10-7-2016

The Pitt News

ELECTION DAY DAY 2016

The independent student newspaper of the University of Pittsburgh | PIttnews.com | November 7, 2016 | Volume 107 | Issue 72

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TO GO

CHIEF TRUMP HOSTS LAST RALLY IN AREA MCLAY RESIGNS Emily Brindley and Alexa Bakalarski Assistant News Editors

After two years with the force, Chief of Pittsburgh Police Cameron McLay resigned from his post Friday.

McLay took the chief of police position in September 2014 after previously serving as a captain with the Madison, Wisconsin, police force and a consultant with the International Association of Chiefs of Police. McLay officially announced his resignation on Friday in a news conference alongside Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto. His last day in office will be Nov. 8, which is also Election Day. According to a press release from the mayor’s office, McLay is leaving his post “to pursue other professional opportunities.” He did not say whether he has another job lined up.

After Nov. 8, Assistant Chief Scott Schubert will serve as Acting Chief, and Peduto will select a permanent chief in the next 90 days, according to the release.

Schubert has served with the Pittsburgh Police Bureau since 1993 and held every position leading up to his swear-in as assistant chief in December 2014. He currently serves as the assistant chief of the operations division, which includes six zones, such as the Collision Investigation Unit and the Street Response Unit.

Serving alongside Schubert currently are Assistant Chief of Investigations Maurita Bryant and Assistant Chief of Administration Thomas Stangrecki.

Both Schubert and Stangrecki began serving as assistant chiefs during McLay’s time with the bureau.

During his tenure, McLay instituted

After stepping of his plane at the Atlantic Aviation Hangar at Pittsburgh International Airport, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump waved a Terrible Towel and threw it into the crowd before his speech. John Hamilton SENIOR STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

Stephen Caruso

great state of Pennsylvania. We’re bringing steel back … like it used to be,” A capacity crowd of 6,000 in Moon, Trump told the crowd, reiterating what Pennsylvania, waited nearly two hours at he promised the last time he came to the the Pittsburgh International Airport to airport in June.

Trump was late to the rally due to a hear Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump’s final words Sunday eve- tight schedule. With the election near, he has been crisscrossing the country the ning. past few days in an attempt to invigorate “In two days, we’re going to win the See McLay on page 5 Senior Staff Writer

the “silent majority” — his name for what he considers his large pool of supporters.

Before coming to the lively western Pennsylvania hanger — where speakers tossed T-shirts to the crowd and an inflatable beach ball bounced from hand to hand — the reality television star and real estate magnate held three See Trump on page 4

News

see online Clinton visited Great Hall at Heinz Field on Friday

DAPL PROTESTERS GATHER IN SCHENLEY Elias Rappaport For The Pitt News

K

imberly Muffett-Smith, a Washington County resident who is part Native Lenape Indian, spent the last weekend in October worrying about her daughter’s safety.

Muffett-Smith’s daughter was arrested Oct. 27 in Standing Rock, North Dakota, when she chained herself to equipment in protest of the Dakota Access Pipeline. She was held in jail from Thursday through Saturday night, worrying Muffett-Smith for several days.

Beyond her daughter’s predicament, Muffett-Smith said she’s concerned about all those involved in the protest against the 1,134-mile pipeline meant to deliver oil from the Bakken oil fields in North Dakota to Patoka, Illinois.

“I have a special connection to Standing Rock,” she said, echoing a Bernie Sanders line.

“It’s a spiritual thing, and every time those people get hurt out there, I hurt here.”

Muffett-Smith joined about 75 other people in Schenley Plaza to protest the pipeline from afar Saturday, including students, children, environmental activists, Native Americans, socialists and supporters of Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein. Some dressed in issue-appropriate themed costumes, including a dinosaur costume representing the possible extinction of Native Americans.

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Solidarity protesters chanted “We stand with Standing Rock,” and “In the ground/ safe and sound,” from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the Plaza. The group encouraged drivers passing by to honk in support and toted signs with slogans such as “Water is life.” It took about three protesters at a time to heave a tube-like, makeshift black snake above their heads — an artistic representation of the pipeline.

Later on in the day, as more people showed up and the brisk wind subsided, the chants shifted tone and focused more on those involved in the construction of the DAPL. Protesters started to chant, “Businessmen can go to hell/We say no to DAPL” and “Corporations are too greedy/It’s the law to honor treaties.”

Daisy Wise, 45, organized the event and said that although she works in animal rescue, the issues in Standing Rock resonate with her because she has been a social justice activist her entire life.

Wise, who lives in Cranberry, plans to make the trip to North Dakota to continue her protests on the front lines. She described the situation in Standing Rock as “a human rights nightmare” and sees no room for compromise with those in favor of the pipeline.

Left: Kimberly Muffett-Smith’s daughter was arrested in North Dakota during a Dakota Access Pipeline protest last Thursday. Muffett-Smith was left in the dark about her daughter’s whereabouts until Sunday, when she was released.

Bottom: Maggie Repko, 24, an Edgewood resident, came out to the protest because with “grandmas on the frontline” in North Dakota, she felt it was the least she could do. Stephen Caruso SENIOR STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

“ W e have to m o v e towards c l e a n e n e r g y,” Wise said. “ W h y the hell would we be building somet h i n g that’s supposed to last for years and years when we’re supposed to be moving away from that?”

The Fortune 500 natural gas and propane company Energy Transfer Partners is building the Dakota Access Pipeline to transport domestically produced crude oil to refineries in Illinois, as opposed to using trucks or railcars to ship the oil.

Supporters of the DAPL point to the jobs made available by the oil industry and the possibility of energy independence. Proponents see a future void of renewable energy and a continued reliance on oil production.

Since early spring, Native American pro-

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see online for full dakota access pipeline gallery testers and non-Native American advocates –– collectively known as “water protectors” –– have been protesting the construction of the pipeline out of concern that it could taint the area’s water supply.

Currently, 90 Native American tribes and many more protesters are gathered at Standing Rock Reservation in North Dakota where Energy Transfer Partners are attempting to build the oil pipeline. While protests have remained relatively peaceful, tensions have risen mainly due to police action to forcibly remove water protectors from the construction area.

Native Americans from the Standing Rock See Pipeline on page 5

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GENERAL ELECTION POLLING DATA According to Real Clear Politics

Pennsylvania Polls:

National Polls: as of 11/5

DONALD TRUMP 42.7%

as of 11/4

DONALD TRUMP

HILLARY CLINTON

43.6%

44.9%

HILLARY CLINTON 46.0%

Jill Stein: 1.6% Gary Johnson: 3.2%

The Pitt news crossword 11/7/16

Jill Stein: 1.8% Gary Johnson: 4.8%

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November 7, 2016

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Trump, pg. 1 separate rallies, in Sioux City, Iowa, as well as Minneapolis and Sterling Heights, Michigan.

In his 25-minute speech just outside of Pittsburgh, Trump focused on industry, fear of refugees and free trade. He highlighted innovative ideas he wanted to implement while in office, such as levying a 35 percent tax on businesses that move jobs out of the United States and allowing local communities to approve of having refugees settle near them.

Trump’s focus on national security is one reason Winnie McCann, 61, from Whitehall, Pennsylvania, attended the rally and said she was supporting the Republican nominee. McCann said she is worried about the allegiance of refugees in this country.

“He has to win, or we’re going to lose our country,” McCann said.

Grant Twiss, 57, drove over 100 miles from Erie, Pennsylvania, to attend the night’s event. Twiss’ wife, Wendy, and his daughter, Kara, attended the rally with him.

A tax accountant and small business owner, Twiss wants Trump to “run government like a business.” He also thinks the only path for a Democratic victory is fraud.

“I’m totally convinced [Trump is] going to win,” Twiss said, placing the odds at greater than 50-50. However, he would accept a loss and thinks Trump would too.

The Real Clear Politics average has Trump up three points in Iowa, while Clinton leads by four points in Michigan and six points in Minnesota.

Currently, FiveThirtyEight gives Trump a 25.9 percent chance of winning the Keystone State and its 20 electoral votes, as compared to Clinton’s 74.1, while Real Clear Politics’ average has Trump trailing Clinton by 2.4 points in Pennsylvania.

Despite the dip in points, Trump was confident in his ability to win several states that are currently hanging in the bounds of uncertainty.

“We’re leading in Ohio, we’re leading in Iowa, we’re leading in Florida … and [the media] is saying ‘What the hell is going on?’” Trump said.

According to the Real Clear Politics average, Clinton holds a 1.8 point advantage nationally over Trump, down from a nearly 6 point advantage nationally when she campaigned at Taylor Allderdice High School in Squirrel Hill on Oct. 22.

The former Secretary of State visited Pittsburgh again last Friday, stopping at Heinz Field. She recently added a stop on Pitt’s campus, on Bigelow Boulevard in front of the Cathedral of Learning, scheduled for today at noon, before she travels to Philadelphia for her last preelection rally.

Pundits have blamed the dip in Clinton’s ratings on the FBI’s discovery of new emails related to Clinton’s private email server, which has been a sticking point for Trump and his supporters.

A letter from FBI Director James Comey released Nov. 6, stated the bureau has “not changed its conclusions” on bringing charges against Clinton after the new batch of emails.

In his speech, Trump said the FBI “wouldn’t let her get away with it” and said he was worried that the department could not have gone through the emails

thoroughly this quickly.

The FBI’s recent findings restarted controversy that the then Secretary of State mishandled confidential information, intensifying Trump’s and his supporters’ call for legal action against Clinton.

“Orange is not a great color for a lot of people, but I think it would look great on [Clinton],” said Sen. Kim Ward, of the 39th district, in her speech at the rally.

Ward, along with other local Republicans, such as 3rd District Rep. Mike Kelly and 12th District Rep. Keith Rothfus, rallied on the cry for justice as they approached the podium in a sea of “Trump-Pence” placards and red “Make America Great Again” hats before Trump’s speech.

Trump still had one remaining stop in Leesburg, Virginia, Sunday night — for a total of five planned rallies that day.

Regardless of the outcome of the election, Trump said he is still proud of the “movement” he has put together in the past months on the campaign trail.

“We have the greatest movement in the history of this country,” Trump said.

The Pitt News SuDoku 11/7/16 courtesy of dailysudoku.com

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McLay, pg. 1 training for officers and community members on implicit bias and procedural justice and released an analysis of the bureau’s use of force during the past five years. McLay also instituted a policy allowing the public to see real-time crime information and fostered relationships between the Bureau and community members.

“When I entered office, I knew what the police bureau needed was a reformer,” Peduto said in a press release. “With the indictment and conviction of the former chief, with community-police relations at risk and morale among the rank-and-file at an all-time low, it required someone from the outside to get us to the point where we are today. Cam McLay was exactly the person we needed.”

According to the release, complaints against the police are down more than 40 percent, and lawsuits are down more than 50 percent since McLay’s hiring in 2013.

“At this point, I earnestly believe that I have accomplished all that I am able to do. Accordingly, I have decided to step aside to pursue other options,” McLay said in the release.

The average time for a police chief to serve is three years, according to Peduto. McLay –– who was the first chief selected from outside the Pittsburgh bureau in 157 years –– served for two.

In September, a poll of the Pittsburgh police officers found that more than half of the

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officers on the force had no confidence in McLay’s leadership.

Since he became Pittsburgh chief of police, McLay and officers have had repeated disagreements over his methods of reducing police brutality and improving community relations.

At the end of 2014, McLay took a photo with a sign reading “I resolve to challenge racism at work #EndWhiteSilence,” which upset some union members who saw the photo as an implication that the bureau was currently racist.

In April 2016, police officers said the department forced them to work shifts for the Pittsburgh marathon, which they said was illegal as the shifts were supposed to be voluntary. McLay apologized to the officers, saying “far too many [police officers] were required to work this event with inadequate notice.”

Several officers refused to work a Beyonce concert in May, which was also voluntary.

Recently, the Fraternal Order of Police accused McLay of breaking municipal code when he spoke at the Democratic National Convention in July, as officers are not supposed to show preference for any political candidate or party.

“The city is in debt to Cam for his contributions to the community, taking all the shots and criticisms that come with making changes and putting the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police on a successful pathway,” Peduto said in the release. “We will continue on that pathway for years to come.”

Pipeline, pg. 2 Sioux tribe point to a 1851 treaty that grants them the land over which Energy Transfer Partners is building the pipeline.

Awareness of the issues surrounding the DAPL has increased dramatically over the past month through social media campaigns such as “checking in” to Standing Rock on Facebook. By “checking in” people can mark their current location or –– as with Standing Rock –– to indicate their solidarity with the residents of a place, even if they can’t physically be there.

Jen Kreisher, a junior business major at the Community College of Allegheny County, came to the event in an effort to educate others about what she described as a “massive human rights violation.”

“I really would like to see more people becoming more informed and caring about the issue,” Kreisher said. “I understand that physically holding a protest right now doesn’t change anything in the moment, but awareness changes everything.”

First-year industrial engineering major Jacob Richards said he hoped the protest would lead to a domino effect of community involvement.

“I hope this leads to knowledge,” Richards said. “Hopefully the more people that know

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about it will try to make a difference.”

In an ideal future for Wise, all people in the United States would show support for the Native tribes. Wise was especially concerned with the way police have responded to the protestors in Standing Rock, referring to medics who were arrested helping the water protectors and the use of tear gas.

“There has to be solidarity. We have to all get together. And we see people who are peaceful, looking at police saying ‘I pray for you, I forgive you, I love you,’” Wise said. “The situation [in Standing Rock] is bleeding out, and [the solution] can’t be a Band-Aid.” Many of the protesters at Schenley Plaza expressed disdain that both major presidential candidates –– Republican candidate Donald Trump and Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton –– have not discussed the issue more.

Kreisher said that in light of the upcoming presidential election, the candidates should spend more time discussing the pipeline and renewable energy.

As the chants of “You can’t drink oil,” drowned out later in the afternoon, the protesters signaled they wanted a better –– or more sustainable –– solution than the proposed DAPL. Wise was fed up with waiting for a compromise.

“As human beings, we have to stop asking for crumbs –– I want the loaf,” Wise said.

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Opinions column

from the editorial board

McLay resigned, but his reforms should remain Just two years ago, Pittsburgh Chief of Police Cameron McLay came to the city as a reformer.

His predecessor had just been sentenced to a term in prison. Relations between the police force and community had been fraying for years. He had a tough road ahead.

But the former Madison, Wisconsin police captain navigated an often-hostile police force and implemented important reforms to work toward a better relationship between the community and those hired to protect and serve it.

On Friday, McLay announced his decision to leave the department, saying that he’s accomplished everything he thinks he’s able to do here.

During his tenure, short-lived as it was, McLay worked to alleviate racial tensions between the police force and Pittsburgh’s minority communities, made police more visible to the community and pushed for officers to undergo implicit bias and other new types of training.

Now that McLay is leaving — tomorrow is his last day on the job — the city and his yet-to-be-named predecessor shouldn’t be afraid to continue working toward change.

At a news conference Friday, Schubert vowed to continue McLay’s reforms, and Pittsburgh should hold him to that. Before McLay came into office, community-police relations were strained, morale among the police officers was low and officers were retiring at significant rates.

During McLay’s time, total complaints against the police in Pittsburgh decreased 42 percent, there was a 51 percent decrease in lawsuits against police and the city was invited to be part of a national pilot program to strengthen police-community relationships.

Despite these positive changes, over time, the friction between McLay and the

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police department increased, creating a stark divide between McLay’s leadership and the rank-and-file members who resisted his changes.

Last month, the majority of the members of the police union voted that they had “no confidence” in his ability to lead. Whether it was McLay’s support for challenging racism in a social media post or wearing his uniform at the Democratic National Convention, the complaints against McLay were trivial compared to the issues happening in Pittsburgh’s own neighborhoods.

In the midst of tumultuous relations between police officers and communities of color nationally, McLay wasn’t afraid to be honest.

“If we are going to have legitimacy, if we are going to preserve the integrity of our brave profession, we must hold accountable those of our members who bring shame upon us. Misconduct by one brings dishonor to us all,” McLay said following the violence in Ferguson, Missouri.

A successor who would disagree with that statement, or not actively espouse that same desire for reform would be taking a step backward.

Asking for accountability isn’t a sign of disrespect, it’s a call for justice for those who have been mistreated in the hands of the law. Calling for reform isn’t an accusation of wrongdoing toward the police department, it’s a step toward improving the community as a whole.

While it’s important to have faith in a leader, it is also crucial to look at the big picture of what we want to be as a community and how we can get there. If that means recognizing the faults in our system, so be it.

McLay wasn’t able to complete his mission in the city, but it is up to the force he’s leaving behind to continue it.

REFUGEE CRISIS FAR FROM OVER

The Doctors without Borders exhibit took place last weekend in Schenley Plaza. Theo Schwarz SENIOR STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

Colin Jones

For The Pitt News While sitting in a white, underinflated dinghy with eight other people, it seemed unlikely that up to 20 people could fit in the cramped space.

I barely had any room when it was only the nine of us sitting in the boat. But every day, dozens of such boats cross the Mediterranean Sea, full of refugees from wartorn countries.

I wasn’t actually sailing across the sea, of course, I was at the “Forced From Home” exhibit presented by Doctors Without Borders in Schenley Plaza from Oct. 27 to 31, an interactive exhibit designed to raise public awareness of the conditions of 60 million refugees around the world.

A psychologist who works with the organization guided a group of us through the

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exhibit.

While holding a recovered life jacket that belonged to a migrant who drowned during a shipwreck and walking through replicas of tents migrants live in, I was reminded of the harsh living conditions refugees are forced to endure — and how privileged I am to be able to forget, even momentarily, about their experiences.

Despite the all-consuming nature of this year’s election, we should remember the ongoing crisis endured by people forced to flee their homes in the Middle East and elsewhere and encourage cities like Pittsburgh to grant more migrants asylum.

Despite the missing coverage in recent news cycles, the refugee crisis has not disappeared, but has become increasingly See Jones on page 7

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Jones, pg. 6 worse.

Recently, The New York Times reported that 239 migrants were killed after two separate dinghies carrying migrants from Libya to Europe sank off the Libyan coast.

Perhaps more shocking is that there have already been 4,220 deaths due to migrant drownings this year, compared to 3,700 in 2015, even though less than half the number of migrants have attempted to enter Europe during 2016 than in 2015.

There are more migrant deaths than ever and the situation is worsening.

In November 2015, Mayor Bill Peduto was one of 18 mayors nationwide who signed a pledge to take in up to 500 refugees. That might not be enough. Currently, Pittsburgh is home to about 2,365 refugees, most of them are Bhutanese or Nepali, and live in the South Hills or in neighborhoods surrounding Downtown.

But despite Peduto’s pledge, Pittsburgh hasn’t played a large role in Syrian refugee acceptance — for a variety of reasons, mostly due to the fact that refugees are generally placed in areas where they’ll be near family and communities. But of the 10,000 total people that the United States has agreed to shelter, the United States, and cities like Pittsburgh, have the wealth and means to provide more.

The number of refugees entering the United States has declined due to a European Union agreement reached in March that closes down the Balkan pathway into Europe. Although this agreement may have been necessary to stabilize regions in Europe with a high influx of migrants, this has made it more difficult for migrants to cross the border.

Now that there are little, if any, viable land paths from the Middle East into Europe, more refugees and migrants are gambling with their lives and the lives of their children by attempting to make it across the Mediterranean Sea. The only obstacle in the way of accepting more refugees is the idea that they are

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a threat to our security — a notion espoused by Republican nominee Donald Trump. Although some argue there is a real risk to letting in migrants from areas like Syria, where Isis still has a strong presence, the number of refugees and migrants who enter countries intending to do harm is minute and is oftentimes inflated for political purposes.

In a 2016 interview with The Washington Post, Thomas de Maiziere, the German federal minister of the interior, said that of the nearly one million migrants who have came from Syria and other parts of the Middle East, less than 100 are being investigated in connection with terrorist links. That means less than 0.1 percent of the refugees pose a potential threat, proving these misperceptions to be false. Furthermore, the State Department reported that 78 percent of the refugees admitted into the United States were women and children who are unlikely to be terrorists.

As the battle for Mosul, Iraq, intensifies, the United Nations and Doctors Without Borders estimate hundreds of thousands of people are going to be displaced.

The New York Times reported at the end of August that the United States had reached its quota of bringing in 10,000 Syrian refugees. Although this may seem like a large number, it does not compare to our intake of over 300,000 Vietnamese refugees from 1979 to 1980.

Additionally, taking in 10,000 Syrian refugees does little to help the other estimated 11 million who have been forced out of Syria since the civil war began there in 2011.

Because the current U.S. leadership is unwilling to set up safe zones in Syria and other areas of conflict, the country has a duty to provide shelter to the millions of migrants whose lives are in jeopardy.

Exhibits like “Forced From Home” remind cities like Pittsburgh — so far removed from the worsening refugee crisis — of the importance of open arms and empathy.

Going forward, we should choose to act on that knowledge.

The Pitt News

Editor-in-Chief ELIZABETH LEPRO

Managing Editor DALE SHOEMAKER

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Opinions Editor KIRSTEN WONG

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Emily Brindley | Assistant News Editor Alexandria Stryker | Assistant Copy Alexa Bakalarski | Assistant News Editor Copy Staff Matt Moret | Assistant Opinions Editor Amanda Sobczak Mia DiFelice Ashwini Sivaganesh | Assistant Sports Editor Bridget Montgomery Michelle Reagle Jordan Mondell | Assistant Visual Editor Corey Foreman Rielly Galvin Emily Hower | Assistant Layout Editor Katie Krater Sarah Choflet Amanda Reed | Online Engagement Editor Matthew Maelli Sydney Mengel

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Opinions expressed herein are not necessarily those of the students, faculty or University administration.

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student-managed newspaper for the Oakland campus of the University of Pittsburgh. It is pub lished Monday through Friday during the regular school year and Wednesdays during the summer.

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7

Sports

FOOTBALL

WRESTLING

VOLLEYBALL

Miami 51 Pitt 28

Campbell 13 Pitt 21

Georgia Tech 3 Pitt 3

see online Swimming and diving recap

wrestling

WRESTLERS SWEEP TO OPEN SEASON Ryan Zimba Staff Writer

Sporting a No. 23 ranking in USA Today’s preseason poll, the Pitt wrestling team had high expectations going into its first dual meet of the season.

The Panthers proved they deserved that ranking at the Mountaineer Duals in Morgantown, West Virginia, beating both Ohio University and Campbell University in their back-to-back Saturday matches.

“I think it was a good start,” head coach Jason Peters said in a press release after the weekend matches that left the Panthers 2-0 for the season.

“We got to see some guys for the first

time and some at new weights. We’ll get ready this week and maybe change some guys around. Overall I thought it was good, the warm-ups were good, the weight cut was good so those are definitely some positives from the first weekend out.”

Pitt wrestlers Jake Wentzel, TeShan Campbell and two-time NCAA qualifier Dom Forys were Pitt’s top performers, winning two matches each.

Wentzel and Campbell each scored six points with pins in the Panthers’ first match against the Ohio Bobcats.

Pitt and Ohio split the first four contests, with Forys and senior Mikey Racciato winning the 133- and 149-pound See Wrestling on page 10

Dom Forys won two matches at the Mountaineer Duals over the weekend.

Meghan Sunners SENIOR STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

women’s basketball

PITT PUMMELS IUP IN EXHIBITION GAME, 72-40 Mackenzie Rodrigues Staff Writer

The Peterson Event Center hosted the third straight McConnell family reunion on Sunday afternoon, pitting head coach Suzie McConnell-Serio against her brother in the women’s basketball exhibition matchup.

For the third year in a row, McConnellSerio’s Panthers once again topped her older brother Tom McConnell and the Indiana University of Pennsylvania Crimson Hawks, 72-40.

“It’s never fun when you’re opposite family members, coaching against them,” McConnell-Serio said.

Last year, the Panthers won 75-60, led by 19 points from forward Brenna Wise.

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Despite winding up on the losing end again, McConnell enjoyed the chance to match up against his sister and the Panthers.

“It’s always a lot of fun. It’s just a great game for us,” McConnell said. “I think we were disappointed that we didn’t finish stronger.”

Pitt’s starting lineup featured two returning players from last year’s starting rotation and three new starters: First-year forward Alayna Gribble, sophomore guard Kauai Bradley and graduate transfer center Brandi Harvey-Carr. Junior point guard Aysia Bugg and Wise rounded out the starting five.

“I think they did phenomenal, I think they fit in well with our team,” Wise said about the newcomers. “They bring a lot to

our team that we didn’t previously have.”

Wise, Pitt’s leading scorer last year, got the scoring started with the first two points of the game. After that, the Panthers looked inside to their new 6-foot-4 center, Harvey-Carr.

Pitt’s guards continued to pass the ball in the paint to Harvey-Carr. The graduate transfer took the next two shots for Pitt, missing the first but making the second while drawing a foul. Harvey-Carr made her free throw to increase the Panthers’ lead to 5-2.

After that, Gribble –– playing her first game at the Petersen Events Center since winning last year’s WPIAL AAAA Championship –– decided to get in on the action.

Next time up the floor, Gribble saw an opening from outside the 3-point line and

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drilled her first shot in a Panthers uniform.

Shortly after, Gribble drained another 3-pointer –– this time with a hand in her face –– to start the game 2-for-2 from deep.

Bugg started the game at the point, but first-year point guard Jasmine Whitney played 12 minutes off the bench in the first half. Both players split time bringing the ball up the floor, and each scored seven points in the opening half.

The Panthers took a 32-20 lead into the break, but Crimson Hawks forward Alexiss Griggs made the first shot of the second half to cut Pitt’s lead back to 10. Another IUP 3-pointer closed the score to 32-25, then Pitt turned to Harvey-Carr to regain the momentum.

Harvey-Carr made an easy layup for See Basketball on page 10

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volleyball

PANTHERS DOMINATE IN ACC WEEKEND PLAY David Leftwich Staff Writer

Stephanie Williams scored 22 kills against the Yellow Jackets Sunday.

Anna Bongardino STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

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After grabbing its biggest win of the season against No. 8 North Carolina a week ago, the Pitt volleyball team surged forward against Clemson and Georgia Tech on the road this weekend.

The first matchup for the Panthers (19-7 overall, 10-4 ACC) was Friday in Clemson, South Carolina, against the Tigers (6-19 overall, 1-12 ACC). The team then traveled to Atlanta to beat the Yellow Jackets (20-6 overall, 11-3 ACC).

Pitt started the first set with 18 kills and jumped out to a 4-0 advantage over the Yellow Jackets. This lead expanded throughout the set and eventually ballooned to 10 points before concluding the set at 25-15.

In the second set, the Panther offense wasn’t as sharp, hitting two fewer kills and four more errors, but they managed to maintain control. At an 9-8 deficit, the Panthers finally found some separation from the Tigers when they took the next five points to grab a 13-9 lead.

While this lead held throughout the set, Clemson made a late push to bring the score to 20-18. From there, Pitt won the next four points, with senior Jenna Potts finishing off two of those with kills. Eventually, the Panthers easily took the second set 25-20.

The Panthers grabbed an early lead in the third and final set at 9-5 and never faltered, eventually taking the set against the Tigers.

Redshirt freshman Stephanie Williams exploded and hit half of her 14 total kills in the match to help the Panthers maintain a sizeable lead. This strong play helped the

November 7, 2016

Panthers take the third set 25-20 and the match 3-0 to notch another ACC victory.

On Sunday, the Panthers took on Georgia Tech, where they had to work harder to clinch another weekend victory.

The first set started off evenly, with the Panthers taking a 7-6 deficit. Pitt won the next five points to create a four-point advantage 11-7, but Georgia Tech immediately erased the lead and won six of the next eight points to tie the match at 13.

After regaining the lead and winning the next three points to push the score to 16-13, the Panthers ended up taking the set 25-22.

The second set continued with neither Pitt not Georgia Tech gaining a decisive advantage, as both teams made their way to a 15-15 tie. The Panthers won the next five points to pull ahead 20-15 and ultimately put the set out of reach, cruising to an easy 2518 win.

Georgia Tech didn’t go down easily and bounced back in the third set.

Both teams settled at another tie, this time at 11, but Georgia Tech went on a run, taking six out of the next seven points for a commanding 17-12 lead.

While the Yellow Jackets kept the lead, the Panther slowly chipped away and found themselves within two points at 24-22, only to lose the next point and the set 25-22.

In the closest set of the match, it took an extended fourth set to settle the match between the Panthers and Yellow Jackets.

Gaining an early edge, the Panthers came out and took an 11-8 lead. Maintaining this advantage throughout the set, a See Volleyball on page 10

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Basketball, pg. 8

Wrestling, pg. 8

Pitt’s first points of the second half, then continued to show her strength in the post, ripping down a rebound and making a putback for another two. Her size advantage was evident throughout the game as she easily outworked and outmuscled the Hawks for rebounds and loose balls.

“Harvey-Carr was just really a handful in there … we don’t see somebody of that size very often,” McConnell said. “She’s just strong and was able to move us around and get some easy buckets for them.”

The Panthers tightened up their defense and began to pull away late in the second half, coming out on top in a commanding 72-40 win. Harvey-Carr led the team with 13 points and 8 rebounds, while Gribble scored 12 points and forward Kalista Walters added 10 points and 7 rebounds off the bench.

“I love it,” Wise said about the diffusion of the team’s points. “Now we’re not a oneor two-dimensional team. We’re going to be tough to guard.”

Pitt opens its regular season at the Pete against Mount St. Mary’s Saturday, Nov. 12, at 2 p.m.

weight classes, respectively. Ohio wrestlers Shakur Laney and Noah Forrider won in the 125- and 141-pound classes, respectively, and the score was tied at six going into the 157-pound contest.

In the next two matches, Pitt started to take control and went up 18-6 after back-to-back pins by Wentzel and Campbell.

Just as it looked like the Panthers would walk to an easy victory, Ohio struck back, winning the next three matches against Christian Dietrich, Mat Carr and Zach Bruce to close the gap to two. The final contest of the night held Pitt’s definitive victory in the balance.

The deciding match was a heavyweight showdown between Pitt’s Ryan Solomon and Ohio’s Zack Parker. Solomon delivered for the Panthers, winning a 6-2 decision to clinch Pitt’s 2116 win in its first meet of the season.

Later in the day, Pitt was up against the Campbell Camels from Buies Creek, North Carolina.

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The Panthers stumbled to start the match as LJ Bentley lost the first contest in a close 5-4 decision. But they came right back, winning the next two matches, including a lopsided 17-6 major decision win by Forys.

With Pitt leading 7-3, the Camels won the next bout by a score of 10-4 and were down only one after four matches. Pitt responded yet again and stretched the lead with victories by Wentzel and Campbell.

In a 17-6 hole, the Camels had to win all three of the remaining contests in order to win the match.

Campbell won the first by a 15-5 major decision over Carr to make the score 17-10, but Bruce took a stand in the second, winning 15-5 and ending any hopes the Camels had of coming back.

Campbell’s Jere Heino won the last bout of the day against Pitt’s John Rizzo, but it was meaningless as the Panthers coasted to a 21-13 win.

The team has a week off before heading north to take on the Edinboro Fighting Scots at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 12.

November 7, 2016

Volleyball, pg. 9 well-balanced attack from Pitt widened the gap to 24-19.

Sloppy play by the Panthers, including four attack errors during a five-point stretch, allowed Georgia Tech to claim the next five points and tie the match at 24. Regaining some composure, Pitt scored the next two points to take the set 26-24 and the match 3-1.

Highlighting the attack for the Panthers was Williams, who hit 22 kills in the last game, and Potts, who tallied five blocks to become the Panthers’ all-time leader in blocks at 541 for her career.

“I’m very pleased with how we competed today and how we stayed in the moment,” head coach Dan Fisher said in a press release about the Georgia Tech match. “[O’Keefe Gymnasium is] a tough place to play. The environment is really loud, and we handled it really well.”

With only six matches left in the regular season, the Panthers are No. 30 on the NCAA Rating Percentage Index.

The volleyball team will come home to face Wake Forest at the Fitzgerald Field House Saturday, Nov. 11, at 7 p.m.

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