The Hoya: The Guide: October 31, 2014

the guide FRIDAY, OCTOBER 31, 2014

FORGING A SOCIAL LIFE As the university tries to bring socializing back to campus, fake IDs still reign

HANNAH KAUFMAN Hoya Staff Writer

G

eorgetown has spent the past several years trying to bring students’ social lives back to campus. While policy changes like the abolishment of the limit on the number of kegs an apartment can have and the elimination of the party registration system have proven effective, one thing is for certain: Georgetown’s bar culture isn’t going away anytime soon.

However, with a social scene that for many students revolves around M Street’s pricy nightlife, comes the inevitable: fake IDs and inexpensive binge drinking.

Georgetown’s rocky relationship with its neighbors doesn’t help matters. As students are forced back on campus by changing policies and enforcement of the District’s drinking and false identification laws grows stronger on M Street, Georgetown social life is at a transitional point.

————— Before the National Minimum Drinking Age Act encouraged states to raise the drinking age to 21 in 1984, Georgetown’s social scene was vastly different from what students recognize today. President of the Georgetown Alumni Association George Peacock (CAS ’84) recalls the Healy Pub, which was located in the basement of Healy Hall, as the hub of weekend partying. Policies were relatively lax and alcohol highly prevalent, but Peacock believes that there were benefits to be found in this kind of drinking culture.

“I never even heard the phrase ‘binge drinking’ until 15 to 20 years after I graduated,” he said. “It wasn’t a contest. There was no reason to binge drink since you didn’t need to get it in all at once because of any other anxieties or concerns.”

Fast forward three decades, and students are confronted by various changes that are deeply affecting their social lives. While the administration has made a successful push

for greater leniency concerning on-campus alcohol policies, these changes have not curbed the popularity of fake IDs. The Disorderly Conduct Amendment Act, which was enacted in 2010, made unreasonably loud noise from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. punishable by fines and possible jail time. This noise restriction has led to a more frequent crackdown on townhouse parties around Georgetown by the Student Neighborhood Assistance Program and police.

Connor Joseph (COL ’16) sees the effect that this new restriction has placed on off-campus activities.

“SNAP is changing its tune and enforcing noise violations more frequently. Everything is going to [The Office of Student] Conduct. We’ve experienced that pattern, and the overall threat of that pattern has definitely seen a rise among the townhouses,” he said.

Cory Peterson, director of the Office of Neighborhood Life, which coordinates SNAP, finds this negative relationship to be rooted in stereotype.

“I believe the greatest source of tension between students and neighbors is generalizations of one another,” he said.

While groups like the Georgetown Community Partnership have helped to improve student-neighbor tensions, these efforts go unnoticed by much of the student body.

Whereas some organizations are making a conscious effort to strengthen their strained relationship with the neighborhood and believe that the university is facilitating communication between the two groups, others are not as convinced.

“I think the 2010 Campus Plan is really starting to hit students,” Co-Director of the Student Advocacy Office Ben Manzione (SFS ’15) said. “When I first came to Georgetown, back then the GUSA Executive bused students to go to the zoning commission hearings and the university was thankful that we were there. I felt the spirit See FAKES, B2

THIS WEEK THEATER FEATURE

LIFESTYLE

Play Explodes With Talent Nomadic’s fall show ‘Boom’ succeeds with complex themes

EMILY WELCH

Special to The Hoya

From Georgetown to Libya

A new documentary by Matthew VanDyke (GRD ’04) shows his time in Libya, where he became a freedom fighter. B3

Cupcakes and Creativity

Baked and Wired’s weekly short story club offers the opportunity to discuss and debate intriguing texts. B4

FOOD & DRINK

Brasserie Beckons a Visit

Brasserie Beck delights with variety of mussel dishes and an expansive menu that delivers high-quality fare. B5

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Swift Success

Taylor Swift returns with a new album that secures her claim to pop royalty. B7

THEHOYA.COM/ GUIDE @thehoyaguide

It’s the end of the world and two beautifully neurotic strangers — Jules, a gay scientist played

by Taylor Mansmann (COL ’15) and Jo, a punky journalism student played by Emily Lett (COL ’17) — are stuck together in a biology lab as a comet hurtles toward Earth. In Peter Sinn Nachtrieb’s impishly intellectual play “Boom,” both Jo and Jules are looking for something better in their lives, something to claim for themselves, and are at each other’s throats trying to find it.

Jo wants sex: no-strings-attached, wild sex.

She finds herself answering to Jules’ Internet ad promising just that. However, Jules is more concerned with the sleep cycles of fish and his outlandish theory that the behavior of his aquatic friends reveals that the apocalypse is nigh.

Jo doubts his prediction and seemingly just about everything else in life. She is looking to fill a void in her heart, but does not know what caused the void in the first place. Jules is possessed by the objectivity of science and Darwinism. His undershirt, quickly exposed by Jo in her attempts to seduce him, reads “Darwin is my Homeboy.’”

The show is a sharp cocktail that mixes together a handful of big and small concepts.

“A lot of the show is about control and how much autonomy we have. It can be taken in a religious perspective, in a scientific perspective, but it’s just the physical manifestation of the control we have over our lives,” producer Suzanne Coles (COL ’17) said.

There is no “right” answer or way to think about what is being presented in “Boom. “ Feeling a little lost? Nomadic’s technical director Adam Bacigalupo (COL ’16) wants you to know that this is the point.

“On the way into the play, it’s confusion, it’s weird, it’s off-putting, but it’s supposed to be like that. But on the way out, hopefully it makes sense,” he said.

“Boom” initially appears to be a play centered on these two impassioned characters and their psychological crises only to throw you for a loop

DAN GANNONTHE HOYA

Sarah Frasco (COL ’15) impressively pulls off the complex and demanding role of Barbara in “Boom,” a play that challenges and confuses audience expectations throughout. when the character Barbara, played by Sarah Frasco (COL ’15), is introduced midway through the show.

Barbara emerges as a narrator from the future and presents the audience with her museum exhibit: the metaphorically significant tale of an odd couple and the fish they live with. Frasco’s role is a demanding one; she operates on a different plane than the other actors — literally. This twist throws the play into another stratosphere of weird just when you think you were maybe putting your finger on the meaning behind the chaos on display.

Are Jo and Jules autonomous or is Barbara in complete control of them? Who controls Barbara? What does this have to do with fate and

the end of the world? Director Johan Clarke (COL ’15), who made a courageous decision shepherding “Boom” onto Georgetown’s campus, addresses this confusion. “‘Boom’ demands us to think about our fates and identities without providing many answers.

Being able to let go and realizing you won’t be able to control everything in your lives is at the play’s forefront,” Clarke said.

Lett, Mansmann and Frasco all deliver flawless performances that leave the audience doubled over in laughter one minute and reflecting on the state of mankind the next. At its heart, “Boom” is a comedy, but it is also meant to evoke See BOOM, B3

B2

the guide

THE HOYA

FRIDAY, October 31, 2014

FEATURE

Despite Campus Changes, IDs Still Necessary FAKES, from B1 that the university was actually fighting for its students and the undergraduate population. I’m not necessarily sure if I still feel that same sentiment.”

————— For students fighting against having their social lives restricted to events on campus, the desire to explore nightlife in the surrounding area has meant that many have consciously decided to take the risk of using fake IDs. On top of this, there appears to be a growing trend of binge drinking in response to what students view as a constrained social scene.

Phil Seiler (SFS ’15), a Brazilian international student, sees the dangers of the current drinking culture.

“Our legal drinking age in Brazil is 18, and we start socially drinking at 16, so you’ve already gone through that phase of binge drinking. Now you see it more amongst American kids; they come here, find alcohol, and don’t know how to deal with it well,” he said. “They have all of these procedures to keep you from drinking when we all know that nobody is following them. Getting around them is a

nuisance. In Brazil you’re used to buying alcohol, but here you’re treated like you’re buying drugs.”

Before Seiler was 21, he would use his brother’s identification to gain access to bars in his first years at Georgetown.

“My brother and I look exactly alike, so I never actually had that fear of getting my ID taken away from me. Instead, the fear was getting caught with alcohol in my dorm or having someone check my backpack full of alcohol,” he said. “I think [my brother’s ID] was necessary. If not necessary, then it contributed to my fun quite a lot.

I feel like it helped me go out and explore. It made my life easier.”

Similarly, Anna* (SFS ’17) said her fake ID facilitated a longer night out and enabled her to leave the Georgetown neighborhood altogether.

“I use my fake ID two to four times a week. A lot of times I end up at bars when things die down too quickly and I still want to have fun. I probably end up at bars half the time. Or it’s nice to go completely off campus to Adams Morgan and spend a night there, and that would be a fully [fake] ID-dependent night,” she said.

These students are not the only ones disillusioned by the current environment of Georgetown parties.

“Not everyone is in a social or academic club, and with everything being so competitive at Georgetown, it’s hard to get accepted into certain groups,” Jim* (MSB ’17) who also uses a fake ID, said. “By that system, there’s less opportunities for me to go out. I felt left out as a freshman.”

These students are aware that presenting a fake ID at bars and liquor stores is considered a felony in the District.

“I know that they’re risky, and I’m pretty scared to use mine in general. But I feel that with the whole reputation that Georgetown has of being more of a bar school, and being in the city, I felt more of a pressure to get a fake, especially when I felt like I wasn’t going to have anything to do on the weekends if I didn’t get one,” he said.

This overall fear of missing out and pressure to take part in the offcampus culture clearly permeates the student body.

“I had a friend that had her fake ID taken away right at the beginning of freshman year,” Seiler said.

“She was pretty upset because she’s also international. Imagine you have this freedom and then someone takes it away from you. It limits your freedom and what you can do. It’s not even that you can go to a bar and just not drink — you can’t

FILE PHOTOS TOP: DANIEL SMITH/THE HOYA, BOTTOM: HUNTER MAIN/THE HOYA

Many students use fake IDs in order to enjoy the nightlife scene that is focused around M Street, including bars such as Rí Rá (top) and Rhino (bottom), where there has been an increasing number of arrests.

even enter the establishment without having an ID.” —————

Many students see fake IDs as a necessary part of life at Georgetown, and, accordingly, fake IDs are not that hard to get. Large group orders placed among friends or circulated around freshman floors make their way to local contacts or foreign websites. Anna, who has organized orders of fake IDs in packs of 11 and 15, admits that doing so comes with a number of potential liabilites.

“There are a lot of risks associated with fake IDs beyond what people normally think about. As a person who was the organizer for a group order of IDs, when you are buying IDs from China, that wire stays on your record forever, because your social security number is used whenever you do foreign transactions,” Anna said.

“It is a lot of money. It was $125 for [a set of] two IDs — once one’s taken, that’s around $60 dollars disappearing into thin air.”

The use of fake IDs can have consequences on campus, besides just being rejected from Rhino.

“In the Student Advocacy Office, we have seen more conduct cases regarding fake IDs,” Manzione said.

“There also has been an increase in enforcement with the Cops in Shops program. ABRA [Alcoholic Beverage Regulation Administration, which monitors compliance with alcohol license laws] goes to local establishments like Rhino, and students and administrators work with ABRA to identify bars and liquor stores that serve to students who are underage.

They will then target these areas.”

On campus, recent changes to the disciplinary policy have made the Code of Student Conduct more student-friendly, including having firsttime violations of some of the code’s noise and alcohol policies committed during freshman year not being visible to employers and graduate schools on a student’s disciplinary record.

The revised version of the code of conduct states, “This policy addresses students who may have had a lapse in judgment and/or decision-making during their first-year [sic] of college.”

However, not all students know about these adjustments.

“The new alcohol policy [implemented this year] is something that we should be talking about, especially with freshmen,” Matt Donovan (SFS ’17), a student advocate, said. “If a freshman gets one alcohol or noise violation and they manage to not get a subsequent violation within that first year, then that is put into your internal record rather than on our personal record, and employers cannot see that. That’s what we’ve been telling people. The university has given us this leeway, and we’ve worked hard for it.”

Peterson mentioned a number of changes in alcohol policies, including abolishing the on-campus party registration system, removing the one-keg limit and allowing small gatherings with open containers in open spaces within Village A, Henle, Alumni Square and the LXR and Nevils courtyard.

Judy Johnson, director of the Office of Student Conduct, recognizes this more lenient campus culture.

“Our policy on possession of alco-

hol has shifted in recent years. We’ve made an effort to relax our enforcement policies,” she said. “Now, if there are no visible signs of students violating the Code of Conduct, we normally won’t pursue the issue further. Our main goal is to make sure that students are safe.”

GUPD Chief Jay Gruber agreed with Johnson, emphasizing that the primary goal of his officers is not to proactively seek out violations of alcohol and party policies.

“We’re not going to bother them if there’s 10 to 30 people, it’s not crowded and they’re not being disorderly,” Gruber said. “If the students have excessive noise, if the balcony is overcrowded and if they’re throwing things and getting rowdy, then we’re going to take some action, but it’s not our sole purpose just to go break up things.”

Although these developments have set the foundations for a more readily accepted on-campus social scene, there remains a gap between students and what they see as an intolerant neighborhood and strict administrative policies. Resident Assistant Dave* (COL ’16) spoke about this tense relationship.

“At times there’s definitely a divide between what the protocol asks of RAs and what you know is going to have the greatest impact,” he said.

“Sometimes the protocol is a little more cold-blooded and cut-and-dry, but if you follow the protocol that is not cognizant of the situational dynamics, you won’t make the greatest difference.”

While Dave respects the overall goal and actions of the administrative staff, he believes that there is still great room for improvement. Amid all of these on- and off-campus changes, communication between the university and its students is lacking.

“There is a disconnect between the administration and Residential Living and then the students,” he said.

“There needs to be more education to students of what the liberties are on campus, because a lot of students don’t know these things. That is a travesty. There must be more input from them, and there needs to be more education on their rights.”

————— Despite the administration’s insistence that campus policies regarding disciplinary action for noise and alcohol policies have been relaxed, lack of student awareness and a persisting desire to explore nightlife beyond the campus gates has not inhibited the use of fake IDs. The tension between the university’s push to bring students back on campus with the student’s desire for independence and freedom has, perhaps inevitably, led to an increased use of these riskier methods, demonstrating a deadlock between university policies and student desires for an active and exciting social life.

With a mounting number of arrests for fake ID use, and a stricter implementation of district alcohol laws, it remains to be seen how communication between the students, the neighborhood and the administration will hold together the Georgetown community, and how campus party culture will evolve in response. *Names have been changed.

center stage

Student Movement Promotes Self-Reflection Bryan yuen

Special to The Hoya

As founder of the Treehouse Project, Oliver Friedfeld (COL ’15) is trying to help students at Georgetown understand that professional, teleological and educational concerns must still be in balance with development of self. Leading the charge for students’ self-reflection, Friedfeld discusses his countercultural movement.

DANIEL SMITH/THE HOYA

Oliver Friedfeld (COL ’15) hopes to foster a creative environment among Georgetown students.

Why is it called the Treehouse Project?

Number one is that there is something that kids have right that is lost as we grow up. If you think about a kid, they are imaginative, creative, playful, curious about all kinds of stuff; they are excitable and most importantly they spend a lot of time doing what they want to do as opposed to what they “should” do. Part of it is eliciting some of that emotional response.

The second part is treehouse in particular. The treehouse serves as the symbol of the place where kids come together and dream. They play with ideas they talk to each other and they imagine about what the world could be and what life could be.

bigger, to connect meaningfully and honestly with others and to play.” We need to remind ourselves that we are still young and we don’t have to have it all figured out yet. That kind of paints a broad picture of what we are going for with Treehouse, which is to move away from this pressure to perform. We are constantly on the stage whether that be academically, socially, or professionally, and we are constantly trying to impress rather than do things we really want to do.

Why was it necessary to found the Treehouse Project?

When I came to Georgetown one of the things I was looking forward to was that everyone came with aspirations and these bold dreams of what they wanted to do whether it was an activist, filmmaker, athlete, writer, traveller, adventurer or all these kinds of things, but what happens over your time here is that people are channeled into certain paths and not encouraged to explore those dreams and passions.

Instead they are told, you should consider what internship you should get to build your resume, you should get As in all your classes, and there is very little conversation on what does the student want. The idea of Treehouse is to shift the conversation in college and reimagine what this experience could be.

How does Treehouse plan to help make this cultural change?

So far what we have been doing is we have had a few candlelit conversations, which serve two purposes. They are first meant to bring students together who otherwise wouldn’t interact. And second is to foster good conversation; moving away from the small talk that dominates on campus and moving toward real, honest conversation.

We also played a game on Friday night of Fugitive across campus and that was a huge success.

Our main programming though and our official launch will be in January with the official launch of what we are thinking of as our “Human Incubator.” The idea is to create a time and a space every week where people can create a sort of “Dead Poets Society” atmosphere where we can bring in professors to inspire students and have students reflect and talk about their experiences.

It is all about questions like what does happiness or success look like for you or me? What kind of world do I want to live in?

So how do you view the ideal college experience?

One of our lines is “reclaiming college as a time to explore who we are as people, to dream

So you don’t think that being able to have a career later and being able to self-search are mutually exclusive things within college?

No, not at all, and that is why with those three

functions I mentioned the point is not to say the first two functions [academic and professional development] are wrong. Those are essential to college too. The point is that they are not in balance. For a whole host of reasons, we are seeing — not only at Georgetown, but at a host of schools across the country — this business, this pressure cooker, and this idea that we have to spend all of our time doing things somehow tied to what we are doing [in the future], and this is a really big problem. College is losing its magic because it is becoming just another stepping-stone or another rung in the ladder to nowhere, where in reality we decide where the end of our ladder is. What Treehouse is trying to do is bring magic back to this experience, to say that we have four years and we do need to develop professionally and we do need to develop as students into smart intellectual people but we also need to understand ourselves.

A lot of people talk about the mentality of “Work hard, play hard” and I have always found this dichotomy funny because it seems to imply you can only be working or you can only be playing. What are your thoughts?

Yes, that balance is really startling to me. We are bouncing from one extreme to another extreme.

What if we spent our time in the middle ground and we could do some play and we can do some work and not view it as I got to go to Lau all night and work on these 20 assignments and then play is very limited. It is almost a question of “Do we still know how to have fun?” .

Instead of “What can college do for me?” we should ask “What can I bring? What are my unique interests and passions and curiosities and how do I share those with people, even if it’s just with my friends?”

the guide

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 31, 2014

THE HOYA

B3

THEATER FEATURE

THE FRINGE

Margie Fuchs

A City Haunted

By Its Past I

pass at least four dead men on my way to class every morning, the number varying by the route I take.

If I take the long way, looping around Edinburgh’s Royal Mile, past the spires of St. Giles’ Cathedral, I glimpse the likes of Adam Smith and David Hume, scowling at onlookers from their towering marble statues. If I zigzag through Greyfriars Kirkyard, following the footsteps of 19th-century body snatchers, my way to school is marked by more weatherworn gravestones than I can count. Whether I pass them on my way to lecture, read about them for homework or stroll through their old haunting grounds on a Sunday afternoon, ghosts in all different forms are very much alive in Edinburgh.

Yet instead of discomfiting the city, these resident specters are an integral part of the Edinburgh landscape and the conceptualization of the capital as the most haunted city in Europe. So, what better place to celebrate Halloween than in a city built on ghost stories, even if you’re a bit of a scaredy cat like me?

Legend has it that King David I founded Edinburgh’s Holyrood Abbey on the spot where he was miraculously saved from a charging stag in 1128. The abbey, once a glorious site of Christian worship attached to Holyrood Palace, has lain in ruins since the 18th century. Yet these very ruins, set against the dramatic cliffs of Arthur’s Seat, have taken on a life and inspired tales of their own.

Generations of poets, artists and musicians make pilgrimages to the Abbey’s ruins, seeking divine inspiration in the sublime of melancholic decay. Silently standing in the nave and looking at the remaining spires piercing the cloudless sky, I can almost feel the spirits of the abbey and can see why so many writers have flocked there. Holyrood Abbey, like many of the austere buildings in Old Town Edinburgh, looks like it came straight out of a Gothic novel.

Or rather, the eerie ruins and haunting characters of Gothic novels look like imaginative embodiments of Holyrood Abbey.

Scotland’s ghosts continually invade both my bedroom and my literature course with our study of Romanticism and Scottish Gothic. I get chills reading Scottish-folk ghost tales while in bed, and neither the wind blistering outside my window nor my jaunts through graveyards do much to help overcome my overactive imagination. These mythical stories, which were passed down orally from generation to generation before they were recorded by ballad collectors, feature murderous ghost brides, encounters with witches in barren moors and dates with the devil and are so vivid I picture them whenever I get a glimpse of the Scottish countryside.

The spectral characters of my literature class gain new life yet again in the costumed tour guides lining the Royal Mile. Dressed in full Dickens-esque regalia and advertising haunted tours of the capital, these guides expose the everyday tourist to Edinburgh’s phantoms, albeit melodramatically and with lots of kitsch. The number of ghost tours on the Royal Mile has drastically increased with Halloween growing nearer. Tacky tours aside, Edinburgh plays its supernatural reputation to its advantage and boasts countless Halloween events, traditional Celtic fire festivals and opportunities for modern people to come face to face with the city’s ghostly past.

The Edinburgh skyline, like my literature novels and the ancient ruins scattered across Scotland, is an ever-changing elegy to the ghosts of the city’s past. Monuments to Scotland’s famous sons, such as Admiral Horatio Nelson and Sir Walter Scott, survey the living from their perch on Calton Hill and along the Princes Street Gardens, remaining a constant reminder that their spirits are still with us today.

Even though I’m not one for scary stories, there’s something captivating about living in a city full of ghosts. Maybe it’s the thrill of watching these mythical stories become reanimated to fit and reflect today’s society, or maybe it’s just this Gothic inspiration fueling my imagination.

Either way, I may just cut through another cemetery on my way to class tomorrow.

Margie Fuchs is a junior in the College. LIFE ON THE FRINGE appears every other Friday.

MATTHEWVANDYKE.COM

With his second documentary “Point and Shoot,” Matthew VanDyke (GRD ’04) confronts viewers with brutally honest footage from his travels across the Middle East and Libya, where he became a freedom fighter in the 2011 uprising and was imprisoned in a tiny cell for six months.

Shooting in Libya

Alumnus’ documentary highlights Libya’s strife JACQUELINE KIMMEL Hoya Staff Writer

The cell was 3 feet by 7 feet. The only light came from a small pinhole in the ceiling, and the sole sounds were the screams of fellow prisoners as they were tortured. Seven years after graduating from Georgetown, Matthew VanDyke (GRD ’04) was trapped in a Libyan prison, captured as an enemy combatant against the regime of Muammar Gaddafi.

After six months in the prison, a loud commotion outside broke the solitude. VanDyke automatically assumed the worst.

“I was convinced they were guards coming to kill me,” he said.“I thought that they were upset by something that had happened in the war and were coming to kill me for revenge.”

But as the lock on his cell was busted open and the door clattered away, he realized the mob was wearing the same clothes as him.

VanDyke took the chance to trust them enough to run away with them, following the group of men outside to the right of the prison and to his freedom.

The rest of VanDyke’s existence has been defined by that moment. An activist, news analyst, media commentator and freedom fighter,VanDyke spends his days incited by his time in that cell.

“I became committed to the cause of revolution,” he explained. “It has defined the cause of my work and my life.”

This experience serves as the main focus of VanDyke’s highly acclaimed second documentary, “Point and Shoot.” The documentary premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival last April, winning the Best Documentary Award. Produced with fellow filmmaker Marshall Curry, the documentary is a collection of footage VanDyke shot between 2007 and 2011 while travelling through the Middle East on his motorbike until his arrest by government forces in Libya.

It is a powerfully moving and almost incomprehensible piece of film.

VanDyke entered Georgetown’s Security Studies Program convinced he would join the CIA and pursue a career in intelligence security.

Although he received a job offer from the agency after his first semester, the Iraq War changed his mind. He quickly joined the anti-war movement on campus and turned down the job offer that went against his beliefs.

Armed with the SSP degree and “nothing to do with it,” VanDyke decided to make a radical choice. He decided to emulate Alby Mangels, an Australian filmmaker known for his adventure documentaries. On this trip, VanDyke became

closer with those he met in the Middle East than his friends from back home. When fighting in Libya broke out against Gaddafi, some of these new companions complained about the lack of support they received from the international community.

“My friends were telling me about family members being arrested or disappearing or being injured. They would say to me things like, ‘Why doesn’t anybody help us?’ So I said I would be there.”

VanDyke travelled to Libya to fight against the government. On March 13, 2011, only a week after arriving in the country, VanDyke’s brigade was ambushed by Gaddafi’s forces. He has no memory of what happened next.

“I was knocked unconscious during the arrest, so I woke up in prison with a head injury and no memory of how I got there,” he said.

VanDyke was transferred to Tripoli and was later held captive in two different prisons, including the Maktab al-Nassar prison that is known as Libya’s “nightmare factory.”

His mother and girlfriend approached many human rights organizations to ask where he was, and these institutions tried to pressure Gaddafi to reveal VanDyke’s location. However, the Libyan government refused to answer.

It was many months until Gaddafi would even acknowledge that he had imprisoned VanDyke, and he never publicly exposed his whereabouts.

After escaping the prison, VanDyke spoke with many journalists who were shocked to discover that he wanted to stay in Libya. VanDyke felt that he had made a commitment to the men with whom he was captured and to Libya, which he would not leave until it was free.

“My mother raised me to keep my commitments, and I still believed in the cause and nothing had changed,” he explained. “Me personally going through a tough time didn’t mean that the mission had changed.”

As a result, he enlisted in the National Liberation Army and became a DShK gunner, fiercely fighting in a battle that had now become personal.

VanDyke asserts that the experience of being a freedom fighter was positively unforgettable.

“The camaraderie and being unified on the side where we knew that were doing the right thing made it the best experience of our lives, of any of our lives” he said.

Still, he is quick not to glorify the experience of war. Instead, he emphasizes the stress and fear of fighting on the front lines.

“You see pretty terrible things in war, bodies on fire, people’s heads split open, missing

limbs, fairly frequently,” he said.

On Oct. 20, 2011, Gaddafi was assassinated, and VanDyke joined the celebration despite his conflicted views of the assassination.

“Part of me wanted him to be captured alive so we could get information from him and could make him experience what he put so many other people through,” he said. “I think that we were robbed of the justice by one individual taking it into his own hands to kill Gaddafi. The justice should have been collective by the Libyan people rather than a Libyan person.

So we were robbed, but nobody should feel bad for Gaddafi. That’s for sure.”

VanDyke returned to the United States, but a call to revolution eventually drew him back to the Middle East.

“If it wasn’t for the calls to revolution, I wouldn’t leave the U.S. I thoroughly enjoy my American life in NYC. I don’t crave going back over there; I don’t crave conflict. That stuff doesn’t do much for me, I don’t get a rush from it, but it’s something that I feel obligated to do,” he said.

This time, he needed to help the rebel cause in Syria, and it was this 2012 experience that inspired his first, self-financed documentary, “Not Anymore: A Story of Revolution,” that was released in September 2013. This film intended to act as a means to politically pressure the international community to help in Syria, but VanDyke was frustrated by the lackluster response.

“I am not happy because it has not led to the fall of the Assad regime. [So] from the perspective of why I made the film, it has not been as successful as I would have liked,” he said.

It is clear that “Point and Shoot,” however, is destined for much greater public attention.

VanDyke is passionate but not proselytizing. Despite the incredible raw passion he feels about the revolutionary cause in the Middle East, he expects no one else to care.

“I am not going to fool myself into thinking that the average American has, or needs to, care about anything in international affairs. People are tired of the region after years of war, and people know enough now about the Middle East to go about their daily lives,” he said.

VanDyke is a fighter compelled to action by a personal sense of morality and an innate willingness to accept any risk to achieve his goals. After fighting to bring down a dictator, filming a documentary in a warzone and now seeking revenge for the death of his friends, VanDyke’s life is very much a product of that 3-by-7 cell.

THEATER FEATURE

Doomsday Drama Captures Human Spirit BOOM, from B1 reflection.

“There are a lot of funny moments in the show but we also want the audience to look at the show and honestly

feel for the characters. Even though this play is a cosmic migraine, if they can feel one thing they connect to in this cosmic migraine, that’s what I want for them because this play is not just funny. I want them to feel more

DAN GANNON/THE HOYA

Taylor Mansmann (COL ’15) gives a flawless performance as scientist Jo along with Emily Lett (COL ’17) who plays the intriguing Jules in nomadic’s “Boom.”

than laughter,” Lett said.

There is nothing linear about “Boom”’s storyline. The script is hectic, disjointed and at times schizophrenic, but it is a dizzying masterpiece that one cannot stop watching. Patience is a requirement, yet the show is not frustrating in its lack of concrete answers, but rather seems like a peculiar whirlwind. “Boom” is a trippy, poetic delusion, but by the end of the show, an amusing surprise will answer a lot of the nagging questions racing around the audience’s brain.

The value of intimacy and the human connection is also central to the show’s message.

“At Georgetown, there’s always so much pressure that we put on ourselves and we expect so much from ourselves, and each other to do something big,” Mansmann, who gives a tireless and honest performance, said. “In the show, Jo and Jules have the opportunity to be important, to be the last two people alive on earth.

Ultimately, it’s just two people and their one success in life is having a connection. That connection is what mattered in their life.”

Despite some of the darker and more violent scenes, “Boom” ultimately takes an optimistic perspective on the end of the world.

“I think this show has put a lot of acceptance into my head — the idea that the world does go on, and I’m just a small part of that world. It’s a big thing to deal with at 21,” Frasco said.

“We think we’re supposed to live forever, and, you know, we will, but the idea that no matter what the world will keep on spinning is important.

YOLO, if you will. Just enjoy it.”

“Boom” will be performed Oct. 30 to Nov. 1 at 8 p.m., Nov. 2 at 2 p.m. and Nov. 5 to 8 at 8 p.m. in the Walsh Black Box. Tickets are $10 for students and $12 for general admission and can be purchased at the Davis Performing Arts Center or online at performingarts.georgetown.edu/boxoffice.

B4

the guide

THE HOYA

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 31, 2014

APPS

INKBOARD Free

CHARLIE LOWE/THE HOYA

A new group of locals attends the weekly short story literary club at popular coffee and cupcake spot Baked and Wired where thought-provoking literary discussions and debates, as well as free cupcake samples, are offered.

Baked, Wired and Well-Read ALLISON CANNELLA Hoya Staff Writer

A

nyone familiar with the Georgetown area knows about one of the funkiest bakery/coffee shops around. Located just off M Street, past the scenic C&O Canal, Baked and Wired serves dozens of sweet treats and finely crafted coffee beverages to students, business folk and tourists alike. However, this Georgetown gem is now offering more than just cupcakes and caffeine.

Every Wednesday evening, Baked and Wired, where I work, hosts a short story reading club that is open to absolutely anyone. Starting at 6:30 p.m., the cozy back area of the store fills with members of the community eager to discuss that week’s selected short story.

After brief introductions over a tray of free cupcake samples, dissection of the weekly story begins. Participants share their initial thoughts and reactions to the story, and the conversation takes off from there.

The club analyzes characters in the stories, examines possible motives of the authors and applies themes from the stories to modern-day scenarios.

The idea for the Short Story Club originated from a former barista at Baked and Wired who wanted to create a space where literature lovers could meet and share ideas on specific readings. He created a Tumblr page that provides updated access to the online versions of that week’s

selected book. The site’s archives date all the way back to February of this year, when the club began, and include works by beloved authors such as George Orwell and Gabriel Garcia Márquez. Instead of featuring lengthy books that are difficult to finish, the club decided to select short stories, which take less time to read but are just as enjoyable.

Sam Blank (COL ’12) is one of the weekly regulars.

“I really enjoy that we just read short stories because that allows us to really engage in the text in depth each week in a way I don’t think we could if we were to read full-length books,” Blank said.

Often, the weekly stories are chosen by the club’s regular attendees.

Heather Thompson, a recent graduate of Carnegie Mellon University and weekly participant in the club, selected a story earlier this month

by Dave Eggers titled “We Like You So Much and Want to Know You Better.”

This short piece of fiction was featured in The New York Times and alludes to the idea that humans are enslaved by social media. This selection fostered a discussion about technology in society that extended beyond the scope of the story.

Usually by the time Baked and Wired closes at 8 p.m., the club is in the midst of an intense dialogue concerning a social or political issue, which is an obvious digression from the short story analysis itself.

Blank credited the club for being “an outlet for intellectual discussion,”

DISTRICT ON A DIME

There’s More to DC Than the Postcard View

T

here’s nothing quite like a walk rock, raising his fist imperiously at to the monuments at night. the empty plaza in front.

A slow stroll down the waterThe memorial is worth a visit in evfront just as the sun is setting is a ery season — during the summer, Tedperfect way to welcome the weekend, dy is immersed in a deep green light. unwind after a day in Lau, or simply The fall is East Coast-beautiful as the digest a Baked and Wired cupcake. At leaves change, and Teddy is again the end of the walkway, the Lincoln transformed after the first snow. He Memorial waits patiently for any visi- merits a number of visits, and could tor, and beyond the reflecting pool, really use the company. I’ve never the World War II memorial and the seen more than a handful of guests at Washington Monument prove excel- the monument. lent backgrounds for shots of the sky The U.S. Marine Corps Memorial, as it begins to lose the last of its light. another forgotten tribute that can The monuments are an impres- often be found eerily deserted, sits a sive sight on any day. They serve as little farther away from campus. But valuable reality checks in the midst it’s easily accessible — just get off at of busy weeks and instant the Arlington Cemetery orientation when explorstop on the blue line or ing the rest of Washington, continue down the walkD.C. I can’t count the numing path that winds along ber of times I’ve thought the Potomac. The memomyself to be totally lost rial sits right in front of when a brilliant white the Arlington National corner of the Washington Cemetery, but can be a litMonument edges into view tle harder to find because Erin Hickok it sits back from the river. and provides enough information to steer me into The monument is imfamiliar territory. But in my second mediately familiar to most visitors year here at Georgetown, they’ve also — it depicts the dramatic scene from become nearly commonplace, melt- Iwo Jima in which six American soling into the background of life here diers raise the American flag on a in the capital just as seamlessly as the mountain top. The first thing that wide suburban streets of home once will strike you is the scale — compared did. to a relatively diminutive Roosevelt, As certain monuments become the staggering soldiers of Iwo Jima something closer to a backdrop than tower hugely over any visitor. a destination, other powerful tributes Again, this monument is best as go entirely unnoticed. Theodore Roo- the sun is just setting. If you time it sevelt Island hides a beautiful memo- just right, the photos will be specrial to the “Great Conservationist” tacular. After documenting the moamong trails that bisect dense forest. ment, lower the shutter and watch The memorial, which boasts a private the silhouette as the sun sinks even plaza and a large statue of the former further. president thrusting his hand in the A walk to the Roosevelt and Marine air, is tucked away and surprisingly Corps monuments may be a little private. longer than the typical stroll on the I stumbled across the island, and National Mall, but it provides a powerthe forgotten monuments in its cen- ful reality check when the “standard” ter, on a run during freshman year. monuments begin to get a little stale.

I’d been aimlessly tracing the trails This unique brand of solitude is well that wind all over the island when worth a detour from the Hilltop. one dumped me right behind a gigantic slab of marble. I was surprised to Erin Hickok is a sophomore in the find Theodore Roosevelt confidently School of Foreign Service. DISTRICT striding out of the other side of the ON A DIME appears every other Friday.

since he is no longer a part of a constant academic setting.

Thompson also noted the impressive progression of the conversations that take place.

“We always start with the story, but by the end of the hour and a half, we end up talking about the world,” Thompson said. “The conversation is so invigorating and the people so interesting that a few of us even continue the conversation over food and drinks afterward.”

The club attracts a variety of Washington, D.C. residents who are in search of a stimulating environment, and they all find that Baked and Wired is the ideal spot for such a meeting. While there are regulars who make the club meetings a priority in their weekly schedule, new faces constantly trickle in.

“There are always people in the group who expand my thinking and surprise with insights that I never would dream of,” Thompson said.

“There is also a range of ages, so getting the perspective of people with more life experience and different views on the world is wonderful.”

Gem Lewis, the general manager of the shop on Wednesday nights, loves the sense of community that the club provides.

“The book club and the customers it brings contribute to the intellectual and creative atmosphere of Baked and Wired,” she said. “It makes the store feel inviting because it gives room for us to be more than just a place to line up for the best coffee and cupcakes.”

Have you ever had trouble expressing yourself through the limited characters of a text message? Have you ever wanted to prove that a picture is worth a thousand words? A new app called Inkboard allows iPhone users to draw pictures on their screens. It includes a rainbow of colors and uses an array of tools that replicate crayons, markers, ballpoint pens and highlighters, as well as four different pencil tips and an eraser function.

The pictures are then sent as a linked image instead of directly within a text message, but they still add an artistic touch to your conversations.

EXPOSURE Free In the era of semi-professional iPhone photographers, Exposure is another app that allows people to express their artistry through creative photo modifications. The effects this app offers are not very different from the many other photo-editing apps, but what warrants its $1.99 price is that users get to choose a specific area of the photo to apply a given effect.

Therefore, Exposure users can mix and match different effects, filters, and even isolate color in black-and-white photos to create highly personalized images that are perfect for sharing.

DELECTABLE WINES Free This app allows users to take a photo of a wine label, which the app will then instantly recognize and generate a list of reviews and tasting notes from other users within the Delectable Wines community. One can scan an unlimited number of wines for free, add reviews and share their own wine recommendations with friends. Through the extensive database of wines, Delectable users can also follow sommeliers and winemakers to discover new wine choices. Finally, the app allows users to buy wine directly, which then gets delivered right to their doors.

LIFESTYLE TIP

DIY FLOWER LIGHTS

hercampus.com Just because the weather is getting colder doesn’t mean that you can’t keep a little sunshine in your room. To ward off the winter blues, make yourself a glowing string of flower lights. You will need cupcake liners of different sizes and colors, string lights, scissors and an X-acto knife.

Then it’s time to cut out the pieces: To make leaves, fold a small cupcake paper in half twice, and with the folded point at the bottom, cut a leaf shape. To make an 8-petal flower, fold a small cupcake paper in half three times, and with the folded point at the bottom, cut around the top.

To make a 16-petal flower, fold a large cupcake paper in half four times. Next, cut a small “X” in the center of each paper piece. Finally, layer the cut papers onto each light bulb on the strand to make flowers. Hang around your room for a decoration that’s sure to brighten up any day.

BERLINER CATHEDRAL | BERLIN, GERMANY

NATE MOULTON FOR THE HOYA

the guide

friday, October 31, 2014

THE HOYA

B5

RESTAURANt review

Quality Eatery Impresses With Brunch and Seafood Brasserie Beck



1101 K St. NW Cuisine: European $$$$ Yiwen Hu

Hoya Staff Writer

When it comes to seafood, opinions can be divisive. For those enchanted by seafood, mussels can be especially irresistible.

Brasserie Beck is one such establishment in this category. The restaurant is one of many in Washington, D.C., that specializes in making mussels. The French brasserie was opened

by Robert Wiedmaier, the owner of the much-acclaimed French restaurant Marcel’s. Marcel’s is named after Wiedmaier’s older son, and Brasserie Beck is named for his younger son.

Located in the heart of the McPherson Square neighborhood, Beck appears at once elegant, welcoming and tranquil. This is especially noticeable on a balmy weekend morning, when sunlight filters through the treeleaves, leaving specks of shade on the small wooden tables. Even as the spacious outdoor patio recreates the ambience of European coastal cities, Beck’s boasts an interior design no less riveting and appealing. Wiedmaier himself once commented that the brasserie has a “1950s to ’60s trainstation feel.”

The brunch menu offers a wide array of dishes. The choices under starters include the rather classic French dish shallot and onion soup ($11) and the equally appealing roasted fall beet salad ($13), which is accom-

panied by almonds, golden raisins and a goat-cheese yogurt emulsion.

Meanwhile, the chef’s loyalty to and pride in his own European roots is very much visible in the main-course offerings, such as beef carbonnade ($23) and veal schnitzel salad ($22).

It is the custom at Brasserie Beck for patrons to start their meal with the lauded mussels, either as a half portion to share as an appetizer or as a full portion to enjoy as an entree.

The restaurant provides five flavor options, each very distinct.

The spicy red Thai curry broth ($16 for half portion, $24 for full), cooked with peanuts, basil and cilantro, is popular among diners with a penchant for the herbal and nutty taste. Other popular picks include Mediterranean ($16/24), which uses tomatoes and chorizo to add another layer of flavor, and wild mushroom ($16/26), which has a touch of bacon and truffle cream.

The most classic mussel dish, and undoubtedly most reputed, is the white wine version ($16/22). As the waiter opened the glass lid, the air was suffused with an aroma of the broth. Seasoned with roasted garlic, parsley and cream, the steaming deep skillet of mussels was so inviting that it was hard to resist diving right in. The actual taste of the broth proved as impeccable as its aroma: It was creamy yet light, smooth yet flavorful, and the white

YIWEN HU/THE HOYA

Brasserie Beck is the place to go for delicious mussels and impressive brunch. The chicken and waffles play up the traditional Southern classic by substituting in crispy Belgian waffles and jalepeno maple syrup. wine broth tasted garlicky and balanced. I highly recommend resisting the temptation to devour all the complementary bread and instead muster the will power to save a piece of bread or two to dip in the broth.

The steamed mussels were flavorful but not at all fishy in taste, proving just how amazingly fresh they were.

Brunch specials consist of an inclusive list of both savory choices, such as Gruyere cheese omelet ($16) and short-rib hash ($23), and sweet plates, such as stuffed crepe ($14) and lemon-souffle pancake ($14).

One of the all-time favorites, however, is the familiar eggs Benedict ($22). However, Beck does not offer the most traditional version with Canadian bacon. Rather, its rendition substitutes the ham for a

jumbolump crab cake, the English muffin fortoasted brioche, and the hollandaise sauce for a bearnaise sauce. The brioche was perfectly crispy. The generous amount of crab meat was guaranteed to satiate patrons who were passionate about the blight taste and soft texture. However, the bearnaise, although by no means bland, could have been more flavorful so as to complement the taste of the yolk and meld together all flavors of the dish.

Brasserie Beck serves chicken and waffles ($22), the signature dish of the South, with a Belgian twist. Unlike traditional waffles, these Belgian waffles had a crispy outer crust and chewy inner center, which created a very satisfying texture. Although the waffles were slightly sweet by them-

selves, they were further perfected by the pairing of jalapeno maple syrup, whose sweetness was harmonized by the savory jalapeno.

The most pleasant surprise of the dish, however, was the buttermilk fried chicken. Its juicy texture was addicting enough; even more magical, however, was its crunchy crust, which was also delightfully sweetened.

Brasserie Beck also offers a list of creative mimosa renditions. Nonetheless, the waiter might instead recommend trying the other house specialty: Belgian beer. The pricing at Beck is on the higher side, but with such great mussels and allegedly memorable beer, it would still be well worth a try for seafood aficionados and brunch lovers alike.

RECIPES

RESTAURANT review

BRYAN YUEN/THE HOYA

The Bahn Mi Sandwich is just one of many quirky combinations of French and Asian cuisine at the fusion restaurant Mama Rouge. It contains skirt steak layered with mixed vegetables and spices.

Fusion Restaurant Fails to Meld French and Asian Flavors Mama Rouge 3000 K St. NW | Cuisine: Fusion | $$$$ Bryan Yuen and Michael Fiedorowicz Hoya Staff Writers

To step outside of the daily routine, our party decided to check out Mama Rouge, a restaurant by the waterfront that specializes in French-Asian fusion cuisine.

The two of us were easily impressed after weeks of constant excursions to Leo’s and intrigued by the restaurant’s theme — we came in with high hopes.

Unfortunately, the inspiration of the restaurant did not come through in the food that was served, and several technical problems resulted in an unspectacular meal.

Our party decided to order familystyle to allow for more variety in the meal. The pork belly in bao buns ($6) was probably the best dish of the night. While this was a technically well-executed dish, the simplicity of the dish makes simple execution an unimpressive feat. That said, the pork belly was rich and tasty. The cut of meat is essentially a slab of bacon prepared char siu style, which is meant to develop a barbeque-like crispness in the outer fat of the protein.

The fishmonger sriracha stew ($19) has a name that sounds bold, but the dish failed to deliver any punch. From a technical perspective, the dish had several issues. The seafood was not cleaned thoroughly and was, as a result, somewhat sandy. At the same time, the dish included a seemingly random mix of vegetables which did not seem to fit together and detracted from the dish as a whole. Further-

more, having sriracha in the name is very misleading because the dish simply had no spicy kick. Instead, the curry was more of a watery tomato sauce. The restaurant does not follow the Thai style of using coconut milk in their curries, leaving the curries thinner and less rich than would otherwise be expected. In this case, the lack of spice and richness really left the stew rather flat.

The other curry we tried, the yellow pumpkin squash” ($16), ran into the same problem, as it was lacking any real discernible taste given the simplistic nature of the curry and the chef’s inability to draw out these classic flavors. The curries came with both jasmine rice and a baguette, which was rather superfluous. It seems the baguette was a forced attempt to inject a French element into the dish. In general, neither curry exemplified a distinct type of Asian cuisine, nor did the restaurant successfully utilize any elements of French-bistro dining.

The offered beverages attempt to draw on Mama Rouge’s fusion concept by providing a diverse selection.

The drinks themselves did not combine any Asian or French flavors, but there were interesting options from both styles. For one, there was the “thai iced tea,” ($5) which was pretty standard but definitely worth getting if you prefer less-sweet drinks. The “French soda,” ($5) however, was very underwhelming. For one, it was simply far too sweet. The small glass was half-filled with an airy, almost-tasteless foam.

Dessert was good, but not great;

 it’s important to note that every dessert on the menu lacks any Asian element whatsoever. The eclairs were not as rich as one would hope for from a French restaurant, and the cream filling was really not satisfying. While not awful, the eclairs did little to impress. Similarly, the crepes were rather only mediocre in taste and selection, despite the flashy presentation that includes a waiter flambeing the crepe before setting it down on the table.

The decor of the restaurant did not incorporate any noticeable Asian elements. The restaurant looks like a bistro with the shelves of liquor and French style furniture. But even with the bistro design, Mama Rouge prominently displays its bar, which has a modern feel to it with TVs showing “Sportscenter” and sleek furniture that flows well into the dining area.

The restaurant purports to fuse French and Asian styles in its cuisine.

However, it neither effectively utilizes the richness of French dining nor packs the punch of distinctly Asian spices and flavors. The fusion aspect seems relatively sloppy and confusing, as if someone just threw several French and Asian dishes onto the same menu.

Mama Rouge — which replaced Bangkok Joe’s and was meant to be an update —was not a terrible dining experience, but it just didn’t do anything to make it very worthwhile either. The hopes of an interesting fusion menu may draw customers, but the restaurant fails to deliver in that department. Ultimately, Mama Rouge’s lack of innovation and confused concept cannot justify the above-average price.

Pumpkin Cream Cheese truffles

raininghotcoupons.com Celebrate this Halloween with this delicious, easy recipe that everyone can enjoy. These truffles do not involve any baking, only freezing, making them very doable in a dorm setting and quick to make for any occasion.

INGREDIENTS

12 oz. white almond bark or melting chips 1 cup pumpkin puree 1 cup finely crushed graham crackers

2 oz. softened cream cheese 1/2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice

Melt 2 oz. of the white chocolate in the microwave for 30 seconds.

Combine the melted chocolate with the cream cheese, pumpkin puree and spice mix. Stir in the graham crackers. Freeze for 30-40 minutes until firm.

Roll mixture into 1” balls and place on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet.

Melt the rest of the white chocolate in 30-second increments until liquid and drizzle over the truffles. Freeze for 10 minutes.

Apple pumpkin spice cocktail celebrationsathomeblog.com This cocktail delivers autumn in a glass with a perfect blend of seasonal apple and pumpkin flavors. With only three simple ingredients, it can be made for a big crowd or for a quiet evening with friends.

INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup apple juice 1/4 cup lemonade 1 oz. Kahlua pumpkin spice Combine ingredients over ice, and garnish with a slice of apple.

Fermi Bohigas Galda Finca Mas Macia Brut Cava 2013 wine.com This seasonal wine is sold for only $10 and has notes of pear and other sweet fruit that will leave you reveling in the autumn spirit in no time. It pairs perfectly with the savory pumpkin truffles, and at this affordable price, it can be shared with a big group of people. It comes from Spain and boasts the unique flavor of grapes and fruits found in vineyards overseas.

B6

the guide

THE HOYA

1989

MUSIC REVIEW

Taylor Swift KIM BUSSING Hoya Staff Writer

Taylor Swift wants you to know that she’s not selling out.

While her fifth studio album may be a stark departure from her days as country music’s sweetheart, “1989” is less about appealing to the popularity of pop music and more about showing that this new style represents a new Taylor.

With “1989,” Swift is all grown up.

She’s no longer crooning about finding her Romeo. She’s no longer writing music for teenage girls pining over unrequited love. The album’s all about Swift, and her successful rise as pop’s princess. Maybe she’s not as relatable as the “You Belong With Me” girl-nextdoor, but she’s still managed to create an album that combines your new favorite breakup song with songs as memorable as “22.”

It’s hard to find a track that won’t be a top-20 hit: “Shake It Off” has already become this fall’s party anthem, “Blank Space” has climbed to the top of the charts, and aside from one or two ballads, the songs all have upbeat,

MOVIE REVIEW

 sing-along-worthy lyrics.

If the album has one weak spot, it may be just how hard it is to tell that you’re listening to Swift at all: her move to the realm of pop music sometimes runs the risk of sounding generic. While “Bad Blood” is, as rumor has it, about a feud between Swift and Katy Perry, some songs — like “How You Get the Girl” and “I Wish You Would” — end up being reminiscent of Perry’s style.

Swift has never been known for revolutionizing genres, and in this album especially, she sounds like she’s taking a few too many cues from her fellow pop stars. “I Know Places” seems like it might be more appropriate on a Lorde album, and “Wildest Dreams” is a lot more Lana Del Rey than “Teardrops on My Guitar.” “Welcome to New York” could be by any other aspiring artist.

But while she may be imitating her peers, she never imitates herself: each song is distinct, both in tone and sound. There are more breathy, sensual tracks like “Wildest Dreams,” and then more retro, dance-worthy and addicting ones, like “Style.” The variety makes it the album you turn to when

MUSIC TIMES

Taylor Swift’s new album “1989” has completely departed from her country origins, showcasing instead her talent as a pop singer.

BIG MACHINE RECORDS

you get ready in the morning, when you’re at a party or when you’ve just been dumped.

This diversity does not mean the songs are bad, though. In fact, they’re pretty strong and live up to the hype set by all the promotions around the release of “1989.” It’s a great album, and promises to be a lot more successful than efforts of pop competitors, like Perry’s “Roar” or Lady Gaga’s “Artpop.”

The only songs that might not demand obsessive replaying are the ones where Swift relies on her old pattern of dredging up ended romances: “This Love” and “Clean” are the least interesting. In contrast, “Blank Space” is refreshingly honest, self-aware (she acknowledges a “long list of ex-lovers” that might tell you she’s “insane”) and no longer associates relationships with the elusive idea of Prince Charming and fairy tale romance.

It’s not the most daring album in what it does, but what it doesn’t do is more important.

Unlike current reigning pop stars, Swift doesn’t take cues from what’s mainstream: there’s no hip-hop influence, no rap artists filling in for a verse, no song explicitly about partying. She sets herself apart by refusing to play by the rules and still maintaining her good-girl image, now just more mature. There are very few contemporary references, giving her tracks a timelessness usually not afforded to songs in this genre.

For a while, Swift’s been the star you either love or love to hate. But with “1989,” it’s hard not to admit that Swift knows how to make good music, and, more specifically, knows how to make great pop music.

THE CINEMA FILES

1960s Film Explores Greek Politics

‘A

ny resemblance to real events and persons living or dead is not coincidental; it’s INTENTIONAL.” The ’60s was a monumental decade for film, but perhaps no other film from that era is quite as exciting as CostaGavras’ “Z.” On the one hand, “Z” is one of those rare foreign films that achieved early crossover success with American audiences: It received an Academy Award nomination for Best Picture (the first foreign film to do so since Jean Renoir’s “Grand Illusion” all the way back in 1938) and picked up the Oscars for Best Editing and Best Foreign Language Film.

On the other hand (or with it, as it were), “Z” unapologetically — and dare I say triumphantly — gives the middle finger to both contemporary audiences familiar with its political history and to modern American moviegoers quick to associate the words “foreign film” with “slow, obtuse and boring.”

The quote at the start of this column appears at the tail end of the opening credits of “Z” and warrants a bit of historical context. Greek director Costa-Gavras lived most of his life in France, exiled from his homeland and denied entrance to film school in the United States because of his father’s involvement with radical, left-wing activities in Greece.

“Z,” released in 1969, was a response to the assassination of Greek politician and activist Grigoris Lambrakis in 1963; Costa-Gavras makes no pretensions about his inspiration, recreating the tumultuous riots and scandalous arrests that followed the incident and simply transposing them onto a French backdrop. In a brilliant bit of collaboration, Costa-Gavras deploys the militant, Greek

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 31, 2014

island beats of composer Mikis Theodorakis’ bouzouki (a mandolin-type instrument) to propel the action of the film and to not-so-subtly remind us of the real events it is based upon.

In contrast to many of today’s vanilla political thrillers (I’m looking at you, “The Ides of March”), “Z” boasts a genuinely gripping story, a cavalcade of great performances and the filmmaking expertise to keep everything effortlessly

Tim Markatos afloat for just over two hours. “Z” is split into two distinct halves, and while each half follows a very different rhythm, both add up to an excellent whole.

The film kicks off when an otherwise unnamed Deputy (Yves Montand), after speaking at a pre-election rally, receives a club to the back of the head from a political rival speeding by on the back of a truck. Amid widespread rioting in the streets, the deputy is rushed to the hospital, but not in time to stop the inevitable. The second half of the film follows a young magistrate (JeanLouis Trintignant) as he labors to track down the perpetrators of the assassination and to assemble evidence against a number of high-ranking officers suspected to be involved in the plot against the deputy’s life.

Throughout the first half of the film, Costa-Gavras keeps everything running at full speed. The relentless pace of The-

odorakis’ score is matched by razor-sharp editing and kinetic camera movements.

Things slow down significantly in the second half to match the methodical pace of the legal proceedings, but only after a stellar centerpiece scene featuring Irene Papas as the deputy’s wife. For nearly five solid minutes, Papas emotes beautifully and wordlessly as she receives word from the hospital of her husband’s passing. This transition between the two sections ingeniously captures the intensity of his film’s beginning with the deliberation that characterizes its second half.

In the film’s final minutes, CostaGavras ratchets up the intensity anew in a thrilling sequence where the magistrate indicts a slew of government officials for their involvement in the murder of the deputy.

Lest you leave the movie with the familiar warm and fuzzy feeling that typically accompanies cold, hard justice, “Z” has one more surprise up its sleeve. The action abruptly comes to an end before the prosecution as Costa-Gavras cuts away to a newsroom several months into the future, where a reporter announces the dismissal of the prosecutor, the deaths of nearly every key witness to the deputy’s murder and the criminally lax sentences finally assigned to the previously indicted criminals.

To the director’s credit, though, we were warned of the film’s intentional resemblance to real life; while we may expect movies to resolve themselves tidily, sadly the same cannot be said of the dramas that unfold in our everyday lives.

Tim Markatos is a senior in the College. THE CINEMA FILES appears every other Friday.

BEST BETS

RED GRANITE PICTURES

Daniel Radcliffe stars as Ig Perrish in dark fantasy thriller “Horns,” which explores human dynamics with a religious twist.

Horns



Starring: Daniel Radcliffe Director: Alexandre Aja JIWON NOH

Special to The Hoya

Daniel Radcliffe returns to the big screen in the new movie “Horns,” a twisted rendition of Joe Hill’s dark novel from 2010.

Packed with symbolic imagery both obvious (Radcliffe does, in fact, start growing a pair of horns) and subtle, the film is an original take on the familiar struggle between good, evil and where humanity falls between the two.

The movie centers on Radcliffe’s character Ig Perrish.

Once a happy young man very much in love with his girlfriend Merrin Williams (Juno Temple), he suddenly finds himself hated by his entire town following her abrupt and violent death. To add to this dilemma, he wakes up to find horns spontaneously sprouting from his temples. The horns force other people to confess their deepest sins and act on the darkest of their desires, and Ig uses this bizarre power to learn the truth about his girlfriend’s death and ultimately, about everyone he loves.

Director Alexandre Aja, whose previous work includes the popular films “The Hills Have Eyes” and “Mirrors,” stays true to his horror flick origins in this paranormal thriller. The movie is primarily a black comedy interwoven with elements of the supernatural. This twisted sense of humor is markedly at odds in a film whose themes and imagery are heavily religious and far darker than the occasional jokes seem to imply.

To add to this balance of comedy and gloom are Ig’s frequent flashbacks to when he and Merrin met and fell in love. These scenes are light-hearted and pleasant, a sharp departure from the grim events of Ig’s present day experiences.

Aja dramatizes these events through a disjointed flow that emphasizes how Ig is just as surprised and disturbed as everyone else by what is happening.

While the transitions between these scenes and Ig’s present -day scenes are jarring, perhaps even unpleasant, they dramatize how truly devastating it is for Ig to lose someone he loved so dearly and remembers so fondly. The choppiness of the events may cause a bumpy ride for the audience, but it ultimately adds to the film’s portrayal of a young man enduring frightening circumstances.

The sharp contrast may do justice to Ig’s current turmoil, but it misses one important emotion entirely: grief.

Ig is portrayed in the light of anger and humor — very rarely

is he ever seen truly grieving for his lost lover. James Remar, who plays Ig’s father, and David Morse, who stars as Merrin’s father, give poignant performances that fill the gaps where Ig’s grief falls decidedly short.

Their emotional, heartfelt acting makes up for Ig’s lack of expected sadness despite the horrendous losses and revelations that he endures.

Perhaps the most notable aspect of this movie is its heavy-handed religious tone.

Although the movie lacks subtlety in its imagery, this obvious religious undertone still leaves plenty of room for individual interpretation.

From the devilish horns that sprout from Ig’s head to the Cain and Abel dynamic between Ig and his brother, there is an entire dimension of symbolism that can be explored and analyzed. This plethora of meaning saves a movie that would otherwise be classified as a cheap thrill.

“Horns” is a curious amalgam of mystery, romance, horror and fantasy. Radcliffe’s performance touches all these genres — at times, he is a hopeless romantic, and other times, he is the personification of evil.

He delivers a strong performance in a rather difficult role that demands a wide spectrum of emotions. While at times, his slightly awkward American accent takes away from his performance, he pulls off the very disjointed elements of his character with tact.

Compared to Radcliffe’s dynamic character, Temple’s Merrin is frustratingly static. Merrin is portrayed as the pretty, coveted girlfriend, and Temple’s portrayal of her seems shallow, and, at times, just downright annoying. There is very little to Ig and Merrin’s relationship other than their constant proclamations of love and the occasional reference to their being together since childhood. This detracts from the believability of their romance and makes viewers less sympathetic toward her character’s unexpected murder.

What “Horns” lacks in emotional depth and subtlety, it makes up for with thoughtful themes and shocking twists. For the most part, its talented cast delivers strong performances in very complex roles. Aja’s nonlinear portrayal of Ig’s past and present are fascinating and confusing, and if you can ignore the crude humor and embrace the overarching religious undertones of the movie, “Horns” can be quite an interesting watch.

ON CAMPUS

HAUNTED HEALY HALL

D.C. A CAPPELLA FESTIVAL (DCAF)

CSJ OPTIONS FAIR

ENCOUNTERING JESUS

WHERE: Healy Hall WHEN: Saturday, 9 p.m. to 1 a.m.

INFO: facebook.com PRICE: Free

WHERE: Gaston Hall WHEN: Saturday, 7:30 p.m.

INFO: guevents.georgetown.edu PRICE: $8 students; $10 general

WHERE: ICC Galleria WHEN: Tuesday, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

INFO: csj.georgetown.edu/optionsseries PRICE: Free

WHERE: ICC Auditorium WHEN: Wednesday, 7 p.m.

INFO: guevents.georgetown.edu PRICE: Free

Celebrate Halloween weekend with some oncampus scares. Come by Healy Hall to see if you can make it through Georgetown’s scariest maze. Fellow students are volunteering as haunts in the maze, so be aware that your friends might be around corner! It’s a great way to have some fun and get scared by and with fellow Hoyas this spooky weekend.

DCAF features a wide range of musical genres from oldies to rock to modern hits. The concert is co-hosted by the Georgetown Phantoms and the Georgetown GraceNotes. The Phantoms perform tomorrow, while the GraceNotes will take the stage the following Saturday. The festival displays a variety of groups and programs, including premier university a cappella groups from across the east coast.

If you’re interested in a career involving social justice after graduation, then drop by the Options Fair. Students can consider postgraduate possibilities with recruiters from organizations such as the Peace Corps, Jesuit Volunteer Corps and City Year. Recruiters from last year’s Options Fair include Teach For America, Visions in Action and D.C. Teaching Fellows. Student registration closes Sunday.

Father James Martin, S.J., is a gifted communicator as well as an outspoken advocate for Jesuit values, which has earned him a position as “Chaplain to the Colbert Report.” Martin will speak in the ICC on his New York Times bestselling book “Jesus: A Pilgrimage.” He hopes to engage students by presenting Jesus from a new perspective and relating these stories to the present day.

the guide

friday, october 31, 2014

Nightcrawler

Movie Review

Hoya Staff Writer



“Nightcrawler,” written and directed by Dan Gilroy, is a tense and scathing criticism of the unstoppable and emotionally detached coverage of violence in today’s media. The difficult lead role, Louis Bloom, is portrayed by Jake Gyllenhaal and offers a perfect challenge for an actor at this point in his career. The film is unable to accomplish many of its ambitious technical goals, but Gyllenhaal’s powerhouse delivery helps balance much of that to make this a worthwhile film.

“Nightcrawler” opens with showing Louis Bloom as a comical fence thief. He grinds away at his work, plying away at the wiring to tear the fence apart and sell it. Immediately, we’re introduced to a meticulous and hard-working man who will

do whatever it takes to help his own cause.

Bent on making a name for himself, Bloom penetrates the underground world of freelance videography and crime journalism. He spends the rest of the film chasing blood and crime in Los Angeles that he can capture on tape.

As his business ramps up, he hires Rick (Riz Ahmed) to help out with a second camera. Bloom pays Rick pennies for his help and never forgets to remind him what a fantastic career opportunity their work is. Bloom does nothing but exploit his partner and crush his spirit as they progressively cross greater and greater moral boundaries in pursuit of “the story” and Louis’ personal success.

In order to grow his brand, Bloom takes advantage of the news-station anchor to whom he sells his mate-

OPENROADFILMS

In the fast-paced action film “Nightcrawler,” Jake Gyllenhaal gives a standout performance as an L.A. crime journalist, Louis Bloom.

rial, Nina (Rene Russo). He strongarms her into deals and decisions she’d be unwilling to take if she was less reliant on his material. The gruesome nature of Bloom’s videos is exactly what Nina wants to draw her audience in. Her concerns about these images are never ethical, only fiscal and legal. The media members in “Nightcrawler,” like Louis and Nina, will stop at nothing to exploit crimes for the sake of ratings.

The film is layered with complexity as the main character is placed directly into the relentless media business which he metaphorically mirrors with his own instability. The intricacy with which this tangle of motives and themes is played out is a testament to Dan Gilroy’s writing, which shines here against his previous endeavors such as “Real Steel” and “The Bourne Legacy.”

While truly successful in establishing the characters and the surroundings necessary for “Nightcrawler”’s chilling vibe, the plot is rather predictable. Gilroy seems to have improved in his ability to create an emotional feel in his creations, but his actual story is still rather underwhelming.

Composed by James Newton Howard, the film’s electronic score perfectly accentuates Gilroy’s underground L.A. crime scenery. On the other hand, little else in the production seems to remind viewers of this darkness. While the main character, the plot and the music all perpetuate this aura, there isn’t much in the film’s shots or sets that serves to reinforce this.

In large part, the simplicity of the plot paired with the film’s mostly underwhelming production means that the film’s en-

tertainment essentially comes from the character study of Louis Bloom. It is here that Gilroy and Gyllenhaal truly deliver. Bloom is an anti-social and manipulative sociopath looking to make his way in the world. He is always direct with his expectations and demands, exuding a sense of control over both those around him and the audience. At the same time, Bloom can only take over because he is impressively smart. Perseverance and the internet teach Bloom a great deal.

Bloom’s intellect, emotional detachment and his force make him a scary person to imagine — especially when steeped in a world of crime.

Jake Gyllenhaal is exactly the person for this role. From “Donnie Darko” to “Zodiac,” he has perfected the craft of playing obsessive and antisocial characters. It is rare to see such clear linear progress from film to film, but Gyllenhaal truly delivers a stellar performance in this one. Wide-eyed and wiry, Louis Bloom sends tingles down the spine every time he smiles or even speaks. Talented actors find it easy to emulate fictionally constructed emotions, but Bloom is difficult precisely because his emotions are fake and practiced. So, Gyllenhaal has to convince the audience that it is not he who is faking his emotions. That’s quite a difficult balance, but he pulls it off brilliantly.

With such a wild over-the-top character placed in such an extreme, ruthless media setting, the film delivers a harsh satire of contemporary news culture. There’s no stopping Louis Bloom and the local station from catching the next bloody shot — no matter what the cost or moral implications. “Nightcrawler” is without a doubt thought-provoking and intense. But, its message is also simple, causing the film to quickly exhaust what it has to say. You may glance at your watch about halfway through, but “Nightcrawler” is worth the watch — at the very least to admire Jake Gyllenhaal’s stellar performance.

Album Review

I Forget Where We Were

Ben Howard Alex mitchell

Speccial to The Hoya

Nothing quite depicts the overwrought, pseudo-sophisticated emotionality of Ben Howard’s most recent album as much as its satirically formulaic title, “I Forget Where We Were.”

Unlike his past albums, Howard’s pacing does not captivate you with its intensity or upbeat crescendos.



Instead, the listener is left to lean weakly on his hyperemotional lyrics and a fumbling banjo, thinking, “I didn’t know Lana Del Rey and NeverShoutNever! had a kid.”

While Howard’s strong voice and supportive synthesizer seem reminiscent of The Killers, the album fails to produce anything new or original; it simply regurgitates faux counter-cultural lingo.

To Howard’s credit, however, he

TEARAWAYNZ

Indie-folk singer Ben Howard falls remarkably short of his past success in his unimpressive latest album “I Forget Where We Were.”

B7

MUSIC

Starring: Jake Gyllenhaal Directed by: Dan Gilroy Michael Fiedorowicz

THE HOYA

New Releases ‘Beg for it’ Iggy Azalea  While prepping fans for the release of her upcoming studio album “Reclassified,” Iggy has decided to have fun with her latest single without straying too far from her distinctive sound. In the song, she pays tribute to Notorious B.I.G., mirroring his famous “Biggie Biggie Biggie can’t you see” verse lyrics at the end of her second verse. The song combines rhythmic-rap sections with a feminine, high-pitched chorus and a smooth synthesizer to produce a slowpaced whole reminiscent of her earlier hit “Fancy.” It ends with an alluring voice that captures Iggy’s sassy spark. It may not break any revolutionary ground, as Iggy doesn’t seem intent on experimenting with her successful music style.

‘the party line’ belle and sebastian  Coming in strong after five years of low-key living, the indie pop band is back with a new single in anticipation of its new album to be released in January. The male vocals and whispered female accompaniment is similar to Gotye’s indie rock sound, and the song somehow remains upbeat yet pleasurably mellow throughout. This can be attributed to the electric hum of the bass and the single’s bouncing mix of discotechno ambiance. With playfully alternating combinations of notes and rhythms, the single is sure to attract new fans in the ever more popular indie-pop genre.

‘i bet my life’ imagine dragons 



does manage to vary the audible “aesthetic” of each track. “Time is Dancing” is one of the few songs that stands out among its less than spectacular companions. In fact, it is probably the only song I wouldn’t mind replaying on my iPod. It maintains a melancholic, romantic message that aesthetically competes with an upbeat tempo and a pumping synthesizer. This track is similar to what one would find on an album by Young the Giant or a less-flamboyant MisterWives.

Other tracks on the album are reminiscent of an older, folksier genre. “She Treats Me Well” includes the same curt, emotional distance of The Animals’ 1966 recording of “House of the Rising Sun.” Paired with a more sympathetic solo guitar and a pianobacking track, “She Treats Me Well” gives a nod to folk music’s founders.

At the same time, such reiterated themes make the album fall short.

Howard assembles the original vibrancy of indie folk, simplifies it and disseminates it to a larger audience — the album is currently #1 on the Official UK Albums Chart. It’s as if he’s trying to demonstrate what indie-folk music should sound like instead of creating any original content himself.

But how does “I Forget Where We Were” differ from Ben Howard’s past albums? Some of his older songs hold permanent positions on my iTunes Top 25 Most Played list, yet his newest venture seems like he took his least popular songs and decided to make an album solely inspired by them.

In his older, more popular songs like “Old Pine” and “Only Love,” there is a clear accompaniment

BIG MACHINE RECORDS

that sounds like Howard is with a band, singing along to its musical backing. But, the same cannot be said of this album. Any accompaniment is drowned out by an endless synthesizer, and listeners are only left with Howard’s lone voice. This overly dependent reliance on his vocals creates an album that exudes solitary dullness, losing the magic generated by his earlier works.

While the album generally falls short of its expectations, there are some salvageable features that can become audibly enjoyable in certain circumstances. If you need quiet background music to study for your next midterm or a melancholic track for a nighttime drive, perhaps Ben Howard can fit your criteria.

Due to the trite nature of many of the songs on this album and its impersonal content, I would advise against making this purchase.

It simply does not compete with already successful contemporaries in the genre like Coldplay and The Killers, and it strays too far from the sounds that put Ben Howard on the map in the first place.

Summarily, “I Forget Where We Were” is a convoluted conversation, laden with overly emotional lyrics and very few hooks. Every once in a while, listeners attempt to interpret a song’s meaning, but then they realize that they, too, forgot where they were.

Two years ago, the indie-rock band made a splash with its debut studio album “Night Visions.”

Following a spree of multiple hits and then a brief hiatus from the spotlight, the group had a lot to live up to. This single is a formulaic version of the band’s earlier songs. It starts with a harmonized chorus that immediately switches to an almost country vibe with clapping, heavy percussion and a prominent guitar part. The chorus comes early and suddenly, picking up the speed with lead singer Dan Reynold’s unique voice. The single mimics the form of songs like “On Top of the World.”

Overall, it is not a very catchy or melodious tune, leaving one uncertain about the future success of Imagine Dragons’ second album.

‘6 god’ drake  After three of the songs from his upcoming album “Views from the 6” were leaked online, Drake officially released them over the weekend via SoundCloud. “6 God” features a strong drum and bass with a short, melodic background riff that pairs with Drake’s usual rapping style. His pace is led by this clipped, repeating beat for a minute or two before the drums fade and a subtle synthesizer builds up the anticipation. This section never really reaches a peak, as it simply falls back into the original rhythm of the song. Current Drake fans will be content with his unfaltering voice, lyrics and instrumentals, yet he offers nothing new to draw in other potential audiences.

AROUND TOWN fright at the museum

COMEDIAN JERMAINE FOWLER

‘OUT OF MANY, ONE’

‘DeAr white people’ film screening

Where: Crime Museum, 575 Seventh St. NW When: Friday and Saturday, 7 to 10 p.m.

Info: crimemuseum.org Price: $30

Where: DC Improv When: Friday to Sunday, 8 p.m.

Info: dcimprov.com Price: $15 on Sunday and $17 on Friday and Saturday

Where: National Mall When: Friday Info:npg.si.edu/outofmanyone/index.html Price: Free

Where: AMC Georgetown 14 When: Sunday, 1 p.m.

Info: http://now-events.net/ Price: Free

Head down to the Crime Museum to experience its transformation into one of the best Haunted Houses in D.C. Located right next to Verizon Center, this exhibit is the perfect Halloween outing for you and your friends. This spooky evening event will make your heart stop and might even make you head back home covering your eyes.

Comedian Jermaine Fowler is presenting his own live show at DC Improv this weekend.

This budding comedian has starred in McDonald’s, Sobe and Sports Illustrated promos, Comedy Central’s “Comedy Underground with Dave Atell” and MTV2’S “Guy Code.”

Don’t miss out on this grand landscape portrait

by Cuban-American artist Jorge RodriguezGerada. The piece titled “Out of Many, One” is a collection of portraits taken around D.C. that has been combined into one composite portrait. This is an interactive walk-through experience promoted by the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery.

“Dear White People” won the 2014 Sundance Film Festival’s Special Award for Breakthrough Talent. Co-sponsored by the NAACP and Georgetown University’s Office of Institutional Diversity, Equity, & Affirmative Action, this free movie screening explores modern racism in a highly recognizable college setting.

B8

Sports

THE HOYA

Friday, october 31, 2014

woMen’s Soccer

VOLLEYBALL

Hoyas Look for 1st-Round Bye Chris Balthazard Hoya Staff Writer

The Georgetown women’s soccer team (10-3-4, 5-1-2 Big East) will travel to New Jersey on Friday to take on Seton Hall (3-9-5, 0-5-3 Big East) in each team’s final Big East regular-season match.

A Georgetown win, combined with a St. John’s (10-6-1, 6-1-1 Big East) loss at first-place DePaul (14-0-3, 6-0-2 Big East) on Friday afternoon would give the Hoyas a first-round bye in the Big East championship. On the other side of the pitch, the game means the difference between eighth and 10th for Seton Hall, who has been eliminated from tournament contention.

A tight, low-scoring affair would not be a surprise, as the Hoyas have only scored two goals in the last three games and the Pirates have only bagged six in their last 14. Both teams are tied for the conference lead in lowest goals against

FILE PHOTO: JULIA HENNRIKUS/THE HOYA

Senior midfielder Daphne Corboz has seven goals to go along with 16 assists in 17 starts this season.

average, with 1.00 per game.

Head Coach Dave Nolan did not entirely know what to expect from Seton Hall; when he expected Creighton (9-6-2, 1-5-2 Big East) to sit in and defend, they attacked and racked up eight first-half shots to Georgetown’s two.

“We saw Creighton on Senior Day, and they played like their lives were ... possessed,” Nolan said. “I don’t know.

Creighton still had something to play for when we played them, but for Seton Hall it’s been a long, tough season. …

More of a concern is that they lead the league in fouls, and it’s not even close. I think they’re first, second and third. We do need to keep the ball moving fast.”

The Pirates are first with 212 fouls on the season, but Marquette is second with 185. Georgetown has committed just 136 fouls in its 17 games, the secondfewest in the Big East.

Seton Hall’s goalkeeper, sophomore Illissa Blackshear, has kept the Pirates in games despite the team scoring just 12 goals all season; she leads the Big East with a 0.93 goals against average and lies second in save percentage, with a .825 mark.

Nolan has put a focus in practice on breaking teams down and creating good chances on goal.

“We’ve been working a lot on combination play, and we’ve been working on trying to play a little bit quicker in the final third,” Nolan said. “And we’ve been working on trying to get around the corner, and what happens when we get around their outside backs. We need to get more numbers into the box. Instead of people waiting to see what happens with the cross, we need to get people committed to the cross.”

Seton Hall has given other top Big East teams trouble this season, with both DePaul and St. John’s needing second-half goals to escape South Orange, NJ., with 1-0 victories.

Senior attacking midfielder Daphne

Corboz knows that even though playing one last time on Shaw Field as the Big East championships’ third seed could be fun, the team needs to break Seton Hall down and earn a bye into the semifinals.

The semifinals and final will be held on St. John’s campus in Jamaica, NY., on Nov. 7 and Nov. 9.

“We’re preparing for Seton Hall like we have been every game this season: focusing on our speed of play and creating chances, which is something that we’ve lacked recently,” Corboz said. “Seton Hall … [is] going to be a tough team to break down. And it is their last game, and their Senior Night, so they really don’t have much to lose. Hopefully they come out of their end.”

Corboz, who is a two-time All-American and leads the Big East in both assists and points, admits that the Hoyas have to create more chances to beat teams who sit in defensive shells.

“It’s really been very difficult to play when you have nine people behind the ball at times, and that has happened in a majority of our games,” Corboz said.

“But it’s something we need to adapt to, and we haven’t really been able to.

It obviously makes it difficult to create chances and it’s something that we’ve been trying to focus on in practice.”

Nolan reiterated, though, that Georgetown is not geared toward playing well on the flanks and getting crosses in. He only switches to a three-back system and two wing-backs late in close games, preferring instead to rely on quick combination play as the main method of attack.

“Basically, we need to move the ball really quickly, and when a seam opens up, we need to play it right away,” Corboz said. “So it’s just about getting that all in line, in terms of people seeing the pass and making the runs and hopefully catching a defense a little out of place.”

The Hoyas will start their final regular -season game on the road against the Pirates at 7 p.m.

coaches feature

Trio of Coaches Take the Helm COACHES, from B10 ness, gratitude, authenticity, energy,” Chakejian said.

Soares brings experience from a variety of positions around the country, including Virginia Commonwealth University and, most recently, a stint at the University of Washington.

Soares replaced Tiffany Hubbard, who after seven seasons on the Hilltop, joined the staff of the Ohio Bobcats as an associate head coach in the offseason.

Sgarlata arrived at his position after more than 20 years on the Hilltop as a student, athlete and defensive coordinator. This prior experience at Georgetown resulted in an ability to provide a uniquely Georgetown experience for his athletes.

“For me, it was really exciting to take over a program and start implementing some of the things I think are important for a college experience,” Sgarlata said.

“It was definitely a goal of mine to be a coach here.”

Alfieri spoke of the value Sgarlata gives to academics and experiences off the field building connections on the Hilltop, expressed through ideas like his “four-for-40” motto. But a passion for the sport is also clearly present.

“Coach Sgarlata bleeds Georgetown football,” Alfieri said. “He just brings

a whole new level of energy to the program and now that he’s at the top it just kind of trickles down into every aspect of the program.”

Sgarlata took over from Kevin Kelly, who left Georgetown after eight years at the helm to become the defensive coordinator for FBS program Ball State.

Agnini is transferring seven years of associate head coaching experience at University of California, Berkeley, home to one of the nation’s premier rowing programs, to a less-proven program thousands of miles away. As fall workouts continue, Agnini has attempted to meld some of that expertise with his new surroundings in Washington, D.C. “We actually have been running in front of the Lincoln Memorial, which is awesome, much cooler than a soccer stadium,” Agnini said. “And the Potomac is a great body of water.”

For now, Agnini plans to apply experience in intensive recruiting to benefit the program in the long term, while more immediately trying to keep up workout variety and avoid monotony, recognizing the potential rut a team could lapse into, and the importance of day-to-day activity.

“It’s a long season of training, and training hard, and they can’t just row and be on the rowing machines,” Agnini

said. “You’ve got to mix it up a little bit, so I feel like I had my ways to do it in California. Here [it’s] just a little bit different.”

Agnini assumed the role of Tony Johnson, who retired after 28 years at the head of the program.

As the programs’ seasons stand now, the changes in coaching style have resulted in moderate improvements on the field of play. Field Hockey’s record stands at 5-11, and football is 2-6. Meanwhile, crew has continued its recent success, rowing well against tough competition in the abridged fall season.

Despite this lack of marked first-year improvement, subtle adjustments have engaged athletes, by and large leaving a positive mark mutually appreciated by students and coaches.

“I think a lot of our student-athletes have bought into [the process], they believe in that,” Soares said. “When you get into the thick of the season and the real rhythm of the season it can be hard to remember that process and believe in it, so sometimes we have to remind us of that.”

How these processes manifest themselves in results for the program remain to be seen, but the opportunity for improvement is present in the minds of those involved.

Cross-COuntry

Postseason Begins With Big East Race Kara Avanceña Hoya Staff Writer

After capping off their respective regular seasons with spectacular finishes at the Indiana State Pre-Nationals Invitational, Georgetown’s cross-country teams will head to the Big East Cross-Country Championships in Indianapolis, Ind., on Friday to kick-start the postseason. The Hoyas will compete with the help of key runners on both the men’s and women’s teams that sat out previous races.

Both teams will enter the race after receiving significant bumps in the national rankings last week. Following its first-place finish in Terre Haute, Ind., the women’s team rose from being ranked fourth in the country to second, surging ahead of the previous No. 1, and current No. 4, University of Michigan.

The men’s team currently holds the No. 16 rank after being unranked from the second week of its season onward.

“Whatever number we’re ranked at, we don’t do anything [differently],” Women’s Cross-Country Head Coach Michael Smith said. “I think all that number means [is] that we’re a really good team and people believe that, as do we.”

The Big East championship will give the women’s team an opportunity to face off against other squads that have recently won the national championship.

Georgetown, No. 24 Villanova and Providence have won four of the last five NCAA championships, making the Big East one of the competitive women’s cross-country conferences.

To help race against the stiff competition that the Hoyas expect to face, Georgetown will return several of its top runners.

Senior Katrina Coogan, who was the top runner for the Hoyas at pre-nationals, will lead her team at the Big East championship. The veteran runner enters the conference race having won the Big East Player of the Week award for the second time this season. If Coogan’s race is anything like her third-place finish in Terre Haute, Georgetown will be in prime position to win the Big East championship after earning second place last season. “[Katrina]’s in great contention to be able to win the Big East conference individually,” Smith said. “That’s definitely a goal of hers.”

Adding to Coogan’s leadership and experience will be junior Samantha Nadel, who will be competing for Georgetown for the first time this season. Nadel finished in fifth place overall at last year’s Big East championship and was the second runner to finish for the Hoyas. She is expected to make a significant impact to an already successful squad. “[Sam is] someone we can count on to give 100 percent every time she steps out onto the court or to the track,” Coogan said. “She’s definitely going to make an impact on the team scoring-wise.”

Just as the women’s team is looking to beat some formidable teams at the Big East championship, so will the men’s team look to improve upon its fourthplace finish at the meet last season while competing against No. 7 Villanova and No. 17 Providence.

After placing third at pre-nationals, the Hoyas are looking to build on their upward trend this season. The team’s packrunning strategy, which involves the athletes trying to reduce the spread among their finishing times as much as possible

in order to lower the team score, will be the key to its success.

“I think if we just continue to perfect that style of racing that, just like at pre-nationals, we’ll be happy with the results,” Men’s Distance Coach Brandon Bonsey said. “We’ll continue to work on that and let the results fall where they are, but we’re going to follow our own racing strategy, not let what else is going on take away from what we’re trying to do.”

The top runners from the Hoyas’ PreNationals meet will be making the trip to Indianapolis, including junior Ahmed Bile and sophomore Jonathan Green.

Both runners finished among the top 30 runners at Terre Haute.

The men’s team will also have graduate student Brian King, who finished in 13th place overall at last year’s Big East championship.

The Hoyas will have two special additions to its upcoming roster in seniors Ryan Gil and Collin Leibold. Neither runner has raced in a meet this season, but both runners were instrumental in Georgetown’s third place finish at the 2013 Mid-Atlantic Regional Championships.

“It’ll be their first race so you never know exactly what to expect if someone hasn’t raced before, but at the same time the training and their prior racing experience before this year indicates that they’re ready to run right with that pack of guys that were up at Pre-Nationals,” Bonsey said. “Those are two big additions to the team and we’re excited to have them out there.”

The Big East Championship will begin at 11 a.m. and will be broadcast live on the Big East Digital Network.

FILE PHOTO: NATE MOULTON/THE HOYA

Senior libero MacKenzie Simpson (front) suffered an arm injury in the loss to Marquette. Junior Emily Gisolfi (back) has replaced Simpson at libero.

GU Weathers Simpson Injury up their job just a little bit, and do a little bit more. That’s the mentality that we’re going to have,” Saar said.

Creighton is led by 6-foot 4-inch senior middle blocker Kelli Browning, who leads the Big East with a 38.8% attack percentage and ranks second in the conference with 1.41 blocks per set. Williams was extremely complimentary of Browning’s ability, and acknowledged that she will be a primary focus of the Georgetown game plan.

“They have a middle blocker who’s extremely effective, Kelli Browning, she’s one of the best blockers in the country and hits at a high hitting efficiency, so we’re really focused on how we can slow her down,” Williams said.

The Bluejays have won 11 of their previous 12 games, and will be looking to defend their home court in D.J. Sokol Arena, where they have yet to lose in conference play this season. They will undoubtedly represent a difficult opponent for the Hoyas, but the team will enter the game looking to embrace the challenge and continue to improve upon their early-season results.

“We’re really excited to go and see what we can do against Creighton,” Cannon said.

Saturday’s match in Omaha, Neb., will start at 6 p.m.

CREIGHTON, from B10 liams declined to comment on the specifics of Simpson’s injury, but acknowledged that the team would have to make significant adjustments if one of their co-captains is sidelined.

“She’s definitely a key player, but if Mackenzie’s not available to play, we have several other players on our team who can play that defensive position, and we’ll just keep working them into the rotation,” Williams said.

Junior defensive specialist Emily Gisolfi donned the special libero jersey for the third set of the Marquette match after Simpson exited, but it remains to be seen exactly how Williams will adjust her rotation moving forward. Still, the team will continue to work hard and look to improve regardless.

“I think everyone’s going to have to step up a little bit, and just work a little harder to control the things they can control, in order to try to make up for her if she’s not there this weekend,” Cannon said.

Junior outside hitter Lauren Saar, Georgetown’s other co-captain, echoed those sentiments after the Marquette match.

“We’re going to come together as a team. We can’t replace anyone, but everyone else can step

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SPORTS

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 31, 2014

CAPITALS HILL

THE HOYA

B9

FOOTBALL

NHL Knocks Out GU Aims for 1st Lehigh Win Fighting Tradition F NADAV SENENSIEB Hoya Staff Writer

ighting is undoubtedly in- argue that if players have to congrained in the National sent to fights then they can evade Hockey League’s identity. accountability for their actions. In Seen as just another part of the other words, they fear that playgame to many, the age-old tradi- ers can get away with cheap shots tion of dropping the gloves has without having to face the physical become a significant part of hock- consequences of the past. The NHL ey culture. However, the once-glo- has stuck by this rule, however, arguing that the NHL’s discipline rified practice is under fire.

In a game as physical and fast- system can serve to reduce cheap paced as ice hockey, the potential shots in a controlled manner.

Proponents of the new rule to get hurt and to hurt others is high. This is where many feel changes cite the growing concern fighting plays an important regu- for player safety.

In 2011, the tragic deaths of two latory role. Throughout NHL history, players who took liberties NHL enforcers raised some serion others were subject to being ous questions about fighting. New York Rangers embroiled in a forward Derek fight. The aptly Boogaard died named “enforcfrom an apparers” of the NHL ent overdose have traditionon pain medially been in cation. Over charge of dealthe course of ing out this punhis NHL caishment. What reer he had these players developed a lacked in skill Daniel Litke serious adthey made diction to up for in size, strength and Changes in the salary cap a variety of pills. Vancouintimidation.

As the NHL and rule book are render- ver Canucks forward Rick enters the ing fighting obselete.

Rypien strug2014-2015 seagled with son, there is a clinical denoticeable lack of enforcers on each team. Even pression throughout his fighting the Philadelphia Flyers, known career and took his own life.

These deaths served as a scary for their physical play and penchant for fighting, do not have reminder of the physical and one. This is emblematic of hock- mental consequences of fighting ey’s recent shift away from the and fueled significant backlash against the practice. The NHL is controversial act of fighting.

Since the 2004-2005 lockout, under pressure to prevent such the NHL has operated under a tragedies from repeating.

There have been tangible results strict salary cap. Teams cannot spend over a predetermined that suggest the NHL is rapidly amount in yearly salaries. For moving away from its fighting culmany teams, enforcers were seen ture. Before the 2004-2005 lockas disposable under such a sys- out, the NHL averaged 0.64 fights tem. Their salary could be better per game. Last season, there were only 0.38 fights per game. spent on more skilled players.

With a significant reduction The salary cap era has also seen an active opposition to fighting in fighting, the NHL now faces from league officials. The NHL a complicated decision. Should has actively tried to shift its iden- it take the next step and abolish tity away from violence in favor fighting completely? Evidence of the increased speed and skill suggests that this may be difficult. Many still feel fighting still of the modern game.

After the lockout, the NHL plays a necessary role in regulatadopted the instigator rule. If ing the game — including those a player instigates a fight with- affected most. A 2012 survey of out clear consent from their the National Hockey League Playopponent, an two extra penalty ers’ Association revealed that 98 minutes will be given to the in- percent of NHL players do not stigator. This rule significantly think fighting should be abolchanged the nature of fighting ished from the game.

It is likely that this debate will in the game; there was a noticeable shift away from spontane- continue on for the foreseeable future. Thus, as players continue ous or retaliatory fights.

The instigator rule rendered to drop the gloves, it is imperative enforcers even more expendable. for the NHL to do its best to proAfter the lockout, enforcers strug- tect its players. If fighting must gled to intimidate opponents as exist, it is the NHL’s responsibilplayers simply refused to fight ity to make sure that lives are them. Instead, enforcers were rel- not in jeopardy. egated to fighting each other — a practice that seemed unnecessary. Daniel Litke is a senior in the Many supporters of fighting School of Foreign Service. CAPIresent the instigator rule. They TALS HILL appears every Friday.

OUT OF OUR LEAGUE

Kobe Left Without Supporting Cast FIEGE, from B10 nization’s worst in history.

The death of legendary owner Jerry Buss after a battle with cancer and the team’s exit in the first round of the playoffs to the Spurs made the wasted year all the more somber. It was not surprising, then, when the Kobe-less 2014 squad failed to make the playoffs.

Entering the 2014-2015 season, there was a light at the end of the tunnel. First-round pick Julius Randle was seen as a potential cornerstone upon which to rebuild the organization’s frontcourt. Bryant was going to bounce back from his 2014 season with vintage success, while serving as a mentor in the locker room. Offseason pickups guard Jeremy Lin and forward Ed Davis were to serve as suitable role players to make the Lakers a midtier team in a competitive Western Conference.

But just two games into the season, the collective hope for a revival of the Lakers’ winning culture has gone out the window.

What happened? Julius Randle broke his tibia near the end of the Lakers’ season opener, ruling him out for his entire rookie season and putting a sudden stop on the organization’s rebuilding plans. Outside of Kobe, there is no star power for Coach Scott to look to — forward Carlos Boozer is washed up, Linsanity ended

two years ago in New York and everyone else is young and inexperienced, with little upside.

At this point, all Lakers fans can hope for is that Bryant stays healthy and that the Lakers can snag yet another lottery pick in next year’s draft.

How a withering Lakers team affects the rest of the league is becoming more and more clear.

With Kobe Bryant quarantined on an island of misfit toys, it is sad to say that we might never get to see his clutch playoff performances ever again.

The Clippers have risen to become the dominant Los Angeles basketball team, starting with the success of their roster overhauls and augmented by the recent purchase of the team

by Microsoft multibillionaire (and non-Donald Sterling) Steve Ballmer. The road to the NBA championships for a Western Conference team now definitively goes through the San Antonio Spurs and Oklahoma City Thunder.

However, it is safe to say that the Lakers organization is a resilient one. I would not be surprised if the team regains relevancy once again in a few years, as a large market such as Los Angeles has the ability to attract big-name free agents and entice veteran role players.

Max Fiege is a freshman in the School of Foreign Service. OUT OF OUR LEAGUE appears every Friday.

Following a tough loss at home to Bucknell (6-1, 2-0 Patriot League), the Georgetown football team is set to face Lehigh University at home this Saturday. In a battle of teams that have yet to win a conference game, the Hoyas (2-6, 0-3 Patriot League) hope to beat the Mountain Hawks (1-6, 0-2 Patriot League) for the first time since joining the Patriot League in 2001.

To do so, Georgetown will have to start executing better down the stretch and figure out how to finish strong in close games. In each of the past two games, the Hoyas have lost by less than a touchdown and after having the ball with the chance to win in the final minutes. However, Head Coach Rob Sgarlata says the tough losses are not affecting his team’s mentality.

“We have a 24-hour rule. So whether we win or we lose we try to handle it the same way,” Sgarlata said. “I think the kids have reacted well. We had a good day on Sunday, which is usually the hardest day for them to kind of snap out of it. That’s the great thing about the Patriot League.

You don’t have time to sit here and worry about it or celebrate a win or a loss because you have a game coming up the following week. We’re happy to be coming out against a good Lehigh team, and I think they’ve done a good job preparing. It hasn’t been that different from week one to be quite honest.”

Georgetown is going to have to buck the recent trends to pull out a win against Lehigh. The Hoyas have lost 13 consecutive games in the series, although there have been some close calls. Now, in a down year for the Mountain Hawks, Sgarlata’s team appears ready to finally win one.

“Two years ago we lost to them 17 14,” Sgarlata said. “We’ve had a good about three- or four-year stretch.

When we came into the league Lehigh was at its pinnacle with Pete Lembo (COL ’91) — who’s a Georgetown alum — up there and they were really good and had gone to the playoffs a couple years. They’re an established program in the league and we’re looking forward to going up against them this Saturday.”

To beat Lehigh, Georgetown’s offense will have to step up and finish the game strong, especially if it is another close game. The Hoyas have had the ball in each of the last two weeks with the chance to win the game but were unable to score either

FILE PHOTO: CLAIRE SOISSON/THE HOYA

Senior defensive lineman Alec May has 13.5 sacks in eight games, 2.5 sacks short of the Georgetown single-season record. time. However, junior quarterback Kyle Nolan is confident that his offense is more than capable of putting together a game-winning drive.

“We’ve done a good job moving the ball, just got to find a way to get in the end zone,” Nolan said. “We’ve eliminated the penalties, which has been great. It’s allowed us to keep drives going, getting us in good field position. We just have to find a way to get in the end zone.”

Another storyline to keep an eye on going into the game against Lehigh — and the remainder of the season — is senior defensive lineman Alec May’s pursuit of several conference records. With 13.5 sacks already recorded with season, May is only 2.5 sacks away from the Georgetown single season sack record and 4.5 sacks away from the Patriot League single-season sack record. With three games remaining, there is a very good chance he eclipses both of those marks. But May is not focused on any individual accomplishments he may have.

“The individual stats I’m sure at the end of the year I’ll look back and think about, but it’s not something I really focus on game to game,” May

said. “It’s more about winning the game and executing plays.”

Meanwhile, Sgarlata views May’s spectacular season as a testament to the defense as a whole. The defensive line has been strong enough that teams cannot focus solely on May. The secondary, led by junior cornerback Ettian Scott, has covered receivers well enough to give May time to penetrate opposing teams’ backfields.

“If you look at that senior group on defense has been together and played a lot of football and been very good together. We’ve had a history of great players in the Patriot League … and Alec May continues that, and I know we’ve talked about [senior defensive lineman] Jordan Richardson and [senior linebacker] Nick Alfieri. I think that … any of the single-season accolades that Nick, Alec or Jordan get is really aggregate of the whole group together. I think it’s more of a group award. And Alec would say that as well. That’s the way he looks at it,” Sgarlata said.

The Hoyas will require big contributions from Nolan and May when they kick off against the Mountain Hawks at 12 p.m. at the MultiSport Facility.

FIELD HOCKEY

Liberty Flames Torch Hoyas 7-0 MICHAEL SAXON

cessfully,” Holmes said.

Soares also expanded on doing the simple tasks right.

Coming off a 4–0 loss to No. “It’s about being able to control 16 Temple (13-5, 3-1 Big East), the the controllable. We have to break it Georgetown field hockey team (5-11, down into really simple things and 0-4 Big East) travelled to Lynchburg, take care of them well. In the past Va., to take on Liberty (11-7, 4-0 Norcouple of games, we have not necPac) on Tuesday. Facing a significant essarily done that. We face talented amount of pressure from Liberty’s opponents, but we should be able to skilled attackers, the Hoyas fell to control the things we can and then the Flames by the score of 7-0. we can impact the outcome,” Soares “We had talked about playing said. an aggressive, three-touch style of The Hoyas face another stern hockey all week, really focusing test in No. 17 Old Dominion (10-6, on valuing the ball. Their offense 3-1 Big East), the third ranked opproved to be very difficult for us to ponent Georgetown has faced this handle and we had a tough time season. The Monarchs are currently combating it,” Head Coach Shansecond in the Big East. non Soares said.

In practice on Thursday, GeorgeFor the first 17 minutes of the town simulated Old Dominion’s game, however, the Hoyas were able fall-away press tactic and practiced to hold Liberty’s offense scoreless. their set pieces. The team also reSophomore defender Devin Holmes viewed scouting reports from the explained why they were able to coaches. stop Liberty’s early attacks.

“Going into every game we know “One of the big things we try to what we’re getting ourselves into, it’s focus on is tackling outside the cirjust a matter of sticking to the game cle. That means not even allowing plan and having faith in our coachthem to get into our circle to get ating staff basically,” Holmes said.

Soares noted the importance of learning from the mistakes made in the Liberty game and moving forward.

“Old Dominion is obviously another very talented team ranked in the top 20 with a really good win streak. For us, it’s going to be about making the adjustments from the Liberty game and working to take steps forward instead of taking steps back,” Soares said.

Holmes echoed this idea and explained the team’s goals for the remainder of the season.

“As a team, we’re pretty good about turning the page and looking toward the next games,” Holmes said. “Looking ahead, we want to focus on simple hockey, our set pieces and playing well for our seniors because it’s their last two games of their field hockey careers. It definitely means a lot to us to win [the games] for them.”

The Hoyas will face off with the Monarchs at 1 p.m. at the MultiSport Facility. On Sunday, at the same time and location, GeorgeFILE PHOTO: ISABEL BINAMIRA FOR THE HOYA town will play its last game of the Sophomore defender Devin Holmes has started all 16 games this season. regular season against the Towson She has one goal and two assists, along with two defensive saves this year. Tigers (2–14, 0-5 CAA).

Special to The Hoya

tacking penalty opportunities. We did a pretty good job with that early in the game,” Holmes said.

In addition to tackling outside its circle, Georgetown was also able to send multiple defenders to win possession of the ball.

“When they did start scoring, it was because the two to three people that went to the ball weren’t effective, they weren’t coming up with the ball,” Holmes said. “But the times that they were effective we were able to hold them scoreless.”

On the attacking side, Georgetown only drew two penalty corners, one of which led to Georgetown’s only shot of the game. Yet, neither of the corners resulted in a goal for the Hoyas.

During the game, Georgetown also had trouble sticking to its fundamental, simple style of hockey.

“The whole idea behind simple hockey is only taking two to three touches when you receive the ball, and then making a pass. A lot of times, we would get the ball and have a bad first touch, so we weren’t set up to make our next pass suc-

SPORTS

Men’s Soccer Georgetown (9-3-4) vs. St. John’s (4-8-4) Saturday, 1 p.m.

Shaw Field

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 31, 2014

The No. 2 women and No.16 men are ready for the Big East championships on Friday.

See B8

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TALKING POINTS

CROSS-COUNTRY

Sgarlata bleeds Georgetown football. He just brings a whole new level of energy.

Senior linebacker and co-captain Nick Alfieri

NUMBERS GAME

16

MEN’S SOCCER

The number of assists for senior midfielder Daphne Corboz, good for 4th in the nation.

VOLLEYBALL

Hoyas Shoot Past Musketeers 1-0 GU Readies for

Big East Leader

PETER HIGGINS

Special to The Hoya

Piercing through mist and rain, Brandon Allen’s overtime strike propelled the No. 13 Georgetown men’s soccer team over No. 9 Xavier (10-4-2, 4-1-2 Big East) by the score of 1-0. Wednesday’s win marks Georgetown’s second consecutive win over a top-10 opponent and pushes its record to 9-3-4 on the year and 4-2-1 in Big East play. Georgetown has since vaulted to No. 8 in the national RPI poll.

“This was a really gutsy win,” Wiese said. “We stayed disciplined and focused and didn’t get impatient. The fact that we can get ourselves back in the conversation for being one of the top two in the league is great.”

After dropping consecutive games to Providence (10-2-2, 5-0-2 Big East) and Big East bottom-dwellers Seton Hall (4-7-4, 1-4-2 Big East), the Hoyas’ season appeared to be in turmoil. Wiese admitted that following the two losses, “little seeds of doubt [started] creeping in” to the minds of members of the team. Since then, the Hoyas have responded emphatically, grinding out wins over two of the top teams in the country, as the Xavier win was preceded by a 1-0 away win against No. 10 Creighton (12-2-2, 5-1-1 Big East) on Saturday, Oct. 25.

Wiese is eager to look toward the future following the pair of close wins.

“This is the Big East,” Wiese said. “Not all games are going to be really pretty and easy, but you’ve got to find ways to get results. Today was one of those days where we got three points and want to move forward very quickly.”

After generating few quality scoring chances throughout the game, Georgetown’s breakthrough came due to some good fortune. In the 96th minute, a Georgetown low cross into the penalty box was handballed by the Musketeers defense in a failed clearance attempt. Allen buried the resulting penalty kick, ending the game. College soccer is based on a golden goal model, in which the first team to score during overtime wins.

“You feel for those guys and that player; that’s a really hard way to lose.” Wiese said. “But our most dangerous chances today were balls out wide and balls going in through the six [yard line]. We said at halftime and before the game that the game winner is probably going to be one of the ugliest goals you’ve seen all season.”

Xavier is known as a stout defensive club, and the poor weather conditions

TYLER PARK

Hoya Staff Writer

The Georgetown University volleyball team (9-15, 3-8 Big East) will travel to face the Big East-leading Creighton University Bluejays (17-7, 10-1 Big East) on Saturday. The game will undoubtedly represent a stern test for the Hoyas. Creighton will enter the game riding a five-game winning streak and leads the conference in kills and assists per set, thanks to its strong, attacking style of play.

However, the Hoyas are coming off of a very positive weekend that included a thrilling 3-2 win over DePaul last Friday

JULIA HENNRIKUS/THE HOYA

Junior forward Brandon Allen scored the game’s only goal with his overtime penalty against Xavier on Wednesday. Allen has 10 goals to lead the team. may have reinforced its conservative style of play. Prior to the loss, the Musketeers had allowed a mere four goals in their previous 12 games.

“Xavier knows what they do well; they are really hard to break down,” Wiese said. “They never make it easy. I would venture to say they are probably happiest when they don’t have the ball because they are always one turnover or bad pass away from great position.”

Straight away, the game was a physical affair and a defensive struggle. Hindered by the slick playing surface, the two teams combined for more fouls (16) than shots (13). Balls consistently skidded past their intended targets and turnovers abounded on the rainy fall afternoon.

“The field became more slick, which might have taken away from our play a bit,” sophomore midfielder Jon Azzinarri said. “It becomes tough to move the ball.”

After making his first career start last weekend, Azzinarri provided the Hoyas with a spark off the bench. His headed effort late in the first half narrowly missed giving Georgetown the lead.

His contributions were especially necessary given that usual starter, sophomore

forward Alex Muyl was sidelined due to sickness. “[Azzinarri] has come on and given us exactly what we need from him,” said Wiese. “He’s looking dangerous in terms of generating some chances. We didn’t have many good chances but he was one of them. Against Seton Hall he generated three really nice chances. ... It’s not easy when you come on and play 10 to 15 to 20 minutes and then be sharp, but he’s been able to do that.”

After two more conference matches to close out the regular season, Georgetown will compete in the Big East championship beginning on Nov. 11. Playing some of its best soccer of the year, the team feels confident heading into the postseason.

“Coming off those two losses, it was definitely a big deal for us to get these two wins,” said Azzinarri. “To have this momentum going toward [the] postseason, I think it’s huge for us.”

Junior defender Cole Seiler echoed Azzinarri’s sentiments.

“We have some injuries to deal with,” Seiler said, “but if we can start getting some attack and start getting some more goals, we’ll be ready for the postseason.”

COACHES FEATURE

First-Year Coaches Make Impact MATT RAAB

Hoya Staff Writer

As the semester moves past its halfway point, a trio of first-year head coaches have begun to make their marks on the Hilltop. Football’s Rob Sgarlata (COL ’94, GRD ’12), field hockey’s Shannon Soares and men’s rowing’s Luke Agnini assumed their positions during their sports’ respective off seasons.

With football and field hockey both approaching the season’s end

and several fall events under Agnini’s belt, the efforts taken and changes brought on by the three coaches have taken form.

Despite diverse backgrounds, a shared theme of youthful energy draws Sgarlata, Soares and Agnini together. The three all replaced established predecessors, and have approached the season with the guidance of their own principles and experience. For Sgarlata and Soares in particular, being handed the reins of programs known for their recent

FILE PHOTO: ALEXANDER BROWN/THE HOYA

First-year Head Coach Rob Sgarlata has led the Hoyas to a 2-6 record thus far.

He was previously an assistant coach and defensive coordinator for eight years.

struggles necessitated some changes.

“I knew that when I accepted the position we would have our work cut out for us. It’s no secret that Georgetown field hockey hasn’t been very successful in the past,” Soares said.

“This was going to be a situation in which we were really going to have to work to change the culture, and really get our student athletes to buy into that.”

Both the football and field hockey programs finished the 2013 season with just two wins. For Soares, this type of struggle called for cultural change, an emphasis on a process starting at the roots.

“We’re doing things the complete opposite as to what has been done before,” Soares said. “We wanted to really have them embrace that this is an exciting time and what a great opportunity for this program to grow and develop into what they want it to be.”

An emphasis on core values has become central to the program, with a similar philosophy guiding Sgarlata, and understood by athletes on both teams.

“He does a great job developing the players, the whole person, not just as a football player,” senior linebacker and defensive co-captain Nick Alfieri said. “He’s got a whole four-for-40 motto, four years at Georgetown sets you up for 40 years of the rest of your life.”

Field hockey junior midfielder and co-captain Louise Chakejian cited six guiding principles for her team.

“In the beginning of preseason we came up with six core team values: discipline, relentlessness, limitlessSee COACHES, B8

Visit us online at thehoya.com/sports

FILE PHOTO: NATE MOULTON/THE HOYA

Junior outside hitter Lauren Saar has 215 digs and 152 kills in 2014.

night and a close loss to Marquette (17-6, 8-3 Big East), another Big East contender, on Sunday afternoon. Freshman outside hitter Terese Cannon, who leads the Hoyas and ranks ninth in the Big East with 3.13 kills per set, expressed confidence in her team’s ability to compete with even the best teams in the conference.

“We know what we’re capable of doing, and we know that we can play with anyone in the conference right now,” Cannon said.

The Hoyas will have to move forward through some adversity, as senior libero MacKenzie Simpson’s status is currently unclear after she suffered an arm injury in the loss to Marquette. Simpson was named to this week’s Big East Honor Roll in recognition of her outstanding performances over the weekend. She recorded a career-high 36 digs in the win over DePaul, easily eclipsing her previous high of 26, and added four more digs against Marquette before exiting due to her injury. For the season, Simpson ranks fourth in the Big East with 4.46 digs per set, and if she is unable to play, it would undoubtedly represent a serious loss for the Hoyas.

Head Coach Arlisa WilSee CREIGHTON, B8

OUT OF OUR LEAGUE

2014 Lakers Are LA’s Fading Star

I

t is never pretty when an O’Neal, and the rest is history. era ends. The fall of the The Lakers managed to win Roman Empire was a pro- three straight championships longed, bloody mess. Napo- between 1999 and 2001 with leon ended his days wasting the duo, and proceeded to win away at St. Helena. And now, two more championships and the Lakers organization is go- stay league-relevant with Kobe ing through the death throes in the ensuing decade. of iyd most recent reign of relThe 2000s were a grand time evance. to be a Lakers fan, and will be It is a painful, uncomfort- forever remembered through able thing to watch for those courtside shots of Head Coach of us who grew up revering (or Phil Jackson, forward Ron Arteven despising) Kobe Bryant est’s “Champions” rap, and and company, but if history GIFs of center Pau Gasol’s does indeed repeat itself, all neckbeard drenched in chamhope might not yet be lost. pagne.

Flashback to 1991, when This decade has not been as Hall of Fame fortuitous for guard Magthe organizaic Johnson tion. Things had just anstarted snownounced his balling in HIV-diagnosis 2011 when and gone into the Lakers retirement, were swept by along with the eventualchampionchampions Max Fiege ship-caliber Mavericks in coach Pat the second Riley. What of Following several key round followed the Western next were injuries, the Lakers face Conference five seasons Playoffs. The another lost season. of mediocnext year rity, filled saw more of with disappointment as the the same, as Los Angeles was Lakers would squeak into the ousted by Oklahoma City in playoffs year in and year out, the second round. without providing any relThen 2013 proved to be the evant postseason competition. most heart-wrenching season Getting by on aging stars such in recent memory, as expectaas forward James Worthy and tions were high when guard guard (and current, first-year Steve Nash and center Dwight Lakers Head Coach) Byron Howard were signed to acScott and young guns, like company Bryant. But when an guard Nick Van Exel, the orga- aging Nash proved to be injunization knew that it had to ry-prone, Howard struggled shake up its roster if it wanted under the glaring Los Angeles to be relevant once again. lights and criticism and the Cue the famous draft-night Black Mamba ruptured his trade of Vlade Divac to the achilles right before the end of Hornets in exchange for rookie the regular season, the season guard Kobe Bryant and the off- went down as one of the orgaseason signing of former Rookie of the Year, center Shaquille See FIEGE, B9