The Hoya: Oct. 5, 2012

GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY’S NEWSPAPER OF RECORD SINCE 1920 thehoya.com

Georgetown University • Washington, D.C. Vol. 94, No. 11, © 2012

friDAY, october 5, 2012

CHEAP EATS

The Guide explores DC’s most delicious options for dining on a budget.

COMMENTARY True diversity on campus doesn’t last long after “Pluralism in Action.”

GUIDE, G5

GERMS The emergency response service celebrates its 30th anniversary.

NEWS, A4

OPINION, A3

Leo’s Corrects Health Code Violations Sarah Kaplan Hoya Staff Writer

According to results from a followup inspection of O’Donovan Hall published this week, the cafeteria is now in compliance with D.C. health regulations.

The second inspection, which was conducted Sept. 24, came after inspectors found six critical and two noncritical violations of the code during a routine check-in of the dining hall earlier that month.

According to the DOH report on the first inspection, a food establishment with six or more critical violations would typically be closed immediately. Georgetown’s dining hall was allowed to remain operative because it corrected two of the critical violations — improper separation and protection of different foods and the absence of an advisory notice warning diners about raw or undercooked foods — during the course of the inspection.

Leo’s addressed the remaining violations — unclean food surfaces, improper temperatures for holding cold food, worn-out cutting boards, a broken walk-in cooler, that some employees did not wear hair restraints and that the facility lacked chemical strips for testing sanitizing solutions — in the following weeks, and was ALEXANDER BROWN FOR THE HOYA completely in compliance with D.C. code at the time of the Sept. 24 in- After being cited for eight health code violations during a Sept. 4 inspection, the dining hall has adspection. dressed all infractions, according to a Department of Health report released this week.

RIBBON CUTTING AT REGENTS HALL

MEN’S SOCCER The previously unbeaten Hoyas fell to Connecticut Wednesday afternoon.

SPORTS, A10

Grad Rate Ranks 5th In Nation Braden McDonald Hoya Staff Writer

With a graduation rate of 90.1 percent in 2009, Georgetown’s is the fifth highest among four-year schools in the United States, according to an Oct. 2 ranking by U.S. News & World Report.

Georgetown placed behind Swarthmore College, Haverford College, Pomona College and the University of Notre Dame, which had four-year rates of 91.3, 91.1, 90.8 and 90.5 percent, respectively.

But Georgetown also placed above peer institutions like Duke University, which had an 89 percent rate, and all of the Ivy League schools.

The rankings reflect the percentage of students who entered undergraduate programs in 2005 and graduated at the same school within four years.

Nationally, this statistic is only 40 percent, according to the report.

According to Dean of Undergraduate Admissions Charles Deacon, See GRADUATION, A6

Homecoming Draws Record Turnout Emma Hinchliffe Hoya Staff Writer

More than 6,500 students and alumni returned to campus for Homecoming Weekend, marking a record level of participation for the event.

“We’ve continued to see the trend that our homecoming attendance continues to rise,” said Vanessa Otarola (NHS ’08), director of class enrollments and reunion campaigns for the Office of Advancement. “We really think it’s due to the fact that we’re expanding Homecoming Weekend each year … trying to get it away from just being focused on the tailgate and really looking at opportunities for unique programming [for] various constituencies.”

Changes to this year’s schedule in-

cluded the addition of alumni events for specific student groups, a photo station and the revival of family movie night on Copley lawn Friday, an event that was open to students, alumni, faculty and members of the broader Georgetown community.

“This is the first time we involved the neighbors,” Otarola said. “I think they felt appreciated to be included.”

Though homecoming does not focus on fundraising, a record number of more than 1,000 current seniors and young alumni of the past five graduation years participated in a giving challenge leading up to the weekend, according to Otarola. She declined to comment on how much money was raised.

Otarola said that engagement efforts for this year’s homecoming focused on young alumni and current

students rather than older alumni.

“We really see homecoming as a way to engage our students, our young alumni and really all of our alumni, fostering this sense of community and class identity — really looking at future generations of Hoyas and how Georgetown will be for generations to come,” she said.

All homecoming attendees received an email survey, and according to Otarola, 240 responses had been sent back as of Thursday.

The Office of Advancement worked with the Senior Class Committee and student volunteers to staff homecoming events.

“It’s really exciting to see all the alums walk in and find their classmates and get really excited about seeing them,” student volunteer Janice Medina (NHS ’15) said.

Epicurean Workers Settle Lawsuit EUGENE ANG FOR THE HOYA

Members of the Board of Regents and university administrators formally opened the science center at a ceremony Thursday afternoon.

GU Considers Buying Maryland Campus Tia Baheri

Special to The Hoya

Georgetown University and Montgomery College have both emerged as potential buyers of the 47-acre National Labor College campus in Silver Spring, Md. Georgetown is in the preliminary stages of considering the space as a location for conferences and athletic fields and has made no official offer, according to university spokesperson Stacy Kerr.

“Any time a large plot of land becomes available in the area, Georgetown is a natural [institution] to approach,” Kerr said. “We are in a very preliminary stage of the talks at the moment.”

The National Labor College, located just off the Capital Beltway in Silver Spring, serves as the educational center for the American labor movement, according to the school’s website.

But mounting financial issues and an annual deficit of over $6 million have forced the college to sell its campus.

Courses and accreditation, however, will continue through online courses.

Montgomery College officials have already toured the site, which is located just four miles down the street from their Takoma Park campus. “[Deciding what to do with the campus] would be discussed before we take any further action. It’s not just one building. It’s quite a large space and a few buildings, so before we make any bid or offer, we would discuss that,” said Elizabeth Homan, spokesperson for Montgomery College.

Neither school is expected to make an official bid in the near future, but discussions are ongoing.

“These things take a really long time,” Kerr said.

Newsroom: (202) 687-3415 Business: (202) 687-3947

Upasana Kaku Hoya Staff Writer

Three former employees of Epicurean and Company who sued their employer for violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act in July have reached settlements on their cases.

The three plaintiffs filed a civil case in the District of Columbia District Court July 30 alleging that their employer failed to maintain accurate time records and did not compensate employees at the mandated overtime rate.

Chang Wook Chon, the proprietor of Epicurean and Co.’s Georgetown and Van Ness locations, filed an agreement known as an offer of judgment with regard to two of the plaintiffs last month. Pending approval by the court, judgment will be entered in favor of the two plaintiffs, who will receive a total of $14,250 in damages.

According to Kimberly Jandrain, an attorney for Epicurean and Co., her client misunderstood how to calculate correct overtime wages.

“It was an honest mistake,” she said.

But Darin Dalmat, an attorney See EPICUREAN, A6 Published Tuesdays and Fridays

CHRIS GRIVAS/THE HOYA

A judge will review the two settlements to address any remaining issues with the deals at a teleconference scheduled for Oct. 15.

Send Story Ideas and Tips to news@thehoya.com

A2

OPINION

THE HOYA

FRIday, october 5, 2012

THE VERDICT

C

Founded January 14, 1920

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EDITORIALS

Blackboard Has Its Limits C

The university solicited student feedback Tuesday for ways to improve Blackboard.

Although the website has vast capabilities, its effectiveness is limited. In fact, when discussion boards are used as a substitute, or even a supplement, to classroom conversations, Blackboard can become a detriment to the learning experience.

The extent of Blackboard’s role in Georgetown courses should remain limited, serving only as a tool for basic functions such as delivering announcements, providing an assignment drop box and making documents and other course content accessible.

Professors should not use Blackboard discussion boards as an alternative to classroom discourse. By deferring to an online platform in lieu of personal interactions, the depth of dialogue almost always suffers. Internet engagement is unwieldy,

and the back-and-forth of true discussion is often lost. Online contributions almost always devolve to the bare minimum. Let’s be honest: The pressure of in-person judgment and rebuttal is critical to the rigor of participation.

Today’s standards for higher education require the usage of online teaching tools, including Blackboard. Considering the goal stated in Chief Information Officer Lisa Davis’ message to students — “to make sure you have an effective digital learning tool that you love to use” — it’s safe to say that administrators are open to reforming Georgetown’s use of Blackboard. They should do so cautiously.

When critical components of the classroom get outsourced online to websites like Blackboard, the Georgetown education is not expanded, but cheapened.

C

Leaky Servers — A group known as “Team GhostShell” hacked the online systems of several top universities across the world, including Stanford, Harvard and the University of Tokyo. They then leaked information about students and staff.

A Clean Plate — After being cited for eight health code violations in early September, Leo’s passed its most recent health inspection Sept. 24.

Easy Travels — WMATA plans to allow commuters to refill balances on their SmarTrip cards automatically.

LETTER TO THE EDITOR

Senate Voters Well Informed To the editor: Elections for the Georgetown University Student Association senate are a meaningless guessing game, the Editorial Board argued last week in “GUSA Senate Stumps Voters” (A2, Sept. 28, 2012). Students naively select the names they recognize from an ocean of candidates they know virtually nothing about.

I agree — elections are, by definition, popularity contests. That popularity, however, is not as superficial as the Board seems to think. In this election, candidates built their stature by clearly articulating their stances on specific issues and by actively getting others involved.

This year’s senate elections were the most competitive Georgetown has ever seen. Contestants refined their positions and campaigned vigorously to distinguish themselves from others.

Facebook was a valuable campaigning tool, contrary to what the Board claims.

Through our pages, we actively communicated with our fellow students and clearly articulated our platforms. With a few exceptions, the candidates who won were the ones who ran the most visible pages.

Library Updates Overdue Follow a university’s paper trail, and you will quickly discover where the school’s priorities lie. Georgetown has spent generously to bolster facilities for science research, athletics and business education. But what about Lauinger Library — the place former provost James O’Donnell once called “a beacon of our commitment to learning and inquiry”?

The library may be notorious for its architectural unattractiveness, but its interior deficiencies are also of concern. O’Donnell was right: Libraries on college campuses are both symbolic and substantive reflections of a school’s academic commitment, and Lauinger sends an unflattering message to Georgetown insiders and outsiders alike.

Lauinger is overdue for a cosmetic and functional facelift. The main library on the Hilltop should be on par with Georgetown’s attractive campus and appreciation for research and scholarship. The library, built in 1970, sits near the center of campus,

Shot in the Arm — The Student Health Center began offering free flu vaccinations at Yates Field House and several other locations on Tuesday.

and its unappealing facade is a blemish on an otherwise historic landscape. More importantly, Lauinger does not properly serve students and faculty as a 21st-century library. With its lack of natural light, dated layout and shortage of usable space, the library is often used by students only as a last resort for studying.

Aesthetic concerns in the Lauinger interior have noticeable consequences on the mood of a place used for the already grim task of studying, and it’s no mystery why many students opt to do classwork at newer and more uplifting venues around campus.

Having successfully constructed Regents Hall for science and the Rafik B. Hariri Building for business, the university should turn its attention to improving Lauinger. Such requests are not made merely to indulge students with a luxurious study experience but to offer members of the Georgetown community more than just bare-bones resources for their academic pursuits.

Some went further; many of us launched canvassing campaigns to ensure that our fellow students knew who we were and for what we stood. For instance, candidate Nate Tisa (SFS ’14) spent a lot of time getting to know people in Village A. My volunteer team and I knocked on virtually every dorm door, talking to students and distributing flyers summarizing our platform.

Suggesting that students are ignorant is unfair; the overwhelming majority of the people I got to know while canvassing were well informed about GUSA. The electorate I met was neither uninformed nor disinterested.

The Editorial Board was quick to demonize the senate elections — so quick, it published its attack two days before the election results were even out. It regurgitated generalizations and included no assessment of the situation. Engagement was at a record high in last week’s election. Candidates went out of their way to be engaging, and their fellow Georgetown students were, in turn, very engaged.

George Spyropoulos (COL ’14) At-large GUSA senator

ALWAYS ON THE SUNNY SIDE by Sania Salman

Travel Policy Problematic The safety of students who are studying abroad should never be taken lightly, but Georgetown’s new international travel policy lacks clarity and risks adding a layer of bureaucratic overprotection that could inhibit the learning experience — particularly for students whose travels would not put them in any sort of foreseeable danger.

Katherine Bellows, executive director of the Office of International Programs, said in an interview that she is not certain whether the new policy would require students studying in Europe, for example, to register a trip with Georgetown before traveling throughout the continent and added that she is waiting for clarification from university council.

This is no minor exception to the rule, which was announced Tuesday — it’s a critical distinction that could strike directly at the experience of those studying abroad. For a policy that was years in the making, it’s troubling that every legal wrinkle has not been ironed out and made available to the public.

The new policy mandates that all undergraduate students request approval for any type of travel, whether or not they are going to a country for which the State Department has issued a travel warning.

Student travel requests will also have to be reviewed by a travel committee and attend a safety and security orientation.

This kind of bureaucracy prevents the kind of spontaneous adventuring that is often a signature aspect of the study abroad experience. It seems excessive to require that students get approval from multiple university agencies in order to spend a weekend in Switzerland.

Bellows did underscore OIP’s overarching aim of facilitating travel and keeping students safe, and we agree that the policy has respectable motivations. Some countries pose threats to travelers, and registration allows the university to protect students who have dangerous travel plans. But the university must continue to work to make international travel rules clear and targeted directly at those who truly are going into harm’s way.

Connor Gregoire, Editor-in-Chief Sarah Kaplan, Executive Editor Steven Piccione, Managing Editor Sarah Patrick, Campus News Editor Braden McDonald, City News Editor Evan Hollander, Sports Editor Victoria Edel, Guide Editor Danny Funt, Opinion Editor Leonel De Velez, Photography Editor Emory Wellman, Layout Editor Hunter Main, Copy Chief Michelle Cassidy, Blog Editor

Contributing Editors Mariah Byrne, Patrick Curran, Kavya Devarakonda, Katherine Foley, Bethany Imondi, Upasana Kaku, Shakti Nochur, Samantha Randazzo, Ashwin Wadekar, Lauren Weber

Emma Hinchliffe Hiromi Oka Kelly Church Sam Rodman Arik Parnass Ryan Bacic Zach Gordon Nicole Jarvis Sheena Karkal Shannon Reilly Jamie Slater Sean Sullivan Hanaa Khadraoui Chris Grivas Zoe Bertrand Kyle Hunter Jessica Natinsky Nikita Buley Martin Hussey

Deputy Campus News Editor Deputy Campus News Editor Deputy City News Editor Deputy Features Editor Deputy Sports Editor Sports Blog Editor Deputy Guide Editor Deputy Guide Editor Deputy Guide Editor Deputy Copy Editor Deputy Copy Editor Deputy Copy Editor Deputy Opinion Editor Deputy Photography Editor Deputy Layout Editor Deputy Layout Editor Deputy Layout Editor Graphics Editor Deputy Blog Editor

Editorial Board Danny Funt, Chair Kent Carlson, Sidney Chiang, Patrick Gavin, Hanaa Khadraoui, Laura Wagner

CORRECTIONS An article about the seventh GUSA senate (“Newly Elected Senate Includes Nine Women,” A1, Oct. 2, 2012) incorrectly identified senator Sheila Walsh (COL ‘14) as the representative for the Copley district. She was elected to represent the townhouses.

The editorial “An Unsung Intiative ” (A2, Oct. 2, 2012) incorrectly stated the distribution of students who had been nominated for Rhodes, Marshall and Mitchell Scholarships. There were candidates who were not Carroll Fellows.

The article “Medical Center Identifies New Tumor Treatment” (A4, Oct. 2, 2012) incorrectly stated that the GU Medical Center developed the treatment. The center screened preexisting treatments for effectiveness and identified the new treatment’s usefulness in treating human papillomavirus-positive recurrent respiratory papillomatosis.

Jonathan Rabar, General Manager David Hanna, Director of Corporate Development James Church, Director of Finance Erica Hanichak, Director of Marketing Kent Carlson, Director of Personnel Mary Nancy Walter, Director of Sales Michael Vu, Director of Technology Glenn Russo Martha DiSimone Kelsey Zehentbauer John Bauke Molly Lynch Sheena Garg Michal Grabias Keeley Williams Suzanne Fonzi Michael Lindsay-Bayley Ryan Smith

Special Programs Manager Accounts Manager Operations Manager Statements Manager Treasury Manager Public Relations Manager Human Resources Manager Institutional Diversity Manager Professional Development Manager Online Advertisements Manager Web Manager

Board of Directors

Lauren Weber, Chair

Patrick Curran, Connor Gregoire, Dylan Hunt, Jonathan Rabar, Mairead Reilly, Sam Schneider

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OPINION

friday, october 5, 2012

VIEWPOINT • Rosenfield

THE HOYA

A3

THE ETHNICITY OF FEMININITY

‘Institutionally Racist’ Take Action on Pluralism A Conversation Starter F Y

ou may have seen us before. Last Tuesday afternoon, we walked into Red Square and got quite a bit of attention. But that was not our first time using words to spark thought and dialogue. Last year, we stood in Red Square holding signs for a silent action campaign organized by what was then a new group on campus, Georgetown Leaders for Unity and Equity.

The posters GLUE carried last year displayed quotations from authors and activists that we felt addressed crucial, and often overlooked, points regarding race and diversity in this country. The campaign in Red Square last week was a continuation of those efforts — efforts through which we hope to challenge members of the Georgetown community to think about issues that may not usually cross their minds and engage a range of people and perspectives in this discussion.

We decided last week that instead of writing questions on posters, we would have them feature statements that would push people to challenge their own opinions — a form of awareness that is crucial for meaningful dialogue. Understandably, most people focused on the poster reading “Georgetown is institutionally racist.”

Let us first say that this message was intended as a discussion topic and, while not explicitly framed as a question, aimed to create a platform for dialogue. It was not offered as an unequivocal statement, nor was it intended as an attack on the university’s efforts to improve the experiences of Georgetown students who may otherwise feel isolated. We are cognizant and grateful of the efforts of administrators, students, faculty and staff to create programs, centers and support networks that improve the experience at Georgetown for many students.

We are concerned, however, that students are not more encouraged to participate in cross-cultural groups.

Why is it so rare to see diversity in cultural, political or activist groups?

Why are we often afraid to meaningfully engage with people from different racial, ethnic, cultural or geographic backgrounds — not to mention diversity of gender, sexuality, political affiliation, religion, age, ability and many more? Why is it rare to see white students in AfricanAmerican studies classes and male students in women’s and gender studies classes?

We venture to say that it shouldn’t be so rare. The burden of change should not fall only on individuals but also on the institution, which has the capacity to encourage and incentivize these intellectual and cultural exchanges. It is our job as students, however, to demonstrate to the university the importance of these institutional changes. We believe that demonstrations are invaluable to this process because they allow for an exchange of perspectives among students who may not otherwise interact and, ideally, for the inclusion of those people in the central aspect of GLUE: dialogue.

In recognizing that issues of identity ultimately affect all of us and shape our experiences both at Georgetown and in the world at large, GLUE holds weekly discussions about topics that, although neither easy nor comfortable, provide a largely unavailable venue for students to talk about how to make effective change in those realms. This mission is why we have stood in Red Square holding posters that we knew would spark both agreement and vehement disagreement.

GLUE strongly believes that engagement must come from all sides, not only to make engagement feasible but also to make it just and equitable.

Therefore, it is simply not possible — or fair — to ask those in the Georgetown community to engage, to challenge their opinions or to step out of their comfort zones if we are not doing the same ourselves.

or about two hours at the beginning of freshman year, Georgetown is everyone’s sanctuary. With the lights off in the McDonough Gymnasium, students of different cultures, ethnicities and sexual orientations hear stories about how our differences have brought us together on this campus. We follow up with group discussions, in which some students say they relate to the stories they’ve just heard and others grapple with the notion that the lives they once deemed ordinary have been polluted by privilege.

We all leave feeling as if we have developed an unbreakable bond, or at least an understanding of each other’s perspectives.

This is “Pluralism in Action.”

Then, diversity sinks into oblivion — allegedly.

This is the sentiment felt by quite a few students at Georgetown. Last week, a protest in Red Square held by Georgetown Leaders for Unity and Equity bluntly stated that this university is “institutionally racist.” The school’s ethnic proportions do not reflect true diversity, and some measures to accommodate students of various backgrounds are inappropriately pursued.

According to the College Board, Georgetown’s student body is 11 percent Asian, 7 percent black, 9 percent Hispanic, 4 percent mixed-raced and 9 percent “nonresident alien/other.” Such statistics do not demonstrate diversity when the remaining 60 percent come from one ethnic group.

The student body’s diversity may

mirror that of other colleges, but that doesn’t mean it can’t use a bit more variety.

The lack of diversity among staff and faculty members is also unjustifiable. For example, out of all the associate professors who teach at Georgetown, we can count those who are black on one hand. Their presence is necessary for students of color, as we need to have people whom we can aspire to emulate profession-

Khadijah Davis

The university’s ethnic proportions do not reflect true diversity. ally from a cultural standpoint.

The core curricula across Georgetown’s schools and majors do not require students to go beyond the scope of the world they choose to see. There are required courses that compel us to be holistic without demanding that we learn about one another. Examining our cultural, economic or social differences is a choice that is not highlighted and typically not chosen.

While it’s true that George-

town is by no means flawless when it comes to diversity, this struggle is one that is going on at colleges across the nation. There has been considerable progress in this regard, and that should not go without acknowledgement.

And Georgetown does make sincere efforts to make students who are not the prototypical Jack or Jane Hoya feel more comfortable. There is guidance given to students who feel alienated because they have been categorized for their otherness. The Center for Multicultural Equity and Access was established to serve students coming from historically disadvantaged backgrounds. The CMEA organizes programs such as Hoya Saxa Weekend and Community Scholars, the former of which played a major role in my decision to attend this school.

The university also offers a long list of non-exclusive multicultural organizations that promote awareness of diversity across racial and ethnic categories.

While we should acknowledge and appreciate these efforts, it is essential to recognize that there is still much more to be done.

Over the years, I believe that Georgetown will become more active with its programming and initiatives to reach the diversity we desire.

Khadijah Davis is a sophomore in the School of Nursing and Health Studies. She is secretary of Georgetown University Women of Color. THE ETHNICITY OF FEMININITY appears every other Friday.

1789 PROBLEMS by Arturo Altamirano

CARLY ROSENFIELD is a junior in the College. She is co-chair of Georgetown Leaders for Unity and Equity.

VIEWPOINT • Kelley

Sexual Assault Myths Perpetuate Problem W

hile both men and women commit and are the victims of sexual violence, I find that many men don’t feel as if they have a role in the movement against it. They themselves don’t rape, so they think that’s enough. Yet the prevalence of sexual violence has major consequences for all of us.

At a time when one in four women and one in 33 men will experience sexual assault while college-aged, there is no escaping this issue. According to the National College Health Assessment, sexual assault statistics at Georgetown mirror national rates.

Your friends, your roommates, your lab partner or a teammate on your intramural soccer team — victims are everywhere, regardless of whether you choose to acknowledge it.

Women are taught from an early age to prevent their own assault, while men are cast as perpetrators. Women walking home alone at night fear men and often quicken their pace if they see one. They hesitate when a seemingly nice guy offers to walk them home or offers them a drink. Being sensitive to these issues is invaluable if you plan on going into any career that puts you in the public eye — don’t make a mistake like Rep. Todd Akin (RMo.) discussing “legitimate rape.”

So I’ve begun to ask the men in my life questions in order to understand their lack of enthusiasm for the cause.

I’m weary of their ambivalence.

During my time as co-chair of Take Back the Night, I’ve heard a lot of talk about gray areas and false reporting — there are few things that boil my blood more than people referring to an assault as a “misunderstanding.”

I’d like to clear up a few myths.

To start, our flawed depiction of sexual assault hinders our ability to address it. Just to be clear — sexual violence is never the result of the victim’s actions. Whether a victim was wearing sweats or lingerie, had a sexual history or was a virgin, had never met the perpetrator or was the person’s partner, tried to fight off the perpetrator or went with him intentionally, sexual violence is never warranted. No one is ever “asking for it.”

Perpetrators are often upstanding citizens. Alcohol or other substances are frequently involved and victims often voluntarily end up in the location

of their assault. These factors contribute to gray areas or misunderstandings. But what seems to be a gray area on the outside is rarely a gray area on the inside.

Gray area No. 1: Sexual violence versus regretting a hookup.

No one is confusing hookups and sexual assault or regretting a hookup and accusing rape. Yet victims hear this all the time. Someone who simply regrets a hookup would have no incentive to report the incident. But according to the National Sexual Violence Resource Center, only 2 to 8 percent of reports of sexual assault are false. Let’s be clear: There is no underground business in revenge reporting.

Gray area No. 2: Lack of consent as a “misunderstanding.”

Consent is rarely elusive or ambiguous. Most people already ask for consent indirectly — for example, asking if their partner is “into it” or “likes it.” Let’s give men the benefit of the doubt; they can tell whether or not their partner consents. It isn’t hard to ascertain whether a partner is explicitly saying “no” or if the person is unmoving and looks terrified. The majority of men and women respect a lack of consent — at worst, they would call their partner a tease and be sexually frustrated. Few would use coercion or force.

Gray area No. 3: Alcohol.

Just as drunken hookups are not sexual assault, trying to hook up with someone drunk doesn’t make you a perpetrator. Rather, a sexual assault might involve hooking up with someone who is so intoxicated that they are unconscious or unresponsive or ensuring that someone reaches an extreme level of intoxication with a premeditated goal of taking advantage of him or her.

Clearly, both men and women have a role to play in addressing this problem — calling sexual violence a women’s issue is like calling water pollution a fish’s issue. This is an issue that everyone should take seriously, and if we want to respond appropriately to victims and perpetrators, there needs to be greater dialogue to address myths and misconceptions.

KATHLEEN KELLEY is a junior in the School of Nursing and Health Studies.

She is co-chair of Take Back the Night.

LETTERS TO OUR FRESHMAN SELVES

Make the Most of Your Mentors

I

t was the kind of night sophomore year for one of us when everything seemed to be going wrong — an experience we all encounter at some point.

I was walking home during my sophomore year, stressed and anxious. I ran through the last hour in my head: I had lost my temper and, with it, my sense of self. I spotted one of the seniors I looked up to the most on the Hilltop. He had been my Georgetown tour guide, essentially welcoming me to my new home. A local of my Midwestern hometown, he seemed to have it all — the friends, the jobs, the experiences and an outgoing personality.

Naturally, I didn’t want to embarrass myself. I cast my head down and attempted to scurry past with little more than a quick “hello,” but he stopped me and asked me what was wrong.

It didn’t take long for me to spill everything. The sophomore slump, with the harder classes and the friendship challenges, all seemed to be hitting me at once.

I kept apologizing for burdening this awesome senior with problems that I was sure he’d never had.

Sitting me down on the Gervase stone wall, he quickly got to the bottom of my issues. In turn, I soon realized that I hadn’t understood the whole story about what it’s like to be a Georgetown student, let alone a successful one.

I don’t remember all the details of our conversation that night, but I do remember him assuring me that he knew what I was going through. We have both realized that those people to whom we look up here at school have all been frustrated at some point as well. That kid in your government class who appears to have

all the answers? Well, he doesn’t.

That student leader with all the confidence? We can guarantee he still gets nervous when standing up in front of a group of his peers. And those student athletes who make us all cheer with their game-winning goals or threepointers? Their hearts were no doubt pounding.

No one has everything figured out — all students face the same insecurities, the same worries and the same concerns that you do. They get nervous on first dates, freak out before job interviews and are unsure where

Lauren Weber & John Morris

Mentors will be there for you because they’ve been in your shoes. they’ll be after graduation. And they’ve struggled through a rough October, too.

In high school, we grow up considering our teachers, our family friends and all the adults in our life as shining examples of mentorship. They’re the people we want to become, the ones that we want to emulate when we become (gasp!) “real” people. We idolize them.

Yet when you arrive at college, you quickly understand that your parents probably won’t be on call

at 2 a.m. to tell you whether or not to call GERMS for a friend.

They might not understand the full-blown horror that is a 12-page philosophy paper, and they probably haven’t faced the dilemma of what in the world to text that kid back.

Maybe your mentor won’t be a senior; maybe he or she will be someone in the grade above you, or it could even someone who’s already been through the tough times that you’re experiencing.

Whoever it is, they’ll be there for you because they’ve been in your shoes. Even after they leave the Hilltop, they’ll be looking out for you. Just last week, one of us received a phone call from a mentor who graduated in 2011. He was on one of his few days off, being a second-year analyst at his job, and he had just called to check in to see how life was going. We hadn’t spoken in awhile, and he was wondering if I’d chosen to go back full-time to the company where I’d interned this past summer.

It’s connections like those that will continue beyond the Hilltop.

Perhaps the only thing more rewarding than having a mentor here at Georgetown is having the opportunity to become one for someone in a few years.

So reach out to someone you look up to, whomever that may be. Make it a priority in your first two years here — you never know who you’ll discover on a stressful walk home.

Lauren Weber is a senior in the College. She is chair of the Board of Directors for The Hoya. John Morris is a senior in the College.

He is chair of the Board of Directors for Students of Georgetown, Inc. LETTERS TO OUR FRESHMAN SELVES appears every other Friday.

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NEWS

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 5, 2012

MULTIMEDIA The founders of Living on One spoke with The Hoya after screening their documentary in Gaston Hall Wednesday.

Your news — from every corner of The Hoya.

IN FOCUS

MILLENNIAL MAYORS

verbatim

“

It feels like finding you have an extra room in your studio apartment.”

”

LANNAN CHAIR OF POETICS DINAW MENGESTU (COL ’00), on receiving a MacArthur Genius Grant.

See story on A6.

from

THE WASHINGTON POST

ALEXANDER BROWN FOR THE HOYA

Mayors Svante Myrick of Ithaca, N.Y., (far left) and Alex Morse of Holyoke, Mass., (second from left) spoke with students about the future of American politics for the Millennial Values Symposium in Riggs Library Thursday night. See story at thehoya.com.

ROOT FOR THE HOME TEAM It’s been a long time coming. Cheer on the Washington Nationals as they make their first-ever postseason appearance. blog.thehoya.com

GU Eyes GERMS to Celebrate 30 Years of Work Secondary US Campus CAROLINE WELCH Special to The Hoya

Georgetown may follow national trend, launch domestic ‘study abroad’ site PENNY HUNG

Special to The Hoya

The university is actively considering launching a study abroad campus in the United States, according to Interim Dean of the School of Continuing Studies Walter Rankin.

Though Georgetown owns and operates studyabroad centers for its own students in Florence, Italy, and Alanya, Turkey, the university does not currently have any such sites in the United States.

“We are most interested in establishing a presence in cities where students have already expressed great interest, where we believe we can offer internships aligned with our educational mission and where we have a strong alumni base,” Rankin said.

He added that such programs would aim to help participating students find jobs and internships.

The establishment of specialized secondary campuses is part of a growing trend among American colleges. Last winter, Cornell University won a competition to construct a new science and engineering campus on New York City’s Roosevelt Island. A bit closer to home, New York University officially opened a new campus near McPherson Square on Sept. 24. The program will have 15 students in its inaugural class but is expected grow to over 100 students in coming years.

NYU students have expressed enthusiasm about the new D.C. campus.

“There is no better option to study politics [than] in the most politically important city in America,” Mary Heiser, a freshman at NYU, said.

Though Georgetown runs a Semester in Washington program for non-Georgetown students that serves a similar purpose to NYU’s program, university officials are not concerned about the competition.

“I don’t think it will have too much of an impact,” James Parenti, senior associate dean and chief administrative officer of the School of Continuing Studies, said. “Our program is really quite unique because these students who are coming to Georgetown are full-time students here and live on campus. We try to provide ... the full array of experiences that any other Georgetown student may come in contact with.”

With a weekend of events for members and alumni, Georgetown Emergency Response Medical Service will honor its threedecade-long transformation from a humble golf cart to three ambulances at an anniversary celebration later this month.

The weekend-long event, slated to start October 26, is intended to reacquaint founding members and recent graduates with the organization’s history and set the stage for future goals.

“The celebration is not all about showing off how great GERMS is; it’s about celebrating the success GERMS has had in serving the community for so many years,” Lauren Cournoyer (NHS ’13), chair of the GERMS Crew Chief Council, said.

The student-run service, which was founded in 1982, began with one E-Z-GO electric golf cart.

“There were several pretty serious incidents on campus where, if there had been health providers on campus and in the area, would have meant the difference between life and death,” GERMS’ Director of Training Claire McDaniel (COL ’14) said. “[These events] got the impetus going on campus that there needed to be something more immediate than [the D.C. Fire Department].”

During its initial years, GERMS assisted a student who fell through plate glass and cut himself badly. According to GERMS’ President Taylor Miller (SFS ’13), the doctor at the MedStar Georgetown University Hospital issued a report saying the student’s life would have been threatened without GERMS’ assistance.

“That’s what really helped us get off the ground in terms of getting recognition with the university,” Miller said.

Thirty years later, the group has about 130 active members and three ambulances but is still looking for ways to expand.

“We are on ambulances eight and nine,” McDaniel said. “Ambulance eight is on its last legs, so we’re going to propose a new ambulance in the spring, so [we] should be on track for a new am-

ARIEL POURMORADY FOR THE HOYA

GERMS has expanded from a single golf cart to three ambulances since its founding in 1982. bulance in 2015.”

In the past five years, GERMS has also changed its organizational structure. This decision spread leadership responsibilities from one president and one vice president to a president and three vice presidents. New crew chiefs are now responsible for mentoring GERMS members and connecting with medical directors.

Kate McClellan (COL ’14), GERMS’ director of public relations and former Hoya Staff Writer, said she has been canvassing Georgetown residences in hopes of raising further awareness about the service and expanding GERMS’ relationship with the surrounding area in the coming years. The team’s responsibilities stretch north to Calvert Street

just past Burleith, east to Wisconsin Avenue and M Street, west to Foxhall Road and south to Canal Road, just before the Potomac.

“A typical ambulance ride costs an exorbitant amount of money, and then you have to pay for the hospital bill, so the fact that we’re a free service and that we’re so close by — I was astounded that people had not heard of us before,” McClellan said.

But the team’s efforts are not confined to the Georgetown neighborhood. During times like presidential inaugural balls and the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the Pentagon, GERMS spreads its services into the greater D.C. area.

In recent years, GERMS has also assisted on standby during the Marine Corps Marathon, Rock ’n’ Roll

USA Marathon and the Sweetlife Festival, according to Miller.

He added that GERMS is looking to start a CPR program for the Georgetown community and hold classes at a reduced fee for faculty.

Currently, the GERMS community consists of a diverse group of students, including at least one student from every undergraduate school, and only 50 percent are pursuing science majors. But the members are all linked by their dedication to volunteerism.

“I think a lot of people put a lot more into GERMS just because it is a voluntary organization,” Miller said. “They don’t come into GERMS because they expect to get paid for it, and every week I am amazed at how much people give to the organization.”

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Lebanese Representative Assault Victim Shares Story Outlines Energy Plan Minali Aggarwal Special to The Hoya

Andrew Wilson Special to The Hoya

Lebanese Minister of Energy and Water Gebran Bassil laid out plans to expand and streamline Lebanon’s energy sector in his lecture “Offshore Petroleum Exploration in Lebanon: Prospects and Opportunities” in Lohrfink Auditorium Tuesday.

Bassil noted that Lebanon’s geography — the Mediterranean to the west and oil pipelines in the east — has an important impact on its energy sector.

He aims to provide Lebanon with the opportunity to develop its oil and natural gas resources, describing his plan to increase Lebanon’s access to hydrocarbon resources, improve gas pipeline security and collaborate with more foreign oil corporations.

“I hope we can send the message that Leba-

non can be a safe haven for oil investment in the region,” Bassil said.

Bassil emphasized that Lebanon must accept international oil companies from Britain and the United States before it can develop its own national petroleum corporation.

“It is a sharing model where you need to bring companies. It is the first operation that we are doing,” Bassil said.

According to Bassil, both Petroleum GeoServices and Spectrum Surveying & Engineering have conducted research on Lebanon’s offshore hydrocarbon reserves.

Dr. Osama Abi-Mershed, director of the Center for Contemporary Arab Studies, introduced Bassil and expressed his support for expansion of Lebanon’s cooperation with other states.

“I think they’re ready to sign up to work with international groups,” Abi-Mershed said.

Student Health Services Provides Free Flu Shots Penny Hung

Special to The Hoya

With flu season approaching, the university is offering free vaccines to students, faculty and staff.

Student nurses will administer the shots through Nov. 14 in Yates Field House, Sellinger Lounge, McShain Lounge and the Harris Building on Whitehaven Avenue. Vaccines are free to anyone who presents a valid GoCard.

According to Jean Farley, an assistant professor in the School of Nursing and Health Studies, the Sellinger Lounge option was added this year to expand the program’s reach.

Typically, between 4,000 and 5,000 students, faculty and staff receive vaccinations, according to James Welsh, assistant vice president of Student Health Services.

Though the university has long provided flu vaccinations, Georgetown began offering the shots for free in 2001. In order to provide the service, the Student Health Center funds student vaccinations, while the University Benefits Office pays for the shots for faculty and staff.

“We believe that this program has a positive impact on the overall health of our commu-

nity and leads to lower numbers of influenza cases,” Welsh said.

Students agreed that the shots are important to campus health.

“I get sick pretty often,” Alexis Hofschneider (COL ’15) said. “The virus changes every year, so I feel I should get the yearly shot.”

Colin Sawyer (SFS ’16) said he usually doesn’t get a flu shot but will this year.

“I am going to get one ... because they are free and convenient to get on campus,” he said.

For the students who administer the vaccines, the clinics provide hands-on experience that is part of their coursework in nursing.

“It was good experience to practice my skills, to interact with people and to talk about the issues of flu season,” Arlena Ferrandiz-Myers (NHS ’12) said.

Carol Cowdrey (NHS ’12), another student nurse, estimated that about 130 people had already showed up to be vaccinated by Tuesday morning.

Student nurses said they expected the vaccines, which are provided on a first-come, firstserve basis, will continue to be popular.

“People haven’t stopped coming,” FerrandizMyers said. “We should have a pretty good turnout.”

R.U. Ready celebrated a decade of education of sexual assault awareness during an event featuring Southern Illinois University communications professor and rape survivor Dr. Rachel Griffin Wednesday.

A student and community program, R.U. Ready provides a support system for victims of sexual assault.

During her presentation in Copley Formal Lounge, Griffin explained that although she works with students on a daily basis in the classroom, she wants to reach out to students on a more personal level “Being ‘Dr. Rachel Griffin’ sounds so fancy, but what I need you to understand is that long before I was ‘Dr. Rachel Griffin,’ I was a survivor of rape and a survivor of childhood domestic violence,” she said.

Griffin began her story by explaining her past. She was a victim of sexual assault during her sophomore year of high school and kept her experience secret for seven years.

“I became really good at hiding my secret and hiding my pain,” Griffin said. “I was on the edge of self-destruction.”

Griffin said that she final-

ly broke down while sitting through a class discussion about sexual assault while in college, leaving the room to share her story with a peer volunteer.

“I didn’t say anything for a long time, but when I finally whispered my story to her, her first words were, ‘I believe you. What he did was wrong. It wasn’t your fault.’” Griffin said.

“I hated myself for so long, and I had to learn that what happened wasn’t my fault.”

Griffin stressed the importance of volunteers, like those involved in R.U. Ready, who ensure that victims of sexual violence have the ability to speak out.

“There must be a core group of compassionate people committed to doing the work of raising social consciousness about sexual violence,” Griffin said.

Griffin and the volunteers of R.U. Ready want to ensure that Georgetown students know that they have somewhere to go and someone to talk to about sexual violence whenever necessary.

“These volunateers can provide consistent, compassionate and confidential support that can help victims understand how to save themselves,” Grif-

ALEXANDER BROWN FOR THE HOYA

Rachel Griffin spoke about the need for increased awareness about sexual assault. fin said.

R.U. Ready volunteers facilitated private round-table discussions about sexual violence after Griffin’s presentation.

“All the tables reported really productive discussions,” peer discussion facilitator Lena Hermans (COL ’14) said. “Lots of faculty members and young men and women were in attendance, and it was a great success.”

New Committee Open to Freshmen Annie Chen

Hoya Staff Writer

Appointments to Georgetown University Student Association’s newly launched Freshman Executive Outreach Committee, designed exclusively for freshmen hoping to take part in the organization, will be announced this coming Sunday.

“The idea was that a lot of senators ran — over 30 freshmen ran for senate seats — so we wanted to offer other avenues for freshman to get involved,” GUSA Chief of Staff Jake Sticka (COL

’13) said.

According to Co-Director of the GUSA Executive Outreach Committee Erica Pincus (SFS ’13), the goal is to improve GUSA’s understanding of student issues.

“The current GUSA administration is very committed [to] communicating with the campus community,” Pincus said.

“The GUSA Freshmen Executive Outreach Committee is just another way we’re hoping to do that.”

According to Sticka, GUSA will appoint between five and

six freshmen to work with the outreach directors. Applications were released to the student body Sunday night.

Members of the committee will serve as liaisons between the GUSA executive and the campus community on various initiatives.

“We’re hoping this committee will enable us to empower those students who are interested in getting involved in GUSA and take ownership of their experiences with the student government and the community in general,” Pincus said.

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GU Grad Rate Exceeds Ivies’ Tightened OIP Travel GRADUATION, from A1 Georgetown’s relatively high graduation rate can be attributed to rigorous admissions standards and a high level of student satisfaction.

“We enroll very talented students, all of whom we expect to graduate, and … students are happy at Georgetown and choose to stay rather than transfer, which is probably the single most important reason why highly competitive admissions colleges do not always have high graduation rates,” Deacon said.

Deacon also credited Georgetown’s financial aid program for enabling students to finish their terms at the university despite the school’s 2012-2013 undergraduate tuition of $42,360, which is among the highest in the country, according to a 2011 Forbes report.

“Georgetown has an excellent record of graduating firstgeneration, low-income students who are often at risk because of their educational or financial background,” he said. “Programs like the Georgetown Scholarship Program deserve a great deal of credit.”

Deacon added that about half

of the students who fail to graduate within four years conclude their studies within five or six.

According to the university’s Office of Planning and Institutional Research, almost 94 percent of students who entered programs at Georgetown in fall 2004 graduated within six years.

Despite Georgetown’s high 2009 ranking, more recent data from the university shows that its graduation rate has since dropped. Only 88.9 percent of the Class of 2010 graduated within four years, a 1.2 percent decrease from the Class of 2009.

Professor Wins Genius Grant Hiromi Oka

Hoya Staff Writer

Lannan Chair of Poetics Dinaw Mengestu (COL ’00) was honored with a MacArthur Genius Grant Tuesday.

MacArthur Fellows are chosen by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation each year based on their potential to make important contributions in the future. Winners receive a no-stringsattached $500,000 grant over a five-year period that allows them to dedicate themselves to their work.

Mengestu is one of this year’s 23 MacArthur Fellows, which include writers, scientists and musicians.

Mengestu said he was shocked to find out he was a fellow after receiving a call from the MacArthur Foundation two weeks ago.

“It feels heartstoppingly good,” he said. “It feels like finding you have an extra room in your studio apartment.”

A former writer-in-residence at the Lannan Center in 2007, Mengestu said the award will allow him to pursue his literary endeavors without worrying about funding.

“It means I can write the stories I want to write without having to worry if I have someone support-

ing me or not, which is less true about fiction but more true about non-fiction,” he said. “As a journalist I can write now freely. I can spend three months writing a story on someplace in Africa without having to worry about whether or not I have a magazine to fund it.”

In addition to his fictional pieces, which focus primarily on African immigrants, Mengestu has written articles on African conflicts in areas such as Sudan, eastern Congo and Uganda. He said that the MacArthur grant’s recognition gives his work additional clout.

“It validates what I write about.

It says that the people I write and the way I write about them are important, that it’s worth writing about,” he said.

Director of the Lannan Center for Poetics and Social Practice Henry Schwarz said the grant was the equivalent of a Nobel Prize.

“It’s surprising that he’s so young, but his career has been meteoric,” Schwarz said. “For Dinaw it could be a career-changing or life-changing event. He’s already done extraordinarily well, but this validates the achievement in a way that opens the future.”

College Dean Chester Gillis added that it was a privilege for

the university to have Mengestu as both an alumnus and a teacher.

“The fact that we invited him back to teach as the Lannan Fellow is fortuitous, not anticipating that he would win the MacArthur fellowship, but he’s a wonderful teacher and a great novelist,” Gillis said. “The students whom he has are very fortunate to have someone of this caliber teaching in our classrooms.”

Mengestu is not the only Georgetown alumnus to receive the prestigious grant. Carol Padden (COL ’78) won a fellowship in 2010 for her work on sign language.

With the award, Mengestu will likely raise the Lannan Center’s profile.

“Great honor accrues around this award,” Schwarz said. “Our center already has a wonderful profile but this is so much icing on the cake – it’s another cake.”

Mengestu has not yet decided if he will remain at the university at the end of his yearlong chair position, though he said that he will likely stay.

“I think there’s a good chance I’ll stay a bit longer,” he said. “This is my alma mater. I’m very close to the university and it’s felt like home to me for a very long time.”

Requirements Unveiled Annie Chen

Hoya Staff Writer

A new Office of International Programs policy now requires all students, faculty and staff to register school-related international travel plans with the university.

The policy change was announced in an email sent to the campus community by Chief Operation Officer Chris Augostini Monday night.

“In adopting this policy, we are enhancing our ability to locate and communicate with students, faculty and staff traveling abroad so that we may provide support in the event of a crisis such as a natural disaster, political unrest or a medical emergency,” the email read.

The change comes after a particularly tumultuous year and a half for OIP. In January 2011,the university evacuated all 15 students studying in Egypt amid protests against the regime of president Hosni Mubarak. Two months later, a magnitude 9.0 earthquake and tsunami ravaged Japan, which prompted the university to cancel its spring semester program there and requested that all students abroad in Japan return to the United States.

According to OIP Executive Director Katherine Bellows, the change had been in the works before these events.

“The decision to expand that policy had been planned for several years,” Bellows wrote

in an email. “The university realized that more students, staff and faculty were traveling internationally, so by expanding the policy, we are now able to provide support and information to more of the Georgetown community.”

Previous guidelines required faculty and staff considering travel to areas issued Travel Warnings by the Department of State to request and obtain permission from the university in advance. Now, Georgetown will mandate that all travelers take these steps.

Personal information submitted through the travel registration system is now available to the university in the event of crisis or emergency. Georgetown is able to provide resources such as medical support, translation services, embassy information, repatriation and security and medical evacuation.

Bellows is confident that the new policy enables the university to accommodate the needs of students, faculty and staff traveling abroad. “[The policy] addresses in a comprehensive and consistent manner the best ways to prepare for potential risks of international travel,” Bellows wrote in an email.

Students, staff and faculty can register their itinerary and emergency contact information by booking travel through the university’s preferred travel agencies or manually register through the International SOS Personal Travel Locator book.

Former Employees Paid $14,450 in Settlement EPICUREAN, from A1 who represented the three plaintiffs, pointed to a similar suit that was filed against Chon in 2010. Dalmat finds it hard to believe that such a mistake was possible after the restaurant was advised by legal counsel on the issue.

“I find the argument a little flat on its face,” Dalmat said.

The 2010 suit had been filed by four employees as a collective action case. It was eventually resolved by a settlement in which the defendant agreed to provide 12 former employees with compensation for unpaid

wages dating back to 2007.

On Wednesday, the defendant filed a settlement agreeing to pay $200 to the third plaintiff but did not admit any liability in her case. The plaintiff volunteered to settle her case for this amount and withdraw her charges.

The two agreements must now be approved by a judge before they take effect.

According to Dalmat, a teleconference with the court has been set for Oct. 15 to address lingering issues with both parties before moving forward. Both Dalmat and Jandrain said they were hopeful that the deals would be approved.

friDAY, OCTOBER 5, 2012

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FRIDAY, october 5, 2012

FRESH OUT OF PHILLY

women’s soccer

Miami Must Focus on Needs Club Teammates Form W Top Tandem for Hoyas

ith the baseball season ending on Wednesday, no team is happier to see the offseason than the Miami Marlins. After spending a total of $158 million on three prized free agents and moving into a $634 million new ballpark at the beginning of the season, the Fish floundered, finishing with the third-worst record in the league and dead last in the National League East.

Is this conclusive proof that money doesn’t buy happiness?

Money buys eccentric Dominican shortstops, perfectgame pitchers and field-level swimming pools, but it doesn’t necessarily buy wins, playoff appearances and champagne showers in the locker room.

Since entering the league as the Florida Marlins in 1993, the franchise has consistently struggled to generate revenue, maintain a loyal fan base and fill seats. In its 20 years of existence, it has had among baseball’s lowest payrolls — reaching the bottom in 2008 and 2009. Despite all that, however, the Marlins have also won two World Series, trailing only the Yankees for most in the past two decades.

The 2012 Marlins were supposed to take the franchise back to the playoffs. The 2003 World-Series-winning nucleus of Josh Beckett, A.J. Burnett, Miguel Cabrera and Derrek Lee had all been traded away by a front office unable to pay their arbitrated salaries. In time, the next generation of cornerstones — Miguel Cabrera, Dontrelle Willis and Dan Uggla — was likewise dealt. Searching for a blueprint for their team, the Marlins turned back the clock 15 years.

Parallels can easily be drawn between Miami’s 2012 offseason and the one before its breakout 1997 campaign. That year, the Fish more than doubled their opening day payroll, rocketing from $25 million to $52 million with the signings of Moises Alou, Bobby Bonilla and Cliff Floyd. This past winter, with the snap of a finger — and

a couple televised press conferences — the Marlins again doubled their roster payments, moving from $57 million to $118 million.

The strategy worked for the 1997 team, who went on to defeat the Cleveland Indians in a shocking, seven-game World Series. So why didn’t it work now?

In the four years leading up to 1997, the Marlins had steadily improved, increasing their winning percentage in each successive season. The signings of Alou and Bonilla, coupled with midseason acquisitions of Darren Daulton and Craig

Matt Bell

The 2012 Marlins were supposed to take the team back to the playoffs.

Counsell, were considered contributions to a franchise on the rise, not major cogs in a WorldSeries-winning machine. The front office didn’t throw money around: It identified the team’s needs — power hitting and veteran presence — and executed its game plan flawlessly.

Contrast that with the moves of the last few years, and it seems that Miami’s offseason activity last winter was an act of desperation. The team had wavered around .500 for years and saw no other way out. The Marlins were trapped, and they felt the only way to properly adorn the new park and fancy uniforms was to back it up with the biggest available names on the market.

Were Mark Buerhle’s one perfect game and occasional

acrobatic web gem enough to ink him nearly $60 million? His 3.83 career ERA doesn’t think so. Heath Bell had been a good closer on a bad team, clearly unfamiliar with the phrase “expectation of success.” Jose Reyes, likewise, was a gamble — one that left owner Jeffrey Loria with no more chips on the table.

The Marlins missed the postseason this season for the ninth straight year and for the 18th time in their 20 years in the league. Out of financial necessity, they traded away fan favorite Hanley Ramirez to the Dodgers in July. The improvement project lasted barely half a season, and the Marlins are once again back at square one, presumably scratching their fins.

Much will be determined by the way Loria and manager Ozzie Guillen approach this offseason. Perhaps it will look more like the 2003 recipe for success, which yielded a triumph over the Yankees in the Fall Classic. This one, though, won’t be as easy as signing contracts, shaking hands and smiling for cameras.

The 2003 Fish followed up a horrific start with a mid-May managerial change, sneaked into the playoffs as the NL wild card and required the outstretched arms of infamous Cubs fan Steve Bartman to advance past the NL Championship Series. That team had baseball’s sixth-lowest payroll, which, at under $50 million, would have paid less than half of Reyes’ $106 million December signing.

No matter what Miami tries next, the direction of the team will be overshadowed by the attempt to create its city’s second “super team.” Of course, success could be just around the corner. It did, after all, take LeBron James only two years to win a ring in south Florida.

Matt Bell is a freshman in the McDonough School of Business. FRESH OUT OF PHILLY appears every Friday.

volleyball

Hoyas Search for Big East Win VILLANOVA, from A10 According to Williams, Simpson — who replaced the graduated Tory Rezin (COL ’12) at libero this season — has benefited from her extra effort this year.

“MacKenzie always pushes herself,” Williams said. “By taking extra reps in the gym and watching video, she is trying to take the little pieces of the game

that she can improve and tighten them up.”

As libero, Simpson must also take on an additional role as a defensive leader along the backline.

“MacKenzie has had to learn over the course of the season how to own the back row,” Williams said. “She’s learned that it’s OK to tell defenders where to go and when to go and to make sure she’s calling shots for hitters and

FILE PHOTO: CHRIS GRIVAS/THE HOYA

Sophomore libero MacKenzie Simpson (in blue) recorded a total of 36 digs in two games last weekend.

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changing passing patterns. In the back row, she sees the court in a different way.”

The Hoyas will have to count on Simpson and the team’s other leaders to step up Saturday if they are to notch their first league win. The Wildcats are coming off wins over Rutgers and Seton Hall and boast 6-foot-5 outside hitter Carly Edwards.

“Whenever we play [Villanova, Edwards] always goes off against us,” Williams said. “She’s very big, so we have to know that she’s going to get some big swings and she’s going to block some balls.”

Although Villanova earned two recent league wins, it has faced its own adversity in the form of a six-game losing streak prior to last weekend.

“I’m never going to use an opponent as inspiration, but it’s good to see that anyone can come out of a [losing] skid,” Williams said. “Our time is coming.”

The Hoyas will face Villanova at 3 p.m. Saturday in McDonough Arena.

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BRENN, from A10 and Michael Jordan since Corboz was the playmaker and Brenn more of a prototypical scorer. After Brenn assisted on four of Corboz’s record-breaking five goals in last Sunday’s game, however, Nolan was ready to revise that statement.

“It’s more like Batman and Robin than Jordan and Pippen. … There’s going to be days where Daphne sets it up for Kaitlin, [and vice versa].”

With the offense now catering to Brenn’s talents, the forward has scored nine goals and added five assists, something Nolan attributes to her renewed confidence.

“Knowing she was going to be the go-to girl has meant a lot to her, and I think she’s worked really hard over the summer to get herself ready because she wanted that role,” he said. “A lot of kids wouldn’t want that responsibility, but I think she’s worked hard to take that responsibility.”

Off the field, Brenn is a quiet leader. Her teammates say that makes her a model whom many of the younger players on the team look up to.

“K.K. is the sort of mother-type of the team,” Corboz said. “She really takes care of everybody and is very responsible.”

When asked about the team’s success this season — the Hoyas sit 11-1-1 going into a couple of important road games this weekend — Brenn is quick to deflect credit to her teammates.

“We have a great back line and our defense really helps,” she said. “Also, our midfield is very strong, so we just have a really strong team, and it’s exciting to see how we can do.”

With five regular season games remaining, Brenn is reluctant to look too far ahead, but she admitted that she likes the Blue and Gray’s chances going forward.

“I don’t want to jinx anything … but I think we can go pretty far in the Big East tournament. I’d like to say we have a chance

FILE PHOTO: CHRIS GRIVAS/THE HOYA

Sophomore Daphne Corboz has been productive alongside junior Kaitlin Brenn. at winning it,” Brenn said. “As far as the NCAA tournament … it’s all about the draw and who you play, so it’s hard to say, but I think we can have great success.”

Ohio River Rivals Up Next Arik Parnass Hoya Staff Writer

Winners of five straight, the No. 11 Georgetown women’s soccer team (11-1-1, 5-0 Big East) is on the road this weekend for two key matchups as the regular season approaches its conclusion.

First up for Georgetown is Cincinnati (4-8-1, 1-5 Big East). The Bearcats have lost three straight, the last being a 5-0 shellacking at the hands of Marquette. Despite its porous record, Cincinnati has a decent 3-3 record at home and have yet to surrender more than two goals to any opponent at Gettler Stadium, the location of Friday’s showdown, with the Blue and Gray. “[Gettler] is always a tough place to play,” Georgetown Head Coach Dave Nolan said.

“The field is a little bit tight — it’s field turf — [and] their coach will have them fired up.”

Leading the way for the Bearcats is freshman forward Laura Rose, who has five goals on the season. The Hoyas’ defense, tied for first in the Big East with only nine goals allowed, should be up to the task.

“I’m expecting a real fight, because the reality is … with five conference games to go, they need to start winning, and their first game up is us,” Nolan said. “We’ll be a big scalp for them [being] No. 11 in the country, [so] those kids won’t need any motivation trying to save something from their season.”

The Blue and Gray then face Louisville

(7-3-2, 2-2-2 Big East) Sunday in Kentucky.

The Cardinals have won only one of their last four games, although that victory was a 6-0 romp over St. John’s. Louisville is led by junior midfielder Angelika Uremovich, who has exploded onto the scene with nine goals already this season.

In last year’s meeting with the Cardinals, the Hoyas suffered a disappointing 2-1 loss in double overtime, and Nolan hopes to avoid a similar fate.

“We were really disappointed last year in the Louisville game because we actually dominated the game. But they have one special player, [junior forward Christine Exeter,] and last year she had the season where everything went for her, and she scored two great goals against us. We could have done a little bit better [defensively], but she was strong enough and big enough to make the plays when it mattered.”

Exeter, who had a remarkable 14 goals last season, has struggled this year, tallying only one goal so far this fall. Still, Nolan is expecting Exeter and her teammates to come out swinging against the Hoyas.

“For them, they’re probably on the fringe from an NCAA point of view, and they’ll be looking for a big win over us because we would be a big win over a common opponent, a big RPI win, so I’m not expecting an easy game against Louisville,” he said.

Georgetown takes on Cincinnati tonight at 7 p.m. before traveling to Louisville, Ky. for the game on Sunday at 1 p.m.

sports

friDAY, OCTOBER 5, 2012

men’s soccer

THE HOYA

A9

the bleacher seats

Tough Breaks and Huskies’ Triple Crown Still Matters Goalkeeping Punish Hoyas O HUSKIES, from A10 we did what we wanted to do,” Head Coach Brian Wiese said. “There was nothing to tell the guys at halftime because we were running the game how we wanted to run it.”

The Blue and Gray seemed to be the better side right from the opening kickoff. As is its preference, Wiese’s team had the lion’s share of possession throughout, and it only seemed a matter of time before it would go ahead.

Off a free kick early in the first half, junior forward Steve Neumann sent a teasing ball into the box that went untouched and ended up hitting the far post.

Just a few minutes later, freshman forward Brandon Allen rifled a shot that looked destined for the right corner, but UConn sophomore goalkeeper Andre Blake made one of many incredible saves on the day to deny the Big East goals and points leader an opening goal.

Georgetown’s assault on the Connecticut goal would continue from there, as the squad amassed a whopping 12 shots in the opening half. Six minutes from the intermission, however, everything changed.

“I shouldered it back in, and [after the free kick was called,] I’m setting my wall up, and I always ask, ‘Ref, whistle. Ref, whistle,’” Parsa said. “I didn’t hear a response. I’m lining up my wall, and, out of nowhere, they just slot it in. He didn’t call it back, and I was so shocked.”

Phantom handball aside, Wiese expressed frustration after the game about the way that the referees handled the taking of the free kick.

“The problem was that I think somebody from UConn asked for 10 [yards], and it wasn’t acknowledged by the referee. And when someone asks for 10, everybody [starts getting in position,]” Wiese said. “It was tough to have the game turned on that kind of a play. They’re good enough [that] they’re going to create some chances, and you’d [rather have lost] the game a little differently. But that’s soccer, and I thought the guys responded really well.”

Indeed, Neumann nearly got one right back before the intermission, but his blast — like Allen’s earlier in the half — was parried wide in spectacular fashion, as Blake showed why he’s generally regarded as the best college goalkeeper in the country.

The score would remain unchanged until the 64th minute, when the Huskies doubled their lead on another controversial play.

Off of a corner kick reset, the ball was lofted into the box, and Parsa was struck by a UConn attacker as he jumped up to haul it in. No call was made, however, and the loose ball was headed into the

back of the net to make it 2-0.

Wiese, a former goalkeeper himself, said that the foul is one that is called “nine times out of 10.”

Nonetheless, the Hoyas responded well to their two-goal hole and were rewarded almost immediately after beginning to press even harder.

Just over two minutes after Connecticut had scored, Neumann made a run to the opposing endline and sent in a low cross, which was adroitly redirected by senior midfielder Andy Riemer to put the Blue and Gray right back in the game.

“I don’t think any of us really panicked when that second goal went in,” co-captain Ian Christianson said. “We knew we could score another one and at least get back in the game. We did that and kind of were unfortunate not to put a second one in to force it to overtime.”

Georgetown’s failure to nab the game-tying tally was not for a lack of effort. The team had almost exclusive possession of the ball from the point of Riemer’s goal until the final whistle, but Blake and the bunkering Huskies defense managed to stymie attack after attack to preserve the win. “[We] just kind of ran out of time, we ran out of legs. It’s hard work trying to chase the game like that,” Wiese said.

“I think if we would’ve finished our chances earlier, especially in the first half, the game definitely would’ve opened up and would’ve suited us better,” Christianson added. “It just comes down to us being a little bit sharper. Blake played phenomenally today, but I guess we’ve got to be better.”

An equally tough test awaits the Hoyas on Saturday at No. 10 Notre Dame (9-2-0, 1-2-0), which is led by senior midfielder and longtime U.S. youth national team player Dillon Powers.

“We have to move on very, very quickly mentally,” Wiese said. “And this group so far has been a really mature group. We have a great group of seniors who have handled things really well, so we expect them to be ready again for Saturday.”

Judging by Christianson’s post-game comments, that perception would seem to be spot on.

“We’re just going to keep doing what we’re doing,” he said. “Stay hungry, stay humble. If we keep playing how we’ve been playing, I think we can go into South Bend and get a good result there.”

As they do after every game, the Hoyas circled up after Wednesday’s loss as Wiese spoke. And although this time the outcome may have been different, they still, as always, put in their hands and chanted, “1, 2, 3, Red Bull,” in reference to the location of the Big East championship game, Red Bull Arena just outside of Newark, N.J. Kickoff against Notre Dame is set for tomorrow at 2 p.m. in South Bend, Ind.

ver the past few weeks, as Miguel Cabrera neared baseball’s first Triple Crown since 1967, the lack of mainstream media attention became as much of a story as Cabrera’s pursuit itself.

No one has led either the American or National Leagues in batting average, home runs and runs batted in at the end of the season since Carl Yastrzemski over 40 years ago, but there was still almost no attention paid to the man who has just achieved one of baseball’s rarest and most sacred milestones.

Perhaps the reason that Cabrera has stayed out of the limelight is the argument that rookie Mike Trout and his near-legendary 10.3 Wins Above Replacement are more deserving of the AL MVP award.

But despite Trout’s stellar showing, the Triple Crown winner deserves the MVP award — and much more media attention.

As their children grow up, the parents of baseball fans pass on the lore of the game’s incredible feats.

From Ted Williams’ batting over .400 to Joe DiMaggio’s 56-game hitting streak, baseball never fails to inspire fans with that wish to see old, seemingly impossible-to-replicate feats repeated in a new generation. And until this year, the Triple Crown belonged among these achievements. Cabrera’s chase, however, shows how baseball has changed.

Instead of a sport where the past is cherished, America’s pastime has become a statistically driven game dominated by general mangers who employ sabermetrics, the use of complex statistical analysis made famous in “Moneyball.”

The move to advanced statistics has diminished the significance of traditionally important benchmarks.

Wins for pitchers are no longer as important as statistics like FIP and BABIP. In fact, the last 30-game winner in

baseball — Denny McLain — is mostly forgotten.

Joining wins on the discard pile is one leg of the Triple Crown — RBIs. Stat geeks have declared the RBI too arbitrary a measure of a player, given that picking up an RBI is often based on circumstances. But in trying to substitute more effective measures, the RBI has come under unnecessary attack. It is not a perfect measure of hitting performance, but it still should be one-third of the Triple Crown.

Corey Blaine

The fact that Cabrera’s chase did not warrant headlines is a sign of the times.

The Triple Crown not only is made up of the three best statistical categories but also is a signal of an incredible season, one that ties us to past feats like Yastrzemski’s in 1967. WAR did not exist in 1967, so fans need statistics like the RBI to rate current heroes against the legends of baseball’s past.

The move away from the sanctity of accomplishments like the Triple Crown has become apparent in more ways than just Cabrera’s situation. After baseball’s links to steroids doomed any chance the sport had to continue to get by on its storied past, that change was only a matter of time.

Instead, that past has been erased by a generation of steroid users who posted monstrous numbers, like Barry Bonds’ 73 home runs

in one season. Because of these pumped-up figures, Cabrera’s winning the Triple Crown with less than 50 home runs seems too easy.

When fans cheered on Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa in 1998, no one thought that chase would one day ruin the Triple Crown. It has.

As the steroid era closed, baseball realized its fan base was aging drastically. The younger fans that rooted for Bonds moved on to more exciting sports like football and LeBron’s NBA. To draw in younger fans, baseball teams and writers almost have a duty to draw attention to the exciting players in the game. Trout embodies that energy as a young player whose exciting play can captivate young fans. Cabrera is a quieter player with a history of legal problems — hardly a poster child for a league in need of new stars.

If someone approached any baseball fan in 1967 and told them that the next time a player would achieve the Triple Crown, no one would care, that fan would be furious.

The fact that Cabrera’s Triple Crown chase did not warrant a headline on any major sports website is a sign of the times for baseball. The old records that were once thought sacred have fallen by the wayside, and a once-in-a-generation event like a Triple Crown has generated almost no interest.

As someone who grew up learning about the great achievements in baseball like Yaz’s 1967 Triple Crown, the way Cabrera’s achievement has been covered is downright embarrassing for baseball. The league has the most history of any of the United States’ four major sports. That’s a history that must be embraced, not ignored.

Corey Blaine is a senior in the McDonough School of Business. THE BLEACHER SEATS appears every Friday.

football

Skon Needs Better Showing FORDHAM, from A1 week, they get better and better. You know that they’re for real, and it’s not a surprise by any stretch.”

To counter the Rams, the Hoyas will have to rely on their run defense. Led by senior linebacker Robert McCabe, who was added to the Buck Buchanan Award Watch List for outstanding defensive player in the Football Championship Subdivision, the Blue and Gray have done well slowing their opponents’ run.

Last week was a different

story, however, as the unit did not play up to par and surrendered 173 yards on the ground to the Bears.

If it is to get back on the right track, Georgetown will have to rediscover its physical defensive style, as Fordham senior tailback Carlton Koonce spearheads a potent Rams rushing attack.

“It’s about execution and making sure we are in the right gaps,” Kelly said. “[For] some of the mistakes we made [against Brown,] we had 10 guys doing the right thing and one guy doing

the wrong thing. Hopefully, we’ve corrected that.”

First, though, Kelly hopes that the Blue and Gray will get off to an early lead. Slow starts have been a consistent problem for Georgetown this year, making it difficult to clinch victories late in games.

“That’s an issue that we have to correct,” Kelly said.

“We’ve changed our practices this week to get the team jump-started, and we will see what happens on Saturday.”

Kickoff is slated for 1 p.m. in the Bronx, N.Y.

SPORTS

FIELD HOCKEY Hoyas (2-10) vs. Rutgers (6-5) Today, 7 p.m.

College Park, Md.

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 5, 2012

WHAT’S ONLINE Georgetown’s swimming and diving team will return to the pool this weekend at Delaware. thehoya.com

TALKING POINTS

“

NUMBERS GAME

4 ”

It’s more like Batman and Robin than Jordan and Pippen.

Women’s Soccer Head Coach Dave Nolan

MEN’S SOCCER

FOOTBALL

Hoyas Expect Fight at Fordham JOSH SIMMONS

Special to The Hoya

The Georgetown football team (32) has already faced injuries to two quarterbacks, a last-minute defeat and the pressure of playing on national TV this season. It face a new challenge this weekend — overcoming a confidence-rattling loss — when it opens Patriot League play at Fordham (3-2, 0-1) this Saturday.

After a rough outing in his collegiate debut against Brown, sophomore quarterback Stephen Skon will try to rebound against the Rams.

Skon, who started the season third on the depth chart behind injured senior Isaiah Kempf and junior Aaron Aiken, threw three interceptions and was sacked five times against the Bears.

Head Coach Kevin Kelly has the tough task of adjusting the offense to

FILE PHOTO: CHRIS GRIVAS/THE HOYA

Sophomore quarterback Stephen Skon, shown here against Brown, has his work cut out for him when Georgetown faces Fordham.

Georgetown junior goalie Keon Parsa’s saves in the Hoyas’ 2-1 loss to Connecticut Wednesday

his third-stringer’s strengths, but he says Skon’s improvement is making that assignment easier. “[Stephen] keeps getting better in practice,” Kelly said. “We know what his strengths and weaknesses are, and we’re going to use those this week. We’re going to manage the weaknesses and exploit the strengths.

Skon’s inexperience is not the only issue the Hoyas must address, however. The offense failed to get anything going in the 37-10 loss, gaining only 18 yards and not recording a single first down in the second half. The offensive line, in particular, struggled to keep the Bears out of the backfield, leaving Skon under constant pressure.

Kelly, though, blamed much of Georgetown’s woes on Brown’s game plan, which the Hoyas had trouble handling.

“A lot of it was scheme,” Kelly said. “[Brown] had more numbers in the box than we could block. There are a lot of reasons why you can’t run the ball — it’s not always the offensive line.”

Because of their young quarterback, the Blue and Gray can expect similar defensive tactics this weekend when they take on the Rams.

Fordham finished 1-10 last season and suffered a crushing 30-13 defeat against Georgetown.

The first Patriot League football team to award merit-based scholarships to players, the Rams now seems to be reaping the dividends of that decision with improved talent on both sides of the ball.

So far this year Fordham has taken down Ivy League teams Cornell and Columbia and lost o No. 11 Lehigh on a last-second field goal.

“Fordham right now has 45 scholarship football players,” Kelly said. “Every

CHRIS GRIVAS/THE HOYA

Senior Andy Riemer (in gray, foreground) scored in the 65th minute, but UConn’s Andre Blake (in green) came up big with seven saves.

GU Falls to UConn In Team’s First Loss RYAN BACIC

Hoya Staff Writer

Facing pressure in the 39th minute from an oncoming Connecticut attacker, junior goalkeeper Keon Parsa ran outside of his 18-yard box, knocked the ball with his shoulder back into his area and picked it up.

To his surprise, the whistle suddenly blew.

It wouldn’t blow again.

After that handball call, the No. 2 Huskies (10-0-1, 3-0-0 Big East) immediately knocked one in off of the ensuing restart while Parsa was in

See FORDHAM, A9

VOLLEYBALL

the process of setting up his wall, and Georgetown found itself down, 1-0, despite having dominated the run of play entirely up to that point.

Other calls further blunted Georgetown’s momentum, and, in the end, the Hoyas (10-1-1, 2-1-1 Big East) — ranked just one spot behind UConn at No. 3 going into Wednesday’s matchup — were unable to level the score, suffering their first loss of the season, 2-1, in heartbreaking fashion.

“It’s frustrating because I think See HUSKIES, A9

WOMEN’S SOCCER

Williams Hopes Tough Brenn Plays Leading Role on Offense Practices Yield Results ARIK PARNASS Hoya Staff Writer

WILL EDMAN

Special to The Hoya

On Sunday, the Georgetown volleyball team (6-11, 0-4 Big East) silently filed out of McDonough Arena in disbelief after allowing a 24-19 lead to slip away against Rutgers. This weekend, the team hopes to be able to seal the deal against Villanova (710, 2-2 Big East).

“Because we were so close but didn’t quite finish, everybody is really fired up about how we can improve,” sophomore libero MacKenzie Simpson said.

The Hoyas, however, carry more than just the memory of their loss to the Scarlet Knights.

They are mired in a 10-game losing streak and are winless in four Big East matches. But the Blue and Gray has shown signs of life recently, extending their last three matches into tight, four-set affairs. The challenge now is to take the next step toward a much-needed Georgetown victory.

To do that, the Hoyas have to avoid getting bogged down by memories of past mistakes.

“After every point, we huddle in and focus on the next point and get excited about the little plays we made before,” Simpson said. “We try to take it one point at a time.”

Although the broad goal is to

move on, Head Coach Arlisa Williams used this week’s practice to simulate pressure-filled situations with the goal of preventing a collapse like the one that took place against Rutgers.

“We want to serve a bit tougher, and we had the team serving at our staff. If they didn’t ace them, there were consequences,” Williams said.

“There has been a lot of running this week.”

One strong point for the Blue and Gray — who currently sit last in the Big East — is the outstanding statistical performances from star players.

Sophomore outside hitter Alex Johnson is ranked third in the conference with 4.0 kills per set, junior setter Haley Lowrance ARLISA WILLIAMS Volleyball head coach is fourth in the Big East with 11.13 assists per set and sophomore middle blocker Dani White ranks third in blocks with 1.17 per set.

And during the weekend matches, Simpson keyed the defense, recording 20 digs against Seton Hall and 16 over Rutgers. “[My goal is] to have the effort and the mentality of always wanting to improve,” Simpson said. “In practice, my teammates and the coaches push me constantly.”

Kaitlin Brenn has always been ahead of the curve.

At 3 years old, Brenn had already laced up her tiny cleats for the first time, playing with her 5-yearold brother’s team in her native Branchburg, N.J. At 10, she decided that soccer would be her primary sport, despite her all-around athleticism that would lead to spots on her high school’s golf and tennis teams.

“We want to serve a bit tougher. ... If they didn’t ace them, there were consequences.”

See VILLANOVA, A8

FILE PHOTO: CHRIS GRIVAS/THE HOYA

Junior Kaitlin Brenn, shown here against Columbia, has stepped into a major role this season.

In order to pursue her dream, Brenn — known affectionately as “K.K.” by her teammates — played at PDA Fire, a New Jersey-based club team and consistently one of the best in the country.

“That really was the best experience I’ve had,” Brenn said of the Fire. “We all were like a family.

We’d all played together since we were 11, so, you know, we grew up with each other.”

That soccer background, combined with a focus on academics, led her to become a Hoya.

“Georgetown seemed like the best mix for me,” Brenn said. “I like my athletic career but at the end of the day Georgetown is such a great school that you really can’t go wrong.”

When Brenn arrived at the Hilltop as a freshman in the fall of 2010, she knew that she wanted to contribute to the Blue and Gray as much as she could. That hard work paid off right away, as Brenn appeared in all 24 games her first season, finishing third on the team with seven goals.

Last year, however, Brenn managed to score only once and pitched in only three assists. Head Coach Dave Nolan argues, however, that the system the team employed was primarily responsible for the forward’s statistical drop.

“Kaitlin would come in and she would be [then-senior forward Camille Trujillo’s] relief,” Nolan said.

“And I think the unfortunate thing for Kaitlin was that we kept trying to play the same way as if Camille were on the field, but they’re two different players with two different sets of strengths.”

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For Brenn, scoring just one goal must have been disappointing, but she noted that she would have gladly taken a goalless season to have avoided the devastating ending she and her teammates faced last year.

Despite a school-record 14 wins — including a victory over then-defending national champions Notre Dame in South Bend, Ind. — the NCAA committee left Georgetown on the outside looking in.

“We were in shock because we thought we were going to make it. We thought it was a done deal,” Brenn said. “Once we figured it out, we were all in shock. We went and continued to practice and still played because we didn’t know what to do with ourselves. But it just makes you want it that much more, so we’ve come out even harder and stronger this year.”

Along for the ride with Brenn is sophomore midfielder Daphne Corboz, who joined her teammate over the summer at PDA Fire.

“Playing over the summer with K.K. was great, and we were able to develop a chemistry, like we play the same style,” Corboz said. “Playing together more, we were able to bring it to Georgetown and were able to do some of the same things here.”

This added familiarity has clearly benefited both attacking weapons, as the pair has combined for 23 goals and 10 assists this season and is the focus of the Hoyas’ offense.

Earlier this season, Nolan compared Corboz and Brenn to the Chicago Bulls’ tandem of Scottie Pippen See BRENN, A8