Panelists discuss Middle East post Oct. 7
Students react to ND Marriage Pact results
By GABRIELLE KILE News Writer
With 4,789 submissions, more than half of Notre Dame’s undergraduate student body participated in the annual Notre Dame Marriage Pact this year, according to the Marriage Pact’s website. The Marriage Pact is a compatibility matching system created by Stanford University students in 2017, which has spread to college campuses across the country. Results were released for Notre Dame Nov. 4.
By asking students a series of questions about their personality and dating preferences, the survey
uses an algorithm to estimate their compatibility with others within the database. The system pairs students together based on the assumption that they would be compatible partners in marriage.
While Michael Spence, a sophomore who filled out the survey, said he believes the Marriage Pact is an interesting concept, he said he is unsure about the true capability of the test to find compatible marriage matches.
“I like that [the Marriage Pact] enables you to talk to somebody who you’d never think you would,” Spence explained, saying the survey brings about cool interactions
with peers, “regardless of their intentions.”
The survey consists of questions regarding political affiliations, smoking and drinking habits, future family plans, partner preferences, general lifestyle choices and more. Responses are measured on a seven-point sliding scale, with opposing extremes at either end.
Freshman Jane Dufner thought the survey was fun to fill out, and said she will likely do it again in future years.
“It’s a fun tradition and experience,” Dufner said.
Notre Dame hockey X post recieves backlash
Observer Staff Report
In a since-deleted tweet, Notre Dame hockey fans were advised against wearing clothing with “Irish symbolism” at the upcoming Notre Dame hockey games on Nov. 29 and 30 in Belfast, Northern Ireland.
The Notre Dame Men’s Hockey X account posted a graphic with the caption, “We can’t wait to see your Notre Dame in Belfast gear inside SSE Arena.
Just a reminder to avoid our Irish symbolism, that
may be deemed offensive to some, while out around town.” The graphic instructed fans not to wear items with green, shamrocks, the Irish flag, leprechauns or the
By EMMA BETZ News Writer
On Tuesday afternoon, a panel of academics met in the Hesburgh Center for International Studies auditorium to discuss the state of the Middle East one year after the Hamas terrorist attack of Oct. 7. Speakers included Daniel Bannoura, a PhD candidate in theology and a native Palestinian, Ahser Kaufman, a professor of history and peace studies and a native of Israel, Banafsheh Keynoush, a visiting fellow at the Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies, and Lisa Schirch, professor of the
practice of peace studies.
The panel opened with Bannoura, who emphasized the importance of describing the situation in Gaza as a genocide and also discussed the history of “ethnic cleansing” purported by Israel against the Palestinian people.
Bannoura specifically discussed the current plight of Palestinians in the West Bank. “For me, this is a very obvious case of continual dehumanization of the Palestinians. It did not begin on Oct. 8 or 7. This has been going on for 76 years,” he
Graham Family Hall settles in
By EMILY BARLETT News Writer
This August, the former residents of Pangborn Hall ventured across campus to the newly constructed Graham Family Hall, where they have now settled into their new home.
The hall, which was the gift of Tracy and Kerie Graham, is the latest in a string of new residence halls which have been constructed since the announcement of the three-year residency requirement for undergraduate students in 2017. Currently, Coyle Hall and Grojean Hall are being constructed on the
former sites of Fisher Hall and Pangborn Hall respectively.
Graham Family Hall sits on East Quad between the East Campus Research Complex and Johnson Family Hall, standing at four stories and 79,000 square feet. Graham Hall incorporates Notre Dame’s campus architectural style through its neo-Gothic features, including its distinctive arch. It is home to approximately 262 students, including first-years, transfer students and former Pangborn residents.
EMILY BARLETT |The Observer
Newly-built Graham Family Hall, home to the former residents of Pangborn Hall, is located on East Quad near Johnson Family Hall.
EMMA BETZ | The Observer
The panelists, including a PhD candidate, professors and a visiting fellow at the Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies spoke to students, faculty Tuesday at the Hesburgh Center auditorium.
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Jayshaw Murphy freshman Morissey Manor “Guitar.”
Gabo Seraphine freshman Morrissey Manor “Sail a boat.”
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Observer The band Chicago performed a halftime show at Saturday’s football game against the University of Virginia. The Notre Dame marching band accompanied the popular group as it performed top hits including “25 or 6 to 4” and “Saturday in the Park.”
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Wednesday
‘Revolution: The History of an Idea’
Jenkins Nanovic Hall
1:30 p.m. - 3 p.m.
Dan Edelstein on the French Revolution.
GIS Day
246 Hesburgh
12 p.m. - 1 p.m.
Symposium on the power of geospatial technology.
Thursday
Saint Mary’s to CIA
Stapleton Lounge
4:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.
Alumna Kelly McGannon on her time in the CIA.
Film: ‘A Woman Scorned: The Betty Broderick Story’ DPAC
6:30 p.m. - 8 p.m.
True crime drama.
Friday
‘The Concept of Woman’ Remmick Family Hall
3 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Book launch with Sr. Prudence Allen.
Men’s Basketball vs Elon Purcell Pavilion
7:30 p.m.
Notre Dame takes on Elon.
Saturday
Concert: Haydn’s ‘The Creation’ DPAC
2:30 p.m. - 4 p.m.
Multiple choral groups perform masterwork.
Hockey vs Minnesota Compton Family Ice
Arena
7 p.m.
Notre Dame faces off against Minnesota.
Sunday
Organ Concert Basilica of the Sacred Heart
8 p.m. - 9:15 p.m.
Eight centuries of organ music.
Film: ‘Frozen’ SingAlong DPAC
1 p.m. - 2:40 p.m.
Group karaokee to Frozen soundtrack.
MARIELLA TADDONIO
The
Nickelodeon alum Liz Gillies speaks
By Isabel Torres News Writer
On Tuesday, Nov. 19, the University of Notre Dame’s Student Union Board welcomed Hollywood actress, music artist and Broadway star Elizabeth Gillies to the stage in a student-led panel in DeBartolo Hall. Gillies appeared on the hit shows “Victorious” and “Dynasty.”
Gillies was introduced and subsequently led in a conversational dialogue by students
Jamil Allan and Jasmine Williams, both of whom are members of the Student Union Board.
As the event was announced Nov. 14, through email, the discussion appealed to a wide variety of students, and tickets were clinched rapidly. With around 200 students, the audience was highly energetic and eager to hear about Gillies’ outlook on her career and life experiences.
Following a brief introduction, the initial conversation focused on Gillies’ experiences on Broadway from a young age and her
later experience with television, before exploring her transition to the music industry.
Gillies explained because much of her time was spent on set, she formed strong connections with her coworkers. She went on to highlight the importance of upholding such relationships.
“When you do shows like that, no one else can understand what you went through, except for those people,” Gillies said.
Shifting the discussion, being asked about the
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characteristics of roles she wished to play, Gillies responded by indicating that her goal was to portray motivated individuals on the screen.
“I am drawn to characters that I relate to, for example, strong women,” Gillies said.
Gillies said she aims to serve as a positive force for female representation not only in relation to the screen, but also amongst professionals in the film and music industry.
Gilles said she aimed to learn as much
An Evening with
Phylicia Rashad
Join us for an evening with Tony-award winning actor Phylicia Rashad as she discusses her extensive acting career in films, TV, and Broadway. Film and television credits include: The Beekeeper, Jingle Jangle, Pixar’s Soul, Black Box, A Fall From Grace, Creed, Creed II, Creed III, For Colored Girls; This is Us (three Emmy nominations), Diarra From Detroit, Little America, The Crossover, The Good Fight, David Makes Man, and Empire
Monday, November 25
7:30 p.m.
Moreau Center for the Arts O’Laughlin Auditorium
Tickets for this event can be purchased through the QR code or online at saintmarys.edu/events.
Members of the tri-campus community are invited to attend at no charge, but must reserve a ticket.
as she could from her coworkers.
“I did everything that I could to absorb anything I could,” Gillies said.
While the ability to become a child performer is incredibly appealing to individuals, Gillies said, the aspiration is oftentimes hindered by various factors.
Gillies, acknowledging the privilege granted to her through such experiences, broke down the negative impression that celebrities are too heavily removed from the television viewer’s context to be relatable.
Returning later to the potential for new and upcoming projects, Gillies indicated she is planning to continue producing music. However, she also directly expressed her wish to become involved in more film, TV and music opportunities.
“I am always open to different opportunities, and open to life. I say ‘yes’ a lot, because I believe that life has a lot to offer,” Gillies said.
Contact Isabel Torres at itorres@nd.edu
Residents of the new hall praised Graham’s proximity to Hesburgh Library and Duncan Student Center.
“The proximity to the library I would say has certainly been the most advantageous aspect of our new location, but South Quad will always be missed,” Graham Hall student senator Joseph Leupold said.
The hall offers a variety of room types, including singles, doubles, quads, and sixman dorms.
On the first floor, there are many community spaces, reading rooms and a hall chapel, as is customary in all residence halls at Notre Dame.
Notably, unlike Pangborn, Graham features air conditioning for its residents.
The room sizes and formations are also different.
“By having common spaces with no walls and an extension of the hallway, it creates an inviting space that is a hub for building community,” Junior Graham resident Dominic Lampo said.
Additionally, residents have access to an outdoor patio, fitness facilities and kitchens, providing them with a multitude of spaces to study and socialize
words “Fighting Irish” or “Irish.” Instead, the graphic suggested fans wear navy and gold, gear with “Notre Dame hockey” on it or the ND monogram.
Notre Dame began selling commemorative navy jerseys for the event, featuring a gold “Irish” and shamrock, earlier this month.
After receiving backlash for the post on X and Instagram, where it was also posted, the message was deleted. Shortly after, a new post was released, reading “Out of an abundance of caution, we posted guidelines on social media for fans wishing to express support for the team during its upcoming trip to Northern Ireland. The guidelines were not properly reviewed and should not have been posted.”
The post continued, “Our game in Belfast is meant to bring people together and build bridges through sport, we apologize to the fans and to the people of Northern Ireland for any confusion or offense.”
throughout the building.
“Despite the special place that Pangborn holds in all of our hearts, there is certainly a new level of appreciation for the physical luxury it feels like we are living in now,” Leupold said.
Graham has retained Pangborn’s colors of purple and gold and its motto “Go and Do Likewise.”
Graham houses almost twice as many residents as Pangborn did. Despite its size and being the newest dorm on campus, Graham has already developed a tight-knit community, freshman Connor Farrell said.
“We are always hosting fun events like outdoor cookouts and building the best culture out of all the dorms,” he said.
While former residents of Pangborn say they fondly remember their old home, residents said they were excited to be part of the close-knit community and dorm culture of Graham Hall.
“In its entirety, it is never easy to start a new community, but everyone here has embraced the responsibility and is having loads of fun in the process,” Graham resident assistant Suhas Nelaturi said.
Contact Emily Barlett at ebarlett@nd.edu
ISABEL TORRES | The Observer
Student Union Board hosted the Hollywood actress, music artist, and Broadway star Elizabeth Gillies for a conversation about her career.
Sixth annual Euro trivia night brings triumph
By ANNELISE DEMERS
Associate New Editor
In a testament to Notre Dame’s lively tradition of academic competitions, the sixth annual EuroCup trivia night brought out the best and brightest for an evening of high stakes and lighthearted rivalry. This year’s event saw Duncan Hall’s ‘Rasputin Rizzlers’ claim the top spot, while Knott Hall’s ‘Oktoberfest’ found themselves at the bottom of the scoreboard.
EuroCup featured 10 teams representing various residence halls. Each team, consisting of three to five players, tackled categories that ranged from European history and
current events to geography, art and more. With 45 seconds allotted per question, the tension was evident as teams scribbled down answers and rushed to hand in their responses.
The competition was structured into six rounds, each with five questions except for the final round, which featured four. Most answers were worth two points, but a few bonus questions offered additional opportunities to score big. The bonus round centered on questions about Ukraine and Slovakia, where each correct answer was worth three points — crucial for teams hoping to edge ahead.
The event’s emcee announced
scores after key points in the night, building suspense leading into the final tally. Despite strong showings from teams like the ‘EuroVisionaries’ of Siegfried Hall, who garnered bonus points for their name, only one team could claim victory.
Sophomore Jack Knorr, who participated in Morrissey Manor’s ‘Manorite Grand Prix,’ reflected on his team’s preparation.
“Basically, my friends and I had fun playing trivia games in our lounge, and we thought we’d try our luck. Did we study much? No, not really,” Knorr said.
Junior Mirella Wunderlich from Ryan Hall and her friends from
Badin Hall formed the night’s only all-girl team out of 10 teams, aptly named ‘Serving in Europe.’ Despite having minimal preparation, Wunderlich expressed confidence.
“This is what Notre Dame is all about, trying new experiences regardless of the outcome,” Wunderlich said.
With a competitive edge and balanced expertise in history and geography, the ‘Rasputin Rizzlers’ of Duncan Hall took first place with 76 points. Their performance in the bonus round secured the win, cementing their position as trivia champions. Knott Hall’s ‘Oktoberfest,’ finished in 10th place with 40 points.
In one humorous moment, team ‘Oh Crêpe’ guessed Da Sound Machine, the fictional a capella group from “Pitch Perfect 2,” for a question about a German band known for popularizing electronic music. The correct answer was Kraftwerk, formed in Düsseldorf in 1970.
Prizes were distributed to winners and participants, including mugs, candy and maps. The muchanticipated mini trophy drew laughs when it was revealed to have been made in China — an ironic twist for a European-themed event.
Contact Annelise Demers at ademers@nd.edu
Saint Marys hosts priest for spirituality lecture
By ISABELLA GONZALES News Writer
On Tuesday evening, the 2024 Thomas Merton Lecture was held at Carroll Auditorium in Madeleva Hall, courtesy of the Center for the Study of Spirituality. The lecture, titled “Courageous Hope in Precarious Times,” was open to the public and live-streamed.
President Katie Conboy introduced the event, speaking to the value the annual lecture has for Saint Mary’s College.
“This lecture always involves prominent speakers who talk about themes related to spirituality and contemporary living in the spirit of Thomas Merton, a leading Catholic figure in the 20th century who emphasized the relationship
Marriage
Because of uneven gender distribution in the responses, some participants received a “friendship pact” as opposed to a romantic “marriage pact,” as was the case for senior Yosibel Cabrera.
“I was matched [with a 100% compatibility score] with my friend — actually my roommate!”
between contemplation and action in the world,” she said.
Conboy also explained the friendship between the late Sr. Madeleva Wolff and Thomas Merton, sharing that Wolff advocated for Merton’s first writings about contemplative life to be published through Saint Mary’s College.
The keynote speaker was Fr. Bryan Massingale, a Catholic priest of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee and the James and Nancy Buckman professor of theological and social ethics at Fordham University. Massingale is openly gay, and has taught theology classes on sexuality and race.
Massingale began with a discussion of the meaning of the
Cabrera said. Cabrera said she was surprised to be matched with a friend of hers, let alone her roommate. Although both she and her roommate share a major in architecture, the survey did not include architecture as a major option, meaning their shared field of study was not a factor in their pairing.
“The whole point of the Marriage Pact is being matched with a compatible romantic
word “precarious” as well as what it meant to be in those times. He specifically wanted the audience to look at “some of the most divisive tensions that affect us and cause worry, concern and fear.”
He raised concerns in light of the recent violence and disrespect occurring to members of the LGBT community, Muslims, Jewish and Black people. He discussed how political divisions have caused a divide in the nation through the existential crisis of the election itself and how different people of political perspectives see each other.
“Those who differ from us are enemies who must be arrested and eliminated, but we cannot envision, much less even desire, a state of common life with those
interest but I guess it also shows how effective it is by matching up friendships,” Cabrera said.
The marriage pact system has proven to be effective for romantic partnerships too. Sophomores Katie Harfmann and Luke Zircher, who did not know each other before the results of last year’s survey came out, have the Marriage Pact to thank for their introduction.
who disagree with us,” Massingale said, characterizing the way in which polarized thinking can manifest.
He also described the state of the nation as “a house divided”, though he believed the term to be too sanitized due to the images he showed previously where the nature of those who disagreed with one another was very clear.
Massingale mentioned that courage and hope are “nurtured in a community’s memories.” He also stated that through their courage, people maintain a strong sense of their own agency, never losing their capacity to love or surrendering their conscience and how they didn’t succumb to the belief that there
“I tried to stalk his social media, disappointingly finding out that all he had was LinkedIn,” Harfmann said.
Eventually, they made contact via email, and Harfmann attested that their first interactions were constructed with affectionate language put together by ChatGPT and that their first date consisted of high-stakes questions on issues of politics and religion.
were no options.
He gave examples of people he found to have courage and hope even with the pain they held. One story included the people who went on a month-long trip to a refugee camp in South Africa and those that are represented in the Freedom Monument Sculpture Park in Montgomery, Alabama.
“I felt anger at the horror,” Massingale said, recalling what he has heard of others’ experiences at the Freedom Monument Sculpture Park, “but then gratitude because they survived. They survived because they loved and nurtured life and hope.”
Contact Isabella Gonzales at igonzales01@saintmarys.edu
“Our first date was a romantic trip to South Dining Hall,” Harfmann said. “We made pasta for lunch followed by a three-hour dialogue.”
After waiting until the second semester of their freshman year to start dating, the pair have now been together for over ten months.
Contact Gabrielle Kile at gkile@nd.edu
said.
Bannoura went on to argue that Israel is institutionally flawed and its philosophy of “Christian Zionism” is “racist.” Bannoura argued these governing ideologies make Israel un-democratic, and the United States and neighboring Western countries should not recognize Israel as democratic or normal.
Next to speak was Keynoush, an Iranian native, who spoke on the state of Iranian involvement in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
“Iranians are not as pro-Palestinian as the rest of the Middle East,” Keynoush said.
She went on to articulate the tension felt between much of the Iranian people and their governments, arguing Iranians are primarily concerned with preserving their own security and wealth.
“The government of Iran funds and arms a lot of groups across the Middle East, which is money taken from the average Iranians,” Keynoush said.
In terms of Iranian governmental action, Keynoush argued there is Iranian desire for a potential peace agreement between several middle eastern countries, including on nuclear proliferation agreements, despite the nation’s funding of terrorist groups, such as Hamas. Keynoush argued, however, that Israel is
unlikely to sign on to any peace agreement.
Offering an alternate perspective was Professor Kaufman, who highlighted the Israeli perspective within the Gaza conflict as it escalated from Oct. 7. In regards to the Hamas attack, Kaufman said, “most Israeli Jews are still embedded in the trauma and shock of that day.”
Kaufman reaffirmed the primary motive of Israel in its domination of the Gaza strip, which was to regain deterrence, and seek retribution for the loss of Israeli civilians on Oct. 7.
“Israel has been attempting to regain deterrence by extreme and disproportionate response to the humiliating fate of that day,” Kaufman said.
At the conclusion of the panel, Schirch spoke on the role of United States policy initiatives in the Middle East following the Oct. 7 attack. Schirch outlined the diplomatic strategy of the Biden administration and the upcoming Trump administration.
“The Biden administration, like all the US administrations before, has pressed for a two state solution,” Schirch said. She went on to discuss that although this seems to be a tactful initiative, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the ruling coalition in Israel had abandoned the hope for a two state solution long ago.
In regards to the Trump administration, Schirch argued we are destined to see more
intensified support for Israel military control of the Gaza strip. Schirch anticipated a likely proponent of this will be Mike Huckabee, Trump’s recently appointed US ambassador to Israel.
Huckabee will be unlikely to push for US humanitarian support for Palestine, and will continue to aid Israel in its objectives the region, he said.
“I think that things are about to get much worse,” she said. “And I think that our social movement strategies in the United States have to get much smarter about what is actually possible, and how we can build coalitions here.”
Contact Emma Betz at ebetz@nd.edu
Richard Taylor Under Further Scrutiny
My dear brother or sister,
Letter to a miscarried child
Though you were conceived and began to grow into a human body, you never really got to experience what life is like here. Maybe you are in a better place now — maybe a neutral place — hopefully not a worse place. People speculate about the afterlife here, but the Bible (God’s book(s) to us) is surprisingly quiet on the subject, so I do not have a good guess as to the state of your separated soul. One day, all our bodies will resurrect; then, you will know what it’s like to live in a body. I think, though, that there are aspects of this human life on earth which will not plague our final, eternal state in (God willing) heaven. So, here are some things to give you a better idea of what you are missing out on (for better or worse):
Sometimes, it is hard to know what is right and wrong. Most of the time, though, we know what is right, and the hard part is sticking to it. There is a mystery here which I do not believe anybody has explained: we often know what is good for us and do the opposite.
Earth and the universe are full of good and beautiful things, but there are some horrible things mixed in. Most of the bad stuff is our fault, but, still, a lot of it is just the way the world is. Some look at the good things and try to grab them and accumulate them. Others look at the bad things and despair and raise presumptuous questions about why there is evil at all. Neither of these approaches is much good. It is best to smile at the good, cry at the evil and try to make others smile instead of cry, while staying focused on reaching that place where all is good forever.
Our bodies place incredible demands on us but also enable us to do some equally incredible things
— like run a marathon or eat cheesecake or bring forth new life (usually successfully, though regrettably not in your case). The immediacy of our senses makes it hard to devote ourselves to the non-material things which we feel (though not in the same way, not with our bodies) to be more important, especially since we are born with a twisted desire to let our bodies control us. (This twisted desire you will not experience in your resurrected body). For example, many struggle to profess belief in an invisible God for which, they claim, there is little “evidence.” Well, as you must know, God permeates all things physical and does not leave us stranded in our bodies but sent his Son as an example for us to imitate if we wish to perfect our human nature. God engages our bodies most beautifully in Mass.
That is basically the gist of it. Here are some more things for fun:
We spend about a third of our life asleep. If we wake up at the right time, we will have just been thinking of something. Actually, it is less like thinking and more like imagining. We have almost no control over it and no ability to predict what we will imagine. Our minds play movies for us every night. It is a strange thing called dreaming.
We have figured out how to organize sounds to communicate not only ideas (language), but also emotions (music). Do the angels sing in heaven (I pray that you, in your innocence, have made it there), or are they just saying that so we are good? Music helps us a lot here. We play it to celebrate, to pray, to grieve, to pass the time. If we listen to one song enough times, we can start to hear it in our heads even if it is not playing.
There is such a thing as good pain. Sometimes it feels good to cry. Actually, most of the time it feels good to cry. There must be something other than the pain or sadness that determines whether the
On grandparents
underlying feeling is good or bad — something like hope versus despair, or the belief that the pain will be worth something.
When we look toward the future, we project our current perspective onto our future self, failing to account for changes in outlook. Today appears the same color as yesterday, but last week appears a slightly different hue. Some things change a lot; some change a little; some not at all. It is hard to predict what falls where. We think we know what we will want in a month or a year, but then the color of our desires changes and we end up looking for something slightly or totally different. We are not made for longterm planning.
Happiness comes more readily from gratitude toward what we do have than from amassing more and more things. This would be the key that unlocks a lifetime of bliss, but we do not always know how to access the key. It is hard to make ourselves be grateful for something.
It is hard to say how much of this you will experience once you (God willing) get your glorified body. Like I said, we do not know much about the final state we hope for. Well, know that we have missed your presence here, but hope that you are with your Maker. We hope to join you soon, but not too soon, because we have a lot we would like to see and do and experience here first. It’s not a bad place — quite wonderful, actually. I dare say you may have missed out in some respects. Ah, no matter. Farewell. We could use your prayers too.
Richard Taylor is a junior from St. Louis living in Keenan Hall. He studies physics and also has an interest in theology. He encourages all readers to send reactions, reflections or refutations to rtaylo23@nd.edu.
The views expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.
“We’re going to be famous,” my grandmother said as we walked down Library Lawn. It was a few hours before the UVA game. My grandparents were excited to visit me on campus for the first time.
As we walked, our conversation turned to this column. I still hadn’t decided what I was writing about for this week. My grandfather pitched the title “On grandparents.” I liked his idea, so this one’s for you Gigi and Papa. Thanks for visiting.
When I decided to attend Notre Dame in April of last year, my grandparents bought football tickets for the last home game of the year. Throughout my three-ish months here, many of my friends have had family and siblings visit for extended periods. With my sister starting high school back home, my grandparents were my only scheduled visitors. They have lived in the Midwest before, but have since moved back to my hometown. They live about fifteen minutes away from me, and their house served as a gathering place during my childhood. We are very close, having spent many special occasions exchanging gifts and sharing meals.
My grandmother is a short woman (like most on my mother’s side), though she is one of the funniest people on the planet, and always has a pin or accessory to match any occasion. She spent decades as an ER nurse and even longer in the medical field, so she is unfazed by most things in this world. She was not fond of walking, but she was in awe of the many places that I have come to find normal on this campus.
My grandfather is about my height with the frame of an experienced distance runner, having spent decades running marathons and triathlons. He is full of grandfatherly witticisms, often bantering with my grandmother. He also has a really good nose, which may seem like a strange compliment, but it was rebuilt in surgery after a car accident decades ago. Ironically, the nurse that assisted in the rebuild was my grandmother (before they met). She did a good job.
When it was time for them to visit, I was elated to have new people to show around campus. It was also an opportunity for some bonding time, the last of which happened over fall break. My grandfather had visited once before, but this was my grandmother’s first time. On Friday and Saturday, we completed the traditional “bucket list.” We ate on Eddy Street, visited the bookstore, walked through the Basilica, saw the football players enter for pre-game Mass, snapped a picture in front of Touchdown Jesus and had a variety of other fun excursions.
We also took time to talk and catch up. My grandparents are both blessed with being funny people with good laughs, so they are always easy to talk to. We talked a lot about home. Someone’s getting married, and someone’s having another kid. Some relatives are facing health complications, and even more are in need of prayers. I also answered their questions about what it was like to live here. My grandmother asked about the tents on South Quad, and wanted to know the names of the buildings. They saw where I live, and I pointed out where everyone else lived, too.
We spent time in the Basilica, where I pointed out little details I had noticed from my time working at Mass. We visited the Grotto, where my grandmother said a prayer. We couldn’t light candles, as the
line included nearly every visitor on campus that weekend. I pointed out the Log Chapel, and we all admired the dull glow of the Golden Dome under the permacloud.
I don’t take having my grandparents in my life for granted, especially when many of my friends lost theirs during childhood. In other cases, their grandparents were so old they could not spend two days walking around a college campus. My grandmother always expressed gratitude for this while we traversed Disney World on a family vacation in a sea of mobility scooters. My grandfather still walks six miles a day.
It wasn’t until their visit that I realized how much I missed them. They are much more than a reminder of where I come from, but a reminder of who came before me. They helped make it possible for me to attend in the first place.
I strive to make them proud, even if we are far apart. I miss them already, and I look forward to seeing them soon. It wasn’t the conversations or the walks that made that weekend worth it. It was their presence. It was being around two people I love and care about, both of whom have made sacrifices and worked for decades to give their children and grandchildren better lives than they had. I had a lot of fun, Gigi and Papa. See you in a few weeks.
Duncan Stangel is a first year global affairs major at Notre Dame. Currently residing in Alumni Hall (the center of the universe), he hails from the small town of Cumberland, Maryland nestled in the Appalachian Mountains. When he’s not saving kittens from trees, you can find him stumbling to Debart with a caffeine source in hand. Contact at dstangel@nd.edu
The views expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.
Duncan Stangel The Center of the Universe
Redmond Bernhold
Born Reddy
Fr. Dowd’s Notre Dame
On June 1, Fr. Dowd officially became the University of Notre Dame’s 18th president.
Over two months ago, I wrote my first column in light of his Sept. 13 inauguration. I claimed that the Notre Dame family must bestow faith for his presidency to materialize monumental change. I believe that, so far, significant change has transpired.
During his formal inauguration address, Dowd mentioned three goals in which Notre Dame can build more bridges, a common theme throughout his speech. To create more roads to and from Notre Dame, the University is need-blind and loan-free for domestic and international students. Additionally, graduate students now receive health plans that include coverage for spouses and dependents. Finally, he explained Notre Dame’s technology and innovation center in downtown South Bend, in addition to future plans that bridge the University to the greater South Bend community.
More recently, on the institution’s educational requirements, the Dowd administration is reforming the two-semester Moreau first-year course requirement. Now, the second semester course will be taken “later in the undergraduate educational experience,” according to the University. The course started in 2015 under Fr. Jenkins’s administration.
Looking at Dowd’s speech, his motif of bridges is representative of his presidency thus far: he has effectively and significantly connected and sustained the legacies of his predecessors. He has furthered
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Notre Dame’s footprint in the South Bend community and continued to uplift students on campus.
To achieve these specific academic, financial and service-based initiatives, there is undoubtedly confidence bestowed by the greater community. The support from alumni, faculty, staff and students upholds the tradition of the Notre Dame family — to promote being a force for good and educating students’ mind, heart and soul.
To continue integrating communities and the Notre Dame mission, Dowd — and the holistic University — must resist the ideological diffusion that has been sparked by the recent election.
During his speech, Dowd hinted at this notion, before the election even transpired. In his speech, Dowd emphasized Notre Dame’s ethical and faithbased education, which further strengthens the college’s commitment to the common good and friendly intellectual discourse.
In light of the election, similarly rigorous colleges have begun to feel the effects of the election ripple throughout their communities. Notre Dame has, too.
On November 8, there was a protest during Florida governor Ron DeSantis’s lecture on the future of the conservative movement. Last Friday, Notre Dame hosted a panel to analyze the results of the election; at this event, Dowd stressed the importance of maintaining faith in one another, regardless of political ideology.
“No democracy will survive without norms of mutual respect, norms of compromise in order to get things done, norms that help us to focus on the common good,” Dowd said.
In light of the election, the Notre Dame community also maintained its Catholic character to provide a political dialogue and prayer service, which Dowd hosted.
The culmination of these events is representative of Dowd’s term, where he has lived up to the strength and commitment to Notre Dame’s mission.
Dowd’s duty to uphold the University’s operations and ethos will likely foster more bridges between people.
“I believe the bridges we must build require a strong foundation so that we don’t get swept away by fast-moving currents or buckle under pressure. We are blessed to have that moral foundation here at Notre Dame,” Fr. Dowd said in his inaugural address.
I have no doubt that Fr. Dowd will continue to execute his role and the University’s mission in the way he has already done since his inauguration and the election.
Even in times of polarizing despair, there is still faith at Notre Dame. There is still hope at Notre Dame. There is still change at Notre Dame.
“To build bridges is to be ‘in imitation’ of Our Lady. To embody the very spirit of Notre Dame,” Dowd said in his speech.
Redmond (Reddy) Bernhold is a junior studying biochemistry and journalism. He originally hails from Minster, Ohio but calls Siegfried Hall his home on campus. When not writing, he explores South Bend coffee shops and thrift stores. You can contact Reddy at rbernho2@nd.edu.
The views expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.
On a Calcutta roof
Isa Sheikh Editor-in-Chief
What does it take to get to Malaysia?
That’s the question the cleaning guy, Vikky, asked me when I got back from a week in Kuala Lumpur. Do you need a passport? A visa?
I was staying at a small guest house in Calcutta, in an alley that welcomed swarms of Catholic volunteers to the Mother House of the Missionaries and tourists there to see Mother Teresa’s tomb.
I had been gone for a week because my research had run dry and because we had planned to go with my mom. Flights to Malaysia will never be cheaper, I thought.
I saw Vikky again on the roof as I hung my laundry up on the clotheslines. He still had Malaysia on the mind.
Vikky told me he had never, in his 29 years of life, left Calcutta. Not only had he never left Calcutta, but he hadn’t seen much of the city that I had experienced. He had never been to many of the cafes and establishments I had frequented in the city; for many Indians, a $4 coffee in an air-conditioned shop with an illustriously designed menu is a luxury that will forever remain inaccessible.
Weeks earlier, I had the left door open while I blared the AC full blast. Vikky had asked me if he could sit on the ground in the hallway while the door was ajar. Of course he could, I told him, though he refused when I invited him in.
On the rooftop, Vikky told me his family still lives
in a slum. There’s no running water, and they have to buy water to cook with. To bathe, he goes out and finds a streetside shower or water pump. His mother still works several jobs cooking and cleaning in middle class family’s homes. Vikky always wanted to go to school, but with what money?
I didn’t know what to say, and I still don’t. Here I had booked a flight and hopped on a plane a couple days later, scanned my American passport at the airport and stayed in a tower with a rooftop pool and view of the skyline lit up at sunset.
I spent the entire summer paralyzed by thoughts of what I had done to deserve the life I had. I’ve spent my years at Notre Dame traveling the globe and coming back to a dorm — albeit one of the ugliest — that shares a campus with the Morris Inn and a dome gilded with gold.
But talking to Vikky, I did remember something. My father had grown up in a slum, under a tin roof that his family had raised illegally. It’s not a conversation I’ve had with him many times
The answer to the question of my privilege never did materialize. In the years before, I had formulated a written-for-the-movies sob story; the dead mom, the growing up in a hotel full of drug addicts above strip clubs and a litany of other pages in the script. My life was perpetually tortured by watching my friends pick up calls from their mothers and retreating from the room to feel bad about myself.
Like many before me, I have decided to be temporarily content in the idea that I have been given something special and that without forgetting the millions like Vikky, I must do the best I can with it. Cliche, perhaps. We don’t deserve anything we
receive, really, and so the question is a fruitless endeavor. These gifts have come to us, and we’d be ingrates to leave them on the doorstep.
As I stood leaning over the edge of Notre Dame Stadium this weekend, I thought once more about what I had been given, this time particularly thinking about America. In times like this, it seems that everyone, the patriots and the radicals alike, have an apocalyptic vision of what our country is actually like. It’s stupid, heartless, fallen, failing and lost.
But it is in America that my family went from a man who grew up in a slum to his son who writes this for you. In America, we have our problems. Real, loud ones. But nowhere else is it as possible to redeem the sweat and blood of your forbearers. My life reflects a debt to my parents, to God, to many (though not all) of the people I’ve encountered in the last four years. But it is also hugely indebted to America, a country where Notre Dame felt the need to take a chance on me. A country where people are unjustifiably kind at so many moments, to a degree I’ve never experienced in most other places around the world.
An American doesn’t need a visa to enter Malaysia. And if you have the chance, go. But sitting here at Our Lady’s University, I’m reminded of all the privileges afforded by the accident of my birth in this country beyond visa agreements. I don’t deserve to be this lucky. And yet I am.
You can contact Isa at isheikh@nd.edu.
The views expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.
By ANDY OTTONE Scene Writer
I don’t know how to introduce a movie like “Look Back.” Recently released on Amazon Prime Video, this Japanese film runs less than a full hour, features only two named characters, and it broke my heart.
Inspired by a one-shot manga published in Shonen Jump during the summer of 2021, Tatsuki Fujimoto’s story spans multiple years and details the trials and tribulations of the friendship between aspiring artists Fujino and Kyomoto. I won’t say more than that, which leaves me as a reviewer conflicted. I want to say more, but I know if I reveal any more the film loses it’s emotional weight. I went into the movie blind, and I suggest you do the same.
Writer’s note: I went into the film so blind, I did not even piece together until the writing of this article that Tatsuki Fujimoto is far more known for another work: “Chainsaw Man.” If you gave me an infinite amount of guesses as to what his more famous published work was, we’d be here all day.
I say that, and yet I haven’t given you reason beyond a general plot synopsis on why you should watch it. Let me remedy that. The film’s animation is beautiful, ranging from a variety of styles to represent the changing art styles
of both characters, as well as featuring beautiful landscapes and still moments. The film uses its short run time to great effect; the pacing is fast but not to the point of confusion. Montages and dialogue clearly establish the changing time frame, and I never felt lost in the quick narrative. Despite this pace, big moments have time to breathe. Throughout the film, there were no scenes I felt that went by too fast, nor too slowly. The screenplay and story lend itself well to this condensed runtime. Not a second feels unnecessary, and I feel there’s no additions that would have benefitted the film.
With Japanese animated films, there’s often the discussion between subtitled films or English dubs over the original dialogue. I opted for the English dubbed voices, but with the original subtitles that accompany the Japanese audio. I feel that the English dub had nuances added to the dialogue not in the English scripted subtitles, but if I were to enjoy the film in Japanese as intended (and with a better understanding of the language than I currently have) I would see the depth of language there as well. The vocal performances of Valerie Lohman and Grace Lu as Fujino and Kyomoto respectively fuel the film, delivering both the comedy and tension expertly.
The film was produced by Studio Durian, with the
director Kiyotaka Oshiyama serving as screenwriter and character designer as well. Oshiyama has served as an animator on films such as Studio Ghibli’s “The Boy and the Heron,” “Arrietty” and “The Wind Rises” as well as the second entry in the “Neon Genesis Evangelion” reboot series. This is his second directorial feature.
I hesitate to say more about the plot. I feel there’s no way to sell this movie other than doing so, because it truly is so plot-driven beyond what I’ve already said here. Beautiful visuals and great performances only do so much if the film is not well written and heartfelt. All I can do as a reviewer is assure you that the movie is one of the most touching, heartbreaking films I’ve seen in recent memory. In under an hour, the artists deliver a film that is truly moving, and tells a beautiful story about friendship, love and pursuing our passions.
“Look Back” did more in less than an hour than I have seen some films do in twice as much time, and it does so beautifully. While I’m aware I did not go fully in to the film’s intricacies, I feel that would rob you, the audience, of discovering it for yourself. If nothing else, take my word on this: “Look Back” is a movie worth watching.
Contact Andy Ottone at aottone@nd.edu
By LUKE FOLEY Scene Copyeditor
Each year, I look forward to the Cannes Film Festival to see what new films I should get hyped about. Sometimes, the films that dazzle critics turn out to be baffling duds. But other times, the critics are right on the money and hurl praise at a true gem. A critical darling that emerged from Cannes this year was director Sean Baker’s “Anora,” which won the highest prize, the Palme d’Or. Since then, I’ve been eagerly awaiting its wide release. And it seems like I was the only person in South Bend who felt this way because I saw it in an empty theater this past weekend. Well, it’s the people of South Bend’s loss, not mine; “Anora” is a hilarious, sweet and tragic tale of love and all the forces that work against it.
The film begins by showing us the daily life of its titular character, Anora (who prefers to go by Ani), a New York stripper. Ani is wonderfully brought to life by Mikey Madison, who injects the character with fiery energy and moving empathy. She’s an assured and shrewd woman who tirelessly fights for what she wants. Ani’s nocturnal sex work is full of ingratiating horny and lonely men, private room lap dances and catty insults with her coworkers. Baker is not interested in passing moral judgment about her sex work, choosing to depict it as hard work Ani performs dutifully. But her entire life quickly turns upside down when she meets Vanya (Mark Eidelstein), the young son of a billionaire Russian oligarch. Vanya is a hilarious contrast to Ani; he’s an immature and silly kid who treats the world like a candy store.
Vanya quickly becomes enamored by Ani, and as he solicits her services more and more, their relationship transcends transactional and becomes romantic. Here, the film assumes the style of a cheerful love story as Ani and Vanya become swept up in their free-wheeling romance. Ani is entranced by his luxurious life, not because she’s materialistic but because of the freedom it provides her. The romance offers her an escape from her working-class toil. Their whirlwind romance eventually escalates to a Las Vegas trip full of debauchery and an impulsive marriage in a wedding chapel.
When news of their marriage reaches Vanya’s parents, they become irate and activate their multinational network of goons to annul their marriage. This is where some of the film’s funniest moments come about, as the physical comedy of these bumbling Russian goons trying to subdue and control the belligerent Ani is hilarious. At this point, the film gradually shifts its focus to one of the goons, Igor (Yura Borisov), and his evolving relationship with Ani, which is utterly captivating to witness. Borisov is doing some really subtle but powerful work with the character. Despite all this, the middle act of the movie is slightly drawn out and needlessly delays the film’s devastating final act. The last five minutes are among the most impactful film endings I’ve ever seen. It’s simultaneously cathartic, tender, haunting and hopeful. It’s one of those rare film endings that elevates everything that came before it.
The film’s story deftly captures the entire emotional spectrum throughout its runtime, but its overarching story is a tragic take on the Cinderella story that profoundly illustrates class
struggle. The insults Vanya’s parents constantly hurled at Ani are brutal and reveal how enraged they are that a sex worker tried to join their social class. When they chastise Vanya for the marriage, he instantly surrenders to them because losing his parents’ money would be more upsetting than losing Ani; loyalty to class triumphs over love. And just as a maid crew cleans up after all the ragers at his mansion, Vanya can easily walk away from their romance and resume his luxurious life as if nothing happened. But Ani and fellow working-class Igor are left dehumanized and picking up the broken pieces of the rich’s recklessness.
Much praise should also be given to the film’s formal elements. The hand-held shooting is magnificent, always capturing the scenes with flair and clarity. The cinematography is equally great, glamorously accentuating all the vibrant interiors of strip clubs and Vegas. The film also frequently employs many montages to escalate the romance, and they all sweep you off your feet with their kinetic editing. I don’t see a lot of this idiosyncratic story working in a lesser director’s hands, but Baker is able to bring it all together effortlessly.
With “Anora,” Baker has crafted a riveting film that allows Madison to shine as a resolute woman striving to carve out her place in a world stacked against her. It is also one of the most deeply human films I’ve seen, capturing all the joy, humor, love and sadness that life entails. It really deserved better than an empty showtime.
Kiser breaks record, cements himself as legend
By CHRIS DAILEY
Sports Writer
The odds of a high school football player advancing to the Division One level are less than three percent. From there, the odds of that player setting the all-time record at a given program for the most number of games played in a career is close to zero. In the day and age of the transfer portal, it’s a rare occurrence to see players breaking the mold by climbing up a program’s record list for career games. At a prestigious program like Notre Dame, such a feat becomes even more infrequent.
On Saturday afternoon, Jack Kiser broke the mold by making his 63rd appearance for Notre Dame, firmly cementing himself as the all-time leader.
Kiser passed former Irish
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safety and current assistant wide receivers coach at the University of Illinois, Houston Griffith.
Kiser, a six-year contributor, was able to make use of both his graduate year of eligibility in 2023 and COVID year of eligibility this season. After being unsure about what his future held beyond 2023, Kiser was asked by the coaching staff to return for one more season, and he couldn’t turn down the opportunity.
“It’s never a goal I set out for,” said Kiser in his press conference after Saturday’s 35-14 win against Virginia. “I’m very fortunate to have the opportunity to be here a long time, and [head] coach [Marcus] Freeman and the staff asked me to come back, that played a part in it.”
Kiser, a two-year captain for
the team, played an integral role in Notre Dame’s victory over Virginia. The linebacker recorded three tackles and topped his day off with a Senior Day sack early in the fourth quarter.
Even with it being a historic day for Kiser, his mindset was the same one he’s carried with him through his six years of playing for the Irish.
“Anytime you step on the field at Notre Dame Stadium, you’re going to go all-out,” stated Kiser.
Coming into Notre Dame from Pioneer High School in Royal Center, Indiana, as the 95th-ranked outside linebacker in the nation, Kiser has exceeded all expectations the coaching staff and fans alike could’ve expected from him. Aside from his role as captain, Kiser’s career is highlighted by winning
the 2023 Notre Dame Special Teams Player of the Year, collecting 237 total tackles and making a genuine difference off the field — evident in his honor as a member of the 2024 AFCA Good Works Team.
Despite all of the accolades Kiser has garnered throughout his six years with Notre Dame, he remains humble and appreciative of the collaborative effort that it took for him to reach these heights, specifically the historic 63rd game of his career.
“It’s not easy. There’s a lot of people that go into me stepping on the field 63 times: the trainers, family, teammates, strength coaches, coaches in general. There is a lot of people that play into that. That’s the best thing about this record. It’s not a me thing, it’s a we thing,” stated Kiser.
Kiser’s influence isn’t only felt
through awards and accolades, however. As a sixth-year senior, Kiser commands respect on the field, setting an example for the classes to follow.
Sophomore safety Adon Shuler spoke to this, stating, “Jack is phenomenal at his job. He’s always been captain, even last year. I feel like he just excelled in his role going into this year. Seeing Jack out there kind of directing us — even though we know what we’re doing — Jack is still going to have extra pull.”
Kiser will seek to build upon his record-breaking 63rd game by continuing to orchestrate the Irish defense as Notre Dame heads to Yankee Stadium in a battle against No. 16 Army next Saturday at 7 p.m.
Contact Chris Dailey at cdailey2@nd.edu
Stock up, stock down: Army week
By TYLER REIDY Sports Editor
Coming off Saturday’s 35-14 defeat of Virginia on Senior Day, Notre Dame football remains on the rise. With a 9-1 record and eight consecutive wins, the Irish currently sit at No. 6 in the AP Poll — their highest ranking since the first week of September. As a top-20 battle in the Bronx against Army awaits this weekend, here’s a look at where things stand.
Stock up: the turnover margin
Head coach Marcus Freeman places a great deal of emphasis on his team winning the turnover battle, and he has good reason to do so. Notre Dame has turned the football over more than its opponent one time this season. It happened in the team’s only loss against Northern Illinois.
Since that game on Sept. 7, the Irish have played eight
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consecutive games without losing the turnover battle. They’ve found a new defensive gear in the last three weeks, combining for 13 takeaways against Navy, Florida State and Virginia. This past Saturday, the Irish forced four Cavalier turnovers – not including Chris Tyree’s muffed kickoff catch to start the game. All four turnovers happened in the second quarter, kickstarting a Notre Dame offense that dragged along in the first quarter but scored 21 points in the second. Graduate safety Xavier Watts and sophomore safety Adon Shuler have become quite the ball-hawking pair at seven combined interceptions, and both picked off a pass in Saturday’s win.
Stock up: Jeremiyah
Love and Mitchell Evans
To make a deep run in the College Football Playoff, Notre Dame will likely need two or three offensive stars to lean on. Against Virginia, a couple of
those potential candidates came back out of the woodwork to lead the Irish. Sophomore running back Jeremiyah Love has been terrific all year, scoring in all 10 games. Yet he didn’t do a whole lot a week before Senior Day against Florida State, rushing for only 19 yards on nine carries. Love put that dud far behind him on Saturday, galloping for a career-high 137 yards and two scores on 16 handoffs.
Senior tight end Mitchell Evans also delivered his best game of the season with four catches for 34 yards and an athletic, leaping touchdown. Evans’ return from last year’s ACL tear hasn’t treated him well statistically, but it’s never too late to break through. With a touchdown catch in backto-back games, Evans might just be doing that.
Stock down: third-down offense
You don’t typically see teams go 1-for-12 on third down and get 35 points out of it, but that’s how
Notre Dame rolled on Saturday. Generally speaking, the Irish have been just fine on third downs this year, ranking 85th in the nation for conversion rate. However, against Virginia, they put themselves behind the sticks far too often. On seven different occasions, Notre Dame faced a required distance of 10 yards or more on third down. That’s no way to find success on offense. Whether it’s running the football more effectively, avoiding sacks or limiting early-series penalties, the Irish will need to remedy Saturday’s lackluster down management. Against an Army that recently put together a scoring drive longer than 13 minutes, Notre Dame cannot afford many three-and-outs at Yankee Stadium.
Stock down: kicking
It’s been more than a month now since Notre Dame wielded a fully functioning kicking game.
Graduate kicker Mitch Jeter, who opened the season performing
very well after transferring from South Carolina, went down with a hip injury against Stanford on Oct. 12. He returned two weeks ago but has not been able to kick farther than 42 yards out, according to Freeman.
Though Jeter made all four of his extra-point attempts against Virginia, Notre Dame left six points on the board with him unavailable for lengthier field goals. Sophomore Marcello Diomede tried a 54-yarder before halftime but didn’t come close to the target. Junior Zac Yoakam, who made one of two field goals against Georgia Tech and Navy, attempted a 36-yarder but also missed in the fourth quarter. With matchups against a ranked Army team and a USC squad that always plays the Irish close in Los Angeles upcoming, Notre Dame needs a kicking answer before it runs into a close game.
Contact Tyler Reidy at treidy3@nd.edu
Saints split weekend games against Bethel
By CLAIRE WATSON Sports Writer
Both men’s and women’s Holy Cross basketball teams were in action this past weekend, facing off against the Bethel University (Ind.) Pilots.
Men’s basketball
The men’s basketball team fell to 2-4 on the season after taking a 7656 loss to Bethel on Friday.
The Pilots took an early lead, scoring the first four points of the game. However, Saints sophomore
guard Joey Garwood quickly answered, sinking a shot to make it 4-2. The Pilots responded with another four points to push their lead to 8-2, but senior guard Nash Hostetler and freshman forward Davide Brembilla each knocked down a jumper, narrowing the gap to 8-6. The teams exchanged baskets as the Pilots held a narrow lead, but Bethel soon pulled ahead with a six-point run, pushing the score to 16-10. The Saints responded when senior guard Justin O’Neal hit a jumper to bring the score to 16-12, but Bethel answered
with a 10-point run, stretching their lead to 26-12. Despite the deficit, the Saints continued to battle. Sophomore forward Aris Duni and junior guard AJ Roseman each contributed a bucket, cutting the margin to 26-16. Both teams exchanged jump shots, bringing the score to 28-18 before Bethel hit another jumper to push the lead to 30-18.
As the first half wound down, Duni hit a free throw, Brembilla added a jumper and Garwood sank a mid-range shot, bringing the score to 30-23. However, the Pilots closed out the half with a 7-point run, taking a commanding 37-23 lead into the break. The Saints came out strong in the second half, with O’Neal hitting a free throw to make it 37-24, but the Pilots quickly
responded with an 8-0 run, extending their lead to 45-24. Duni hit a jumper, and Hostetler drilled a three-pointer to spark a minirun for the Saints. O’Neal added a jumper, and Roseman made two free throws, cutting the lead further to 45-33.
The teams traded baskets, but
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Happy Birthday: Explore the possibilities, learn something new, travel, and engage in self-improvement and personal change that generates hope for a brighter future. Trust your instincts over hearsay and weed out what’s fact from fiction. Channel your energy into something meaningful and avoid arguments that solve nothing and leave you feeling empty. Make choices that satisfy your soul, revitalize your dreams, and turn them into a reality. Your numbers are 4, 10, 17, 25, 32, 36, 42.
ARIES (March 21-April 19): Take a run at something that requires imagination, creativity, and raw energy to achieve, and it will take you on an adventure that energizes your mind and exhausts you physically. The result will be magical and spur you to incorporate dynamic pastimes into your routine.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Sit back and observe. Choose to let your inner voice dictate what you do next. Don’t believe everything you hear, and verify the costs involved before agreeing to something, not within your snack bracket. Acting in haste will lead to reservations. Slow down; time is on your side.
GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Refuse to let someone fool you into something using pretenses. Question and take direct action and account for what you will and won’t contribute. A trip, presentation, or learning experience will transpire depending on how you respond. When in doubt, take a pass; please yourself, not someone else.
CANCER (June 21-July 22): A partnership or new position looks promising. Go the distance to ensure you get what you want and formulate a good relationship simultaneously. Someone will offer questionable information. Good negotiating skills will come in handy and help ward off letting someone take advantage of or be subject to interference.
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Show vitality and passion in whatever you do, and others will take notice. Network, socialize, and use the information you receive to make positive change. Choose not to attend functions that limit you mentally, financially, or emotionally. Put your energy into getting ahead, not arguing over a moot point.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Opt out if someone asks you to sign up for something questionable. A domestic problem will unfold if you or someone close to you withholds information or facts. Rely on your intuition and ability to stick to the plan you see fit and favor physically.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): High energy and sound advice will lead to something tangible. Look for an opportunity that links you to an associate you lost touch with. Traveling and gathering knowledge will help you make better choices. A minimalist attitude will serve you well and protect against excessive mistakes.
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Take the plunge and sign up for an adventure, lecture, or networking function that will encourage connections that lead to positive change. A financial opportunity looks inviting, but invest time dissecting the results before you sign up. Protect your assets. Treat flaws and red flags and avoid loss.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Take time to figure out what and who you want in your life. Someone you least expect will point you in the wrong direction if you are too trusting. Do the legwork and avoid being misled. Apply energy to investing, budgeting, and saving for something you want.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Get involved in a cause and be the one to make a difference. Your actions will prompt others to help. Your discipline will pay off financially and build the confidence to ask for what you want. A change you make will enhance your appeal. Romance is favored.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Expand your surroundings to fulfill your needs. Lighten the load by selling off what you don’t use or donating to those in need. Someone who can make your life better will recognize your kindness and compassion. Use your energy strategically, and the returns will surpass your expectations.
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): A steady pace forward will help you make the changes necessary to stabilize your life. Refrain from letting anyone talk you into implementing something you don’t want or cannot afford. Stick to basics and do what makes you feel good about yourself and your actions. Self-improvement is favored.
Birthday Baby: You are passionate, empowering, and ambitious. You are idealistic and persistent.
Bethel continued to pull away. Garwood and Roseman each hit three-pointers, pushing the score to 51-41. After a quick response from the Pilots, O’Neal added two more points, and Robles chipped in a basket to bring the Saints within 10 at 53-43. However, Bethel went on an 8-0 run to stretch the lead to 61-47. The Saints continued to fight, with Garwood scoring a layup and Roseman hitting three free throws, but Bethel refused to relinquish control. The Pilots finished strong, adding 10 more points to seal a 76-56 victory.
O’Neal led the way for the
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Saints with 14 points, while Duni and Hostetler each grabbed four rebounds to lead the defense. Despite their efforts, the Pilots’ offensive firepower proved too much as they pulled away for the win.
The men’s basketball team will play Viterbo on Wednesday Nov. 20 starting at 7:30 p.m.
Women’s basketball
The women’s basketball team improved to 4-2 on the season after a 68-53 win over the Pilots.
Freshman forward Allie Caldwell set the tone early, scoring the first five points of the game. Sophomore forward Brooke Lindesmith added a three-pointer, and after two layups from the
Pilots, the Saints led 8-4. Caldwell continued her strong play with two three-pointers, while senior forward Grace Adams contributed two free throws. Lindesmith and sophomore guard Lilly Toppen each added a basket, and the Saints finished the first quarter with a commanding 21-10 lead. In the second quarter, the Saints’ dominance continued. Adams scored five quick points, Toppen added two and senior guard Kayliana Hammel chipped in four points. Caldwell also scored, pushing the Saints to a 34-12 lead in response to a Pilots’ layup. The Pilots managed five more points, but Adams answered with four of her own, extending the lead to 38-19.
The Pilots hit a jump shot to close out the half, and the Saints led 3821 at the break.
The Pilots came out aggressive in the third quarter, scoring the first two points, but the Saints quickly responded with a basket of their own. Holy Cross then went on a 9-0 run, led by strong defense and a variety of scoring from Hammel, Adams, Toppen, Caldwell and junior forward Elizabeth Edmonds, pushing the score to 58-32. The Pilots managed just one more jump shot before the end of the quarter, with the Saints leading 58-34.
The Saints kept the pressure on in the fourth, with Hammel hitting a three-pointer and senior guard
Jordyn Smith adding a jump shot, extending the lead to 63-34. The Pilots mounted a brief 12-point run, making it 63-46, but the Saints answered quickly with a three-pointer from junior guard Audrey Tallent and a jump shot from Adams, bringing the score to 68-46. The Pilots added six more points late, but it wasn’t enough as the Saints secured a 68-53 victory. Adams led the Saints with 19 points and 8 rebounds, while Caldwell added 15 points.
The Saints women’s basketball will also play Viterbo on Nov. 20, at 5:30 p.m.
Contact Claire Watson at cwatson01@saintmarys.edu
Irish hit the road for Virginia Tech, Virginia
By TYLER REIDY Sports Editor
Coming off its first win in six weeks, the Notre Dame volleyball team will go on the road this weekend to begin its final week of regular-season play. The Irish (10-15, 3-13 Atlantic Coast Conference) will face Virginia Tech in Blacksburg on Friday before opposing Virginia in Charlottesville on Sunday.
Last weekend, Notre Dame hosted North Carolina and Duke, dropping a 3-1 match to the Tar Heels on Friday before snapping its 11-game losing streak with a 3-1 Sunday defeat of Duke. After scuffling through an extremely quiet three weeks, senior outside hitter Sydney Palazzolo made her triumphant return to the position of go-to Irish attacker. She cranked out a career-high-tying 25 kills in Friday’s loss, leading all players on the floor with 27 points in just four sets. Palazzolo then played a critical role in Sunday’s long-awaited victory, notching a double-double with 18 kills and 11 digs. Her total
SMC BASKETBALL
of 20.5 points once again ended up as a game-high.
Sunday afternoon also brought Phyona Schrader back to her typical level of productivity after a slow Senior Night. The senior setter delivered her 10th tripledouble, combining 11 kills and 27 assists with a season-high 24 digs. Schrader had not eclipsed the 20dig threshold since Oct. 14, 2022.
Junior outside hitter Avery Ross also stepped up on Sunday, totaling 15 kills and eight digs. When it hits the road this weekend, Notre Dame will be looking to win an ACC match outside of Purcell Pavilion for the first time since Oct. 8 of last season at North Carolina. Its first opponent, Virginia Tech, carries an overall record of 7-19 with a 1-15 mark in ACC play. The Hokies have lost 10 consecutive matches and more concerningly have not been particularly close to winning during the skid, dropping eight of the 10 games in 3-0 fashion. Last weekend, they suffered sweep losses at Cal and Stanford after going in winless in the two-game
Commonwealth Clash against Virginia a week earlier.
Statistically speaking, Virginia Tech carries the least effective offense in the ACC. The Hokies bottom out the conference in points per set (14.78), hitting percentage (.170), assists per set (10.29) and kills per set (11.22). They also lead the league with 5.7 attack errors per set.
Sophomore Hailey Pearce and freshman Belle Patrick handle the majority of Virginia Tech’s offensive looks, combining for more than 500 kills this season. Redshirt junior Jasmine Robinson has also factored in from the middle blocker position, leading the Hokies with a .285 hitting percentage, 23 service aces and 79 total blocks while ranking third on the team with 150 kills. Canadian junior Viktoria Wahlgren is the only Hokie ranking top-10 in the ACC for a major category, holding ninth in the conference with 7.37 assists per set.
Last October, Virginia Tech took Notre Dame to five sets and won, ending a nine-game run of
consecutive Irish victories in the all-time series.
The year has unfolded quite differently for Virginia. Picked to finish 16th among 18 teams in the preseason ACC Coaches Poll, the Cavaliers currently occupy seventh in the conference standings with a 10-6 league record. Only four teams in the ACC have more overall wins this season than Virginia’s 20.
Much of Virginia’s success in year four under Shannon Wells has involved dominating the ACC’s middle and lower classes. The Cavaliers couldn’t take a set from highly-ranked opponents Georgia Tech, Pitt, SMU and Stanford, but they have rarely stumbled against unranked squads. Virginia also started the season fast, going 10-1 in non-conference play before sweeping both Florida State and Miami (FL), two top-seven teams in the preseason poll, to start October.
The Cavaliers don’t do anything incredibly well relative to the ACC, but they succeed with quality play in practically all categories. They
don’t roll over defensively, holding opponents to a .187 hitting percentage, and they rarely fall victim to blocks. Opposing teams have only 1.74 rejections per set against Virginia.
Elayna Duprey sees the most volume in the Virginia attack with her team-high 2.99 kills per set, and Abby Tadder complements her nicely with 2.60 kills per set at a lofty hitting percentage of .268. Kate Dean swings even more efficiently, ranking ninth in the ACC with a .341 hitting clip. Milan Gomillion and Abby Tadder spearhead the effective Cavalier defense, with Gomillion second in the ACC at 4.47 digs per set and Tadder atop the team with 106 total blocks.
Last year, Notre Dame and Virginia split their two matches, playing to five sets in Charlottesville.
The Irish will take on Virginia Tech at 6 p.m. on Friday and Virginia at 1 p.m. on Sunday.
Contact Tyler Reidy at treidy3@nd.edu
Belles post 1-1 record at Hyatt Tournament
By CLAIRE WATSON Sports Writer
Saint Mary’s basketball faced off against two teams at the Hyatt Tournament, Augustana and Washington University in St. Louis (WashU). They won the first but were unable to win the second.
Augustana
In their first game, the Belles defeated the Augustana Vikings, taking a close 54-41 win. The first quarter was back and forth for both teams. Neither team scored until the middle of the quarter when sophomore guard Annie Restovich added the first three points for the Belles. After a few possessions each, Augustana scored their first points of the night. A layup from freshman guard Ella Notaro gave the Belles the lead back. Senior forward Julia
Schutz rounded out the first quarter with a free throw to make the score 7-3.
The Vikings scored first in the second quarter. Restovich responded with a jump shot to make the score 9-6. Two layups from Schutz and a three-pointer from Restovich, her first of the quarter, continued to build on the Belles’ lead. The Vikings mounted a run of their own, narrowing the gap as the Belles held a slim 5-point lead heading into halftime.
The Vikings struck first after halftime but the Belles kept sharp. Junior guard Nicole Connolly added her first two points of the night, a three-point shot from Restovich and two free throws from Schutz made the score 27-16. The Vikings made a bit of a comeback, scoring five more points to close the gap to six. A combined effort of a layup from Connolly, three free
throws from Notaro and one free throw from Schutz made the score 33-26. The Vikings made the last two points of the quarter to make the score 33-28.
Restovich started the fourth quarter strong for the Belles, scoring two more three-pointers. After an 8-0 run from the Vikings, a free throw from Schutz made the score 40-36. The two teams continued to take turns scoring but the Belles were able to leave the court with a win.
Restovich led the Belles on the court, finishing with 21 points. Schutz scored 12 points and led the team with 12 rebounds.
Washington University-St. Louis
After the win against the Vikings, the Belles took on the Bears in the championship game.
Washington scored the first
eight points of the game until the Belles responded with two free throws and a three-pointer from Schutz. Restovich hit two threes but the Bears continued to score and ended the quarter with an 12-point lead.
The Belles couldn’t contain Washington in the opening minutes of the second quarter, letting them score four points. While neither team scored in the next few minutes, Restovich put up a layup to bring the score to 29-15 but nine more points from the Bears added to their lead. The quarter finished with the Bears up 47-19.
The Bears continued to do whatever they wanted on offense. Freshman guard Kate Passinault made a free throw but Washington scored four points quickly in response. The Belles continued to score layups and free throws but could not contain the Bears or score
at the same rate. Despite two free throws from Passinault and a three-point shot from senior guard Lauren Gumma, the Bears had nearly a 40-point lead.
Saint Mary’s tried to contain the Washington offense but the Bears struck first as they put up the first four points in the final quarter. Junior guard Alyssa Matuza added her first two points of the night to make the score 72-34. The Bears then went on a 19-0 run, making the score 91-34. Each team had a few more buckets before the game ended with a final score of 99-40.
Schutz led the team on both offense and defense, finishing the game with a total of 11 points and five rebounds.
The Belles’ next game is against Franklin College on Nov. 20 at 7 p.m.
Contact Claire Watson at cwatson01@saintmarys.edu
BARAKA BOUTS
Recapping Monday night’s semifinal bouts
By CLAIRE WATSON Sports Writer
The 22nd Annual Baraka Bouts semifinals featured 16 matchups and drew large crowds of supporters, including many students who came to support their classmates.
Katie “Beast” Sullivan (Gold) def. Monica “MC4” Caponigro (Blue)
In the first fight of the night, the off-campus senior from Saginaw, Michigan, Sullivan was matched up against South Bend native and Pasquerilla East resident, Caponigro, who made her tournament debut as she had a bye last week. The fight started off slow as there was a lot of blocking and returning but both fighters took the aggressive route taking turns throwing punches as the rounds continued. By unanimous decision, Sullivan took the win in the opening fight.
Jaylene “Detonator” Diaz (Gold) def. Riley “No Smiley” Vandevelde (Blue)
From Houston, Texas and a resident of Breen-Phillips Hall, fifth-year Diaz made her second appearance in the tournament as she faced off against senior Vandevelde. The Sierra Madre, California native and Pasquerilla East resident made her first appearance in the ring. Diaz resorted to the defensive strategy while Vandevelde went with the more confrontational route. Vandevelde took the win by unanimous decision.
Hope “The Wonder” Wanken (Blue) def. Kim “The Grill Master” Nguyen (Gold)
Wanken, a Lewis Hall resident from Rosemount, Minnesota, faced off against senior Nguyen of Walsh Hall, who advanced due to a bye in the previous round. The fighters looked to use a mixture of fast and slow based fighting before each abandoning that strategy. By split decision, Wanken took her second win of the Bouts.
Kiska The Hitwoman” Porter (Gold) def. Kylie “Scrappy Cat” Carney (Blue)
This fight featured two new fighters, who each had a first round bye. Carney is a sophomore from Somers, NY and represented Johnson Family Hall. Her opponent was from Columbus, Ohio and represented Breen-Phillips Hall. Porter used a more defensive approach but Carney kept her strategy of pushing and throwing punches throughout the match. Throughout the entire match the two
went back and forth until a blow from Porter caused Carney to fall and caused a break in the match in the third round. Porter took the win by unanimous decision.
Ocean “The Matador” Leto (Gold) def. Jenna “Lilbrauns” Braun (Blue) Braun, a senior hailing from Houston, Texas and a representative of Lewis Hall faced off against junior Welsh Family Hall representative Leto from Key West, Florida. Each had first round byes. Leto started off strong as she delivered multiple punches but the referee intervened. In a quick return, Braun started adding punches of her own in a similar fashion. Leto took a more low approach with hits to the chest and stomach while Braun threw most of her punches at the head level in the second round. The final round looked strong for Braun as she delivered strong direct blows to Leto left and right until Leto fought back and knocked Braun off her feet. By split decision, Leto got her first win of the tournament.
Elle “The Greek Freak” Strogilos (Gold) def. Lindsey “The Beater” Weeter (Blue)
Winning her fight last week, Virginia native and Flaherty Hall representative, sophomore Weeter returned to the ring to face a fellow Flaherty resident. Senior Strogilos from Schererville, Indiana saw the ring for the first time this year after a bye last week. Strogilos was no stranger to the ring as she delivered blows and pushed Weeter into a corner. The third round saw both fighters throw punches back forth. The two moved around the ring delivering blows but as Weeter took a step back to breath, Strogilos took the opportunity to deliver strong right and left hooks to Weeter’s head. By unanimous decision, Strogilos took home the win.
Layann “Simba” Wardeh (Blue) def. Caroline “Ba Ba Ba” Flannery (Gold)
As the energy remained high in the ballroom, senior Flannery from New York took on the junior from Amman, Jordan and Lewis Hall. Wardeh made her debut in the tournament in the fight. Both competitors took an attack route, Wardeh did not hesitate as she delivered multiple uppercuts as well as many different hook combinations. Flannery almost hugged Wardeh and took her to the ground. By unanimous decision, Wardeh claimed the win.
Lauren “Blondie” Buetow (Gold) def. Lilly “The Lineback” Nadler (Blue)
The first year from Holyoke, Massachusetts and representing Flaherty Hall, Nadler makes her second appearance in the Baraka Bout’s tournament while senior Wisconsin native Buetow made her debut. Nadler went low, delivering blows to the stomach while Buetow focused on her opponent’s head. The second round started with both fighters exchanging blows but slowed down as the two had a five second stare-down before delivering more punches. By unanimous decision, Buetow took the win over Nadler.
Tess “Slippin Jimmy” Kesler (Blue) def. Jude Nofal (Gold)
From the state of New Jersey and representative of Walsh Hall, junior Kesler appeared. On the other side of the ring, first-year from Amman, Jordan and resident of Lewis Hall, Nofal arrived, each making their debut in the tournament. Kesler came out strong in the first round as she threw multiple punches towards Nofal but the first year added on punches of her own. The two seemed to both use a defensive strategy in the second round as not many punches came from either competitor. Nofal seemed to find her groove in the ring as she was pushing back against Kesler and delivering multiple punches unlike in the other two rounds but by split decision, Kesler took the win.
Erika “Spanish Beast” Cucala-Page (Blue) def. Lauren “6 Foot Hero” Barnes (Gold)
Senior Cucala-Page from Barcelona, Spain makes her way back to the ring to face off against first-timer Barnes. The two went straight at it as Cucala-Page delivered the first blow and continued to deliver multiple right hooks to the senior from Johnson Family’s head. A hard right hook hit to Barnes’ head caused a stop in the match and Barnes had to complete a concussion test performed by nearby medical assistants. With Barnes unable to continue, CucalaPage was declared the winner by referee stoppage.
Caroline “Waisan Persuasion” Landry (Gold) def. Tavin “3-Alarm” Martin (Blue)
Amid roaring cheers from the students, senior Martin, representing Lyons Hall and hailing from Evansville, Indiana, returned to the ring to face Landry, a California
native and fellow senior from Lewis Hall. A staredown started the fight before Martin jumped in delivering the first blow but Landry was quick to come back, delivering two head punches. With the energy in the ballroom high, Landry pushed back as she threw multiple head punches but the consistent movement was broken off after Martin threw Landry off balance with a right hook. It was hard to tell who was going to win but Landry took the win by unanimous decision.
Rosie “The Riveter” Binette (Blue) def. Samantha “Smitty” Smith (Gold)
Sophomore Binette comes from North Salem, New York and represents Johnson Family Hall for her first time in the ring and her opponent junior Ryan Hall resident Smith enters the ring for the second time in the tournament after winning her fight last week. The two had similar techniques as both showed a mixture of block and attack. While the two went back and forth exchanging punches, Binette took the win by unanimous decision.
Luisa “Karma” Capobianco (Gold) def. Patty “Patty Pat-Pat Garcia” Garcia-Saladrigas Hailing from Miami and representing BreenPhillips Hall, senior GarciaSaladrigas entered the ring opposite her opponent senior Welsh Family resident Capobianco from Pennsylvania. The two did not seem to have a set strategy but both were highly active in delivering punches throughout the fight. By unanimous decision, Capobianco took the win.
Mary “Red Sky” Quirk (Blue) def. Anna “Polk” Polking (Gold)
The two new fighters enter the ring nearing the end of the night. Quirk, a senior from Louisville, Kentucky, and resident of Lewis Hall, stepped into the ring to
face Polking, a first-year Ryan Hall resident from Charlotte, North Carolina. Quirk showed a more aggresive attempt throwing multiple punches and using an evade technique while Polk showed a more defensive approach blocking a lot of the hits from Quirk but at the end, Quirk claimed the victory by unanimous decision.
Lynley “Houston’s Problem” Pace (Gold) def. Inyam “Bunny T” Ricketts (Blue)
With the music blaring and everyone cheering loudly, these two competitors took to the ring. Senior Florida native Ricketts and sophomore from Houston, Texas, and Ryan Hall representative Pace faced off in the second to last fight. This fight differed from others due to the fact that it was slower and the fighters took their time to land their hits but also had to be separated for illegal hits several times. Throughout the rounds, the students cheered for their respective fighter and while Ricketts landed numerous good shots, Pace took the victory by unanimous decision.
Kaitlin “Mo’ Pain” Mohlenkamp (Blue) def. Kailyn “Rah” Meyer (Gold) EXHIBITION ROUND
In the final match of the night, an unexpected switch in the lineup pitted senior from Hudson, Ohio and a representative of Badin Hall, Mohlenkamp against sophomore Meyer from Indianapolis, Indiana. Meyer started off strong as she laid multiple punches while Mohlenkamp preferred to take a defensive route. Nearing the end Mohlenkamp and Meyer put on a little show. While Meyer pretended to be down, Mohlenkamp ran at her and pretended to “K.O” her. At the end of the night, Mohlenkamp took the final unanimous decision.
Contact Claire Watson at cwatson01@saintmarys.edu
ND MEN’S BASKETBALL
Irish take down North Dakota, improve to 4-0
By CLAIRE WATSON Sports Writer
As of Tuesday night, Notre Dame men’s basketball remains unbeaten, defeating North Dakota by 75-58 for its fourth win of the season.
As the first half started, the Fighting Hawks won the tip off and put up the first two points of the night, but the Irish responded by putting up a jump shot to make the score 2-2 thanks to sophomore guard Braeden Shrewsberry. The Fighting Hawks added five more points for themselves, but junior forward Tae Davis added on a layup for himself alongside sophomore guard Markus Burton to bring the Irish ahead 7-6. Graduate forward Nikita Konstantynovskyi and senior guard JR Konieczny entered the game and both added on two points to make the score 11-7. The Fighting Hawks then added on points for themselves to bring the score within two, but Konstantynovskyi added on another jump shot. Two points each from Burton and Davis would make the score 179, but the Fighting Hawks responded with a layup to close within 17-11.
After a shooting foul from Burton, North Dakota was given two free throws to make the score 17-14, and a turnover from the Irish gave the Fighting Hawks another opening to score two more points and bring the score difference to one. Shrewsberry responded, adding on two more points to make the score 19-16. A shooting foul from the Fighting Hawks gave graduate guard Matt Allocco two free throws, and as he made both the score moved to 21-16. Konieczny kept the ball rolling, adding two more points, but the Fighting Hawks responded putting up two more points of their own.
With the Fighting Hawks adding three more points to bring the score to 23-21, Burton brought the ball and put up four points thanks to the help of a rebound from junior forward Kebba Njie, but the Fighting Hawks responded with a layup of their own to bring the score to 27-23. With that, Davis re-entered the game, and the Irish scored a three-pointer thanks to Burton. With 3.8 seconds left in the first half, graduate forward Burke Chebuhar was given two free throws and made both, finishing the first half with the Irish up 38-31. With the second half underway, North Dakota put in the first two baskets, but Njie responded with a basket of his
own after two rebounds. An under-the-basket shot from Konieczny and a basket from Burton then brought the score to 44-35. A steal from and underneath layup Burton widened the score further before a rebound from Burton and a steal from the Fighting Hawks caused a foul on Notre Dame after an attempted block. Another steal from Burton gave the Irish two more points, as he drove straight to the basket with a layup, but North Dakota responded with a basket of its own. Notre Dame wasted no time adding on seven more points thanks to Njie and Burton to bring the score to 53-38.
North Dakota, using a method of passing around the court, seemed to be no issue to the Irish as another steal from Burton brought the ball to the other side of the court, and as Konieczny attempted to put up a layup, a foul sent him to the line for two free throws. Konieczny made one of the two, but North Dakota added on a three-pointer
to bring the score to 54-41. Burton wasted no time as he added on two points alongside Roper to make the score 5841. North Dakota added on six more points, but a key rebound from the Irish helped Davis put in two more points alongside a jump shot from Konieczny for a 62-47 score. Allocco reentered the game for the Irish after a foul was called on Roper and Burton with nine minutes left in the half. After a missed shot from the Irish, a rebound from the Fighting Hawks gave them two points with a tip-in to make the score 62-49.
After a timeout, a shooting foul was called on North Dakota, allowing Davis to make free throws for a 64-49 lead. Burton put in another basket for the Irish, but North Dakota responded to make the score 66-52.
With the chants of “Let’s go, Irish” from the student section, a rebound from Burton allowed him to score a threepoint shot, but North Dakota managed one in response to make the score 69-55. A
rebound from Burton allowed Konstantynovskyi to score two more points alongside Allocco, whose two points made the score 73-55.
A foul called on North Dakota gave Konstantynovskyi a free throw, but with it no good, the score remained the same. North Dakota added a layup to make the score 73-58, and within the final minute, Konieczny put in a basket to make the final score 75-58.
Burton led for the Irish on defense and offense finishing with a total of 29 points and nine rebounds. Reflecting on his success, he gave credit to his teammates.
“Just staying patient, reading the game, allowing my teammates to help me become a better player [has been key],” he said.
While the Irish did take the win, head coach Micah Shrewsberry wasn’t satisfied, saying that the team did not perform the best that it could.
“[The] last thing I said before we came out of that huddle at halftime was, ‘If there is a
rebound, I want to see bodies moving,’” he said. “And there wasn’t, and that’s immaturity.”
Shrewsberry also spoke on the team’s highlights.
“Their movement and how they run so much different stuff, side-to-side type stuff, how they’ve been guarding to this point in the year — especially defending the threepoint line — I thought they did a really good job,” he said.
Burton agreed, “There’s still a lot more work to be done,” the leading Irish scorer said. “Today we didn’t play our best basketball, but we still got the dub, but obviously there’s still room to improve.”
In terms of getting ready for the next game against Elon, Roper said they are aiming to, “Stay level-headed, keep our heads on straight and come in tomorrow ready.”
Now at 4-0, the men’s basketball team prepares to face off against Elon on Friday starting at 7:30 p.m.
Contact Claire Watson at cwatson01@saintmarys.edu
GRAY NOCJAR | The Observer
Graduate forward Nikita Konstantynovskyi handles the basketball inside the paint during Notre Dame’s 89-60 defeat of Stonehill at Purcell Pavilion on Nov. 6, 2024. The Irish improved to 4-0 on the young season with a 75-58 takedown of North Dakota at home on Tuesday night.