The Towerlight (Feb. 21, 2017): Spring Sports Preview

Towson’s campus and community news source

TheTowerlight.com

February 21, 2017

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Photo by Alex Best, Photo Illustration by Jordan Stephenson /The Towerlight

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Advertising

February 21, 2017

15%

student discount

on full menu any time!

FREE WiFi

We Do Fundraisers! (ask manager for details)

Open til 3 a.m.

Friday & Saturday!

13 Allegheny Avenue

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Social

February 21, 2017

Week of 2/21-2/25

WEEKLY

Editor-in-Chief Cody Boteler Senior Editor Sam Shelton

CALENDAR

News Editor Sarah Rowan Asst. News Editors Bailey Hendricks Marcus Dieterlie Assoc. Arts Editors Taylor DeVille Kristin Helf

Sports Editor Jordan Cope Asst. Sports Editor Karuga Koinange Staff Writers Lauren Cosca Nick Mason Sydney Douglass

Feb

21

Desmond Boyle Alaina Tepper McKenna Graham Theresa Schempp Mary-Ellen Davis Jessica Ricks Sarah Van Wie Amanda Carrol

Folk Dancing Night Center for the Arts 3069, 7 to 8:30 p.m.

Ever been interested in traditional folk dancing? Never even hear of it? All are welcome at this event hosted by the Department of Student Affairs.

Nicole Shakhnazarova Rohan Mattu Photo Editor Alex Best Staff Photographers Cody Boteler Mark Dragon Sam Shelton

Feb

22

Stephanie Ranque Jordan Cope William Strang-Moya

Service Panel with Peace Corps, Urban Teachers, Teach for America, and City Year

Alex Best Tyisha Henderson Stephanie Ranque Sarah Rowan Alaina Tepper

West Village Commons Ballrooms, 7 to 10 p.m.

If you can’t make it down to New Orleans this year come check out Towson’s own mini Marti Gras party! There will be food, music, crafts, and many more activities.

If you’re looking for a good way to create change and help others come to this service panel and learn about different organizations to get involved with after graduation.

Dark Humor Film Series Art Lecture Hall, CA 2032, 3 p.m.

Feb

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General Manager Mike Raymond

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Union Potomac Lounge, 4 to 6 p.m.

Video Producer Stacey Coles Proofreaders Kayla Baines

Feb

Mardi Gras Takes Towson

Sex Position Movie Night: Magic Mike XXL West Village Ballroom C, 6 p.m.

Feb

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This weeks movie is “Foxy Brown,” which will help fuel discussion and aid with understanding racial prejudice in Ameica.

Come watch the movie “Magic Mike”, while enjoying free food, mocktails, activities, giveaways, and much more!

Art Director Jordan Stephenson

TOWSON

Webmaster Lola Akinleye Circulation Staff Shawn Halerz

TRENDING

Nilo Exar Abubakary Kaba Alicia DePasquale

Towson’s Weather

8000 York Road University Union Room 309 Towson, MD 21252 (410) 704-5153 editor@thetowerlight.com thetowerlight.com The Towerlight print edition is published by students of Towson University on Tuesdays.

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Please Recycle!

everyone looks so cute today okay towson pop out for the warm weather

@kvrxngton

this weather just makes me want baseball season to start at towson already

@BrittJWhit

The weather is so beautiful that I forgot social media existed for a moment. 65degrees in #Baltimore

Spring like weather in Baltimore... Enjoyed my weekend

@JonHickeyPhoto

@BlissfulAir

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Opinion

February 21, 2017

468 chances for change

Worthy of note?

Number of white guests attending Congress lacks minority voices, representation black faculty events increases @MeganFemmily

I’ve talked before about how feminism must be intersectional in order for it to actually be feminism. This means that feminists have to acknowledge the ways in which race, class and gender all intertwine to create different, valid experiences. As we approach the end of February -- Black History Month -- I felt it was important to acknowledge one of the biggest ways in which the intersection between race and gender is still operating today.

I want to talk about the demographics within our government.

At time of publication, the U.S. House of Representatives holds 238 Republicans and 193 Democrats, according to the House Press Gallery, which noted that three Republicans and one Democrat have resigned within the past two months in order to accept other positions. There are currently four vacant seats in the House, per the same source.

The U.S. Senate holds 52 Republicans, 46 Democrats and 2 Independents, according to the Senate’s website.

According to Rutgers Center for American Women in Politics, there are 104 women in Congress as of January 2017. 83 out of 435 members of the House are women -- though four seats are currently vacant -- and 21 out of the 100 members of the Senate are women. This means that fewer than a quarter of our representatives are women. So that’s not great.

But it gets worse. According to a profile done by the Congressional Research Service in December, 2016, only 48 African Americans are members of Congress, 46 in the House and 2 in the Senate. Hispanic/Latino Americans fill just 38 seats within Congress, Asian/Pacific Islander Americans fill 14, and American Indians fill 2.

Let’s break this down even farther. Out of the total 104 women in Congress, 21 are African American, 11 are Hispanic, and 10 are Asian/Pacific Americans, according to the House of Representatives website.

That means that more than half

of the women in Congress are white women. And, if I do a little math here, we can see that there are 28 African American men in Congress, 29 Hispanic men, 4 Asian/ Pacific, and 2 Indian American. That means there are 330 white men in our current Congress, overwhelmingly making them the dominant group.

Why do all of these numbers matter?

They matter because our government should reflect and represent the people it is governing. Ours doesn’t.

Not to bombard you with numbers, but according to the 2015 Census, 50.8 percent of our country is female, yet, as I said earlier, not even 25 percent of the legislative branch is made up of women.

“

Why do all of these numbers matter?

They matter because our government should reflect and represent the people it is governing.

”

Not only are women being underrepresented within our government, women of color are being fully undermined. There are only 39 women of color in Congress as of Jan. 3.

This is alarming because different laws and issues are going to affect people differently based on their lived experiences. If the majority of lived experiences within Congress are that of white men, we’re going to see that reflected in our laws and values.

This is exactly what we’re talking about when we say that racism and sexism are systematic. They stem from the system by which our country is governed. There is no valid reason why Congress should be made up of more white men than white women and people of color combined.

It’s also horrifying that just in 2017, there have been two instances in which women in have been literally silenced by men in Congress. Elizabeth Warren was silenced when she attempted to read a letter in which Coretta Scott

King opposed Jeff Sessions’ nomination to be attorney general. The rule making that possible was created more than a century ago when two senators got into a fist fight on the senate floor. It’s asinine, irrelevant, and an excuse to stop a woman from voicing her opinions.

It’s undoubtedly alarming that the letter, written by an influential and important woman of color, was dubbed as disruptive as a literal fist fight, and it’s also alarming that a woman opposing a man in the government was silenced by other men.

This happened again, just last week, when Texas State Sen. Charles Schwertner silenced a University of Texas student for opposing an anti-abortion law that, as she argued and I agree, would make the process of abortion dangerous to women. He literally shattered a glass table with his gavel as he instructed her to stop speaking at half the length those preceding her had spoken.

Not only are women being underrepresented, they are being silenced by the men who are supposed to be governing our society. Even in regards to laws that will directly affect women.

But this is where intersectionality comes in: it is one thing to have one’s gender underrepresented. It is one thing to have one’s race underrepresented. To have both one’s race and one’s gender underrepresented within the government is a stark silencing of one’s lived experience.

As a white woman, I can say that my government has failed to represent me fully and properly. But as a white woman, I must also acknowledge that my government has failed to represent women of color to an even greater degree. It is possible to feel oppression and privilege at the same time.

Pay attention to who is representing you, and treat the votes for Congress members with as much weight as the vote for president.

There will be 468 seats up for re-election on Nov. 6, 2018. I know that’s a ways away, but give yourself ample time to do research and plan out your votes, because 468 is a lot.

468 is enough to make a change, so let’s make a change.

File photo by Alex Best/ The Towerlight

BFSA President Barry Evans speaks during the organization’s welcome ceremony in September.

BARRY EVANS President, Black Faculty & Staff Association

The Black Faculty Staff Association of Towson University has hosted two events this semester. During our Feb. 1, Black History Month Kickoff Event, more white men attended the event than black men. In our second event, The Blacksmith Shop, which

took place on Feb. 15, half of the participants were from the white community. I thought it would be unfair for me not to make a note of this. Particularly during these times when we so readily talk about and pass on negative, alternative facts.

I am not sure what is happening. I am, however, sure, that this change is very promising.

Change how you think about love and sex FATHER BUENING Campus Catholic Ministry

Now that I know the Towerlight is not scared to publish radical and different notions about love and sex, as seen in the most recent issue, I have hope that this letter to the editor might be published as well. For I have the most radical, different, and challenging ideas about sex.

I dare to believe that sexual activity is a beautiful coronation and a most powerful expression of a deep abiding love that has been solemnly committed to for a lifetime. I think sex should not be between strangers or acquaintances or friends with benefits.

I believe that no one should be drunk or high when having sex. I strongly believe that unless you want to have and raise a child with the person you would be wise to not have sex with him/her. Ultimately, I believe sex is an amazing gift from God. It is the

most intimate and sacred way we can express to someone how much we love them with our very bodies.

I realize that this view of sex is radical and completely counter to the culture we currently live in. I know that to see sex as sacred and special flies in the face of a society that sees it only as recreational and inconsequential. It takes extra effort, courage, and fortitude to save sex for the special person you want to spend the rest of your life with.

I simply write to share this crazy notion of sex and to encourage any students who may feel that treating sex as a leisure activity with people you don’t truly love has left them wounded, confused, hurting, or has caused broken hearts and friendships.

Don’t think that you have to fall in line and conform to the way everyone else around you is thinking about love, be daring and think differently.

-- Read the rest of this letter online at thetowerlght.com.

Opinion

February 21, 2017

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How to encourage others to check their privilege MATT TEITELBAUM Columnist

The once pedestrian noun “privilege” has become a loaded term.

Like pretty much everything else these days, it has become politicized. Odds are that your immediate response to hearing the term, or more specifically the request or demand that one “check their privilege” at least partially exposes your political views.

For many liberals, checking one’s privilege is not only a valid concept, but an essential exercise in humility and empathy for those born under advantaged circumstances.

For many conservatives, checking one’s privilege is an overused or perhaps even invalid concept which only serves to play into the far-left agendas of victim culture and identity politics.

For me, privilege is a valid, albeit overused concept. Here’s my advice to anyone who wants to discuss the concept of privilege and actually be productive.

The Right Way: In polite, casual conversation If you find that someone is unaware of their privilege or hasn’t really become familiar with the concept yet, explaining it to them politely during casual conversation can be highly productive.

By speaking casually, you avoid condescending the person you’re talking to and asking them to check their privilege won’t sound like a personal slight.

It’s very likely that when respectfully asked to reflect on the advantages they’ve had in life, almost anyone would engage in a healthy exercise of gratitude for what they were born with and sympathy for those less fortunate than them.

For instance, an able-bodied person might understand the privilege of being able to walk unassisted.

Or perhaps a white person might appreciate that they don’t have to suffer from institutionalized racism and sympathize with those that do.

Here, “Check your privilege” takes the form of a polite request, but it can also take the form of an aggressive, condescending demand.

The Wrong Way: In a heated debate or argument Unlike in casual conversation, asking someone to “check their privilege” in a debate almost always comes off as a personal attack rather than an attack on one’s ideas or argument. It comes off that way because it almost always is.

Arguments can’t be privileged, and thus they can’t be accused of privilege. However, the people who make arguments can be privileged.

So why can’t one say that the arguments of white men on issues of race and gender are hindered based on their

privilege? The problem is the assumption that personal experience with minority and women’s issues somehow trumps the bedrock of any good argument, facts and logic.

When someone speaks from a position of privilege, all they are lacking is deeply personal, first-hand experience with subjects like race relations and gender equity. If their argument is predicated on things other than personal experience—like facts and logic—then an attempt to discredit them with the accusation of privilege becomes an ad hominem attack and a non-sequitur.

Using an accusation of privi-

lege to attack an argument which is built on solid logic and credible facts, in lieu of personal anecdote, is like claiming a home with a perfectly built foundation isn’t structurally sound because the workers who built it don’t live in it.

Via this explanation, I like to think I’ve made a valid argument regarding the flaws in accusing someone of privilege during debate. However, on that specific topic, I have personal experience to boot.

When I wrote an op-ed two weeks ago, I was speciously accused of having an invalid argument because of my privilege as a cisgender, white, male. Very few of my critics bothered to actually address my argument with facts and logic, opting instead to attack my personal credibility via my “cis, white, male privilege.”

Fur thermore, I can almost guarantee some will respond to this op-ed by saying “What is this white male, doing lecturing people about privilege?” To them I say, thank you for proving my point.

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News

February 21, 2017

Tuition, other fees CSD event tackles Islamophobia Playwright encourages Muslims to reclaim narrative could increase

File photo by Patrick Burke/ The Towerlight Vice President for Student Affairs Deb Moriarty explains possible mandatory fee changes during last year’s open student fee forum.

Students could pay up to 5.4 percent more, overall, in mandatory fees — which encompass technology, athletics, auxiliary services and auxiliary services construction fees — in the coming fiscal year, according to information distributed at a Feb. 14 student open forum.

Mandatory fees include the technology fee and auxiliary fees, like construction and athletics.

During the meeting, Vice President for Administration and Finance Joe Oster said most of the fee increases move at the rate of inflation, about 2-4 percent annually, but for fiscal year 2017-2018, the auxiliary services construction fee would increase by 8.2 percent — or $88 — for full-time undergrads and 4.3 percent — $2 — for all part-time students.

“The $88 increase in the construction fee goes to pay for the debt service, the utilities and the maintenance,” Oster said. “This big increase is primarily attributed to Burdick coming next year and the start of the Union expansion and innovation design project.”

Oster said Burdick is expected to open Nov. 1.

The technology fee — which is slated to increase by 7.5 percent, or $14, for full-time students and 12.5 percent, or $1 per credit hour, for part-time graduate and undergraduate students — helps to maintain computers and other technology on campus.

The athletic fee helps pay for athletic scholarships and programming.

The athletics fee could increase by 4.6 percent, or $40, for full-time students.

The auxiliary services fee helps

pay for day-to-day services such as recreational sports and expanded staffing for the recreation center.

Planned auxiliary service fee increases are under 4 percent for all affected students, while mandatory Student Government Association fees are not expected to increase at all. Possible tuition increases range from 2 to 5 percent for all undergraduate students, dependent on in-state, out-ofstate or regional designation.

“Tuition pays for your faculty, your classrooms – the whole operation of the academic enterprise of the building…. The state supplements the tuition to pay for all those things that run the academic enterprise,” Vice President for Student Affairs Deb Moriarty said. “The auxiliary [fees] pay for things that aren’t must-haves on the campus.…

They’re the things that make campus have life beyond the classroom.”

On-campus housing costs will increase by 3 percent for Douglass House and Barton House but 3.5 percent for all other on-campus residences — aside from Carroll and Marshall halls, which will not see a cost increase.

Moriarity said that Carroll and Marshall halls won’t see an increase because of their already comparatively high price point.

The parking fee could see a $9 increase to the annual permit option and a $5 increase to the semester permit. Meal plans saw a proposed a 3.6 to 3.9 percent increase, depending on what any plan includes, according to the University materials.

Before fee increases can be enacted, proposals must be approved by multiple University bodies before being passed on to the University System of Maryland Board of Regents for final approval.

American Muslim Wajahat Ali, who wears many hats -- journalist, playwright, attorney and State Department consultant -- fought Islamophobia through historical precedent and personal narrative Thursday, Feb. 16, during a talk sponsored by Towson’s Center for Student Diversity.

“The diverse stories of 1.7 billion Muslims and 1,400 years of rich, dynamic Islamic civilization have been reduced to a singular stereotypical image – rage boy,” Ali said.

Ali, who gave a presentation billed as “Understanding Islamophobia,” describes this “rage boy” trope as a “bearded, anti-American, bellicose, turban-wearing, brown skinned-guy who is always burning American flags, who is anti-semitic and angry.”

“If you don’t write your stories, your stories will be written for you,” Ali said.

He cited “Iron Eagle,” “Aladdin” and “Back to the Future,” wherein a Libyan terrorist kills Doc Brown, as stereotypical, harmful imaginings of Muslims that ought to be replaced by

realistic narratives.

“I ask us to become participants, not spectators,” he said. “We are not impatient, we are not powerless – we are privileged. We have the opportunity to be proactive. The way to speak powerful truths is to do just that: speak.

Pick up and unleash the pen…. We want to emerge as protagonists of the American narrative. In order to do that we have to tell stories that are by us – for everyone. No longer by us, for us.”

Ali told the audience that he was born and raised in California, and that he went to preschool knowing only three words of English but went on to graduate with a degree in English from the University of California, Berkeley.

He compared being Muslim at school to being one of the popular kids.

“Everyone’s giving you lavish attention – even the people you want to avoid,” he said.

There have been many people in the western mainstream press who have also been writing the stories of Muslims and creating negative stereotypes, Ali said. What people know about Muslims is overwhelmingly negative due to the sensationalized stories shown in the news media.

He said that an influx of Muslims came to America in the 1500s and that up to 15-30 percent of slaves in the slave trade were Muslim.

“If you think about it, Muslim blood, Muslim sweat and Muslim stories have fertilized this country’s soil from the beginning,” Ali said.

Ali said that since the start of Donald Trump’s political campaign, anti-Muslim hate-crimes in the U.S. have risen 67 percent, and the number of anti-Muslim hate groups are up 197 percent in the U.S. There has been a spike in employment discrimination against those with “Muslim-y,” or stereotypically Muslim-sounding, last names and an increase in bullying of Muslim children in schools, he said.

“Despite all the problems, we’re deeply privileged people here in America,” Ali said, “We cannot live in culturally-isolated cocoons anymore, because we do not live in culturally-isolated cocoons. Everything is connected in this globalized world. Every action resonates globally.”

-To read the rest of this article online, visit thetowerlight.com.

Lunch series covers mental health Marginalization produces trauma, prof. says KRISTIN HELF Associate Arts & Life Editor @kristinelise_

On Feb. 15, as part of the “Multiculturalism in Action Brown Bag Series,” assistant women’s and gender studies professor Jameta Barlow spoke to a crowded room of students and faculty about the importance of African American women’s mental health and well-being.

“I’m interested in how women, particularly black women, experience trauma,” Barlow said.

Much of the trauma that black women experience is intergenerational, she said, and stems from America’s culture of slavery, legal segregation, violence and sexual violence, and the marginalization of black women’s intersectional experiences.

Most of Barlow’s research is focused on obesity and heart disease, in which she seeks to understand the root of these physical health issues and mental health issues for black women.

“The manifestation of stress in black women is a major mediator

rooted in trauma,” she said.

According to Barlow, of the 13.2 percent of African American or black-identified people in the United States, over 16 percent—or 6.8 million people—had a diagnosable mental illness within the past year.

When it comes to mental health issues like depression, Barlow said black women are understudied, underserved and often misdiagnosed.

She emphasized the importance of recognizing these inherited traumas in order to heal, and how healing necessitates self-care.

One audience member asked about the stigma of self-care often being perceived as selfishness, and whether that stigma is changing.

“I see a lot of students involved in a lot of organizations because they feel they have to and I think that’s very common to the experience of black women, that we ‘have to,” Barlow said. “You can still be active, but you have to take care of yourself. It’s an act of political warfare, but it’s not self-indulgent in any way.”

Associate psychology professor and

Brown Bag Series organizer Danice Brown said she wanted Barlow to host a lecture because she was generally amazed with her work.

“The series was created for the purpose of exposing the community to the faculty doing work that’s multicultural and social justice-oriented, and to open up [that] discussion with students, staff and faculty,” Brown said.

Barlow is currently heading the Saving Our Sisters project which promotes mental health and well-being among black women and shares videos that community members have made with the hashtag #WhenIFellInLoveWithMyself.

“Sometimes self care is taking a walk outside,” Barlow said.

“Sometimes self care is saying no to other people so you can say yes to yourself. It doesn’t have to be expensive to do it. It is innovative.

It is new.”

The next Multiculturalism in Action Brown Bag Series lecture will be on March 1 to discuss race and cognitive bias in forensic sciences.

News

February 21, 2017

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Science of the stars: prof. breaks down astrology NICK KOSKI Contributing Writer

Astronomy—the cosmos, black holes, stars—that’s a science. Astrology—your horoscope—not so much.

That is to say, there’s no science to back up the beliefs of astrology and reading your horoscope. And, during a planetarium show on Feb. 17, associate professor Alex Storrs said that, during introductory astronomy

courses, he sometimes doesn’t have enough time to change someone’s belief in the stars.

“All you can do is help them get a slightly better understanding of science,” Storrs said.

File photo by William Strang-Moya/ The Towerlight Astromony professor Alex Storrs sits in the planetarium during an “Other Earths” show Sept. 16. On Feb. 17, Storrs tackled the history of astrology, as well as the scientific facts that debunk it.

He cited the “new” constellation, Ophiuchus, which shook up the astrological community after it was introduced as the thirteenth sign of the zodiac, potentially altering which signs people identify with their birth date.

“Ophiuchus isn’t new at all,” Storrs said. “We’ve known about it for thousands of years. Most astrologers have just ignored it.”

Storrs said some cultures recognize as many as 24 zodiac constellations in total. One of the difficulties that Storrs raised about astrological predictions, particularly in how they pertain to individuals, is that people tend to selectively accept predictions that turn out to be accurate while dismissing those that do not.

“We notice the positive statistics when predictions are fulfilled but aren’t good at recognizing the negative statistics when the predictions fail,” he said.

Astrology has been useful for some things in the past, but “whether it works for individuals is a whole other question. That’s a matter of faith…

You can believe in horoscopes all you want. Just don’t go pushing your beliefs on to anyone else,” Storrs said.

Unlike astrology, Storrs said science can be used to make testable and accurate predictions.

“The most respected level of a scientific explanation is a theory,” Storrs said. “To dismiss a scientific theory as ‘just a theory’ just shows your own ignorance of science.”

Gravity? That’s a theory. Evolution?

Theory. Germs? Theory.

Storrs explained that in ancient times, before society understood the Earth’s movement through space, people believed that the planet was fixed in space with the stars and other heavenly bodies moving around it.

Ptolemy used this geocentric system to create his astrological charts.

Storrs said that as stars and other celestial bodies move across the night sky, they pass through several constellations which many ancient civilizations used as the basis, or as part of, different mythologies and environmental and biological predictors.

“In ancient times, people probably got bored and spent a lot of their time stargazing and coming up with stories about the images they saw in the night sky,” Storrs said.

-To read the rest of this article online, visit thetowerlight.com.

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News

February 21, 2017

Career Center adds new express hours Peer advisors offer walk-in appointments self-market to potential employers,” Logan-Bennett said. “Students can Staff Writer have résumés and even their cover letters reviewed in that 15-minute Towson University’s Career Center time frame.” has extended express hours startShould the approximate 15-mining this semester. Express hours are ute time slot during express hours an opportunity for not be enough, undergraduate and students can make graduate students to appointments for It’s an on-demand have their résumés an even more reviewed without an service, and it’s a way thorough review of appointment. résumés and for them to receive... their Express hours cover letters. more immediate are in operation At the Career Monday - Thursday Center, students are feedback on their from 11 a.m. to 4 by specialability to self-market reviewed p.m. ly trained peer-edto potential employers ucators known Lorie LoganBennett, direcas “career peer tor of the Career advisors.”

Students LORIE LOGAN-BENNETT Center, sees the Director, Career Center undergo a training extended express process in order to hours as a way to expand the space review résumés and cover letters. for a program that was at full capaciOn its website, the Career Center ty. Now the center will be able to help offers advice and resources to those more students market themselves. looking for employment including “It’s an on-demand service, and sample résumés for each major, it’s a way for them to receive sort of handouts on how to “review and quick and more immediate feedback polish” a résumé and a list of on their ability to self-brand and “résumé power verbs.”

ROHAN MATTU

“

”

Cody Boteler/ The Towerlight The Career Center is located at the 7800 Building on York Road. The center is now offering express hours for walk-in resume reviews.

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12 February 21, 2017

Arts & Life

“Scythe” reaps grim response MCKENNA GRAHAM Columnist

Title: Scythe Author: Neal Shusterman Genre: YA fantasy Rating: Two stars Warnings: suicide “Scythe” is a novel with a great idea that falls flat. I was immediately attracted to the world: society has overcome disease, aging, and death, and the only way to control population is an organization of people whose only job is to kill. They’re called “scythes,” and they’re basically government-sanctioned murderers, except society has no government, just an AI that helps run transportation and give dinner recommendations.

So the reader is presented with an intriguing concept that garners enough curiosity to flip open the pages. And from there, things kind of go downhill. The two main characters, Citra and Rowan, are seemingly entirely outof-place in society, which is of course characteristic of main protagonists in a YA fantasy novel. They are taken on as apprentices to Scythe Faraday, who begins to teach them the art of killing with a respectable amount of compassion and tortured-soul rumination.

For the first part of the novel, you’re stuck wondering what the plot is, where the story is going, and why Shusterman doesn’t want to just say “drugs” instead of “illegal chemicals of recreation.”

That was my first major issue with the book: the author spends so much time making it apparent that this world is far distanced from “mortal times” when people still died of natural causes and knew what “terrorism” was. The book is full of irritating attempts to immerse the reader: Shusterman makes it clear that people don’t know what sports are, don’t know what murder is, and don’t know what handcuffs or torture are.

While I can understand that he was trying to craft a society free of crime, people still go to school and people still have easy access to the AI that has all of history recorded—why

didn’t Shusterman put two and two together, and let the reader focus on his plot instead of reminding them, “This is a totally different era!” over and over again? Because a plot does come in, and it has such potential: something happens about halfway through that I won’t spoil for you, and all of a sudden the reader is exposed to two entirely different ideologies, two entirely different ways of thinking and interpreting both the novel’s history and modern society, and conflict is introduced.

A story is nothing without conflict; the better the conflict, the better the story. I’ll let you think about how it takes over one hundred fifty pages for an actual problem to come to light; in the meantime, I’ll talk a bit more about the two main characters.

Citra is terribly boring and a total Mary Sue—she’s self-righteous and unrealistic and so boring because she can do no wrong. Rowan is the interesting one -- he struggles with his conscience and his morality, he has issues with his identity, and because of this he feels more real, more flawed, and more interesting. Not always, though, and not by as much as I maybe would’ve liked.

Now as for the conflict, it was good enough.

It wasn’t spectacular, but it kept me interested enough to read until the end, where the most life-threatening struggle was promptly resolved in a rather anti-climactic way. The antagonists of the novel seemed so critical and dangerous, but it takes less than two pages for them to be rendered irrelevant. The rest of the story’s conflict is resolved later, but is so inconsequential that by that point, you find yourself not really caring.

And I don’t even want to get into the “romance” aspect, other than to say it was totally unnecessary and honestly laughable.

I was truly excited to read this book—I even bought it instead of asking the publisher for a free copy, because I was so sure I’d like it—and it let me down. In over four hundred pages, I can count on one hand the number of times Shusterman made me think, “That was a good line.” The rest of my experience was just me waiting for it to get really good -- and sighing in the meantime at all the clichés and disappointing writing.

TU gets un-Con-ventional at Comic Con

Brittany Whitham / The Towerlight

Towson’s first Comic Con featured food, screenings and students dressed in their best comic garb.

JESSICA RICKS Staff Writer

Friday evening saw cartoons, comic book characters and pop culture icons spring to life around Towson’s campus for the University’s first Comic Con. The event, organized by Student Activities and managed by senior Sahil Lakhyani, featured a costume contest, an arts and crafts station where students could do superhero-themed paintings, a food table and a showing of “The Dark Knight.”

“I wanted to have a fun activity for students. A lot of people here are into geeky stuff so I saw an opportunity and took it,” Lakhyani said.

Senior Matthew Rhoades dressed as Captain America, complete with the superhero’s signature shield.

“It’s the only costume I own, so it’s kind of my go-to,” Rhoades said. “Captain America is my favorite superhero.”

Student Joy Stephanie Telan said that she’s always liked conventions and that she’s previously been to both Otakon, an anime pop culture convention traditionally hosted in Downtown Baltimore, and Annapolis Comic Con. “I’m most looking forward to meeting new people and seeing all of the events,” she said.

Stephanie Papetti and Alison Keelan, both freshmen, came to the con after leaving a screening of “The Lego Batman Movie.”

“I’ve heard about Comic Cons a lot but I never went to one,” Papetti said.

“I’m interested in seeing what it’s actually like.”

For some the event left a little bit to be desired, given Comic Con’s reputation as a larger, widely-attended operation compared to the smaller-scale Towson event.

Senior Daniel Nelson attended the convention dressed as Luke Skywalker, but said he didn’t know what to expect going into the event.

“I’ve never been to a Comic Con before,” Nelson said. “I’ve never had the time or money. I was expecting more than a movie, food, and one event. I don’t know what I was expecting, but I’m not too disappointed.”

And the Oscars (could) go to...

TAYLOR DEVILLE Associate Arts & Life Editor @artvandelady

Compared to last year’s #OscarsSoWhite, this year’s nominations are a marked improvement in diversity. Say what you want about Academy president Cheryl Boone Isaacs (although I can’t help but wonder what took so long)—she delivered on her promise to select more diverse Academy membership, bringing in 683 new Academy members (46 percent women and 41 percent people of color). If you’re like me, you haven’t had the time (or money) to see most of the Oscar nominations—but that’s

okay, because political analyst Nate Silver’s polling aggregation website FiveThirtyEight has an algorithm to predict the most likely winners—personal feelings about Emma Stone’s mediocre performance and Casey Affleck’s history of alleged sexual assault aside (who says journalism’s not objective), here are the most likely winners of the 89th Academy Awards.

Best Motion Picture Most likely to win: “La La Land” Arguably the whitest of the nominees, this modern musical has been sweeping awards this season--it made history by tying with “All About Eve” (1950) and “Titanic” (1997) for the

most nominations ever for one film-14. “La La Land” follows aspiring actress Mia and struggling jazz musician Sebastian chasing their dreams in present-day Los Angeles with a vintage, old-Hollywood style.

Best Director Most likely to win: Damien Chazelle, “La La Land” According to FiveThirtyEight, 84 percent of the winners of the “feature film” category at the Directors Guild awards have gone on to win the Academy Award for best director over the past 25 years. At 31 years old, Chazelle is the youngest --Read the rest of this story online at www.thetowerlight.com

Arts & Life

February 21, 2017 13

All T, no shade KERRY INGRAM

Student explores screenprints

Courtesy of Luke Martin

Screenprinter and illustrator Luke Martin stands in front of his work in the Center for the Arts.

NICOLE SHAKHNAZAROVA Staff Writer

Combining two passions to create a single niche of art may seem more like a challenge rather than a reward to some, but when sophomore Luke Martin creates his artwork, he coalesces screen-printing and illustration to devise graphic forms of art, and enjoys nothing more than doing so.

“I didn’t start screen-printing until about a year or so ago,” said Martin.

“I remember trying screen-printing once in an art class in high school and thinking this is the greatest thing ever, I want to do this for the rest of my life.”

Besides wanting the viewers to understand his artwork, Martin wants his artistic creations to do more than just convey a story.

“I want the viewer to look at my work and interpret what they see,” said Martin. “I want to take a scene and transport the viewer there and

“

make them feel like they are a part of that scene.”

Crafting a graphic art piece which combines screen-printing and illustrations simultaneously does not happen overnight, especially making them work lavishly in tandem. On average, a single design of Martin’s takes two weeks to create. Most of Martin’s artwork is drawn in pen ink by hand in black and white, then scanned into the computer and edited thereafter.

“What’s good about the field of screen-printing is that there are several ways you can have your own style in the art world,” said Martin. “Growing up I was always a fan of graphic artists, artists who did what I’m trying to do now and I’ve always looked up to them and considered them my inspirations, yet I’m still able to have my own style.”

To further advance the expression of his artwork, Martin’s ambitions for 2017 are threefold.

“I think of 2017 as the year for me to get out as much as I can to sell my

artwork,” said Martin. “I also hope to create a theme for my beer can artwork and produce one for all 50 states as I currently have just two, but I’m planning on creating one a month this year,” said Martin.

Martin’s third ambition for the upcoming months is to attend various art exhibits and fairs to display his work to the general public.

“The best way to get people to see your work is to put it in front of them,” said Martin. “I’m lucky that Baltimore has a very decent art culture, and it has a lot of events throughout the year such as Artscape and the Baltimore Academy of Illustration.”

Many contemporary artists discover their artistic metier through inspiration of other artistic greats.

“My favorite artist is Shepard Fairey, the Obey Giant,” said Martin.

“I also love Aaron Horkey’s work, it’s very illustration heavy which is what I like to incorporate in my own work. “ Luke Martin’s artwork can be found on his website suburbanavengerart.com.

Growing up I was always a fan of graphic artists, artists who did what I’m trying to do now and I’ve always looked up to them and considered them my inspirations, yet I’m still able to have my own style.

LUKE MARTIN Artist

Columnist

I have been obsessed with binge-watching old episodes of “RuPaul’s Drag Race” as of late, and my love for drag queens has grown exponentially. I’ve found myself using their catch phrases in my daily life (the term “okay” now always ends with a tongue roll when it leaves my mouth, “okrrrr?”) and I have an abundance of drag queen gifs ready to use as text responses.

I’ve narrowed down my admiration into one main reason as to why I love these beautiful performers so much: They’re not afraid to spill all the T and to tell it how it is.

Unfortunately, we can’t all be drag queens.

However, we can still follow in their stiletto-clad footsteps and share our truths. What better way to spill some T than on a tee?

T-shirts with important sayings have become extremely prevalent in college fashion trends.

As emerging adults, we are beginning to find our voices, and with the current events going on within our country, now is especially the right time to wear our hearts on our sleeves. Literally.

Below is a list of websites that specialize in tees for a variety of voices, whether you’re liberal or conservative, serious or humorous.

No matter what your preferred flavor of tee is (see what I did there?), there are numerous options to choose from!

FOR LIBERAL LOYALTY: our-liberal-pride.myshopify.com This site has the perfect “Make ______ Wrong Again” shirts to call out the racist, sexist, and hateful acts in society.

FOR RACIAL PRIDE: legendaryrootz.com This site is a black-owned business that specializes in creating tees to celebrate those with a bit more melanin in their skin. Shirts vary from serious to gentle humor.

FOR FEMINIST FIERCENESS: feministapparel.com OKAY LADIES (and gents) NOW LET’S GET IN FORMATION! This site supplies a large range of tees promoting gender equality in a fun way.

FOR THE RAD REPUBLICAN: cafepress.com/+republican+t-shirts This site has a good selection of shirts for all of my conservative peeps (I may not be a Republican, but you need some love, too)! The shirt I predict to be the most popular for this group? One donning the Republican elephant and the words “Raised Right” in a bold font.

FOR LITERALLY ANYONE: lookhuman.com or 6dollarshirts.com.

Now prepare yourself for the spill, Tiger, because all of this T is sure to be scalding.

” Courtesy of@BrownSugaBabe/Twitter

T-shirts from various online shops let you wear your pride and opinions on your sleeve.

14 21, 2017 February 21, 2017 14February

Puzzles Puzzles

Crossword Sudoku

? ?

Turn to page 15 for answers to today’s

9-3-16

● Each row and each column must contain the numbers 1 through 4 (easy) or 1 through 6 (challenging) without repeating.

● The numbers within the heavily

outlined boxes, called cages, must combine using the given operation (in any order) to produce the target numbers in the top-left corners.

● Freebies: Fill in single-box cages with the number in the top-left corner.

Please support independent student journalism @ TU

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To make a donation, please go to TheTowerlight.com/youcanhelp/ Or mail a check to Baltimore Student Media, 8000 York Rd., Towson, MD 21252.

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Arts & Life

February 21, 2017 15

Trump and superheroes

And the decline of Western civilization WILLIAM STRANG-MOYA Staff Photographer

Have you ever pondered what so many modern “superheroes” and our “president” have in common?

A nauseatingly similar amount of things. Before I explore this assertion, I would like to openly acknowledge that I do not by any means advocate superhero movies. Regardless of their objectively mystifying qualities, that they can afford to have, I will argue that these films are a plague on the greater good of American film and that any individual who openly supports this obscene oversaturation of genre should reevaluate their understanding of artistic appeal and creative integrity. But I digress.

As for Donald Trump, I will withhold my opinion simply due to the fact that he, as both a political and business entity, seems to shamelessly prioritize the debasement of his public image (not that his public image was anything glamorous in the first place).

So why do superhero movies sell? Why are they successful? Is it actually what the people want?

Unless you frequent sources such as birthmoviesdeath.com, one might assume that these movies are so successful simply due to the fact that critics actually like them. But that’s not always the case. On IMDB, there’s a list of the “most popular movies” currently generating buzz, and, as of the month of February, 26 percent of the films

on this list have not even been released. It is, of course, out of a list of 100 movies. And upon their release, will they still be so popular? Modern Hollywood thrives on its ability to market these films.

Often, after the release of one of these over-the-top superhero features, it is simply forgotten about.

Titles such as “Suicide Squad” and “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice” each scored around 6.5/10, and even worse scores in terms of critical reception. What made these films so iconic, however, are their respective marketing campaigns. They got such a tremendous amount of unnecessary coverage that people were bombarded by movie trailers any time they would try to watch a YouTube video.

This ties in with Donald Trump in a number of ways. The more one displays themselves in an increasingly absurd and theatrical manner, the more attention one draws. The more attention one sells. And that is a simple parallel that can be drawn. With such a premise, one could even have the same proposal for horror movies or romance films.

“Superheroes” such as Tony Stark (Iron Man), Bruce Wayne (Batman), or Oliver Queen (The Green Arrow), are all incredibly wealthy members of society when they are not being “superheroes.” I’ve often heard conservatives express discontent with Hollywood -- mostly in response to individuals such as Meryl Streep or the creators of “Rogue One” -- but, whether anyone will admit it or not,

movies and television, like music, are perhaps the most profoundly impactful artistic mediums that influence society.

If Bubba Gump Shrimp can become an actual restaurant, “The Lego Batman Movie” can become more successful than a live-action Batman movie, or Hanz Kiessling’s “Temptation Sensation” will forever remind one of “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia,” then I firmly believe that a nation of moviegoers can willingly, if not unknowingly, subject themselves to the belief that an unnecessarily wealthy individual, regardless of their experience or obnoxious personality, is qualified to “save a nation” from something or other.

Yes, it sounds like a stretch, but with polarized political affiliations going so far to demonize the media, the movie world manipulates in such a subtle manner that it draws little to no attention to itself. Given the fact that these films have such weak plotlines and are practically devoid of any creative integrity whatsoever, I believe that individuals who do not pick up on such things can’t help but give in to a political movement that almost solely relies on hype without depth followed by waiting for the next best thing.

Superhero films are simply the tip of the iceberg in terms of Hollywood’s feces-churned, franchise-driven pulp movie garbage, but if they weren’t so revered, this article would be meaningless.

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Solutions ● Each row and each column must

contain the numbers 1 through 4 (easy) or 1 through 6 (challenging) without repeating.

● The numbers within the heavily

Courtesy of Donald J. Trump on Facebook

Some critics speculate that the popularity of superhero movies may have led to Trump’s popularity, too.

9-5-16

outlined boxes, called cages, mu combine using the given operatio (in any order) to produce the targ numbers in the top-left corners.

● Freebies: Fill in single-box cages

the number in the top-left corner.

KenKen® is a registered trademark of

for Puzzles on page 14

16 February 21, 2017

Spring Sports Preview

to reign as national champs Brooke Glenn/ The Towerlight

Junior midfielder Cole Robertson looks up the field at Johnny Unitas Stadium in Towson’s exhibition game against Villanova. The game took place Saturday, Feb 4 (Above).

Senior attacker Tyler Konen looks to dish the ball in the same game against Villanova. Towson will be back at Johnny Unitas Stadium March 1 at 7 p.m. against Loyola (Below).

DESMOND BOYLE Staff Writer

Towson enters the 2017 season as a favorite to win a third consecutive Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) Title.

However, for seniors like attacker Ryan Drenner, winning another CAA Championship is not the ultimate goal.

“To keep playing ‘til [the National Championship], that’s been one of my goals since I was little,” Drenner said.

“I know our senior class. When we came in freshman year, that was a goal of ours to accomplish during our four.”

Towson’s team impressed last year with a 10-9 upset of the second ranked

“

Denver Pioneers, before being eliminated by local rival Loyola.

One of the keys to moving on further than the quarterfinals in the NCAA tournament will be improvment in winning faceoffs in big games.

In the two NCAA tournament contests last year, the Tigers won just nine of 44 faceoffs.

“Having more options this year is something we're excited about,” Head Coach Shawn Nadelen said.

“I think in the past we’ve had our number one option and then after that it’s been a little dicey. I don’t think we’re in that situation anymore.”

The biggest challenge Towson faces this year is replacing three starting defenders from last season plus standout goalkeeper Tyler

White, who all graduated last spring.

Despite losing the starting defense from last year, Nadelen said the goal remains the same for Towson’s potent offense.

“I don’t think it puts pressure on our attack,” Nadelen said. “Our offense always puts pressure on themselves, we want to score on every possession we have.”

Drenner and fellow senior attacker Joe Seider will be looking to light up the scoreboard again this year.

Seider lead the team in scoring with 35 goals, while Drenner scored 33 and provided 23 assists.

Whether the experienced attack or new defensive unit shoulder the load for the Tigers this year, the goal remains clear: play all the way to Memorial Day.

Having more options this year is something that we are excited about. I think in the past we’ve had our number one option and then after that it’s been a little dicey, I don’t think we’re in that situation anymore.

”

SHAWN NADELEN Head Coach

Spring Sports Preview

February 21, 2017

17

experienced tigers look to make strides

Alex Best/ The Towerlight

Towson baseball practices taking ground balls at John B. Schuerholz Park this week. The team is set to kick off its season in Cal State Northridge Feb. 24th at 5 p.m. (Above).

Towson baseball practices its infield drills this week. The team will look to improve upon its last season in which they went 20-35 overall and 10-14 in the conference (Below).

JILL GATTENS

now sophomores," Gottlieb said.

Sophomore Richie Palacios is coming off a successful freshman campaign in which he won CAA Rookie Towson is waiting to get its 2017 of the Year honors. He finished 2016 season started, and the team will batting .329 with five home runs and play on the road in its first series of 38 RBI. the year Feb. 24, against Cal State Palacios played at Northridge. second base last seaThis year's son but will make the team is looking to The goal is to get transition to shortimprove upon last into the conference stop. Brady Policelli, season, during which they went tournament. I don’t last year’s shortstop, 20-35 overall and think we are too far was drafted in the 13th round by the 10-14 in CAA away from getting Detroit Tigers. games.

"Palacios had "The goal is to a spot a great summer," get into the conferMIKE GOTTLIEB Gottlieb said. “He is a ence tournament," Head Coach much more confident Head Coach Mike player than he was last year. He Gottlieb said. "I don’t think we are too has the talent to be one of the best far away from getting a spot." players in our conference."

Gottlieb is entering his 29th seaAlong with Palacios, the team son as Towson's head coach. He said will bring back A.J. Gallo and he is optimistic about experienced Collin Guyer. Mark Grunberg will players returning to the lineup. also return after sitting out last "Last year's team was a young team and a lot of freshman played who are year due to injury.

Contributing Writer @JillGattens

“

"Even with having a young team last year, the young guys can get better,"

Gottlieb said.

The Tigers will open at home

against Wagner March 3-5 at John B. Schuerholz Park.

18 February 21, 2017

Spring Sports Preview

to be the best, you have to beat the best File photos by Mark Dragon/ The Towerlight

Redshirt senior Michelle Gildea embraces junior Emily Gillingham after scoring the game-winning goal against CAA rival Delaware last year at Johnny Unitas Stadium (Above).

Gildea scores the game-winning goal against Delaware. She will play in her last season with Towson this year. The team will be play its next game against Georgetown (Below).

face Georgetown. Last year, Towson KARUGA KOINANGE Assistant Sports Editor

Head Coach Sonia LaMonica has led Towson to four CAA Championship Titles and three NCAA Tournament appearances since starting in 2011.

Despite a difficult schedule this year, expectations remain high for the 19th ranked Tigers.

“I think the message has always been the same over the course of the years, and that is we’re willing to play anybody, and we need to beat the best in order to be the best,” LaMonica said.

Towson began its season with losses to Stony Brook and Penn State, but the team has since recorded its first win, defeating University of Maryland, Baltimore County, Wednesday.

Towson returns to action Feb. 22, traveling to Washington D.C. to

defeated Georgetown at Johnny Unitas Stadium.

Looking ahead to the rest of the schedule, the Tigers will have a long stretch of non-conference play before they start CAA competition.

In non-conference play, Towson will host local rival Loyola, Florida, Stetson, Notre Dame and Oregon. The team will also travel for a road matchup against Monmouth.

In CAA play, the team will host William & Mary, Elon and Drexel, and travel to James Madison, Hofstra and Delaware. The Tigers will end the season by hosting local rival John Hopkins April 30.

Four of the Tigers’ opponents are ranked in the intercollegiate top-10, but LaMonica is confident that her team is up for the challenge.

“We’ve always played a competitive schedule in order to show that we wanna compete against top teams,”

Sports

February 21, 2017 19

towson takes two Tigers defeat Villanova,George Mason

Jon Mazza Men’s Lacrosse

Courtesy of Towson University Athletics

Two Towson players await a serve in a match. The team is coming off two wins this weekend (Above).

BILLY OWENS Staff Writer @billyowens174

Towson completed a trio of hardfought matches over the weekend with wins over Villanova and George Mason, but a close defeat to George Washington.

Sunday afternoon, Towson hosted Villanova at the Bare Hills Racquet and Fitness Club in Baltimore. The team earned a 7-0 win over the Villanova and dropped only one set in singles play.

“We played solid, fundamental tennis and competed well,” Interim Head Coach Jamie Peterson said.

Towson gained early momentum in the match by winning the opening doubles point. The No. 1 team of A.J. Gomer and Ren van Oorschodt defeated Kaylan Rotman and Alexandra Krogius 6-0, while the No. 2 team of Lucy Williams and Jane Shusterman defeated Paulina Bajet and Linley Busby 6-3.

The Wildcats pairing of Victoria Martinez and Carina Burdick took the No. 3 doubles set 6-4 over Nicola Shakhnazarova and Barbora Vasilkova.

The Tigers continued their strong performance into singles, winning all six matches to sweep the Wildcats. No. 1 Shakhnazarova held off Rotman 6-1, 7-5, No. 2 Gomer took out Martinez 6-3, 6-0, and No. 3 Williams defeated Bajet 6-3, 6-2.

No. 4 Vasilkova edged out Krogius

6-1, 7-6 (5), No. 5 Shusterman held off Burdick 7-5, 4-6, 1-0 [10-5], and No. 6 Sophie Lesage closed out Busby 6-4, 6-4.

Saturday, Towson defeated George Mason 5-0 at the Trump National Country Club in Sterling, Virginia. The contest was played with all five matches (one doubles, four singles) being played as best-of-three set matches with no third-set match tiebreaker.

“We did what was necessary and competed well down the line,” Peterson said. “We persevered in tough moments.”

In the doubles match, the Tigers’ pairing of Gomer and van Oorschodt held off the Patriots’ Morgan Yang and Nicole Haigwood 6-4, 2-6, 6-1.

In singles play, No. 1 Shakhnazarova defeated Sydney Green 6-2, 6-4, while No. 2 Williams came back from a set down to defeat Scarlett Walston 3-6, 6-0, 6-1. No. 3 Vasilkova took out Rachel Lee 6-3, 6-3 and No. 4 Lucy Gloninger defeated Olivia LacyThompson 6-3, 6-1.

Friday afternoon, Towson lost a very close 4-3 match to George Washington at the Southeast Tennis & Learning Center in Washington, D.C. “Their team had played five matches already while we had only played two,” Peterson said. “They were just more match tough.”

In a tightly contested opening doubles point, the Colonials won two of the three matches to gain an early lead. Taylor Nederlander and Marie-

Louise Decamps bested the No. 2 pair of Williams and Shusterman 7-5, while Allison Hansen and Victoria Kogan took out No. 3 Lesage and Gloninger 6-3. The Tigers’s No. 1 team of Gomer and van Oorschodt won against Maria Siopacha and Melis Bayraktaroglu 7-5.

The doubles point proved to be key for George Washington, as they held off Towson’s three wins in singles play to take the dual match victory. Siopacha defeated No. 1 Shakhnazarova 6-2, 7-6 (6), Bayraktaroglu won two close tiebreakers to beat No. 3 Williams 7-6 (5), 7-6 (9), and Kamilla Beisenova defeated No. 5 Shusterman 6-4, 6-2.

Even though No. 2 Gomer defeated Decamps 6-3, 6-4, No. 4 Vasilkova defeated Nederlander 6-1, 7-5, and No. 6 van Oorschodt defeated Hansen 6-1, 6-4, it was not enough to overcome the dropped doubles point.

“Overall, I’m very pleased with their performance this weekend,” Peterson said.

Towson’s record currently sits at 4-2 on the season and 1-0 at home after the win Sunday.

The team has no matches this weekend but will travel to Pittsburgh the following weekend for a pair of matches, starting with a neutral-site matchup against Buffalo on Saturday before taking on host Duquesne Sunday.

The following Tuesday, Towson will host its first on-campus match of the year against Longwood.

Sophomore Jon Mazza, who made his first collegiate start at the attacker position, recorded six goals and six points in Towson’s 13-5 victory over Mount St. Mary’s Saturday at Waldron Stadium in Emmitsburg, Maryland.

20 February 21, 2017

Sports

Towson triumphs over james madison, elon Joe Noyes/ The Towerlight

Junior guard Deshaun Morman drives to the basket against CAA rival Elon Thursday night. Morman finshed the game with seven points, one block and one steal (Above).

Senior forward John Davis takes his seat on the bench during warmups. Davis was ruled out for the rest of the season after suffering a gunshot wound to the knee (Below).

JORDAN COPE Sports Editor @jordancope26

Difficult circumstances couldn’t keep Towson down this week, as the team rallied to defeat James Madison Saturday and Elon Thursday in this season’s final two games at SECU Arena.

Prior to Thursday’s matchup against Elon, Head Coach Pat Skerry announced that senior forward John Davis, who sustained a graze wound to the knee from a Feb. 11 drive-by shooting in Philadelphia, will be out for the remainder of the year.

“We always preach next man up in practice,” Davis said “I really believe that guys get hurt — which right now I’m hurt — other things happen that pull guys off the court.

So everybody’s got to stay ready. A lot of guys are stepping, up as they should. It’s their time to play.”

Saturday, the Tigers hosted the Dukes on senior day where Davis

and forward William Adala Moto were honored before the game.

In front of a crowd of 2,871, Towson downed James Madison 75-65. The team shot 50 percent from the floor while holding James Madison to 43 percent. Junior guard Mike Morsell led all scorers with 19 points. Freshman guard Zane Martin added 16.

“I thought [Zane] made big, big shots at the end of the half, late in the game” Skerry said. “When they got momentum he stepped on it every time with tough, tough shots.

He likes the moment.”

Thursday, Towson clashed with Elon, a team that has taken the CAA by surprise. Elon has posted a 16-10 record this season despite being picked seventh in the preseason polls.

In the first half, Towson held a slim 4-point lead, but came out strong in the second half to secure an 85-66 win.

Morsell led all scorers with 32 points. He was just one field goal shy of tying his own record for most points in a game at SECU Arena.

“Mike was Mike,” Skerry said.

“He dominated the game, that’s what we needed. He’s on a whole different level. It’s not surprising.

We’ve seen it, we know it.”

Martin also gave the Tigers a lift.

He went 4-10 from the field and 2-4 from 3-point range. He finished the game with 12 points and one steal.

Towson will conclude the regular

season this week. The team will take on UNC Wilmington Thursday and William & Mary Sunday. The conference tournament will then run March 3-7 in Charleston, South Carolina.