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Volume 56, Issue 61 | friday, april 1, 2022 | ndsmcobserver.com

Holy Cross to hire first non-clergy president

By LIAM PRICE and BELLA LAUFENBERG Associate News Editors

With the retirement of Holy Cross college President Fr. David Tyson in June, the college is in the process of choosing a new president.

The two final candidates, Brian Schmisek and Marco Clark, have experience working with Catholic universities. Whoever is selected will be the college’s first non-clergy member to serve as president.

Board of Trustees members John Gschwind and Calvin Colbert said the selection process

was an extensive effort by the Holy Cross’s presidential search committee with a diverse set of input on decisions. “[The committee] really wanted to make this a very engaged, comprehensive effort to bring all the key stakeholders, because I think the board, and I think Calvin [Colbert] and myself in particular, think this is kind of a very important, almost transformational event for the college,” Gschwind, who chaired the search committee, said.

When considering candidates, Gschwind said the committee agreed that Holy Cross’s mission

was the primary consideration.

“Whoever we’re going to hire will be very aligned with the Holy Cross congregation mission for this college,” he said.

Emilee Skidgel, Holy Cross student body president who served on the committee, said she knew right from the start of the search that they would be searching for both priests and laypersons as candidates because Holy Cross’s constitution does not required the president to be a priest.

Colbert explained the decision to choose a non-clergy member see PRESIDENT PAGE 5

Incoming SGA leaders look to upcoming term

By GENEVIEVE COLEMAN Assistant Managing Editor

Beginning May 1, Angela Camacho and Josie Haas will serve the Saint Mary’s community as the Student Government Association (SGA) president and vice president, respectively. As the beginning of their term approaches, The Observer sat down

with the pair to discuss their priorities going into office and the core values of their campaign.

Prior Experiences Camacho discussed how her experience as the president of Residence Hall Association (RHA) and the Student Government Association vice president of operations allowed her to be more

Courtesy of Angela Camacho and Josie Haas

After being elected student body president and vice president, Angela Camacho (left) and Josie Haas overviewed their upcoming goals.

NEWS PAGE 3

VIEWPOINT PAGE 7

confident in her candidacy as SGA president.

“I sort of felt that I knew what the job entailed, and that I would be not the perfect candidate, but the suitable, knowledgeable candidate for that position so that influenced me too,” Camacho said.

In speaking about her running mate, Haas chronicled how she saw Camacho grow as a leader as she served as RHA president.

“I would say my time on RHA with Angela — seeing her leadership as stepping in as the president of RHA early on last semester was insane,” Haas said. “How [it was a] seamless transition … It seemed like she’s a perfect fit to step into the role.”

Addressing why she selected Haas as a running mate, Camacho described the valuable experience Haas gained as a RHA committee chair.

“I had seen how she had grown as a committee chair,” Camacho said. “So I was like, if anything, she’s the perfect candidate because I wouldn’t need to train her that much to be a [vice president] or to be a part of SGA.” see SGA PAGE 4

SCENE PAGE 9

Saint Mary’s appoints VP Observer Staff Report

Saint Mary’s President Katie Conboy announced in a press release Thursday that Lori Johnson will assume the role of vice president for student enrollment and engagement at the College. The press release said the new position replaces and combines the current positions of vice president for enrollment and vice president for student affairs.

“The goal is to create a seamless experience for undergraduate students, from the moment they learn about Saint

Mary’s and apply, to their fouryear campus experience, to their transition to post-college life,” Conboy said in the press release.

Johnson, who graduated from Saint Mary’s in 1991 with a degree in social work and currently works as associate vice president at Berklee College in Boston, will begin her term June 15.

At Berklee, Johnson had “significant experience developing and leading initiatives involving enrollment, student retention, first-year experience, and see VP PAGE 3

Commencement speaker named Observer Staff Report

Notre Dame announced alumnus John F. Crowley, who received widespread attention for his pursuit of a cure for a rare disease that afflicts two of his children, as the commencement speaker for the Class of 2020 Commencement ceremony on May 29, according to a press release.

Crowley’s story has been chronicled in the Wall Street Journal

and subsequently in the 2006 book “The Cure.” The 2010 movie “Extraordinary Measures” starring Harrison Ford is based on “The Cure.”

Crowley graduated from Georgetown University with a bachelor’s degree in foreign service before earning a law degree from Notre Dame and an MBA from Harvard Business School. see SPEAKER PAGE 3

Senate votes on hall endorsement

By ALYSA GUFFEY Editor-in-Chief

The 2021-2022 senate convened for their final meeting Wednesday night, with senators pushing for amendments on residence hall endorsements and off-campus student representation.

To start the meeting, student body president Allan Njomo delivered his final State of the Student Union speech — highlighting the accomplishments of

BASEBALL PAGE 16

the Union during his term while stressing that there is still much more to be done.

Among the highs of his term, Njomo recognized the student push for the University’s first full observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, the implementation of the Callisto sexual assault reporting service and renewed calls for the University’s divestment from fossils fuels. see SENATE PAGE 3

M LaX PAGE 16

2

TODAY

The observer | friday, april 1, 2022 | ndsmcobserver.com

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Which Bridgerton man is your favorite?

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“Anthony Bridgerton.”

“Benedict Bridgerton.”

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“Season 2 Anthony Bridgerton.”

“Benedict Bridgerton.”

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Courtesy of Allison Thornton

The Saint Mary’s senior Environmental Studies majors presented their senior comprehensive projects Monday evening in Spes Unica. Their projects were on everything from urban agriculture in the Chicago area to fertilizer run-off in the Great Barrier Reef.

The next Five days:

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Friday

Saturday

Sunday

Monday

Tuesday

Bengal Bouts Finals Purcell Pavillion 7 p.m.

Proceeds benefit the Holy Cross Mission.

Tickets at door.

“Atlantis” (2020) DeBartolo Performing Arts Center 3 p.m.

Come to watch the Ukranian sci-fi drama.

Basilica Mass Basilica of the Sacred Heart 10 a.m. & noon All are welcome to attend.

Religious Reform Lecture 1050 Jenkins Nanovic Halls 12 p.m. - 1 p.m.

Open to the public.

“Mere Civility” lecture 1030 Jenkins & Nanovic Halls 12:30 p.m. - 1:45p.m.

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Notre Dame Chorale Spring Concert DeBartolo Performing Arts Center 8 p.m. - 9:30 p.m.

Free for students.

SMC Talks - Critical Thinking virtual 7 p.m.

Focus on refining critical thinking skills.

Notre Dame Women’s Tennis Eck Center 7 p.m.

Focus on refining critical thinking skills

Little Sib Love Rice Commons 5 p.m - 6:30 p.m.

Come and send your little siblings a postcard.

Employment Fair Duncan Student Center 5 p.m. - 8 p.m.

Come to see student job opportunities.

News

ndsmcobserver.com | friday, april 1, 2022 | The Observer

3

Fr. Andrij Hlabse raises awareness for Ukraine

By EMMA DUFFY News Writer

This article is the second installment of a series called “Ukrainian voices on campus” detailing the stories and perspectives of Ukrainian and Ukrainian American tri-campus community members. The first installment of the series can be read online.

In light of the recent conflict between Russia and Ukraine, the University of Notre Dame has been putting on events to support the people of Ukraine. At the forefront of many of these events is Fr. Andrij Hlabse.

Hlabse has traveled the world but has always had ties to Notre Dame.

He was born in Cleveland, Ohio, and found his way to Notre Dame for his undergraduate studies, where he majored in music performance and romance languages and literature and minored in European studies.

After attending the University, he was still not certain what he was going to do with his life and was unsure if becoming a priest was the right path for him.

“It was always a live question for

Senate Continued from page 1

Njomo described his term as rewarding but nonetheless challenging. He noted especially the sense of hope when he started his term as vaccines were rolling out.

“We’re still very grateful that we have some sense of normalcy this year despite the hardship that we still faced,” Njomo said.

The main debate of the evening centered on a resolution calling for guidelines and regulations for residence hall endorsements in the student government president and vice president election.

The resolution would require hall presidents and vice presidents to poll their dorm residents through a Google Form and receive at least a 20% participation rate with a plurality of votes to make an endorsement.

Prior to the meeting, the committee on the Constitution suggested rejecting the proposal after discussion among committee members, parliamentarian Madison Nemeth said. The committee’s

Speaker Continued from page 1

In 1998, Crowley’s then 15-month old daughter Megan was diagnosed with Pompe disease, a rare and fatal neuromuscular genetic disorder, according to the release.

Megan’s younger brother Patrick was also diagnosed with the disease. The disease weakens muscles and can lead to swelling of vital organs and breathing problems.

The release said the family was told both children were unlikely to survive for more than a few years.

John then entered the pharmaceutical industry in an effort to beat the disease. He

me,” Hlabse said. “What was God asking me to do?”

He returned back to his Jesuit high school, where he had made the decision to become a priest. From there he lived in Detroit, Montreal, New York City, Rome and many other places. After 11 years of training, he finally became a priest and made his way back to Notre Dame in an attempt to get his doctoral degree in historical theology.

Hlabse came back as a priest, but more specifically he returned to Notre Dame as a priest of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church.

“That is one of the reasons I’ve been asked to do all these events — because I am connected to the Ukrainian Church,” Hlabse said.

Hlabase’s connections to Ukraine do not stop there: His mother’s side of the family is all from Ukraine. The family’s emphasis on Ukrainian culture makes the conflict even closer to home.

“Ukrainian immigrants have a really strong sense of responsibility to maintain their culture,” Hlabse said. “If we don’t preserve this stuff, it’s not going to be persevered. So therefore, somebody growing up like me, we’ll have a lot of exposure

to those kinds of things, the songs, and the dancing and the church traditions.”

The tumultuous history of Ukraine The Soviet Union has always tried to push themselves onto Ukraine, creating a forced “Russification,” Hlabse said. This is why Hlabse said he urges students to understand the history of Ukraine and why it is important to get a firm grasp on the situation now.

“It’s a complicated history,” Hlabse said. “The propaganda that’s being used falsifies the history and plays with the history in order to justify what it’s doing. And so, if you want to be able to dismantle those reasons, you’ve got to know, you’ve got to study.”

Although Hlabse emphasized the importance of studying, it is not the only thing he said he feels that students can do to help.

“Give your time or give your goods, your belongings and donations,” Hlabse said.

As a priest, Hlabse said he also feels that it is important that students help through the activity of praying for Ukraine.

“Prayer is really worth

something. It could really change things,” Hlabse said. “Look at this war and the unprovoked nature of the attack, the drastic attack on civilians and infrastructure, the evil of it’s just so obvious, and prayer is a response to that.”

When asked what more he wishes he could do, Hlabse responded with an ambitious approach.

“Do I wish I could do more? I wish I could stop the war,” he said.

Because this goal does not seem very feasible for him to accomplish, he said he tries to focus on his goals to help within the Notre Dame community.

“In a time of suffering, people need to be reminded or reassured that they are not alone,” Hlabse said. “For a priest that means assuring them that God is with them, that is first and foremost. And then also that other people are with them.”

Hlabse established that his faith is what gives him hope that the situation will turn for the better.

“Hope is what we call a theological virtue, so just keeping your eyes on God, especially when situations are difficult and trusting that God is good, that God is just, that God

wants peace, helps you to believe and keep moving ahead,” Hlabse said.

Hlabse expressed that it is important to him that this movement does not lose the momentum that it had gained when the conflict began.

“We don’t want it to fade out because the question of Ukraine’s continuing existence and let’s say hopefully flourishing, doesn’t get answered in two or three weeks.

It gets answered in months and years,” Hlabse said.

Even though this is a difficult situation, Hlabse said he is appreciative and encourages everyone to keep this conflict in their mind.

“I’m grateful for the support the university has given. I’m grateful for the support that faculty and staff have given, and especially for the support that students have given,” Hlabse said. “Don’t underestimate the importance of this war against Ukraine for various reasons, and do everything you can to stay engaged with it to support peace and justice.”

notes surrounded feasibility and accountability concerns.

Co-author Martha Castellini, Walsh Hall senator, said the resolution was necessary because the Constitution currently “neither forbids residence hall endorsements, nor does it provide guidelines for them.” She also argued that residence hall assignments are random for undergraduate students, and their sense of belonging can be jeopardized by nonuniform hall endorsements.

In questioning, Knott Hall senator Abraham Figueroa asked how the 20% metric was decided.

Castellini said she and the other authors discussed a 50% participation rate but lowered it to 20% after considering that the total turnout for the 2022 election was only 56%.

Figueroa followed up by questioning why the hall president and vice president cannot make the endorsement themselves, given that they are elected by their constituents within the dorm. Castellini responded that the main considerations when voting for a hall

president include programming and likeability in a dorm.

Co-author and Farley Hall senator Annika Barron added that hall president elections occur almost a full year before student body elections, meaning the members of a hall may not be thinking that far out when voting for their leaders.

In debate, Hall Presidents Council (HPC) co-chair Caroline Cameron said hall presidents have significant influence over first-year and sophomore voting opinion within their dorms. However, she stated there would be “no way to enforce” the proposed resolution.

Breen-Phillips Hall senator Faith Woods argued in support of the resolution, emphasizing hall government’s influence given that not everyone will do outside research on the candidates.

Figueroa argued that the resolution would be an overreach of the senate into HPC matters.

The resolution ultimately failed in voting.

The other hot topic of the night was off-campus representation in the senate. Currently, there are

only two voting members of the senate representing off-campus students — the off-campus council president and the off-campus senator. SO 2122-10B, a resolution presented by off-campus president Thomas Davis, called for the addition of two more off-campus senators and the recognition of offcampus council vice president as a voting member — which would bring the off-campus voting members to five.

Roughly 22% of the student body resides off campus, but they are represented by only 6% of the senate, Davis said. The largest residence hall, McGlinn Hall, has one senator for 272 students while the off-campus community has one senator for roughly 1,600 students, according to the resolution.

Senior Class Council president Timothy Gallagher questioned why the vice president of the council would be given voting privileges as opposed to adding four senators, given that no other class council vice presidents have voting privileges.

Davis responded that the vice

president would be a guaranteed spot where someone was elected, whereas there may not be as much interest for four senator positions.

Sophomore Class Council president Paul Stoller raised concerns over possible attendance issues, as the senate has struggled to meet quorum recently. The senate quorum requires two-thirds of voting members to be present.

After debate, the resolution unanimously passed.

The senate also heard a resolution calling for Notre Dame to participate in the Energy Star Higher Education Benchmarking Initiative. The resolution unanimously passed.

To close the meeting, the senate approved the nominations of​​ Hannah Blaskiewicz and Henrique Raposo to serve as Student Union assistant treasurers.

The 2022-2023 senate will convene for its first meeting next Wednesday.

eventually co-founded Novazyme Pharmaceuticals.

Novazyme grew and was acquired by the biotechnology company Genzyme.

Genzyme later produced Myozyme, a life-saving medicine for Pompe disease, the release said.

Megan and Patrick participated in a Myozyme clinical study in 2003. Within several months of the study, their enlarged hearts returned to normal size and they gained functional muscle strength, according to the release.

Megan graduated from Notre Dame in 2019 and now works as a social worker at her former middle school. Patrick is 23 and their older brother, John Jr., is 27, the release

said.

Myozyme was later approved and is now called Lumizyme.

More than 3,000 Pompe patients receive bi-monthly treatments of Lumizyme, according to the release.

John went on to found Amicus Therapeutics, which develops medicines for rare diseases. John serves as CEO and chairman of Amicus, which now operates in more than 24 countries.

The 2020 Commencement took place online due to the COVID-19 pandemic. A special ceremony over Memorial Day weekend will honor the class, concluding with the ceremony at Notre Dame Stadium.

VP Continued from page 1

scholarship program,” the press release said. Among her diverse experiences at the College, Johnson co-led the Black Scholars initiative, and helped increase retention among its participants.

Prior to Berklee, Johnson worked in administrations at Xavier University, Bryant University, Notre Dame and Saint Mary’s, where she worked as assistant director of firstyear studies from 1993 to 2003.

Along with her degree from Saint Mary’s, she earned a master of

Contact Emma Duffy at eduffy5@nd.edu

Contact Alysa Guffey at aguffey@nd.edu

science in administration from Notre Dame in 2000.

In the press release, Conboy thanked Gloria Roldán Jenkins and Sarah Gallagher Dvorak, who served as interim vice president for student affairs and interim vice president for enrollment, respectively.

Jenkins’s “guidance through the two years of the COVID pandemic was invaluable,” Conboy said in the press release.

Meanwhile, Conboy said Dvorak led the enrollment team during the pandemic to maintain “an institution ready to give [firstyears and transfer students] a successful college experience.”

4

NEWS

The observer | friday, april 1, 2022 | ndsmcobserver.com

Tri-Campus Thursday: LGBTQ+ Mass held

By SIOBHAN LOUGHNEY Talent and Inclusion Manager

Saturday evening, a crowd of about 20 students and faculty members trickled into Dillon Hall, past a cart of Jimmy John’s sandwiches promising a post-worship meal, and into St. Patrick’s Chapel. The group gathered to celebrate an LGBTQ+ Mass presided over by Fr. Joe Corpora, C.S.C., and Fr. Robert Lisowski, C.S.C. Advertised in a student government email as part of Pridefest events occurring last Thursday through Saturday, this Mass is actually a monthly occurrence organized by Fr. Corpora, Interim Director for Multicultural Outreach in Campus Ministry and

Dillon Hall’s priest-in-residence.

“I’m trying to respond to the Pope’s plea that we live among the people,” Fr. Corpora said.

The Gospel for the Fourth Sunday of Lent was from the 15th chapter of Luke, the parable of the prodigal son. The passage tells the story of two brothers, one who wastes his inheritance on a life of sin and excess and one who stays with his father, behaving as he believes he ought to. The lesson of the parable comes from the way the father welcomes the prodigal son back home, although the other son is appalled that his father would celebrate his wayward son and not he, the seemingly more righteous of the two.

Fr. Joe’s homily addressed the similarities between the two

seemingly opposite sons. The fault in both sons, Fr. Joe said, was that they had their own ideas of what would bring them happiness, and both were wrong. This resulted in one son who believed he was too good to need salvation and another who believed he was too bad to deserve it.

“Today’s Gospel is about salvation, which is our inheritance,” Fr. Joe said. “You cannot earn it, so don’t even try. You cannot lose it, no matter how much of a schmuck you are.”

A key moment in the reading that Fr. Joe noted was when the father welcomes his son back into the house to celebrate his return.

The father welcomes the son as he is, which indicates, as Father Joe said, “No one has to clean up

their act to be accepted and loved

by God.” Following the service, attendees gathered in Dillon Hall’s 24hour lounge to break bread, or more specifically, share hoagies, chips and cookies. There was a welcoming sense of community, as Father Joe made his way around the room, greeting everyone and introducing himself to those he did not yet know. One individual stopped him to voice their sincere gratitude for the message he preached in the homily, and others nodded in agreement.

As people shared dinner and laughed after a heartwarming service, it was evident that Mass fostered a feeling of belonging.

“It’s nice to have a space I can be myself, even in God’s eyes,” a

student said.

At a Mass for those who are often shamed and pushed away from the Church for their identities, the message of salvation and acceptance contributed to the warm atmosphere.

“I went to Catholic school my entire life, from second grade then on to college. I had to go to Mass every Friday in grade school, monthly in high school,” one member of the congregation said. “I don’t go as often now, in college, but that was hands down the best homily. I really appreciate it. God’s salvation isn’t something we have to earn. It never will be.”

Contact Siobhan Lougney at sloughne@nd.edu

Theology course analyzes ‘The Mandalorian’

By ISA SHEIKH Associate News Editor

Students stepped out of the rain Wednesday evening as they walked into Corbett Family Hall.

They sat down for a discussion on the consequences of sin and the cycle of life, as well as heroes, myths and creeds. The particulars of the conversation were all grounded in episodes of the Disney+ “space Western” series “The Mandalorian.” The discussion was interspersed with dramatic clips of the show projected onto the screen.

The series, which takes place in the “Star Wars” universe and initially premiered late 2019, is the subject of a one-credit course called “Unmasking The Way: Theology of and For The Mandalorian.” The show focuses on a titular bounty hunter, always masked in a suit of armor, and his pursuit to protect a child that fans dubbed “Baby Yoda.”

Fr. Kevin Sandberg, CSC, an assistant teaching professor in the Center for University Advising and a priest-in-residence in St. Edward’s Hall, teaches the class.

Sandberg said the inspiration

SGA Continued from page 1

Priorities The pair said their top priority is establishing their cabinet and beginning to organize their plans during their term.

“We want to make sure that we are organized and so as soon as we can get that in motion, we will be as organized as we can to make sure that our student body is aware of what’s coming,” Haas said.

Considering the possibility of COVID variants returning to campus, Camacho discussed how she and Haas would use previous solutions to ensure the happiness and safety of the campus community.

“I think that because we’ve already been through those two years

for the course came during the pandemic.

“Everyone was wearing a mask, and there were hidden things about people that you wanted to know and you wanted to disclose.

And the mask struck me as a barrier to that as much as it was a barrier to disease,” Sandberg said.

“At the same time, I started to see ‘The Mandalorian’ and I, like a lot of people, fell in love with Baby Yoda as we called him then and recognize that there was this immediate connection between this innocent child, and this man who, for his complete adult life had been masked.”

Luke Blazek, a sophomore in Pangborn Hall, said he identifies as a “huge ‘Star Wars’ fan.” Blazek said he took the class because, having watched the series more than once before the class, he had felt there was something more to the show.

“The level of intricacy involved in the show; there’s so much more than your base level T.V. show and so I always kind of had an inkling that there’s so much more to ‘The Mandalorian,’” Blazek said. “When I came across a class like this, it seemed as though it formulaically

dissected the hidden pieces to the show and then brought them to light… there were a lot of theological themes.”

Along with watching the first two seasons of “The Mandalorian,” and its spin-off series “The Book of Boba Fett,” students in the class are reading C.S. Lewis’ “Till We Have Faces,” a retelling of the ancient myth of Cupid and Psyche.

Later, they will read “Revelation”

by Flannery O’Connor, which is a short story that poses questions about salvation and divine grace.

Kameron Hussey, a sophomore in Welsh Family Hall, said she’s always had an interest in how theology connects to the wider world, but unlike Blazke, Hussey said she had never seen the series prior to enrolling in this class.

“I’ve never attributed ‘Star Wars’ to anything religious, and so I thought [the class] would be a good opportunity to find connections within a new form of culture that I’m not overly familiar with, but I think provides a lot of good information,” Hussey said.

Although The Mandalorian may seem a strange avenue for theological conversations, many

have identified and applauded explicit religious themes in the series.

Sandberg said he felt the same way, drawing parallels to key concepts in Christian religion.

“What struck me as theological from the very beginning was that an innocent child was to be massacred and otherwise was saved and taken from the clutches of evil, i.e. the story of the nativity of Jesus,” Sandberg said. He also identified a battle between good and evil in the series.

“You can see it in ‘Harry Potter.’

[Good and evil] becomes the terrain on which the battle between Albus Dumbledore and Voldemort is executed. And so similarly with Baby Yoda, he becomes a vehicle for evil to reassert itself,” Sandberg added. “The potential for good that’s in the Mandalorian for instance, has to be activated to prevent that evil from happening.”

Those themes are even more explicit in the names of the series’ episodes, Sandberg said.

“If you look at the episode titles of ‘The Mandalorian,’ they’re replete with religious imagery: the child, the sin, sanctuary, redemption,” he said.

Over the course’s ten meetings,

of COVID, that we would sort of know how to plan, should administration say, you know, cut different things or hold back on different aspects of what you’re trying to do,” Camacho said. “Regardless of anything, we will always work towards making our campus an enjoyable campus for the student body.”

When asked about the campaign’s focus on diversity and inclusion, Haas spoke about the importance of supporting LGBTQ+ students on campus.

“We want to incorporate the faith aspect as well — and showing that was huge actually,” Haas said. “Making students that are maybe uncertain in their sexuality feel comfortable, still in their faith, especially again, a Catholic institution where that might not be the

easiest thing to feel accepted.”

In addition, Camacho drew on her experiences as a person of color to inform her experience in uplifting others with similar backgrounds.

“That plays a major role in my life and creating a safe space for people who look like me and have the same backstories as me is 100% important for me,” Camacho said. “Whether that be through SGA alone, creating events — or making POCs feel more included, whether that be reaching out to different organizations, as I mentioned in our platform, Student Diversity Board, La Fuerza, Black Student Association. It’s just trying to think of, okay, I know this perspective, what would I want to feel more included and to feel more recognized.”

Tri-campus Views The campaign also wanted to strengthen tri-campus ties.

Camacho highlighted the unique relationship between Saint Mary’s, Notre Dame and Holy Cross.

“Notre Dame isn’t going anywhere, Saint Mary’s isn’t going anywhere and Holy Cross isn’t going anywhere,” Camacho said. “So I’ll put it this way — we’re siblings.

You know, sometimes we’ll fight, sometimes we might hate each other, sometimes we might see eye to eye. But regardless of anything, we always have to go back to our roots.”

Additionally Haas explained the pair’s goals to form more connections with Holy Cross College.

“We don’t have enough

students will be preparing for a storyboard project, in which they’ll present their storyboards for the next episode of The Mandalorian.

Sandberg hopes that the class can go beyond an academic pursuit for the correct answer.

“Many students want to have the right answer. But this isn’t about the right answer. It’s ultimately about ‘what am I going to do with my life in such a clash of forces like good and evil?’” he said.

Sandberg said the University teaches students to be a force for good, in line with Fr. Edward Sorin’s famous letter but can fall short in teaching that lesson.

“Nobody defines the good and I think it’s incumbent upon faculty in particular, but also from a religious perspective to point out that, where we end up fighting for good is when it clashes up against evil, and we forget how much evil there is in the world until we run up across [events like the Russian invasion of Ukraine],” Sandberg said. “And certainly, isn’t that something that’s written large in the ‘Star Wars’ narrative?”

Contact Isa Sheikh at isheikh@nd.edu

connection with Holy Cross, and they are also part of our tri-campus community,” she said. “So that’s a big thing that we have to do is finding ways that we can make more and more ties with them so that we can make sure that it’s not just like … just going to Notre Dame.

We want to make sure we have that connection with Holy Cross too.”

Camacho emphasized how much being elected student body president means to her.

“It means the world because basically, the student body entrusts us with their future as students on campus,” she said.

Contact Genevieve Coleman at gcoleman01@saintmarys.edu

News

ndsmcobserver.com | friday, april 1, 2022 | The Observer

5

Students discuss mental health at SDB panel

By CORA HADDAD News Writer

The conclusion of the Student Diversity Board’s (SDB) Mental Health Speaker Series was held in Saint Mary’s Rice Commons Tuesday evening. Preceded by two other events, the student panel was composed of representatives from the Eating Disorder Awareness Club (EDAC) and Belles Supporting Belles (BSB).

President and founder of the EDAC, junior Julia O’Grady spoke on her personal experience as a student at Saint Mary’s.

“It was a culture shock coming to a college campus,” O’Grady said.

O’Grady overviewed her experience regarding how COVID impacted her eating disorder.

“Then into my sophomore year it was really challenging with all of the COVID changes on campus, I looking back and being able to reflect that’s actually, it alone. All these changes, it was really hard for me to grapple with [I] think that’s kind of what enabled my eating disorder to thrive,” she said.

Moira Boyle, EDAC’s Treasurer, shared her reality as well.

“Freshman year it was definitely

President Continued from page 1

as president derived from a shortage of available clergy members available to serve as president.

“Ideally, obviously, we would love somebody who was from the clergy,” Colbert said. “But people who are in the clergy have different missions of their own and different interests and different ministries.”

Skidgel said the committee hired a selection firm to help them with the process. The firm sent over two representatives in November that toured the college and attended many open forums in order to gauge what it’s like to be a Saint.

After applications were opened, the search committee received 52 completed applications, Colbert said.

As well as aligning with Holy Cross’s mission, Gschwind and Colbert said they wanted someone who could grow the college, develop a strategic plan and better the student experience.

“We want Holy Cross college to stand on its own,” Gschwind said.

Skidgel said she is confident in the committee’s choices and believes that both final candidates are highly qualified and would bring about “a lot of good for the college.”

The Finalists Gschwind said both finalists for president are very qualified to take on the role.

“I speak for myself, I think both are very mission driven, check all the boxes,” he said.

Schmisekcurrentlyservesasprovost and dean of faculties at Saint

a hard time for me mentally just trying to acclimate and make sure I was putting myself out there enough. But I’m lucky that I have a therapist I’m able to see. And so I’m just like a huge advocate for going to therapy, whether or not you have a mental disorder,” Boyle said.

Junior and Mental Health Committee Chair for BSB, Annie Maher, spoke on her freshman year at a different college and her transition to Saint Mary’s.

“It was my first time being away from South Bend and I was very depressed and just all of it had a huge impact. And so while the pandemic wasn’t great, it was great that I got to be home. Second semester freshman year by that point, I didn’t know I was coming to Saint Mary’s, and so I think that has really helped just being back in that environment that I know and love,” she said.

Maher spoke of her time at Saint Mary’s as well — specifically trying to find a balance.

“I do think one of the biggest things for me, especially this year as a junior, has been trying to have a school-work-life balance. I feel like there is a lot happening… But I definitely think that the more you

get used to college, the easier it is to actually find your rhythm and take care of yourself,” Maher said.

Boyle expanded on Maher’s statement: “I just try to take things [one] day at a time… do some self care if I can. It’s just something small I do. Taking time for yourself is super important in college.”

O’Grady elaborated on Boyle’s idea of taking time for oneself while in college.

“Sounds kinda cliche but journaling for me has been very helpful.

And there is something about just actually having a pen and paper and like taking the time just letting your thoughts all pour out, that it’s just kind of like a wave of release can just go over you.. [School] — it’s just so busy but I feel like you need to make it a priority to do at least one form of self care or something that brings you joy every day” SDB asked many questions ranging from how to have difficult conversations to how to avoid ‘harmful’ language. Boyle spoke on toxic positivity and its effects on the conversation surrounding mental health.

“I mentioned toxic positivity earlier. That’s a huge thing.

Sometimes you can’t just brush

things off as you know, people have it worse than you like. It is important to consider someone going through a hard time and just try to be sensitive to whatever the topic is,” Boyle said.

Maher later spoke on how to consider all people involved.

“So always just understand that everybody has their own experiences with their mental health, that everybody’s trying to work and work through that. And so the best thing you can do is be there for them and be there for yourself,” Maher said.

On the subject of support around the Saint Mary’s community, Boyle said “I think we have really good counselors here at the Health and Counseling Center… I know Campus Ministry is usually a resource too.”

Maher spoke to the utility of hall staff within the dorms at Saint Mary’s, saying “We say your resident advisor is also always there for you and your ministry advisor,” Maher said.

Panelists commented on the way they believe Saint Mary’s can change the conversation regarding mental health. Specifically on the College faculty’s stance on “mental health days.”

“I think it can get hard sometimes but I think really working towards understanding that mental health is something that everybody has, has to work with and so only allowing one unexcused absence isn’t going to help anything,” Maher stated.

Maher added to this and provided advice on how to speak with a professor regarding extensions and absences related to mental health.

“If you’re willing to and you’re comfortable with that always like go up to your professor and be honest with them and say, ‘Hey, I’m struggling with this or I can’t do this right now or I need extension on this,’” Maher said.

O’Grady, advocating on behalf of the EDAC suggested an addition to the Saint Mary’s Health and Counseling staff.

“Since we are in an all-women’s college, I think an eating disorder counselor of some sort, or nutritionist or dietitian should be incorporated into the Health and Counseling Center. And maybe just like more resources in general,” O’Grady said.

Mary’s University in Minnesota and has been in that role since 2019.

At Saint Mary’s, his role is to “provide the academic vision, leadership, direction and evaluation for all academic activities and faculty affairs of the university.” He previously served at Loyola University Chicago as a professor and dean of the Institute of Pastoral Studies and at the University of Dallas as the founding dean of their school of ministry.

Schmisek is a native of North Dakota who is also passionate about making theological materials accessible to lay audiences. He is married to Marnie Schmisek, and

together they have four children.

Clark has 33 years of Catholic education experience and 25 years of experience working alongside the Brothers of Holy Cross. He currently serves as the executive director of the Holy Cross Institute of St. Edward’s University, based in Texas. In his work at St. Edward’s, Clark “provides leadership support for the 120 Holy Cross schools around the world by conducting research, publishing resources and delivering programs to ensure their Holy Cross mission, identity and educational charism.”

He is married to wife Peggy Clark, and together they have three

children and five grandchildren. In his free time, Clark says he enjoys spending time outdoors and with family.

The candidates are now in the final steps before the decision will be made in the coming weeks. Both Schmisek and Clark visited Holy Cross’s campus in person over the past week, where they met with the current president, the Board of Trustees, faculty and students.

The committee will have several meetings over the next couple of weeks to make their final decision.

“When you think about hiring someone, in some respects, it’s a lot like dating,” Colbert said. “We’re

getting to know them … but they’re also getting to know us.”

Since this will be a historic choice for the college, Skidgel said the committee has not taken the decision lightly.

“Everyone on the search committee has come into it [looking for] the most qualified individual,” Skidgel said. “I think we have that, so I think our job has been done well and to the best that we could have done it.”

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Contact Cora Haddad at chaddad01@saintmarys.edu

Contact Liam Price at lprice3@nd.edu and Bella Laufenberg at ilaufenb@ nd.edu

6

The observer | friday, aptil 1, 2022 | ndsmcobserver.com

Inside Column

Wear what you want Siobhan Loughney Talent and Inclusion Manager

By the time anyone reads this, I will have listened to Harr y Styles’ newest release, “As It Was,” an absurd number of times. Like any Harr y Styles fan, I have been keeping a close watch on the @hshq Instagram for updates and teasers. The most recent posts, announcing his third solo album, “Harr y’s House,” and the release of his single, feature Styles in his naturally non-traditional fashion: a white, peter-pan collared peasant blouse for the album and a blazing red, sequined jumpsuit with matching painted nails for the single. As I wait for the long-overdue refresh of new Harr y Styles music, I can’t help but think of what a shame it is that his iconic style has received such backlash in the past.

Perhaps the most well-known instance of this is the controversy stirred up by Styles’ November 2020 Vogue cover, featuring him in a frilly Gucci dress paired with his signature set of rings and a black blazer. Political figures Candace Owens and Ben Shapiro took to social media to express their disgust with his ensemble, begging society to “bring back manly men.”

Styles has been making bold sartorial choices for the better portion of his career and is by no means the first to make such distinct style statements in the public eye. In fact, Styles has pointed to many other iconic musicians as his inspiration. Take, for example, his 2018 Halloween costume: Elton John’s sequined L A Dodgers uniform, complete with oversized, bedazzled square sunglasses. Other musicians he has spoken about include Prince and David Bowie, none of whom shy away from bright colors, sparkles, frills and f lare. W hile none of these artists escaped the harsh criticism for their own outfits, their lasting legacies tell us one thing: fashion has no gender identity. It doesn’t now, and it never has. For decades, these individuals have been making waves with their looks, and it’s not stopping any time soon.

W hat excites me the most is that there are even more accessible public figures advocating for bold, non-genderconforming fashion in day-to-day life. One example is social media content creator Griffin Maxwell Brooks, a student-athlete at Princeton University who has amassed 922 thousand followers on TikTok, making videos on ever ything from style to sports to politics, in often ornate outfits that he wears regularly, even just to go to class or the librar y. As I write this, I am wearing leggings and a sweatshirt, with my most eye-grabbing outfit feature being my teal socks peeking out from my sneakers, but even if I am not participating, I love to see people boldly expressing themselves through their clothes in whatever way they wish.

I feel ver y lucky to be a young adult in a generation that has pushed boundaries in ever y aspect of life, with fashion being just a small portion of that change. However, there is still a strong air of judgment around playing with fashion, particularly for men crossing boundaries of what is considered feminine and masculine. It’s ex hausting to hear people belittle those who choose not to build outfits based on what people are expected to wear, especially since the aforementioned artists have proven time and time again that those who express themselves so creatively are often the greatest creative minds of their generations. Beyond that, what another person wears simply does not affect anyone else, so we’d all be better off just celebrating that we can choose to wear whatever best fits our own personal expression. I, for one, look forward to seeing all of the exciting outfits Harr y Styles pulls out for upcoming interviews, music videos and performances associated with his new album, and I certainly hope his success continues to serve as a sign that the art of fashion has no gender.

You can contact Siobhan at sloughne@nd.edu.

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

LETTER TO THE EDITOR

Defending the truth, not Russia With more than a trifle of trepidation, I recently read Trevor Lwere’s column on the Russian invasion of Ukraine. As a history major, I heard the echoes of cowardly collaborationist quibbling from the dark days of 1940. Regrettably, Mr. Lwere’s article sought to throw the blame for the catastrophic war in Ukraine into the lap of the United States and Kyiv. Conscious therefore of my major’s commitment to the truth, and as a peace-loving citizen of the international community, I have taken pen in hand to counter this perilous reasoning.

Although free to express his opinion, there are several points on which I fundamentally disagree with Mr. Lwere. First is his erroneous suggestion that this conflict began in February of this year. The so-called “threat posed by Ukraine’s defense program to Moscow” is not some Ukrainian delusion of military grandeur. Kyiv’s pre-invasion military build-up was a defensive reflex of a country already at war. Russia started this conflict. That is a fact. Moscow did so back in 2014 with the illegal annexation of Crimea.

Ukraine has been at war with Russia for eight years, as Putin hives off the Donbas. Surely, Russia’s theft of Crimea after the Maidan Revolution, à la the Anschluss of 1938, ought to throw the “principle of indivisible security” out the window? By Mr. Lwere’s own argument, Russia sought to expand its security at the expense of Ukraine’s. Therefore, Ukraine has every right to self-defense under Article 51 of the United Nations Charter. The principle of indivisible security no longer applies in Ukraine. Since 2014, Ukraine has had a legitimate cause to protect itself, by any means necessary. Russia sacrificed any claim to “security concerns” when its troops occupied Crimea.

Secondly, Mr. Lwere’s selective citation of international laws to defend the indefensible, overlooks Ukraine’s legal status. Moscow’s decision to undermine Ukraine in Crimea and the Donbas flagrantly violates the 1994 Budapest Memorandum. Signed between Ukraine, Russia, the United States, and the United Kingdom, this treaty stipulated: “the Russian Federation… reaffirm[s] [its] obligation to refrain from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of Ukraine.” Since Russia refused to abide by that agreement, of course Ukraine would seek protection from the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Should Belgium have considered German security needs when Berlin delivered its ultimatum to Bruxelles in 1914? The Budapest Treaty makes clear that Russia waived all right to a stake in Ukraine’s internal affairs and acknowledged the country’s borders. In response to Russia’s reneging on that treaty, of course the United States and the West, as co-guarantors of Ukraine’s sovereignty, owe Kyiv assistance to repel Putin’s attack.

Therein lies the crux of the matter. The West’s response to Russia’s aggression against Ukraine is not the “defense of a decadent world order whose demise is imminent and irreversible.” Mr. Lwere’s reasoning has led him down a dangerous path, which could be construed as apologism for Putin. NATO is not an imperialist organization. Throughout its history, NATO has only added members by consent. While undoubtedly the most

powerful member of the alliance, the United States does not bestride NATO like a colossus.

When France withdrew from the centralized NATO command in 1966, the United States accepted the decision without brow-beating Paris. The size of NATO forces facing their Russian opposites, has always been outnumbered by Russians. NATO’s charter makes clear that the Alliance is only activated following an attack on a member. NATO was not even an American idea! British Foreign Secretary Ernest Bevin first thought of it in 1948, and Britain and France lobbied to persuade Washington of NATO’s necessity. Any NATO member is free to leave whenever they desire – American tanks will not roll along the streets of their capital like Soviet armor did in Budapest in 1956, and Prague in 1968.

As renowned Norwegian historian, Geir Lundestad, said, NATO may be an American empire, but it is an “empire by invitation.”

The reality, therefore, is that even had Ukraine joined NATO, Russia’s security position would have been no different. Estonia, Latvia, Poland and Norway all share a border with Russia and are NATO members.

Admitting Kyiv to the Alliance would not constitute “expand[ing] to its (Russia’s) doorsteps.” NATO is already there, and has been since 1955, when West Germany joined, bringing Alliance territory to the edge of the Soviet empire. In essence, Ukraine, in or out of NATO, has never posed a credible threat to Russia. Those who suggest the contrary are either misguided, or perpetuating Moscow’s torrent of lies.

The process of trying to legitimate Russian motives in Ukraine puts one in opposition to truth. The origin of this conflict lies in Vladimir Putin’s twisted mind, and he and his Kremlin cronies bear the guilt. Ukraine is waging a defensive war, fighting to protect its right to exist. No amount of “whatabout-ery” concerning Iraq and Afghanistan alters that fact. The circumstances are not comparable.

The United States and its allies did not undertake those campaigns to slaughter civilians or enslave them under a puppet regime like Lukashenko’s Belarus. Ukraine, contrary to those who believe Putin’s poisonous rhetoric, is a blameless victim, and so warrants American support.

In 1939, those who discounted Hitler’s invasion of Poland rallied around the French slogan of “pourquoi mourir pour Dantzig?”

Peddlers of that fallacy found plentiful employment in the collaborationist Vichy government. Their successors today spin the bile produced by “Pravda” and “Russia Today” (RT). Putin’s useful idiots will find an audience via free Western media.

So too, however, must truth. The United States did not start this war, Russia did. NATO did not start this war, Russia did. Ukraine did not start this war, Russia did. Putin’s invasion of Ukraine is an abominable crime against humanity, and those who excuse it are today’s Quislings. America has a moral obligation to help Ukraine. Otherwise, we risk reliving Sir Edward Grey’s nightmare of 1914: “the lamps are going out all over Europe, we shall not see them lit again in our lifetime.”

Eoghan Fay junior March 28

The observer | friday, april 1, 2022 | ndsmcobserver.com

7

Break the bubble, back the Bend If you had a nickel for every time you heard someone complain about South Bend as boring or cold, you’d probably be rich, right? But how many of us have actually given the city a fair shot?

During the spring semester in the absence of football tailgates, students often voice a lack of entertainment or social events. This boredom is the perfect opportunity to explore and give back to the South Bend community.

While living in the tri-campus bubble, students might forget that South Bend is more than just the place where Notre Dame is located — it’s a city all on its own. You might not think it boasts the same glamour as Chicago or New York City, but South Bend has countless charms if you’re willing to look for them.

There’s an abundance of opportunities to give back to South Bend, especially as Notre Dame Student Government hosts the Back the Bend service event.

Many tri-campus students prioritize service, but not everyone realizes just how accessible helping the community can be. There are local non-profits, food baskets and homeless shelters right down the road from the Golden Dome. Whether you like reading to younger kids or supporting the local chapter of Black Lives Matter, you don’t have to wait until you graduate to contribute to the causes

you care about.

We encourage students to sign up for the Back the Bend event, but if you can’t attend, the Center for Social Concerns has an extensive directory of community organizations that students can get involved with at any time.

Support the Local Economy: Pasquale Rulli’s Pizza, Chicory Cafe and Erasmus Books As home to The Observer’s annual staff inauguration ceremony, our staff appreciates Rulli’s Pizza for its cozy atmosphere and variety of delicious Italian dishes. Additionally, Chicory Cafe is a great weekday getaway with everything you need. The South Bend location is close to the tri-campus, brews locally roasted pots of coffee, serves New Orleans-inspired Cajun food and hosts free WiFi for studying. Erasmus Books is a fantastic local option for affordable books and is located on the first f loor of the owner’s quaint craftsman home.

There’s no shortage of businesses to explore, and you might be surprised at what South Bend has to offer.

Support the Homeless: South Bend Center for the Homeless (SBCH) and Motels4Now Through afterschool programs, adult education initiatives and daily meals in their soup kitchen, the SBCH has ample opportunities for students to accompany underprivileged people in South Bend.

Motels4Now is another initiative that helps the homeless get back on their feet through long-term housing initiatives.

Support the Environment: Unity Gardens,

Potawatomi Zoo and Howard Park Unity Gardens benefits both our bellies and South Bend’s local economy through its locallygrown food initiative, so definitely check out their volunteer opportunities. The Zoo is currently looking for employees, interns and volunteers — a fantastic opportunity for anyone who is interested in conservation or education. If you still haven’t heard of Howard Park, this outdoor space is a student favorite for ice skating and green space, and it’s only a few minutes from campus and downtown.

Support Children: Robinson Community Learning Center (RCLC), Notre Dame Center for Civic Engagement and the Boys and Girls Club The RCLC is only a block away from campus and hosts a multitude of programs focused on teaching children how to become powerful and ethical learners. The Center for Civic Engagement, which utilizes tri-campus student tutors, encourages children to find joy in reading and learning.

Students can also mentor at the Boys and Girls Clubs of St. Joseph County. Here, you can help inspire young children to see past the boundaries of their circumstances and encourage them to rise to their full potential.

There is no way to detail all the amazing ways to interact with the South Bend community, but if there’s one thing you take away from this editorial, we hope it’s a desire to explore the city beyond the tri-campus borders. Break the bubble, back the Bend.

More than tolerance Renee Yaseen Didn’t Know That

My 2020 column “Food for Faith: What it’s Like Being Muslim at Notre Dame” prompted more kind emails, warm and fuzzy direct messages, conversion attempts and pranks than any other column.

I’m serious, my inbox was pinging for weeks. I’ve been thinking about why that article resonated so much with people, particularly with Catholics. In it, I gave an account of interfaith exchange being fulfilling in a real spiritual sense, in addition to a social, personal and academic one. I gave an account of interfaith closeness beyond tolerance.

In America, our sense of interfaith dialogue is sometimes, in the words of Jane Austen’s Darcy, “devoid of every proper feeling.” In describing how we might live with others, we reach for professional-sounding words like, “tolerance”, “dialogue” and “exchange.” But “tolerance” denotes only a willingness to allow proximity and existence — nothing more and nothing less. “Dialogue” and “exchange” imply a period of thought-sharing between two distinct parties who — when the exchange is over — share a clear wish to remain distinct.

Approaching interfaith conversation from these modes is antithetical to any satisfying conception of unity. There is something sacred in being subject to one another in the pursuit of religious or spiritual understanding. Yet we hold classes and panels and seminars for interfaith dialogue in beige rooms like we hold classes and panels and seminars about healthcare policy or nuclear proliferation. In these beige rooms, we advocate “looking past what divides us” and looking toward what is the same. At first blush, “looking past what divides us” sounds great. But aside from permitting a squeamishness about things about other people that make us uncomfortable, this approach situates differing beliefs and practices — rather than ourselves — as the “dividers.”

This view passes the buck. It says: when beliefs

are incompatible, humans have little agency to approach or affect the division. I don’t think beliefs divide us. I think we divide ourselves with presuppositions that we, as members of some particular group, are uniquely endowed above all others with privileged access to and knowledge of the Divine.

Too often, groups stake out a unique claim to “faith” — something alive, something of the soul, something one and true, rational and cerebral, chosen of one’s own upright volition — relegating what others have to be mere “religions” — something purely ritualistic, of the body, legalistic, primal, inherited through family like genes and a last name.

In its most innocuous forms, the above worldview disrupts unity and fellow-feeling; in its most dangerous forms throughout history, it has served as the basis for genocidal violence and dehumanization. If I am not attempting with all my might to know my neighbor in his complete state, just the way he is, with no intention to change him, I cannot love him. When we have interfaith dialogue, we mustn’t look past — we must be brave enough to look directly at one another in all our fullness and differentness. One problem, of course, is that academic and professional settings do not often lend themselves to prolonged engagement with religious differences. After the interfaith dialogue conference, after the college sophomore’s single class on someone else’s faith, participants leave the space of dialogue to go home to their families, friends and spouses who pray, eat, believe and live as they do. Aristotle speaks of living together, of sharing physical property as well as time and conversation, as preconditions for true friendship.

If we can’t pray together, marry with one another, “break bread” with one another, how can we build any sort of foundation for community that doesn’t stem from some organizational wish to extinguish awkward feelings?

And wait — how can we do that in settings with a plurality of religious identities, each trying hard to maintain its integrity, core values, history and identity? Surely, I don’t advocate for the total

dissolution of religious identities in service of unity. I don’t have all the answers. But I know from the response to my earlier column that what we crave is something beyond tolerance. We want to know that other human beings are spiritual in mostly the same ways that we are. We want to know that, being human, they engage with the Divine in similar ways that we do.

We crave a humility that says: “I think you’re here on this Earth, and different from me, so I can learn from you.” This differs from: “I think you’re here on this Earth and different from me, so I can help you by converting you to a better spiritual framework (mine).” Apart from praying shoulder to shoulder with him, study your neighbor’s lifestyle on its own terms, in the way someone studying in another country learns that language on its own terms. Here at Notre Dame, I was taught Christianity by Christian professors who presupposed the truth of the religion they were teaching. Through them, I learned a little about how to speak about God in the way Christians speak about God. I learned about metanarratives in which Christians situate themselves, the histories from which they trace their intellectual and spiritual heritage. I sat in Christian architecture, under Christian domes and in front of Christian altars. I measured time on a Christian calendar of holidays.

Without action, the ideas expressed in this essay are just as platitudinous as the beige room calls for tolerance and unity and looking past what divides us. If it is valuable to you to love your neighbor: go learn their religion.

Renee Yaseen is a senior economics major with minors in theology and Philosophy, Politics and Economics (PPE). In her free time, she writes poems, hangs out with loved ones and ponders the view from her undisclosed study spot in [redacted] Hall. Please send all comments, diatribes and warm fuzzies to ryaseen@nd.edu.

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

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The observer | friday, april 1, 2022 | ndsmcobserver.com

LETTER TO THE EDITOR

Gotcha journalism has no place under the Dome My name is Stephen Viz, and I write my response to Jim’s piece with a background that mirrors his quite well.

A current Master of Science in Management student here at the Mendoza College of Business, I graduated from Holy Cross College last May with a BA in Liberal Studies, which was a program that prepared me quite well for a continued educational career at Mendoza. In June, I am going to continue my schooling through Notre Dame’s One-Year MBA program, and I can hardly contain my excitement in preparation to begin this last chapter of my time here in the tri-campus community. I have had the great fortune of work experiences at companies such as the Royal Bank of Canada and the Boeing Company, and at each step along the way I have learned that I am not only a critical thinker who loves their faith, but a student who wants to solve problems in unique and creative ways. This understanding has been a shared backbone of every relationship I’ve developed at the Mendoza College of Business, as I have been impassioned by the support I have received in my personal journey to strive for excellence in defense of the common good.

For starters, look no further than the example of Jimmy Dunne to see that socially responsible work can be done for the common good, both inside and outside of the firm.

But for me, thankfully I have seen this unquenchable thirst for service be relayed to me in real time. The day before the Notre Dame/Wisconsin game at Soldier Field, I was to catch a train from the south side of the city to allow me to spend the night downtown before the game. I missed my first train, giving me an hour to kill before the next train arrived. I never got the chance to kill this hour, however, as I spent it and the following train ride talking with a Notre Dame alum who had just so happened to miss the first train as well. A 1978 pre-med graduate and later recipient of a Mendoza Graduate degree, it turned out this alum was commuting by train 100 minutes each way to operate his own private practice. This train commute was only present because of a massive heart attack he had suffered only six months prior, leaving him unable to drive for quite some time. But here he was, up and working when other medical professionals had told him it would be impossible.

As our conversation grew, I learned that the pursuit of the common good was the sole reason why this doctor and professional was still working and making the commute, as in placing his patients and employees before his own inconveniences, he inspired me in his fight for the common good. And this story was possible because of the providence of a shared missed train. If this doesn’t stand to be socially responsible work, then I don’t know what is.

Jim, speaking as a member of the Program of Liberal Studies, noted the frequent stereotypes that Mendoza College of Business students are known for. He repeated the campus wide retorts that Mendoza students, or “MenBROza” students as we are frequently belittled, are white wealthy frat-boy types who are handed down jobs at Goldman Sachs after four years of closing down CJ’s on Thursdays and Newf’s on Fridays. This rhetoric is necessary to include because when I was a freshman at Holy Cross College, I came to O’Shaughnessy Hall for an event that involved other students who were interested in the PLS major. I struck up a conversation with a fellow freshman who asked me what my summer had consisted of. After I responded that I had worked a demanding two-job schedule to save up for tuition, he smirked and reminisced about how wonderful his summer was spent across Europe, traveling before the rigors of the academic year started.

Later, during the initial Covid-19 quarantine, this same student slid into my Dad’s DMs on LinkedIn, asking for book suggestions while holed up in his family’s place in Jackson Hole. While it is safe to say that I never returned to O’Shaughnessy Hall, perhaps Jim’s critique is of trends found in the entirety of Notre Dame’s student body, not just Mendoza’s. And while yes, it is unfortunate to see that the stereotypes of both PLS and Mendoza students are more alike than different, this type of rhetoric is not only damaging but it is detrimental of what we stand to be as Notre Dame Students. This University is home to us all, and while it is necessary that we are critical of administrative functions and values, it is also vital that we offer more to the conversation than just complaints and critiques. “Here is what we are doing well, but here is what we could be doing better” is a start, but I make no mistake in defending that

Mendoza’s promotion of the social good through commerce is not superficial nor is it ineffective. With every member of the faculty and staff at the school for a reason, I would find it hard pressed to find anyone that doesn’t believe that “Growing the good in business” doesn’t work.

And as Mendoza continues to climb up the business school rankings, more and more students and outsiders will see.

The proper rhetoric is to see that like myself, hundreds of students have not been “sold” on Mendoza’s ethos and culture, but rather see it as an avenue of institutional infrastructure that grants students the knowledge and networking to use their skills for the better, no matter their socioeconomic background or career path. And while Jim uses Nietzsche as his reasoning for questioning Mendoza, I will use a contemporary thinker located on Notre Dame’s campus in my defense of it. Fr. Bill Dailey is my mentor and rector here in Pangborn Hall, and his path to the priesthood began with personal questioning on how he could best serve the common good. A graduate from both Notre Dame and Columbia Law, Fr. Dailey has served the common good as a benevolent rector and friend to many, and his expertise on the world actually intersects with the world of business. My favorite homily of his came last month in discussion of Matthew 19:21-24, where Jesus stressed the difficulty of a rich man entering the kingdom of heaven. Fr. Dailey stressed that while wealth surely has had a grip on the human heart, it has been used for grand and glorious things, such as the development of our beautiful campus and has lifted a billion people out of poverty through economic growth. Capitalism is a tool, and it is up to people who are willing to shun material riches for the betterment of all to use this tool properly. True leadership is derived from sacrifice, and I am that happy to say any selfish goals that are said to exist in Mendoza are contrived from a viewpoint that see the college as a broken experiment, instead of a leading force for good.

Stephen Viz Notre Dame MSM/MBA ‘23 March 31 The full version of this Letter can be found at ndsmcobserver.com.

Love thee Mary Ellen Woods MEWsings

Where ever you are, on any day, in any year, when you hear these words, may they call to mind the love we feel for one another. May we know and be confident that Our Lady and her University have given us a most powerful gift – the gift of love, A love that empowers and a love that endures. A love that challenges, and a love that heals. Many of us have a sense that Notre Dame is a special place. Some of us know that it is, and that it is because of Our Lady’s love and our love for one another. When first we arrive on campus, Mary greets us from aloft the Dome. She welcomes us to our new home. As students, we are challenged to learn and to study — to stretch our minds and to master new material.

At Notre Dame, our learning is not an end to itself. We are tasked to be a “force for good,” to make our world a better place. In this sense, we are called to go beyond ourselves and to a love of others. Service is at the heart of our work.

But service alone is not enough. We are expected to be leaders, to advance our chosen fields and to improve the work and lives of others. ~ Tender, strong and true ~ Venturing a bit further into other manifestations of love, I recall my first introduction to the then defensive coordinator, Marcus Freeman. I was at a fundraiser hosted by the ND Club of Chicago, my home. Coach Freeman was the guest of honor. He was new in his job. I was struck then, all the more, when he charged his position coaches to love their players. They needed to know their guys and to

care for them. This was language that I did not expect to hear from a football coach — the leader of a most macho endeavor. And yet, in those words, I knew that I was hearing a very fine person, and I even knew that he would soon be a head coach. (I just didn’t know HOW soon.) In Coach Freeman’s remarks, I heard an unexpected call to love others and to imagine the power of that love. He described the role of his coaches as a responsibility to the betterment of their players. Their jobs were to work with their players and to develop them into the best people and players that they could be. So too are the faculty and staff of Notre Dame asked to help students become their best and to advance their studies to the fullest.

As young first-year students, we have just left home, likely for the first extended time. Our studies and scholarship are now fully our own. In this sense, we begin university as new adults. Notre Dame provides a place for academic and personal growth — a place where we develop into critical, educated adults. Our learning is grounded in hard work and fueled by a love that expects the best of us. We will develop into people informed by scholarship and forged in a community that demands serious inquiry. Notre Dame is different from other universities in our commitment to scholarship and in the duty to show truth to power.

Notre Dame students bear a special responsibility to love, but first you must take care of yourselves. Without a strength of character and mental and physical self love, you cannot do your best. But you must go beyond that to care for one another, your faculty and advisors and even the staff who tend to you so well. You are different, dare I say truly wonderful. You bring yourselves to this place and

make both it and yourselves better for your presence and hard work. You also bring joy. It is that joy that enlivens all you do — in the classroom, in your dorms and on the playing fields. Keep that joy. It will sustain you and be one of many reasons you return to this special place. And, along the way, say a kind word to those who care for you. They will appreciate it. ~ And our hearts forever, … ~ I believe that love calls us to hope for and expect the best of one another. We have only the highest expectations of Notre Dame. I have been taken to task for seeing Notre Dame in her best light. This has been a choice for me in my writing, but it is also a reflection of my expectations of my alma mater. In fact, my argument is that we should always hold Notre Dame to the highest standard. We must not only be critical, but we have an obligation to set a very high standard of performance for our University and all who love her. We command everyone associated with Notre Dame to be her or his best. So, when you entwine your arms and sing our alma mater, be it today, this May or sometime in the distant future, we say “Love thee, Notre Dame.”

Mary Ellen Woods is a graduate of the Notre Dame class of 1980. She has returned to campus as a Fellow in the Inspired Leadership Initiative (ILI). As an undergraduate, she lived in Breen-Phillips and now lives off campus. Her columns appear every other Thursday.

A longtime resident of Chicago, she can be reached at mewoods80@nd.edu or @MEWsmuses on Twitter.

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

The observer | friday, april 1, 2022 | ndsmcobserver.com

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MAGGIE KLAERS | The Observer | Image sources: COURTESY OF WHISK

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The observer | friday, april 1, 2022 | ndsmcobserver.com

By CHRISTINE HILARIO Scene Writer

It’s a story of boy meets girl. “Fresh” protagonist Noa (Daisy Edgar-Jones) is jaded from the dating scene: tired of scarf-wearing douchebags, the endless scroll of dating apps and unsolicited nude pictures. She’s ready to throw in the towel on the dating endeavor until she meets Steve (Sebastian Stan) at her local grocery store.

He tells charmingly awkward jokes and has a good relationship with his sister and his niece, so of course Noa agrees to a date with him. And after a few dates that go well, of course Noa agrees to go on a weekend trip to an unknown location with him. She might not know much about Steve, but he’s a step up from all the dating app creeps. What’s the worst that could happen?

For Noa, the worst that could happen is more gruesome than anything she could have imagined.

It’s difficult to discuss this movie without spoiling what Steve’s whole deal is, so if you want to go in completely blind, stop reading.

Steve is a cannibal. He seduces young women in order to kidnap them and systematically cut off parts of their bodies to eat and sell to his rich cannibal clients.

He glibly informs Noa of this after she wakes up from a drug-induced coma chained to the wall of his basement prison. Not exactly an ideal weekend getaway.

The most effective part of this film is the first half hour leading up to the big reveal. It’s essentially a rom-com played completely straight, with cutesy banter between Noa and Steve and even a spontaneous

By JUSTIN GEORGE Video Unit Leader

The latest film from Ti West and A24 is what I imagine it would look like if Tobe Hooper directed “Boogie Nights” instead of Paul Thomas Anderson. “The Texas Chain Saw Massacre” and “Boogie Nights” are not two films I ever thought that I would mention in the same review, yet here we are.

“X” follows a small group of adult filmmakers (Mia Goth, Jenna Ortega, Scott Mescudi, Martin Henderson, Britanny Snow, Owen Campbell) as they seek to make their next film. They hunker down at a rented guest house on a farm in backwoods Texas to make their film, all while trying to keep the creepy elderly couple that owns the property from finding out what they’re doing. As night falls, the blood begins to flow as someone begins to pick off the members of the film crew.

That’s all I can say without spoiling the entire film.

The people who made “X” clearly love film. Their passion for the craft shines through in every carefully constructed frame of its 106-minute runtime.

The director of the film the characters are shooting, RJ (Campbell) is clearly the voice of Ti West, discussing the creative choices that go into making a film — even discussing story arcs and subversions of audience expectations, amongst other tongue-in-cheek references.

dance scene during one of their dates. Thanks to the cinematography and Stan’s excellent performance, you can tell that there’s something a little off about Steve. The beginning of their first date is shot with extreme close-ups, adding a disorienting feeling to the whole scene. Stan plays Steve as charming, but in a calculated way. He seems to take pleasure in what he’s about to do to Noa, and even makes little in-jokes to himself about it. When Noa invites him to her apartment and asks if he wants anything to eat, he responds, “No, just you.” The subtle uneasiness of the first half hour really pays off when Steve reveals that he’s a serial killer cannibal in the most nonchalant manner possible.

The humor of the first half hour doesn’t stop after the reveal. The film plays into the utter absurdity of the situation and it’s one of the strongest parts of the film. Stan portrays Steve with such manic energy a la Patrick Bateman in “American Psycho” and it’s very entertaining to watch. We get to witness Steve dance around his kitchen to 80’s synth pop as he cuts up and vacuum seals the meat of a woman’s leg to deliver to his rich customers who get off on eating pretty young women. It’s ridiculous and amazing.

Although I found the film’s satirical humor and Stan’s performance to be entertaining, other aspects of the film weren’t as impactful. The film as a whole was a pretty standard woman’s fantasy where the protagonist gets to punish men who treat them like meat, in this case literally. The social commentary wasn’t egregious by any means, but it wasn’t anything new.

Additionally, despite the premise, the film isn’t as gory as one would expect, and honestly, it could’ve used a bit more gruesomeness to make the horror of the situation more effective. Despite how much I enjoyed the comedy, if the film was a bit less tongue-in-cheek, the horror could have been more impactful.

The characters in this film also needed a bit more fleshing out. Noa is charming, but a blank slate for the most part. Her best friend Mollie is a textbook Black best friend archetype whose only purpose is to support the white protagonist with advice and expositional quips.

Steve’s wife Ann, who is introduced midway through the film and knows what Steve does, could’ve provided some interesting commentary on women who enable men’s awful actions, but her character isn’t in the film enough to offer anything of note.

This film was ultimately entertaining due to its interesting premise, strong opening and some stand-out performances, but you’re not super into gory women’s revenge fantasies, it’s easily skippable.

RJ constantly discusses his dedication to the avantgarde and “X” reflects this experimental sensibility in its editing and use of digital and film photography.

This film is Ti West’s love letter to ‘70s Grindhouse Cinema: low budget flicks filled with gore, sex, subversive and taboo subject matter — the lower tiers of society shot on glorious 16mm film. West displays clear reverence for his forebearers while also adding a modern twist to the well-worn story of a group of people disappearing after visiting the remote South.

“X” is everything that I think the modern slasher has forgotten it can be. Stylish, subversive and unapologetic, “X” stands heads and shoulders above any slasher flick in recent memory. There is no legacy slasher here; there is no pretense of the unstoppable killer lurking just out of frame. The characters are smart and likable, and the film gives no reason why they should die. In the eyes of the elderly couple, sex equals death. They represent the old wave of horror films clinging to a kind of classic morality. This belief is even manifest in the character of the old man, who can no longer engage in intimacy due to a cardiac condition. There is a sensitive rumination on the fears and frailty involved with getting older underneath the surface of “X,” but I feel West could have given it a bit more time. In contrast, for the young film crew sex represents freedom, liberation from the oppressiveness of the past. This culture

clash is at the heart of the film — old horror vs. new horror, the older generation vs. the youth and the distrust they each hold for the other.

I can’t talk too much about the kills in “X,” but they are glorious. Many left me scratching my head trying to figure out how they pulled those effects off. The effects work here is stunning, both in the gore effects and the old-age makeup used on the elderly couple.

A fresh, stylish slasher with a brain, a heart and most importantly a soul that challenges audience notions of what A24 horror is. “X” is exactly the shot of adrenaline that the Slasher genre needed in the wake of the recent glut of remakes and reboots of legacy franchises. Something tells me we’ll be seeing a lot more Grindhouse-inspired Slashers in the near future.

Contact Christine Hilario at chilario@nd.edu

“Fresh” Director: Mimi Cave Starring: Daisy Edgar-Jones, Sebastian Stan If you like: “Promising Young Woman,” “Hannibal”

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Contact Justin George at jgeorge3@nd.edu

“X” Director: Ti West Starring: Mia Goth, Scott Mescudi, Jenna Ortega If you like: “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre,” (1978) “The House of the Devil,” “Green Room”

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CLAIRE KIRNER | The Observer | Image sources: New york times

Classifieds

ndsmcobserver.com | friday, april 1, 2022 | The Observer

Crossword | Will Shortz

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Horoscope | Eugenia Last Happy Birthday: Speak your mind. Take the initiative to make your dreams come true. Be responsible for your happiness, and construct a life that satisfies your needs and warms your soul. Invest in yourself, your ideas and being the best you can be. Surround yourself with people who share your dreams and beliefs. Set a standard, and you’ll reach your expectations. Your numbers are 4, 7, 19, 28, 35, 41, 47.

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Head down a path you find inviting. Be receptive to what others have to offer and open to trying something new. Personal improvement is favored, and activities and events conducive to love and romance are encouraged. Put your dreams in motion.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Be aware of your surroundings and what everyone else is doing. Caution will prevent someone from taking advantage of your vulnerabilities. Offer your strengths, not your weaknesses, and you will outmaneuver anyone who tries to lead you astray.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): You have knowledge, experience and good timing in abundance, so don’t let anyone interfere with your plans. Challenge anyone who gets in your way, and gravitate toward those who contribute to your cause. Personal gain, partnerships and romance are favored.

CANCER ( June 21-July 22): Reflect on what’s gone wrong, and adjust to ensure it won’t happen again. Preparation is the key to getting things right the first time. Don’t get into a disagreement with someone who fights dirty or uses blackmail to outmaneuver you.

LEO ( July 23-Aug. 22): Don’t worry about the changes others make.

Go about your business, and people who share your concerns will offer help. A special relationship will enhance your life and give you a new perspective on the possibilities that exist.

Romance is encouraged.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Set high standards, and stand by your word. Don’t let what others do influence you to do something questionable or invest more in them than you. Your future is dependent on how you handle others and your ability to please yourself. 3 stars LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Plan to socialize with people who challenge you mentally and physically and those who bring out the best in you. Unique plans for two will bring you closer together and encourage personal stability and security that puts your mind at ease.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Try something different. A personal change may not please everyone, but if it sits well with you, that’s all that matters.

Take responsibility for your happiness, and your life will fall into place. Rid yourself of dead weight.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Get involved in activities that require strength and agility. Work alongside people who share your goals and beliefs. A healthy, happy routine will help you do and be your best.

Discuss your plans with someone you love, then proceed with confidence.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Don’t let anyone railroad you into something you don’t relish. Do your own thing, and make changes at home that add to your comfort and convenience. It’s up to you to pick and choose how you spend your time and money.

AQUARIUS ( Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Take the direction that feels right, and don’t let others interfere. Your decisions regarding money and business must come from the heart if you want them to work for you. It’s essential to love what you do and who you are.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): Bend a little, and things will swing in your favor.

Incentives and compliments will help you persuade others to pitch in and help you achieve your goals. Demonstrate how passionate you are about your beliefs, and you will make a difference.

Sudoku | The Mepham Group

Jumble | David Hoyt and Jeff knurek

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The observer | friday, april 1, 2022 | ndsmcobserver.com

Sports Authority

Rowing

Irish determined at the Doc Hosea Invite

By AIDAN THOMAS Sports Editor

The Notre Dame row ing squad competed in some tough conditions this past weekend in the Doc Hosea Inv itational.

With huge w inds affecting the waters, the Irish faced choppy racing conditions that ultimately saw the final Doc Hosea heats cancelled. However, in the time that they did compete, Notre Dame put up some solid results in an event featuring 17 teams.

The format of the event saw each event race in three heats, w ith the heat w inner and the next three fastest times advancing to the (eventually canceled) Grand Final. The next six times after that qualified for the Petite Final, w ith the remaining teams racing in a ‘Third Final.’ Despite the actual cancellation of the finals, the Irish qualifed for one Grand Final and four Petite finals.

The first Varsit y Four sparked the Irish w ith their efforts. They raced in the same heat as Penn who boasted the fastest time in the race. Despite this, the Irish stayed w ith them most of the way and finished second in the heat in 7:37.39.

Behind Penn, Columbia and Nav y, the Irish finished fourth fastest overall in the field to qualif y for the Grand Final.

“The varsit y four rowed a great race. They got out fast and stuck w ith them all the way through,” Irish head coach Martin Stone said.

“Especially late in the race, when the conditions were rough.”

The Irish also sent out A and B teams into the second Varsit y Four, and both squads found their way into the Petite Final. The A squad finished in 8: 09.36 to claim the ninth-fastest time. The B team grabbed the final spot in the Petite Final at 8:24.10. Stone noted that the gusting w inds constantly changed conditions and made comparing times even between different heats a difficult task.

The Irish’s other two boats competed in the Varsit y Eight and second Varsit y Eight. Both qualified for the Petite Final. The first squad struggled out of the gate and spent most of the first half of the race in the back half of their heat.

However, right around 750

meters, the Irish started to gain some steam.

In the final stretch, Notre Dame rowed past UMass to claim a second-place finish in their heat. They edged out the Minutewomen by just 1.18 seconds. However, the Irish missed out on qualif y ing for the Grand Final by a similarly razor-thin margin. Competing in the follow ing heat, Nav y beat the Irish’s time by 1.94 seconds to nab the sixth and final spot.

“I liked the resolve. We weren’t ver y fast off the line, and it wasn’t that we got to almost cruising speed around 750 meters in that we started to come back through the field,” Stone commented. “We just have to figure out how to get off the line better. We’re putting ourselves in a hole early.”

The second varsit y eight competed in a heated finish. After Penn won the race comfortably, four boats in their heat finished w ithin seven seconds of each other.

Ultimately, the Irish claimed fourth in 6:55.35. The Irish finished eighth overall, missing the Grand Final by 1.89 seconds. Ultimately, after a week in which the Irish only saw a few positive results at the Cardinal Inv ite, Stone saw a lot of development from his squad.

“We learned a lot, going six boats across. It’s a little different then just a dual race. There’s a lot more going on. We continue to learn an aw ful lot about ourselves,” Stone said after the Irish came up on the short end of a few tight battles. “I think we need to get better at actually racing.

We’re a prett y young group and working on fine-tuning that. Making sure we get the right people in the right seats and look at different combinations throughout the program.”

The Irish now get a week off w ith no races scheduled for this weekend. Stone noted this allows the Irish to get some recover y and into a better training cycle heading into their next competition. That competition is scheduled for April 9, at the Ohio State Regatta. Five teams w ill compete, and Stone says the current schedule has the Irish racing Ohio State in the morning, and then Ohio State and Ok lahoma in the afternoon.

Is Trubisky perfect for Steelers?

Matthew Crow Sports Writer

Amidst the huge trades and free agency signings that have shaken up the NFL over the last few weeks, one move that seemed to get lost in the shuffle was the Pittsburgh Steelers signing quarterback Mitchell Trubisky. This was presumably done with the intention of having him replace the retired Ben Roethlisberger as the team’s starter for the upcoming season.

The general reaction to the signing among fans and media seemed to be neutral, or even indifferent, with very few strong feelings in either direction.

Trubisky is viewed as a solid stopgap for a Steelers‘ team that was in desperate need of a quarterback, but he is not considered a longterm solution.

These predictions may indeed prove prescient, and Trubisky has certainly not done much to prove that he is more than a replacement-level player, but I believe that he could be the missing piece for the Steelers and if things break right, the quarterback to guide them back to the top of the AFC. Of course, it’s important to remember that just one year ago it would have been surprising to see Trubisky land an opportunity to even compete for a starting job, much less have one handed to him by a consistent playoff contender. Following the 2020 season, his reputation and future prospects were at an all-time low.

Trubisky’s pro career got off to a well-enough start. Following a strong college career at North Carolina, his stock rose rapidly during the pre-draft process and he was selected second overall by the Chicago Bears in 2017. After an up and down rookie year that saw him earn the starting job midway through the season, he took a big step forward, leading the Bears to a 12-4 record and being named to the Pro Bowl. That would be the

W Lacrosse Continued from page 13

To ensure success, the Irish need to do what they’ve struggled w ith all year: come out hot and maintain momentum the entire game. Against Sy racuse, the Irish were outscored 6-2 in the first quarter.

Going into the fourth quarter, the Irish were dow n 14-9; they were able to score 7 goals in the last quarter but were unable to seal the deal in overtime.

Against Northwestern, the Irish scored t wo first-quarter goals to the

peak of his Chicago tenure, as his performance declined over the next two years to the point where he was temporarily benched during his last season with the team.

To make matters worse, he became something of a laughingstock on social media due to the constant comparisons made between him and superstar quarterbacks Patrick Mahomes and Deshaun Watson, who were selected after him in the draft.

When he signed with the Buffalo Bills as Josh Allen’s backup last year, it seemed that his time as an NFL starter could be finished.

Since then, his standing in the league has undergone a major facelift. Part of this is due to his association with Allen, who has grown from a raw, unrefined prospect into one of the league’s best players under the tutelage of noted quarterback guru Brian Daboll (now head coach of the New York Giants). Many believe Trubisky could have a similar transformation in store, and it’s not too far-fetched, given how highly he was regarded entering the league, and how the Bills’ coaches and executives as well as Allen have spoken of him during his time with the team.

Another part stems from the fall of former Bears head coach Matt Nagy. Nagy was once seen as one of the league’s great offensive minds. However, since the Bears struggled immensely on offense last year, much of the criticism landed on his shoulders, and he was fired during the offseason.

This has raised questions about whether Trubisky’s disappointing play during the second half of his Bears tenure could have been primarily caused by lackluster coaching and a weak offensive system.

While both of these reasons help explain why Trubisky is no longer viewed as a bad quarterback, the primary cause of this, in my opinion, is that people are realizing that he was never one in the first place. Criticism of

Trubisky was often targeted at his inconsistent play, but that was to be expected given that he started just one year in college and did not play in a traditional prostyle offense. When considered as a whole, his time in Chicago looks far more impressive than most remember. He made a Pro Bowl, led the team to two playoff berths, went 29-21 as a starter, and threw for over 10,000 yards and 64 touchdowns with just 38 interceptions while also bringing value as a runner. He did all this while only being given two full seasons to start while also being effectively handcuffed by his coaching staff.

In Trubisky and Pittsburgh, I see a perfect pairing. The Steelers have a roster that is well-positioned to succeed, with a great coaching staff, a consistently good defense and talented young skill position players like wide receivers Diontae Johnson and Chase Claypool as well as running back Najee Harris. This team made the playoffs last year, and anyone who watched Ben Roethlisberger play knows that this was no small feat. Playing in Pittsburgh gives Trubisky a clean slate, as he is no longer burdened by the expectations and pressure of being a top draft pick and someone counted on to be the franchise savior.

Over the past year, Trubisky quietly bided his time while learning from one of the best quarterbackoffensive coordinator pairings in the league. He is in a favorable situation and will be highly motivated to shed the dreaded “bust” label and prove himself as a toptier quarterback. The Steelers haven’t made much off-season noise, but with Trubisky in tow, I expect that we’ll be hearing much more from Pittsburgh come fall.

Wildcat’s five. Conversely, against Virginia Tech, the Irish came out hot w ith eight goals in the first half but were unable to keep their steam into the second.

To be able to score, the Irish must also consistently secure the draw, something they have also had trouble w ith this season. UNC has won 61% of all draw controls this season, giv ing them an edge on possession. The Irish have won just about 55% .

That 6% difference can be key in a game that comes dow n to one or t wo

goals, just as many of Notre Dame’s games have.

Going into the weekend, Notre Dame must play a full 60 minutes and give it their all. If the Irish allow the Tar Heels the room for a run, they w ill take it, leav ing the Irish play ing catch-up the rest of the game.

A lthough it is a daunting task, it is possible. And to stay relevant going into the last games of the season, it is necessar y.

Contact Matthew Crow at mcrow@nd.edu The views expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.

Contact Olivia Schatz at oschatz @nd.edu

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sports

ndsmcobserver.com | friday, april 1, 2022 | The Observer

men’s tennis

women’s lacrosse

Irish prepare to host Wake Forest and NC State before postseason

By M ADELINE L ADD Associate Spor ts Editor

The No. 26 Notre Dame men’s tennis team has a big home weekend ahead, w ith conference matchups against Wake Forest on Friday, April 1 followed by NC State on Sunday, April 3. With four matches in eight days, the Irish are attempting to build momentum as they prepare to transition into postseason play.

After suffering a 5-2 loss against No. 18 Duke and a 4-0 loss against No. 24 UNC on the road earlier this past week, the Irish are looking to improve their track record w ith North Carolinian teams.

Head coach Ryan Sachire has confidence in the team as they head into the weekend w ith home court advantage.

“We’re feeling prett y good,” Sachire said.

“We got a great day of practice and our guys are in a good spot. We had t wo tough results over the weekend, but we played okay — prett y well actually. We’re back home this weekend, which is always nice. We always play well on our courts and are excited about a big home weekend ahead.”

Despite the positive feelings, this weekend w ill be a test for the Irish.

With the Demon Deacons

13

ranked No. 10 in the nation, and the Wolfpack sitting at No. 34, the Irish w ill face some stiff competition.

Notre Dame’s No. 26 ranking puts them in the running for potential w ins this weekend.

“Certainly Wake and NC State are both really, really strong teams,” Sachire said. “Wake has been a perennial top ten program over the past decade, and NC State is one of the hottest programs in terms of their elevation over the past few years. Two really good opponents coming in, and two really great opportunities for our team.”

Sachire looks to juniors Matthew Che and Connor Fu to continue the momentum they have been creating for the team. Often part of the starting lineup in both singles and doubles, the two have consistently picked up needed match w ins for the Irish.

“They have done really well as ACC play has begun, and we’re going to continue to rely on them,” Sachire said. “We need them to perform well as we hit the homestretch here and particularly this weekend against qualit y opponents.

Again, those guys have been play ing really well, and we are excited about what they can do against Wake and NC State.”

Coming up, the Irish have a condensed schedule w ith only three games left follow ing this weekend.

The team w ill w rap up regular season play in what Sachire refers to as a “rinse and repeat” t y pe of situation, w ith matchups against Louisv ille, Boston College and DePaul.

The team looks ahead to ACC Championships, tr y ing to prioritize the basics to ensure a successful end to their regular season and potential postseason success.

“Certainly we have an eye on the postseason, but honestly the best way to prepare for that is take one day at a time,” Sachire said. “I know it sounds cliche, but we are really tr y ing to continue to get better. I think sometimes there’s teams that sort of ‘gloss over’ practice at this stage of the year.

We’re tr y ing to take ever y day as it comes and ma x imize the time we have together and time we have on the court.”

Sachire’s hope is that the team can be better each day than they were before, learning from their mistakes and keeping the same v italit y in both practices and matches.

“Honestly, I just want to tr y to be a better see M TENNIS PAGE 14

ND seeks comeback against UNC

By OLIV IA SCHATZ Associate Spor ts Editor

After a 12-15 loss to No. 8 Duke, the No. 22 Notre Dame women’s lacrosse team looks to come back against No. 2 Universit y of North Carolina on Saturday. The Irish have endured a tough season, and w ith a 4-6 record and a schedule that doesn’t get any easier. Notre Dame must dig in as they head into the latter part of their season.

Ty pically, when a No. 22 faces a No. 2, all bets go towards the higherranked team. However, the Irish’s record does not indicate their talent. Out of the six losses this season, five have been to top 25 teams, and three of them were to top 10 teams. In addition, this past game against Duke was the first time the Irish lost by more than 2 goals since their second game of the season against Michigan. Notre Dame also has key w ins against No. 26 Virginia, No. 27 Jacksonv ille and No. 30 Yale. With all of this in mind, the Irish do need to clean up their game if they hope to have a chance against the undefeated Tar Heels.

North Carolina has a deep and talented roster.

Last year, the Tar Heels were favored to w in the NCA A championship, and while they ended up losing to the eventual champs

Boston College, they did more than enough to prove their competitive abilit y.

They lost some key players such as Katie Hoeg, UNC’s all-time points and assists leader. However, the Tar Heels also retained three out of four of their top scorers. The Irish w ill also have to compete against a former teammate Saturday as Graduate Student midfielder Andi A ldave transferred this past season in addition to Sam Geiersbach from Richmond and Oliv ia Dirks from Penn State.

With returning players and these crucial transfers, UNC boasts a stacked and intimidating roster.

With that, the Irish aren’t necessarily weak in comparison. Just last week, graduate student attack Maddie Howe earned ACC player of the week after her career-high seven goals against Yale. Junior attack Madison A hern and sophomore midfielder Kasey Choma have 32 and 30 goals respectively on the season, and graduate student goalie Bridget Deehan has 87 saves this year.

Other players like junior attack Jackie Wolak and senior midfielder Madison Mote add to the Irish’s points totals while graduate student midfielder Diana Kelly and sophomore midfielder Kelly Denes pull their weight on the defensive end. see W LACROSSE PAGE 12

bengal bouts

Bengal Bouts prepare for finals with special guest Marcus Luttrel to attend this Friday Observer Sports Staff

GRACIE LEE |The Observer

Junior Charles Martin and senior Ricardo Amisano face off during the 2022 Bouts. Finals will commence this Friday at Purcell Pavilion.

The final bouts of the 2022 Bengal Bouts will commence Friday evening in Purcell P a v i l i o n .

After three rounds of grueling boxing, the last boxers standing will battle for championships within each weight class.

As they do every year, the competing boxers raised money for the Holy Cross Missions in Bangladesh. This underlying mission continues to make the tournament about far more than just the bouts and the glory of victory.

Continuing with that mission, the Bengal Bouts have invited a special guest to attend the finals of the 92nd edition of the finals. Retired U.S. Nav y SEAL Marcus Luttrell will be the guest of honor at the bouts.

The Bengal Bouts Instagram account announced Luttrel’s guest appearance on March 23.

“Marcus Luttrell is a retired U.S. Nav y SEAL who was assigned on June 28, 2005 to Operation Red Wing in eastern Afghanistan.

After having their location unexpectedly exposed, Luttrell and three

other SEALs were engaged in an intense gun battle.

Luttrell was the only survivor of the operation,” the post read.

Luttrell shared that experience and honored those who fell in his novel, Lone Survivor. The novel was later adapted into a 2013 movie.

“We look forward to hosting Marcus Luttrell on our beautiful campus, and for our boxers to demonstrate their skills in front of a true American hero,” the post added.

The Bengal Bouts Finals start at 7 p.m. on Friday.

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Sports

The observer | friday, april 1, 2022 | ndsmcobserver.com

Baseball

softball

Irish gear up for GT and Strikeout Cancer

By MADELINE L ADD Associate Sports Editor

The Notre Dame women’s softball team begins a three game ACC series at home this weekend against Georgia Tech, kicking off on Friday at Melissa Cook Stadium.

The Irish are hoping to continue their momentum coming off a 10-0 shutout win against Loyola Chicago Tuesday and a 4-1 win over Central Michigan Wednesday.

Head coach Deanna Gumpf described the team’s high spirits as they head into the weekend with 25 wins under their belt.

“The confidence level is ver y high because of how we’ve been playing the last few weeks, and I think the girls are in a really good place,” Gumpf said. “It always starts on the mound, and when your pitchers give you a chance to win ball games that’s really all you need at this point.

Loyola/CMU Continued from page 15

in the second inning. An RBI double by junior designated player Joley Mitchell extended the lead. The Irish stretched it further with a double steal that ended with Mitchell stealing home. Freshman catcher Rachel Allen delivered the dagger with a titanic pinch-hit, two-run home run in the fourth inning, putting the game out of reach.

Pitchers lead the way by minimizing runs and minimizing hits and then the rest of the team can do their job.”

The Irish certainly have performed well on the mound, with graduate student Alexis Holloway throwing her second-career solo no-hitter against Loyola Chicago Tuesday.

Freshman Shannon Becker has also been a force for the team, showing her potential by earning seven wins on the mound this season.

Another freshman, catcher Rachel A llen, made a name for herself this week with the first home run of her career, sending a two run blast over the bleachers in left field. With plays like this and more, the freshmen are “just getting started,” Gumpf said.

“The freshmen have done a great job,” Gumpf said.

“Rachel displayed see SOFTBALL PAGE 15

The win marks Notre Dame’s ninth shutout victory and also pushed their ACC leading run total over the 200 threshold.

The Irish pitching was nearly as dominant Wednesday against Central Michigan.

Freshman pitcher Shannon Becker started the game, allowing just one run in three innings.

Senior Payton Tidd took over in a critical spot, with the tied 1-1 in the fourth inning. Tidd retired all 12 hitters she faced, extending her shutout streak

Continued from page 16

graduate student left-hander John Michael Bertrand will get the nod once again in the opener.

Bertrand has been the Irish’s ace so far this season, compiling a 4-0 record to go along with a 2.19 ERA and 39 strikeouts.

The team has yet to announce a starter for Saturday’s contest and has tabbed graduate transfer pitcher Austin Temple for Sunday’s finale. Temple has been a great addition to the Irish rotation this year after spending four years at Jacksonville.

Notably, senior pitcher Aidan Tyrell was not listed as a starter

Lacrosse Continued from page 16

the warm-up jersey sale will be donated to the Tommy O’Brien Fund. And to honor Kavovit, funds will also be donated to the 15 For Life Foundation.

Kavovit wore No. 15 while playing for the Orange.

While the men’s lacrosse team led this effort, the rest of the Irish athletic programs worked to honor the Mental Health Awareness week as well. Every other team wore “Irish Strong” warmup jerseys

to eight innings. It helped to have a much sharper defense behind them, as the Irish had their first error free game since March 18 on Wednesday.

That was especially important since it took Notre Dame’s bats a while to get going. The score remained deadlocked at one into the bottom of the fifth inning. But a solo home run by junior shortstop Brooke Marquez gave the Irish the lead for good. Notre Dame tacked on a couple of crucial insurance runs in the

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for the series. Tyrell had been the game one starter for the first two ACC series but struggled in that role. He came out of the bullpen in the Irish’s loss to Virginia Tech last weekend.

“Some of the pieces of the pitching staff are the most critical parts of what we’re doing right now,” Jarrett said. “It hasn’t been good in some stretches, and that’s why we haven’t really played as well in the last 10 days.”

The Seminoles pitchers will certainly be a challenge for the Irish. They will start left-handers Parker Messick, Bryce Hubbart and Ross Dunn, all three of whom are limiting opponents to a sub-.200 batting average.

However, the Irish have a righthanded heavy lineup, so this could work to their advantage.

The Seminoles lead the alltime series against the Irish 2110, and took two of three in South Bend last year. However, the Irish are 8-1 in conference road series since Jarrett took over the program in 2019.

First pitch is scheduled for 7 p.m. Friday in Tallahassee, followed by a 2 p.m. start on Saturday and 1 p.m. on Sunday to conclude the series. All three contests will be televised on ACC Network Extra.

and dedicated one of their games to the “Mental Matters” cause. The goal, beyond raising money for these funds, was to raise awareness about mental health and to highlight resources available to the Notre Dame and South Bend communities.

The broader goal, Manyak stated, is to make sure this effort doesn’t fade away after the week. He and his peers within Irish Strong hope to make it a lasting movement, and one that doesn’t stick within the

confines of Notre Dame sports.

“We don’t want to keep it to just athletics. It’s a problem in far more than just sports.

Sports are just a way to bring people together.”

Notre Dame and Syracuse will play at 2pm on Saturday. There will be a moment of silence before the game to honor O’Brien, Kavovit, and all those who have been directly, or indirectly, impacted by mental illness.

sixth. Kronenberger stretched the lead to 3-1 with an RBI single before Tidd drove in a run to help herself with a sacrifice f ly.

Overall, it was a tremendous week for the Irish softball team. They continue to rise as they look to return to the top 25. Considering they were already second highest on the receiving votes list, just maintaining their success could be enough to earn them a ranking. As Notre Dame progresses

Contact Liam Coolican at lcoolica@nd.edu

Contact Aidan Thomas at athoma28@nd.edu

towards the bulk of its ACC schedule, beginning with a three-game series at home this weekend against Georgia Tech, the Irish can feel comfortable about their play on both sides of the ball.

The Irish are back in action Friday, March 1 as they host the Georgia Tech Yellowjackets at 5 p.m. at Melissa Cook Stadium.

Contact Andrew McGuinness at amcguinn@nd.edu

M Tennis Continued from page 13

team in t wo weeks than we are right now. If we can do that and play these matches w ith the urgency and intensit y and focus they deser ve, we are going to be a better team in a few weeks. We have improved ever y week throughout the year and we want to keep that trend going.”

Tune into the live stream or follow the live scoring this weekend as Notre Dame takes on Wake Forest and NC State. The matchup against the Demon Deacons takes place Friday, April 1 at 4 p.m. followed by play against the Wolfpack on Sunday, April 3 at noon.

Contact Madeline Ladd at mladd2@nd.edu

sports

ndsmcobserver.com | friday, april 1, 2022 | The Observer

15

ND MEn’s basketball

Blake Wesley officially announces entrance into the NBA draft after first year on the Notre Dame team Observer Sports Staff

After much speculation throughout the season, Blake Wesley made it official Wednesday afternoon: he w ill enter his name into the NBA draft. Players can enter their names into the draft w ithout losing their college eligibilit y, so Wesley has until June 1 to decide if he w ill return to Notre Dame. However, he has made it clear that he intends to remain in the draft and forgo his remaining three

years of eligibilit y.

“I am beyond thankful to be a part of this family.

The coaching staff and facult y here are amazing and I’m blessed to have this experience. You believed in me and gave me a chance to excel on and off the court,” Wesley said in the tweet. “Play ing for the Notre Dame family and the South Bend communit y has made this year an incredible experience. It has always been a dream and a goal for me to play at the

next level.”

Should he remain in the draft, Wesley would be the first one-anddone in Notre Dame basketball’s histor y. He was the Irish’s leading scorer this year, averaging 14.4 points per game after coming in as a four-star recruit from Riley High School. He was the first player who graduated from a South Bend public high school to sign w ith the Irish since 1985.

In addition to leading the

SMC Tennis

Assistant Managing Editor

Saint Mary’s Tennis swept Olivet Wednesday night in a 9-0 match. The Belles let up a combined six games in singles and only two games total in doubles.

To open the night, senior Meredith Heckert and junior Kalyn Borger didn’t let up a single game to win their doubles match against Comets Alyssa Davis and Kennedy Karns 8-0. Junior Lucy Chamberlin and freshman Alayna Campbell followed shortly after, winning 8-1 at first doubles, and to close out all three doubles points for the Belles junior Kathleen McLeod and senior Nikki Rust won 8-0.

“We talked before the match, and we definitely had some strategies that we wanted to put in for doubles tonight.” head coach Dale Campbell said. “So we were especially proud of our team plays that we were working on. We executed those things and that was an important thing for us tonight.”

Campbell said that the key

Softball Continued from page 14

yesterday what she is capable of doing up at the plate, and I think the sky’s the limit for her future. Jane Kronenberger found her way into the starting lineup because of her offense — it’s just insane how she’s hitting the ball right now. Shannon started earlier producing and giving us wins on the mound.

I feel like the freshman class is just getting started.

They have a huge future ahead of them.”

Georgia Tech’s strong pitching and overall skill

the NBA draft waters, head coach Mike Brey said in an appearance on a Chicago radio station this week. Other players, including senior guard Prentiss Hubb, senior guard Dane Goodw in and senior guard Cormac Ryan, have yet to make a decision.

Regardless, it appears that the Irish w ill look ver y different next year.

Most NBA draft experts have positioned Wesley as a mid-first round pick. The draft is scheduled for June 23.

softball

Saint Mary’s sweeps Olivet 9-0

By MANNION McGINLEY

team in scoring, he also averaged 3.7 rebounds and 2.4 assists. He was named second-team A ll-ACC and allrookie team.

The Irish w ill now have a significant amount of production to replace next year, w ith leading rebounder and third-leading scorer graduate student for ward Paul Atkinson Jr. hav ing announced this week that he would not seek another year of eligibilit y. Senior for ward Nate Laszewski is also testing

to doubles was to stay “to stay assertive.” But there’s another piece to winning matches, he said. “[We had] to be able to switch gears and be patient for our singles play,” Campbell said.

“And know that there’s different ways to win a match and just fighting through those matches.”

That’s exactly what the team did. Heckert moved the team closer to victory as she won her three singles match in straight sets, 6-0, 6-0. She was followed up by Campbell who clinched the match in another 6-0, 6-0 match with McLeod right behind her, touting the same score. Not a single Belle would take longer than straight sets to win Wednesday night.

The one place the Comets were able to put up a fight was at one singles. Chamberlin found a way to win though, only dropping three games and fighting past Makenzie Borg.

“Lucy is always a fighter,” Campbell said. “She always works hard, and she’ll do anything she can do

to win a match. So I think she’s learning to be patient with herself throughout her matches, but we know that effort (is) always going to be there.”

Chamberlin won 6-2, 6-1 to bring the Belles one step closer to the sweep. Then, Rust won in straight sets, both of them 6-0.

To close the match, sophomore Katie Hunter won 6-2, 6-1 at six singles.

Not only was Campbell happy with the success against Olivet, but he said he was glad it came so quickly in the context of the rest of the week’s schedule.

“We were glad that [Wednesday night] wasn’t an extremely long match. We wanted to stay a bit rested,” Campbell said. He continued that the team is most focused on their in-conference match on Saturday.

Saturday, the Belles take on Alma, their third in-conference opponent of the season, at 1 p.m. in Michigan.

will be a test for the Irish this weekend. The Irish will have to play some consistent softball in all aspects of the game if they hope to claim the victor y against the Yellowjackets.

“I think Georgia Tech is one of the most powerful teams in our conference, so they’re going to put the bat on the ball and they are going to find a way,” Gumpf said. “We have to minimize big hits and keep them hitting the ball the way that our pitchers want them to – we have to induce a lot of popups and ground balls.

They’re a ver y good team,

but we are up for the challenge. We are going to give them some great softball this weekend.”

Though these matchups against Georgia Tech are important for the Irish on the field, the team also has a huge weekend off the field in terms of fundraising. It is Strikeout Cancer weekend, the biggest weekend of Notre Dame Softball’s season.

The weekend focuses on raising funds for children in the area fighting cancer. The team has had some serious success with the fundraiser in the past, and Gumpf said she is excited to bring it back this year.

Contact Mannion McGinley at mmcginl3@nd.edu

Irish carried to nonconference victories

By ANDREW McGUINNESS Associate Sports Editor

After inclement weather essentially brought their season to a halt, the Irish softball team got back into action with a pair of nonconference games against Loyola University Chicago and Central Michigan on Tuesday and Wednesday, respectively. Even though the Irish played just one of five scheduled games since March 19, they showed no signs of rust.

For the first time in just over four years, the Irish recorded a no-hitter Tuesday against the Ramblers.

Graduate student pitcher Alexis Holloway, who had the last Notre Dame nohitter back in March 2018, kept the Ramblers out of the hit column for all five innings of a 10-0 Notre Dame victory. Holloway allowed just four baserunners the entire game — one walk,

“In the past, we’ve raised over $400,000 over the past ten years,” Gumpf said. “We are ver y committed to helping the families and the children just in this region that are fighting cancer. Our goal is to raise $40,000 this weekend, and all of it is committed to raising these funds for these children.”

Donations can be made online. In addition to online donations, there are several fun activities, such as a trivia night and home run derby, that the team has planned for fans this weekend to raise funds.

“Each player has a mobile website where you

two errors and one dropped third strike. She recorded five strikeouts on the day and kept a scuff ling LoyolaChicago offense off balance all game. Holloway generated lots of weak contact and off balance swings from just about every hitter.

The Irish offense certainly gave Holloway plenty of support. Notre Dame jumped out to an early 8-0 lead by scoring four runs in each of the first two innings. For the second straight game, sophomore first baseman Karina Gaskins gave the Irish a 2-0 lead, this time with a tworun single to right field.

Sophomore third baseman Cassidy Grimm followed suit with an opposite-field two-run single of her own later in the inning.

Freshman second baseman Jane Kronenberger kept the trend going with a two-run single of her own see LOYOLA/CMU PAGE 14

can donate. There is also a homerun derby Sunday after our game for all students,” Gumpf said. “$5 for 5 swings and you can come out and hit. It’s super fun and they play music. We are also doing trivia night on Saturday over at the [South Bend] Cubs hitting facility and it’s just an awesome weekend.”

First pitch is scheduled for 5 p.m. Friday. Play continues Saturday at 1p.m. and Sunday at noon and will be broadcasted on ACC Network Extra.

Contact Madeline Ladd at mladd2@nd.edu

16

The observer | friday, april 1, 2022 | ndsmcobserver.com

PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY MAGGIE KLAERS |PHOTOS COURTESY OF NOTRE DAME ATHLETICS

men’s lacrosse

Baseball

Lacrosse promotes Mental FSU: Opportunity Health Awareness Week awaits the Irish

By AIDAN THOMAS Sports Editor

Notre Dame vs. Syracuse is always a massive ACC lacrosse game. This year is hardly any different, with the Irish entering as the No. 16 in the country, and Syracuse ranked 21st. The buzz will be palpable, but this year the on-field result is hardly the most important part of the day.

Both Notre Dame and Syracuse are collaborating in an effort to support mental health. The game ends a Mental Health Awareness Week throughout Notre Dame athletics. Notre Dame’s Student-Athlete Advisory Council started the initiative, with the lacrosse team spearheading the effort. Junior midfielder Max Manyak is a board member on the Council and the Co-President of Irish Strong. Irish Strong is a student-athlete-led program focused on destigmatizing mental health and helpseeking within the Notre Dame community. Manyak

discussed the origins of his team’s motivation to raise awareness for this cause.

“How it started was we have a guy [Jose Boyer] from Yorktown, New York.

[Rob Kavovit] was from his hometown. A really good lacrosse player and an influential guy in his community.”

Kavovit was a former Syracuse lacrosse star, having graduated in 1997. However, tragically, in the spring of 2021, Kavovit took his own life at age 45. “We wear tape on our helmets to honor people sometimes, and Jose’s tape was for Rob,” Manyak said.

This came about nine months after Notre Dame lacrosse alum Tommy O’Brien did the same in the summer of 2020, passing away at age 49.

The two tragic events linked the two communities, and it led to Manyak, Jose and the Notre Dame coaching staff looking for a way to help.

“We were talking - between us and with our coaching staff. And we decided it would

be super cool if we could do something to honor both families,” Manyak explained.

“We are both wearing completely customized warmup jerseys, just for this game, to honor both Tommy and Rob.” Manyak also noted the team was making flyers to distribute around campus and the South Bend community.

Not only are the teams wearing these jerseys, but they’re selling them via an online store that opened this week. A portion of the proceeds go back to Notre Dame lacrosse, and the team is turning that over to a pair of charity funds set up for both Kavovit and O’Brien.

“There are two funds set up, one for Rob and one for Tommy.

It’s recognizing mental health together within a very tight-knit lacrosse community,” Manyak said. “So we are doing something for our respective alumni but also together as a community.”

For O’Brien, proceeds from see LACROSSE PAGE 14

By LIAM COOLICAN Associate Sports Editor

After suffering four consecutive conference defeats, No. 13 Notre Dame baseball will look to bounce back this weekend on the road against No. 5 Florida State.

It will be Link Jarrett’s first trip to Tallahassee as a head coach, where he was a four-year starter from 1991-94.

“This will be a super regional,” Jarrett said of the upcoming weekend. The Seminoles have won each of their three conference series to this point.

“To go execute and perform and play, you can’t just do it today. You’re going to have to do it Friday, you’re going to have to do it Saturday and you’re going to have to do it Sunday to have a chance to win in these environments,” Jarrett said.

Notre Dame was swept by Louisville on the road two weekends ago and followed that with a loss in their ACC home opener against Virginia Tech, before the rest of the series was canceled due to weather. The Irish bounced back in a big way

Tuesday, defeating Northern Illinois 11-2, but the level of competition will certainly be steeper this weekend.

However, Jarrett said he was pleased by the team’s attitude following the loss to Virginia Tech.

“These guys show up to play the game, and that’s what I love about them the most, is they work so hard in all phases of their career here as a student athlete,” he said.

“When it’s time to come play you know you’re going to get their best attention and effort.”

The Irish bullpen has been the culprit more often than not recently. In the previous four defeats, Notre Dame had been leading or tied in the eighth inning in three of those games.

“We’ve got to, with the group as a whole, find ways to get through some of those tough parts of the game and we haven’t done that as well recently,” Jarrett said of the bullpen.

The starting rotation may look different for the Irish this weekend as well. After being slotted as the Friday starter last weekend, see BASEBALL PAGE 14