Print Edition for The Observer for Monday, March 28, 2022

PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY MAGGIE KLAERS. PHOTOs BY Gracie lee and ryan vigilante

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The observer | Monday, March 28, 2022 | ndsmcobserver.com

Day 1 and 2 Continued from page 4

rounds in each of epee, sabre and foil. Epee started the day, and Hsieh and fellow sophomore A manda Pirkowsk i got the Irish off to a hot start. They battled each other in an intense opening bout that was decided by a 5-4 margin, w ith Hsieh ma k ing a late comeback charge.

Hsieh commented on the intensit y of the intrasquad battle to start her day: “During the first bout, it was a lready ver y intense, so that k ind of set the tone that I had to be careful for the next one and keep up the same v ibe.”

She did just that, sweeping the rest of the opening round to start 7-0.

Meanwhile, Pirkowsk i lost just one more bout, an overtime defeat, en route to a 5-2 start. The duo combined for an 8-0 record against Princeton and Columbia’s epeeists, t wo schools that figure to cha llenge the Irish dow n the stretch.

“We had the first round against Princeton and Columbia, and they’re the toughest competition,” said Irish epee coach Cedric Loiseau. “Winning a ll of those bouts was a terrific start.”

Pirkowsk i’s day was mi xed from there, as she went an even 4-4 in her fina l t wo rounds. However, the sophomore, ma k ing her NCAA Tournament debut, fought hard and engaged in si x overtime bouts. At 9-6, she remains in the mi x for a semifina ls berth w ith eight bouts of pool play remaining. Hsieh, meanwhile is comfortable heading into Day 2. She lost just one bout a ll day, an overtime decision in round 2, en route to a 14-1 record. The defending nationa l runner-up in the event, Hsieh dominated most of her opponents before squea k ing out a pair of one-touch v ictories to end her day.

“Because I k new they were the last few bouts, that pushed me to hang in there,” Hsieh noted. “W hen it’s rea lly close, the focus, the hunger and the passion are rea lly important.”

Loiseau a lso commented on Hsieh’s big day: “She k nows she didn’t even fence her best, just fenced ver y smart. Fourteen w ins in fifteen bouts is just cra zy.

Great performance.”

Loiseau a lso went on to say that he believed Hsieh had more left in the tank.

She laughed at the comment but agreed, “He a lways says I have more left in the tank.”

Foil and sabre maintain the advantage W hile the Irish had their

most success in epee, their other disciplines didn’t exactly f lounder. A ll four fencers in foil and sabre remain a live for a semifina l berth tomorrow.

In foil, freshman Nicole Pustilnik and junior A mita Berthier represented the Irish. Berthier ended the day in fifth w ith an 11-4 mark, and Pustilnik sat in ninth at 10-5. Both are in position to ma ke a charge on day t wo. The big efforts were particularly important for the Irish, as Columbia, which struggled in epee, made a big charge in this discipline, combining for a 24-6 record. Ohio State, the Irish’s primar y non-Iv y cha llenger, matched Notre Dame w ith 21 w ins.

At sabre, the Irish boasted the defending champion in senior Kara Linder, as well as NCAA Tournament returner and sophomore Atara Greenbaum. They matched the foilists w ith 21 tota l w ins — Greenbaum holds fifth place w ith an 11-4 record, and Linder is in si xth w ith one less w in. Greenbaum had a spark ling start, going 10-1, but she dropped three of her fina l four to Ohio State and Princeton fencers. A ll told, Linder and Greenbaum went 3-5 in a competitive fina l round to drop dow n the leaderboard a bit. However, neither seemed particularly phased.

“It’s definitely a rea lly long tournament, and my experience has given me the tools to dea l w ith a long day,” Linder said. “There’s a lot of ups and dow ns and adrena line that you have to dea l w ith.”

Greenbaum a lso commented on the tough finish. “I was definitely keeping my focus and stick ing to what I k new was work ing.

Being rea lly aggressive [earlier in the day]…End of the day, I have to keep that focus up, that aggression.”

Despite the slower finish, the Irish still didn’t lose much ground. Columbia picked up another t wo points on Notre Dame, going 23-7 in sabre, while Princeton matched the Irish’s 21-9 mark. A ll told, the Irish lead the event w ith 65 points.

Princeton sits second w ith 58, and Columbia is in third w ith 55. Those three are establishing themselves as the primar y contenders in the women’s field. Ohio State and Har vard are in fourth and fifth w ith 50 and 48 points, respectively.

Linder noted that neither the Irish’s rank ing nor who they still had to fence, would affect their menta lit y.

“We’re just going to go and fence like we would any other team. We want to w in a ll the bouts we can, and it doesn’t rea lly matter who is in front of us.”

Foilist Amita Berthier

celebrates during her semifina l bout in the NCAA Fencing Championships at the Castellan Family Fencing Center.

Day 2 Recap : Hsieh claims title, Irish expand lead The Notre Dame women’s fencing team put a w rap on a highly successful t wo days on Friday. The Irish entered the four-day tournament as the No. 3 ranked women’s team and the top-ranked men’s team. Thus, finishing the first t wo days w ithin strik ing distance of the lead would have been a job well done.

But, the Irish women did more than that. Fueled by si x top-eight finishes and three semifina lists, the Irish took a 12-point lead into the men’s portion of the event.

Notre Dame entered the day w ith a seven-point lead after a strong first day. They expanded on it quick ly, w ith their fencers dominating the competition. Combined, the si x Irish fencers went 37-11 Friday morning.

W hile epee carried the day on Thursday, foil and sabre dominated Friday. In sabre, sophomore Atara Greenbaum got off to a roaring start. She won her first si x bouts, punctuated by a 5-1 v ictor y over the leader at the time, Nora Burke of Columbia. Greenbaum finished 7-1 on the day. Her fellow sabre, senior Kara Linder, went 6-2, which left her just one w in short of the semifina ls. Her title defense ended, but Linder put up a strong performance of 16-7 in the tournament. A ll si x of her Friday w ins came by at least three touches.

In foil, junior A mita Berthier and freshman Nicole Pustilnik went to work. In the first pool play round of the day, the duo went a combined 8-0.

Berthier out-touched her opponents 20-8, while Pustilnik dominated t w ice and won t wo one-touch bouts. Both entered the fina l round w ith a chance to qua lif y and it came dow n to the w ire. Berthier went 2-2, finishing her pool play at 17-6. Pustilnik won her first three bouts of the second round. Ultimately though, she tired, losing her fina l bout to fa ll to 17-6 as well. Three other fencers matched that record, leaving the fina l three spots in the semifina ls up to indicators. Berthier went through, but Pustilnik finished her tournament debut in si xth place.

For the epees, the Kaylin Hsieh show continued.

The sophomore went 7-1 on Friday to finish 21-2 and in clear first place in the field. Sophomore A manda Pirkowsk i had an

up-and-dow n day, going 4-4. However, she did ta ke dow n second-place finisher Emily Vermeule of Har vard, 5-1.

Ultimately, Notre Dame ended the day w ith 102 points. Princeton sits in second w ith 90, while Columbia mans the third-place ranking w ith 83 points.

Irish take one gold, two silvers in individuals With pool play w rapped up, the tournament sw itched venues to Purcell Pav ilion for the 15-touch semifina l and fina l bouts to determine the indiv idua l champions in each weapon. Here, Notre Dame came away w ith one indiv idua l champion — Kaylin Hsieh in epee. The t wo Irish silver meda lists were A mita Berthier and Atara Greenbaum in foil and sabre respectively.

“So many things were going through my mind. I thought about last season where I lost one touch in the fina l bout. A nd I thought about hav ing a concussion t wo weeks ago and hav ing to pull out of ACCs, but I a lso thought about how hard I worked and that it a ll paid off,” Hsieh said.

That fina l bout last season came against LIU’s Laura Fekete. This year, Hsieh and Fekete faced off as semifina l opponents. It was a closely contested bout, but in the end, Hsieh avenged last year’s loss and progressed to face Har vard’s Emily Vermeule in the fina l.

Vermeule started out hot in the fina l, ta k ing the first t wo touches. But Hsieh quick ly settled in and she led 5-4 at the first brea k. It continued back and forth until, w ith the score at 9-7 and Hsieh leading, Vermeule fell on the strip and the officia l ca lled for medica l assistance.

“In my head, I was just think ing I had to just do my ow n thing and it would be fine,” said Hsieh of the stoppage.

Ultimately, she was just fine and after the fiveminute stoppage Hsieh picked up where she left off. Follow ing a few doubletouches, Hsieh was able to pull away to sea l the title and w in the championship bout 15-10 over Vermeule.

Hsieh claimed Notre Dame’s first indiv idua l title in women’s epee since ​​Courtney Hurley in 2013.

In the foil, A mita Berthier had a semifina l matchup against regiona l riva l Camilla Rivano. She got out to a fast start and led 6-2 at the first brea k. However, Rivano fought back. She reversed the score back to 10-9 at the second brea k, a complete reversa l from the first period.

“I told myself to stay ca lm, I needed to maintain my

cool or she would’ve continued scoring,” Berthier said.

She then came out of the brea k w ith the same fire from the first period and won the bout 15-11 over Rivano. With that, she moved onto the fina l against Princeton’s Maia Weintraub, the top seed. However, the fina l was lopsided from the beginning. Weintraub came out on fire, ta k ing a 4-0 lead and never look ing back. Berthier kept battling but trailed 4-11 at the brea k.

It didn’t stop Weintraub’s momentum though and she was quick ly on the precipice of the title, leading 14-5.

But Berthier won 5 straight touches facing elimination before she fina lly lost one, giv ing Weintraub the 15-9 v ictor y and the title.

“I think it shows I’m determined and I have a ‘never give up’ attitude,” said Berthier, “Over the years I’ve rea lized that if you just keep pushing it’s a lways possible to ma ke a comeback.”

Despite her efforts fa lling just short, Berthier described feeling “overwhelmed and overjoyed” w ith her result in a competitive foil field. In the foil, si x fencers won 17 bouts or more.

“This has been my hardest NCAAs so far in terms of the pool of fencers in my weapon. So ma k ing it to the top four, it was hard to get there. So once I was in, I just wanted to give my best and just enjoy it,” said Berthier.

In the sabre, Greenbaum faced Columbia’s Nora Burke in the semifina l where she got off to a difficult start and trailed 6-8 at the brea k. However, she came out of the brea k fencing w ith a purpose. With the bout tied at 11, she took the last four touches in a row to secure a spot in the fina l w ith a 15-11 w in.

“I was dow n but then I adjusted some things that weren’t work ing and once I built that momentum, it was a lot easier to just pull away at the end,” said Greenbaum.

She then faced Har vard’s Elizabeth Tarta kovsk y in the fina l. It was a close bout early on. At times it seemed it might go dow n to the fina l touch. But sabre is fastpaced and follow ing the brea k, a few touches and replay rev iews went against Greenbaum, and the momentum sw ung fully to Tarta kovsk y. The Har vard fencer capita lized from then on and won the bout 15-10 to claim the sabre title.

“I‘m rea lly happy w ith how I finished. I mean obv iously, I wanted to w in. But I’m still rea lly happy w ith second place and it’s only just the beginning,” Contact Jose Sanchez Cordova at jsanch24@nd.edu

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Volume 56, Issue 59 | monday, march 28, 2022 | ndsmcobserver.com

Dobko speaks on his role Scholar leads Ukrainian Catholic University from U.S.

By RYAN PETERS

Activist named medal recipient

Notre Dame News Editor

Observer Staff Report

W hen the war in Ukraine began, Nanov ic Institute v isiting scholar Taras Dobko saw his role on campus — and in the U.S. — dramatically change. Dobko, the senior v ice rector of the Ukrainian Catholic Universit y (UCU) in Lv iv, Ukraine, largely set aside his research. Instead, he directed his efforts toward helping UCU nav igate the crisis in Ukraine and working w ith different humanitarian groups out of Washington, D.C. address the conf lict.

Courtesy of Taras Dobko

see DOBKO PAGE 3

Visiting scholar Taras Dobko is working to lead the Ukrainian Catholic University in Lviv during the war while he is abroad in the U.S.

Env ironmenta l just ice act iv ist Sha ron Lav ig ne w il l receive Not re Da me’s 2022 Laeta re Meda l, according to a press release.

The Laeta re Meda l — established by Not re Da me in 1883 — is t he oldest a nd most prest ig ious honor awa rded to A merica n Cat holics a nd is awa rded each yea r at Not re Da me’s commencement ceremony.

Lav ig ne is t he founder a nd director of t he fa it hbased g rassroots orga nizat ion Rise St. Ja mes. The orga ni zat ion f ights for env ironmenta l just ice in St.

Ja mes Pa rish, Louisia na.

St. Ja mes Pa rish is located in a n a rea k now n as “Ca ncer A l ley,” a n 85mi le reg ion a long t he Mississippi River t hat is home to more t ha n 150 pet rochemica l pla nts a nd ref ineries, according to t he release.

Rise St. Ja mes ca mpa ig ns aga inst t he addit ion a nd ex pa nsion of more faci lit ies in t he reg ion, which has ca ncer rates about 700 t imes t hat of t he rest of t he U.S., according to t he release.

The release sa id t he see ACTIVIST PAGE 4

South Bend theater hosts immigration event The South Bend Civic Theatre hosted a Common Good Immigration event Thursday night featuring local immigration activists and speakers from Vote Common Good — an organization dedicated to encouraging and mobilizing Catholic and evangelical voters to support policies and candidates that they believe benefit the less fortunate. The organization also trains Democratic candidates to connect with these religious voters.

Doug Pagitt, a pastor and the executive director and co-founder of Vote Common Good, shared stories and footage from his upcoming documentary, We the People Ride. The documentary, slated for release this fall, will tell the story of Pagitt and his team’s 3,156 mile bike ride along the U.S.-Mexico border.

The 67-day ride took place last fall, and the team rode from San Diego, California to St. Augustine, Florida, visiting activists, workers and everyday people in both the U.S. and Mexico who live, work and serve others along

the border.

“Our primary effort is to take the stories that we learned along the border and share them with people around the United States, especially in places where political opinion about the border can really have an impact on who we are as a country and who represents us,” Pagitt said.

On the ride, Pagitt said he and his team met with everyone they could, including migrants, ranchers, border patrol officers and people who had nearly died trying to cross the border in the desert.

“We slept outside in tents, sometimes in hotels, sometimes in RV parks,” he said.

“We were doing all we could to keep ourselves aware and attentive, knowing … that whatever kind of difficulty we were having, it was nowhere close to the experience of people who had to cross our borderlands and make their way through the desert.”

In September, Pagitt’s team rode through Sasabe, Mexico, a border town with a population of approximately 2,500. There, they met Dora Rodriguez, the executive director of Salvavision, an

Arizona-based organization that operates the Casa de la Esperanza Center in Sasabe.

At the event Thursday, Rodriguez said that after migrants and asylum seekers are arrested and detained

by U.S. border patrol in the process of attempting to cross the border, they are often deported to Sasabe even though the tiny town lacks the resources to accommodate them.

“I have witnessed 150 people being deported every single day to a town where there’s no medical help,” she said. “There are no resources,

there is no transportation, even for the local people.

There is no hospital, no shelters, nothing.”

Salvavision opened the Casa de la Esperanza Center last spring to meet the needs of migrants passing through Sasabe as they traverse through the Sonoran Desert either on their way to the United States or because they have been deported.

Rodriguez said many people, including children and families, arrive at the center with their belongings in plastic bags, large blisters from deteriorated or absent shoes

and thorns embedded in their skin.

“Now we have a center that provides their dignity back,” she said. “We provide showers, hot meals, change of clothes, a phone call to their loved ones. If they want to go back home, we provide them with the bus ticket to go back home because so many of them are ready to be done.”

After Rodriguez finished speaking, Alma Ruth — an immigrant from Mexico and the founder and director of the Practice Mercy

News PAGE 4

Scene PAGE 5

viewpoint PAGE 6

Hockey PAGE 12

W Basketball PAGE 12

By CLAIRE REID Associate News Editor

CLAIRE REID | The Observer

Executive director of Salvavision Dora Rodriguez discussed her work at the Casa de la Esperanza Center for migrants in Sasabe, Mexico during the South Bend Civic Theatre’s Common Good Immigration event.

see SB CIVIC PAGE 3

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Corrections An article on the Pridefest panel published in Friday’s paper misattributed quotes from Angela Camacho as said by Josie Haas and misspelled Tilly Keeven’s surname.

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After being teased by a week of springtime weather in South Bend, the temperatures have once again dipped below freezing.

Despite the fact that it seemed to be getting warmer, it is still not time for students and staff to put away their winter coats.

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Conference The Morris Inn All Day Part of series to honor Seamus Deane.

Recital www Little Theatre Noon - 1 p.m.

Recital Performed by Saint Mary’s faculty.

Panel Discussion virtual 12:30 p.m. - 1:30 p.m.

Experts discuss propoganda in Russia.

Mini Fair Geddes Hall 5 p.m. - 7 p.m.

Fair for those deciding post-graduate plans.

GLOBES Speaker DeBartolo Hall 318 4 p.m. - 6 p.m.

Discussion of water crisis in America.

Hackathon Hesburgh Library All Day Students design solutions to struggles.

Social Side of Health Hesburgh Auditorium 5:30 p.m. - 7:30 p.m.

Lecture on inequality and health.

Speaker Series Rice Commons 6 p.m. - 7 p.m.

Student panel speaks on mental health.

Women in STEM Madeleva Room 357 7 p.m. - 9 p.m.

Celebration of women in STEM.

Men’s Tennis Holy Cross 4 p.m.

Match with Missouri Baptist University.

News

Dobko Continued from page 1

Dobko came to the Nanov ic Institute at Notre Dame in Januar y to research integral human development and universit y life. W hen the conf lict in Ukraine broke out in late Februar y, Dobko’s focus sw itched from the theoretical research of universit y life to figuring out how to actually lead a universit y in the midst of armed conf lict.

As senior v ice rector of UCU, Dobko is in charge of the general operation and strategic development of the universit y. Thus when Russia attacked Ukraine, Dobko started pondering how to not only keep UCU functioning but also the role higher education should play in the subsequent humanitarian aid.

In the immediate aftermath of the invasion, UCU — the first Catholic universit y to open in what was formerly the Sov iet Union — suspended regular classes for the first t wo weeks. However, the universit y continued operating, Dobko said. It helped coordinate different humanitarian and volunteer work for w illing students.

“We let students leave,” he said. “But we still wanted them to stay in touch and to get some practical assignments — how they can help in their hometow ns and v illages or cities.”

Dobko compared UCU’s war-time offerings to serv ice-learning — something he said UCU has been working to introduce for about t wo years. UCU wanted to make sure students were able to translate what they learned into aid on the grassroots level.

After a few weeks, Dobko said the universit y decided they needed to attempt to at least partially restore the regular academic process.

UCU set a goal to restore at least 50% of classes, though mostly in an online format, he said. The universit y cannot restart its full curriculum because many facult y members are ser v ing in the armed forces or volunteering to assist in the war effort.

UCU took measures to tr y to trace and accommodate its students. Roughly 140 of the 2200 students left, Dobko said while stressing that most men ages 18 to 60 are required to stay in Ukraine by law.

“Many students stayed on campus,” he said. “And in this sense, they are still, let’s say, in the universit y setting.”

Some UCU students were already study ing abroad at other universities across Europe.

Administrators at UCU negotiated w ith each universit y to allow the Ukrainian exchange students to study at that

ndsmcobserver.com | monday, march 28, 2022 | The ObserveR

universit y for another semester, Dobko said.

Additionally, some students are taking part in online UCU courses while abroad. Dobko said the universit y is working to place these students at another universit y in Europe.

Sumy State Universit y in northeast Ukraine has been bombarded by the Russians during the war. Dobko said UCU is opening its learning management system and allow ing some Sumy students to complete their academic year at UCU. Dobko said there needs to be more than just a militar y front for the Ukrainian war effort. Citing men queuing to join the territorial defense, he said it is important to keep the Ukrainian economy functioning.

“The message in general in the countr y is that people should come back to work,” Dobko said. “We have now enough people to fight, but [the] economy should work, [the] universit y should work.”

With an inev itable postwar period coming at some point, Dobko said UCU is beginning to think about how it can help the longterm humanitarian effort in Ukraine. There are already an estimated 7 million internally displaced people (IDPs) as a result of the conf lict. Dobko said UCU is already preparing ways to help these IDPs and future veterans reintegrate into societ y when the war eventually ends.

“And the question about integration into peaceful life, about rescaling them so that they can get … peaceful jobs,” Dobko said. “And also IDPs, who are already 7 million. How to help them to find a way to start anew in their lives, and what our universit y could do for that.”

Dobko said UCU is weighing pausing full-time masters programs and replacing them temporarily w ith short-term certificate programs. These short-term programs would help account for the “brain drain” that is occurring as a result of the conf lict, he said.

W hile in the U.S, Dobko has met w ith other universit y leaders to tr y to establish a solidarit y net work. The goal behind the net work is to partner w ith other Catholic universities so Ukrainian students have an opportunit y to continue their studies in the U.S. Dobko said there is a tentative goal to establish 300 scholarships so Ukrainian students can, for a short time, study at U.S. Catholic universities.

As part of his efforts to find future accommodations for his students in the U.S, see DOBKO PAGE 4

SB Civic Continued from page 1

Foundation, a Christian organization serving women and children along the Texas-Mexico border — took the stage. Pagitt’s team met Ruth at the Mexican side of the border near McAllen, Texas, where she helps run a refugee camp for migrant women and children.

Many people at the refugee camp are asylum seekers escaping violence and hope to seek refuge in the United States. Ruth said U.S. law states that asylum seekers cannot apply for asylum until they are on U.S. soil. However, the refugee camp is near an international bridge where U.S. border patrol agents are stationed. In order to cross the bridge, a person must have specific documentation that asylum seekers typically lack.

Ruth’s organization helps many of these women navigate the immigration process and connect with immigration attorneys.

Ruth condemned current border policies and said voting is the best way to change them.

“We created them, we can change them,” she said, addressing the audience. “You guys can vote.

Please do something about it. I’m a recent immigrant.

I have to wait [to vote]

… you can help me make a difference.”

Ruth was followed by Jesusa Rivera, a local community organizer and case manager at Proteus Inc. where she advocates for migrant farm workers in Indiana to ensure they are safe in the fields and protected from mistreatment, abuse and exploitation. Rivera’s parents were migrant farm workers from Mexico, and she said she joined them working in the fields at only eight years old. Now a mother and grandmother, she said she still encounters young children working alongside their parents.

“This last summer … we came upon a group picking strawberries early in the morning,” she said. “As we walked into the field, there’s a group of children running back and forth … we began to talk to the families. I asked, and they said [this girl] was only seven years old picking strawberries. So enjoy that strawberry shortcake!”

Rivera also discussed her work with undocumented immigrants in South Bend.

She was part of a social justice initiative that led to the creation of the South Bend Community Resident ID card, an identification document for use within the city limits for undocumented immigrants unable to obtain a U.S. identification card or driver’s license. La Casa de Amistad, South Bend’s Paid Advertisement

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Hispanic community center, has continued to develop the program.

Juan Constantino, executive director of La Casa de Amistad, spoke after Rivera and said his team helped expand the city ID program to five Indiana cities. He also described the many services and programs La Casa offers for South Bend’s Spanishspeaking residents including a bilingual preschool, summer camps, tutoring, resumé workshops and English and citizenship classes.

October will mark 49 years of La Casa serving the local community. It recently moved from an 8,000 square foot facility to a 41,000 square foot one. Constantino said in the old facility, his team served about 6,000 people every year. This January alone, he said they were able to serve 5,500 people because the additional space allowed for more programming. Due to La Casa’s rapid growth, Constantino said many people ask him how they can help the Hispanic and immigrant communities.

“Showing up isn’t enough.

Wearing a pin isn’t enough,” he said. “Changing your filter on Facebook isn’t enough, but rather a life of advocacy, not just a moment … may get us to where we need to go to support our community because the work never stops.”

Contact Claire Reid at creid6 @nd.edu

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NEWS

The observer | monday, march 28, 2022 | ndsmcobserver.com

Author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie speaks about grief, feminism and identity

By ANGELA MATHEW News Writer

New York Times bestselling author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie spoke at the DeBartolo Performing Arts Center on Friday.

Adichie’s novels “Americanah,” “Half of a Yellow Sun” and “Purple Hibiscus” explore themes of feminism and race both in Adichie’s native Nigeria and in the United States. Adichie is a MacArthur Genius Grant winner and is known for her TED talks, “The Danger of a Single Story” and “We Should All Be Feminists.”

Adichie’s lecture is part of the Sr. Kathleen Cannon, O.P. Distinguished Lecture Series designed to bring “extraordinary women” to Notre Dame’s campus.

Adichie began by reading an excerpt from “Notes on Grief,” her recent essay about losing her father in the summer of 2020. She said grief was a “cruel kind of education” and ref lected on experiencing the

Dobko Continued from page 3

Dobko met w ith the president of the Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities in Washington, D.C. This was part of an extended trip to D.C. where Dobko met w ith representatives of different humanitarian organizations, such as the United States Agency for International Development.

Dobko focused on not only explaining the extent to which Russia was damaging

loss with her family during the pandemic.

“Our Zoom call is beyond surreal,” she said. “All us weeping and weeping and weeping in different parts of the world … It was extreme how desperately I wished that Nigerian airports were open so I could get a f light to Lagos and then to Asaba and drive the hour to my hometown to see my father for myself.”

She also discussed “Zikora,” a collection of short fiction stories she released in October 2020. “Zikora” intertwines an honest depiction of childbirth with stories about how patriarchal structures persist in lives that appear free of them.

“There’s just so much about the experiences that women go through that I want to demystify,” she said. “I want to shed the shame attached to so much that comes with femaleness in the world.”

“Zikora” also explores the resentment between mothers and daughters.

“The resentment is really not about the individuals,” Adichie said. “It’s about this larger structure that women are forced to live in.”

Adichie also discussed feminism in her lecture.

“The world is a misogynistic space … and I worry because misogyny can come sort of wrapped in the language of love, so we hold women to higher standards, which is unfair,” she said. “We then sometimes judge them more harshly for things that we wouldn’t judge men for.”

She said she has been closely following Ketanji Brown Jackson’s Supreme Court confirmation hearings, and she feels Jackson has been questioned “in the most disrespectful, unacceptable and misogynistic way.”

“If we live in a country where a white man can scream like a toddler when he’s being questioned and he still gets confirmed, we should also get to a point where a Black woman

Ukraine but also draw ing attention to the long-term struggles bound to doom Ukraine.

“They terrorize the civ ic population to make it hostage in the negotiations w ith the Ukrainian government, to make the Ukrainian government more susceptible, let’s say, to Russian pressure in terms of negotiations,” he said.

Dobko said his semester in the U.S. has allowed him to take a more long-term approach to addressing the crisis — one, he said, that those

in the midst of the fighting cannot take.

“W hen shock w ill kind of recede, a little bit of trauma w ill come for ward and these ver y practical questions w ithout answers w ill emerge,” Dobko said. “And in this sense, humanitarian aid is the most important thing that is needed to be addressed. But, you know, we still hope that at some moment … Russia w ill be defeated.”

Contact Ryan Peters at rpeters5@nd.edu

can say “shut up” and still be praised for it,” Adichie said.

Discussing her unique perspective on race in her works, Adichie explained how her Black identity was not one she grew up with but one she came to take on when she came to America as a student.

“In Nigeria, I was an Igbo person, and I was a Catholic,” she said. “I hadn’t really thought of myself in a Pan-African way, but coming to the U.S., people were asking me about Namibia, which I barely even knew was in Africa.”

She said her novel “Americanah” is about this process of “becoming Black” in a country where race is so embedded.

“If Blackness was not so fraught with negative stereotypes, I would not have felt the need to back away from it,” Adichie said. “There’s kind of this immigrant anxiety of wanting to do well and succeed, and if it means denying something that you feel isn’t

Activist Continued from page 1

g roup is current ly attempt ing to stop t he const r uct ion of a $ 9.4 bi l lion Formosa plast ics chemica l pla nt.

Lav ig ne won t he Goldma n Env ironmenta l Pri ze in 2021 a nd was na med to t he 2021 Forbes “50 over 50” impact list.

The Laeta re Meda l recipient is na med ever y yea r on Laeta re Sunday, t he four t h Sunday of Lent.

The recipient each yea r is a

the most positive, you do it any way.”

With time, Adichie said she has come to embrace Blackness as an identity, but it is an identity that is only salient for her in America.

“When I walk into a room any where in America, I’m searching to see how many Black people are here ... and I do things like say hello to every Black person I see,” she said. “In Nigeria, all of that is irrelevant, and instead I’m very much alert and alive to the nuances of my femaleness.”

When asked what advice she would give writers in the audience, she said she thinks it is important that writers read.

She recommended they read poetry, and rather than viewing it as a puzzle and trying to figure out what it means, she said they should read it to “let languages f low through [their] body.”

Contact Angela Mathew at amathew3@nd.edu

Cat holic “whose genius has ennobled t he a r ts a nd sciences, i l lust rated t he idea ls of t he Church a nd enriched t he heritage of huma nit y,” according to t he Laeta re Meda l webpage.

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The observer | monday, march 28, 2022 | ndsmcobserver.com

By MAGGIE CLARK Scene Writer

“The Dropout” is a docuseries detailing the true story of Elizabeth Holmes and her company, Theranos. The show is streaming on Hulu, with six out of eight episodes currently available. The last two episodes will be released over the next two weeks.

Elizabeth Holmes founded Theranos in 2003. Holmes claimed that she and her employees were developing blood testing technology through which one drop of blood would allow an individual to see all kinds of important medical information: cancer results, the presence of opiates and glucose levels, to name a few of her testing machines' alleged capabilities. After becoming a multi-billion dollar company with many hopeful customers and investors (such as Walgreens), yet lacking proper FDA regulation, the results of Theranos blood tests were found to be completely inaccurate. Theranos has since been shut down, and Holmes has been charged with fraud.

“The Dropout” stars Amanda Seyfried as Elizabeth Holmes, and follows Holmes’s journey from Stanford student to optimistic dropout to corrupt executive. One of the places where I think “The Dropout” really succeeds is in its portrayal of Elizabeth Holmes. If you have ever watched or read an interview with the ‘real life’ Holmes, you will know that she often seems almost inhuman in her serious, somewhat robotic

By ROSE ANDROWICH Scene Writer

Saint Mary’s student Abigail Pinnow’s senior theatre comprehensive, a play titled “21 Hollow Oak Road,” debuted on Tuesday, March 22. The play was a beautiful story following a group of women who lived in the same house but at various times. As it explores the struggles faced by each generation of women, the play becomes a beautiful commentary on the way people wonder how things would be different if they had made other choices.

As it progresses, Pinnow creates added depth by contrasting various perceptions of what it means to be a woman.

The working women are envied by the women who did not have the opportunity to receive an education.

However, this play shows that the grass is not always greener on the other side. Annie (Catherine Cushwa), a woman from the 1980s, is working at a job she hates. Due to the sexism in the workplace, she feels obligated to stay at this terrible job. She knows that If she leaves her job, she will be replaced with a man. Because of this, she feels she must tolerate the sexism she experiences every day.

She views herself as someone who has every opportunity in the world but just can’t ‘make it.’

Katy (Madeline Law), the play’s main character, endures a different struggle: that of not wanting to work all day, and simply wanting to live for herself. She is unhappy doing accounting but feels she needs the financial

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nature. In the show, this side of her is portrayed to potential investors, employees and interviewers. The B-roll footage recreating Holmes’s interviews after Theranos’s fraud was discovered is especially strong in this regard. Seyfried is barely recognizable in these moments, and she delivers a strong performance as the strictly-business side of Holmes.

However, in certain moments viewers also get to see the more human version of the CEO. When she is driving to investment meetings or alone in her office, there are times when Holmes listens and dances (quite awkwardly) to hypeup songs. In these moments, viewers see Holmes as the hopeful, excited, anxious, young girl rather than the heartless, strict businesswoman she is otherwise.

In the show’s third episode, Holmes’s ‘human side’ is also shown when she must repeat the following phrase — “this is an inspiring step forward”— to herself in the mirror after her product fails multiple tests. While this human side does not necessarily cause viewers to sympathize with Holmes, it does suggest that she did not go into the development of Theranos with evil intentions. On the contrary, the Holmes we see in “The Dropout” is constantly trying to convince herself that she is doing the right thing. In this way, the show strikes a delicate balance of humanization and villainization of the onceinnocent, eventually-corrupt Elizabeth Holmes. Amanda Seyfried’s performance in this regard — and in general — is extremely powerful and engrossing.

The only real criticism I have for this show is its

repetitiveness. By the third episode, I think viewers understand Theranos and its problems pretty well. Because of this, I am not sure if the series needs to be eight episodes in total.

I think it might flow better as a five-episode series, or even a movie. With that being said, I think the character-driven aspect of the show keeps viewers interested in it, despite the general redundancy of the plot. I also think that the length of the show may be less of a problem for viewers who do not already know about Holmes or Theranos before watching.

All in all, “The Dropout” is certainly worth your time. The show is captivating in its representation of innocence and corruption, and, while repetitive, it excellently depicts the complexity of Elizabeth Holmes as a person and as an executive.

security the job provides to her. Her struggles illustrate the pressure to achieve financial security, even if it means sacrificing your happiness.

Elvira (Hannah Bruckman) is in a position where she has few options for work, so she chooses to become a teacher. Her options are staying home or becoming a teacher. Because of her few options, she cannot help but envy Amanda, who married young and stays at home.

Amanda (Leeanna Silkworth) and Elvira are the same age, but they live incredibly different lives. Each questions whether the other’s life is better, these internal debates providing a representation of the lack of choices for women in the 1940s.

The stories of these women intersect to create a beautifully woven final product. It is extremely important to tell stories like this: here, 10 women from different generations all share their own perspectives and the struggles they face. Pinnow’s storytelling is just one aspect that made the play such an impactful and powerful one.

The execution of the play and the work of the actors and stage managers added to Pinnow’s exceptional writing.

The implementation of multiple actors within separate roles was done very well, and the actors did wonderfully in mastering the essence of the characters. Additionally, the stage set-up was implemented in a very entertaining way: for instance, the characters criticize Katie’s decorations in a way that is extremely funny, and this is just one comedic occurrence throughout the production. To approach such

an important topic while still adding humor to the dialogue highlights Pinnow’s talent for writing.

Another aspect that I loved was the final scene of the play, during which Katy blows out the candles on a homemade birthday cake that has been baked for her. This scene recalls the beginning of the play, when Amanda sees the boxed cake Katy’s friend had sent for her and remarks that she does not believe that to be a proper birthday cake. Also, it was a very cool effect to see the lights dim completely when Katy blows out the candles.

As a whole, “21 Hollow Oak Road” is a story that explores important themes and holds exceptional production value.

Contact Maggie Clark at mclark34@nd.edu

“The Dropout” Starring: Amanda Seyfried, Naveen Andrews Director: Michael Showalter If you like: “The Social Network,” “Imposters,” “Inventing Anna”

Contact Rose at randrowich01@saintmarys.edu

“21 Hollow Oak Road” Starring: Madeline Law, Leanna Silkworth, Hannah Bruckman, Natalie Beigel, Catherine Cushwa, Julia Zusi Director: Abigail Pinnow Where: Saint Mary’s College When: March 23rd, 2022

CHRISTINA SAYUT | The Observer I VARIETY, “HOLLOW OAK” PRODUCTION PHOTOS

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The observer | Monday, March 28, 2022 | ndsmcobserver.com

Inside Column

Just some more cliche advice

Ukraine: democracy or imperialist anxieties?

Trevor Lwere On the Other Hand

Hannah Hebda Viewpoint Editor

I love cliche advice. Whether it be that “good things come to those who wait” or “what goes around comes around,” I fully believe in it.

Dealing with some difficult situations over the past few weeks, I have offered an abundance of this advice to my friends, all of whom hate the cliches. You see, they prefer more specific recommendations for their situations.

However, I feel that because cliche advice is so ambiguous and seemingly all-encompassing, it is generally applicable and more often than not, it works. So, it felt fitting that I take this time now to offer all of you a cliche for some positive inspiration this week.

One of my personal favorite quotes is, “comparison is the thief of joy.” Simple but meaningful. In comparing ourselves to others, we are often making ourselves feel inadequate amongst what looks to be the success and flourishing of others. As humans, we subconsciously make these comparisons every day without realizing it. When you are walking to class across campus or just talking with your friends, you are most likely thinking about how you are most likely comparing yourself to others. One of the most apparent ways we do this is through social media. Social media is a medium through which negative comparisons are made, especially because it showcases what others want you to see about them. Social media has evolved to be a platform where everyone displays the highlights of their life, making for rather high expectations of what your own life should look like. And, with social media being so prevalent in our lives,’ it is difficult to escape.

We tend to compare our worst moments with others’ best moments, and that is because we cannot know everything that goes on in each other’s lives’. Everyone is a different person, at a different place in their life, so why should you worry so much about what others are doing? Why should you care if someone else secured an internship for the summer while you are still searching for one? Why should you compare your grades, your resume, your physical appearance or your personality traits with those around you? I am not suggesting we all stop comparing ourselves, but I am suggesting we stop negatively comparing ourselves to others. Ready for some more cliche advice? Be yourself. We are all unique and, because of that, we are all special and important.

Focusing so much on what others are succeeding in and what you are lacking in makes for a very difficult and stressful way of living life. It is great if you can look around at your friends and celebrate their successes, using them as motivation for yourself too, but it is dangerous to be disheartened because some part of their life is “better” than yours. There is a fine line between inspiration and demoralization.

I know it’s easier said than done, but this is all food for thought. Take some time each day and focus on replacing thoughts of self-doubt with positive affirmations and individual goals to work towards, independent of what others are doing. Take a break from social media and live in the present because what goes online is often a misrepresentation of reality. Don’t put all of your eggs in one basket, take the road less traveled and remember that everything happens for a reason. Should I go on?

I know this all so very cliche, but as I said before, sometimes cliches are the best advice to give because they really do work. So, going into this week, stay positive, celebrate your successes, reflect on your mistakes and be kind to others, we are all just learning how to love who we are.

You can contact Hannah at hhebda@nd.edu The views expressed in this Inside Column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.

Follow us on Twitter: @ObserverViewpnt

The war in Ukraine has brought the subject of an imminent new, multipolar world order back to the center of the discussion in international politics. The United States, an actor in this conflict, has cast the war as a battle of a democracy and a rules-based world over against autocracy. Such language is intended to mobilize domestic and international public support in favor of the US and its allies. In essence, however, this conflict, and the West’s reading of it, has little to do with a struggle between democracy and autocracy: it is about a shifting world order and a frantic response by a fading empire.

Russia’s case against Ukraine is premised on the principle of indivisible security. This is a concept in international security which crudely means that a state should not increase its security at the expense of the security of another state.

This principle is enshrined in the documents of the Organization of Security and Cooperation (OSEC) in Europe which include the European Security Charter of 1990 and the and the Astana Declaration of 2010. The United States is a signatory to both documents. It is critical to note that while the European Security Charter recognizes the right of countries to choose their own security arrangements and alliances, it adds that states “will not strengthen their security at the expense of the security of other states.” Does Ukraine pose a legitimate threat to Russia? Furthermore, does Ukraine joining NATO pose a threat to Russia?

Since 2014, Ukraine has ramped up its defense capabilities, building what is considered a next-generation missile, Neptune, that would put Moscow in striking distance of Kyiv. The threat posed by Ukraine’s defense program to Moscow has been acknowledged by defense analysts in Russia, Ukraine and the United States itself.

Furthermore, Russia and Ukraine share a 1,300-mile land border and a nearly 350 mile land border which creates strategic defense challenges for both countries. While Ukraine has every right to bolster its defense, it must do so within the context of the principle of indivisible security as set out in the European Security Charter of 1990 referred to above. Thus, any impartial on-looker needs no further persuasion of how legitimate Russia’s concerns are. For the skeptical American, one only needs to think back to the Cuban missile crisis to understand Russia’s position.

On several occasions, Russia made these concerns clear both to Ukraine and the United States. Speaking in Warsaw last week, President Biden claimed that the United States engaged Russia to avert the war. What the USA and the West did, however, was to arrogantly disregard Russia’s legitimate concerns arguing that Ukraine had the right to choose its own security arrangements and alliances, conveniently leaving out the principle of indivisible security enshrined in the European Security Charter to which the US itself is a signatory. Instead, the US and the West decided to pump Ukraine’s ego by promising it guarantees of security and armaments in case of a Russian invasion. This attitude made Ukraine aloof, and the uncritical Ukrainian president was tempted to dig in and become averse to any constructive engagement with legitimate Russian concerns thereby imperiling the lives of millions of his people.

While speaking in Warsaw last week, President Biden claimed that NATO is not an imperialist project but simply a defensive alliance. Is it a

defensive or aggressive move for NATO to expand eastwards to the Russian doorsteps? Even if it were defensive, why can’t it be done with consideration of the indivisible security principle? Why does the US blatantly disregard this principle?

What interests does it serve for NATO to expand eastwards while disregarding the principle of indivisible security that they willingly have committed themselves to? If America could not let the USSR station its missiles in Cuba, why does it expect Russia to look on as NATO expands to its doorsteps? Of what strategic value to the US and the West is pumping the Ukrainian ego relative to a negotiated settlement with Russia? Perhaps America is too afraid to cede ground because then it would appear weak and further catalyze the inevitable dimming of the star of its empire.

These could very well be the anxieties of a waning empire.

See in that light, the conflict has little to do with defense of democracy or freedom as President Biden’s tirade in Warsaw portrayed it to be. It is simply defense of a decadent world order whose demise is imminent and irreversible.

President Biden talked of defending a rules-based world order. But what does this really mean?

It means a world order where America sets the rules, supported by its ever so willing mistress, Europe. It means a world order where America is free to do as it pleases as it did in the many countries it has invaded acting unilaterally. It means a world order where the US President has the right to refer to any one as a war criminal while the world is littered with millions of victims of American aggression. Biden talked of defending freedom and democracy, yet he presides over a country where ethnic minorities live under precarious conditions and have done so for centuries on end. There can be no freedom in impoverishment and subjugation of entire peoples. Biden also said that “every generation has had to defeat democracy’s mortal foes…[whose] appetites and ambitions…forever seek to dominate the lives and liberty of many”. What he means is a duty to fight anyone intending to break the West’s monopoly of power. Since the fifteenth century, the West has sought to dominate and succeeded in dominating the lives and liberty of the many.

So, we have the anxiety of a fading empire. An anxious emperor of a fading empire is using an unsuspecting and naïve leader to fight a proxy war for the empire’s survival. With imperial interests on the line, Ukraine is being used as a proxy in a conflict with Russia. They claim to want to be working for peace, but they continue to supply Ukraine with lethal weaponry that is only intensifying the conflict and imperiling the lives of millions. In Zelensky, they found a confounded and willing partner whose carelessness and lack of independent mindedness has imperiled the lives of his people. He refused to engage constructively with Russia’s legitimate concerns premised on the principles of indivisible security because he was given verbal guarantees of security by the West. He blindly bought into Western guarantees of Ukrainian security which have not come, and which will never come. He is not fighting in defense of democracy; he is fighting in defense of a decadent and fading empire.

Trevor Lwere is a senior from Kampala, Uganda, studying Economics and Global Affairs with a minor in Philosophy, Politics and Economics (PPE). He is a dee-jay in his free time and can be reached at tlwere@nd.edu or @LwereTrevor on Twitter.

The views expressed in this Inside Column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.

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The observer | Monday, March 28, 2022 | ndsmcobserver.com

LETTERs TO THE EDITOR

A special thank you to our men’s basketball team To the Notre Dame Men’s Basketball Team: Coming into the year, nobody knew what the season was going to look like. Follow ing a weird year w ithout fans due to COV ID, many people didn’t know what to expect. But as students, we were itching to pack Purcell to support you.

W hat better way to start that off than against Kentuck y, in a game where nobody believed in us — except us. Seeing the incredible passion and determination that you played w ith despite enduring tough losses earlier in the season only made us cheer louder and louder. W hen Blake passed ahead Paul’s rebound for Dane to slam home as the horn sounded, the pure joy running onto that court to celebrate w ith you was unforgettable. It proved to the nation what you were capable of.

On the second day of the new semester, Coach Brey confidently marched into South Dining Hall, hopped on a table and started rally ing student support. From that moment, many realized

that Coach wouldn’t have done that had he not believed in you and cared about us and our support. We came out in full force for the next t wo Wednesday games against Clemson and NC State and then for games against Virginia and Duke. Your fight and grit in not only these home games, but also in road games against teams like Louisv ille and Miami showed that this team was built for success.

Throughout the season, from doing the Irish Jig, to throw ing shredded newspaper in the air after the first basket, to screaming our heads off during opposing free throws, we had a blast. But most importantly, our home games were so special because of your 14-1 home record which was a testament to how much you valued defending our home court.

W hen we heard our name read just a few minutes after 6 p.m. on Selection Sunday, we breathed a sigh of relief, for we knew how hard you had worked throughout the season to get to

this point and that you deser ved an opportunit y to play in the Big Dance. And you did not let us dow n. Ever y time Rutgers delivered a punch, you punched back harder and were determined that you were going to bring home the w in.

W hile we w ish the games were closer to home so we could have more easily traveled to support you, this campus rallied behind you as you laid your blood, sweat, and tears on the line until the ver y end in San Diego against A labama and Texas Tech. A lthough it may not have ended the way we wanted it to, you made us all ver y proud.

The hard work and dedication by the seniors over the years in addition to the significant contributions from the underclassmen certainly did not go unnoticed. Thank you for an unforgettable year. We cannot wait for what the future holds. Go Irish!

The Leprechaun Legion March 28

The Jewish Club presents Antisemitism Awareness Week 2022 “We shouldn’t have to listen to Jews on this campus.”

“Jews deser ve antisemitism because of Israel’s atrocities.”

“How does it feel to have killed Jesus? ” Above are only a few examples of the antisemitism experienced by Notre Dame students this academic year. There are certainly more, as documented in “Antisemitic Instances” prov ided by the Jew ish Club. They highlight how antisemitism operates on an educational, social, political and religious level on this campus.

These events also don’t occur in a vacuum.

Last year was the most antisemitic year globally in the last decade, w ith hatred against Jews manifesting on the backdrop of the COV ID-19 pandemic and the ongoing Israel-Palestine conf lict. One only has to glance at the ADL = H.E.A.T. Map to realize that the antisemitism that motivated Februar y’s hostage situation at a Texas sy nagogue is a persistent, ingrained problem in the United States. Despite comprising little more than 2% of the U.S. population, Jews are the targets of over half of religious-based hate crimes.

On college campuses, an ADL-Hillel sur vey found that nearly one-third of Jew ish students experienced some form of antisemitism last year.

In response to the threat of antisemitism, the Jew ish Club proudly presents the second annual Antisemitism Awareness Week. W hile advocacy groups have achieved notable work to combat antisemitism, more can always be done.

As one of the world’s oldest forms of hatred, antisemitism capitalizes on misperceptions of Jews and lack of adequate knowledge about Judaism. Antisemites aim to weaponize these

misunderstandings into persecution, discrimination and v iolence against Jews. This hatred often coincides w ith bigotr y against other groups, which emphasizes the need to address this issue.

For the safet y of Jews and other marginalized groups, understanding and combating antisemitism is essential.

Last year, our inaugural event was a resounding success. Despite an antisemitic Zoom bombing, the student body demonstrated strong support for Jew ish students and facult y, including the student senate’s unanimous approval of the IHR A Working Definition of Antisemitism.

This year, we inv ite the Notre Dame communit y to continue this v ital dialogue to promote inclusiv it y of Jew ish and other non-Catholic members of the Notre Dame family.

Events like Antisemitism Awareness Week are integral to the Catholic character of Notre Dame.

Nostra Aetate, the monumental Church declaration that affirmed positive relations bet ween Catholics and Jews, emphasizes mutual understanding bet ween the t wo religions as the fruit “of biblical and theological studies as well as of fraternal dialogues.” Cultivating that dialogue is the responsibilit y of educational institutions like Notre Dame, according to another Church document. Engagement w ith the Jew ish communit y is an essential component to Notre Dame’s Catholic mission, particularly on the issue of antisemitism. Antisemitism Awareness Week is an opportunit y to participate in interfaith dialogue that ultimately strengthens the faith of all members of the Notre Dame family, whether they are Catholic, Jew ish or any other faith.

Below is information on our events for the week. Ever yone in the Notre Dame communit y

is welcome to attend, regardless of your connection (or lack thereof ) to Judaism. Refreshments are available at events. Please be sure to also follow @jew ishclubnd on Instagram for updates throughout the week.

Monday, March 28, 4 p.m. DeBartolo Hall 216 | The State of Antisemitism in America w ith Sarah van Loon, Regional Director of American Jew ish Committee (AJC) Chicago Tuesday, March 29, 6 p.m. DeBartolo Hall 136 | Judaism at Notre Dame: A Panel Discussion w ith Jew ish Students and Facult y Wednesday, March 30, 6 p.m. Coleman-Morse Lounge | Holocaust Prayer Ser v ice: A Memorial Ceremony Thursday, March 31, 5 p.m. DeBartolo Hall 141 | Anti-Zionism & Antisemitism: A Presentation by Trent Spoolstra from the AntiDefamation League (ADL) Thursday, March 31, 7 p.m. LaFortune Montgomery Auditorium | IHR A Working Definition of Antisemitism Information Session (Learn how to support our effort for Notre Dame’s adoption of an official antisemitism definition!)

Friday, April 1, 5 p.m. McNeill Room in LaFortune Student Center | Bystander Training for Microaggressions Friday, April 1, 7 p.m. Duncan Student Center W229 | Shabbat Celebration (Join the Jew ish Club to celebrate the Sabbath!)

Submit a Letter to the Editor: viewpoint@ndsmcobserver.com

On behalf of the Jew ish Club of Notre Dame, Bella Niforatos co-president March 28

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Sports

The observer | monday, march 28, 2022 | ndsmcobserver.com

Column

Women’s Lacrosse | 12-15

Irish fail to recover against Blue Devils

By M ATTHEW CROW Spor ts Writer

Entering their game against No. 14 Notre Dame on Saturday afternoon, No. 8 Duke ranked first in the nation in scoring by a w ide margin, scoring nearly 20 goals per game.

Notre Dame put forth a strong defensive effort to hold them well below that number. Despite that, the Blue Dev ils jumped out to a big lead early and never relinquished it. They led start to finish and earned a 15-12 v ictor y on a snow y day in South Bend.

Duke opened up the scoring w ith an unassisted goal from graduate student attacker Catriona Berr y. That was just the start of a huge performance from Berr y, the third-leading goal-scorer in the nation.

She finished w ith six goals on the day. The Irish quickly answered on a goal from sophomore midfielder Kelly Denes, but Duke started to take over the game from there. They scored two more times in the first quarter and added a pair to start the second, taking a 5-1 lead.

Facing a large deficit, Notre Dame turned to its leading scorers, juniors Madison A hern and Kasey Choma. They each scored and the Irish cut the lead to t wo. The rest of the quarter played out evenly, and Duke held a 7-5 lead heading into halftime.

Possession stayed a major factor in the first half, as Duke controlled four of five draws in the first quarter as they took the lead before Notre Dame countered by w inning six of nine in the second. Duke won 15 to Notre Dame’s 14 over the course of the entire game.

Granted, this was a good result for the Irish, given that Duke leads the countr y in draw control percentage at 67% .

After halftime, the third quarter was much the same as the second: fifteen minutes of hard-fought, backand-forth play. Just as in each of the first two quarters, the third began w ith a Duke goal. That pushed their advantage back to three goals.

After a scoreless stretch of nearly four minutes, the Irish whittled it back dow n to t wo on the first goal of the day from junior attacker Jackie Wolak.

Notre Dame senior midfielder Madison Mote added

her second of five goals in the game minutes later. The score was 8-7, and the Blue Dev il lead was dow n to one for the first time since the score was 2-1. Duke’s Berr y and Notre Dame’s Mote then traded goals to keep the lead at one. However, Duke scored a critical goal w ith just seconds remaining in the third to take a 10-8 lead and all of the game’s momentum into the final quarter of play.

Duke took full advantage of that momentum. They started the fourth quarter w ith three consecutive goals to go up 13-8. After that surge, the five-goal margin represented their largest lead of the game.

Despite staring dow n a sizable deficit w ith just nine minutes remaining, the Irish refused to quit and fought their way back into the contest. Mote scored a pair of goals in less than a minute. After a Duke goal, Choma and A hern added two more for Notre Dame.

Suddenly, the Irish had a pulse, trailing just 14-12 w ith still over four minutes on the clock.

After w inning the draw, Notre Dame created several chances to close w ithin a goal. But Duke senior goalie Sophia LeRose made three critical saves to prevent an Irish goal. This included one on a free position shot after a foul w ithin the eightmeter arc. After gaining possession, Duke was able to milk nearly all the remaining time on the clock before scoring in the final seconds to seal the 15-12 w in.

For Notre Dame, the loss ended their two-game w inning streak and continued their disappointing start to the season. They fall to 4-6 and 1-3 in ACC play despite being ranked fifth in the countr y during the preseason.

This record can be partially attributed to the Irish’s struggles in close games. They are 0-3 in games decided by one goal.

Notre Dame must put an end to these crunch-time difficulties soon, as they face the top two teams in the nation over the next two weeks.

The Irish have a big opportunit y to earn a marquee w in as they travel to Chapel Hill to face No. 1 North Carolina on Saturday at 11 a.m.

Cook: Ivey embraced challenge, brought Irish back

By JAMISON COOK Spor ts Writer

Imagine you are looking for your first head coaching job as a women’s basketball coach. Your alma mater is attempting to replace a coach who was there for 33 years and earned a record of 848-252, good for a .771 w inning percentage.

She took her teams to nine Final Fours, seven championship games, and won the whole thing t w ice in 2001 and 2018.

She is one of just five college head coaches – men’s or women’s – to w in over 930 games and became just the 32nd woman to be inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 2017. Oh, and she was your coach during your college play ing days.

Do you want that job and all the pressure that comes w ith it?

Most first-time head coaches would probably shy away from a daunting challenge like this. Especially at a place like Notre Dame, where w inning is the top priorit y just slightly behind Sunday mass (maybe). But for Niele Ivey, it has been a challenge that she has tackled head-on.

W hile her first season in South Bend may not have gone exactly according to plan w ith the Irish missing the NCA A Tournament, Ivey’s second season at the helm was the complete opposite. Despite some ups and dow ns over the course of the year, Ivey and her team found their stride in March, advancing to the Sweet Sixteen and coming oh-so-close to an Elite Eight berth.

“I’m super proud of my team, I’m so proud of them.

You know, coming from last year not making the tournament to being one possession away from going to the Elite Eight,” Ivey said.

“And I talked to them in the locker room. We have come so far and the grow th, the maturit y of this team this entire season, the belief, the buy-in, I could not ask for another special group.

I love them so much, and I am just so proud.”

And while the pain of the loss stings for now – especially since Notre Dame led for the entiret y of the second half until NC State

guard Raina Perez picked the pocket of Dara Mabrey and scored w ith 14 seconds left – Ivey made sure to let her team know that this loss does not define their season.

“I talked about just to celebrate, and actually just to acknowledge where we are right now. Acknowledge our grow th, acknowledge how far we’ve come. You know, I’m in year t wo. We didn’t go to the Tournament last year,” she said.

“I don’t want my team – and I told them this – I don’t want them to feel like this loss dictates who we are, because it doesn’t. It’s hard, but it’s part of the game.

There’s a w inner, there’s a loser, but we can always learn from it. And so that’s what we’re going to do, I talked about that. I wanted to stress that to them, I don’t want them to feel that this is the end of the world.”

The loss may be slightly easier for Ivey to swallow know ing the t y pe of talent she has returning next year when the Irish can realistically compete for a national championship.

The team is young, and freshmen Oliv ia Miles and Sonia Citron and sophomore Maddy Westbeld proved that they can excel on the national stage during this tournament run.

“We have a bright future.

I’m starting t wo freshmen and a sophomore, I have an incredible addition coming in next year, and we have prett y much ever yone back,” Ivey acknowledged.

“The future is really bright, and I’m really excited just to see who we are and what we’re going to do in the future, and I talked about that.”

The learning is far from over, and bigger goals still loom in the distance.

Coach Ivey w ill be the first one to tell you that. But these w ill come in time and through hard work.

Ivey has already started to rebuild something special in South Bend, but she is no stranger to the grind that is required to w in a national championship. She won one as a player in 2001 and as a coach in 2018, after all.

That being said, Ivey’s brief time as the head

coach has already taught her a lot about herself and her program as they nav igated a difficult and unprecedented two years.

“I’ve learned so much in the past t wo seasons. I’ve grow n as a coach, and I’ve grow n as a person,” Ivey said. “It’s hard for ever y college program going through COV ID, nav igating through that, recruiting, adding some incredible pieces to this program. Hav ing an ama zing staff to work w ith and hav ing an incredible returning team this year, so I credit all of that to what we’re building. It’s all about belief, it’s all about buyin, and it’s about commitment, and I had that. And that’s what I’m excited about, I’m excited to get back to work – maybe I’ll take 24 hours off – and then I’m going to start watching film and get back to work. Because that’s what it is, it’s a grind.”

Tasked w ith the seemingly impossible job of replacing the legendar y Muffet McGraw, Coach Ivey has this Notre Dame team back in the national spotlight perhaps sooner than many expected. She has done this by stay ing true to herself and bringing her ow n personal swagger to the Irish sideline, a swagger that shone through in her press conference just moments after the toughest loss of her young Notre Dame coaching career.

“My mantra is never get too high on the w ins, never get too low on the losses. This one hurts, but I know that I’m at an ama zing Universit y, I have an ama zing staff, I have ama zing support, and I have an ama zing team,” Ivey said.

And I’m just blessed and grateful that I get to lead this group, and I’m just happy that the transition has happened so fast. Normally it doesn’t happen that fast.

I was told ‘oh, you’re going to need three to four years.’

Well, I needed one.”

Yes, Coach Ivey, that’s right. You brought us back after just one season.

Now let’s go hang another banner.

Contact Jamison Cook at jcook22@nd.edu

The Observer accepts classifieds every business day from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Notre Dame office, 024 South Dining Hall. Deadline for next-day classifieds is 3 p.m. All classifieds must be prepaid. The

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ndsmcobserver.com | monday, march 28, 2022 | The Observer

Crossword | Will Shortz

9

Horoscope | Eugenia Last Happy Birthday: You know how to play the game and get what you want. Don’t waste time on impulsive acts when you know timing and detail will ensure your success. Leave nothing to chance, and position yourself accordingly. The way forward is through association, fulfillment and persistence. Set your sights on what you want, and be relentless until you reach your destination. Your numbers are 6, 17, 20, 24, 36, 39, 45.

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Set yourself up for success. Attend events that give insight into using your skills to make a difference. Be part of the solution, and you’ll rise quickly. Make your mark by sharing your thoughts and following through with a plan.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Pay attention to detail and how much things cost.

Don’t get involved in something for the wrong reason or because of emotional influences. Put your energy into something that makes you happy and will encourage you to excel.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Rethink your strategy, and prepare to make innovative inroads into something you want to pursue. Dedication, along with a pioneering attitude, will attract attention. Be aware of who is ready and able to assist and who wants a free ride.

CANCER (June 21-July 22): A change of plans someone makes will leave you in an awkward position. Turn things around by incorporating your attributes into something you love to do instead of taking on responsibilities that don’t belong to you. Be brave and please yourself.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Restlessness will surface and make you vulnerable to jumping into something prematurely. The idea someone offers will not work the same for you. Fertilize the grass on your side of the fence; do your own thing and bypass becoming someone’s gofer.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Avoid overspending. The time and effort you put into helping others will indicate how much they are willing to do for you in return. Set out to make a difference, but don’t let anyone take advantage of you.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Plan to have fun. Socializing will lift your spirits, and someone you encounter will encourage you to use your skills diversely.

Personal growth, physical fitness, love and romance are rising. Do your best and be your best.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Take time to digest what’s happening around you.

Someone will offer lousy advice that can disrupt your living arrangements if you aren’t careful. Look for what works best for you, and exercise your right to take the path that soothes your soul.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Do whatever it takes to stabilize and secure what’s important to you. Back away from situations and people who are extravagant or tend to take over. Don’t follow others when the direction you take must suit your needs.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Consider what you want and need to achieve peace of mind and personal happiness. Take control, and head in a direction that quantifies everything you stand for and love. Choose intelligence, and be true to yourself instead of pleasing someone else.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Stay focused and put your time and effort into something that expands your mind and encourages you to take better care of yourself. Step away from people who don’t share your values, dreams, hopes and wishes.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): Emotional spending won’t make you happy or pay the bills. Aim to lower stress by doing something that makes a difference. Don’t give anyone the upper hand. Equality is necessary if you don’t want someone to take advantage of you.

Birthday Baby: You are ingenious, playful and friendly. You are quick-witted and spontaneous.

Sudoku | The Mepham Group

Jumble | David Hoyt and Jeff knurek

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Sports

The observer | monday, march 28, 2022 | ndsmcobserver.com

ATHLETE OF THE WEEK

Athlete of the Week: Hsieh, Galajda’s postseason heroics shine bright

By AIDAN THOM AS Spor ts Editor

Another week of postseason sports led to another week of March heroics. Those heroics shined bright in our Athlete of the Week voting, leading to two clear w inners.

Women’s Athlete Of The Week: Kaylin Hsieh, Notre Dame Fencing 23 w ins in 25 bouts and a national championship?

That’s about as good as it gets, and it was enough for sophomore Kaylin Hsieh to run away w ith the voting for this award. In epee, consistency is notoriously difficult to obtain.

As such, Hsieh’s 23-2 record over two days is v irtually unheard of. As her coach described in an interv iew, it is “unreal” and the “t y pe of things that the best fencers in program histor y do.”

Hsieh dominated the

competition and led the women’s epee div ision w ireto-w ire. In the semifinals, she avenged her loss from last year’s championship, w inning 15-10.

She replicated that scoreline in the final to complete an absolutely dominant run to the indiv idual title, earning her the Obser ver Women’s Athlete of the Week.

Honorable Mention: Dara Mabrey, Notre Dame Women’s Basketball W hile the season did end the way Irish fans wanted, don’t forget what Mabrey did on Monday night to help the Irish get to the Sweet 16. In the Round of 32, the senior guard launched 12 three-pointers and made seven of them.

She poured in 29 points, sparked by her 17 points in the first quarter. Those 17 points helped the Irish jump to a huge first-quarter

advantage, and Notre Dame rolled, 108-64. They set a record for the largest v ictor y by a lower-seeded team in March Madness histor y.

Mabrey’s 29 points was a tournament-high for the Irish, and her contributions in a resurgent year for Notre Dame won’t soon be forgotten.

Men’s Athlete Of The Week: Matthew Galajda, Notre Dame Hockey The Irish goaltender stood on his head in the A lbany Regional. He faced 57 shots and notched 55 saves. That was enough to get the Irish to the second round, but a 1-0 loss in the regional final ended Notre Dame’s season.

Galajda didn’t allow any goals after the first period throughout the tournament.

That included a huge penalt y shot that Galajda stonewalled, making a strong save on a w rist shot.

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With a .965 save percentage and just t wo goals allowed, Galajda earned Men’s Athlete of the Week for the second time on his third nomination.

Honorable Mention: Graham Slaggert, Notre Dame Hockey It was tough to pick bet ween Slaggert and Galajda, but both get honored here. Slaggert posted the game-w inning goal versus North Dakota in overtime in the NCAA Tournament.

Less than t wo minutes into the extra period, Slaggert sniped a w rist shot into the top left corner and send the Irish through to the regional final.

That huge goal was enough to earn Slaggert the honorable mention this week.

Team of the Week: Notre Dame Fencing Hard to make any other

argument here. A ll the fencing team did was host and w in the 2022 NCAA Championships, leading w ire-to-w ire.

The Irish took a lead on day one and never looked back. The women’s team was particularly dominant, earning 102 of the team’s 189 points.

Hsieh earned gold, and t wo other fencers earned silver medals on the women’s side.

The Irish’s title is their second straight and fourth in five years (excluding the canceled 2020 tournament).

For their 12th national championship in program histor y, Notre Dame Fencing earns our team of the week.

Minnesota State w ill play the w inner of Minnesota and Western Michigan in Boston on April 7th.

Contact Aidan Thomas at athoma28 @nd.edu

Sports

Basketball Continued from page 12

acknowledging where we are right now,” said Ivey. “I’m in year two. We didn’t go to the tournament last year. And I don’t want [the team] to feel like this loss dictates who we are. It’s hard, but it’s part

ndsmcobserver.com | monday, march 28, 2022 | The Observer

of the game. There’s a winner and there’s a loser. We can always learn from it, and that’s what we’re going through… I don’t want them to feel like this is the end of the world. We have a bright future.”

Contact J.J. Post at jpost2@nd.edu

Hockey Continued from page 12

rebounded right to Nathan Smith, who easily slipped it in the back of the net to give the Mavericks a 1-0 lead after the first period.

Second Period The Irish were given a power play early in the second period after Wyatt Aamodt was called for hooking on junior left w inger Solag Bakich. The Mavericks won the faceoff, though, and they had a great shorthanded t wo-on-one chance, forcing Galajda to make a difficult glove save. Junior left w inger Jesse Lansdell had a great look for the Irish in front of the net at the end of the power play, but McKay stood strong again and covered the puck to deny the Irish again.

The Mavericks controlled the puck during the middle part of the second period and threatened to extend their lead. The speed and physicalit y of the Mavericks proved difficult for the Irish to handle. Galajda had to make multiple pad saves to keep the Irish w ithin a goal.

Ryan Sandelin then had a clean look on goal w ith just over seven minutes to play in the period. But Galajda stepped up yet again to make a huge save, coming out from the net and smothering the puck.

The Mavericks continued to keep the pressure on the Irish, forcing Galajda to make another crucial pad save. Galajda was out of position after the save, and there was a scramble for the puck in front of the net. Still, the Mavericks were unable to score yet again.

With just over four minutes to play, sophomore defenseman Zach Plucinski was called for interference, giv ing the Mavericks their first power play of the game.

Nathan Smith had the best chance of the power play w ith a long distance shot, but Galajda made the stop and saved the rebound attempt. The Irish defense then held strong over the remaining minute of the power play to kill off the penalt y.

Moments after getting back to full strength, the Irish got a power play of their ow n because of an interference penalt y on Josh Groll. The Irish failed to generate good looks on the power play, and the Mavericks took a 1-0 lead into the third period.

Third Period The Irish had 22 seconds remaining on the power play to begin the period, but the Mavericks killed the penalt y to retain their one-goal lead.

Groll nearly gave the Mavericks a t wo-goal lead just over three minutes into the period. But Galajda made the stop and covered the puck in front of Paid Advertisement

MAGGIE KLAERS | The Observer

11

the net. Moments later, the Mavericks had multiple looks in front of the net, narrowly missing the goal.

After the string of Mavericks’ chances, the Irish began to put pressure on the Mavericks, controlling the puck in the Mavericks’ zone and generating some good looks on goal, threatening to tie up the game.

The game sw ung back in Minnesota State’s favor in the middle part of the period. Galajda had to make some huge saves just to keep the Irish w ithin striking distance. The Irish offense struggled to generate opportunities until about six and a half minutes left when there was a scramble in front of the net, w ith the puck hitting the post. In the ensuing scramble, McKay was out of position, and the Irish desperately tried to get a shot on goal. Despite this attempt, Notre Dame was unable to put the puck in the back of the net.

The Irish emptied the net w ith 2:14 to play, and they had a couple of chances. But McKay held strong in net, and the Mavericks held on to w in 1-0 and advance to their second consecutive Frozen Four. McKay finished the night w ith 23 saves.

Minnesota State w ill play the w inner of Minnesota and Western Michigan in Boston on April 7th.

Contact Nate Moller at nmoller2@nd.edu

12

The observer | monday, march 28, 2022 | ndsmcobserver.com

ND WoMen’s Basketball | 63-66

Notre Dame women’s basketball falls to North Carolina State in Sweet 16

By J.J. POST Sports Writer

ANYA RUFFINO |The Observer

Irish sophomore forward Maddy Westbeld chases down the ball during Notre Dame’s 63-66 loss to NC State on Saturday in Bridgeport.

Saturday afternoon, Notre Dame women’s basketball suffered a heartbreaking loss in the Sweet Sixteen, falling 66-63 to North Carolina State.

The Irish led the contest for most of the day before a steal and layup

by Wolfpack guard Raina Perez with 14 seconds left gave North Carolina State a lead they would preserve until the final buzzer.

That late bucket by Perez put the Wolfpack ahead for the first time since two minutes into the second quarter, but that lead would be the one that mattered most. The Irish’s last grasp search for a buzzer-beating winner saw sophomore forward Maddy Westbeld’s threepoint attempt rim out, and Perez would hit two more free throws with 1.5 seconds on the clock to ice the game.

Wolfpack center Elissa Cunane said after the game that the team’s experience proved to be the

difference-maker in the face of the late deficit: “We’ve been in these situations before. We’ve had some games this season where we were down in the first half or even at the end of games,” said Cunane. “So we knew what we were capable of and we just all had confidence in each other. We kept reminding each other, ‘take it one step at a time, get one stop and push it, and then focus on the little things.’”

That confidence and experience proved vital in the final minute of the contest, as the Irish seemed flustered in the face of tight-man Wolfpack defense. This frustration came to a head in the final thirty seconds of the game when Notre Dame, holding a one-point lead and the ball, saw several inbounds plays run astray. A combination of deflected passes and smart tactical fouling by North Carolina State ensured the Irish continually struggled to even start their offensive possession. And when the Irish finally did get the ball in play, Perez’s

steal just seconds later allowed the Wolfpack to put the finishing touch on a stellar defensive possession.

North Carolina State head coach Wes Moore said after the game his team was just looking to frustrate the Irish any way they could on that fateful possession.

“We were trying for whatever we could get. We obviously wanted to make it tough for them to get the ball in… but I’ll be honest, we don’t work on [inbounds] stuff enough,” said Moore. “They just went out there and made plays. They got after it and competed. That’s what it takes. It takes energy, it takes urgency and that can cover up even a coach that makes mistakes. They can still cover that up.”

Despite the loss, after the game Irish head coach Niele Ivey reflected on how far her team came and what they have to look forward to next season.

“I talked [to the team] about just celebrating, and just see BASKETBALL PAGE 11

ND Hockey | 0-1

Irish lose to Minnesota State, come up short of trip to Frozen Four

By NATE MOLLER Sports Writer

The 2021-22 season came to an end for the Irish on Saturday evening in Albany as the Irish fell 1-0 to Minnesota State in a physical, fast-paced game.

The Mavericks looked like the better team for most of the night, but the Irish competed well too, generating plenty of scoring opportunities.

Saturday night’s win was the 17th consecutive victory for the Mavericks, who have been ranked number one for much of the season.

First Period The Irish got a power play early on after junior right winger Trevor Janicke went down hard. They had a couple of looks on goal. But Mavericks goalie Dryden McKay made a couple of big saves to keep the game scoreless.

The Mavericks pressed the Irish hard throughout the first ten minutes, and the Irish struggled to maintain possession and get good looks in the early part of the game.

Both teams had a couple of

chances near the end of the first period. The Mavericks had one of the best chances of the game with just over four minutes to play, but the shot went just wide.

The Irish then took the puck down the ice moments later and nearly scored, forcing McKay to make a save.

The Irish had arguably their best look of the first period with just a minute left in the game with sophomore forward Landon Slaggert sending the puck across the ice to find senior center Graham Slaggert.

Graham put the shot on net, but McKay made another save to deny the Irish. Moments later, Jake Pivonka ended up with a one-on-one chance with McKay, but McKay stood strong yet again.

When the Mavericks got the puck back, they put pressure on the Irish immediately, forcing graduate student goaltender Matthew Galajda to make a glove save with 30 seconds left in the period. The Mavericks then broke through moments later after Galajda made a save and the puck see HOCKEY PAGE 11

ALLISON THORNTON | The Observer

Irish junior forward Solag Bakich lunges forward in an unsuccessful shot attempt against Minnesota State on Saturday evening in Albany, New York, where the Irish eventually fell 1-0 to the Mavericks.

insider

ndsmcobserver.com |Monday, March 28, 2022 | The Observer

3

Kaylin Hsieh

‘She was on a mission’: Kaylin Hsieh’s march to an individual title

By JOSE SANCHEZ CORDOVA Spor ts Writer

“After her semifinal, we watched the second bout just to plan a little bit. I started to make some comments about who she’d like to fence and then she stopped and said ‘it doesn’t matter, I’m on a mission’,” said Notre Dame epee coach Cedric Loiseau.

For Kaylin Hsieh, the indiv idual women’s epee champion and Notre Dame’s only indiv idual champion in a team title-w inning effort this year, there was no other option. She just wanted it too much.

“I just really wanted that title. I was one step away from being done w ith the whole college season and I really wanted to just have a great finish,” said Hsieh.

For the junior, it represented the culmination of a yearlong journey that began on that same NCA A championship strip. Last year, she made it to the epee final against LIU’s Laura Fekete.

There, she lost a heartbreaker, 14-13 in overtime. Her entire season came dow n to one touch and it didn’t go her way.

“From the final bout last year w ith Laura from LIU, I’ve learned to be more calm when I fence. I tend to be ver y hotheaded and when

Day 3 and 4 Continued from page 4

playing me,” said Itkin. “I think I just wasn‘t there mentally, and my fencing showed that. I wasn‘t fencing to my fullest ability.”

He fully turned it around though, winning his final nine bouts of the day. Itkin finished at 11-4 and in fourth place in the individual. Itkin‘s fellow foilist, senior Andrew Machovec, had a similarly inconsistent start before settling into the competition to finish 8-7 on the day and in ninth place.

“I‘m just going to come out strong tomorrow. I can‘t come out the way I came out today. So, I’m going to rest, relax tonight and come out more prepared than I did today,” said Itkin.

In the epee, junior Hunter Candreva (8-7) and senior Stephen Ewart (7-8) combined for 15 more points to Notre Dame’s team total. For Candreva, it was a tale of two halves. After a 1-6 start in his first-ever NCAA Championships, he turned it around to take the second half 7-1. That included four straight wins to close out the day.

“It took me a second to figure out what‘s working and what‘s

that happens I tend to lose touches,” Hsieh noted. “So, I’ve learned to be more mature in terms of my fencing st yle, to be more patient and seeing my way through the time so it translates into better scoring.”

Right from the start, that new approach was apparent as she won a one-touch bout against her teammate Amanda Pirkowski to kick off her NCA A Championship bid. From there, she was the most dominant female fencer in the championships w inning 21 of her 23 bouts in pool play, three more than the next best epeeists. She out-touched her opponents by 43 touches, an imposing margin and 18 better than her closest competitor.

Kaylin Hsieh celebrates her semifinal v ictor y at the NCA A Fencing Championships on Friday afternoon.

Her first semifinal was a rematch of the last year’s final against Fekete and a chance for Hsieh to get revenge for the championship loss. She did so in st yle, overcoming some early adversit y to pull away in the third period of the bout and w in 15-10.

“The major thing I’ve learned is it’s okay to lose.

Losing doesn’t mean anything, either you move

not working. To maximize my strengths and minimize my weaknesses. Took me a little bit, but I was able to catch on.” said Candreva, “I was able to take my losses and learn from them.”

The Irish took a 17-bout lead into the final day of competition at 155 points, ahead of Columbia’s 138. Harvard and Princeton stood close behind at 137 and 134, respectively. With 48 total bouts left per team, the magic number sat at 32 for Notre Dame.

“Today was statistically the hardest for us. We fenced all the guys with the best rankings,” Linder said. “So, tomorrow we just have to keep the same mentality, the same focus and not let up and finish strong.”

Notre Dame celebrates the NCAA Fencing National Championship on Sunday afternoon.

Day 4 Recap: Irish bring it home Notre Dame claimed their 12th national championship in fencing Sunday as they successfully defended their title at home.

In the end, senior sabre Jared Smith clinched it with a win over Stanford’s Donghwan Park in the fifth round. Individually, Notre Dame also claimed three medals

for ward and you learned from the mistake that you made or you let that mistake define you,” said Hsieh This renewed attitude was apparent in the final where nothing could shake her.

Har vard’s Emily Vermeule took an early lead, but it wasn’t enough to shake Hsieh who brought it back to lead at the first break.

Then came a different kind of challenge when her opponent fell on the strip, requiring medical assistance.

Despite a lengthy break, Hsieh remained unshaken, maintaining her focus and sticking to the game plan.

After the stoppage, she came out on fire to take the w in, 15-10 over Vermeule.

“She was so consistent.

W hat she did is absolutely amazing, the t y pe of things that the best fencers in our program histor y do. It’s absolutely unreal. She won the championship. She wanted it, she proved it. It’s just incredible.” said Loiseau.

Hsieh broke dow n in tears follow ing her v ictor y, taking off her mask before going over to embrace her coach at the end of the strip. She later said that at that moment she got the final touch many things went through her mind. Thoughts of her loss last year, but also of all the hard work that went into

with Kaylin Hsieh picking up gold in women’s epee. Amita Berthier and Atara Greenbaum won silver in foil and sabre respectively.

“With a tournament like this, it’s never going to be a smooth ride. But throughout the year, we’ve shown that consistency.

At dual meets, at the ACCs, and it’s continued at the highest level when we needed it.” said head coach Gia Kvaratskhelia.

Notre Dame won by a comfortable margin. They scored 189 points to get the win over Harvard and Columbia, who both finished with 168 points.

The women’s team buoyed Notre Dame’s total with a stellar 102-point performance. Of Notre Dame’s 12 fencers this weekend, 11 finished in the top eight of their respective weapons. It was an impressive wire-to-wire victory for Notre Dame against a full Due to COIVD, many of the powerhouse Ivy League schools didn’t compete last year.

“The biggest thing that we experienced was everyone telling us that we won a fake championship, that it was a fake ring. This year, we came out and proved to everyone in this country that we are the team to beat. And there is nobody from day one to day four that could beat our lead. We were

reaching this point filled her head.

“Fencing is cruel, sports is cruel. You either w in or you lose. But either way what matters is what you do for the next step. How you reach those small goals that let you get to your end goal.” said Hsieh.

Ultimately, it wasn’t surprising to head coach Gia Kvaratsk helia.

“She was on a mission. Last year she fell short,” he said.

“Ever y thing was geared for her to prove to ever yone that

w ith a fuller field, that she was competitive and good enough to w in the competition. A great game plan.

The coaches were incredible w ith her development this year. The world cup circuit, t wo national competitions, t wo collegiate events.

It culminated in an NCA A championship which I am absolutely not surprised about.”

Contact Jose Sanchez Cordova at jsanch24@ nd.edu

RYAN VIGILANTE | The Observer

Kailyn Hsieh prepares for the women’s epee, during which she took home the gold on Friday in a 15-10 victory in Purcell Pavilion.

there every single step of the way proving that we were the ones who are the champions.” said senior foil Andrew Machovec.

Notre Dame entered the final day of competition needing 32 bouts to clinch the team title, but they also had six individuals still vying for a spot in the individual semifinals. They all ended up falling short of the semis, but with five of six fencers finishing in the top 8 of their respective weapons, the men did enough to win the team title.

“We proved it. We wanted to show everyone that our win last year wasn’t a fluke. And we did.

We had 189 wins which is incredible. All the Ivies were there, everybody was there. No one can come and say anything about us not deserving it. We earned it.” said epee coach Cedric Loiseau.

The foil seemed like Notre Dame’s best bet for a semifinal berth, especially with senior Nick Itkin who was in the third position after four rounds. He had won ten consecutive bouts to get to that position but then faltered in the final round. He lost the first three and despite a gritty comefrom-behind 5-4 win in his final bout, it wasn’t enough. Itkin finished with a 15-8 record, good for sixth place.

Instead, it was his teammate, Machovec who finished strongest in the weapon. He won 10 straight bouts, including a perfect 8-0 Sunday to surge up the standings and finish with a 16-7 record.

That tied him with the eventual champion, Columbia’s Ashton Daniel, but Daniel’s superior indicators put him into the semifinal ahead of Machovec, who settled for fifth.

The sabre and epee squads both went 11-5 during the final day of competition. Sabre saw both fencers finish with a 15-8 record. Smith and 2021 champion Luke Linder both finished outside of the semifinals in sixth and seventh, respectively. In epee, junior Hunter Candreva put up a 14-9 record in his first NCAA tournament to finish eighth and ahead of his teammate senior Stephen Ewart who finished eleventh with 12 wins.

Kvaratskhelia made sure to praise his entire team after the title triumph: “You have the twelve who competed, but you have fifty plus that supported them and pushed them to the next level. It’s not just one, it’s not just twelve, it’s all fifty or sixty.”

Contact Jose Sanchez Cordova at jsanch24@nd.edu

4

The observer | Monday, March 28, 2022 | ndsmcobserver.com

Tournament Day 3 and 4

On top of the world: Irish clinch 12th national championship

By JOSE SANCHEZ CORDOVA Sports Writer

After the women’s team gave Notre Dame fencing a 12-point lead after two days, the men’s program brought it home. They extended the lead each day, and they clinched the title on Sunday morning.

Day 3 Recap: Irish ward off slow start, extend lead Men’s pool play in the NCAA Fencing Tournament began Saturday at the Castellan Family Fencing Center and it saw Notre Dame extend their lead atop the standings. They came into the day with a 12-bout lead ahead of Princeton and they go into the night with a 17-bout lead on second-place Columbia.

“The girls gave us a huge advantage by having a lead in the first few days,” said sophomore sabre Luke Linder, “It’s a little more relaxing, you know, the first day with zeros all across the board. There’s a little more pressure so you have to give respect to the girls for just being brave and going out there, doing their work and putting in a 12-bout lead for us. It was huge to take some stress

off us.”

Linder began his attempt to defend his individual title in men’s sabre from last year. He finished 10-5 on the day. He sits in sixth overall just ahead of his teammate, senior Jared Smith (9-6) in seventh place. Linder had an upand-down day, beginning with a 4-3 first round before winning six straight bouts. However, his day ended with two frustrating losses against Harvard.

“There was a couple of bouts I lost that I felt like I shouldn’t have lost. I didn‘t feel like I was fencing to the greatest of my potential.

So, in the second round, we came back and tried to fix some things.

And then my teammate and I both went 4-0, so we adjusted. There were just some simple things I needed to fix.” said Linder.

Foil, Epee overcome slow starts In the foil, it was a similar story as two-time national champion Nick Itkin got off to a difficult start, going 2-4 to start the day.

“The problem with my fencing early in the day was just mentally, it really wasn‘t like they were see DAY 3 AND 4, PAGE 3

GRACIE LEE | The Observer

Irish senior foil Andrew Machovec prepares for foil round on Saturday at the Castellan Family Fencing Center, finishing 8-7 on the day in ninth place. Machovec eventually settled at fifth in the competition.

Tournament Day 1 and 2

NCAA Fencing Championships: Irish women build 12-bout lead

By AIDAN THOM AS and JOSE SANCHEZ CORDOVA Spor ts Editor, Spor ts Wr iter

RYAN VIGILANTE | The Observer

Junior Amita Berthier represents the Irish in foil on Thursday, ending Day 1 with an 11-4 mark. Berthier made it to the ffoil inals on Day 2, but fell 15-9 to Princeton’s Maya Weintraub at Purcell Pavilion.

Last year, Notre Dame Fencing won the nationa l championship.

However, the v ictor y came against a somewhat depleted field.

Due to COV ID, the Iv y League schools did not participate, leav ing Notre Dame a dominant force at the tournament.

“Last year, because of COV ID, the play ing field wasn’t as high. The Iv ies are back, and they’re rea lly, rea lly good,” sophomore epeeist Kaylin Sin Yan Hsieh said after Thursday’s bouts. “I feel like I’m experiencing the first norma l year.”

However, even w ith a fully charged field ready to cha llenge the defending champions, Notre Dame still looked the part. Powered by a fantastic start from their

epeeists, the Irish led w ireto-w ire, ending w ith a seven-point advantage on day 1. They led by t welve after the women’s portion of the event finished in Round 2.

The format is relatively simple, as each discipline competes in five rounds.

Their first is seven fivetouch bouts, w ith the follow ing rounds consisting of four bouts. For each v ictor y by a fencer, the school earns a point. The top four fencers in each discipline after the 23 tota l bouts move on to a 15-touch semifina l round to compete for indiv idua l championships. The indiv idua l championships do not affect the team score.

Day 1 Recap : Sparks The Irish

Epee

On Thursday, the women completed the first three see DAY 1 AND 2, PAGE 2