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Est. 1929 Vol. 90 No. 19
Mercyhurst university
Wednesday, april 26, 2017
Employees’ commitment honored By Cheyanne Crum Features editor
On April 18, in Christ the King Chapel, 61 employees were recognized for their years of service to the school with a gift. The honorees were marked in five-year increments. Among these recipients were Jack Williams, Ph.D., professor of Chemistry, and Dave Cherico, fleet services coordinator, both hitting their 40-year mark. President Michael T. Victor spoke during the event about the honorees. “All of you here today represent the very best of this Contributed photo institution, and your impres- Mary Hembrow Snyder and other employees received small tokens from President Michael T. sive records of service merit Victor for their extended service with the university. our highest praise. Mercyhurst has excelled under your capa- of dedicated service to the insignia and a Mercyhurst pin. “If you find something you ble hands,” said Victor during University.” “I was very gratifying to love, why would you give it the ceremony. “Our reputaEach class of recipients have my 30 years of service up?” said Williams. “Teaching tion, our values, our sense of received different pins based recognized by President Victor and research are an unbeatable community have been forged on years of service. They also and his administration, as well combination.” through your hard work and received larger gifts as well. as all of my colleagues who Both Williams and Snyder loyalty.” The 20-year honorees were shared this event with me,” have not lost their passion David Dausey, provost and presented with an engraved Snyder said. for teaching, even after a few vice president for Academic keepsake box, the 25-year honSnyder has had many roles decades. Affairs, read the names of the orees bestowed with a tapestry during her years at Mercyhurst, “I still love teaching after all employees and each came onto throw blanket of the college, along with her current posi- these years and also truly enjoy stage and received their gifts. the 30-year honorees received tions. Currently she is the both my students and col“In years past, we had hon- a Mercyhurst University clock coordinator for the Sister Joan leagues,” Snyder said. ored those who had 20 years and finally, the two 40-year D. Chittister, OSB Lecture Brian Reed, dean of faculty, of service to the University,” honorees were awarded with a Series. Previously, she has held was honored for his 15 years said Betsy Frank, director of Mercyhurst University watch. the department chair position, of service. He said he continExecutive Office Projects Mary Hembrow Snyder, division chair positions, associ- ues to work here for the stuand Events. “When President Ph.D., professor of Theol- ate dean and dean. dents. Victor arrived last year, he ogy and Religious Studies and Williams started his career in “The best part of Mercyhurst established honoring those director of the William C. industry as a polymer chemist. is the students, who are most who had milestone years from Sennett Institute for Mercy Now he works as an organic always inquisitive, kind and 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, etc. to thank and Catholic Studies, received chemist, and he would like to dedicated,” said Reed. “They them for their continued years a clock with the Mercyhurst stay here. also represent what is best
Caitlyn Lear photo
All employees being honored were being presented with lapel pins. The pin for each anniversary year was different.
about life, being good people who care about the welfare of others and the health of the planet.” Reed has attended the Ireland trip on four occasions with students. “The first two times I traveled with Dr. David Livingston, Dr. Daniel McFee and Dr. Mary Ann Owoc with students that we drove around in vans, staying in hostels and lecturing on the roadside, or in rest stops or on locations,” said Reed. “My hope is that we will soon see most of our students travel to our Ireland campus. Study abroad is a life-changing experience.” The school has seen many changes over the years, not only where study abroad is
concerned, to make the school more “student-friendly.” “I have witnessed many changes; perhaps one of the most important, in my opinion, is that we now have full semesters,” Snyder said. Victor thanked the employees and stressed their importance to the Mercyhurst community. “You are the foundation upon which we meet new challenges and new opportunities. We will continue to count on each and every one of you to catalyze great work, and to do it in the only way we at Mercyhurst know how: by seizing the day,” Victor said.
Senior Social Work project shows M.E.R.C.Y. By Kristian Biega Staff writer
This year, students from the Mercyhurst Social Work department are hosting a Wellness Day for the Community in Perry Square on Saturday from noon to 4 p.m. The Social Work department works to make a difference in the lives of others and creating awareness for the needs in the community. That mission is evident during each year’s Senior Social Work Class Project. Each year, the Social Work Practice III class must design, plan and implement its own project that ultimately will leave a positive impact on the community. The class is given a theme to work with. This year’s was youth violence due
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to the widespread general violence in Erie. “Our philosophy is that this project is really student led and the department takes a backseat role,” said Mandy Fauble, Ph.D. “It allows them to find their own voice.” Nicole Caranci, Colin O’Connor, Bridget Ellert, Rachel Ficcaglia, Vivian McCullum, Jade McKay, Natalie Piaggesi, Justyn Roda, Emily Shanahan and Deandra Ward made up the collaborative team of senior social work majors that are planning Saturday’s event. They worked together to come up with several ideas on the causes of youth violence and decided to focus on the wellness aspect of the issue and the various ways to cope with it. From this idea, they formed the mission of
“M.E.R.C.Y.” which stands for “Movement to Empower, Restore and Cultivate the Youth.” “Instead of focusing on the negative aspect of youth violence, we focused on how we can make the youth of our community healthier,” said Shanahan. The movement seeks to involve as much of the community as possible for a day of education and awareness, food, fun, music and fellowship. The team incorporated an aspect of advocacy through their information booths and charismatic speakers and performers. “This is not a lecture setup,” said Carani. “We want to bring people together to entertain them but also educate them at the same time. People can hang out, eat and
be with friends.” The day will include speeches from Amy Blackman, of the Crime Victim Center of Erie County, on overall wellness and services at the center; Curtis Jones, associate minister at Abundant Life Ministries, on youth violence and spirituality; and potentially a talk from Michael Outlaw on the current situation of Erie’s innercity youth. Entertainment for the Wellness Day will feature musical performances from Shok Jordan, Shawn Hollaway, Yung Skola and Shai Boogie, poetry readings from Zadie Gregory and a dance by Dance Elite. The entire day will be filled with music from DJ Primo. By having positive influences in the area of aiding
youth violence, this brings the aspect of mental health and wellness into the limelight in a positive way. “We hope to give people a better understanding of mental wellness and how to take it in a positive light,” said Caranci. “This mission will show that people can get the help that they need if they need it.” Breaking down stereotypes and stigmas as a community is the primary focus for the senior project focused on mental wellness. That topic usually has a negative connotation or is misunderstood, but the team hopes to reverse people’s thinking about its influence on youth violence. “It is something that needs to be talked about. In these situations of violence, it’s obvious that someone
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doesn’t know how to handle their illness or anger, or who to go to about how they are feeling,” said Ward. “The positive aspect is that there is help out there and Erie has a high amount of facilities.” The M.E.R.C.Y. mission project seeks to welcome all backgrounds for togetherness, advocacy and a promotion of the common good. “We are seeing how lots of people act out of emotion and emotions can sometimes make you make wrong choices,” said Ward. “It’s OK to be mad and upset, but it’s not OK to hurt others because of it. This will let people know that it’s real and you don’t have to be embarrassed about feeling that way.” Continued on page 2
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April 26, 2017
The Merciad
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News
Community Wheaton honored by peers Wellness Day By Caitlyn Lear News editor
Continued from page 1 A major event such as this took nearly the entire year to implement, and was not without a few bumps in the road. However, the Social Work department believes that through the process, their students gain the most experience, knowledge and opportunities to cultivate their skills. “We want them to use this experience and have that feeling that they are now ready to graduate,” said Fauble. “It is important to have the experience of building something from the ground up themselves.” Shanahan, Caranci and Ward all expressed some of the challenges they faced, especially getting all members of the project on the same page. “In the end, what it comes down to is that even though we may disagree, everyone knows we just want to put on something good and everyone wants it to be a success,” said Shanahan. “We may not know the exact way to go about it, but everyone has the same end goal.” Ultimately the seniors made the experience more worthwhile for themselves, learning
skills such as time management, networking, collaboration and organization. Working with others directly prepared them for their careers in social work. “In social work you are going to deal with all different types of people and have to have diverse thinking, the ability to suppress your own feelings and emotions, to know how to reason and to be accepting of others,” said Ward. “Doing this group project has definitely made us do each and every one of those things.” Not only did the seniors learn skills for their career, but also skills of compassion and working with others that fall in line with the mercy mission at Mercyhurst and allow them to make real change in their community. “We are so proud of all they have accomplished. It is definitely in the spirit of the Mercy Tradition,” said Fauble. “It feels so good to see the students viewing themselves as people that can create change, because in reality many of us can make change happen in our everyday world.” @TheMerciad
On April 18, Kristan Wheaton, J.D., was awarded Mercyhurst’s 2017 Teaching Excellence Award. David Dausey, Provost and vice president for Academic Affairs, surprised Wheaton in his morning class. “Receiving the award in front of my students was a big surprise but entirely appropriate. It is easy to be a great teacher when you have great students,” Wheaton said. Wheaton has a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from the University of Notre Dame, a master’s in Russian and East European Area Studies from Florida State University and a law degree from the University of South Carolina. “Before coming to Mercyhurst in 2003, I was in the Army for 20 years,” said Wheaton. “I spent most of my time in Europe working intelligence and intelligence related issues in the Balkans.” Wheaton has come to be known for his unique style. “I use games to teach all aspects of intelligence. Mostly I use a variety of commercial games that help
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teach or reinforce concepts I want my students to learn but, increasingly, I use games that I have designed for this purpose,” Wheaton said. “Spymaster,” one of the games that Wheaton designed, is a card game that teaches the basics of managing diverse collection resources. Another, called “A Mind’s Lie,” is a tabletop game that helps students to identify cognitive biases. He has even been interviewed by USA Today for teaching with games. “I was also interviewed by the BBC regarding the Pokemon Go craze of last summer and Public Radio International regarding my re-boot of an old Viking game called hnefatafl,” said Wheaton. Wheaton is also known for his success with his crowdfunding campaigns. In the past three years, 22 of 24 have been successful. “Quickstarter is something that was born with my own experience with crowdfunding,” said Wheaton. “I was successful in funding the development of my first two commercial games using Kickstarter, one of the oldest rewards-based crowdfunding sites.” He stated that he noticed that other creators in Erie
Mercyhurst University photo
Dausey presented Kristan Wheaton with the Teaching Excellence Award in front of his morning class on April 18.
were not having as much success, mostly because campaigns were poorly executed, not because their ideas were bad. He had the idea to use Mercyhurst students for Quickstarter to help the creators get their ideas going. “Quickstarter is, at its core, my attempt to combine the skills of local college students with the passions of local creators in order to increase the odds of success crowdfunding new ideas,” Wheaton said. Wheaton also has a popu-
lar blog, “Sources and Methods”, to share ideas with students, faculty and entrepreneurs. Being nominated and chosen for this award is a high honor to Wheaton. “There are many extraordinary teachers at Mercyhurst and to be considered to be among the best of them is both amazing and humbling,” Wheaton said.
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Green Team continues to make strides on campus By Kristian Biega Staff writer
Mercyhurst University’s Green Team has been very busy over the past few weeks. Most recently, it has purchased and placed new recycling bins across campus. This project was led by Sarah Bennett, Biology lecturer and Green Team leader. “I wanted to get students to realize that they could be part of the solutions to environmental problems,” Bennett said. Bennett has also taken the position of Mercyhurst sustainability officer. This position was terminated by the previous administration, but has been brought back this year. “We have needed this position back for a long time. It will allow campus sustainability projects to be more productive,” said Bennett. “One major goal of mine will be to create a culture of sustainability.” The Green Team was established 17 years ago, and has been making strides since then. In the 2006-2007 school year, the Student Sustainability Fund (SSF) campaigned and passed an initiative on campus that implemented a $5 fee per student per semester. This fee supports the development of environmental initiatives on campus. Most projects funded by the SSF are capstone senior projects for Sustainability and Biology majors. The Green Roof above the Ceramics lab in Zurn reduces storm water flow, helps save energy and extends the life of the room by 30 to 40 percent. The Sister Maura Smith Garden behind Warde Hall honors the sister after which it is named. The garden has strawberries, herbs, blueberries, bushes and dwarf apple
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I wanted to get students to realize that they could be part of the solutions to environmental problems.
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Sarah Bennett, Biology lecturer
trees. It also includes perennial flowers, which are more sustainable than annual flowers. Near the garden there is a sustainability landscape that features meadow grass, wildflowers and a rain garden. The solar-powered emergency call system, which offers any student a way to quickly call Police and Safety, has also been funded by the SSF. The SSF holds almost $180,000, waiting for more student generated projects. Apart from the SSF, the Green Team itself has worked on multiple projects. In 2010, a grant was written for an Earth Tub compost system. This system is located in the southeast corner of the Performing Arts Center parking lot and has been taking vegetable waste matter from Grotto Commons since 2012. The vegetable waste matter is mixed with leaves and shredded paper material to make the compost. Also from 2005 to 2007, the Green Team led the way for the establishment of the Sustainability Studies program, which includes a major and a minor. The Green Team continues to improve the campus in terms of going green. On April 19, Mercyhurst University was recognized by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as the Individual Conference Champion of the 2016-2017 College & University Green Power Challenge. Mercyhurst was
awarded this honor for using more green power than any other school in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference. Mercyhurst has been purchasing green energy since 2002. “Mercyhurst purchases renewable energy credits to support a mix of solar, wind, biomass and low-impact hydroelectric and also purchases carbon offsets that support a local landfill methane capture facility located in Lebanon, Pennsylvania,” Bennett said. It started out by purchasing 10 percent of the electricity from renewable sources. By 2007, that was increased to 30 percent, and in 2010, 100 percent of electricity was coming from renewable sources. “Since 2014, we have also offset all of the carbon emission we generate from transportation sources,” said Chris Magoc, Ph.D., chair of the History Department. “Both of these initiatives advance us toward our 2007 pledge and mission-driven commitment of carbon neutrality by 2030, fortifying the position of Mercyhurst University in the fight to curb the worst effects of climate change.” Bennett also discussed what she would like to do as when she officially assumes her new role. “I plan to meet with Mercyhurst constituents to come up with a strategic plan for Mercyhurst sustainability,” said Bennett. “This will include re-examining our carbon offsets and their role in our greater sustainability plans. These offsets may change in order to allow other, more sustainable, initiatives to take place. Purchasing carbon offsets is great but it would be even better, and cheaper in the long run, if we had initiatives that lowered our carbon emissions to begin with.”
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The Merciad
Features
’Hurst Marches for Science By Claire Eichner Staff writer
On April 22, thousands of like-minded people from all around the globe came out to show their support for the sciences and the role that they play in everyday life during the March for Science. A series of rallies and marches took place in Washington, D.C., and in cities all around the world. According to the March for Science committee, “The event will be the first step in the global movement to defend the vital role science plays in everyday life, including in health, safety, economies, and governments.” “The goal of the global event is to bring people from almost 500 cities together in support of science’s role in society and policy to ensure our future,” said Caroline Weinberg, National Co-Chair for the March for Science, prior to the events taking place. Weinberg also stated that this movement is “bigger than the scientific community.” It is truly an important moment for all people, not just scientists. One of those almost 500 cities that successfully took part in this world-wide event was Erie, specifically Mercyhurst and its students. Emma Mader and Kyle Warren, two freshman Environmental Science majors, delved right into the event with a goal of getting Mercyhurst and its students involved. “This is a worldwide event so we did not come up with the idea for the entire world. However, when we heard about it we were inspired and jumped into action to make it possible for Mercyhurst University students to attend, along with getting in touch with some people interested in making it happen in Erie to, well, make it happen,” Mader said.
Asking Mia Anyone have a problem that they need help fixing? Ask for Mia’s advice at: askmia.merciad@gmail.com *******************
Dear Mia,
Mercyhurst students marched in Erie, showing support for science.
Amber Matha photo
Students from the Chemistry Department attended the March for Science in Chicago.
The Erie march had over 200 attendees and globally thousands. D.C. alone brought in over 25,000 people. In Erie, the march was held in Perry Square beginning at 10a.m. There were some speakers and some displays set up for the marchers to enjoy prior to the event as the
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participants eagerly waited for the march to begin. When the march finally commenced the route that the people took began at the new stage, up to West 12th Street and then back to Perry Square. Many of the participants had signs, and all the participants showed their unwavering support for
Staff writer
Abigail Rinard photo
Registered nurses completing the RN to BSN program nursing research class exhibited their poster presentations on April 25 in the Audry Hirt Academic Center. Students under the tutelage of faculty member Karen Morahan, Ph.D, assistant professor of Nursing, focused on key issues affecting nursing practice. This celebration of scholarship culminated a semester-long research project.
science, all that it has done and will continue to do for all of us as part of the human race. “The goal for this event is to raise awareness, not money, and to show that we support and believe in the sciences that are being so negatively affected,” Mader and Warren said. Over history there have been countless marches and events such as this one that have taken place. “This is technically the first year for this particular event” said Mader. “The negative stance taken by our president and his Cabinet has greatly impacted why this march is happening this year.” The event came to a close after the hard work and planning that Mader and Warren put into helping Erie take a stand. “There is no Planet B, and science will and does provide the evidence and information that we need to strive in balance with the planet and we need to embrace it,” Mader said.
Cleaning beaches By Elizabeth Shewan
Abigail Rinard photo
Contributed photo
This summer, as part of Mercyhurst’s continuing efforts connected to the Adopt-A-Beach program at Presque Isle, Mercyhurst will be installing cigarette canisters at Beach 10 in May. Mercyhurst adopted Beach 10 in 2012 and has participated in beach-cleanups since then. These cleanups occur once a month during the school year, and data has been collected at each one. Sarah Bennett, a Biology lecturer, who has taken over the program as of this year, will be working closely with Keep America Beautiful, a national organization with state and local affiliates whose grant made the installation possible. In addition, she will be collaborating with Millcreek Township, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, Erie County Recycling and Keep Erie County Beautiful. “Hopefully we’ll see a decrease from cigarette butts found on the beach,” Bennett said. Data concerning the amount of cigarette butts found on the beach from before the placement of the canisters will be compared with data which
will continue to be collected from beach clean-ups after their placement. The number of cigarette butts placed in the canisters will also be collected and recorded by students working for the Biology Department this summer. The grant from Keep America Beautiful will fund four cigarette collection canisters, as well as pocket ashtrays, which will be distributed to beachgoers. It also has a public education component. “What I’m planning is to have a day at that beach where we’re there with a table and we can provide information,” Bennett said. The cigarette butts collected from the canisters will be taken to the Tom Ridge Environmental Center and then sent on to TerraCycle, a company which will recycle the butts by removing the toxins and using them to make composite bricks to be used in building. Mercyhurst will continue working with Keep America Beautiful and other organizations at the local, state and national levels, publishing findings throughout the process. Through the efforts of staff, students and associates, Presque Isle will hopefully become cleaner and even more beautiful.
I am a junior and I am almost exclusively friends with current seniors. The seniors graduate in three weeks and after that all of my friends will be gone. I will have no one left to hang out with next year and I am afraid of being lonely. What should I do? Sincerely, Left All Alone Dear Left All Alone, One of the nice things about Mercyhurst is that it is a small school and because of that it is easy to make friends with your peers. In addition, they have class Facebook pages so you can reach out to your classmates to meet new people. I would recommend going to Activities Council events and mingling with the people who show up to these events. Also, try to reach out to people in your major and in your classes. Because they likely think similarly and enjoy the same things as you, you might have luck finding new friends there. One final thing I would recommend is joining clubs on campus. Clubs are some of the most welcoming environments on campus and I think it would be beneficial for you to start attending a club that interests you. If, for some reason, there is no club that you would be interested in joining, try making one! I know this is a sad time for you but your friends will always be only a phone call away. I am sure if you ever need them to talk they will be willing to talk to you. Who knows? Maybe they will even come to visit. Sincerely,
Mia
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Features
Technology Expo-sed
Culture Corner
Living Internationally
Editor’s note: Culture Corner is a feature showcasing the diverse nationalities represented at Mercyhurst. This week’s student is from Spain. By Mari Koguma Contributing writer
Maria Vidal Souto is a freshman Marketing major, as well as a midfielder on the Mercyhurst women’s soccer team. She has played, as number 10 in six games, taken two shots and scored one goal in the 2016 season. Vidal is a freshman from A Coruña, Spain. The Mercyhurst women’s soccer team is very diverse, with players from Germany, Spain, Honduras, Norway, Denmark, Finland and England. “International teammates really helped me to adapt to the new environment when I first came to Mercyhurst,” Vidal said. Having the ability to discuss the difficulties of homesickness with teammates, or just the general complexities of college life, has brought relief to Vidal, as other international students are able to understand more fully. “I kind of feel sorry for international students who do not have the environment or the group which help them to adapt to Mercyhurst,” said Vidal. “Because I know if I did not play soccer and belong to such a diverse team, it would be incredibly hard to find the people and places that I can go talk to whenever I need to.” The ease of simultaneous participation in soccer and academics is the main reason Vidal chose Mercyhurst. “In Spain, it is hard to combine,” said Vidal. “The close relationship between professors and students at Mercyhurst is something I cannot find in Spain. So Mercyhurst was the right school for me.” However, it can be difficult to balance the rigor of playing a Division II sport while pursuing an undergraduate degree. “It is really important to be organized in a schedule. Usually, I know my game and practice schedule a month before so I make my own schedule so that I can prepare for my projects and exams,” Vidal said. Vidal really enjoys the projects and case
April 26, 2017
The Merciad
Contributed photo
Maria Vidal is a freshman soccer player.
studies in her business and marketing classes. “Even though I finish my projects, sometimes I spend some extra time on them because I really enjoy studying marketing,” Vidal said. Vidal chose to major in marketing because of her aunt. “My aunt works in a marketing company. I was hearing my aunt’s stories of marketing a lot. I have never had certain jobs or particular careers that I feel I want to do so when I was in the last year of high school, I started to think about my career. Then I remembered that my aunt talks a lot about marketing and I found it really interesting,” Vidal said. Though she sometimes finds it hard to communicate in English, she feels it is a necessary tool for her future career, and studying it at Mercyhurst has helped her improve her language skills. After she leaves Mercyhurst in three years, Vidal plans to attend a graduate program in Spain. Her goal is to work for an advertising company while playing soccer. “Playing soccer at Mercyhurst will open up the door to play as an adult player,” Vidal said.
By Elizabeth Shewan Staff writer
On Wednesday, April 13, the Ridge College of Intelligence Studies and Applied Sciences held its third annual Tech Expo. Charles Kuntz, coordinator of Information Systems for Intelligence Studies, oversaw the planning for the event. “The goal is just to show the whole Mercyhurst community some of what we do in Intelligence Studies and some of the technology that’s out there,” Kuntz said. The Tech Expo featured incredible gadgets, including a mind-controlled drone, a 3D virtual reality simulator, a 3D printer and an augmented reality sand table. There was also a geocaching contest, a kind of real-life treasure hunt using a GPS system, which led participants around campus looking for items. Randy Ramos, a junior double major in Intelligence Studies and Information Technology, was responsible for configuring the software for the augmented reality sand table, a tool which uses 200 pounds of sand, an X-box Kinect and a projector to simulate three-dimensional landscapes, with practical applications in planning military strategies. He emphasized
Amber Matha photo
Peter Chuzie is a freshman Intelligence Studies major operated the mind control drone at the Tech Expo.
the expo’s goal of making the latest technology more accessible. “With the augmented reality sand table we have this amazing contraption working with just a regular Xbox Kinect and a projector, so we like to show you just how accessible this technology is, even though it’s gotten so advanced,” said Ramos. “The fact that you can import satellite imagery kind of turns it from a really cool toy to an actual intelligence tool.” Much of the technology exhibited is not generally available to the average person, often because of price, and a goal of the expo was to allow for a hands-on experience rather than merely reading about the latest in technology.
Planning for the expo begins in the first weeks of the spring semester, so the expo is the culmination of months of planning and coordination by the students and staff of the Intelligence Studies Department. Significant coordination takes place with outside vendors and donors. Additionally, funds and supplies must be gathered, technology built and a time selected. There are several hours of setup behind the expo every year. Over 200 people came to the expo, and their feedback is invaluable for improving the expo. “This year it was a little bigger and better than the year before,” said Kuntz. “We’re hoping that each year it gets a little bigger and better.”
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Rivals are Linked by Pink By Jordan Pendel Staff writer
About one in eight women will develop breast cancer, the most frequently diagnosed cancer in women. On April 22, Mercyhurst hosted the Seventh Annual Rivals Linked by Pink 5K Run/Walk to benefit breast cancer. Seven years ago, a graduate student from Gannon University’s Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) Program contacted Bradley Jacobson, department chair and assistant professor of Sports Medicine. Jacobson was asked if Mercyhurst would be interested in teaming up with Gannon University to put on a 5K to raise money for Linked by Pink. Linked by Pink is a local non-profit organization, which raises funds to provide emotional and financial support for local patients and their families within a 45-mile radius of Erie, PA. Linked by Pink consists of survivors diagnosed with breast cancer before the age of 45. “No matter who you are, you know someone who has been affected by breast cancer,” said Branden Auen, junior Sports Medicine major. “Be it helping in the smallest or biggest ways, anything that helps is worth the effort.” Every year the location of the event alternates between Mercyhurst University and Gannon University campuses. The rivalry between the two schools inspired the name: “Rivals Linked by Pink.”
Chelsea Guida photo
The Rivals Linked by Pink 5K Run/Walk benefits breast cancer survivors.
Mercyhurst Ambassadors volunteered for the event, in addition to students from Mercyhurst’s Sports Medicine Department and Gannon’s DPT Program. Junior Sports Medicine major Lynne Gillott helped plan the 5K for around six months. “The planning initially begins in the fall, where the external resources are contacted by Gannon’s students,” said Gillott. “In the late fall the date is chosen (and) in the early spring, the location is reserved, Police and Safety is contacted and the race-day plans are officially made.” Skylar Snyder, senior Athletic Training major, volunteered at the event. “In years past I’ve still donated money to support the cause because I think that every little bit that goes into cancer research is incredibly valuable,” Snyder said. The race began at 9 a.m. and concluded around 10 a.m. Following this, the winners of the race received their medals and the Chinese Auction winners were announced. Many businesses in Erie donated
items for the auctions. Along with donations from the Mercyhurst and Gannon bookstores, some of the other places include Calamaris, Greensgarden Lanes Bowling, Peen’n Peak Resort and Romolo’s Chocolates. Volunteering allowed Baylee Burns, a junior Sports Medicine major, to meet a lot of fun, new people. “It was very rewarding that we were able to make an impact in the community and to see the people who are personally affected by breast cancer work together to support the Linked by Pink foundation,” said Burns. “I really look forward to this 5K to grow in volunteers and participants and hope for the students of Gannon and Mercyhurst to continue hosting.” Gillott emphasized the reason behind organizing the race. “To those fighting, to those who have survived, and to those who will always be remembered- Today was for you,” said Gillott. “We are fighting and we won’t give up.”
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April 26, 2017
The Merciad
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Arts &
Entertainment
Newly named Civic Orchestra debuts soloists By Lauren Ganger Staff writer
The D’Angelo Department of Music will present the Mercyhurst Civic Orchestra concert on May 7 at 4 p.m. in Walker Recital Hall. The name of the orchestra will officially be changed from the Mercyhurst Chamber Orchestra to the Mercyhurst Civic Orchestra next semester. The orchestra, under the baton of Jonathan Moser, visiting instructor of music, will perform a program featuring pieces by Ludwig van Beethoven, Richard Wagner, Benjamin Britten, Cecile Chaminade and Robert Schumann. The concert’s soloists, Shelby Mayberry, Isaiah Howard and Deven Shah, were the winners of the Concerto/Aria Competition hosted in January. Mayberry will perform two operatic arias for soprano, “The Embroidery Aria” from Britten’s Peter Grimes and “Dich teure halle” from Wagner’s Tannhäuser. “The Embroidery Aria” is
a famous piece that relays the great tragedy in the opera: the character, Ellen, had knitted a sweater for a young boy who had then disappeared, and the sweater’s reappearance on the beach provides the proof that the child had drowned. It is an aria that reflects on the happy memory of the creation of the sweater, juxtaposed with the sad reality of the boy’s death. “Dich teure halle,” like “The Embroidery Aria,” comes from a tragic opera. It is sung by the character Elisabeth, who has heard that her beloved Tannhäuser will be returning to the Hall of Song, where he has won many singing competitions. Elisabeth sings this aria as a joyous greeting to the Hall, but the hope of the aria is short-lived. Howard will be the soloist in Chaminade’s Concertino for flute, one of the composer’s most well-known works. As a child, Chaminade was thought of as a wunderkind both as a pianist and as a composer, and it was hoped that she would become a great
The newly named Mercyhurst Civic Orchestra under the baton of Jonathan Moser.
composer in her adulthood. Moser bemoans the fact that she never truly realized her composing potential. This piece, originally written for piano and flute, was transcribed for a full orchestra, but the simplicity that made the piece beautiful in its original form is still present. Shah, a highschooler, will perform the first movement of Beethoven’s first piano concerto. The orchestra will play a work without soloists as well, Robert Schumann’s Sym-
phony No. 4 in D minor, Op. 120. The piece was written for the pianist and composer Clara Schumann, whom the composer had just married after a long struggle with her father. Unfortunately, the piece achieved little success at its debut; it shared a program with pieces by the composer Liszt performed by Clara, who stole the show. Moser laughs at the irony that the woman for whom the symphony was written
Leighann Sallick photo
ended up upstaging it by her own performance of different pieces. The piece is notable for its form. Moser explains that Schumann was firmly rooted in the beginning of the Romantic era, an era characterized by the stretching of the boundaries of form. The symphony can be described as cyclical; the movements seem to flow into one another, and the themes outlined in the first movement reappear throughout the
work. In addition, while symphonies of the Classical era will have each movement “close,” the first movement of this work does not get its “closing” until the end of the final movement. The work is also noteworthy because, while it is known as Schumann’s 4th, chronologically it was actually written second. Schumann abandoned it after its initial failure. It was not until years later that he made revisions and it was performed again, this time to great success. With over 40 members, the Mercyhurst Orchestra is in its largest iteration to date. The orchestra will include two pianos and a large brass section, and Moser promises a “huge sound.” Moser calls the music on the program “easily accessible” even for people who have never attended a classical concert before. This concert is certain to be an afternoon of beautiful music and musicianship, and is an event that students will not want to miss.
REVIEW Mistaken identity leads to a love triangle ‘Fate of the Furious’ By Steven Martz Contributing writer
May 7 is your chance for an afternoon at a world–class British performance without paying for airfare or going through the pesky TSA security checkpoints. The Mercyhurst Institute for Arts and Culture (MIAC) is bringing you another National Theatre Live performance right here at the Mary D’Angelo Performing Arts Center. Shakespeare’s “Twelfth Night” will be broadcasted live from The Royal National Theatre in the lovely Oliver Theatre. The performance will start promptly at 12:55 p.m. and have an estimated run time of three hours, which includes a 20-minute intermission. The show is recommended for ages 12 and up. “Twelfth Night” is a comedy by William Shakespeare that was written around 1601. The play was set in Illyria, which was the region of the Western Balkans.
Illyria has been a setting of many of Shakespeare’s plays. The play has themes of mistaken identity, gender and metatheatre. It takes you back to a time where most of the travel was done by ship. Occasionally those ships sank, and this is where the performance picks up. Viola, the main character, is involved in a shipwreck and makes it ashore only with the help of a captain. She believes that her twin brother drowned in the wreck along with others on the ship. To survive, Viola becomes Cesario, a young man who starts to work for Duke Orsino. The Duke sends Cesario with a message of love to a lady named Olivia. Olivia has refused to love anyone for seven years after the death of her father and brother, but the Duke keeps trying. As Cesario is talking, Olivia starts to fall in love with him, all without knowing that Cesario is actually a woman. This creates a love triangle
as Viola, dressed as Cesario, actually falls in love with the Duke. Attend the performance to find out what happens. Simon Godwin will direct the production with a number of world class actors and supporting talent. Tamsin Greig is playing the steward for Olivia’s household. Phoebe Fox was cast as Olivia, Viola is played by Tamara Lawrance, Oliver Chris is cast as Duke Orsino and many other great cast members are featured. Mary Doherty, Andrew Macbean and Imogen Slaughter make up the ensemble. The whole cast is famous in their own right. An afternoon at the theatre will be a steal to attend. The performance at the Oliver Theatre will run about $45 to $80, but if you attend at the Mary D’Angelo, adults pay $18, senior and students pay $15 and youth tickets are $10. As always with MIAC events, Mercyhurst students get tickets for free.
Winds will take your breath away By Jeanette Fournier Staff writer
Online
On May 6, the Mercyhurst Wind Ensemble will give a concert in the Performing Arts Center. The ensemble, directed by Scott Meier, Ph.D., will be playing a variety of music from traditional literature to newer contemporary works. “Each piece has a lot of character, and each piece is so starkly different that getting bored is a real improbability,” said Caden Gilson, junior Music major. One of the pieces offered is the English Folksong Suite by the famous English composer, Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872-1958). The Wind Ensemble will perform all three movements.
“The movements contain themes that the public will recognize as traditional English folksongs,” said Gilson. “It’s a fun piece with contrasting movements, and the folk songs make it a really high energy piece.” On the program is an arrangement of Leonard Bernstein’s “Slava!,” transcribed for concert band. “It’s a fun, quirky, showy piece,” said Gilson. “It contains mixed meter, and it keeps the audience on their toes.” “Slava!” includes many themes the audience may be familiar with, including the well-known “Slava Chorus” (“Glory Chorus”) from the Russian composer Mussorgsky’s famous opera, Boris Godunov (from the Pushkin play of the same name). The ensemble will also
Full list of events can be found on the MU website
play “Instinctive Travels” by Michael Markowski. The piece, by the American film score composer, is written for wind band. “This piece creates a feeling of heroism, represented with fanfare like themes, from the trumpets, as well as some dark sounds from the low brass, which leaves the audience feeling as if they’ve been on a fantastic journey via sound and music, along with the Wind Ensemble,” said Gilson. “People will enjoy this concert because music is so alive,” said Gilson. “Each piece makes a statement and has a purpose that I think will be understood by audience. The audience will really be able to feel and relate to the music of this concert as they listen rather than just listening.”
could’ve been better By Kristofer Gossett, Ph.D Contributing writer
In case you’re behind on the clever numbering in the “Fast and the Furious” franchise, we have arrived upon the eighth installment with this year’s “Fate of the Furious.” This is F. Gary Gray’s first time behind the wheel of the franchise (pun intended). He’s probably best known for directing 2014’s “Straight Outta Compton” but his resume also includes “The Italian Job” which gave me some hope that he might be able to direct some good car chase scenes in this movie. There is a definite law of diminishing returns for movie franchises that last this long. This is especially true for movie franchises that have to try to make things bigger and better than the last one to keep an audience’s interest. Of course, that being said, sequels typically do well when they give the audience what they want and, in a way, “Fate of the Furious” does just that. However, there were some
missteps along the drive that prevent it from being one of the better installments in the long-running series. In case you stopped watching movies back in 1995, the “Fast and the Furious” franchise is all about racing, cars and stunts. It’s also about the futile pursuit of trying to get Vin Diesel to resemble something of an actor. But I digress. As long as the franchise excels at the racing, cars and stunts, the rest of it can be as futile as it wants; people will still come see the films. And in that respect, F. Gary Gray delivered. There are three to four very well-directed and choreographed scenes in the movie that are worth the price of admission for those die-hard fans of the series. Everyone gets a turn here too; not just Vin Diesel. These set pieces give Jason Statham and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson plenty of screen time as well. The issues with this movie lie with pretty much everything in between the great
scenes that are scattered throughout the movie. The dialogue is awful (as it usually is) and the plot is a bit too much of a stretch even for a franchise like this one. The biggest sin though is the running time. There is no reason for a “Fast and the Furious” movie to ever be two hours long, and this one was even longer at two hours and 20 minutes. There were long stretches of bad acting and dialogue that should have been cut in the final edit. Die-hard fans of the franchise will likely be able to overlook the sins of the film, but I think anyone who isn’t familiar with the franchise might be disappointed if this was the first one they saw. If you’re a newbie to the world of “Fast and the Furious,” I suggest watching either of the first two films of the series or the fifth, “Fast Five.” Those were better movies, 20 minutes shorter and my review would have been a bit more kind, but overall it was a middling effort for the series. 2 ½ stars (out of 5).
Jazzed for Jazz Ensemble By Jeanette Fournier Staff writer
Come out to Taylor Little Theatre this Saturday, for a program of jazz in many shapes and styles from the Mercyhurst Jazz Ensemble. The Jazz Ensemble consists of Mercyhurst music majors, as well as musicians from other majors, all under the direction of Scott Meier, Ph.D. Their concert this semester contains an array of styles and many different jazz pieces. One of the pieces is “Magic Flea” by Sammy Nestico.
View upcoming performances: www.mercyhurst.edu/events
“This is a really fast swing chart by a prolific jazz composer and arranger,” said Caden Gilson, junior Music major. “It features a few shout sections, as well as an alto sax solo, which I’ll be playing.” The ensemble will be performing “Tiger of San Pedro,” composed and arranged by John LaBarbara. “Of course we had to incorporate some Latin Jazz into our concert,” said Gilson. “It’s a cool Latin chart. It’s up tempo, but it still maintains that Latin swagger. It will feature soloist Cameron Porter on trombone.”
The ensemble will also be offering a vocal chart. “The Jazz Ensemble has not done vocals in a few years, so that will be exciting,” said Gilson. “How High the Moon” is a classic swing piece featuring vocalist Brittany Barko, ’13, who graduated with a B.A. in Music Therapy. Why should you come out to hear the Jazz Ensemble? “For one, we have a lot of entertaining styles people are sure to enjoy,” said Gilson. “It’s a really dynamic set list, with lots of solos, including something new and different, a vocal solo.”
merciad.mercyhurst.edu/category/arts_ entertainment/
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April 26, 2017
The Merciad
Opinion
The views expressed in the opinion section of The Merciad do not necessarily reflect the views of Mercyhurst University, the staff of The Relay Life Church. successful Merciad or for the Catholic Responses on any subject are always welcomed and can be emailed to opinionmerciad@mercyhurst.edu.
From freshman to senior: A reflection about ’Hurst By Mathew
Jury
Staff writer
Well, here it is. I graduate in less than a month from what has been my home away from home for the last four years. Where has the time gone? Where will I go now? Will I really miss the ’Hurst or will I be too busy in graduate school and, inevitably, my career, to think about it? When I was in middle school, already deeply obsessed with medical science, I discovered forensic science on television and decided that was the field for me. Obviously, I began looking for colleges that offered studies in this field and I discovered what was Mercyhurst College at the time. I eventually had the opportunity to visit this campus during a 40-minute trip from my high school and immediately felt at home with its Catholic environment and the sense of community the property exuded. After finding out about its special program for students with autism, I realized that this was certainly the school for me. After applying and attending several interviews, I was accepted to both the Forensic Sciences program and the Autism Initiative at Mercyhurst (AIM). My life at the ’Hurst began two months before most students as I attended what used to be the Foundations program for high school students with autism, where I met several people who would eventually become my close friends in all four years. My first bit of time here was quite the transition, and I relished in it. I relished a little too much, though, as my mother had to remind me to contact her more than once a week. I did find myself trying all sorts of different things, finding out very quickly that yes, it is possible to bite off more than you can chew.
I found myself part of the Mercyhurst Athletic Band in its early days, before the days of our current director, Mr. Bob Reid. We were simply a small ensemble performing on the sidelines, but I still enjoyed it. I could tell, though, that when Bob came into the picture during the middle of my freshman year that Mercyhurst was heading somewhere big. I am privileged to say that I was one of the founding members of Mercyhurst’s first marching band and I will look back at this in fondness. I found myself switching in and out of different clubs and organizations on campus during my four years here, jumping from Anime club to Campus Ministry to Video Game club to eventually the Merciad, though I still have some involvement in Campus Ministry. With every year, I would also find myself making new friends and saying goodbye to graduating friends. Each year brought something different; yet a lot of it also seemingly blended together. The spring semester of my sophomore year was when things really started to transition to a more college-like life for me. There was dating drama. There was friend drama. Classes got tougher. I had solidly decided upon my career path as a future forensic pathologist upon starting research in the Chemistry department and passing my sophomore review. I celebrated the halfway point of my undergraduate education by spreading Autism awareness through Conquer the Canyon. My friends and I trekked the South Kaibab trail after months of training. One thing to know about hiking the Grand Canyon: once you hike down, you have to hike back up, which is even more work. That summer, I worked as a peer mentor in the Foundations program, offering guidance to future college
students with autism and befriending many who would eventually find themselves at Mercyhurst. Luckily, that summer, I also managed to get my driver’s license, allowing me more adult freedom. It would be junior year, however, that life would begin to get difficult. Three labs and an additional math class were how both semesters ended up for me. Between my busy summer, heavy course load, the growth of the Mercyhurst Athletic Band, my recent participation in the Merciad and the formation of AIM’s new Career Path program, I found myself deep in the state of burnout by February 2016. I ultimately accepted the fact that with all of this into account, I would not always be able to maintain a perfect GPA like I did in high school. To make up for it, I was proud to have been able to relax more that summer. I worked one day a week as a lab intern for the Tom Ridge Environmental Center, and then job shadowed a surgical nurse at St. Vincent Hospital another day, further building up my skills in the biological sciences while exposing me to what I may expect in my future medical training. Senior year was a lot easier for me. Like my freshman fall term, I managed to only need one lab per semester. Fall semester was where I could consider myself a member of the Mercyhurst Marching Band with us finally performing drill for the first time. However, to say that senior year has been “easy” is a bit of a stretch. First of all, some of my classes have been a little difficult this semester. I am expecting good grades, but I am working hard for them. Secondly, I have been filling out quite a few applications for jobs, service corps, and graduate schools. It appears, though, that these are paying off. I have been accepted to the Organi-
zational Leadership certification program here and I have been invited to interview at LECOM in a couple weeks, giving me at least two options for next year. However, this being the big one, my third struggle this year is realizing that I will not be seeing many of my friends next year. Luckily, the options I have will not put me too far from campus and I should be able to visit regularly, but it won’t be the same and I will have my own concerns that will detract from any visits back to the ’Hurst. As this semester has gone, it seems like the path to graduation is coming faster and faster for me—a little too fast for my tastes. My friends and I have had several different plans over the years, though the likelihood of being able to do them all are rather slim. I saw the rise of the Mercyhurst Marching Band and the growth our campus has engaged in under President Michael T. Victor. Many of us in Campus Ministry being able to march in D.C. for the 2017 March for Life with the opportunity to see Vice President Mike Pence in person and the growth of the Autism Initiative at Mercyhurst with the launching of the Career Path program. If there was anything that I wish was different during my time here, it would be for the school to re-establish its Catholic identity and for the restoration of a truly Catholic college. Regardless of my campus’ lack of authentic Catholicism, I feel there has been more than enough good for me to prize my four years here. I will always value my life as part of the Laker community, and I am proud to be able to call the ’Hurst on the Hill my Alma Mater. #HurstisHome
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Letter to the Editor: Student voting By Liz Allen
Erie City Council Candidate
Online
Looking through old photos recently, I found an envelope with a November 1970 Milwaukee postmark. I don’t know what happened to the letter I had sent from Marquette University to my family in Erie, but I had written on the back of the envelope: “My candidate won!” Those words took me back to the fall of 1970, in my sophomore year, when I campaigned in southeastern Wisconsin for Les Aspin, running for the 1st Congressional District as part of the Movement for a New Congress. At age 19, I couldn’t vote; that privilege wouldn’t come
until July 1, 1971, when the 26th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution went into effect, lowering the voting age from 21 to 18. I had volunteered for the Movement for a New Congress because I wanted to be part of a peaceful process to end the Vietnam War. By going door to door, speaking up for a candidate I believed in, I learned how to take political science lessons from the classroom into the real world. I thought about my youthful leap into local politics during Mercyhurst University’s mayoral forum, “Candidates Respond to Voices of Faith,” on March 27. I was tickled to see students not only in the audience but also helping to run the program. The forum made me think
about why it’s important for young people to vote in the Municipal Primary on Tuesday, May 16. As a college student in Erie, you have a stake in making sure our city, including the Mercyhurst neighborhood, is safe, blight-free and vibrant. I am running for City Council on a slate with Kevin Otteni and John Reitinger; we have pledged to move Erie forward by supporting “Erie Refocused,” the city’s comprehensive plan to remove blight and restore neighborhoods. To help in that task, we need your “brain gain” after you graduate. Part of that gain will come through Mercyhurst’s leadership in the new Innovation District in downtown Erie. I was delighted to read
Read more at
merciad.mercyhurst.edu/opinion
“Ambassadors of Service” in the March 22 Merciad, about students helping with neighborhood rehab projects in Raleigh and Detroit. I know Mercyhurst contributes in many ways now to make Erie a better place. From that experience, maybe you will suggest new ways to improve Erie’s neighborhoods. Please vote on May 16. You likely won’t send a letter by snail mail, but perhaps you will text, Snap, post on Facebook or send an Instagram photo with this message: “My candidates won!”
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Good As it stands there are: seven more days of class, 12 more days of the semester (excluding weekends) and 18 total days (including weekends) until graduation. Have a nice summer, Lakers!
Bad Chalk drawings outside of the Student Union for Arts on the Hill were canceled due to rain on April 20. Instead, festivities moved indoors to the Great Room.
This is the final issue of The Merciad for the 2016-17 school year.
Weird #WhatsHappeningontheHill has been used by Mercyhurst social media for a mysterious announcement about something “big” to come to campus.
The Merciad Editors Amber Matha Cheyanne Crum Caitlyn Lear Abigail Rinard Bernard Garwig Jenny Sabliov Lauren Abbott Meghan Maker Chelsea Guida Kristin Bowers
Positions @mercyhurst.edu editormerciad Editor-in-Chief Managing Editor managingmerciad News Editor newsmerciad Features Editor featuremerciad Sports Editor sportsmerciad A&E Editor entertainmentmerciad Opinion Editor opinionmerciad Copy Editor copymerciad Photo Editor photomerciad Ad Manager admerciad kbowers Adviser
The Merciad is the official student-produced newspaper of Mercyhurst University. It is published throughout the school year, with the exception of finals weeks. Our office is in Hirt, Room 110. Our telephone number is (814) 824-2376. The Merciad welcomes letters to the editor. All letters must be signed and names will be included with the letters. Although we will not edit the letters for content, we reserve the right to trim letters to fit. Letters are due Mondays by noon and may not be more than 300 words. Submit letters to box PH 485 or via email at opinionmerciad@mercyhurst. edu.
Write for The Merciad, email editormerciad@mercyhurst.edu
The Merciad
April 26, 2017
Page 7
Sports
Baseball goes 3-1 No. 14 Women’s LAX bests Bloomsburg to keep up in PSAC for the weekend against Gannon
By Marco Cicchino Staff writer
Praise be to the King of Kings! No? Why not? The PSAC title is still within reach for Kevin Cooke, who is in his first season as women’s lacrosse coach. The No. 14 Lakers pitched a first-half shutout against Bloomsburg on April 22 at a chilly Tullio Field. The final score was 13-5, Mercyhurst. The Lakers (9-4, 7-3), who fell to No. 17 in the most recent Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Coaches Association poll are still mathematically alive for a share of their second-straight PSAC regular-season title. The Lakers were able to shake off tough losses in East Stroudsburg and Indiana, and regained their early-and-often attack from their six-game winning streak earlier this season. Kristin Anderson’s 21st goal of the year at 7:19 sparked off a stretch of three goals in 55 seconds. It was the13th time this season the Lakers have scored three goals in a span of less than two minutes. Zimmerman followed suit 32 seconds later, ensuingly followed by Taylor Izzo’s 18th 23 seconds after that to bust out a four-goal lead. However, the Lakers were far from done, adding two
By Bernard Garwig Staff writer
Hurstathletics
Junior No. 2 Taylor Izzo and Senior No. 10 Carly Zimmerman celebrate during Saturday’s game against Bloomsburg University. Zimmerman led with six goals and Izzo three in the 13-5 win.
more each from Izzo and Zimmerman, Janelle Williams’ 34th at 21:11 and Catherine Meegan’s sixth with 3:02 left on the first-half clock. The Huskies (8-7, 5-6) gave the Lakers a taste of their own medicine, opening the half on a 3-0 run. The Huskies won the half in ground-balls (8-5), shots-on-goal (10-9) and turnovers (6-9). Cailyn Gormley found her 15th of the season on the free-position at 8:56 before Brigid Kyne—the Huskies’ leading goal-scorer at 32—
and Lindsey Coyle combined to beat Gabby Gravino twice in 1:53 to pull within seven. This would be as close as the Huskies would get as Zimmerman found Morgan Parker for her second of the season, and Zimmerman later caught passes from Izzo and Lacey Netti to beat DiPasquale twice in 50 seconds. Hannah Jaskuta’s tallies 2:08 apart wasn’t nearly enough as the Lakers handed Bloomsburg the loss. The Lakers return to action today, April 26 when Slippery
MU softball splits with Cal, remains out of West cellar By Marco Cicchino
Rock arrives at Tullio for a 4 p.m. battle. The Pride sit a half-game in front of Seton Hill (9-7, 6-5) for the fifth seed in the PSAC. Lock Haven is only a game behind (8-7, 5-5). Bloomsburg remained below the red line with the loss to Mercyhurst, and would be eliminated alongside Millersville with a Lock Haven win over the Marauders April 26 at Charlotte F. Smith Field.
The Mercyhurst Lakers baseball team recorded a 3-1 weekend for April 21 and 22 in a series of double-headers against the Gannon University Golden Knights. “Overall we feel pretty good about winning this past series, but we have very high expectations for ourselves and that one loss definitely sticks out in our minds a little bit,” said junior Drew DelSignore. “There are a lot of good things we can take away from the weekend, but we know there is still a lot we can improve on also.” DelSignore had five RBIs on the weekend. The first double-header, held at Mercyhurst, was a sweep for the Lakers. Game one was a 6-5 victory, followed by a 5-0 sweep in game two. Saturday’s games were held downtown in the Golden Knights’ home territory. The first went to Mercyhurst with a clear cut 10-4 victory. Game two, unfortunately, was scoreless for the Lakers, and the Golden Knights walked away with a 4-0 victory. “Gannon winning the final game on Sunday wasn’t how we wanted to finish up the
weekend,” said DelSignore. “However I know that our team is very hungry and won’t dwell on one loss. It just gives us room for improvement and bouncing back and becoming a stronger team.” The win snapped the Lakers’ win streak, which was at 18 upon the Saturday loss. The 18-game win streak ties with that of the 1997 and 2016 Lakers for the second highest in program history, only to the 1994 team which stringed together 24 in a row. All things considered, the Lakers are now 31-3 and are No. 1 in the PSAC with a 18-2 conference record. An April 21 NCAA DII report named the Lakers as the team with the best starting pitching rotation in the League. “It is definitely a good feeling to see our team get recognition for the success we have had so far on the national level,” said DelSignore. “But we know that just getting talked about during the season isn’t all we want. We want to be talked about at the end by teams all over the country. There is still a lot of season left and we are not satisfied of where we are right now.” The Lakers step up to the plate next against Pitt-Johnstown on April 28 and 29.
Advertisement Ashley Lynn MSA ’07 Assistant Director of Player Engagement New York Giants
Staff writer
A tough April stretch has not boded well for Coach Leanne Baker’s softball squad. The team lost eight in a row earlier this month and lost 13 of their first 21 in April. However, they have since turned around to win six of their last nine and consecutive games for just the third time this year, keeping them out of the cellar in the six-team PSAC West. Now 14-27-1 and 6-10 in the conference, the Lakers sit just three games behind California for third in the West after splitting a double-header with them on April 24. The first game saw the visiting Vulcans put up six in the third off Heather Nye en-route to a 10-0 win in just five innings. The Vulcans got rolling early with two in the second after Jacquelyn Fowler led off the inning with a hard single to center. They advanced on a sacrifice and moved to third after Logan Blake singled, loading the bases. A walk to Emily Price drove in the first run, and Kaylyn Roose went back up the middle to score Kaity Finley after she was hit earlier in the second. However, Nye ensuingly subdued Hailey Wilson into a 6-4 force to limit the damage and strand three Vulcans. The third would be a different story, as Taylor Robblee led off the inning with a base hit. First baseman Meredith Grimes’ double-play ball went errant of Emily Hair in the next play. After Fowler stole second, Finley went to right to score Robblee. A walk to Courtney Sinclair knocked Nye out of the game as she lasted just 2-2/3 innings. Allie Smith-DiLisi inherited a loaded basepath,
HurstAthletics
Sophomore Jamie Ward gets ready to take a swing against California University. Ward had two hits in the second game.
as Fowler had advanced to third on Finley’s second hit of the game. Adding to this, Blake sacrificed Finley over to second. The Lakers’ second bases-loaded walk drove in Price, and Finley later scored on an illegal pitch before an errant throw from Smith-DiLisi scored Sinclair. The second unearned run of Roose’s at-bat finally scored before she herself singled in Price and a double to right field off the bat of Wilson scored Roose to finally close the book on Nye (6-12), where four of her six allowed runs went unearned. Two more runs in the fourth were plenty for Portia McBride (6-3), who needed just 90 minutes to twirl a fourhit shutout behind 10 runs and 14 hits of support. Meanwhile, the Lakers returned the favor in the second game by handing the Vulcans (17-13, 8-6) just their fourth loss in their last 12 contests with an 8-1 victory. Two quick runs in the bottom of the first got the Lakers rolling. Two singles set the stage for Jolene Teller to hit into a fielder’s choice, scoring Cassandra Egelston and Rachel DiBartolomeo. Each singled to the right to reach after the two advanced on the throw from DiBartolomeo’s
single. Designated hitter Meghan Maranto recorded the Laker’s third hit of the inning off Kaity Davis (6-5), scoring Teller and heading to second on the throw. Price hit a homer in the third, but it wasn’t nearly enough to rattle Anna Cochis (7-11). She allowed just the homerun and seven other hits in seven innings of work, and the Laker offense had yet to score five more runs. A walk to Julia Lang and a single from Grimes set the stage for Ellie Dougher. She singled herself to finish off a 3-for-4 day and drive in pinch-runner Lindsey Parese to make it a 4-1 game. Dougher stole second and Egelston grounded into a fielder’s choice to score Grimes. Emily Hair doubled in the fifth to drive in Teller, and a single from DiBartolomeo. A fielder’s choice reach by Maranto in the sixth finished off the Lakers’ fifth win in their last eight.
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Page 8
The Merciad
Laker
April 26, 2017
Living
Fred Talks: On happiness Way back By Miranda L. Miller Copy editor
In college, you aren’t afforded many opportunities to think about yourself and your emotions. There’s a culture of constantly being overworked and over-caffeinated, under-slept and underpaid. We commiserate on shared experiences like being awoken at 2 a.m. by yet another burnt bag of popcorn setting off the fire alarm, long lab hours, a love of the four main food groups (pizza, beer, fruit snacks and anything free), missing our pets and going to Stone Wednesdays. Right now, I’m in a class simply called Happiness. I’m taking this class at the end of my senior year, which is an oddly appropriate time for ruminating on what makes me happy. It’s forced me to think about a lot of personal things that I’d usually shy away from. We just finished a chapter on adversity and how it makes us grow as people, and I’ll rehash it here. We learn about ourselves a bit in times of adversity. If we succeed in the face of
a seemingly insurmountable challenge, we learn how to push our limits and how hard we can truly work. Even if we fail in the face of a huge deadline, it forces us to re-evaluate how we see ourselves in our personal narrative of our lives. Adversity makes us more compassionate to the people around us. We understand what others are going through when they say they’re having relationship troubles if we had had them ourselves, and we know how to comfort them. That’s oddly soothing. The idea that our struggles will make us a better person after they’re over, whether we succeed or not, is a bit of a balm to the sting of the adversity on my life. In these last few weeks, there’s a lot of things that right now look like adversity. I have to figure out what I’m going to do in the next stage of my life. I’m going to be leaving the friends that have become family in the past four years. Mercyhurst has become my home and graduating feels like moving away from my parents’ house all over again. This is the last Merciad we'll be publishing this year,
and as a result, the last one I'll work on. How did I know when I signed up to help out that I'd grow so attached? I'll miss the laughs we've shared and the things we've achieved together, but I'm glad to have had the experience. It’s a crazy stressful time for all the seniors, but luckily the textbook chapter continues on to tell us how to cope. There are a few basic ways to survive and push past trauma in our lives. We can choose to actively change our situations, which would be the more head-on approach. In my situation, it's difficult to find an action to take to cope with this. There's nothing I can do to make the Class of 2017 not graduate, nor would I want to. We worked hard for four years and we deserve our moment in the sun, no matter how much I'll miss them. So what can I do to turn all of this stress into something that makes me grow as a person? The second way to cope would be to change the way the situation plays out in your head. Try and flip the script on yourself and write yourself a new story. The way you
view a situation makes all the difference, and if you can't change it, you may as well find the good. I don’t have to figure out what I’m going to do for the rest of my life, instead, I have the whole world ahead of me to explore. I’m not leaving my friends behind; I’m making new friends. My friends I’ve made here will go and explore the world as well and we will meet up again after we grow some more. Mercyhurst will always be waiting here for me with open gates when I can come back and visit. It's going to be hard to walk away from everything that I've been so graciously given here, but I can already see the good it's done. Mercyhurst has given me a more grateful and loving outlook on life that I'll take with me forever, and I'm proud of us. In our little corner of Pennsylvania, we're changing the world one person at a time. I can't see the future, and I don't know how this is actually going to play out, but there's one thing I do know. If all else fails and life looks bleak and empty, I can always go back to Brooklyn and get another rainbow bagel…
Game Zone
When...
The Merciad presents articles from yesteryear in their original form, including headlines. This week, our blast from the past is from June 1934.
Last Will and Testament The last will and testament of The Senior Class, of Mercyhurst College, Erie, Pennsylvania, made and published this 4th day of June, in the Year of Our Lord, One Thousand Nine Hundred and Thirty-four. We, The Senior Class, of Mercyhurst College, Erie, Pennsylvania, of the age of 4 years and being of sound mind and memory, do hereby make, publish, and declare this our last will and testament in manner following, that is to say: First: To Mother M. Borgia, our beloved Dean, we will our fidelity and love; to Sister Mary Alice, our advisor, our deepest appreciation of the help that she has given us in the past years; to the entire faculty of Mercyhurst, our thanks for all the knowledge and wisdom that we have I assimilated in our four years in said college, and to Father Powers, our chaplain, in particular for our knowledge of the Ten Commandments. Second: To the Junior Class of Mercyhurst, we give and bequeath our first place in the lunch line; our front seats in chapel and the hope that your last year at Mercyhurst will be as enjoyable as ours has been. Third; To our Sister Class we will our banner with the hope that you will guard and cherish it as we have. Fourth: To the Freshman class we give and bequeath our wisdom. Morover, we the Senior Class will to the Glee Club of Mercyhurst our beautiful voices and perfect attendance. We, Julia Belle, Carm, and Dot will our seats on the couch at the Roost to Kay Harrington, Jane Conner and Betty Banner. I, Margaret Bacon, will my place at the head of the lunch line to Helen Crowley. You have to fight for it, Helen. I, Marg Clark, will my sweet disposition to Jean Sproat. You might use it over the telephone, Jean. I, Helen Loebelenz, will my wooden shoes to Faustina Galeazzino. We can hear you coming, anyway, Faustina. I, Costello Ressler, will my vitality to Lolly Lepper. Can't you take it, Lolly? I, Dot Cronauer, will my dean likevoice to Mary Jane Cummings, with the injunction not to use it in the hall on a dark night. I, Louise Pasqualicchio, will my serenity to Pat Dean. It takes an M. D. to put you in that fog. I, Alexandra Kacprowicz, will my oratorical ability to Skipper O’Dea. I, Connie Galbo, will my stick-to-it-iveness in the secretarial department to Kay Harrington. Just one more year, Kay. I, Dot Bryan, will my knowledge of history to Mary Skene. It takes four years to fight the French Revolution. I, Virginia Renz, will my rides to the city to Alice Martin. If his name is Bud, start walking. I, Mary Yriberry, will my appetite to Lucille Meeban — do the walks bring the appetite or the appetite bring the walks? I, Alyce Reeder, will the supervision of the typing room to my worthy colleague, Betty Banner.