10.9.13

Koch film set to air on campus pg. 4

RISING HIGHER

Meet the new Bicycle Coalition pg. 5

Z100’s Danielle Monaro stops by SJU pg. 8

PUBLIC SAFETY: MARIJUANA REASON BEHIND INCREASE IN DRUG VIOLATIONS PG. 3 COPYRIGHT ISTOCK.COM/NATALY LUKHANINA

Photo of the Week

2

Directory

Managing Board XCI

Kieran Lynch, Editor-in-Chief

Mitchell Petit-Frere, Managing Editor Shannon Luibrand Features Editor Natalie Hallak Chief Copy Editor Kyle Fitzgerald Online Editor

Samantha albanese Entertainment Editor Diana Colapietro Photo Editor jim baumbach

Advisor

Christopher Brito News Editor Jon Perez Sports Editor diamond watts-walker Art Director

Advertising (718)-9906756 Business 990-6756 Editorial Board 990-6444

Features 990-6445 News 990-6444 Opinion 990-6445 Sports 990-6444

Special thanks to Richard Rex Thomas for assisting in the design of the Torch

Entertainment ‘Bangerz’ album review The Torch reviews Miley Cyrus’s new album, “Bangerz.”

Lifestyle Pg. 10

Lifestyle Places to go for fall The Torch suggests five places for students must go to during the fall.

Lifestyle Pg. 11

Sports Student talks about working out with Novak Djokovic Vasko Mladenov speaks the Torch about meeting the 7-time Grand Slam winner.

Sports Pg. 13 ILLUSTRATOR’S CORNER | OPINION PG. 6

The Torch is the official student newspaper of St. John’s University. The Torch is written, edited, designed and produced by students of the University. All contents are the sole responsibility of the editors and the editorial board and do not necessarily represent the views of the administration, faculty or students of St. John’s University unless specifically stated.

To contact The Torch by mail: The Torch, St. John’s University 8000 Utopia Parkway Queens, NY 11439

The Torch is typically published on Wednesdays, approximately 20 issues throughout the academic year.

Circulation per issue is 3,500 copies distributed free on campus and through mail subcriptions.

This copy of The Torch is worth $1.00.

TORCH PHOTO/SHANNON LUIBRAND

Danielle Monaro, a radio personality and alum, signed autographs last week.

Think Outside...

News

Drug violations climb on campus Statistics show instances up 63 percent over three years

SHANNON LUIBRAND Features Editor Students are getting high—and the number of drug law violations is getting higher.

The University recently reported that drug violations here have increased 63 percent over a three-year span.

According to Thomas Lawrence, vice president for Public Safety, there seems to be only one drug of choice: marijuana.

“It is not that we don’t think other drugs are being used, but what we come across for the most part is marijuana,” Lawrence told The Torch. “The distinct odor, especially in the dorms … is very noticeable wherever you are.”

According to the annual Security and Fire Safety Report, which was sent via email to the University community late last month, there were 255 drug law violations on campus last year that were referred for disciplinary action. That figure is up from 212 in 2011 and 156 in 2010.

Of the 255 drug law violations reported on campus last year, 201 took place in the residence halls, representing an increase from 186 in 2011 and from 147 in 2010.

There were four drug-related arrests on campus last year, down from 10 in 2011.

Meanwhile, liquor law violations on campus dropped significantly, from 450 in 2011 to 320 in 2012. No liquor violation resulted in an arrest.

All universities are required by federal law to publish an annual report detailing crime statistics on campus and in some of the surrounding areas, as per the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act, better known as the Clery Act. “The drug of choice is marijuana on campus,” Lawrence said. “Although it is up a little bit, if you look, it is probably nationwide.”

Lawrence said he has spoken extensively with University administrators and Student Wellness about the increase in marijuana usage.

Referencing the National Institute on Drug Abuse, Lawrence said many students nationwide admit they have used drugs well before starting their freshmen year – some as young as the eighth grade.

According to the most recent NIDA study on youth drug trends, 15 percent of eighth graders last year said they had already experimented with marijuana in their lifetime. By 12th grade that number rises to 45 percent, which represents a three-percent increase over a four-year period.

Public Safety officers have responded to the upward trend here on campus by issuing more violations.

Outside the residence halls, Lawrence said traditional spots throughout campus where such violations are issued include St. Vincent’s patio and the softball field.

“The smell kind of just leads you right to it,” he said.

Lawrence said parents sometimes

smell marijuana when they come into the residence halls, too. Roommates and suitemates of smokers have also complained about the smell in their rooms and suites, he said.

“I think the bystander piece is very good,” Lawrence said. “We get a lot of information from students.”

One of Lawrence’s mottos when it comes to any campus or law violation: If you see something, say something.

That goes for sex offenses, too.

“One is too many,” Lawrence said.

According to the University safety report, three forcible sex offenses were reported in the residence halls in 2012.

Forcible sex offenses can include rape and forcible touching. Lawrence said all three victims knew their perpetrators.

The number of forcible sex offenses is down from four in 2011.

Regarding the 29-percent decrease in liquor violations in only one year, Lawrence credited increased Public Safety patrols of the residence halls and diligent resident assistants.

“They really stepped it up last year,” he said. “And the class just realizing— you can’t do this on campus.”

The University works closely with NYPD and the 107th Precinct to ensure the campus and students are safe, Lawrence said.

“We want a safe and secure campus,” he said. “We want you to have a great experience, but a safe experience.”

He added that alcohol and drugs have the potential to threaten the safety of students and the community.

“It is not going to be tolerated on campus,” Lawrence said.

TORCH GRAPH/ MITCHELL PETIT-FRERE

Drug violations on campus have climbed in the past three years, according to the Security and Fire Safety Report.

3

Inside arrest of grabbing suspect SHANNON LUIBRAND Features Editor For over a year, the NYPD and the St. John’s Department of Public Safety worked in conjunction to arrest a predator that had targeted University females walking off campus.

The perpetrator more commonly known among students as ‘Carlos the Butt Grabber’ – had been accused of harassing and forcibly touching women within a few blocks of the University.

A few weeks ago, Thomas Lawrence, the vice president for Public Safety, announced via a campus-wide email that an arrest had been made.

The arrest, which was months in the making, took a great deal of time, effort and investigative work on both the part of the NYPD and the St. John’s Department of Public Safety, Lawrence said in an interview with the Torch.

Lawrence said there were two modes of operation the perpetrator used to victimize women. He either told females they had something on their butt or forcibly grabbed the butt of females and then stated that he thought they were someone else. The perpetrator often responded that he thought the female was ‘Jennifer’ or ‘Melissa’.

Lawrence said that while they cannot be positive, they hope the man they found is the only person harassing off campus.

“The guy we grabbed—that was picked out of lineups—he was responsible for the grabbing of Jennifer and Melissa,” he said. “But we haven’t had any others, so maybe he was using two different MOs to grab these girls.”

Lawrence said the majority of the University may not be aware of how much work went into the locating of ‘Carlos.’

The NYPD set up cameras outside of campus, officers patrolled on foot both undercover and in uniform and both Public Safety officers and the NYPD took pictures of suspicious license plates.

Officers also questioned people in suspicious cars, patrolled in Public Safety, NYPD and undercover cars, according to Lawrence.

Eventually, a NYPD officer pulled over a man suspiciously looking down Henley Road in a car, Lawrence said. The man met the description of the grabber.

The officer took a picture of his license and after running it, brought him in to the a station. In a lineup and through pictures, student victims were able to identify him as the man who grabbed them.

“It was collaborative with the students,” Dominic Scianna, University spokesman, said. “See something, say something.”

Lawrence said the Public Safety prefers to give more advisories than required to keep students and faculty informed.

Over the course of a year, several advisories were sent out regarding the off -campus grabber.

Lawrence said advisories are crucial when trying to keep students safe and informed.

“I think it is important students know,” he said.“That is going to make an impact for sure.”

4

Koch: documentary and panel preview Award-winning film highlights the former mayor’s tenure CHRISTOPHER BRITO News Editor

The University will present ‘Koch’ on Oct. 15, a documentary featuring the former mayor of New York City, Ed Koch, and the dramatic transformation the city underwent during his tenure from 1978-89.

As part of the annual Participate initiative, the movie and the panel discussion afterwards are meant to engage students in the civic process as Election Day for New York City mayor and Queens Borough president approaches.

Brian Browne, assistant vice president of the Government and Politics department, runs Participate and recommends students to learn about a mayor most of them haven’t experienced and see similarities with political issues from the past.

“It will teach students who may not remember what the city used to be like, just how far we’ve come and how instrumental Mayor Koch was during this transformation in New York City,” he said. “There are also some parallels in the mayor’s race in 1977 and today in 2013.”

Edward Irving Koch ran three successive terms as mayor and was most known for bringing the city back from a daunting fiscal crisis without the help of the federal government. He was also hailed for his efforts in public housing,

which still stand today. “Koch,” directed

by Neil Barsky, was released earlier this year on Feb. 1, the same date he died due to heart failure.

After the documentary, a panel discussion headlined by Sam Roberts, an Urban Affairs columnist for The New York Times, Jonathan Soffer, Ph. D., author of “Ed Koch and the Rebuilding of New York City,” Robert J. McGuire, Esq., former New York City police commissioner and St. John’s grad, and Martha K. Hirst, the University’s executive vice president, chief operating officer and treasurer who worked for the Koch administration will entertain questions from the audience and add an up-close and personal view of the Mayor and the city’s transformation.

“I think it will show how government can function and what it can accomplish when it is functioning,” Browne said.

“It’s called the second hardest job in America for a reason.”

In Browne’s view, Koch shattered the stigma that the Big Apple was an ungovernable city rotted by its corruption and prostitution rings, and instead he proved that it can be tamed.

“He showed that New York City can be governed, “he said. “He really seized the idea that someone has to be in charge.He was a great character for New York City.”

The documentary will be shown at 5:30 p.m. in the Little Theater and the panel discussion will follow promptly.

PHOTO/WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

Mayor Ed Koch will have a documentary based on his tenure play on Oct.15.

‘Take Back the Night’ assumes stance against violence CARA GENOVESE Contributing Writer

TORCH PHOTO/TAYLOR CARTY

Students gathered for ‘Take Back the Night,’ to promote non-violence.

Several organizations gathered on campus Thursday evening to promote “Take Back the Night,” an annual event that aims to educate the community about sexual violence and lower assault rates.

The department of Student Wellness, Public Safety, Campus Ministry and other advocates for non-violence took part in the event to demonstrate solidarity with students.

“We, as individuals, must take a stand. This is not a women’s issue. It’s everybody’s issue,” said Ruth DeRosa, associate director of Wellness Education.

Members of the Student Wellness’ Sexual Assault Prevention program and counseling services were in attendance to talk, offer support and inform students about future opportunities to get involved.

John Breheny of Public Safety, a former NYPD officer, spoke to attendees about daily ways to stay safe. “[Public Safety is] here to protect you,” Breheny said. “If you’re ever in a situation and feel like something isn’t right, go with your gut. Call us.”

He encouraged students to take shuttle buses, travel in a group when possible and not hesitate to seek help from Public Safety for any type of issue that may occur.

Junior Donya Nasser, a minor in gender studies, also spoke at the event.

She offered the audience statistics, such

as one in every four college women being the victim of sexual violence, and 42 percent of those affected never tell anyone.

Nasser’s genuine tone and personal accounts seemed to have an effect on listeners.

“I wanted to come out to show that male students are committed to this issue as well,” Aaron Young, a junior, said.“So many people are affected, I feel obligated to show my support,” junior Hannah Iamondo said.

Among the stressed points of the speeches was that the victim should never feel guilty or be intimidated into silence.

Miniature flashlights and whistles were given to students as they were reminded to always be smart and remain aware of their surroundings.

Resident Minister Megan Fraino of Campus Ministry led the group in prayer for all victims, families and others affected.

At the end of the night, students were invited to join the march from campus to Henley Road and back to inform the community that the violence would no longer be tolerated.

Members of the St. John’s community are not the only ones taking a stand and participating in the initiative.

This year alone, over 50 “Take Back the Night” events will be held nationwide, from walks and marches to speeches and candlelight vigils. Inspired by this brave, forward-thinking movement, men and women everywhere are coming together to end the injustice and take back the night.

Two removed for ‘anti-Islamic’ flyers

5

Public Safety takes action against non-students for handouts ISABEL RAJABZADEH Staff Writer

Public Safety officers escorted two non-St. John’s student males off campus on Sept. 25 for handing out fliers deemed “anti-Islamic,” according to Public Safety.

The Vice President for Public Safety, Thomas Lawrence, said upon receiving the call that the two males were escorted off-campus and issued trespass notices.

While one male resisted and refused to sign the trespass notice, the other male complied, according to Lawrence. Public Safety has pictures of the individuals and their names on file. If they are seen on campus, they are both subject to arrest by the NYPD. St. John’s student Donya Nasser said she received a flier while walking from St. John’s Hall to St. Augustine Hall and asked the two males if the flier was “proIslam or anti-Islam?” She said the males responded, “Anti-Islam.”

Nasser then walked to St. Augustine Hall and reported them to a Public Safety officer, she said.

Irma Khawaja, the president of the Muslim Student Association, said that at least two members of the organization were handed the fliers by the two males and were upset.

The flier had verses from the Quran that insinuated that Islam is against women and is an ideology rather than a religion. It also said to, “protect yourself, your family, friends and country from Islam.”

“A lot of stuff [on the flier] was taken out of context and a lot of it is stuff that’s not even really in the Quran in the first place,” Khawaja said. “A lot of it is just to anger people.”

“You can interpret [the Quran] however you want to, but it’s very interesting that the interpretation only goes in this direction,” St. John’s professor Nerina Rustomji, a historian that specializes in Islam and the Middle East, said.

“For a document like this, I could probably come up with two pages that will present the absolute opposite vision using the same forces.”

Khawaja said the MSA was initially worried about the backlash that the flier would create on campus and Muslim St. John’s students getting offended by it.

The last few lines of the flier said, “Do not harm, discriminate against, hate, mock or ridicule Muslims. Many do not know Islam teaches these things

TORCH PHOTO/CHRISTOPHER BRITO

A St. John’s student received an ‘anti-Islamic flyer’ on her way to the library.

and are therefore genuinely peaceful and caring people. Show genuine concern for Muslims by sharing this information. Muslims need to know as well.”

Khawaja said she believes the last lines were added there to avoid legal problems and responsibility for any negative actions reactions to the flier.

Rustomji said the flier is dangerous and it “assumes that Muslims are not capable of understanding their own religious text... And that really undercuts over a billion people in the world.”

Since St. John’s is a private educational institution, the school is allowed to regulate material on campus.

“The First Amendment of the Constitution of the United States protects individual freedoms from government interference. It does not, as a rule, protect individual freedoms from interference by private organizations, such as corporations or private universities,” according to knowmyrights.org.

Khawaja said she is impressed with the way that St. John’s handled the situation. Public Safety is meeting with the MSA on Oct. 10 to discuss “rights and protection on campus,” according to the organization.

“We want our students, and our faculty, and our community to be comfortable coming to campus,” Lawrence said.

When contacted for comment, one of the men who distributed the flier declined to speak on the record.

Bicycle Coalition looks to find voice for riders DYLAN NUNEZ Staff Writer

Disgruntled and recreational bicycle riders at St. John’s have a new advocacy group to voice their concerns on campus known as the Bicycle Coalition.

Founded by Paula Weiss, president of the Earth Club, and Irving Chase, a member of the Commuter Connection Club, the Bicycle Coalition seeks to bring bikers together from all over campus to make sure that the needs and concerns of student bikers are met. Whether it’s simply increasing the number of bike racks or proposing policy changes, the Bicycle Coalition hopes to influence the future of biking at St. John’s.

“The mission of the coalition is to reach out to the campus community about these biking concerns, as well as promote biking in general,” the Bicycle Coalition said in a statement. “The coalition plans to promote and encourage biking through events and incentives, as well as propose policy changes.

“We hope to formulate that figure and use it to establish bikers’ rights and offer recommendations for improving biking conditions.”

“When I first started biking to class, I noticed it was hard finding a spot to chain my bike and that’s when I realized there is a major bike rack shortage here,” junior Bryan Garcia, who bikes

from Henley, said.

A quick look around campus on a Friday afternoon reveals that it’s not isolated to one building either, as the bike racks by Taffner, Carnesecca and St. John’s Hall are overflowing with bikes that have to be chained to nearby railings, trees and whatever else students can find that’s nailed down.

“The lack of racks is surprising,” Garcia said. “Even at my dorm, if I get home too late, I have to tie my bike up elsewhere. The rack is full.”

Garcia isn’t alone in this observation either. As a freshman, Ben Schmidt says he also faces frustration finding parking for his bike when returning to DaSilva.

“With a rack, I don’t have to worry about a bike being removed by security or tampered with because someone is annoyed a bench is used as a rack,” Schmidt said.

The Coalition itself is still in the developmental stages, but it already has big plans for biking at St. John’s. They hope to collaborate with Commuter Connection Club in the future to reach out to more commuters who may not already be aware of the new organization.

Bike-share programs, first made popular at first in Europe, are gaining ground in the United States just this year with bike-shares popping up in Denver, Washington, D.C. and New York. The Coalition also hopes to have a bike-share program, where bikes can be rented for short trips around the local area.

TORCH PHOTO/DYLAN NUNEZ

The Bicycle Coalition aims to add more bicycle racks in spots around campus.

6

OPINION Editorial Board XCI KIERAN LYNCH Editor-in-Chief

Illustrator’s Corner

MITCHELL PETIT-FRERE Managing Editor CHRISTOPHER BRITO News Editor

FLAMES OF THE TORCH Rebrand? Doesn’t look like much so far We’re a little over a week into October. The leaves are changing colors and the days (presumably) should be starting to get cooler. Change is all around us in nature, but it’s not quite as visible among University signage.

Funny enough, the latter should have been taken care of a while ago, The University underwent a rebranding this summer. That much should be obvious if you read the Torch, but probably not so much if you’re casually walking around campus.

After touting changes that were said to be coming to the University this summer, you’d be hard-pressed to find the new St. John’s crest anywhere. Maps?

Old crest. Classroom signage? Old crest.

Awnings for buildings? Old crest. Banners on podiums for guest speakers? usually old crest – just see our Lifestyle section.

Here we are, months after the rebrand was announced in late June. That’s months after administrators said the rebrand had begun. That’s after freshmen received newly-branded sweatshirts and umbrellas, but checked into events at tables covered in an old logo.

Athletics won’t even have an official rebrand until next summer. A bit foreboding considering the logo on St. John’s uniforms accentuates ‘STJ.’ All of this begs the question:Why

rebrand if the changes are going to take a year to implement? Especially if the Athletics rebrand isn’t in conjunction with the University’s. All it does is create massive uncertainty amongst the St. John’s community.

Let’s take a moment to restate that we love what the rebrand intends to bring to St. John’s. The return to SJU, while met with some opposition from current students at first, seems to have been embraced (though Cheerleaders are still chanting “STJ” at soccer games) and the new color scheme and crest are home runs.

The problem is, when this University gets something right like it did with the rebrand, it still manages to hurt itself by failing to implement it in a timely fashion. When the Torch spoke to administrators for rebranding stories, a new website was mentioned. We figured that website would launch when the rebrand became official.

Instead, here we are, literally four months later operating on the old stjohns. edu – old logos and missing pages intact.

We’re not saying there aren’t reasons for things not to be implemented. Signs need to be made and money needs to be used to make them. Rather, the point is: Why bother implementing this rebrand when you were clearly not ready to finish the job in a timely manner?

EDITORIAL POLICY

Editorials are the opinions of the Editorial Board of the TORCH. Columns are the opinions of the author(s) and are not necessarily those of The TORCH. Opinions

Mail letters to: The TORCH, St. John’s University 8000 Utopia Parkway, Jamaica, NY 11439 Submit letters via email to: torcheic@gmail.com

expressed in editorials, columns, letters or cartoons are not necessarily those of the student body, faculty or administrations of St. John’s University.

TO CONTRIBUTE

All are welcome to contribute to the Torch.

Please include your full name, year, and college (or department). Letters have a limit of 500 words and may be edited for content, grammar, or space. Unverifiable or anonymous letters will not be published. All letters are subject to the approval of the Editorial Board of the TORCH.

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Email our section editors listed above.

?

TORCH ILLUSTRATION/ MIKE BRODNANSKY

TORCHCOMICS 9 October 2013

Tuesday Taco Time Diamond Watts-Walker

Spookin’ John Inzetta

Inappropriate Cat Lucia Burrafato

Internationality Casei La Touche

8

Think Outside...

Lifestyle

Radio star got her start at St. John’s

SHANNON LUIBRAND Features Editor

Every morning as people all across the country begin their day, they turn on their radios and listen to Danielle Monaro’s voice fill the airwaves.

It was senior year of college in professor Larry Pitilli’s advanced speech class when Monaro received a life-changing phone call that would eventually jumpstart her career as a celebrity radio personality. Z100, New York’s self-described hit music station, wanted Monaro for an internship.

“I never left there,” she said. “Honestly, I was very, very lucky.”

Monaro is known for her notorious laugh and quick wit as a co-host on the nationally syndicated show, “Elvis Duran and the Morning Show.”

On Wednesday, Oct. 2, Monaro spoke to students in the D’Angelo Center about her time at St. John’s, her career and her advice to budding professionals.

Although Monaro’s voice is broadcast all across the country and she has interviewed celebrities like Jennifer Lopez, Adam Levine and Michael Buble, she remains both humble and thankful for her St. John’s education.

“It all started here at St. John’s University,” she told students.

Monaro grew up in the Bronx. Her senior year of high school she took a journalism class through St. John’s and she was sold.

“I fell in love with St. John’s,” she said. “I didn’t apply to any other colleges. I knew I wanted to go here.”

Monaro thought she wanted to focus on television in college, but after someone approached her in the elevator in Marillac about joining WSJU, she decided to give it a try.

“To be honest, I had no interest in radio at all,” she said. “I started doing news and I never left the radio station...I just fell in love with radio.”

But things did not just happen over night for the host. After interning with Z100 and graduating from St. John’s in 1995 with a degree in communications, Monaro accepted a job with the station answering phones. She said she was making less than $5 an hour.

“I kept saying, ‘I am going to stick it out’,” she said. “I was very lucky because in the end it all ended up working out.”

Monaro worked long hours, with little pay, but that did not stop her. She said she was willing to do whatever it took to be noticed in the office, even if it meant coming in at 5 a.m. and leaving at 5 p.m.

“I wanted to be there,” she said. “And I said, if they saw my face enough, if they saw I was interested enough, they would say, ‘Hey, you know that girl who always comes around and asks for help? You know that position that just opened up?

Maybe she would want that position?’ So I wanted to make sure they knew I really wanted to be there.”

Monaro said interning is what put her on the map. And she said her greatest advice to current students is to do the same: intern, intern, intern.

“When you leave here, have some experience under your belt,” she said.

“While you are interning, it is so important you try to intern at a place you really want to maybe end up being at. So many internships, they hire from within.”

Pitilli agreed that Monaro’s internship was a major factor contributing to her career success.

“She got this job through an internship and she wouldn’t have gotten that internship if it wasn’t for St. John’s,” he said. “It is a big note of encouragement

TORCH PHOTO/SHANNON LUIBRAND

Alumna Danielle Monaro speaks to a student about her radio career last week.

for our students.”

Eventually, Monaro moved up the ranks at the station. She began hosting her own mini show and ultimately made her way into the Morning Show cast.

Elvis Duran is now broadcast in 60 markets and is one of the most listened to radio shows in the country. It can be heard from New York to California.

Monaro is happily married and has two children. She commutes from New Jersey and gets up for work around 3:30 a.m. each day—but none of that slows her down. She said she truly enjoys what she does and her career is her calling.

“I love my job,” she said.

Pitilli, who has kept in touch with Monaro throughout the years, said he

remembers her as a standout student.

She was always someone who was nice and encouraging to other students, hard working and friendly. He said despite her fame and success, she has remained that same kind and down to earth girl.

“She is incredibly successful,” he said. “She is a very, very good friend.

And a dedicated friend to our community.”

Monaro’s words of advice for students besides interning: never give up, be persistent and always be passionate.

And living up to her college reputation she said— just be nice.

“It doesn’t matter how big you get or whatever, always be nice,” she said. “Always make time.”

Student Wellness: a positive resource JENNIFER BOGUS Contributing Writer

When some students think of Student Wellness, they assume it is just the campus doctor’s office, but according to Luis Manzo, the director of Student Wellness, it is much more than that.

Student Wellness is broken down into four categories: health services, counseling and consultation, wellness education and prevention and campus recreation.

The programs offered from Health Services are the “doctor’s office” portion of Student Wellness. The office is comprised of two registered nurses and a physician. They deal with colds, the flu and other illnesses.

Health Services also writes prescriptions for medications. However, they cannot fill a prescription; that has to be done at a local pharmacy. College students are required to have health insurance, and Health Services offers health insurance for those who aren’t insured. The Affordable Healthcare

TORCH PHOTO/DIANA COLAPIETRO

Student Wellness board on the first floor of Marillac encourages healthy living.

Act, known as Obamacare, has made it possible for kids to stay with their parents health insurance until the age of twenty-six. According to Manzo, if you are insured with your parents and their insurance meets the requirements, you’re covered.

The next division within Student

Wellness is counseling and consultation. If you’re having a bad day, feeling homesick or struggling with an academic workload, the Counseling Center is there to help. The Counseling Center offers one-on-one counseling and group counseling. As in all counseling practices, everything discussed is

completely confidential. All the services within the counseling and consultation office are free.

“Which is great,” Manzo said.

“Because therapy session can cost up to $100 a session.”

Stress Busters which can be found at every Java Johnnies event or any of the activities fairs, is another branch of Student Wellness. This is a program that offers free back-rubs to students and faculty to help relieve stress.

Student Wellness oversees Campus Recreation too. Aside from sports, Student Wellness is also in charge of the fitness center located in Carnesecca.

Students are rewarded for attending the various events and being proactive when it comes to health and wellness, something Student Wellness strives for.

“Students can receive MVP points for attending workout programs such as Zumba, or Yoga,” Manzo said.

Student Wellness hopes to improve the health, wellness and stress levels of all students and act as a resource as students make St. John’s their home away from home.

10

Halloween season: Find your favorite fall activities Applewood Orchards

Queens County Farm Museum

Apple picking is a great activity for the fall season. Applewood Orchards and Winery is a large orchard that opened around Labor Day weekend. They have an incredible assortment of apples, in addition to activities such as wagon rides, live music, puppet shows, apple cider, and a winery. Applewood does not charge for entry, parking or any of the listed activities. You simply pay for the apples you pick; $13 for a quarter bushel bag, and $26 for a half bushel bag. But if you’re hungry, take a bite, Applewood does not charge you for the apples you eat while on the orchard.

Compiled by Ella Leviyeva

If you’re looking for pumpkin picking somewhere in the five boroughs, the Queen County Farm Museum is the place to be. It has everything from a corn maze to apple picking to cider. General admission is free. Apples and Cider are for sale every Saturday and Sunday in October. The corn maze and pumpkin patch is open from 11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. everyday. There are also Hay Rides on Saturdays and Sundays until November.

73-50 Little Neck Parkway Floral Park, N.Y. 718-347-3276

82 Four Corners Road Warwick, N.Y. 845-986-1684

TORCH ILLUSTRATION/DIAMOND WATTS-WALKER

Bouchon Bakery Bouchon Bakery is a Parisian bakery with a large assortment of macarons, croissants, and pastries. Bouchon is also incredibly creative with its Halloween treats; from spiderweb cookies, to witch’s hat’s to smores bars, pumpkin-shaped cupcakes and more. The treats are made especially for the Halloween season and prices range from $3 to $8.

10 Columbus Circle, Third Floor New York, NY 10019 212-823-9363

On Campus S.T.A.R Halloween Party Thursday, October 31st, 2013 1:50pm – 3:15pm Sullivan Café Halloween Spooktacular Thursday, October 31st,2013 8:00pm – 10:00pm

Albert H. Schmitt Family Farms Pumpkin picking is another great Halloween activity to do with your family or friends.

The Albert. H Schmitt Family Farms has a huge pumpkin patch as well as a variety of fun things to do as well. The family farm located on Long Island has hayrides, apple cider, roasted fresh corn, a haunted maze, and much more.

Michelle Underhill, of the Albert. H Schmitt Family Farms, said they are open seven days a week from 9am to 6pm, and never charge admission. The only costs are the pumpkins, which are 65 cents a pound, and the activities, which you can do all for a value ticket of just $12. Underhill raved about the roasted corn, saying you can smell it from the street, as well as the homemade pies, caramel apples, homemade cookies, apple ciders, and other treats that you and your friends can all enjoy.

6 Bagatelle Road Dix Hills, N.Y. 631-549-1159

Albracadabra NYC If bed sheet ghost costumes aren’t your thing anymore, then Abracadabra is the costume store for you. The store has a huge selection, from a Baywatch lifeguard, one of the three musketeers, to one of the Greek Gods or Goddesses. Manager Kodi Hadrick emphasizes the store’s great stock this year, stating that they began preparing for this season in January.

“We’re a very competitive store in the tri-state area. You could get a really great costume for $150, but that’s including all the stops, makeup, accessories, a wig and costume. But you can also get a great costume for $30 and make it your own with what you have at home,” she said. The store is open all year long and provides students with a 10% discount.

19 West 21st St. New York, N.Y. 212-627-5194

Miley mania continues

ALEXANDRA MARIN Staff Writer MILEY CYRUS Bangerz

OUT OF 5 STARS

Inside the world of insane outfits, massive tongue showing and the overuse of the word “twerk,” Miley Cyrus is trying hard to convince the world that she is an artist and no longer Hannah Montana. She has unveiled her new love for R&B and rap on this album, and as someone that does not listen to R&B or rap and is over Cyrus’ crazy antics, I think this album is successful and surprisingly relatable.

“Adore You” is a catchy yet calming song. Listing “Adore You” as the first track was genius because it is able to show both the star’s undeniable talent and emotional side right off the bat. The song itself has a strong rhythm with the help of a lot of bass and strong beats. Specifically, the bass of the song helps calm the listener enough to focus on the words. The fading of her voice adds a lot of emotion to the track as well. This is one of the few tracks on this album that’s relatable, especially to those that are currently in love.

One thing that shows Cyrus’ stardom is the help of so many stars that are featured on, or helped produced the album. People such as Ludacris, Nel-

ly and Britney Spears come out to join Cyrus on her crazy ride. Some of these stars’ contributions are great, while others are there solely for their name. Nelly’s rap skills on “4x4” helped Miley show her Southern Roots. The song itself has a very fast beat that helps the singer literally translate the lyrics “Round and round and away we go,” that layer the production. Overall, the song shows the star’s ability to incorporate diverse instrumentals into her work with its accompaniment of the Spanish guitar.

A lot of her album is new, but there are times where she incorporates nostalgia into her new hits and it catches the listener’s attention. Her second track “SMS” featuring Britney Spears, was very reminiscent of “Push It,” by Salt ‘n Pepa, with the catchy and fast beats shown in the beginning of the track.

It’s then followed by a lot of bass and fades. The song itself is very hard to fol-

low, which causes the lack of enjoyment.

The most apparent use of a classic song BRIAWNNA JONES is in “My Darlin,” featuring Future. But, instead of Future making the song better, Staff Writer he makes it extremely annoying. Cyrus’ singing ability is once again shown with her singing of bars from Ben E. King’s classic song “Stand By Me.” But Future ruins it with his overuse of auto-tune and unnecessary crooning.

There are songs that are heart-wrenching, which allows the listener to take a look into her relationship with Liam Hemsworth, from the very beginning to the very end.

Then there are tracks that make you want to get up and start a party. Being very skeptical at first, I can honestly say that Cyrus has an album to which everyone should listen. It shows exactly who she is: someone that is willing to do anything to PHOTO/MTV show us that she’s no longer a little girl, but a woman having the time of her life.

There are few things that one can be sure of in this life; the death of Destiny Hope Cyrus is one.

I was left with my mouth wide open as the credits rolled for “Miley: the Movement.” As much of a train-wreck as people may think Miley Cyrus is, she wanted the world to know with her MTV mini-documentary that her crazy antics are all planned.

“I’m the same human, I’ve got the same heart I did five years ago — it’s a movement, it’s a growth, it’s a change,” said Cyrus.

The hour-long special that aired Oct. 2 gave fans an up-close and personal glance into her life. 20-yearPHOTO/MTV old Cyrus wanted the world to see the woman she has become. From rehearsals, late night studio sessions with Mike-Will-Made-It, and personal conversations with her “mama,” fans got a true glimpse of Miley. ecstatic.

The TV special had some great Geo then brings up the intro to “Slick Watts,” a sweeping anthem celebrating moments: a great exchange between well-known streets and landmarks in the once pop princess Britney Spears greater Seattle area and the names of for- and Cyrus as they worked on matemer Supersonics players. He and I make rial for the “Gimme More” singer’s eye contact and he gestures to my sweat- new album. The two talked about er. I barely have enough time to react as the iconic Madonna and Britney kiss he takes my arm and pulls me onstage in at the 2003 VMA’s, and Spears enfront of more than 500 people. The lights couraged the young star to take the are reduced to hazy explosions of bright award’s show by storm and just have sound as I dance with Sabzi and Geo, fun. Hip-Hop star Pharrell, who the shouting each line at the top of my weary ex-Disney star affectionately calls “Big Bro,” was also featured in the lungs.

The song is only three minutes long, TV documentary giving Cyrus praise but it’s enough to leave me gasping for for her amazing vocal abilities.

The “We Can’t Stop” singer also air. I attempt to make my way back into the throng of bodies as they close with revealed that she lived in Philly for “No Rest For the Weary,” a vivid picture three months where she discovered of today’s blue-collar struggle; appro- herself. Cyrus said it was the first priately enough, the term blue-collar is time in a long time that she was able where the name “Blue Scholars” derives to be a regular person, free to walk from. It represents everything they stand her dogs in the street and go grab for: empowering the youth, challenging lunch with friends. It was her sumauthority and working-class persever- mer living in Philly that prompted her to fly to New York and get the ance.

My watch now reads 3:18 a.m. as pixie cut she felt she needed to showI trudge my way up Homelawn Street, case her “inner bad bitch.”

Cyrus may be a pop star, but she my limbs aching. I find myself repeating still cares about the people. It is evthe last lines of the closing song in my head: “The lessons might change but the ident that the young star knows a essence of the message is the same / So lot about southern hospitality as she when they say anything / Say, ‘Why is it?’ treated fans so graciously and even / Class is in session ‘til the teacher gets went to the Twitter headquarter’s to a pink slip / So keep marching ‘til your meet with her “army.” The singer feet split open / No rest for the weary, says she was born to live the life of an entertainer but will forever have Blue Scholars keep going.”

And as for Blue Scholars, class has the heart of the small town Tennessee girl she once was. only just begun.

Blue Scholars dazzled Brooklyn

ALAN GARCIA Contributing Writer

We take the next hour to chat among ourselves to fill the time. Before we know it, 60 minutes pass and the crowd suddenly erupts into a mad frenzy—the Blue Scholars have arrived.

With an old-fashioned Kodak film camera hanging from his neck, Geo looks completely at home on the stage with a microphone in his hand. He briefly acknowledges the audience before jumping into “Cinemetropolis,” the title track off their most recent album “Cinemetropolis” (2011), a polished exploration of what happens when real life and cinema collide. Within seconds, the entire room is singing along with Geo, his voice spilling

over bars about 35mm film, Godard and Lino Brocka. The next 90 minutes take us through the Scholars’ entire discography: “Blue Scholars” (2005), “Bayani” (2007), and the previously-mentioned “Cinemetropolis” was funded entirely by a Kickstarter campaign that made it’s $25,000 goal in 11 days and more than $60,000 in less than two months.

Just as soon as it started, it’s over.

Geo and Sabzi exit stage-left to unrelenting chants of “Encore!” and “one more song!” After listening to Geo rap against U.S. foreign policy, neo-imperialism and socioeconomic struggles for almost two hours, it’s now our turn to protest. We raise our voices in fierce unison, exercising our Constitutional right to request one or two more songs, growing in volume until Sabzi comes back to the turntable in utter submission. We are now beyond

PHOTO/ALAN GARCIA

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Pusha T releases ‘My name is my name’ ANNMARIE TURTON Staff Writer PUSHA T

My Name Is My Name OUT OF 5 STARS

“The Clipse,” Pusha T signed with Kanye West label G.O.O.D. Music in 2009 and has not looked back since. Pusha T, with the help of MySpace, decided to stream his album “My Name Is My Name” for his fans before its Oct. 8 release date.

The first song I listened to was

“40 acres,” featuring The Dream. The song has Dreams’ smooth, soft vocals, but it was rare to hear him not singing something overtly sexual. Besides The Dream’s opening on the song, Pusha’s lyrics were menacing, raw and nothing short of honest. His version of success also pays homage to the drug culture that helped shape the Bronx-born rapper.

The subtlety of “Sweet Serenade,” featuring Chris Brown, caught my attention, but it sounded at times like there was too much of Kanye’s influence on it.

The beat is simple and is coupled with thought-provoking verses, but the song did not stand out to me. One song that could take Pusha’s album to new heights is the one he recorded with Kendrick Lamar called “Nosetalgia.” The song was laced with metaphors used to paint the stark contrast of life on opposite sides of the track. The song spoke of the hardships they faced individually and made

PHOTO/iTUNES

me realize that Kendrick is to the West coast what Pusha T could soon mean to the East coast.

“Hold On,” featuring Rick Ross, is another song reflecting Pusha’s dark style. It, too, has a bit of Kanye’s feel, because it sounds similar to his style on “808’s and Heartbreaks.” It is nothing short of a true hustler’s anthem, which accurately portrays the reality of thug life in urban America.

“Pain,” featuring Future, is another great song. With each verse, he touchs on his own definition of pain. He questions his identity as a rapper and as a person on this track, capping it off with Future, who makes the track cool in his own futuristic way.

In “No Regrets,” it seems as if there are moments where he sees some light in his otherwise dark life and lines like “sell hope no longer sells dope” alludes to this positivity. He doesn’t regret the life he lives and again pays homage to the stories and experiences that helped him live out his dreams.

The one glimmer of hope on the track for Pusha’s life is the song called “Let Me Love You,” featuring Kelly Rowland. It is a little more relaxed for Pusha but it is a great break from the darkness on the album. He isn’t begging the woman of his affection for love, but was merely stating his case.

“King Push,” which was the last track on the album I listened to, restates Pusha’s dominance in the drug world and it reemphasizes Pusha’s burgeoning talent as a solo artist.

This album unfortunately did not showcase most of Pusha’s individual style because it had too many featured artists and in my opinion, it sounded too much like Kanye West. Hopefully his next album as a solo artist gives him more freedom to showcase his talent.

This Week in Showbiz Big Sean and Naya Rivera decided to tie the knot Congratulations are in order to Big Sean and Naya Rivera. The hot young couple are now engaged. They began dating a little over six months ago after the “Glee” star gathered up enough courage to follow the G.O.O.D. music signee on Twitter.

The 25-year-old rapper, who was smitten with Rivera before the two ever met, says that she is indeed his dream girl. From their first public appearance at the premiere of the film “42,” the pair have instantly become a Hollywood “it” couple. They have been inseparable ever since the “Mercy” lyricist recorded songs with Rivera and appeared on the cover of “COMPLEX” magazine together.

26-year-old Rivera revealed the news last Thursday on the red carpet for Latina Magazine’s “Hollywood Hot List” party. The budding songstress showed up, flaunting her new accessory on her left hand. The dazzling diamond is a princess cut and reportedly between 3.5 to 5 carats and worth an estimated $70,000.

Jackson family loses court battle against AEG After hearing testimonies from Michael Jackson’s mother, his children son Prince and daughter Paris, and ex-wife Debbie Rowe, the jury decided in favor of the club promoter, AEG. Katherine Jackson said that AEG Live contributed to the death of her son by negligently hiring Dr. Conrad Murray to act as the 50-year-old pop star’s caregiver and not noticing his decline in health.

The L.A. jury determined that AEG did hire Murray, who was convicted of involuntary manslaughter in 2011 for administering the dose of anesthetic propofol that killed Jackson. Although Jackson’s legal team argued that hiring Murray was unethical, the jury still decided that there was not enough evidence to award the Jackson family $1.5 billion.

Taj Jackson, Michael’s nephew who serves as co guardian for his children, tweeted, “Thank you guys for all your support. Unfortunately there will be no closure for my family #bigmoneywinsagain AEG.”

Are Khloe and Lamar headed toward divorce?

It seems that the youngest Kardashian sister cannot catch a break. After news broke earlier in the summer that Lamar Odom was having an affair with numerous women, the Kardashian PR team immediately cleaned up the cheating scandal and it all seemed okay until late August.

It was then revealed that Odom had been kicked out of his Taranza, Calif. home and was living in a downtown Los Angeles loft.

Things got even messier when People.com broke the story that 33-year-old, Odom checked into rehab for drug addiction and released himself after less than 24 hours.

The couple recently celebrated their forth wedding anniversary apart further fueling the rumors of divorce. The newly slimmer Kardashian, was seen leaving the gym and later removed her new surname from her Twitter account.

Compiled by: Briawnna Jones

Angel Haze releases ‘Echelon’ SHANTAVIA THOMAS Staff Writer

ANGEL HAZE Echelon

Angel Haze dishes out a typical party video for her latest video “Echelon (It’s My Way).” The 22-year-old rapper caught the attention of big names in the HipHop community and broke into the mainstream. The New Yorker has taken center stage as the leading female rapper, on the scene at the moment, besides Nicki Minaj.

She’s been seen on BET’s “The Cypher,” a high accomplishment for an underground rapper and has been featured on the “Freshman Class of 2013” cover for XXL Magazine. Angel’s intensity and ear for dope beats has gotten her far away from her humble beginnings in Brooklyn.

In the “Echelon” video, Haze spits lyrics while there are roaring motorcycles, four-wheelers and a trailer park party in the background.

There’s nothing really special about the video, however.

Haze raps, throws money in the air and has girls shaking their behinds in the camera. As skilled as she is as a rapper, her creative vision fell completely flat for this video.

The high-synth infused beat bounces perfectly with her fastpaced lyrics, but the mockery of the video overpowered the lyrics of the track.

The song itself is Haze boasting about her fast cars, stacks of money, her lack of care for other’s opinions, and how she wore the best fashions first (background vocals sing “I was wearing it first”).

Sadly, her song and video sounds and looks like just the rest that’s currently out there.

Hopefully this lack of creativity doesn’t reflect her upcoming debut album Dirty Gold (drop date has yet to be released).

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Think Outside...

Sports

13

Training with world’s best JON PEREZ Sports Editor

Many students around campus are starting to worry about midterms.

However, it may be tough to concentrate after a week where the temperature high was 80. Those warm temperatures were reminiscent of another worldwide event that occurs every summer just 10 minutes away from campus: The U.S. Open.

Every year, thousands of tennis fans flock to the grounds around Arthur Ashe stadium to watch their idols play against one another in hopes they’ll hoist the final Grand Slam of the year com early September.

For former St. John’s men’s tennis player and current student Vasko Mladenov, the US Open meant something more than just seeing his idols – he got a chance to practice with them.

St. John’s uses the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center – the same place where the US Open is played – for its home matches during the year. Mladenov was first asked to practice with world No. 30 Ivan Dodig because of a connection with John Ziegler, the co-founder of Solfire apparel. After his practice, Mladenov was ready to say goodbye to the tournament when he got the call of a

PHOTO /ATHLETIC COMMUNICATIONS

Mladenov and Djokovic after their intense workout this summer.

lifetime. “[John] was asking me if I wanted to hit with Ivan Dodig, who was sponsored

by Solfire,” Mladenov said. “I said ‘of course.’ It was a great opportunity for me to hit with a top-30 player in the world.

I took the opportunity to hit with Ivan and I was playing really good so it was a good experience. We played twice, Ivan liked it and we played a couple of days later again and then apparently Novak Djokovic was looking for a hitting partner and Ivan Dodig recommended me which I really appreciate.”

However, actually getting to practice

with Djokovic was another tale in itself.

It almost didn’t happen.

“I got a call from John again,” Mladenov said. “The funny thing is that I had gone out the previous night, so I came back home really late and put my alarm at 2 p.m. so I [could] get a good sleep.”

I heard my phone ringing at 8:58 am. I barely woke up, and just declined three times, and after the fourth time [I answered]. It was John and he said ‘Hey man, are you sleeping?’ and I said no. So he asked me if I want to play with another great player and I said ‘I don’t know, I have another day off, who is it?’ And

he told me Novak Djokovic and I said of course.”

The next couple of days consisted of pretty intense workouts in New Jersey where Djokovic trains. Mladenov absorbed as much tennis knowledge as he could.

“I got to learn a lot of things by talking with these people and by observing what they do,” he said.

Mladenov finished his final year of eligibility last season. He transferred from Texas before his junior year, but said he made one of the best decisions in his life.

“I stopped growing,” Mladenov said. “I hit a ceiling there. I wasn’t able to progress anymore because I was suppressed by the coaches, by the style of play. They didn’t allow me the freedom to improvise and do what I always liked to do, play aggressive tennis and risky tennis.”

They say some things always happen for a reason, and Mladenov was in the right place at the right time.

“To have Vasko be the hitting partner of a Grand Slam champion is a testament to his success and dedication to his craft over the last few years,” said St. John’s men’s tennis head coach Eric Rebhuhn. “Vasko is one player that has the potential to play in a Grand Slam one day, and hopefully this experience will set everything in motion for him to attain that goal.”

Del Nunzio and Ruiz Acevedo shine STEPHEN ZITOLO Staff Writer

The St. Johns men’s tennis team traveled to Columbia this past weekend for the annual Columbia Classic and were led by sophomore R.J

Del Nuzio and freshman Freddy Ruiz Acevedo, who each won singles titles.

This is the second time in the season that the Red Storm had two singles titles at the same tournament.

Ruiz Acevedo got off to a quick start with a victory in straight sets,

6-4 and 6-1, over Dartmouth’s Blake Niehaus. Acevedo followed his first match-up by making quick work of Columbia’s Chris Sabitais, also in straight sets. He then completed his Flight C championship run knocking off two opponents from NJIT. Del Nunzio defeated oppo-

PHOTO/ATHLETIC COMMUNICATIONS

R.J. Del Nunzio won his first singles title of his collegiate career this weekend at the Columbia Classic.

nents in straight sets from the tennis programs of NJIT, UT Arlington and Farleigh Dickinson to reach the final round of the tournament. In the finals, Del Nuzio, the No. 2 seed in the tournament, faced tournament host Columbia’s Bert Vancura and defeated him, 6-3, 6-5(3), for the title.

Both singles titles won by Del Nuzio and Acevedo marked first of their collegiate careers. Similarly, at the Princeton/Farnsworth invitational earlier in the season, Sept. 13-15, sophomore Vaidik Munshaw and senior Gary Kushnirovich took home their first collegiate title of their careers as well Having two different players taking home flight championships at two separate events is rare occurrence, especially this early in the season.

The last time the men’s tennis team completed such a feat was in1999 and this took the team the entire season. The Red Storm have reached this achievement in their first three tournaments on the season, making it feat even more impressive.

The Red Storm will return to action to compete in the USTA/ITA Northeast Regional in New Haven, Conn. at Yale.

The teams that will be attending as well as St. John’s are Columbia, Colgate, Dartmouth, Princeton, Connecticut, and host school, Yale.

The USTA/ITA Northeast Regional will be held from Oct. 17-22.

14

Men’s soccer breaks winless streak

Savino, Herrerra and Albrecht all score to give Johnnies shutout victory KYLE FITZGERALD Online Editor

No. 22 St. John’s grabbed its first win since Sept. 15 with a decisive 3-0 victory over LaSalle last night.

In their first ever meeting against the Explorers (3-5-2), the Red Storm (6-4-1) scored all three goals in the second half.

ST. JOHN’S LA SALLE

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“The guys were energetic, they want to keep playing,” head coach Dave Masur said. “That’s one of the biggest qualities of any great team.”

The Johnnies sprayed an array of shots midway through the first half, but came out empty handed each time.

Their best opportunity appeared in the 26th minute when junior Jordan Rouse played off a cross from sophomore Danny Bedoya inside the box, only to find the keeper’s chest instead of the back of the net.

St. John’s seemed to finally nab a goal when Bedoya chipped the ball over the keeper. Instead of crossing the painted line, though, the ball was cleared by the last ditch effort of a LaSalle defender.

The Johnnies finally broke the scoreless draw in the 67th minute when sophomore Brandon Savino, assisted by Bedoya and senior Jimmy Mulligan, landed a header into the back post.

“Bedoya made a great run down the line across the defender,” Mulligan said.

“I played a little slip in ball and he played an excellent ball to Savino on the back post.”

Junior Daniel Herrera gave the Red Storm the assurance goal in the 80th minute when he played off a rebound by the goalie into the lower left corner.

Sophomore Cody Albrecht added to the tally less than a minute later when he chipped the ball over the keeper’s reach, who was near midfield.

“I got the ball right before midfield and the keeper came off his line and didn’t handle it and Albrecht came in from behind and put it in,” Mulligan said.

When the Explorers entered St. John’s territory, Diaz and company held a solid backline on the other end of the field.

Recording his 27th career shutout, Diaz is now in sole possession of second place for most shutouts among active goal keepers.

“He’s been fantastic for us to have been a four year starter in our program,” Masur said. “It’s important that Diaz elevates his game even higher so that we’re ready to make a big run in the middle season.”

TORCH PHOTO/DIANA COLAPIETRO

Jimmy Mulligan and Danny Bedoya set up Brandon Savino to break the tie.

Storm beaten by Butler, fall to 7-3-2 ALLEN GOMEZ Contributing Writer

St. John’s (7-3-2) came up short on Sunday as they lost a 2-1 heartbreaker to Butler.

St. John’s played shorthanded for most of the second half after Lara Kristin Pedersen received a red card in the 46th minute. The impact of the ejection proved too much to overcome.

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“It was unfortunate to have that call happen,” head coach Ian Stone said. “But I am proud of how we played all game long, with our backs against the wall we showed our hearts, spirit and toughness ability to come back.”

Butler’s first goal was scored in the 70th minute by Sophia Maccagnone, to take a 1-0 lead. When all hope seemed lost and time was winding down, Amy Marron scored in the 89th minute on an assist from Sarah Ashmore to tie the game at 1-1 and send the match into overtime. Minutes later, Elise Kotskais scored the game winner in the 91st minute for Butler to secure the victory.

St. John’s managed just five shots on

goal with Amy Marron and Rachel Daly each attempting two, Sarah Ashmore with one shot only one was on net.

Diana Poulin the outstanding freshman had three saves but it was not enough.

“I am proud of how we competed,” Stone said. “It was a very tough game and hard game to lose, but we played together, [I’m] very proud of our defense and very confident moving on to the next game” This is the first losing streak of the season for the St. John’s women’s soccer team, after coming off a loss to ranked No.21 Marquette 3-1.

St. John’s will look to right the ship when they return home to Belson Stadium on Oct. 12th against the Villanova Wildcats.

“This is one of the best teams St. John’s has ever had we need your support next week”

Most Goals scored in a season (St. John’s) Cristin Burtis

Adriana Viola Rachel Daly

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1994

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TORCH PHOTO/DIANA COLAPIETRO

The Women’s soccer will host Villanova Saturday before a trip to Georgetown.

15

Volleyball winless over weekend ANTHONY SCIANNA Contributing Writer

A late third set victory (34-32) provided life for the Red Storm (12-7), forcing Xavier (10-7) to a tightly contested fourth game that held five different lead changes. This surge would prove to little too late as the Johnnies fell victim to Xavier (25-11, 25-18, 32-34, 25-23) in four sets.

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Catalysts for the Red Storm included sophomore Karin Palgutova, who recorded her sixth double-double of the season while tallying 17 kills and 11 digs. Equally as impressive on the defensive end, Palgutova added four blocks and finished with an overall .256 hitting percentage. In a close third set win, Palgutova proved to be the x-factor for St. John’s as she single handedly strung together 11 kills on 18 attempts.

Junior Ashley Boursiquot would later clinch the set for the Johnnies as she provided a much-needed block adding to her team high total of six. Boursiquot also tallied a career-high of 10 kills in the match, which resulted in a hitting percentage of .500.

Deniz Mutlugil matched a previous high of 48 assists to help the Johnnies rally late.

Finishing Mutlugil’s precise pass-

ing was junior outside hitter Aleksandra Wachowicz, who led the attack for the Red Storm with 17 kills on a career-high of 64 attempts. Reflecting on the match, Wachowicz spoke on the team’s toughness by saying, “We all feel we grew as a team, and never gave up.

Winning the third set and making a 5-point run at the end of the fourth set shows that we have a fighting spirit.”

Defensive specialist Shawna LeiSantos had the most digs in the match with 26; fellow teammate Amy Zimmer also contributed with a noteworthy performance of five blocks and four kills.

Promising freshman Mona Karkkainen added to the Johnnies box score with four blocks and five kills on 15 attempts.

The Red Storm look to rebound with home matches against familiar BIG EAST rivals Georgetown (Oct. 11, 7 p.m.) and Villanova (Oct. 12, 7 p.m.) this coming weekend at Carnesecca Arena.

Leaving the road trip on a positive note, Wachowicz said, “We believe that our hard work and continuous effort will pay off in the upcoming home games against Georgetown and Villanova.”

TORCH PHOTO/DIANA COLAPIETRO

The Volleyball team will face Georgetown and Villanova twice next week.

Johnnies slowly finding offense JON PEREZ Sports Editor

Let the tough days continue for the men’s and women’s soccer programs; They both came up on the short end of the stick this weekend. The men lost 1-0 to Providence while the women lost 2-1 to Butler. [Men: 1-0 loss to Providence, Women: 2-1 loss to Butler]. It wasn’t ago when the men’s

team kept turning in clean sheets as they were not only on a four-game winning streak, but were also shuting out their opponents in three of the four games. Rafael Diaz continues to stand on his head, keeping his team in games, but there was a lack of offense all year for the Johnnies.

Dr. Dave Masur’s crew has only scored more than two goals four times this season. Outside of last night, the Red Storm haven’t had a comfort-

TORCH PHOTO/DIANA COLAPIETRO

Rachel Daly has been very effective as she leads both teams with 14 goals.

able victory all year and it begs the question: Are all of these close games wearing down the team? It would seem that it is on the offense, but not so much on the defense. Diaz continues to shine and Sepe leads the team with five goals.

Daniel Herrera, Cody Albrecht and Brandon Savino found the back of the net against La Salle, but was this just a mirage?

The women’s team isn’t faring much better. Over their last four games, the Red Storm are only 1-2-1, and have scored a combined total of 4 goals – three by from Rachel Daly and one from Amy Marron. Daly continues to shine in her quest to capture the school record of 17 goals scored in a season [Cristin Burtis ‘94] and has said that the record would be an “added bonus” if the team were to find success. However, with Daly being one of the few bright spots on the team, how much longer until the course to serious October soccer comes to a crashing halt?

Both teams will have their work cut out for them, and their offense will need to step up. These past two weeks are might just be slumps, but they have the potential to spiral out of control.

Jon Perez is a senior communications major whos’s developing a deep love for the game of soccer. He especially loves the European matches on a weekend morning.

He can be reached at torchsports@gmail.com

Torch Sports

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Cast

Leavin’ their Mark Softball team pitches in for indoor facility

The softball team isn’t just looking to redeem itself this spring. They’ve also been practicing the Vincentian mission by hosting a clinic for potential softball players ages 8-17 to begin fundraising efforts to construct an indoor hitting facility.

The players said the experience was beneficial to both them and the campers.

“Getting to work with the campers was extremely fun and rewarding,” sophomore outfielder Yvonne Rericha said in a release. “I remember how much I looked up to college players at the softball camps I went to when I was young, so it was fun to give back after all these years. We are also very excited about taking the first step in raising money for the new batting cage.”

The Red Storm hit .249 (No. 221 in the country) and had a slugging percentage of .373 (No. 180).

“It will be a huge asset in the winter or on rainy days when facility space is scarce in Carnesecca Arena,” head coach Amy Kvilhaug said in a press release. “This would be a place that we could call our own.”

Blowin’ in the Wind “This is one of the best teams St. John’s has ever had.

We need your support next week” -Ian Stone

Headin’ this Way Red Storm home games

Men’s Soccer Oct. 15 Oct. 19 Oct. 23

Princeton Xavier

Marquette

Women’s Soccer Oct. 12

Villanova

Volleyball Oct. 11

Oct. 12

Villanova

Georgetown

7 p.m.

7 p.m.

7 p.m.

7 p.m.

7 p.m.

1 p.m.

DALY SCORES 14TH IN 2-1 LOSS

SPORTS OCTOBER 9 2013 | VOLUME 91, ISSUE 9 |

TORCHONLINE.COM

THREE’S COMPANY

SAVINO, HERRERA AND ALBRECHT SCORE IN SHUTOUT WIN PG. 14 TORCH PHOTO/DIANA COLAPIETRO