Vol. 107, Iss. 9 | Tuesday, April 4, 2017
The Flat Hat The Weekly Student Newspaper
of The College of William and Mary
Flathatnews.com | Follow us:
KAYLA SHARPE / THE FLAT HAT
Organizers of the 2017 Black Lives Matter Conference met with College of William and Mary President Taylor Reveley March 29 to discuss their 10-point list of demands, mirroring the Task Force on Race and Race Relations’ recommendations.
BLM organizers march for change Tension, discussion over ‘demands’ follows week-long conference SARAH SMITH // FLAT HAT NEWS EDITOR After a week consisting of a candlelight vigil, a conversation on environmental racism and a march across campus that ended with the organizers of the 2017 Black Lives Matter Conference meeting with College of William and Mary President Taylor Reveley, the organizers have received pushback from conservative news outlets, students and alumni for presenting their “demands” to Reveley. Damiana Dendy ’17, one of the six conference organizers, said that regardless of the pushback, she believes that the conference was successful in its three-part goal of educating, agitating and organizing on campus. “I feel that we were successful in this goal based on the sheer number of people who told me personally that they left our events thinking about these various issues in a different light,” Dendy said. “We especially wanted to drive home these goals through our submission of our 10-point plan to the College administration. We drafted up these 10 points, which are extraordinarily similar to the recommendations put forth by our Task Force on Race and Race Relations, with the intention of presenting to the president our case for further progress to be made regarding diversity education.”
The 10-point list of demands included creating a diversity education requirement in the COLL curriculum, hiring more faculty of color, increasing funding for multicultural organizations and instituting a zero-tolerance policy for incidences of racism. During the meeting, Reveley questioned the student organizers’ use of the word “demands” for their 10-point plan. Additionally, the use of the word resulted in an article published by The Blaze headlined “Black Lives Matter students get schooled by college president: ‘I don’t deal in demands’.” “I don’t deal in demands,” Reveley said. “I don’t make demands of other people. I don’t expect to receive demands from people. I love to get suggestions, recommendations, strong arguments that, if something in one sphere or another, doesn’t move, consequences, the lost opportunities would be significant. But really, when you approach other people with a demand, instead of their ears opening and their spirit being unusually receptive, you get defensive walls erected. So I think you all ought to think about it, because you’re not everybody. You’re William and Mary students.”
Another BLM student organizer, Erica West ’17, who also serves as the Student Assembly Secretary of Diversity Initiatives, said that the source of the pushback is a livestream video, which sparked the article in The Blaze, and others in the Daily Caller and Truth Revolt. West, who was named in the articles, said that she has received “hate messages” on Facebook and in comments. “I have even seen people I have known for years at the College sharing these articles, not to raise awareness of what happened, but rather in support of their skewed portrayal of the events,” West said. “I am responding to it by working with fellow organizers to plan next steps and mobilize our supporters. Since BLM began, there’s been several instances of student activism that resemble what we did — those students and sometimes the larger student population they advocated for also received hate, though unlike us, they also got outside media coverage.” Dendy said that this dialogue over the use of the word “demand” and other instances from the organizers’ meeting with Reveley could be characterized as See BLM page 5
COLLEGE PRESIDENT TAYLOR REVELEY, APRIL 3 Following College of William and Mary President Taylor Reveley’s meeting with student organizers and other representatives of the 2017 Black Lives Matter Conference March 29, Reveley released a statement on the discussion. In this statement, he said that he believed that any racial discrimination was unacceptable and that he appreciated the time of the students who met with him in the Brafferton March 29. Subsequent articles on The Blaze, The Daily Caller and Truth Revolt were published March 31 and March 30. “We welcome ongoing conversations about race at William & Mary. Where we can do better, we should. We must also be able to engage in open and meaningful dialogue. I very much appreciate the time and work of the students who met with me for nearly 90 minutes on Wednesday about ways to improve the racial climate at William & Mary. Many items on their list are consistent with the recommendations that came last spring from our Task Force on Race and Race Relations. And many have already produced results or are in the planning stage. While we have made progress, there remains much to be done. We must do more. Racial discrimination at William & Mary is flatly unacceptable. We all have a role to play to ensure that our university is a place where everyone is welcome and respected and where we can and do learn from one another.”
FINANCIAL AID
Funding for 70 percent of work-study eligible students left unused in 2016-17 year Department of Education allocates $469,617 in federal financial aid to College for academic year work-studies LEONOR GRAVE FLAT HAT CHIEF STAFF WRITER
For the 2016-17 academic year, 1,415 students were awarded federal work-study as part of their financial aid packages. Of those 1,415, only 30 percent — 429 — are employed in on-campus jobs. This means that 70 percent of work-study eligible students aren’t taking advantage of funding available to them. The College of William and Mary was allocated $469,617 in federal work-study funding from the U.S. Department of Education for the 2016-17 academic year. Each year, the College puts in a request for a specific dollar amount, and based on past years’ allocation of work-study funds, the Department of Education decides how much it will contribute the next year. The only metric the Department of Education monitors, however, is spending levels, so the
Today’s Weather
Index Profile News Opinions Variety Sports
success of the work-study program is measured in how much money is paid to work-study students, not in the quality of the on-campus jobs or how many work-study eligible students are awarded funding. At the national level, only 16 percent of institutions awarded federal work-study money to every eligible student. The College falls within the 84 percent of schools that do not. Director of Financial Aid Joe Dobrota said that the work-study program is designed to provide meaningful employment opportunities to students who qualify. “The program is designed to hopefully, if it’s designed well, give students a little bit more of a real work experience, as opposed to just be making copies and that kind of thing,” Dobrota said. However, while Dobrota said that the workstudy program is designed to provide experiential
learning employment opportunities to students and help them pay expenses, it is not designed to help cover upfront tuition payment costs. “When we say pay for college, we don’t necessarily mean paying upfront, but paying for those incidentals which come up,” Dobrota said. “You know, helping with books, helping with living expenses that might come up during the semester, helping pay for rent, going to a movie once a month, or things like that.” Dobrota said that taking into account how much higher education costs have risen, it is not really feasible anymore for students to fund their education through working part-time. “Given current cost levels, work-study is definitely not something that would be able to replicate those old days of working at a pizza shop and working your way through college,” Dobrota said. However, students like Meg Collins ’18, who
Partly Sunny, High 82, Low 57
See WORK-STUDY page 5
Inside Variety
Inside Opinions
How to create a better Homecoming: End outdated courting rituals
4 3-5 6 7 8
qualifies for work-study, relies on the money she makes through her on-campus job to fund tuition costs. “For me, [the money I earn] goes directly into my ability to fund my education,” Collins said. “This was something that I felt very responsible for, for taking the burden off of my parents particularly.” Dobrotra said there is not a universal reason that work-study qualifying students choose to not seek on-campus employment. “Just [from what I’ve heard] anecdotally, entering freshmen want to concentrate on school first, want to get adjusted to college life,” Dobrota said. “Once they realize that it’s not something that’s specifically going to pay their bill, they may opt to not work, to focus on academics, they may choose to fund it through other sources that
Lexi Pacheco ’ 20 discusses the need for new tradition in the Greek community’s process of homecoming courting. page 6
“Scandal” inspiration gives the 2017 Atwater lecture
Judy Smith recently spoke to the campus community about her extensive career in crisis management law. page 7
newsinsight “ Weaving a life after surgery
News Editor Nia Kitchin News Editor Sarah Smith fhnews@gmail.com
Following The Flat Hat?
“
The Flat Hat
| Tuesday, April 4, 2017 | Page 4
THE BUZZ
Although that was expected, the lack of knowledge the president exhibited
regarding the issues facing our campus and country was particularly striking.
— BLM organizer Damiana Dendy ‘17 when talking about President Reveley
Now it’s easier than ever to stay upto-date on all on-campus news.
Regina Root talks brain surgery, textiles Page 2 Spotlight
The Flat Hat
@theflathat
@theflathat
theflatchat A THOUSAND WORDS
KAYLA SHARPE / THE FLAT HAT
CORRECTIONS The Flat Hat wishes to correct any fact printed incorrectly. Corrections may be submitted in email to the editor of the section in which the incorrect information was printed. Requests for corrections will be accepted at any time.
The Flat Hat ‘STABILITAS ET FIDES’ | ESTABLISHED OCT. 3, 1911
25 Campus Center, The College of William and Mary, Williamsburg, Va. 23185 Editor flathat.editor@gmail.com Managing flathat.managing@gmail.com Executive flathat.executive@gmail.com News fhnews@gmail.com Sports flathatsports@gmail.com
Copy flathatcopy@gmail.com Opinions fhopinions@gmail.com Variety flathat.variety@gmail.com Photos flathatphotos@gmail.com Online flathatonline@gmail.com
Isabel Larroca Editor-in-Chief Emily Chaumont Managing Editor Sarah Ruiz Executive Editor Iris Hyon Digital Media Editor Amelia Lucas Digital Media Editor
Sarah Smith News Editor Leonor Grave Chief Staff Writer Nia Kitchin News Editor Lauren Bavis Copy Chief Katie Koontz Variety Editor Kate Sandberg Copy Chief Akemi Tamanaha Variety Editor Rachel Wilmans Copy Chief Chris Travis Sports Editor Siobhan Doherty Online Editor Alyssa Grzesiak Sports Editor Sean Wilner Online Editor Jenny Cosgrove Opinions Editor Moises Romero Business Manager Julia Stumbaugh Opinions Editor Muzzammil Mehdi Webmaster Abby Graham Blogs Editor Henry Blackburn Assoc. News Editor Madeline Monroe Assoc. News Editor Caroline Nutter Assoc. News Editor Noah Petersen Assoc. News Editor Carley Schanck Assoc. News Editor Yutong Zhan Assoc. News Editor Heather Baier Assoc. Variety Editor Gabriela Montesdeoca Assoc. Variety Editor Mia Naples Assoc. Variety Editor Hayley Snowden Assoc. Variety Editor Rick Stevenson Assoc. Variety Editor Katherine Weber Assoc. Variety Editor
Talia Wiener Assoc. Variety Editor Alfred Ouyang Assoc. Opinions Editor Nick Phair Assoc. Opinions Editor Brendan Doyle Assoc. Sports Editor Peter Eckel Assoc. Podcast Editor Jae Cho Graphics Editor Emily Martell Copy Editor Julia Dalzell Copy Editor Michaela Flemming Copy Editor Katie Williams Copy Editor Oliver Shen Assoc. Business Manager Katie Wang Assoc. Financial Manager
KATHERINE WEBER // FLAT HAT ASSOC. VARIETY EDITOR
Hispanic studies professor Regina Root scrawled six, lopsided words in black ink on a sheet of white paper: “It feels like my last day.” And there was a chance it could have been. A tumor-like growth, or angioma, had festered dangerously in her brain stem. Nearly all of her basic functions had been impaired as a result, such as breathing, swallowing, walking, seeing, talking, eating and hearing. Writing was one of the things that she had still been able to physically do. An award-winning international scholar, Root had written acclaimed books. Now she was writing goodbye letters. In the summer of 2014, Root said that she faced an uncertain future. Multiple doctors had refused to operate on the life-threatening angioma. After her conditions worsened, one doctor at Johns Hopkins University proposed an operation as a solution, but the surgery would be high-risk. She was told that there was a considerable chance she might not emerge from the surgery alive, and if she did, she would likely never be out of a wheelchair. In August 2014, Root had to confront the possibility that her life and livelihood — as a professor, mother, intellectual, wife, author and world traveler — could be suddenly cut short. And an eclectic life she had lived thus far. While born in Michigan, Root spent several years of her childhood in the Canary Islands, Spain, where her parents worked, between the years 1973 and 1980. While there, Root was exposed to life under dictatorship with the regime of Spanish dictator Francisco Franco. Root’s family decided to return to the United States, which brought her to Iowa for college. She was only 16 when she became a college student. Yet Root said she was a “studious sort” and she was able to engage deeply in intellectual and cultural learning. During her time in Iowa, Root began working with people from Chile and Argentina who had been exiled because of dictatorship and found parallels between her childhood experiences and theirs. As she engaged with this work and her studies, she decided to double major in journalism and Spanish. “I became very interested in not only journalism — capturing those stories — but also the culture and the literature that represented those stories that imagined what that was like and what could be,” Root said. Root’s passion for studying narratives has driven her throughout her life. After graduating from the University of Iowa, she pursued a doctorate in Hispanic languages and literatures at the University of California at Berkeley. During her doctoral studies, Root was awarded a Fulbright grant to study in Argentina along with a grant fellowship from the University of California, Berkeley. While in Argentina she worked in archives, national libraries and museums, which, she noted, helped inform her most recent book, “Pasado de Moda” or “Fashions Past.” In fact, Root said she spent considerable lengths of time working internationally. She described how she would travel to places like Colombia, Brazil and Argentina at least once or twice per year. At one point she worked for the Argentine government, assisting the Ministry of Culture with its design initiatives. “I did a lot of cultural policy work … thinking through what the cultural industry looks like from that vantage point and it’s something that expanded then into South America and was incredibly challenging and interesting,” Root said. In 2003, Root joined the faculty at the College of William and Mary in the Hispanic studies department. Root’s scholarship and research interests manifested in her numerous publications, such as “The Latin American
POLICE BEAT
Fashion Reader,” an award-winning piece that was the first to broadly approach the intersection of Latin American culture and world fashion trends. However, Root’s professorship had to be put on hold when she found out about her illness, forcing her to move from the classroom to the hospital. Yet her idle hours under medical supervision were not empty of intellectual stimulation. Even though she was not able to read on her own, she listened to tapes of Argentine detective fiction, pieces related to her research, articles by New York Times columnists and poems by Chilean poet Pablo Neruda. Root said that she took the risk of allowing Dr. Judy Huang at Johns Hopkins University to operate on her brain stem in the hopes that it could save her despite a one-in-three chance of death. Yet after about eight painstaking hours of surgery, Root woke up. “It was in the pons, which is command central, and that impacts every bodily function,” Root said. “So it is quite a miracle to be here. It’s … just a privilege to be here.” She had survived the surgery — but the recovery process would be arduous. She said her physical capabilities had regressed. Initially, she was unable to swallow, talk, hear, see, or even sit up without assistance. However, Root noted that her intellectual capabilities remained fully intact throughout the entire process. About three years later, Root sits in her office, smiling, laughing, sipping coffee — a favorite drink — speaking a few words of Spanish, walking up to her bookshelf, all while talking passionately about her research. Root not only survived the surgery, but she has also regained many — not all — of the functions that were previously taken from her. Root’s recovery is the subject of a documentary called “Regina’s Gift,” which was released in 2015. Root said she grappled with whether or not to participate in the documentary, but eventually decided that only good could come from the film’s creation. “I have received letters from people — and phone calls — throughout the world,” Root said. “I still get calls out of the blue — even last week — of someone saying that they saw the film, that they needed somebody who needed hope, and lots of questions which I can’t answer. But the truth of it is, that’s exactly why we wanted to do it.” She may have felt like it could have been her last day a few years ago, but for the first time in almost three years, Root now walks into her classroom in Washington Hall to teach a room full of students every Monday, Wednesday and Friday morning. This semester, she resumed her professor role and currently teaches a class, Cross-Cultural Perspectives, in the Hispanic studies department. Root’s return to the College was not her first experience in academia since the surgery. She received the National Endowment for the Humanities grant to carry out an in-depth research project throughout the year of 2016. Root is the first to comprehensively research the background and ramifications of a 106-foot long tapestry that was created by the English artist Leslie Tillett, a textile artist who spent many years living in Mexico. Part of Root’s project involved a grant she had received to take photographs of the lengthy textile. “That was a big coup — I had been trying to do that for several years,” Root said. Nor was the photography a simple feat. Given the size of the work, it had to be carried out by three people and laid out on long textile tables. Root said the research endowment was “incredibly meaningful,” especially given that
the 500th anniversary of the invasion of Mexico is on the horizon. Root believed that her time spent working on the research endowment was a springboard for her return to the classroom. “My grace period was having this fellowship, and that allowed me to re-enter, to kind of reignite a project that was dear to me as I also continued to recover,” Root said. However, she said the decision to return to campus this semester as a professor was certainly not an easy one. While she managed to emerge from the risky surgery with her life, she still struggles with some of her functions, such as sight. “It could only be challenging,” Root said. “The transition to the classroom this semester has been delightful. It’s also been an enormous learning experience for me … I have gone from being used to entering the classroom and seeing everybody to a situation where I now need to ask others to let me know who they are.” Yet despite facing some challenges with this return, Root will continue teaching next semester in a course called Pedagogy and Culture, in which her research of the Tillett Tapestry will be the centerpiece. Root also continues to research the Tillett Tapestry and plans to travel to Texas, Massachusetts and France in order to keep piecing together the story behind the tapestry. Root said she is glad to be back in the classroom, and especially enjoys being around her students. “I love being a professor,” Root said. “And I love most of all sharing amazing conversations with students who are thinking through complex questions … I learn from my students everyday just as much as I hope they learn from me and the material.” Root’s teaching has shaped the paths of some of her students, such as Maisoon Fillo ’15, who said she was inspired to pursue graduate work because of Root’s CrossCultural Perspectives class. Root has written her way through the complex origins of Latin American fashion and an embroidered 106-foot tapestry. She also wrote her way through a life-threatening illness. Some of her words touched on Hispanic cultural heritage. Some of her words touched lives — and continue to do so. Now, she continues her journey, struggling through some obstacles and transcending others. “There are lots of things I have surmounted,” Root said. “There are some things that I will likely never be able to surmount. Those limitations are ones that I live with. That’s not to say that I don’t keep trying, but I’m in a constant reinvention stage, reimagining what I can do.”
COURTESY PHOTO / DAILY PRESS
Regina Root (right) underwent a risky brain surgery.
April 1 - 2 1
Saturday, April 1 — A hit and run was reported on Richmond Road.
2
Saturday, April 1 — A simple domestic assault was reported on Richmond Road.
3
Saturday, April 1 — Stephen Frederick was arrested on a charge of assault and battery on Richmond Road.
4
Sunday, April 2 — A simple assault was reported on Richmond Road.
The Flat Hat
Tuesday, April 4, 2017
Page 5
LECTURE
BLM conference partners with SEAC, talks racism
Black Lives Matter, SEAC work together, take on issue of environmental racism during lecture CARLEY SCHANCK FLAT HAT ASSOC. NEWS EDITOR
Racism is commonly associated with concepts of violence committed against minorities, disparate educational opportunities and unfair treatment by the police. During a lecture March 30 as part of the Black Lives Matter Conference at the College of William and Mary, students discussed another form: environmental racism. Over 100 students gathered in a lecture hall in the Integrated Science Center for a panel discussion on environmental racism. Panelists were New Virginia Majority Climate Justice Organizer Lafeetah Byrum, New Virginia Majority Communications Associate Jasmine Leeward ’16 and Danya Abdel-Hameid ’18. Megan Embrey ’17, a representative from the Student Environmental Action Coalition, moderated the event. The panelists said that their goal for the lecture was to demonstrate that environmental injustice and racism are linked and highlight environmental racism’s intersectionality. Additionally, they said that they wanted to expand the mainstream narrative of environmentalism that is often limited to “wearing
Birkenstocks and making your own granola.” The panelists defined environmental racism as the phenomenon by which “socially marginalized communities are subjected to disproportionate exposure to pollutants and denied access to sources of ecological benefits, such as clean air and water.” Byrum used the example of Norfolk Southern, a Hampton Roads-based transportation company, improperly covering coal, which she said causes public health concerns, like chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and bronchitis, that disproportionately affect black people because of geographic location. Leeward shared another example of environmental racism — U.S. President Donald Trump’s plan to withdraw the Clean Power Plan, initiated under former U.S. President Barack Obama. “By rolling back the Clean Power Plan, already one in six black children have asthma as a result of the environment that a lot of them live in,” Leeward said. “Under the umbrella of systematic racism, I think is environmental racism. It’s one of the ways that racism plays out in your life. Within 1.8 miles of toxic waste dumps or an industry that causes a lot of pollutants, 50 percent of the population that lives in
that 1.8-mile radius is African-American.” According to Byrum, New Virginia Majority’s work hinges upon the participation of the community. “The overall goal of our work is to have the community be engaged in the legislative process, because that’s the real way that we’re going to affect change on this issue, is to legislate tougher laws against where trash is dumped … and placing regulations on industries,” Byrum said. Abdel-Hameid said that her family’s background and her personal experiences have opened her eyes to the importance of environmental justice. “The experience that really got me interested in environmental justice was actually when I was 11 or 12,” Abdel-Hameid said. “As I mentioned, my parents immigrated to the U.S., and my family has roots in Sudan, and that was the first time that I had gone back to Sudan. A lot of my family that lives there, lives in a way that is very different from how I live here.” When asked how white people who may not directly experience the harms of environmental injustice can support the issue, members of the panel agreed unanimously about one thing. “I don’t think that it can happen without diversity [in environmental organizations],” Leeward said,
followed by nods and snaps of agreement. Byrum said that the best thing for white environmentalists to do is to support the work led by African-American environmentalists at the grassroots level. “It’s really important to redefine the way that people look at environmental activism and their place in being an activist for environmental justice,” BLM organizer Damiana Dendy ’17 said. Dendy said that many people consider themselves environmentalists but don’t necessarily focus on communities of color, and that should be changed. “A theme of this conference is to be aware of the history that’s come before, to be aware of the activism that has come before you,” Dendy said. “You have to know what has happened in the past in order to move forward effectively.” According to Dendy, this issue is particularly important right now because of the state of U.S. politics. “This fits into BLM because as I said, this issue is rooted in racism against communities of color,” Dendy said. “This week is all about redefining how you see the Black Lives Matter movement as well as activism in general.”
BLM organizers speak out about pushback following conference Conservative news sites publish content criticizing BLM movement, organizers
BLM from page 3
pushback against their initiatives. “Although that was expected, the lack of knowledge the president exhibited regarding the issues facing our campus and country was particularly striking,” Dendy said. “He displayed a basic misunderstanding of what the goals of our plan were and furthermore did not seem to believe that education itself is a viable solution to alleviating racial tensions. He repeatedly changed focus from the challenges that black students and students of color face on campus to the challenges faced by students who are afraid to speak on issues of diversity, which we would argue would be alleviated by the enactment of our 10-point plan. He invalidated the identities of the students of color in the room, myself included, when he stated that racial issues could disappear once we are all the same color through interracial marriage.” Following the march and the meeting in Reveley’s office in the Brafferton, Reveley said in a statement that he, and other administrators, welcome conversations about race at the College. He also said that he believes racial discrimination is unacceptable at the College. “We welcome ongoing conversations about race at William & Mary,” Reveley said in a written statement. “Where we can do better, we should. We must also be able to engage in open and meaningful dialogue. I very much appreciate the time and work of the students who met with me for nearly 90 minutes on Wednesday about ways to improve the racial climate at William & Mary. Many items on their list are consistent with the recommendations that came last spring from our Task Force on Race and Race Relations.
And many have already produced results or are in the planning stage. While we have made progress, there remains much to be done. We must do more. Racial discrimination at William & Mary is flatly unacceptable. We all have a role to ensure that our university is a place where everyone is welcome and respected and where we can and do learn from one another.” University spokesperson Brian Whitson also said that Reveley cares about students of color and improving the racial climate at the College. “The president cares very much about students of color and improving the racial climate at William & Mary,” Whitson said in an email. “This is why he formed a task force on race and race relations, why the university took immediate actions last year and why the president has said we have more work to do.” Last April, the Task Force on Race and Race Relations presented their finalized recommendations to the College’s Board of Visitors. The prioritized recommendations included furthering efforts to recruit and retain diverse faculty and students, furthering efforts to memorialize diverse historical figures — which resulted in renaming the Jamestown residence halls to Lemon and Hardy halls — and examining issues that impact the predominantly AfricanAmerican facilities management staff. Dendy said that she and other organizers are aware of the progress that has been made, and that the successes — particularly the naming of Hardy and Lemon halls — were addressed in their meeting with Reveley. “We all love this institution and know that it can be better and also be on the right [side] of history in pushing for education that values all peoples,” Dendy said.
Moving forward, Dendy said that the organizers will meet with diversity officers from the Task Force to work together. Then, she said she hopes to meet with Reveley again to follow up on progress. She said that BLM organizers have received support from current students, community members and alumni as well. “The most important takeaway for me is that change is difficult and the internet is brutal, but support is here,” West said in an email. “The vast majority of the student body appears ready for the changes we are advocating for. It’s just a matter of whether or not our administration will be truly #ForTheBold and take the necessary strides to enact them.”
KAYLA SHARPE / THE FLAT HAT
The Black Lives Matter March congregated on the Sunken Garden with signs
Only 16 percent of academic institutions give work-study money to every eligible student College of William and Mary among 78 percent of institutions unable to allocate proper amount of work-study money to their students WORK-STUDY from page 3
doesn’t require them to work, or they choose to do a loan instead of working … It could be they’re happy to doing research with a professor, taking their time, extracurricular events that they don’t feel they want to pull away from to go work, could have parents that are helping fund those incidental expenses along the way, so lots of different reasons.” In terms of outreach, the financial aid office includes work-study as part of each student’s financial aid package, and notifies qualifying students at the beginning of each academic year with information regarding what documentation they will need to be eligible to work on campus.. For incoming students who are not familiar with the College’s employment opportunities, this can be an unexpected burden. Collins, who works as a building manager in the Sadler Center and Campus Center buildings, said that she felt the frustration of not knowing what to do when first seeking employment. “I never felt like I was guaranteed a work-study position. In fact, I applied for a couple different ones before I found the one that I’m in now,” Collins said. When Collins realized that the program was structured so that she would have to go that extra mile to find a job, she said she was disappointed. “There’s just a lot of uncertainty involved in it and a lot of work to put on the students themselves to go out and find it,” Collins said. However, Collins said she still values the opportunity to work an on-campus job, and sees the skills she has gained from her job as valuable. “It definitely has helped me develop skills that are useful in any job,” Collins said. “So, I don’t know if I’ll go into something involving direct management of people, but there are definitely skills that I’ve developed through this job that will help me in any area of my life.” Each school that receives work-study funding individually determines what awards are disseminated. At the College, throughout the summer, everyone who is eligible for work-study has potential earnings set to $1,900, a figure which represents about seven or eight hours a week of work throughout
the semester. According to Dobrota, this represents a manageable work schedule for full-time students. Unlike other schools, the College does not assign students to a specific work-study position; instead, students seek out on-campus employment opportunities. Federal program funds are used to pay 75 percent of the cost of student wages and the College is responsible for funding the other 25 percent. At the College, there are currently 1,659 students active in the on-campus job system, but only the work-study eligible students’ salaries — 26 percent of on-campus jobs — are partly funded by the government. While all the College’s work-study funding has been utilized in previous years and Dobrota said he is concerned the College might not be able to fully match federal funding at its current level, he also said that the option to seek expansion of the work-study program is being considered. “We have been able to actually spend all of the money so I think if we did too much then we would be in essence, overspending the program and not be able to offer for the full 75 percent match on those funds to help the offices that are employing these students.” Dobrota said. “Maybe it is time to ask for more. We’re demonstrating that we’re able to spend it, so maybe we can potentially get some more money from the government in the future. Dylan Campbell ’17, an in-state, work-study eligible student, said he also experienced some of these difficulties when looking for on-campus jobs. His freshman year, he started working for Steer Clear, but found that it became increasingly difficult to sign up for shifts that worked with his schedule, and eventually quit in the fall semester of his junior year. “I tried to find other work-study jobs, and I just couldn’t find any that late,” Campbell said. “It’s been really hard to find any jobs on campus, and a lot of them are things that are not entry-level positions, or you have to have experience with certain things that not everybody has.” Campbell said that he wishes there were more resources available for students trying to find appropriate employment opportunities. “I wish there was an office somewhere on campus where you could go and say, ‘I’m eligible for workstudy and I wanted to use it, can you help me find
something that I can do on campus?’” Campbell said. “I think that would be the most helpful and not an unreasonable thing to have.” As Campbell sees it, the difficulties in finding oncampus jobs can create an unfair barrier for lowerincome students. “It definitely seems unfair because especially for the freshmen just coming in, and they’re going through all this new stuff, and now they also on top of that have to try to find a job on campus on their own, without any help, I think that really cuts down on opportunities for people to come [to the College],” Campbell said. However, some students who don’t qualify for federal work-study funding, but still rely on working part-time to cover education costs, struggle with a lot of the same issues. Class of 2017 President Emily Thomas ’17 said that she falls in a frustrating category where her family makes enough money that she doesn’t qualify for a lot of financial aid, but doesn’t make enough for her to be able to attend the College without having a job. “I’m very thankful for all my family has and very blessed that my family has the income that it does, but I learned very quickly freshman year that that put me in like this weird middle category where I can’t really do nothing, like I need this job, but at the same time I’m not really qualifying for any help from the school,” Thomas said. For Thomas, this meant looking off-campus for employment, where she found a job at Barret’s Seafood Restaurant her freshman spring. “That was a really tricky process to navigate for me, and it took me a lot of time to find success,” Thomas said. Like Campbell, Thomas believes that having more resources for students seeking employment could be helpful. “There seems to be a lot of just confusion about where to start … So if William and Mary had some sort of contact person sitting somewhere on campus who knew where students were working and which places were really accepting and understanding of students’ schedules, I think that would be super helpful,” Thomas said. “Because I know I applied to all the wrong places first and then I finally settled in
with Barret’s.” Thomas also expressed frustration with another aspect of being a student worker — the difficulty to succeed academically and to fully participate in campus life. “I think that one the other hardest things about being an off-campus worker and being a full-time student is sometimes the students who have to work a lot fall through the cracks of William and Mary,” Thomas said. “We all have this stress culture, we all want to be involved in everything, and be the best on campus, and I think one of the hardest things for me, adjusting to William and Mary was realizing I can’t be in 19 clubs because I have to work three nights a week.” Dobrota said that he is not sure why work-study eligible students decide to not pursue on-campus jobs, which he considers a smaller commitment. “It’s not a big commitment, you now, there’s many jobs they could be doing,” Dobrota said. “So it’s definitely worth looking at and considering if they’ve been awarded it.” Overall, the work-study program at the College represents a small portion of how students are funding their education. The office of financial aid focuses on ensuring each family has a strong awards package as a whole than on providing opportunities for work-study. “I think what we’re doing in other aid sources offsets the fact that they may not be working,” Dobrota said. “The William and Mary promise, and meeting 100 percent of families’ need through a combination of current aid, loans and work.” This aligns with how Collins said she sees workstudy in the context of her ability to afford going to college. “I’ve been super blessed in what the College has given to me in order to be able to come here,” Collins said. “Honestly there were some times when it seemed as though financially I just would not have been able to make it work, and the College has really done a good job of making sure that I didn’t have to. So, in my experience it hasn’t been an unfair distribution. I think that the work-study system in particular could be implemented better, but in terms of overall financial aid I really have no complaints.”
opinions
Opinions Editor Jennifer Cosgrove Opinions Editor Julia Stumbaugh fhopinions@gmail.com // @theflathat
The Flat Hat | Tuesday, April 4 , 2017 | Page 6
JAE CHO / THE FLAT HAT
GUEST COLUMN
How to create a better Homecoming: End outdated courting rituals
Lexi Pacheco
FLAT HAT GUEST COLUMNIST
It is customary for an Interfraternity Council fraternity to ask a Panhellenic sorority to homecoming and await its response after a week of bearing gifts, cooking breakfast and creating colorful banners. Sounds pretty luxurious for the women in the sorority, right? Yes, being courted by a fraternity definitely has its perks, but it also feels extremely wrong allowing these men to spend countless amounts of time and money conjuring up a list of tangible reasons as to why they would be the best candidate to partner up with during homecoming.
While the Greek tradition of homecoming courting can be a fun and memorable process, there is something inherently wrong with the way that it is carried out in society today. First of all, Greek life’s focus of homecoming is completely skewed by the pressure to have a partner. Homecoming at the College of William and Mary is a time for alumni to return to a place that shaped them at a pivotal point in their lives. It is a time to celebrate love for the College, not a time to be preoccupied with who is going with whom to homecoming and which sorority was courted the best. Furthermore, societal expectations have changed dramatically in terms of what men and women are expected to do. The tradition of men needing to ask women to the homecoming dance leaves an ugly and archaic stain on the Greek community. The incredibly stereotypical view of the roles of those genders forces men to make the first move toward women. Sorority women should not have to feel like they need to wait around for a fraternity to ask them to homecoming, just as fraternity men should not have to feel that they must blow hundreds of dollars and excessively fawn over a group of women to have an enjoyable homecoming.
American society has expanded far beyond these outdated traditions, yet Greek life lags behind in overcoming these practices. Traditions in any organization are hard to erase once they’ve become deeply rooted. At the same time, members of a privileged community have a responsibility to adhere to evolving standards in our country. It is our duty to not just ride along the waves of societal changes, but to dive deep into considering them. Women are no longer bound by the rules of society that they must wait around for the courting of men, and we must integrate that into Greek life. There is no reason that a sorority cannot “court back” the fraternity that is courting them, or choose to court a fraternity, sorority or any other Greek or non-Greek organization. Not only should we be working to equalize gender stereotypes, but also to create a more inclusive and welcoming Greek community. No one on this campus should feel bound by obsolete practices that have no real purpose other than to preserve a long-standing tradition. Email Lexi Pacheco at ampacheco01@email.wm.edu.
variety
Variety Editor Katie Koontz Variety Editor Akemi Tamanaha flathat.variety@gmail.com // @theflathat
The Flat Hat
| Tuesday, April 4, 2017 | Page 7
A career in crisis control
Inspiration for the show “Scandal,” Judy Smith gives the 2017 Atwater lecture MADELINE MONROE FLAT HAT ASSOC. NEWS EDITOR
Wednesday, March 29, students, faculty and community members gathered in Phi Beta Kappa Memorial Hall to hear Judy Smith, co-executive producer of “Scandal,” give the College of William and Mary’s 2017 Atwater Lecture about her experiences in crisis management and law. The annual lecture, made possible by the Janet and Peter Atwater Endowment, was co-sponsored by AMP and Student Assembly. As the founder and president of the crisis management firm Smith and Company, Smith’s influential career spurred the creation of the TV show “Scandal” and led to her current position as a member of the show’s production team. Smith’s firm, which has worked with infamous clients such as Monica Lewinsky and Michael Vick, presides over high-profile events that require professional damage control. According to their website, Smith and Company has provided expertise on issues ranging from the Iran-Contra affair to the United Nations Foundation and World Health Organization’s response to the 2003 SARS epidemic. Smith said she has the freedom to decide which cases to take because she owns her business. She noted that if she believes she cannot provide helpful assistance, it does not make sense for her to take a case. Kristin Hopkins J.D. ’18 said she appreciated Smith’s sense of judgment in determining which cases to undertake. “I’m sure she knows that she can make as much money as she possibly wanted, taking any sort of case from anybody,” Hopkins said. “But by knowing who she is and who she stands for, and being
a lawyer, you are holding yourself to a certain ethical standard and she knows that.” Hopkins also reflected on the importance of Smith’s words in her own studies. “I think that’s very important, especially for me, by knowing who I am and what I stand for, knowing what I will and won’t do for money is really important,” Hopkins said. One audience member asked Smith if there was ever a situation she could not fix. Smith promptly recalled the trial of Casey Anthony and its aftermath, stating that some situations are difficult to recover from. She said that even after the verdict a majority of the American public thought Anthony was guilty. Smith also discussed how she dealt with crises that affected “the core” and “the brand” of the firm. Dealing efficiently with a crisis requires an understanding of the facts, according to Smith. “You want to get what the facts are. You can’t deal with a crisis or solve a crisis unless you know what the facts are,” Smith said. Smith also emphasized that every crisis is different and requires a different strategy, plan and message. According to Smith, complicating the modern crisis situation is the reality that “bad news travels fast” — it takes news about a crisis situation less than 12 minutes to spread internationally. The advent of social media and the 24-hour news cycle over the years have changed the way Smith’s cases have been affected. Governments and companies need to quickly figure out the nature of the information flow and come up with statements to address the crisis. During her lecture, Smith advised students and young community members against putting a “tremendous amount of pressure” upon
COURTESY PHOTOS / WM.EDU
Crisis management lawyer Judy Smith presented the 2017 Atwater lecture.
themselves to know precisely what career they wish to pursue. What is important, according to Smith, is that people enjoy whichever career they chase after, and if not, they should change it. Vania Ratliff J.D. ’18 agreed with Smith and noted that her advice regarding one not knowing one’s exact career path was “encouraging.” “I know I’m in a place right now where I’m not 100 percent sure what I want do with my life,” Ratliff said. “But just knowing that working a few jobs and maybe finding your passion later is possibility I think is very encouraging.”
CONFUSION CORNER
BEHIND CLOSED DOORS
Dating apps: love at first text PSA: the College is not a Cult Make the first move, send the first message A message from the Dean of Student Affairs
Mallory Walker BEHIND CLOSED DOORS COLUMNIST
In the age of modern technology, it seems that “putting yourself out there” has taken on a new meaning. Instead of heading to parties and bars, today’s surefire way to find a partner or one-night stand is by syncing up your Facebook with one of the many dating apps out there. It might have all started with Tinder, but now there’s OkCupid, Bumble, Her, CoffeeMeetsBagel, Plenty of Fish and so many more. I haven’t tested the waters of every dating app out there but, as a millennial, I thought I might as well dive headfirst into the world of swiping right. I always find the hardest part of these socalled dating apps to be sending the perfect first message. It’s easy to silently judge people safely behind the screen of your phone or computer (just ask the alumni who once trolled the late Overheard at William and Mary page), but it’s a little more difficult to give a good first impression via text. So, in the hopes of helping my many fans find love online, I have scoured the interwebs in search of the best tips for sending a first message. Before I hit you with the cold, hard facts, let me set the scene. Two weeks ago, as I lay in bed, I pondered the conundrum of what to say to a cute boy I was messaging on Tinder. Let’s
“
It’s easy to silently judge people safely behind the screen of your phone or computer ... but its a little more difficult to give a good first impression via text.
call him Drew. Drew and I had matched that evening, and before I could get to planning the intimate details of our life together, like how we were definitely going to get married on the Cliffs of Moher, I knew deep within my being that I needed to send a message. So, I got on Google and did a quick search for “how to send the perfect first message on Tinder.” Unfortunately, most articles about this are catered to those of the male persuasion. And while it may be universally agreed upon that a simple, “Hey, how’re you” doesn’t have enough “je ne sais quoi,” there’s a little bit of debate on how to introduce yourself properly. The website tinderseduction.com suggests that you aim to evoke emotion in your first message by offering a compliment or telling a joke. There’s also an app called Dating App Cheat that’ll help you craft the perfect first message as well. After scrolling through bad, adverse and creepy examples, this is what I came up with: the internet has no idea how to talk to people on social media without the side effect of
COURTESY PHOTO/ WIKIMEDIA COMMONS
sounding perverted or misogynistic. Whatever you do, do not — I repeat, do not — take the advice of betches.com or Cosmo. Instead of listening to the poor advice of the web, I came up with my own witty response to test out. I messaged Drew, and a couple other matches on both Tinder and Bumble, the same message. It read as follows: “I’m going to the grocery store tomorrow — need me to pick up anything?” The responses rolled in. Some asked for condoms, others really wanted spicy ramen. Either way, they responded. I tested out another phrase: “Who’s your favorite serial killer?” Again, I got far more responses than your typical “Hey, hello, how are you?” Most guys weren’t super creative and chose instead to name themselves rather than Richard Ramirez or Ted Bundy. Whatever, I’m not picky. The moral of the story is this: there’s no right or wrong way to send a first message on tinder. Stop listening to the internet and listen to your heart. Then maybe, just maybe, you will find your Tinder love. Mallory Walker is a Behind Closed Doors columnist who is shopping for groceries and a date.
Emily Gardner
CONFUSION CORNER COLUMNIST
It has come to our attention that, after numerous fallacious comments tossed about by the student body and inappropriate articles in various studentrun newspapers, some vicious and quite vacuous rumors need to be put to rest. Let it be clear, the College of William and Mary is not a cult. I understand that a few sources have suggested that we are a cult, but I assure you these sources are not reputable. This is fake news. It may seem like lighthearted humor that some upperclassmen have adopted in jest, but we take student freedom very seriously and want everyone to feel that they have full autonomy and individual identity on campus. There has never been a time in William and Mary’s history in which students were unknowingly indoctrinated into a controlling, unique cultural identity, or in which we manipulated them into believing in a constructed superiority of the institution for the purpose of student retention. As such, there are several things we would like to “clear the air” about so that we may continue to have a happy, productive, fully autonomous semester. First, we recognize that calling ourselves a “tribe” and having our president, the One True Reveley, idealized as an immortal, all-knowing demigod with impeccable bow tie taste may seem “cultish.” However, these organizational idiosyncrasies are fairly inconsequential arbitrary naming and leadership decisions made by a series of different committee board members over the years that are designed to create a cohesive brand for the college — a brand, not a cult. President Reveley may have a magnetic personality that has enamored the student body with an admiration so powerful that they can wash over a lot of his individual flaws, but these schoolboy crushes are very different from the worship of a Jim Jones character or Warren Jeff’s marriage. After all, those men were manipulative in their personal presentation to cover amoral and self-perpetuating motives. Despite what some people may shout in the heat of the reading of How the Grinch Stole Christmas, no one is actually obligated, or even wants, to have Reveley’s babies. There are also some concerns about the typical response of the student body when asked about their attitude towards the school. I assure you that their avid attachment to the College is in no way coerced. You will not be excommunicated or “disappeared” by a secret USSR-inspired night police if you fail to profess a gushing love for the
College, despite what some rumors may have you believe. The fact that any student stopped by a college tour group will fervently and automatically proclaim their undying love for the College is simply the result of a highly-targeted admission process that selects open-minded students who will thrive in our close-knit community. It is in no way reflective of a cult-like nature. There have also been several points raised against our induction ceremonies and regular use of rituals, but these are merely traditions. Traditions are very important to the College because they help with bonding and morale. These kinds of bonds are important for ensuring any institution’s longevity, not just that of a cult. The hot chocolate at Yule Log is just hot chocolate; there’s nothing special slipped in. The alma mater, despite what some may say to the contrary, was not designed by the CIA in the 1970s as a subtle form of mind control. Furthermore, I assure you that the rivalry between our fine institution and U.Va. is not a cleverly constructed conflict to ensnare our student body further into some illusion of our superiority, thus increasing devotion. It’s just a friendly competition between two almost equallymatched schools. (Although, we were first and are better in every possible way.) Finally, orientation week only serves the purpose of familiarizing new students to our complex campus, with its many academic buildings, sacrificial altars and dining halls. By no stretch of the imagination is it an initiation process designed to ingrain the rules and social hierarchy of a cult. It is equally preposterous to believe that the week is intentionally fast-paced and overwhelming in order to make the subliminal messages about the school easier to deliver between games of Trainwreck. I must emphasize that William and Mary is not a cult. Yes, we all share a common twamp mindset and a unique cultural dialogue, but our students came endowed with this. We gathered a lot of like-minded students; we did not take advantage of vulnerable, high-achieving high schoolers and bend them to our will through subtle messages about the value of working hard or through promises of employment. With that issue settled, we would like to note that we are very happy to have new brothers and sisters joining us soon in the fall in our voluntary, non-conformist community. We want to make sure that everyone feels comfortable and that they have no fear about the Kool-Aid we drink at the final commencement ceremony (before our graduates pass onto the next plane of existence), so we are taking any complaints very seriously. Any comments you may have related to “cult”related activity can be emailed to us or made in the more traditional fashion by sacrificing a U.Va. mascot to the Swem Gods. I repeat, we are not a cult. William and Mary is completely safe, and we are all so very happy that all of our former, current and incoming students made the decision to join us. Emily Gardner is a Confusion Corner columnist who swears ‘ISC’ does not stand for ‘Illuminati Sit-in Center.’
Page 8
The Flat Hat
Tuesday, April 4, 2017
BASEBALL
College splits in up and down midweek Tribe overcomes slow start to beat Norfolk State, falls to Old Dominion late at home KEVIN RICHESON FLAT HAT STAFF WRITER This past week, William and Mary played two mid-week games against Norfolk State and Old Dominion, going 1-1. March 28, the College played the Spartans at home and, despite falling behind early, found its offense down the stretch to claim a 6-1 victory. The following day, the Tribe remained at Plumeri Park for another in-state showdown, this time with the Monarchs of Old Dominion. The College took an early lead, but inconsistency on the mound was the ultimate downfall for the Tribe, as they dropped the contest 11-6. The Tribe (14-10) took the field against the Spartans (9-13) March 28. The College was looking to build upon the momentum of its first conference and road win of the year against UNCW two days prior. Pitcher Brian Beard took the mound for the Spartans, looking to pick up his first win of the season, while the Tribe sent senior pitcher Daniel Powers out for the start. Powers got off to a shaky start for the Tribe, giving up an early run in the top of the first. This allowed the Spartans to jump out to a quick 1-0 lead. He walked the Spartans’ leadoff hitter, second baseman Alex Mauricio. After center fielder Andre’ Moore reached on a fielder’s choice, the Spartans got back to back base hits from Beard and third baseman Justin Burrell. First, Beard singled up the middle, allowing Moore to reach third base on the play. Burrell came to the plate with an RBI opportunity and delivered with a single up the middle, scoring Moore on the play to give the Spartans the early advantage. Powers promptly retired the next two batters to prevent the Spartans from adding to its lead. The Tribe was unable to immediately answer the Spartans’ early tally. In the first inning, the College stranded a runner at third base and then went down in order in the second inning. However, the Tribe evened the score in the bottom of the third inning at 1-1. Senior first baseman Matthew Tilley started the inning with a double to left field. Freshman catcher Matthew Trehub grounded out to the first baseman, but Tilley advanced to third base on the play with only one out. Junior right fielder Ryan Hall, the leadoff hitter for the Tribe, flied out to center field, but Tilley was able to dash home and score, giving Hall credit for a sacrifice fly and a game-tying RBI. The College scored in the bottom of the fifth inning to take its first lead of the game, which it would not relinquish. Sophomore shortstop Kyle Wrighte led off the inning with a ground ball to third base, but there was an error on the throw to first, allowing Wrighte to reach base safely. Freshman left fielder Brandon Raquet attempted to lay down a sacrifice bunt to allow Wrighte to advance to second, but Raquet was able to reach base on another error by the Spartans. Wrighte moved all the way to third base on the play. The next batter for the College was Tilley who picked up his second double in as many at-bats, scoring Wrighte on the play. The Tribe threatened to score more in the fifth inning but were unable to scratch across more than that one run, leaving the score at 2-1. “I was looking for my pitch early, and I attacked fastballs early in
the count when I got them and that way I was able to drive the ball opposite field,” Tilley said about his big night at the plate, which included two key doubles. With the score still close at 2-1 in the bottom of the seventh inning, the College blew the game open with a big inning at the plate. The inning was once again aided by a Norfolk State error, when Raquet reached base on a one-out error. Raquet stole second base during Tilley’s at-bat, but Tilley ended up striking out. Then, the Tribe sparked a two-out rally. Trehub pushed the lead to 3-1 with an RBI single to center field, scoring Raquet on the play. Hall followed up Trehub’s single with a double down the left field line, moving Trehub to third base. “I was pretty focused. It always helps having an off day and being able to come back to the field refreshed,” Hall said about his three-hit night that contributed to the Tribe’s success. The Spartans made a pitching change after Hall’s double, moving Beard to designated hitter and bringing lefty Tyler Morgan out of the bullpen to pitch. Morgan threw a wild pitch to the first batter he faced, allowing Trehub to score and Hall to advance to third. After third baseman Ryder Miconi walked, the Spartans committed yet another error, allowing two runs to score and pushing the lead to 6-1. Pitcher Jack Howell entered the game for the Spartans and recorded the final out of the inning, stopping the bleeding and keeping the score at 6-1. In the last two innings, no more runs were scored, and the Tribe coasted to a 6-1 victory. Powers picked up the win for the Tribe, pushing his record to 2-2 on the season, while Beard was saddled with the loss for the Spartans and remained winless at 0-2 for the year. “Whenever people give you chances, you try to make them pay,” head coach Brian Murphy said. “Capitalizing on other teams’ mistakes is part of the game.” The College (14-11) returned to play March 29 against Old Dominion (20-5), looking to extend its winning streak to three games. The starting pitcher for the Monarchs was Jake Josephs, Powers while the Tribe sent senior Aaron Fernandez out to the mound. The Tribe got on the board first with a run in the bottom of the first inning. Hall continued his hot hitting with a leadoff double down the left field line. Miconi came up next with an RBI opportunity. He hit a hard ground ball up the middle that just hopped past the outstretched glove of the Monarchs’ second baseman Jared Young. Hall scored easily on the play, with Miconi getting the credit for the RBI. The Tribe went quietly after the early run, with junior second baseman Cullen Large grounding into a double play and sophomore catcher Hunter Smith popping out to the first baseman. The College added to its lead in the next inning. Once again, the Tribe led off with a double down the left field line, this time off the bat of senior center fielder Charles Ameer. Wrighte, the next batter, laid down a successful sacrifice bunt to the third baseman, allowing Ameer to scamper over to third base on the play. Tilley then provided another
productive out with an RBI groundout to the second baseman. The College collected two more hits in the inning from sophomore right fielder Owen Socher and sophomore third baseman Zach Pearson but was unable to add to its 2-0 edge. The Monarchs fought back in the top of the third, to surge ahead 5-2. With one out, Fernandez started to struggle with his control. He issued back-to-back walks to right fielder Turner Bishop and catcher Devon Adams. Then, leadoff batter third baseman Nick Walker ripped a double down the left field line, scoring Bishop on the play and advancing Adams to third. Next, ODU first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino walked to load the bases. After Fernandez recorded the second out of the inning, the Monarch center fielder Culver Lamb blasted a grand slam to left field to give the Monarchs its first lead of the game, 5-2. In the bottom of the third, the Tribe responded to cut the gap to one run. Large started the rally with a one-out single up the middle. Smith then crushed a double to left center field, advancing Large to third base on the hit. Ameer picked up an RBI with a groundout to second base, moving Smith to third base and scoring Large. Wrighte then hit an RBI single to cut the lead to 5-4, as Smith scored on the play. However, the College was unable to even the game because Tilley flew out to center field to end the inning. After the Monarchs tacked on another run in the top of the fourth to stretch the lead to 6-4, the bats of both teams fell silent until the seventh inning, as the relief pitchers, senior Chase Bailey for the College and Morgan Maguire for the Monarchs, dominated on the mound. Walker demolished a ball over the left field fence for a long solo home run to push the Monarchs’ lead to 7-4. Walker’s home run was the only hit of the inning for the Monarchs. In the bottom of the seventh, the Tribe cut the lead to one run once again. Hall led off the inning and reached on an error. After Miconi flew out to left field, Hall advanced to second on a throwing error. Next, Large walked and Smith got hit by a pitch to load the bases with one out for the College. Ameer reached on yet another error by the Monarchs, allowing Hall and Large to score to cut the deficit to 7-6. The Tribe stranded both Smith and Ameer on base, as the last two batters of the inning were retired. The Monarchs stretched the lead back to three runs in the top of the eighth and added two more in the ninth, taking an 11-6 advantage over the College. The Tribe went quietly in both the eighth and ninth innings and fell to the Monarchs, 11-6. “We just have to get back to work and command the ball better,” Murphy said about the necessity of better outings on the mound to win more games. Over the weekend, the Tribe took on Delaware for a three-game series in Newark, Del. This week, the College will travel to Richmond for a game April 4 against Virginia Commonwealth before returning to Plumeri Park for a weekend series against Elon, April 7-9. “We’ll be ready to go,” Murphy said about the upcoming weekend series with Delaware. “We just need to play a complete game and be ready to go in all phases.”
BASEBALL
Tribe goes 1-2 against Delaware, collapsing late in final two games College blows 4-0 lead Sunday in eighth inning to lose series in heartbreaking fashion, falling to 15-13 BRENDAN DOYLE FLAT HAT ASSOC. SPORTS EDITOR Saturday and Sunday, the Tribe took on Delaware in a three-game set, its second Colonial Athletic Association series of the year. After a rainout Friday, the Tribe (15-13, 2-4 CAA) split a doubleheader Saturday with an 8-2 win and an 8-5 loss. Sunday, the Blue Hens (15-10, 3-3 CAA) secured the series victory with a come-from-behind 5-4 win. In the first of two games Saturday, the Tribe came out of the gate hot. The College put up four runs in the first, behind a home run by senior outfielder Charles Ameer and a two-RBI single from sophomore outfielder Owen Socher. With a substantial lead before he even stepped onto the mound, senior right-handed pitcher Nick Brown gave the Tribe the shutdown inning it was looking for in the bottom of the first, going three-up, three-down. In the third, a Delaware RBI double cut the Tribe lead to three. That was as close as the Blue Hens got as the Tribe answered in the top of the fourth when Socher scored on a wild pitch. After a few quiet innings, the Tribe tacked on three more when sophomore catcher Hunter Smith doubled home two and sophomore infielder Kyle Wrighte brought in another on a single. Delaware scored a run in the bottom of the eighth, but it was not nearly enough. The College cruised for an 8-2 win. Brown went seven innings and got the win, only giving up a single run. Junior righty Charlie Fletcher got the last six outs of the game, giving up four hits and an earned run. The second half of the doubleheader did not go as smoothly for the Tribe. After a quiet top of the first, the Blue Hens struck with three in the bottom of the frame behind two homers. In the second, the College fought back as Wrighte hit an RBI single to score Ameer followed by a Delaware balk, which scored freshman outfielder
Brandon Raquet. In the bottom of the second, the Blue Hens regained their three-run lead as the Tribe’s starting pitcher, sophomore
walk. Senior right-hander Chase Bailey entered, looking to keep the Blue Hens at bay. He was not successful, giving up an RBI single, an RBI double and
won handily, 8-5. Sunday, the teams came to the ballpark striving for the win in the rubber match of the series. Just as in
COURTESY PHOTO / TRIBE ATHLETICS
Senior pitcher Aaron Fernandez and the Tribe split a pair of midweek games before losing two striaght to lose the weekend series against Delaware.
lefty Bodie Sheehan, gave up a blast to right center field that scored two. The College got a run back in the top of the third as Brandon Raquet reached on a fielder’s choice. Junior outfielder Ryan Hall crossed to cut the score to 5-3. No team scored until the fifth, when Hall homered to right field to get the Tribe within one. The College, however, neither tied the game nor took the lead. In the seventh, Delaware chased Sheehan from the game after a double and a
a fielder’s choice that scored another Delaware player. The first two runs of the inning were given to Sheehan, who finished up with seven earned runs on eight hits and two walks in six and a third innings. Bailey, taking it the rest of the way, gave up a run on three hits in an inning and twothirds. While the Tribe added a run in the top of the eighth when Brandon Raquet doubled to bring home Ameer, it barely put a dent in the Blue Hens’ lead, who
the first two games of the set, there was early offense. Junior infielder Cullen Large got the party started for the Tribe, hitting a solo homer in the top of the first for a 1-0 lead. The Tribe started Nick Raquet, arguably the team’s ace. He took the mound in the bottom of the first, working for a shutdown inning. Following a leadoff single, he struck out the last batter of the inning with a runner on third. The second inning saw both teams get out quickly, as it
looked as if the teams were heading for a pitcher’s duel. In the third inning, that illusion was broken. The top of the frame saw the College take a substantial lead. The leadoff batter of the inning, Hall, hit a double, followed by a sacrifice bunt to get him to third. Large then singled, driving in Hall and pushing the Tribe advantage to 2-0. Following Large was Ameer, who hit into a potential double play; the Blue Hens got Large out at second but the relay to first resulted in an error and Ameer advanced to second. Smith was next to bat, and he crushed one over the wall in right field to double the Tribe lead. With a four-run cushion, Nick Raquet went to work. After the first inning, he gave up five hits, but only one runner reached second base until the eighth. The Blue Hens’ offense stalled, as Nick Raquet was stifling. The tide began to turn in the eighth inning. Nick Raquet came out to pitch, with his shutout intact. Following a single and a strikeout, Fletcher came in for Nick Raquet. Right away, after a triple and a single, Delaware cut the Tribe lead in half. After the second out of the inning, Fletcher gave up another run on a double and was immediately pulled. Junior right-handed pitcher Robert White came in and ended the inning without giving up any more runs. In the ninth, Delaware rallied yet again. A single and a triple tied the game. The Tribe ended the inning without giving up another run, sending the game to extras. The tenth inning was uneventful for both teams. After a one-two-three top of the eleventh, the Blue Hens had another chance to win and took advantage. Back-to-back doubles sent Delaware onto the field, celebrating a walk-off, come-from-behind win to take the series. The College will take on VCU Wednesday. Friday, Saturday and Sunday the College will play Elon in its next CAA weekend series.