be based solely on pure academic standards taught in classrooms worldwide instead of a large corporation attempting to define it in order to gain political points. The true aim of these algorithms should be maintaining

complete neutrality. Having a purely conservative-dominated feed would be disastrous for our country also. I, myself, always try to get a good taste of all sides of a major news story. For example, if I’m reading an article about the Mueller investigation on the Daily Caller, a very conservative news source, for that same specific story, I will try to find a matching article on a site like Vox, which is left-leaning in its views. This helps me see not only what all kinds of people think but also helps me see if the truth is being distorted on either side. I shouldn’t have to put in extra effort to get this balanced perspective though, this should be already provided in our searches. One might point out that software engineers at Google and Twitter should be able to present bias in this way primarily because of the fact that they are non-governmental companies. This idea of these companies being able to do what they want is what many conservatives like me believe is a fundamental right. But what often goes undiscussed is Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, which points out that companies like these are platforms. Therefore, the content employees and users produce should be spared the liability. But because employees support one viewpoint, they should be forced to take on the role of publishers, like newspapers, and not enjoy liability. It is clear to me that the brink of the problem with the biases of large tech companies being implemented on the public is starting from the first-hand coding experiences that these employees have. Universities have to revamp the curriculum in CS ethics or algorithms classes to include this forgotten idea that people could simply have a different worldview contrary to popular belief. We have to understand that software engineers are not just “employees,” they have the power to influence who America chooses to be president.

No corrections were made to the last issue (Volume LXIII, Issue 14) of the paper. Readers can send an email to editors@sbstatesman.com regarding any errors made in articles.

Opinions

The Statesman

Monday, December 9, 2019

A final letter from Santiago: my last thoughts on Chile's fate

Eric Zolov

Contributing Writer

Eric Zolov is an associate professor of History at Stony Brook University who is teaching at the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile on a Fulbright Scholarship. He found himself in the middle of political turmoil. "Tu normalidad es privilegio" is graffitied over an entire wall along the Nueva Providencia Avenue in downtown Santiago. After six weeks of nearly continuous street protests and a growing tally of the dead and wounded, the debate over "a return to normalcy" has taken center stage here in Chile. There was a brief moment of optimism after President Sebastián Piñera announced an agreement to hold a referendum, scheduled for April, on convoking a constitutional convention. Scrapping the current constitution, a vestige of the Pinochet dictatorship, was a central demand of the protesters. Agreeing to consider a new constitution was a major concession by the conservative government and was accompanied by the pronouncement of various social and economic reforms. The following morning, Santiago woke up to images of Plaza Italia — ground zero for the protests — draped in streaming rolls of white cloth. A large banner proclaiming "Paz" (Peace) hung from the plaza’s statue of Chilean General Baqueda-

PHOTO CREDIT: ERIC ZOLOV

“No + Disparos” (No more shots). An image designed to call attention to the blinding of protesters from rubber-coated buckshots (perdigones) shot by the riot police. no, hero of Chile’s 19th-century victory against Peru and Bolivia. Since then, while the scale of protests has diminished, peace has proven elusive. A main focus of the continued protests is justice for those shot and brutalized by state agents. The indiscriminate use of rubber-coated buck-

shots, or perdigones, fired at demonstrators has left hundreds partially or fully blinded. Across the country, the wounded eye has become a symbol of martyrdom and continued resistance. Although the police recently announced they would restrict the use of perdigones to situations of

"legitimate defense," the damage has been done — not only to those physically injured, but to the regime's credibility as well. At the same time, the government seems incapable of reigning in continued acts of violence instigated by smaller groups of armed encapuchados, or hooded ones.

In the heart of Santiago, signs of past and on-going destruction abound. This can be seen especially in the shattered windows of banks, malls and small shops, that are now wrapped in sheets of welded steel. Santiago’s widely heralded metro also remains only partially operable, with several stations completely trashed. Despite on-going efforts to repaint the city’s walls, there is widespread defacement of public monuments, churches and historic buildings. In numerous cities across Chile, the destruction is similar or worse. With my Fulbright Fellowship about to end, I feel that I am leaving the nation once regarded as Latin America’s “most stable" at a historical crossroads. The government, pushed by an unprecedented grassroots explosion, is attempting a dramatic transformation of the social contract. Yet, at the same time, the regime finds itself on the defensive against a remnant protest element containing nihilistic tendencies. The stakes of a “return to normalcy” are high for all sides. Piñera, whose approval rating is a meager 10%, is facing intense pressure to resolve the current stalemate. His next moves will likely determine not only his own legacy, but the fate of Chile as well.

Student media briefing answered some questions, but still left us hanging By Gabby Pardo Opinions Editor

Gabby Pardo is a junior journalism major who attended a student media briefing last week with President Bernstein. I had the opportunity to attend a student media briefing with Interim President, Dr. Michael Bernstein on Wednesday, Dec. 4 with Editor in Chief of The Statesman, Gary Ghayrat and Assistant News Editor, Maya Brown. The briefing consisted of other campus media outlets along with The Statesman, and other members of Bernstein’s team, such as University Media Relations Officer, Lauren Sheprow. The goal of this briefing was for student media to ask Bernstein any questions we had about him, the university and the future success of our student body. Unfortunately, the media briefing was only an hour long and Bernstein showed up a few minutes later than the starting time of 1 p.m. when we were supposed to start. Although Bernstein did take last minute questions, the student media had to rush and squeeze in questions to get the full hour that we deserved. Over the course of the forced hour, Bernstein was approachable, communicated with confidence to the media and was transparent when he couldn’t answer a question fully or tell us an answer yet. However, when the end of the briefing inched closer and closer, Bernstein’s answers seemed to lack substance and an actual answer. I feel as though all of my were questions answered, but with such a short time, I also had follow up ones based on what my colleagues asked. Two years ago, I had the chance to sit down with former university president, Dr. Samuel L. Stanley Jr. and ask him

some questions during a dinner for Undergraduate College Fellows. This obviously wasn’t a press briefing, but now I have the opportunity to contrast both of these encounters. Bernstein was more approachable, in that he didn’t have any formal speech for the briefing to kill the clock. He immediately dove into the questions we had for him and seemed intrigued (at least by his facial expressions and eye contact) of what student media was curious about. Stanley, on the other hand, gave a small blurb of sentences before we asked him questions, which was annoying due to the even more limited time that I had to speak with him. I wrote in my last article that I did not genuinely believe in Stanley’s answers to my questions because he was more of a yes-man rather than Bernstein, who was vulnerable and transparent when he did not know something. Don’t get me wrong, we did have questions answered and had a productive meeting. For example, The Statesman confirmed that Bernstein wants to be highly considered to be the university’s new official president. “I think as you all know, this search is now formally launched and underway,” Bernstein said. “I have notified the chancellor of the system that I would like her permission to be a candidate in the search, which is part of the SUNY process.” He also answered questions about topics like former professor, Geoffrey Girnun — who stole cancer research funds, clean energy, the university’s diversity plan, hiring holds, infrastructure and mental health resources.

GARY GHAYRAT / THE STATESMAN

Interim President Dr. Michael Bernstein speaking at the student media briefing on Wednesday. The Statesman and other media outlets asked Bernstein questions about SBU. All of his answers to these questions were long and detailed, until the end when he cut corners on the elaborations of his answers. Yes, this could’ve been for the sake of time. However, if you answered our questions in depth a few minutes ago, why stop putting in effort? The one mistake, however, that us students — or at least The Statesman — did was wait until the end of the briefing to get a comment about the Undergraduate Student Government (USG) constitutional changes. When we were being rushed to stop asking questions, we were still persistent and squeezed in a question on whether Bernstein can comment on the recent changes. This was crucial since the judiciary branch is being removed and the administration will now have to deal with some of the conflicts that the branch had to in the past.

“You know, again, I don’t run the Undergraduate Student Government. As I understand it, I was briefed by USG leadership,” Bernstein said. “I mean, there was a process and there was a mechanism by which USG went through this decision making and here was the result. I understand some students are disappointed with the result but USG followed its own practices and protocols and made a decision which is where we are now.” Bernstein was so uninformed about the changes affecting the majority of those he is in charge of: the students. USG’s changes are affecting the student body directly — in my opinion, for the worse — and he did not care one bit. We even had the audacity to remind him of what has been going on. I understand that he is super busy and has more fish to fry elsewhere. But if so many constitutional changes are being made at

one time, with no one checking and balancing USG themselves, I just see a corrupt government. This disappointed me the most because the president is expected to care about the needs and demands of students. But instead, situations like this with USG are being allowed to happen with no supervision. To simply put it, Bernstein seems like an honest man. I think it’s great how he gave at least some enthusiasm and energy into his answers, but that was just in the beginning. Yes, he was not informed about things like USG, but this shows his lack of attention towards the student body. I appreciate him taking time out of his schedule to meet with us, and think he should be considered as the permanent president; however, his concern for the student body needs to increase greatly.

Opinions

The Statesman

Monday, December 9, 2019

The USG concert series needs to better represent all SBU students By Alek Lewis Staff Writer

Alek Lewis is a junior journalism major. He is also a transfer and commuter student. On Nov. 27, a Campus Connect email was sent to the undergraduate student body with a poll allowing them to cast a vote on a select number of potential artists for the 2020 Brookfest Concert. Feeling optimistic to attend a high quality concert at a reduced price, I looked at the poll and saw that all the choices presented for the concert were artists that I was not familiar with. I was flushed with disappointment. Being a transfer student who will only attend Stony Brook University (SBU) for two years while also being a commuter with a part-time job, poses many disadvantages. Not being able to immerse myself in the culture of SBU’s student life was due to financials. Even though I don’t participate in many social activities, I would have looked forward to taking a day off from my job on the weekend to attend Brookfest. Unfortunately, I don’t feel like I have the luxury of attending Brookfest when I don’t have a genuine interest in the artists. Not every concert will be of my interest and I acknowledge that a lot of of the rap and R&B performers that the polls and recent concerts have included, such as 2017 Back to the Brook headliner,

Post Malone — who was named top artist by Billboard this year — might be favorable to many students at SBU. But there is still a diversity problem. The USG ignores the minority of students who are disinterested in these genres. If diversity and inclusion is such an important value to SBU, why would our Undergraduate Student Government (USG) not uphold the same beliefs of diversity in regards to their performance events? Some students go to a university looking to balance growing up, making friends and joining clubs in addition to their studies. Our Student Activity Board is meant to help cater to that experience. Every person has different tastes, every student has different interests — it’s time for USG to integrate this policy into their concert series. In 2018, Vice President of Student Life, Kojo Dansoh, said in an interview that they would increase the diversity of the concerts by organizing multiple concerts of different genres. Dansoh, since, has not kept his word. The exclusion of the 2019 Back to the Brook concert, coupled with my lack of interest of the 2020 Brookfest’s potential line up, kills the amount of potential concerts that myself and others who share the same interests could attend. In addition, my SBU student activity fee is being put to waste.

The Student Activity Center’s rooms and hallways display various posters of past concerts. Musicians like Billy Joel, Pink Floyd and comedians such as John Oliver and Dave Chappelle take up the walls; I would’ve gladly seen these artists if I was attending the university at the time. And although a section on the poll also includes a space where students can submit suggestions for their favorite artists, let's face it, no presidential candidate who was ever written into a ballot ever won an election.

Looking at SBU’s history, it’s apparent that the Student Activities Board has failed its concert series through the past few years. Past concerts such as 2017 Brookfest suffered from low sales and energy. 2018’s Brookfest suffered from a last-minute lineup change. 2018 and 2019 Back to the Brooks never even saw the light of day. These issues display that the current Student Activities Board, under Dansoh, are unable to host a reliable concert.

Well USG, it’s in your hands. Now that you have cut the judicial branch of your government, which you claim cost over $10,000 to operate per year, you should have plenty of money to plan a large variety of concerts and performances that caters to every interest at SBU. It’s time for the USG concert series to be refurbished and renewed in the interests of the undergraduate student body — the whole undergraduate student body.

COURTESY OF USG

Poster for the Brookfest 2020 Artist Poll, emailed to the undergraduate student body on Nov. 27. The poll included mostly rap and R&B performers for voting.

Hungary’s neo-nationalism poses dangerous threat to social order By Fanni Frankl Staff Writer

Fanni Frankl is a sophomore journalism major and political science minor. Nationalism is common among many nations today and is often perceived as the driving force that allows people to unite under a shared identity of a common culture and/ or language. While inclusive nationalism does increase the pride of a nation and allows for people in different countries to feel like one community, society must be careful to ensure that the line does not cross into exclusive nationalism where a specific population feels superior to others.

A more malignant form of nationalism is the real source of worry in society today since it has the possibility to cause stark divisions within a country. Instances of bigotry and non-inclusivity are now put under the guise that the country is doing what is best for its national interests. This was seen in Germany in the 1930s against the Jews when Nazis were convinced that keeping the country “Aryan” and Jew-free would do Germany a favor and restore it to its former glory like it was before World War I. Nations, today — such as Italy, Sweden and Hungary — are getting dangerously close to the mindset of 1930s Germany with the threat of

immigration to their countries. European countries, such as Sweden, now attribute immigrants to crime, chaos, a “fraying of the cherished social safety net” and the erosion of their culture. In many ways, Hungary leads this alt-right movement against immigrants by Prime Minister Viktor Orbán who champions his white, Christian values to his constituents. In his State of the Union address, Orbán proclaimed his vision for the country. “We shall let in true refugees: Germans, Dutch, French, and Italians, terrified politicians and journalists who, here in Hungary, want to find the Europe they have lost in their homelands,” Orbán

PUBLIC DOMAIN

A map of Hungary. Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and his administration frequently state the want to “keep Hungary for the Hungarians.”

said. His administration frequently states anti-Semitic beliefs under the guise to “keep Hungary for the Hungarians.” For instance, one politician, Marton Gyöngyösi, urged the government to draw up lists of Jews who pose a “national security risk,” echoing patterns seen under Nazi Germany.

“Nations today . . . are getting dangerously close to the mindset of 1930s Germany with the threat of immigration to their countries.” These trends are extremely troublesome, especially in a country like Syria that is devastated by its civil war. The population that does not share the same values as the white Christians will then be blamed for the misfortunes of the country, such as taking jobs and being a burden on the country’s economy. In reality, these immigrants actually contribute more to the economy by paying taxes and opening new businesses that put the money back into the

government. However, the continued sentiment that immigrants are the issue, especially considering Hungary’s destitute economic situation, puts this unfair burden on immigrants who are not really the problem. The superiority complex that the Hungarian administration demonstrates has worrisome consequences that may start with exclusions and go on to actual government persecution. Being of Hungarian descent and having visited Hungary, I have witnessed such neo-nationalism and how my family perceives people like immigrants and Jews. I feel absolutely disgusted at these sentiments that only reflect the ignorance that Hungarians have to other cultures outside of Europe. While I can understand that people are suffering in economic distress, it is not acceptable to blame immigrants, Jews and others just because they have a different skin color or a different religion. This only continues the sickening pattern of dehumanizing a particular group of people, all led by Orbán to manipulate mass fear in the public domain. While visiting, I learned that Orbán’s administration bought almost every news channel in Hungary to control the type of news given to the public, completely undermining freedom of the press. It is through these means that he is able to worsen the social divide in the country and pump the alt-right agenda to the masses. Orbán’s administration has proven very dangerous in regards to neo-nationalism and the resurgence of the alt-right movement that has left non-white, non-Christians to suffer.

SPORTS

With a long winter coming, Seawolves are out of the hunt By Andrew Zucker Assistant Sports Editor

A year ago, the Stony Brook football team was coming off their second straight appearance in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) playoffs. Fast forward and they find themselves watching 24 other teams compete for a national title as they ponder a lost season. After finishing the season 5-7, 2-6 in Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) play, the Seawolves secured their first losing season since 2016. In the CAA preseason coaches poll, Stony Brook was projected to finish sixth. In reality, they finished 11th. For the past few seasons, HERO Sports has been putting out previews on all the teams in the FCS as well as previews on all the conferences. Brian McLaughlin, HERO Sports' FCS coordinator, wrote the Stony Brook preview and some of what he said played out word for word. “In fact, there's a very good chance the Seawolves could emerge from non-conference play in September at 3-1 with a winnable CAA opener against Rhode Island up next,” McLaughlin said in the season preview. “That would have SB heading into the James Madison game 4-1 and turning everybody's heads.” The Seawolves did in fact start the season 4-1, after defeating the Rhode Island Rams in a thrilling and action-packed fourth quarter. After surrendering a large lead, Stony Brook was led to victory by a final minute 50-yard touchdown run by redshirt-junior quarterback Tyquell Fields. Fields’ touchdown run earned him a spot on ESPN’s SportsCenter. While everyone talked about the TD run, no one mentioned the elephant in the room: Sam Kamara, one of the team’s three captains and a senior defensive lineman, recorded three sacks in the victory over the Rams. But when getting up from the field following his third sack that sealed the victory, he tore something in his shoulder, rendering him out for the season. Stony Brook hosted No. 2 ranked James Madison at Kenneth P. LaValle Stadium on Oct. 5 for Homecoming. Stony Brook fell to the Dukes, 45-38 in OT, but the game would not have even made it to overtime

EMMA HARRIS / THE STATESMAN

Stony Brook Football head coach Chuck Priore walks off the field at Kenneth P. LaValle Stadium after the last game of the season on Nov. 23. if not for redshirt-senior kicker Nick Courtney hitting a 47-yard field goal with 0:05 left in the fourth quarter. Despite snapping their 12-game home win streak, the Seawolves rose in the rankings to No. 22. That would be their highest ranking of the season. The loss to JMU would be followed by a low scoring, penalty-heavy home affair against the University of New Hampshire Wildcats. Courtney once again came to Stony Brook’s rescue, drilling a 22-yard field goal against Villanova, as time expired. The field goal capped an 18-point second half comeback for the Seawolves, giving them their second ever victory over a top-five nationally ranked team. Following the victory over Villanova on Oct. 26, Stony Brook found themselves 5-3, 2-2. They would not win another game this season. The following three games, losses at Richmond, home versus No. 21 Towson and at Delaware, were all duds for the Seawolves. Stony Brook managed to score 34 total points, compared to the 78 points they gave up. Redshirt-senior wide receiver Nick Anderson had a career night in the loss to Towson. Anderson pulled in eight catches for 205 yards and two touchdowns, with the 205 yards being the most receiving yards by a Stony Brook player since 2012, when

wide receiver Kevin Norrell pulled down 214 yards against Charleston Southern on Oct. 6. It was also only the fifth time in program history that a player had a 200-plus yard receiving game. Coming into their final home game, the Seawolves were 5-6, 2-5 but had a chance to save face and finish .500. “The Battle for the Golden Apple” victory over Albany would help ease the pain of a down season. Stony Brook quickly found themselves down 24-0 less than three minutes into the second quarter. While the Seawolves would go on to lose 31-26, don’t let the final score fool you. Stony Brook needed a big fourth quarter, and a touchdown with 0:04 left on the clock would just bring them within five. It was a disaster. While the Seawolves did not succeed in the manner in which they wanted on the field, they managed to have some success off the field. Back in May, head coach Chuck Priore announced the additions of five transfers, with two more switching in as the summer progressed. The seven had varying levels of impact on the field, but three stood out the most. Jean Constant, a graduate transfer wide receiver from Bryant University, came into Stony Brook as a multiple season All-American returner and quickly made his presence known. Through the first seven games of the season, Constant

had managed to pull in five touchdowns. But an injury in the victory at Villanova, would leave Constant on the sideline until the final game of the season. Sean Hammonds Jr., came in from Ball State University as a graduate transfer. At Ball State, Hammonds Jr. was a successful defensive lineman, and he brought that success to Stony Brook. He finished this past season season tied with Kamara for second on the team in sacks with three while forcing a fumble, recovering two more and breaking up five passes. Despite missing three games due to injury, Keirston Johnson helped improve the linebacker corps. Johnson, who transferred in from the University of South Florida (USF) as a junior, finished his first season on Long Island with 39 total tackles. Stony Brook also brought in players from Air Force, Southern Methodist University (SMU), University of Connecticut and University of Texas at San Antonio. The Seawolves were one of numerous CAA programs that benefited from transfer players, and need to continue to be a major destination for players looking to transfer. With the need to become a place that transfers want to play for, Stony Brook will have to face the grueling reality: players might want to transfer out of the program. On Nov. 27,

redshirt-freshman wide receiver JP Roane tweeted out a long message, which stated his intention to enter the transfer portal. A week later, on Dec. 4, redshirt-freshman running back Alex Indelicato tweeted his decision to enter the transfer portal, as well. Each is looking to leave for different reasons; Roane butted heads with the coaching staff and is looking for a fresh start, while the reasons for Indelicato’s departure are unknown. With the early national signing period drawing closer with each passing day, Stony Brook currently has seven players committed to their class of 2020, with at least 24 other players publicly acknowledging they hold offers. On that note, at least 11 players who had previously announced publicly that they held offers from Stony Brook, have decided to go elsewhere. But that's a part of the game, a team will not get everyone they covet. While the seven players have committed to the program, they are not official yet since none of them signed their National Letters of Intent. The Seawolves still need to pick up their recruiting efforts, as every FCS team has been picking up commitments, and the CAA is once again bringing in top talent. James Madison and Richmond had already picked at least eight commitments as of September, with Richmond having 11. Priore has been the Stony Brook head coach since spring, 2006, and during his time has led the team to four FCS playoff appearances and at least a share of four Big South conference championships, while helping the team transition to the CAA in 2013. But the Seawolves have never gone past the second round of the playoffs. Since 2006, five different CAA teams have appeared in the FCS Championship game. Of those five, three different teams have brought home the title, most recently JMU winning it all in 2016. The 2019 season may have been a rebuilding year or a bad sign of things to come. Stony Brook will have to decide soon whether they want to continue on the course to nowhere with their current regime, or part ways with Priore, while eight other FCS teams are currently searching for a new head coach. Winter is coming to Stony Brook, and it may be a harsh one.

Stony Brook Athletics announces hiring of Adam Rubin By Ethan Tam

Assistant Sports Editor

Stony Brook Athletics announced on Wednesday, Dec. 4 that longtime New York Mets beat reporter Adam Rubin has been hired as the university’s new Associate Director of Athletics for Strategic Communications. “In his role as Associate AD, he will be responsible for the development, implementation and execution of the department's stra-

tegic communication initiatives,” Stony Brook Athletics said in a press release. Rubin, a Long Island native, closely covered the Mets for 15 years, first starting at the New York Daily News before moving to ESPN in 2010. He became one of the most recognizable beat reporters during his tenure at ESPN, gaining airtime on SportsCenter and his own hosted radio show on ESPN New York 98.7 FM. Rubin is also a mem-

ber of the Baseball Writers’ Association of America (BBWAA), having participated in voting for the Hall of Fame, Most Valuable Player (MVP) and Cy Young. His departure from ESPN in 2017 signaled the end of his journalism career as the media conglomerate opted not to renew his contract. “ESPN seems to be bleeding money because of cord-cutting, so my salary was unattractive to them,” Rubin said in an interview with Jared Dia-

mond and Mike Vorkunov of The -30-. “And the new MLB editor at ESPN wants to get away from “thorough” beat coverage — that’s the precise word she used — and I suppose I was the sacrificial lamb to hammer home that point. Anyway, ESPN agreed to give me a buyout to leave now. And I get to do what I planned to do anyway. So it worked out tremendously.” Rubin transitioned from beat reporting to communications, joining the New York Institute of Tech-

nology (NYIT) Department of Athletics in 2017 as the program’s Associate Director of Athletics for Strategic Communications. His work with the Division II Bears had a significant impact on its teams’ social media numbers and online presence. Along with 14year MLB veteran Frank Catalanotto, now the Bears’ baseball head coach, Rubin helped NYIT reach their first ever Division II College World Series in 2019 as the Sports Information Director (SID).

Sports

The Statesman

Monday, December 9, 2019

Olaniyi’s career night helps Stony Brook in rout of Brown By Ethan Tam

Assistant Sports Editor

Despite being surprisingly absent from his usual place in the starting lineup, junior forward Elijah Olaniyi set new career highs as the Stony Brook men’s basketball team overcame an early deficit to blow by the Brown Bears (5-4) by a final score of 7963, improving to 7-3 having won seven of their last eight games. “We played at a high level,” head coach Geno Ford said in a postgame press conference. “If you make 14 threes, the offense is going to look good, but we had 22 assists for 28 baskets, so I thought our guys were unselfish. I thought we really played the right way. That was an elite offensive performance for where we are in the season right now.” Olaniyi, who was sidelined during the last two days of practice as a result of a significant neck strain, entered three minutes into the game and ended the night with a career-high 30 points, including a career-high of six 3-pointers. His previous best was 28 against Hartford on Feb. 2, 2019. He also added a teamhigh seven rebounds. “Coming into this game, I actually was a little defeated because it was bad timing and I was upset with myself, but when the trainers told me I had an opportunity to play, half of it was mental,” Olaniyi said in a postgame press conference. “I think the biggest thing is that mentally, I was prepared and ready.” “I didn’t know he would play that well to have a career game like that,” Ford said, praising his toughness. “But I knew he would fly around and find a way to help us because that’s who he is.” Olaniyi made an instant impact coming off the bench, drain-

EMMA HARRIS / THE STATESMAN

Junior forward Elijah Olaniyi drives past a defender with the ball during the Stony Brook men's basketball home opener on Nov. 5 against Yale. ing a three to put the Seawolves on top by one. When Brown junior forward Tamenang Choh gave the Bears a 4-point lead following a three and a layup, Olaniyi connected again from deep to cut the deficit to one. Brown raced out to a double-digit 20-10 lead as Stony Brook was held scoreless throughout a two-and-a-half minute stretch, prompting Ford to call a timeout with 12 minutes remaining in the first half. From there, the Seawolves got right back into the game, feasting off layups from Olaniyi and junior forward Anthony Ochefu as well as Olaniyi’s third three of the night. Junior guard Jordan McKenzie, who entered Saturday averaging 1.3 points per game, tied the score at 20 with a three to cap off a 10-0 run where the Bears were kept off the board for over six minutes.

“The first eight minutes we couldn’t get them guarded,” Ford said. “The last 32 minutes, I thought we were terrific defensively. For 32 minutes, it was as complete of a game as we were capable of playing.” Stony Brook began to take control towards the end of the first half, with Brown head coach Mike Martin calling a timeout after Olaniyi made a three from the right wing to put the Seawolves up by four. They would enter the break with a 33-27 lead, with Olaniyi accounting for 15 on 5-for-7 shooting and four of those made shots coming from beyond the arc. The Seawolves would not relent coming out of halftime. The offensive simply caught fire, shooting 64% (18-for-28) in the second half and going 7-for-10 from 3-point range. Fittingly, it was Olaniyi who kicked off the scoring in the peri-

od with his fifth three of the night. With 16:36 remaining, redshirt-junior forward Andrew Garcia drilled a corner three to give Stony Brook a double-digit lead, and Brown never got the deficit closer than nine for the rest of the game. “I’m going to give some guys off the bench credit,” Ford said. “We’ve talked about how we need our depth to get better. Tonight, Jordan McKenzie, Anthony Ochefu, Tavin [Pierre Philippe] all went in and were significantly impactful in the game with their effort on defense. It may not always show up in the points column, but those three guys really helped us turn the tide defensively.” Olaniyi’s sixth three gave Stony Brook a 14-point lead with 9:29 left, which grew to as large as 20 points at the 5-minute mark. He would not score again until the final basket of the game. McKenzie

fed it to Olaniyi off the fast break, who emphatically dunked the ball in as he crossed the 30-point barrier in the game’s waning moments. “I pretty much go out there and do whatever my team needs me to do,” Olaniyi said. “Tonight, it just happened that I had the hot hand and could lead the team offensively.” Not to be overshadowed was redshirt-junior guard Makale Foreman’s performance, as he scored 17 and shot 4-for-9 from downtown, or junior forward Mouhamadou Gueye, who turned in seven assists and three blocks. Choh led all Brown players with 19 points, while senior guard Brandon Anderson was held to just 13 points after averaging 21.6 before tonight. The offensive explosion came at a crucial moment for the Seawolves. Shooting 53% from the floor and 56% from three on the night, Stony Brook needed to nab both wins during this week’s twogame homestand as they prepare for the toughest stretch of their non-conference schedule. The team plays their next four games on the road, with opponents ranging from the always-tough rival Hofstra, to Big East foe Providence to defending national champions Virginia. The 2019 edition of The Battle of Long Island kicks things off, as the Seawolves travel to Nassau County on Tuesday, Dec. 10 to face the Pride in a series that Suffolk County has not won since 2015. Time for the Seawolves to turn some heads. “We have a chance to go earn some respect right here,” Olaniyi said. “In years past, I don’t feel like anybody respects us. We know the talent we have in our locker room, but I don’t feel like other teams know. This is a great opportunity to show that.”

Panthers silenced by Seawolves in historic victory for program By Andrew Zucker Assistant Sports Editor

For the second year in a row, the Stony Brook women’s basketball team went into the state of Pennsylvania and knocked off a Power 5 team. Pittsburgh natives, junior guard/forward Hailey Zeise and junior forward McKenzie Bushee led the Seawolves (8-1) to a 59-56 victory on Sunday, Dec. 8 against the University of Pittsburgh Panthers (3-6), in their hometown. The win marked the programs second ever victory against a Power 5 team. Last year, Stony Brook went into Happy Valley and defeated the Penn State Nittany Lions. "I'm so proud of our team today. We talked about doing the dirty hard work on the court and I believe we did just that,” Stony

Brook head coach Caroline McCombs said in a press release. “Playing in Pittsburgh was special for this group and I love how we competed at a high level. This one was for Hailey and Kenzie!" Zeise made sure to leave it all on the floor, staying on the court for all 40 minutes of play. She led the team with 17 points to go along with four rebounds and four assists. With Zeise playing the whole game, McCombs had some leeway with how many players she needed to sub in and out. Bushee once again came off the bench, as she has all season, and provided the team with some hometown energy, scoring 10 points on the night for her first double digit scoring game of the season. While the Pitt. natives balled out, graduate guard Kaela Hilaire joined Zeise in playing all 40

minutes. Hilaire finished the night with 11 points, five assists and a steal. Aside from leading the team up and down the court on every possession, Hilaire sealed the victory by hitting the second of two free throws with seconds left in the game to put the Seawolves up by three. She hit 7-11 free throws on the night. The Seawolves entered the fourth quarter up 47-34, but the Panthers slowly attempted to mount a comeback. With 4:22 remaining, Pittsburgh redshirt-senior guard Aysia Bugg knocked down a three pointer that sparked a 12-4 run, helping the Panthers cut the deficit to two points with just 0:11 remaining in the fourth. Following Hilaire’s made free throw, Pitt. had a chance to bring the ball up the court and attempt a good shot, but due to poor judge-

you could pick it up on the way to class... ...but sometimes that’s just too much effort.

www.sbstatesman.com Stony Brook’s only weekly paper also available online

ment they were forced to heave a three pointer as time expired. Stony Brook is off to another hot start to the season and will look to continue their winning ways when

they take on the Wagner University Seahawks. The Seawolves head to the Spiro Sports Center in Staten Island on Sunday, Dec. 15, with tip off set for 1 p.m.

SARA RUBERG / THE STATESMAN

Junior forward Hailey Zeise during the home opener against Manhattan on

women's Nov. 8.