Volume 108 Issue 14

AWA R D-W INNING CENTR A LR ECOR DER .COM Wednesday, January 18, 2012

Central Connecticut State University

Volume 108 No. 14

SGA and Faculty Senate Relationship A Priority For Bergenn kassondra granata the recorder

Student Government Association President Eric Bergenn said he hopes that senators will take on bigger roles this year after four senators stepped down last semester.

While he is hoping for more involvement from others, Bergenn has made the decision to step down from the finance committee.

He will appoint a senator in his place.

“It says nothing in the bylaws that a president is required to be a part of a committee, whereas for a senator, it is required,” said Bergenn.

Bergenn said he plans on spending most of his time this semester at Faculty Senate. He is hoping that the two groups will eventually be able to work together, something he’s struggled with thus far after his initial efforts last semester.

In October, Bergenn proposed the idea to have eleven student voting members on the Faculty Senate to make sure that the student voice is heard on important issues at CCSU. He presented a printed report to the faculty senate, noting the sections of each constitution that structured his proposal.

At that time, Faculty Senate President Candice Barrington put Bergenn’s recommendation straight to the Committee on Constitution and Bylaws, but it still has not been addressed.

“It has been a clear and present goal of mine for the two groups to work more handin-hand together,” said Bergenn. “I think that a lot of the decisions that are made through Faculty Senate would really benefit when they get student input. In the last few years, it has been lacking.”

Bergenn said that the only way to

persuade Faculty Senate of his goal is to have a presence there.

“That’s where I think I will be spending most of my time,” said Bergenn. “And because of those changes, we are going to need senators to take on a bigger role. Hopefully with that there will be a residual effect that if you are working harder at something you will follow through more because your time is concentrated there.”

President Bergenn is still unsure about what direction it will go, but he is hoping to figure that out at the first meeting.

“I think that it is beneficial that I take on this role,” said Bergenn. “I would like to set a precedent to have the President at their meetings and hopefully work that into our bylaws in the future.”

The weekend before classes started, SGA senators went to Camp Woodstock in Woodstock, Conn. for their annual retreat from Friday to Sunday.

Bernard Franklin, a well-known and influential speaker, spoke to the senate and expressed his feedback on how their senate is run. Franklin was the first elected African American student government president at Kansas State University. Currently, he is a role model to others nationwide and brings knowledge and experience to his lectures.

Senator Ryan Sheehan says he was very satisfied with their weekend retreat and the lecture from Franklin.

“It was really great, what he said is going to help us get more on track and more goal orientated,” said Sheehan. “A lot of times we get stuck in a rut arguing on allocations to clubs where we can be doing better things.”

Franklin talked to SGA about restructuring their constitution and how to avoid just being a bank for clubs. He also said that looking at their constitution, it was similar to what he would see in a high school

SGA President Eric Bergenn will look for more commitment from SGA members. kenny barto i the reCorder

student government.

“He guessed how our meetings were fairly accurately,” said Sheehan. “He is a student government guy, he was one of the best speakers we have ever had. The whole retreat was better handled than any year previous.

Franklin was leading us off in a direction that will help the SGA in years to come.”

On Saturday the senate worked separately in their committees, each discussing their goals and working on their structure for the next semester. President Bergenn supplied the committees with calendars so they could be more organized.

This year’s retreat was the fourth retreat that Bergenn has attended, the second one that he has put on as president. Bergenn said he was very content on how it went.

“I think that this was very productive in terms of getting everyone on the same page,” said Bergenn. “I think that the group got to a perspective at not looking at arguing over smaller things, but more looking into the bigger picture. We really had the opportunity to get together and talk [to one another] and get to know each other. I think we are at a better point now than we have ever been since I have been on senate.”

Shankar’s Case Blocked From Public Access justin muszynski the recorder

Ravi Shankar

Photo | CCsu english dePartment

Associate Professor of English Ravi Shankar’s file in relation to the motor vehicle charges he faces has been statutorily sealed by the Meriden Superior Court.

The reasons for the file’s sealing have not been disclosed. The only thing the clerk’s office is allowed to say when asked anything in regards to why it was sealed is that “We have no public information about this.”

No one from the court or the arresting agency is allowed to speculate on why the file has been hidden from the public. Before the file was sealed, the charges included: illegally operating a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs, evading responsibility, failure to drive in the proper lane and illegally operating a motor vehicle without minimum insurance.

It’s unknown whether or not these charges have stayed the same.

According to the Connecticut Judicial Branch’s Website, there are four reasons why a court’s clerk’s office would say they have

no public information.

The first being if the defendant was granted a nolle more than 13 months ago which, based on Shankar’s arrest date, is not possible.

The second reason is if the defendant is acquitted, proven not guilty or if their charges were dismissed. In Shankar’s case, a not guilty finding is highly unlikely because he would have had to have gone through an entire trial already. However, it is possible that the charges were dismissed or he was acquitted.

The third reason why the clerk’s office would have to say they have no public information is if the file is sealed because it was court ordered to be or if the defendant was granted absolute pardon.

The final possibility is if the case involves a juvenile or youthful offender however, also seems very unlikely considering Shankar was born in 1975 and no other persons involved in the accident have been charged with anything as of yet.

According to the accident information summary, Shankar was traveling eastbound

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on Route 40 and was in the shoulder of two lanes when he struck a car in the rear. He then fled the scene and was later found by the police, who conducted a K9 track in the woods near the accident scene.

Shankar, who was arrested twice last semester on separate charges, still faces fraud charges in which he allegedly purchased over $20,000 worth of tickets to a soccer game in New Jersey with his Discover credit card and then claimed the purchase was fraudulent. According to the arrest warrant, he claimed he only bought four tickets to the game, totaling $342.40.

However, Shankar later admitted to police that he did purchase all the tickets that were charged to his card, but took a loss when trying to sell them.

Mark McLaughlin, Associate Vice President of Marketing and Communications, was not aware that the file had been sealed and declined to comment on the issue.

Shankar is scheduled to appear in New Britain Superior Court on March 9 in relation to the fraud charges.

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NEWS

THE RECORDER Wednesday, January 18, 2012

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Preview: Black History Month at CCSU The Recorder

CCSU will welcome Rev. Arthur Price Jr., a pastor from Birmingham, Ala. on Feb. 9 at 3 p.m. in Torp Theatre.

Price will speak on the role of religion and Christianity’s prominent role for African Americans during the Civil Rights Movement.

According to the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church website, Rev. Price was brought to Birmingham in January 2002 after serving as senior pastor of the Memorial Baptist Church in Buffalo, N.Y. Rev. Price graduated in 1995 from Colgate Rochester Divinity School where he received the Master of Divinity degree concentrating on biblical studies.

Price has also completed an undergraduate degree at Temple University in Philadelphia and received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Criminal Justice.

Price was a prosecution assistant for 11 years in the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office as well as the Monroe County District Attorney’s Office in Rochester, N. Y. The Sixteenth Street Baptist Church was used as a meeting ground for civil rights leaders

A.C. Roper, who spoke last semester at CCSU such as Martin Luther King Jr., Ralph David Abernathy and Fred Shutterworth during the prime years of the movement.

In December, Police Chief A.C. Roper spoke at CCSU on the role of police brutality and the civil rights movement, drawing in a very large crowd.

According to Roper, Birmingham still remains the cradle for human rights movements.

“I can say that as of the police department, we still operate under the ‘shadow of doom,’” said Roper.

“We have to make sure that we train our officers not to do things that they have done in the past.

Our young officers do not really comprehend what the movement is; some of our young people think ‘what is the big deal?’ They do not tie it to the 1960’s during that awful period of time.”

Professor Stephen Balkaran, coordinator of the Civil Rights Movement Lecture Series Program, says that he encourages all to come to the event.

“This was a very important church in the African American community and the civil rights movement,” said Balkaran.

Balkaran and 20 students traveled to the south in the summer of 2010 and met many people who lived the civil rights movement firsthand, including Rev. Price.

“The black church has been the flame bearer of the civil rights movement since the beginning,” said Balkaran in an e-mail. “Christianity has played a prominent role in establishing a moral conscious for the civil rights of blacks in America.

Many individual and collective efforts contributed to freedoms we now enjoy as African Americans, but few institutions provided the united voice echoed by that of the black church.”

Civil Rights Book Gives New Life To An Era kassondra granata The Recorder

According to Professor Stephen Balkaran, CCSU is the only school in the country that doesn’t teach about civil rights in the classroom.

In 2005, Balkaran headed south and spoke with residents who lived in the civil rights era and began to record their stories.

Coming from UConn to CCSU in 2007, he discovered the lack of teaching on the subject. Balkaran decided that instead of bringing the civil rights era to the classroom, he would bring the students to where it all happened.

With the assistance of Dr. Joseph Paige, CCSU Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs, Balkaran brought 20 students on a week-long journey during the summer of 2010 to relive the civil rights movement in the southern states. He raised $25,000 in grants for the students to go on the trip free of cost.

“It’s beyond the classrooms,” said Balkaran. “We were in the streets studying and reliving the movement. We went to the monuments, went to the actual places and we interviewed real people. It is all very unique and

interesting.”

Balkaran believes that the course, “Tracing the Civil Rights Movement” is the course that can really help one relive the movement.

On their trip, Balkaran and his students wrote down the histories of the people who were in the movement, and were able to follow the footsteps of famous figures in the movement, such as Rosa Parks and the ‘Montgomery Bus Boycott.’

The group traveled to Montgomery and Birmingham, Alabama visiting Martin Luther King Jr.’s birth house and the location where Rosa Parks was arrested.

He and his students also had the opportunity to meet Martin Luther King Jr.’s son, U.S. Congressman John Lewis.

On Feb. 15, Balkaran’s first book, which he’s been working since 2005, Retracing the Movement: The Photo-biography of the Civil Rights Movement, will be released.

The book is a compilation of stories from the people and figures he’s interviewed on the subject.

“Their stories are so important,” said Balkaran. “We talked to them and it is important that their stories are heard.”

During the summer, Balkaran

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and his students visited The Carter Center in Atlanta to take a class called “Human Rights in the 21st Century Throughout the World” located in former President Jimmy Carter’s office. Carter later sent a letter to Balkaran praising his effort in his quest to relive the civil rights movement.

On the back cover of Balkaran’s book there is a comment that President Carter made about his book.

“Professor Balkaran,” said Carter. “Rosalynn joins me in congratulating you on your inspiring work with Central Connecticut State University’s Tracing The Civil Rights Movement in 2010. Your inspiring work and important efforts will be an example to students for generations to come.”

After the trip, Balkaran said that he hopes to make the project into an annual course for students at all CSU schools who have an interest in the civil rights movement.

“This is a lifetime experience that will shape everyone’s future,” said Balkaran to the CSUS Universe Magazine. “It’s good for the university and good for the Connecticut State University System.”

Committee Ready To Submit Gen Ed Changes justin muszynski The Recorder

The long-awaited general education reform may finally come to a conclusion this semester as the Faculty Senate Ad Hoc Committee will be making their final changes to their plans and submitting them to the Senate and Curriculum Committee.

“The Faculty Senate asked us to hold another open meeting for those who could not attend on Dec. 8,” said Robert Wolff, chair of the Ad Hoc Committee. “Afterward our recommendations will be sent by the Senate to standing committees like curriculum. They will be charged with producing the actual implementation of the general education revisions.”

After a survey was conducted in the spring of 2011, the Senate concluded that there was a strong desire on campus to change the current system. The Ad Hoc Committee then held several open meetings to get the campus community’s input on the matter and even started a blog devoted entirely to the topic.

Wolff says one of the biggest challenges was getting everyone’s opinion, but thinks most will favor the system the committee will submit for approval.

“There have been some bumps in the road, it’s difficult to find ways to reach faculty, staff and students,” said Wolff. “We committed to an open process and it seems to be working.”

Thomas Burkholder, who also serves on the Ad Hoc Committee, elaborates on the difficulties of addressing all the concerns the campus community had.

“We believe so far, the biggest concerns were about the lack of flexibility in the current system and this proposal addresses those,” said Burkholder. “The other concerns were that writing, critical thinking and quantitative reasoning skills be incorporated into gen ed and we believe we have done so.”

Foreign language requirements have been a major source of debate when discussions were held in regards to what the new system should look like. Burkholder says the committee will need more information before being able to make their final recommendation on this matter.

“The issue of foreign language proficiency is addressed by agreeing to study it. In effect we are kicking that issue down the road while collecting information that will help us decide how to proceed in the future,” said Burkholder. “We also had to balance the strong desire for flexibility and simplicity in the program against the desire to have depth in a discipline of the student’s choosing. We came down on the side of flexibility and left the issue of depth alone for now.”

While many students may feel the general education program is too in-depth, some also think it’s too big as a whole. There isn’t much the committee can do about that because of the state’s mandates. It is stipulated in Connecticut that the general education system must be at least one third of the total credits a student accumulates. Any new system would require at least 43 general education credits to be completed. In other words, the committee cannot stray too far from the current system, which was implemented in 1998 and requires a minimum of 44-46 credits.

Wolff says it’s probable that the submission made by the Ad Hoc Committee will neither be rejected nor approved.

“There are multiple parts to this proposal, some recommendations are likely to be approved and some not approved,” said Wolff. “There is willingness on the part of the faculty to effect some changes in gen ed so it’s unlikely to be wholly rejected.”

Should changes be approved, it’s expected they wouldn’t go into effect until the fall of 2014. The next open meeting will take place this semester but has not been scheduled at this point.

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THE RECORDER / Wednesday, January 18, 2012

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4 THE RECORDER Wednesday, January 18, 2012

OPINION

Should Candidates Expect Voters To Back Rivals?

The recent behavior by the Republican Party is sure to have pitted their voters against each other in searching for a GOP nominee. The sizeable amount of media coverage has only contributed to the mess that the republicans have gotten themselves into during recent debates. After the official withdrawal of Jon Huntsman many voters may find themselves at a loss as to who to vote for.

After what was, to say the least, a fiery string of debates between all of the candidates that led up to the New Hampshire and Iowa primaries, one can’t help but wonder what is going to happen when all of these opposing “cliques” of voters have to finally vote for one official

Republican candidate.

During the New Hampshire debate Huntsman claimed that Romney has a tendency to “flip-flop” and that “He doesn’t have what it takes to beat President Obama”, which we all know is the party’s main interest.

Now that Huntsman has announced that he is endorsing Romney, how can voters trust his most recent pledge, when just last week he was condemning Romney? Is this a lastditch effort to gain a Vice Presidential seat?

With the approaching South Carolina primary, and some of the most vicious lines of attacks yet seen in this race, we can only assume that the tensions will rise further and worsen the already crumbling foundation the party has built themselves on.

EDITOR’S COLUMN

Consistently Lacking Consistency How Woody Allen, Ron Paul and Tim Tebow Define The American Social Minority

niCholas ProCh the recorder

The human race is doomed. We can see the end of the Mayan calendar approaching and most of us passed through ‘judgment day’ without fretting. If this prophecy turns out to be true, I’m afraid to hear what my judgment was. In fact, most of us should be fearful of that, but we were all busy pointing and laughing at Harold Camping, the pastor who got his rapture predictions to the forefront of the evening news, back tracking on what he had said to his undiscerning followers for 25 years. His terminal lack of conviction to his faith not only destroyed his reputation, but is just one example of the many of where we are headed as a species.

There’s something to be said for someone with consistency in today’s world.

An individual who doesn’t step back from what they preach and believe in should be carried around on a throne while the rest of us watch from below. These types of people will make decisions that may defy the logic of the masses, but it will fall in with their other choices so fittingly that they needn’t think twice.

What do Woody Allen, Tim Tebow and Ron Paul all have in common? Beyond the fact that they share the same skin color, there is nothing that most notice. One is a physical specimen. He’s a dominating fullback who plays the quarterback position for the Denver Broncos. The other two men are frail in comparison and make up for their muscular inefficiencies with their verbal and artistic prowess and whopping nasal cavities.

Allen is well known for his self-pitting comedies against his own psyche and that of society. He has an obsession with Manhattan and the Jews that fill it. He may be my favorite filmmaker of all time, but is more recognized in Spain than he is in his own country. Throughout his 60-year career, he’s had the same stances on love, religion and award-show ceremonies.

Tim Tebow. He’s become a cultural phenomenon for a number of reasons. One being that he is playing quarterback in a style that is completely his own. The other is more baffling and makes our society look immature. He’s a very religious person and that is no secret. ‘Tebowing’ is a gesture that mocks his ritual of praying after a great play on the field. Where the line is drawn to make fun of someone’s religion is a complete juxtaposition to the moral steadiness he’s shown during his career.

Ron Paul took 20 years to run again for Presidential office in 2008. This year he’s having a decently strong showing in the primaries, but beyond that he’s turning heads for his deeply rooted political beliefs.

Many of his stances haven’t changed in the 24 years between campaigns.

We’ve seen far too many political, athletic and celebrity figures waiver around

what they think is right. Tiger Woods was seen as a family man before he drove his Escalade, and marriage along with it, into a tree. Mitt Romney, Herman Cain and Rick Santorum seem to change their stances on something as frequently as the Republican Party hosts a televised debate. And please, don’t get me started on Michael Moore.

This past weekend exemplified how steady Allen, Paul and Tebow are.

Allen didn’t show up to the Golden Globes. He was unable to accept his award for best screenplay. In fact, I’m not sure that he’s accepted any of his 95 awards for his work. He has been public about the fact that he doesn’t see the value in any award shows and has only showed up to one Academy Awards ceremony. That ceremony was in the winter following Sept. 11. He was asked to present a short film about the history of cinema in New York. It was only because of his love for the city that he left his house and attended the event.

The GOP candidates are dropping left and right. The latest is Jon Huntsman. He felt that it would be better for the party if he no longer ran against the others. However, with each figure that drops out, with them go their platforms. Paul will not go down until the party acknowledges his views on the structure of the government. It’s that steadiness that is telling the voting public that he isn’t going to bend his beliefs for additional punches on a ballot.

Before and after each game that Tebow plays, he hosts an underprivileged or handicapped child. Immediately following the loss to the Patriots this week, where his offense looked like they were playing against their will, he went and hung out with Zach McCleod, a young man who sustained a severe brain injury while playing football. His faith finds its way into his post game interviews because it is real. It’s more real than the skills he has as a quarterback in the National Football League, but his faith is first and foremost.

That will inevitably turn off his fans, but that’s not his concern.

When a decision you make is questioned it’s hard not to feel the pressure of changing your stance on that subject. Unfortunately, individuals like Tebow and Allen are the minority in a society that features a plethora of egotistical morons who only care about their ratings or if they’re liked or not. Stand up for what you believe in and stop selling yourself out to what others want you to be.

Without people who could do that we wouldn’t be where we are as a society. The civil rights movement wasn’t the popular thing to participate in at the time. The rebels were the minority in the revolution that founded this country, but that didn’t stop them. Let’s not declare that people are committing acts of moral turpitude until we pause and look at how well grounded their decisions have always been.

What Republicans need to be worried about (if they aren’t already), is the idea of disjointed voters and the chance that they may lose their vote because they are still pent up and passionate about what they were spoon-fed during the primaries.

The conservative party can’t expect the voters to drop their own values and political ideologies at the drop of a hat just for the sake of the Republicans gaining control in the White House.

For many college students who are unsure of what party to affiliate themselves with, or who to vote for, hearing a candidate change gears that quickly and support the same person who they claimed was incapable of getting Obama out of office does not instill a

vote of confidence in the candidates’ values and policies.

The candidates are supposed to be a reflection of the people they represent. In this case they are not. They are being naive to the fact that their followers have loyalties and biases against the other candidates.

The voters that they are looking for will be looking for a reason to not vote for Obama, but first the former candidates will need to be convincing in the fact that we should vote for their former enemies after months of berating them.

If party members can change their views so abruptly in the primaries, what’s stopping them from doing it again once they are in office?

No Doubt About It, Romney Is The Nominee keith yost the tech

(WIRE) - In October, State of the Race declared Mitt Romney the heavy favorite to become the Republican 2012 candidate for president of the United States. Since then, much has changed in the Republican field, but the most important change is this: Mitt Romney is no longer the heavy favorite to become the Republican nominee; he is the prohibitive favorite. His polling numbers against other candidates, his polling numbers against Obama, his institutional support, his campaign funding, his superior organization, his wins in Iowa and New Hampshire, and the political positioning and messaging of his campaign have given him a virtual lock on the nomination.

Only one or two candidates yet remaining in the race are even plausible challengers.

The first, Rick Perry, ended his surge by delivering disastrous debate performances and has since had miserable showings in both Iowa and New Hampshire. Unless he manages to stabilize with a strong showing in South Carolina, his campaign funding and volunteer pool will dry up and his bid will be over. The arguable second, Jon Huntsman, never even got so far as a surge, and will soon depart after failing to notch a win in New Hampshire.

The remainder of the field has no conceivable path to victory. Rick Santorum, Newt Gingrich, and Ron Paul are each seriously flawed candidates, and largely disliked by Republicans as a whole.

To borrow a phrase from Rich Galen, Ron Paul’s “stop-signs-are-a-violationof-my-fifth-amendment-rights” brand of libertarianism may find appeal with some, but to the majority of Republicans his extremism is deeply unsettling. In a Gallup poll, 62 percent of GOP respondents said he was an “unacceptable” candidate, putting a hard ceiling on the fraction of the vote he could ever receive.

Rick Santorum suffers from a similar problem — to extreme social conservatives, his pronouncements against homosexuality and his promises to ban pornography elicit strong support. But to most (including his home state of Pennsylvania, where he lost his senate seat by the widest margin ever achieved by a Republican senator), his Catholic fervor is off-putting. Like Paul, Rick Santorum has a hard cap on the fraction of support he can muster (only 27 percent considered him acceptable in the same Gallup poll). Even if it were possible to raise his ceiling, Santorum’s lack of organization, funding, and political temperament work against this prospect.

The response by the conservative establishment to the candidacy of Newt Gingrich is best described in a tweet by the decidedly non-establishment Will Wilkinson: “If Newt Gingrich becomes president, we all deserve to die in a purifying fire.” As Newt’s star rose, a progression of party leaders, elder statesmen, and ideological luminaries went on the airwaves to express their horror that a man as cruel, egotistical, and incoherent as Newt Gingrich could ever become the party’s nominee. To summarize the laundry list of reasons why their characterizations of Newt are fair would take a full article of its own.

Suffice it to say they are effective — in three

short weeks, his polling numbers in Iowa went from 31 percent to less than 14 percent, a drop even more precipitous than that of Herman Cain. Expect this performance to be repeated in any state in which the voters have temporarily confused Newt for a passable candidate.

Some pundits counter by claiming that Mitt Romney suffers from a ceiling as well.

It is hard to understand why they think that this is so. Romney may not be the first choice of Tea Partiers or evangelical Christians, but it is unclear that he is viewed very negatively either — a majority of Republican voters report that Romney is an acceptable candidate, and the results of Iowa suggest Romney is capable of picking up a respectable piece of any of the Republican party’s factions. If the field winnows to just Romney and a more conservative opponent, there is no reason to think Romney would not win every contest 60-30 (I’ll credit the immortal Dr. Paul with a consistent 10 percent). Moreover, Romney’s appeal to moderates, independents, and other groups that are typically under-represented at party primaries suggests that he would have an easier time working around a ceiling in his support through get-out-the-vote efforts.

This is not to say that Mitt Romney is unbeatable — it is merely to say that none of the current field are in any position to beat him. Were a new challenger to throw their hat in the ring — say a Mitch Daniels or Paul Ryan — the 2012 nomination contest could once again become competitive. This is why, however, the difference between heavy favorite and prohibitive favorite is an important distinction.

To enter the presidential race now is to risk having one’s political career ended by a talented campaigner who has no shortage of money, manpower, and support among party leaders. Each gaffe made would be amplified and broadcast nationwide, every piece of the candidate’s past would be picked up and examined by a hyperbolic media. This risk is out-of-balance with the likelihood of reward.

Even if a new candidate joined the race today, the filing deadlines to compete for 40.3 percent of the race’s elected delegates would have already passed. Romney would enter March 6’s “Super Tuesday” elections with victories in all, or perhaps all but one of the previous primaries and caucuses. And while funding, organization, and media attention might come easily to a new “non-Romney,” those assets are unlikely to outdo what Romney has already amassed in his longstanding bid for the presidency. It would be an uphill battle all of the way, and at the end of the long slog wouldn’t even be the presidency — it would be another grueling, uphill battle against an even better funded, better organized, more talented opponent.

There are three ways in which Romney might be defeated. If Rick Perry were to catch a miracle in South Carolina and then run a flawless campaign, Romney could lose. If a new challenger took a long shot gamble and won, Romney could lose. And if Romney himself made a disastrous miss-step, he could lose. But collectively, the odds of any of these happening are less than five percent.

With two-sigma certainty, Mitt Romney will be the Republican presidential candidate of 2012.

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THE RECORDER / Wednesday, January 18, 2012 / UPGRADE

REVIEWS Fincher’s ‘Dragon Tattoo’ As Strong As Swedish Counterpart Danny Contreras The Recorder

The “Millennium” Film Trilogy, an adaption of three Stieg Larsson novels, were first filmed in his native Sweden in 2009 by Danish director Niels Arden. All three movies were released to critical acclaim. Arden’s faithful adaption of the books satisfied fans of Larsson’s novels, who saw the methodical and blatant Mikael Blomkvist come to life along with the series’ main character, the mysterious genius Lisbeth Salander. However, Arden’s adaption did not alienate those who had not read the book; in fact, if one did not know the source of this movie, one could possibly mistake it for just another crime thriller.

Nevertheless, foreign masterpieces need to be adapted by Hollywood and the job of the men in charge of the American adaption of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo fell to the hands of director David Fincher and screenwriter Steven Zaillian. Fincher is known for his Best Director films The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and The Social Network; and Zaillian for his Best Screenplay award for Schindlers’ List. The end result is a production that can be classified as a “masterpiece” but does not fulfill the expectations set by the original.

Zaillian did not take many liberties with the writing of the movie and so the plot remains largely the same as the Swedish version. The main characters, Mikael Blomkvist and Lisbeth Salander, are portrayed by Daniel Craig (Casino Royale, Dream House), and Rooney Mara (A Nightmare on Elm Street, The Social Network) respectively. After losing a high profile libel lawsuit brought against him by businessman Hans-Erik Wennerstrom, Blomkvist is hired

by Henrik Vanger (Christopher Plummer) to solve the 40 year old case of his murdered niece, Harriet Vanger—under the cover that Blomkvist is writing a biography on Henrik.

Meanwhile, Wennerstrom hired computer hacker Salander, through her employers, to find anything he can use against Blomkvist.

However, Salander’s report finds Blomkvist to be a clean person. Against her company’s policy, she begins investigating the man who hired her.

The two characters meet when Blomkvist asks for an assistant, and the lawyer of Henrik Vanger suggests Salander after telling Blomkvist how Wennestrom used her, and how the Vanger family came to know of him, through her report. Blomkvist eventually convinces Salander to work with him, and the rest of the story moves on from there.

Photo I columbia Pictures

However, there is a second story being deployed along with the primary plot, and that is Salander’s personal life as she goes from one caretaker to another. After her first caretaker suffers a pulmonary embolism, she is placed with Nils Bjurman (Yorick van Wageningen). Bjurman is a rapist, and uses his position of power over Salander to force her into sexual acts. She retaliates against him, and eventually takes control of her own life, along with his life, after he sodomizes her and she records it.

While the plot truly drives the movie forward in its original adaption, it is the acting that does it in the American version. Craig produces another great performance with his serious, tactless and sometimes overly sarcastic demeanor. Mara on the other hand remains largely quiet, mysterious and smart but apprehensive and cunning. A strong point in the film is the way that the weaknesses of some characters are the strength of the others.

Blomkvist can be a little too trusting, while Salander does not trust her own shadow.

But it is this openness that allows Blomkvist to make connections that Salander would otherwise have missed.

The supporting characters cannot be forgotten. Yorick van Wageningen does too good of a job as an antagonist, his portrayal of a rapist feeling a little too real, almost uncomfortably real. Stellan Skarsgard, who portrays Martin Vanger, does a chilling job as a warm person hiding a painful and

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horrible secret in his enigmatic mind. Those with smaller roles act as if their lives were at stake. For example, Geraldine James painfully portrays Cecilia Vanger, one of the estranged Vanger heirs, as an unsympathetic, selfish

woman. In all, the supporting characters give essence to the spine created by Craig and Mara.

The cinematography is top notch as well.

There is a great balance between shots of the characters and the setting without ever truly overwhelming you with either. Sweden is a beautiful place, and the camera team truly captured that beauty. The snow that covers the country looks dangerously beautiful while the architectural design of the city reminds you of a gothic vampire movie. The movie does not make Sweden look like the best place to live in, however, as the overcast weather reigns throughout and precipitation makes up the majority of the visible water in the movie.

Overall, the movie is a Fincher masterpiece. While it is not a shot for shot remake, it does not stray away from the original too much. Of course, there are huge differences that can be noticeable between the original film, the books and this adaption— but only if you have read the book or seen the original. But, it should satisfy those interested in thrillers, pulps and a different blockbuster that does not have robots, aliens or CGI animation. It may disappoint those who saw the original a little bit, but it does the story justice.

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Confessions (Kokuhaku 2010)

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Winner of the 2010 Best Film at the Japan Academy Prize, Tetsuya Nakashima’s Confessions should be one of the very first films you watch in 2012.

The plot is relatively easy to follow despite the story jumping around the span of six months. Mrs. Moriguchi (Takako Matsu) is a middle school teacher who recently lost her daughter to what police called an “accidental drowning.” However, through her deductions, she found out that her daughter was in fact murdered by two students of her current class whom she names Student A and Student B. She decides to take revenge on the students by poisoning their milk with blood from her deceased husband who died of AIDS. She did not go to the police with the evidence of her daughter’s death because in Japan there is a law that excludes children from being punished as adults and usually gives them lesser penalties such as psychiatric ward stays or just formal and public apologies.

She gives the example of the “Lunacy Case” in which a girl poisoned everyone in her family, murdering them, and escaped the law by just giving a formal apology in the form of an essay.

The movie opens with Moriguchi giving a statement about the importance of life, where she refers often to a book written by her late husband. In it he travelled the world, helping the less fortunate.

It is in these travels that he contracted HIV. The story then dives into the death of her daughter, her revenge and resignation from her job as a teacher. As she begins describing the murderers, the rest of the class eventually figures out who they are, and the main conflict begins.

Student A, Shuya (Yukito Nishii) is a genius student who begs for attention, with his biggest trait being his Oedipus Complex. He is the original mastermind behind Moriguchi’s daughter’s death. A

complete psychopath, Shuya suffers most of the wrath of Moriguchi’s revenge as he does not display any remorse.

Student B, Naoki (Kaoru Fujiwara) is a weak and depressed student who changed schools due to bullying. Shuya befriends Naoki, who needed a friend, and is the one who kills the girl. His fate is sealed from the moment he learns of the poisoned milk and begins a descent into depression and OCD. He stops being hygienic because he felt that his hair, the smell of the sweat and his growing nails are all signs that he alive and not dying.

Student C, Mizuki (Ai Hashimoto) has nothing to do with the murder but she takes a liking for Shuya. It is revealed in the movie that she is in fact the “Lunacy Case” murderer, and eventually falls in love with Shuya.

The movie is told from different points of view, something which the viewer is aware of because a black screen with one of the character’s names tells you. The cinematography is amazing. Japan’s sprawling cities are used to drive the story along. What stands out most, however, is the way the camera keeps changing at a fast pace from character to character to different points in the storyline, similar to Edgar Wright’s Shaun of the Dead.

The strongest aspect of the film might be its soundtrack. Taking songs from Radiohead, the XX and Johan Sebastian Bach, the music sets the depressing and gloomy feeling. The sadness from all the characters channels through the chords and enhances the connection between the audience and the actor’s emotions.

The movie does a great job of bringing up the topic of child murderers, their punishment and how society does, and sometimes does not, deal with them. The plot twists and their execution are well done. The dialogue is unforgiving and relentless, helped by the surprising fact that no topic was off limits. While Confessions could be a bit shorter, like many epics, it is still a masterpiece of modern day cinema.

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THE RECORDER / Wednesday, January 18, 2012 / UPGRADE

Kindle Fire A Hot Choice In A Saturated Tablet Market raChael bentley the recorder

With the arrival of the Kindle Fire, analysts have projected the device to sell stronger than the Apple tablet, the iPad. While this is making many of the Apple executives squirm in their seats, this is good news for the millions of consumers that are rejoicing over the price. The $199 price tag is enough to make anyone swipe their card or type in their credit card number with a smile, which is saying a lot in this economy.

After having myKindle for over a month, I can say without a doubt, it is one of the best gifts I have ever recieved. I specifically asked for one for Christmas from my parents, but was more than prepared to

pay for one myself if I did not get it on the big day. Luckily for me, and both of my siblings, we had three identical blue boxes wrapped in yellow ribbon waiting under our tree, courtesy of Amazon’s gift wrapping team.

Online reivews from websites like MeanPC.com and The Wall Street Journal praise more than the device’s price. A review by Walt Mossberg of the WSJ claimed “Amazon is the only major tablet maker other than Apple with a large, famous, easy-to-use content ecosystem that sells music, video, books and periodicals. The Fire can be thought of as a hardware front end to all that cloud content.”

The light, compact and easy to handle

design of the Kindle Fire is one of its most favorable features, especially for someone like me who is constantly on the go. The lack of a camera or a microphone is not really a great loss in my eyes, mainly because I have a cell phone and a computer that have both of those features. Some would see this as a deal breaker, but for its ultra reasonable price, sacrifices had to be made.

Being a commuter, the Fire is a great thing to have when you have two to three hour breaks between classes. You can read a book, watch a movie or tv show, surf the web or play many of their free app games like ‘Angry Birds’ and ‘Words with Friends’.

The screen, although smaller than that of other tablets, is very clear and easy to view movies on. I had heard rumors that the

touch screen capability was not as sensitive or as quick as that of the iPad or the Nook, but I have yet to encounter this problem.

Overall this device has made my life a lot easier, from being able to check the news while I’m on the go or at the gym to being able to watch a movie in bed without falling asleep with my laptop on my chest.

Obviously there are some cons to the Kindle Fire, but when you factor in that you are saving yourself $249 dollars by not buying the iPad, the cons tend to become much less of an issue. In an economy where you have to make your money stretch as far as you can, the Kindle Fire is a great option for anyone who is trying to keep up with the times but also keeping their bank account happy.

‘The Artist’ Deserves Its Award Recognition raChael bentley

The release of a black and white, silent film in the 21st century would seem eccentric and perhaps fruitless to most modern day directors, but to Michel Hazanavicius it was just what film lovers and critics needed to see.

After being nominated for six Golden Globes, The Artist won Best Motion Picture for Musical/Comedy, Best Actor for Musical/ Comedy and Best Original Score, and was one of only two movies that had multiple wins (The Descendents won Best Picture for Drama, and George Clooney won Best Actor for Drama).

Hazanavicius wrote and directed The Artist to echo the style used in the 1920’s.

The movie was shot in the 1.33-33 “Academy Ratio” just as in the silent film era, because Hazanavicus considered it perfect for actors because it gave them “a power, a purpose, and a strength,” so much that they occupy most of the screen.

The Artist is set in the late 1920-1930’s.

Jean Dujardin portrays silent movie star George Valentin and Berenice Bejo plays Peppy Miller. While standing outside of a movie premier, our two lovers meet by chance when Miller accidentally bumps into Valentin while he is taking photos.

The next day’s papers have headlines reading “Who’s that Girl?” and Miller takes advantage of her 15 minutes of fame by auditioning for a role as a dancer on a movie set, which Valentin just happens to also be working on. They bump into each other again

and Valentin insists that Miller have a part in his movie, convincing his boss Al Zimmerv ( John Goodman) that she is the next big thing.

Soon afterward, Miller is up and on her way to being a huge star and Zimmer drops a bomb on Valentin. The end of silent films.

Valentin finds himself without a job, without any friends and in the middle of the Great Depression.

The Artist is hands down the best onscreen romance I have ever seen (yes, ladies that includes Titanic) and considering its dozens of nominations for Best Actor, Best Supporting Actress, Best Screenplay and Best Original Score, the rest of the worlds film critics would agree with me.

Jean Dujardin’s portrayal of George Valentin has been compared to that of Gene Kelly, which would explain why he won a Golden Globe. Kelly’s quality work set the bar for many actors in modern cinema.

Let’s not forget the qwirky and loveable Miller played by Bejo (who is also married to Hazanavicius). Her role as the up-andcoming competition and love interest for Valentin has a great combination of comedic relief and pure heart-felt moments that make you wish you knew a real guy like George.

Walking into this movie I was worried (as I’m sure most others would be) that the lack of dialogue between characters would bore me. However, I found that using my imagination to fill in the void of the “talkies” kept the movie moving at a comfortable pace, and made me appreciate the cinematography for what the film really was, a work of art.

cameo, but his traditional “yeaaah,” and “let’s go” makes it fun, catchy and uplifting. His raspy voice resonates throughout the three and a half minute song but never gets old. The following song, “Livin’ My Love” is just another one of LMFAO’s party anthems. The song follows a very basic structure of trance, build up and bass drop, to keep itself going and while it feels old and boring in other productions, in this song it blends as background noise because LMFAO’s silly lyrics are what you are paying the most attention to, not the music itself.

Which almost feels like the opposite of what an album does, but honestly, the music does not truly stand out in this song.

The best song in the album, “The 80’s” featuring Angger Dimas, is the eighth track and also the longest song. Here we can here all of Aoki’s current influences, mainly Afrojack and R3hab. It begins with a basic 4/4 drum loop with nothing else backing it up other than white noise. Then following 30 seconds of loops, it goes into a simple arpeggio and staccato combined lead that sounds childish, cute and funny. The drums build up and a dirty-electro bass rips through the song, its pitch going up and down wildly. The song continues with this formula for its six minutes with a combination of lead and bass somewhere in the middle, akin to his Afrojack collaboration, “No Beef ”.

Finally, we reach the tenth track of the album “Cudi the Kid” featuring Kid Cudi, the last track to truly stick out from the rest of the pack. Kid Cudi kills it with his pot-related

rhymes and stories, but Aoki creates the best drum and bass dubstep song from the album.

The first minute contains a 90’s inspired drum and bass loop which builds up to a ripping saw bass that builds up and down as if a tree were being cut. Cudi’s lyrics work extremely well with the song, although his auto-tuned voice may not be one everyone likes. The song then goes into a quick slow break where Cudi repeats the chorus, with the drum and bass loop slowly rising in the back, as it eventually leads to a build-up that goes into the dubstep saw bass, with the only difference being the drum and bass loop being mixed into the dubstep.

The rest of the album feels like it cannot follow up with what came before, as it is all ‘bro’step, the annoying cousin of dubstep. It just contains a lot of drops. Rob Roy raps in one of the songs, sounding a little too much like Eminem’s “Slim Shady”-era singing, but it sounds too silly, too dumb to be enjoyed.

The album ends soon after without notice, it pretty much ends.

The production overall is not necessarily the best, or a Grammy contender, but it does have its really good ups, however, its down are far too painful to be forgiven. In this case, nevertheless, we must, because the majority of songs are catchy electronica songs that adhere to the formula we know and love. We can expect many of these song to be remixed and used at the clubs, as Steve Aoki’s Wonderland is a fun, and worth buying production.

the recorder

Amazon’s Kindle Fire was released on November 15, 2011.

Steve Aoki Wonderland

Ultra Records January 17

danny Contreras the recorder

After years in the scene with multiple collaborations with the likes of Kid Cudi and Afrojack, Steve Aoki finally released his debut album, Wonderland. The album which features

many solo artists on its songs is a perfect mixture of club, electronica and dubstep, with sure fire hits such as “Emergency” featuring Lil’ Jon; and “Livin’ My Love” with LMFAO and Nervo.

The album runs at about 50 minutes with 12 tracks, the longest clocking in at 6:53 minutes. Wonderland does not necessarily make a splash with its opening track, “Earthquakey People” which features Rivers Cuomo of Weezer fame. The music in the song does not stand out either; it borders between trance and dubstep without ever truly delving into either. It is a song pulled from techno limbo as the staccato leads do not truly stand out from the bass and the sampled drums feel to have come from a recording of a garage band, not a techno producer.

Aoki, however, redeems himself quickly with “Dangerous.” The track features will.i.am as ‘Zuper Blahq’. The song feels saturated as will.i.am’s auto-tuned voice almost works as vocals and a type of lead. What stands out is Aoki’s ability in dubstep as the bass drums keep coming without the audience feeling overwhelmed. Surprisingly, the song can be quite catchy and definitely one used at parties. It blends well with the rest of the album, and while will.i.am’s saturated voice will be sure to annoy you, the song redeems itself with catchy riffs and chord progressions.

“Emergency” with Lil’ Jon & Chiddy Bang and “Livin’ My Love” with LMFAO & Nervo, are the most entertaining songs on the album.

Lil Jon only says “emergency” throughout his

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THE RECORDER / Wednesday, January 18, 2012 / SPORTS SPORTS BEGINS ON BACK PAGE

The Stanley Brothers: From Pond Hockey To Linemates brittany burke

From the street, to a backyard frozen pond, to New Hampshire and Rhode Island, the two youngest Stanley brothers haven’t known anything but hockey. While Ryan and Conor grew up playing the game with each other, they never played beside one another, that is, until they got to CCSU. With a two-year gap in age, Ryan and Conor never had the chance to play on the same team at the same time, but that all changed when Conor, the youngest brother, transferred from Salve Regina to CCSU for his sophomore year.

“We’ve been on the same team once in high school and he was a sophomore so he didn’t really play,” said Ryan. “So playing with my brother, it’s new but it’s not like we haven’t been doing it all along. We’ve been playing street hockey together, we do activities together but were not like on a real team, so this year has been kind of cool because I feel like we’re finally putting it together as brothers and it’s really nice to see.”

Conor became a Blue Devil a year and a half after Ryan transferred from St. Anselm’s in New Hampshire to New Britain during his freshman year.

“It’s almost come like full circle now that they’re on the same team, it started with pond hockey when they were three and five to now playing for Central,” said their mom Cara Stanley.

The season Ryan joined the CCSU hockey team, the Blue Devils finished second in the national tournament and the following year he was named American Collegiate Hockey Association’s player of the year.

Ryan made an impact on the team early and Conor is following suit. With half of the 2011-2012 season over, and the team currently ranked fourth after the last ranking period, the athletes seem to be settling into their roles out on the ice.

For the Stanley brothers, those roles have them situated on the same line, something that’s never happened before.

“When you start playing with someone new it’s always challenging a little bit to feel him out and our first couple times, our first game or so or practices it was definitely still a little rocky,” said Conor. “But we’ve been watching each other ever since I can remember and watching him every game … I know exactly what he’s going to do now when he has the puck now.”

Ryan and Conor help comprise the first line along side teammate Jon Knobloch.

Kenny Barto I THE RECORDER

The Recorder

Conor (left) and Ryan Stanley anchor CCSU Hockey’s top scoring line.

Head Coach Ben Adams prides the team on being able to roll out multiple lines, which all contribute to the 60-minute game, but the first line remains the most productive.

Both brothers crack the top three in points for the team, with only Knobloch as their divider. Currently Ryan leads the team in points while Conor sits at third.

“We have confidence in each other and that’s one of the main things,” said Ryan.

“When you’re on a team sometimes it’s hard to feel other people out but we know each other so well it’s easy.”

Having brothers on the same line not only creates a lucrative chemistry, but it also helps them push each other when no one else can.

“I know I could call him out on something and the thing with Ry is, he’s our go-to guy

and everyone knows that on our team,” said Conor. “If he makes a mistake or makes a bad play or does something wrong a lot of people aren’t gonna say anything and I think if I say something to him he appreciates it.”

It’s not uncommon to see on the stats sheet a goal scored by number 10 with the assist from 26 or vice versa, Ryan and Conor’s numbers respectively. Nor is it uncommon to see an older gentleman with UConn knitted hat sitting up in the bleachers writing down every single goal and assist.

That man’s name is Herb O’Connell and he happens to be Ryan and Conor’s grandfather.

“Grandpa is always at every game and he keeps track of the games he always goes to,” said Cara. “ … I think he counted 130 games

in one year [that he went to] when they were growing up. It’s very important because they’ve been playing hockey since they were in-house, mites, squirts, pee-wees, bantams and then on they’ve always played hockey.”

On any given game not night not only can you see the two players out on the ice, but you can see their mom Cara in the stands with their grandfather, and their dad and oldest brother Brendan standing behind the glass.

“They’re brothers first so they always have that,” said their father Mark Stanley.

Hockey isn’t just a hobby for the Stanleys, it’s a way of life. From the three sons who grew up playing with and against each other to the parents who are willing to travel to three different states and watch six games in one weekend just to see their kids play.

Blue Devils Hockey Tops Red Hawks brittany burke The Recorder

The CCSU club hockey team hasn’t played a game since Dec. 17 against Bryant University on the road, but despite the break the Blue Devils managed to come out against Montclair State and continue its win streak, topping the Red Hawks 5-3.

Saturday night’s home game against the Red Hawks was the second meeting between the two Super East teams, both resulting in a win for the Blue Devils. Not only was this a game between the number four and number five teams in the league, but this rematch also marked the first game between the two since goalie Greg Coco was injured on the road at Montclair.

“I thought it was going to be a very difficult game for us to play,” said Head Coach Ben Adams. “[Montclair] came in with a lot of confidence, tying the best team in the Northeast last night, and how our first game against them went, it was kind of lopsided in our favor and we had a lot of emotion we had to channel with our goaltender getting hurt in that last game too. So there was a lot of speed bumps that could’ve come up but I thought we played well despite that.”

The tension between the two teams was evident on the ice and it wasn’t long before the physical play grew chippy.

“Everyone was trying to get revenge but we also wanted to win and obviously that’s the main case we were going for and we got that

done,” said Jon Knobloch.

CCSU fought through and managed to get on the board first, but the lead didn’t last long. Just three minutes after the Blue Devils got their first point the Red Hawks scored on a five-on-three power play to tie the score.

Taking unnecessary penalties and then killing off the power play is something that the Blue Devils struggled with all game. All three Montclair goals came with at least one CCSU player in the box and serving time.

“The goals that they got were nothing more than throwing it to the net and crashing it and getting some tips and some back door stuff and we knew that’s what they try to do and it’s very difficult to defend when they have an extra man down low that they can send into the crease and create those opportunities,” said Adams. “… We just have to clean up why we’re getting to the box. There was a couple calls, good, bad or indifferent, they’re things we could’ve controlled and we shouldn’t have put ourselves in that position.”

Much of the game was back and forth and that was evident in the scoring. With just over five minutes left to play before the first intermission, CCSU’s Brian Fay brought the puck up the side through the neutral zone and into the attacking zone before shooting and notching the team’s second goal of the night.

“First game you know we had to work some rust off in the first period, you know, we were kind of slow taking a lot of penalties but after the first we kind of got back into and did what we had to to get the win,” said Fay.

With Evan Mink serving a two minute penalty in the second, Montclair managed to put the puck past Mike Joy and goalie John Palmieri to tie the score for the second time that night.

Despite the fact that Montclair managed to tie the game, they were never able to fully gain the lead. Fifty-three seconds after the teams were two each, CCSU’s Dustin Rider netted a short-handed goal, his second goal of the night.

Rider is a new addition to the Blue Devils and made quite a name for himself in his debut game. Rider tallied a hat trick against Montclair and helped add depth to the Blue Devil lines.

Rider isn’t the only add-on to CCSU

this semester. A handful of guys have been reactivated, joined and become eligible for the second half of the season.

“It’s really good so we can mix up the lines, we don’t have to stack the lines as much, we can spread out the offense and that way everyone’s getting out there and contributing which is nice,” said Fay. Palmieri kept the Red Hawks out of the net in the third, allowing the Blue Devils to gain two more points. A power play goal made

by Jon Knobloch and the empty-netter from Rider officially sealed the win for the Blue Devils.

The Blue Devils return to action this Saturday against team rivals William Patterson at 8:30 p.m. in Newington.

Join T h e Recorder Interested in writing for Thr Recorder? Have a knack for design? A passion for photography? Join our staff!

We are looking for writers, designers and photographers.

Join us Monday night at 7:30 p.m. in the Blue and White room in the Devils Den or email editor@centralrecorder.com to inquire about positions.

8

THE RECORDER / Wednesday, January 18, 2012 / SPORTS

Lady Blue Devils Earn First Conference Win Kenny Barto

Heading into Saturday’s matchup at Wagner, the Blue Devils women’s basketball team had lost all four of their conference games. This time CCSU (7-9, 1-4 NEC) was finally able to break that streak by beating the Seahawks (2-14, 1-4 NEC), 6957.

“You know, I feel so bad for these kids when they lose,” CCSU Head Coach Beryl Piper said. “This is a team that has a lot of potential, we just haven’t been able to show that in the conference until today.”

Right out of the gate, the Blue Devils jumped to a 13-2 lead at the 14:26 mark. The Babe sisters, along with Kirsten Daamen and Lauren Arbogast all contributed to the early lead.

The Seahawks did fight back, however, and got within five points with 11:18 remaining. CCSU answered by going on a 10-2 run to give the Blue Devils their largest lead of the first half, 25-12 with 8:15 remaining.

Even though the Seahawks got within five again with 1:07 remaining, CCSU fought back in the final minute to go into the half leading 35-28.

“I think they played really well on their home floor,” Piper said. “But, I liked how we were able to weather the storm and be able to play right with them.”

At the end of the first half, Jessica Babe led CCSU with 12 points and did not miss a single shot from the field, going 5-5, two of them being 3-pointers. Daamen added another 10 and the Babe sisters contributed a combined four steals, five assists and six rebounds.

The second half went much like the first, with CCSU’s smallest lead being five and largest thirteen. In the first ten minutes, the Seahawks got within five points three times, but the Blue Devils were able to fight

kenny barto I THE RECORDER

The Recorder

Jaclyn Babe scored 10 points in the second half to help the Blue Devils to their first NEC win. them off.

With the score at 48-43 at the 10:25 mark, neither team would score for several minutes when Brooke Bailey made two free-throws to make it 50-43. With just 2:46 remaining, a Jaclyn Babe 3-pointer gave CCSU a 13-point lead, 65-52.

CCSU closed out the 69-57 victory smoothly after losing by double digits to both St. Francis (Pa.) and Robert Morris last weekend.

“That felt really good,” said Jessica Babe, who finished with 19 points, five assists and four steals. “I think a conference

win was something that was missing and we just played really good today, so it felt good.”

Jessica missed only three shots from the field, and was perfect from 3-point range, going 3-3.

“She just had an amazing offensive game today,” Piper said. “For her to make some of the plays she did, and then going 3-for-3 from 3-point just shows how important she is to this team.”

Jessica’s sister, Jaclyn, also had a good game offensively, scoring 15 points, ten of them being in the second half, while pulling down six rebounds.

“She hurt her foot a few days ago,” Jessica said. “But, she fought it and played really good despite hurting a little bit.”

Arbogast was two rebounds away from a double-double, scoring 11 points while pulling down a team high eight rebounds in only 26 minutes of play.

“She had a great game all around,” Piper said. “She was fighting for those rebounds underneath, and she made some great offensive plays.”

CCSU’s biggest issue was the 6-foot-3 senior center, Kelly Clark, who scored 20 points for Wagner.

“We obviously had to double team [her],” Jessica Babe said. “But other than her, I think we did a good job of shutting them down.”

After Daamen’s 10 points in the first half, she scored just one point in the second half, in large part to Clark’s defense.

“You know, I really didn’t notice it,” Babe said. “But, I think maybe their defensive adjustments did shut her down, but she did good on the defensive end for us anyways.

The Blue Devils have three more road games at Mount St. Mary’s, Sacred Heart and Bryant before they face off against Fairleigh Dickinson at home on Jan. 28, a game which will be broadcast on CPTV.

Kenny Barto The Recorder

The CCSU men’s basketball team traveled to Staten Island knowing the type of team they would be facing. This was a team that put up a good fight against UConn, who was ranked fourth in the nation at a time, and a team that beat Pittsburgh, who was ranked 15th in the nation when they beat them two days before Christmas.

“This is always a hard place to come and play,” Head Coach Howie Dickenman said.

“They play well on their home floor, and they did that today, they were a tough team.”

Kenny Horton also came into this game just four points away from CCSU’s all-time scoring record. He broke that record 4:46 into the game, but would finish with just seven points after a poor showing on the defensive side.

“I told him, ‘I can’t play you if you don’t play defense,” Dickenman said. “I thought we played better with him off the floor, we definitely made it a closer game.”

Horton was taken out after his second foul in the first half, with the score 15-10 in favor of the Seahawks. The Blue Devils battled behind solid play by Robby Ptacek, who forced a turnover and slammed one home to make it 21-19. On the ensuing possession, Wagner turned it over again, and although Ptacek missed the open 3-pointer, De’Angelo Speech picked up the offensive rebound and laid it in to tie the game at 21.

Wagner answered right back by getting an offensive rebound put-back, and a dunk on back-to-back posessions that got the sold out crowd of 2,032 people at the Spiro Sports Center very loud.

The Seahawks wouldn’t stop, as they finished off their 9-0 run with another point in the paint followed by a 3-pointer to bring the score to 30-21 with 6:54 remaining.

They would make two more 3-pointers, free throws, and a jump shot to close out the half.

For the last 6:54, Robby Ptacek was the lone scorer for CCSU, getting a 3-pointer, foul shots and a contested layup to give him

18 points for the half. Horton, who spent most of the half on the bench, had four at the half, and four other players had two points, as they trailed 42-30.

“We went into the half down 12, and we needed some major adjustments,” said Dickenman. “They were beating us bad, and we needed to tighten it up defensively and needed to figure out some other ways to score.”

The Blue Devils listened as they tied the game at 48 midway into the second half. David Simmons contributed with a jump shot from the base line, and a tough lay in after driving from the base line. Ptacek contributed on the foul line, as the Wagner defenders made sure to make him earn it if he drove into the paint. The first time he drove, the Seahawks fouled him and the ball hit every part of the rim before falling off. Ptacek made both foul shots, but the next time the Seahawks were called for an intentional foul that gave Ptacek four foul shots. He would make three of the four and finish 12 of 13 from the free-throw line.

With the scored tied at 48, Wagner’s Jonathon Williams made a 3-pointer that put some life into the Seahawk offense.

“On that play, Robby’s hand was about two inches from his nose,” Dickenman said.

“They made a lot of three’s, but I don’t think we could’ve defended any better, they were just great shots by their team.”

CCSU did keep it close for a few minutes, but after back-to-back 3-pointers by Tyler Murray, the Blue Devils couldn’t come back, as they fell 67-58.

“Our biggest problem was the offensive struggle,” Dickenman said. “Kyle struggled and we needed him, and no one else stepped up.”

Ptacek finished with 28 points and six rebounds, as no other Blue Devil broke into double digits in scoring.

“Robby certainly had a good game offensively,” Dickenman said. “He was our top scorer and pulled down a good six rebounds, but he also had six turnovers. But, they weren’t stupid turnovers, they were work

kenny barto I THE RECORDER

Horton Sets CCSU Scoring Record In Blue Devil Loss

Horton left Wagner with 1,738 career points, an all-time CCSU record. turnovers.”

The all-time scoring record that Horton broke was in place for 19 years, set in 1993 by Damian Johnson. Horton now has 1,738 alltime points as he continues to set the mark.

The Blue Devils will face Bryant at home

on Thursday before they travel to Sacred Heart on Saturday. They will then have backto-back home games against Monmouth and Fairleigh Dickinson on the 26th and 28th before a three-game road trip against St. Francis (N.Y.), Long Island and Quinnipiac.