Massachusetts Daily Collegian: April 14, 2016

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19 more students arrested following Whitmore sit-in Arrest count reaches 34 in two-day period

By Marie Maccune and Fitzgerald Pucci Collegian Staff

U n ive r s i t y of Massachusetts police arrested 19 more students for trespassing after the Whitmore Administration Building had closed for business Wednesday night.

According to an email from University spokesperson Ed Blaguszewski, “When buildings are closed for business and are no longer staffed, standard protocols require that members of the public depart to ensure public safety and the protection of property within the building.”

Wednesday’s arrests make a total of 34 when added to the 15 students who were arrested Tuesday night. Fourteen of those arrested Tuesday were arraigned in Belchertown Wednesday morning.

The UMass Fossil Fuel Divestment Campaign held its third sit-in at Whitmore Wednesday. Students have demanded a complete divestment of the UMass endowment from the top 200 publicly traded fossil fuel companies since 2013.

In December 2015, the UMass Foundation, which controls the UMass endowment, announced it was pulling direct investments from coal. According to Student Trustee Emily O’Neil, the investments were worth about $400,000.

On April 4 of this year, Divest UMass re-submitted their official ask to UMass system President Marty Meehan and Chairman of the Board of Trustees Victor Woolridge.

Following the first day of sit-ins Monday, the University released a press release reading, “UMass system leaders today said they would advocate for a policy that would see the five-campus UMass system divest and pro-

hibit direct investment in fossil fuel companies.

Victor Woolridge, chairman of the University of Massachusetts Board of Trustees, and UMass President Marty Meehan said the step they were recommending represented ‘a logical next step’ on the action the University took last year when UMass divested its direct investments in coal companies.”

President Meehan and Chairman Woolridge called their commitment to advocating for divestment both a proposal and a pledge in the release.

Divest UMass’ request included a UMass commitment to make a plan for divestment no later than June 1.

“We don’t want UMass officials to make a pledge,” Divest UMass spokesperson Filipe Carvalho said. “We want them to divest.”

According to Carvalho, at one point there were at least 203 students participating in the sit-in

Wednesday.

By 4:30 p.m., protesters including students, faculty and staff had filled the third floor outside of the chancellor’s office. In fact, some professors took their classes to get trained as sitin protesters.

Carvalho explained that protesters participating in the sit-in had all received Nonviolent Direct Action (NVDA) training. Trained students were marked with an “x” on their hand and brought into Whitmore via a Divest “Whitmore escort.”

Every half hour by the Whitmore ramp, NVDA training sessions were held by Divest officials.

According to Carvalho, 20 students had volunteered to be arrested and were given additional training.

O’Neil said she was “not entirely sure why students chose to stay” after the building closed Tuesday, adding that she thought that the Board of Trustees presented a “fairly decent

KATHERINE MAYO/COLLEGIAN

Nineteen students involved with the UMass Fossil Fuel Divestment Campaign were arrested Wednesday after refusing to leave the Whitmore Administration Building. deal.”

O’Neil spent Wednesday attending the Board of Trustees meeting in Dartmouth. She said that the Divest UMass campaign had “cast a shadow” on the meeting.

“Everyone was definitely aware,” she said during an interview with the Daily Collegian before the arrests Wednesday.

However, she did say

that she understands the protesters’ frustrations.

“There needs to be more commitment publicly to back investment any way they can,” O’Neil said. “I don’t think it’s unreasonable to get a public commitment from these public leaders.”

When asked about the value of UMass investments in fossil fuels, O’Neil see

ARRESTS on page 4

15 UMass students arraigned Wed. on trespassing charges

Divest the rest

Group was arrested following sit-in Tues.

By ShelBy aShline Collegian Staff

KATHERINE MAYO/COLLEGIAN

Jameson Kidder and other participants in the UMass Fossil Fuel Divest Campaign’s sit-in gather outside the Whitmore Administration Building Tuesday night.

Fifteen University of Massachusetts students were arraigned in Eastern Hampshire District Court in Belchertown Wednesday morning on charges of trespassing.

The students were arrested at Whitmore Administration Building Tuesday night following the second day-long sit-in protest by the UMass Fossil Fuel Divestment Campaign against the University’s investments in the fossil fuel

industry.

Despite a pledge of advocacy for divestment by Victor Woolridge, chairman of the UMass Board of Trustees, and UMass President Marty Meehan according to a UMass press release, student protesters continued their occupation of Whitmore after it closed for business.

Following hours of negotiation between members of the campaign and UMass administrators, many students willingly left at around 8:20 p.m. The remaining 15 students were arrested at 9:30 p.m. following several warnings from the UMass Police Department, the Massachusetts Daily Collegian reported yester-

day.

All of the students chose to represent themselves in court Wednesday and met in a group with Assistant Northwestern District Attorney Robert Opsitnick to discuss their options, according to MassLive. The students were all offered the same sentencing deal under District Court Judge Thomas Estes.

Thus far, fourteen of the students have been put on four months of probation under the conditions that they stay away from Whitmore after 6 p.m. They also must complete 20 hours of community service each, see

COURT on page 2

Dyson discusses Obama’s impact

UM Board of Trustees hears from student groups in Wed. meeting

Author spoke Wed. about new book

Next session will be held June 15

By daniel curtin Collegian Correspondent Michael Eric Dyson visited the University of Massachusetts to discuss his new book “The Black Presidency: Barack Obama and the Politics of Race in America” Wednesday afternoon.

Dyson, who is the author of 18 books and current professor of sociology at Georgetown University, spoke in the Bowker Auditorium at Stockbridge Hall.

He reflected on Obama’s time in office and its impact on race relations in the United States. Dyson spoke admiringly about the achievement it was for Obama to become the first African-American US pres-

ident.

“I know that when Obama was first elected that many black people had to wake up and say ‘Were we just dreaming?’ Is this black figure really the president of the United States of America?” he said.

The lecture was sponsored by Commonwealth Honors College, the Office of the Chancellor, the Office of the Provost, the Office of the Dean of the Graduate School, W.E.B. Du Bois Library, the College of Humanities and Fine Arts, the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences and the Kathryn and Paul Williamson Lecture Fund according to a UMass press release.

Dyson did not refrain from criticizing what he saw as the president’s see

DYSON on page 3

By ShelBy aShline Collegian Staff

The University of Massachusetts Board of Trustees heard from members of the Coalition to End Rape Culture, the UMass Fossil Fuel Divestment Campaign and the Resident Assistant/Peer Mentor Unit of the United Auto Workers during its meeting on the Dartmouth campus Wednesday.

Topics discussed in the meeting include just cause for peer mentors and resident assistants, the implementation of a Survivor’s Bill of Rights across the UMass system and a plan for divestment from fossil fuels.

According to the meet-

ing agenda, Max Montille, a student from the UMass Dartmouth chapter of the UMass Fossil Fuel Divestment Campaign, spoke to the board. Student Trustee Emily O’Neil said that Montille asked for “commitment to a plan by June that would spell out what divestment would look like over the next five years,” citing 2021 as the goal for complete divestment.

O’Neil said that Montille also read a statement in support of the student protestors participating in the sit-in in the Whitmore Administration Building.

However, O’Neil commented that the UMass Foundation has control of the divestment process, not the Board of Trustees, even though “obviously the president and chair of the board has a lot of sway

with that group.”

Priya Ghosh and Olivia Murphy, president and vice president of CERC, respectively, as well as CERC member Adara North were present at the meeting. Murphy spoke about possibly implementing a Survivor’s Bill of Rights across the UMass system.

To make the idea feasible, Murphy requested the Board of Trustees compile a report “to kind of get a feel for how the whole system is doing in terms of supporting survivors.”

Murphy said that CERC drafted a document stating what the organization wanted the report to contain.

“We’re asking them to go through their written policies (and) procedures,” she said, including what they do when there is a

complaint filed, a breakdown of all the resources for survivors of sexual assault on campus, what training is required for faculty and staff and data about campus crime.

“We kind of want this to be a comparison because we know that each of the five campuses are very different,” Murphy said, adding that she hoped the report would allow the board to consider a minimum standard and “give them an understanding of what areas need more work.”

Murphy requested that the report be completed by the Sept. 21 Board of Trustees meeting on the UMass Lowell campus.

Chairman of the Board of Trustees Victor Woolridge was concerned about how see

BOARD on page 2

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Thursday, April 14, 2016

THE MASSACHUSETTS DAILY COLLEGIAN

Harvard law professor visits UMass, discusses Israeli-Palestinian conflict Talk part of series in Jewish culture

By Rhiannon Snide Collegian Correspondent The University of Massachusetts’ Judaic and Near Eastern Studies department and College of Humanities and Fine Arts welcomed author Noah Feldman and Felix Frankfurter, professor of law at Harvard Law School, for a discussion titled “Violence, Politics and Religion: Can Israel Remain Jewish and Democratic?” on Wednesday at Goodell Hall.

An audience of over 50 students and community members gathered for the event, which focused on solutions for democracy in the Middle East, specifically in respect to the IsraeliPalestinian conflict.

“A lot of people think they know what the morally correct answer is,” Feldman said, “but that

is radically different from knowing an answer that will satisfy you morally, while simultaneously working in practice.”

Feldman gave two main proposals to developing democracy in Israel that he concluded as both unlikely, but not impossible. These proposals included both a one and two state solution.

The one state solution Feldman offered varied depending on the ideals of the state. Within Palestine an egalitarian secular democracy was envisioned, whereas Israel envisioned a democracy that would be fixed to remain nationally Jewish.

Feldman believed these conflicting views of democracy inhibit the creation of a singular state between Israel and Palestine.

“I don’t think it would be very easy to pull off, but do I think it is impossible?

No,” Feldman stated.

In terms of the two state solution Feldman explained that simply

separating the two states would not bring a solution of democracy in Israel.

“There would still be the question of the status of minorities, particularly Jewish, living in Palestine,” said Feldman, “never the less the violence would slowly begin to seep back out of the issue.”

This lecture was just one of the annual lectures sponsored by the Robert and Pamela Jacobs Lecture Series in Jewish Culture.

According to a University press release, “The Robert and Pamela Jacobs Lecture Series in Jewish Culture provides public lectures by leading figures in contemporary Jewish thought, education, culture or politics. Each lecture may explore a specific theme, such as American Jewish history, Jewish art, the Holocaust or religious thought.”

“It’s an important form of outreach for the department. A number of departments have these types of

lecture series. It’s a great way of doing intellectual and cultural outreach,” said Julie Hayes, dean of the College Humanities and Fine Arts.

Jay Berkovitz, professor of Judaic and Near Eastern Studies and director of the Center for Jewish Studies at UMass, emphasized the importance of the event, saying the lecture series exposes students and the community to a world of Judaic related ideas.

“I care about the situation between both nations (Israel and Palestine) so much,” stated Sahar Khan, a freshman studying legal studies and journalism at UMass, “Thinking about the conflict between the nations makes me really upset, so I was really happy to hear professor Feldman’s views on it.”

Rhiannon Snide can be reached at rsnide@umass.edu.

DailyCollegian.com

COURT

continued from page 1

and have the option of paying a $50 fine or completing four hours of community service for each month they are on probation.

The remaining student, Christine Dasco, had to leave the courthouse before it was time to enter a plea.

She will be back in court Thursday, when she is expected to accept the deal, according to MassLive.

According to UMass s p o ke s p e r s o n Ed Blaguszewski, it is standard policy for information about the arrests to also be sent to the Dean of Students Office.

“Anytime a student is arrested and we were aware

BOARD

of it, that information is sent to the Dean of Students and it is reviewed,” he said in a phone interview. The Dean of Students Office will decide if the students violated the Student Code of Conduct and what action, if any, needs to be taken.

According to the probation office at the Eastern Hampshire District Courthouse, the students will return to court August 17 at the end of their probation, when the charges will be dismissed as long as they comply with the conditions.

Shelby Ashline can be reached at sashline@umass.edu.

continued from page 1

realistic the deadline was, according to Murphy.

“This needs to be a priority, and if it takes longer than this date, that’s understandable, but we want to know that this is something that is being treated with an appropriate sense of urgency,” she said.

Ian Roche of the Resident Assistant/Peer Mentor Unit spoke about the need for just cause, according to O’Neil. The RA/PM contract ensuring just cause is currently in mediation, which O’Neil described as a long process.

“I hope that they can get a contract soon, because working without a contract is really risky,” she said.

More than a dozen members of the Graduate Employee Organization

also attended “in support of the just cause right, in support of the Survivor’s Bill of Rights and divestment,” according to Anais Surkin, a union representative and organizer of UAW Local 2322.

Murphy commented that “after the meeting, almost all the groups were approached by members of the board to talk about ways to move forward” and that she “hope(s) that these three groups in particular have had some sort of resolution before the (next) meeting.”

The Board of Trustees will meet again on June 15 at the UMass Medical School in Worcester.

According to Murphy, the meeting will be focused on deciding fees and tuition.

Shelby Ashline can be reached at sashline@umass.edu.

THE MASSACHUSETTS DAILY COLLEGIAN

DailyCollegian.com

Obama visits CIA as US steps up attacks on Islamic State

By Brian Bennett and W.J. Hennigan

Tribune Washington Bureau

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama made a rare visit Wednesday to CIA headquarters for briefings on the war against Islamic State as the administration steps up air attacks along a patch of Syria’s northern border in a renewed push to block the flow of fighters and supplies to the extremist group.

Obama, who recently asked the Pentagon and CIA for proposals to increase pressure in Syria, is considering sending 200 more members of U.S. special operations forces to advise

and assist Kurdish and Arab militias seeking to close the so-called Manbij Gap, a porous 60-mile stretch that long has served as a cross-border corridor for the militants.

Islamic State forces holding the corridor have come under more coalition airstrikes in the last two weeks than any other target in Syria, according to U.S. officials. The Turkish military also has increased its artillery barrages against militants across its southern border.

Obama is considering giving more advanced artillery to Sunni Arab militias, increasing assistance to Syrian Kurdish forces, as well as

making efforts to recruit more Sunni Arabs to fight alongside Kurds, according to officials who spoke on condition of anonymity in discussing ongoing planning.

The president - who visited the CIA with Vice President Joe Biden, Secretary of State John F. Kerry and more than two dozen senior national security officials - also may seek to resolve a simmering dispute between the CIA and the Pentagon over which Syrian rebel forces are best positioned to act as proxies and allies in the maelstrom of a multisided war. see

OBAMA on page 4

DYSON

Thursday, April 14, 2016

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continued from page 1

shortcomings. He said the president has been hesitant to address the issue of race by approaching it with a “strategic inadvertence.”

“This is the first time I had a chance to see a lecture about this historic period in American history,” Martin Jones, a UMass alumnus, said. “I also happen to be a fan of Michael Eric Dyson and his other books, I think he is one of the most brilliant intellectuals on race in America.”

Dyson’s talk covered many events involving race relations that occurred during Obama’s time in office, including the

shooting of Michael Brown in 2014 and the arrest of Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates in 2009. “(Obama) is the Shaquille O’Neal of presidents. My man Shaquille just got into the Hall of Fame, a dominant center, one of the most gifted players of all time and yet he couldn’t shoot free throws…” Dyson said as the audience laughed at his comparison. “Obama’s free throw shooting is race and its reality. He’s a great and dominant president but when it comes to race he has been feckless and in many ways unimaginative.”

Sarah Tanzi, a political science graduate student, was impressed with the insight that Dyson was able to reveal about how Obama handled issues of race during his presidency.

“I think that what I found most compelling about his talk was essentially the analysis he was making on how Obama has to walk that fine line about addressing race,” Tanzi said. “While symbolically he does a lot for race… In terms of action (Obama) won’t do as much.”

Dan Curtin can be reached at dcurtin@umass.edu and followed on Twitter @dmcurtin96.

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Thursday, April 14, 2016

ARRESTS

THE MASSACHUSETTS DAILY COLLEGIAN

OBAMA

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said that the information is not readily available and that there is a lack of transparency surrounding the UMass Foundation in general. This sentiment was echoed by Carvalho.

The UMass Foundation is “not super accountable to students,” O’Neil said.

“They do whatever they decide to do.”

However, according to Carvalho, “There are Board of Trustee members who sit on the UMass Foundation Board of Directors and we know they have the leadership and power to direct the UMass Foundation to divest.”

There is less than a million dollars directly invested in oil and gas, according to O’Neil, However, there is an unknown number of other funds invested indirectly in oil and gas through a variety of mutual and hedge funds.

The Socially Responsible Investing Advisory Committee, a

“relevant” UMass body that the University said would review plans for divestment in its press release, has not met in a year according to O’Neil.

“I don’t see the administration of the University system (changing) anything … given the very slow progression from the last three years,” she said.

At 6:09 p.m., Carvalho announced that UMPD had given protesters the first warning to disperse.

Shortly afterwards, the protesters wishing to avoid arrest walked down the Whitmore ramp and proceeded to where police were stationed and began chanting by the southwest side of Whitmore.

About halfway through the rally, a coordinator of UMass Divest announced that Dr. Jill Stein, a presidential candidate and member of the Green Party, had tweeted in support of the UMass Divest movement.

Protestors began to

disperse after the last group of six students were arrested around 7:30 p.m.

Divest UMass organizers announced to the crowd that the sit-in occupation of Whitmore would resume 8:30 a.m.

Thursday.

Following the protest, Carvalho said “We’re proud of the action tonight. We showed them that we have power and we will be back.”

He added that Divest UMass “absolutely” has enough funds to bail out the 19 arrestees Wednesday night.

O’Neil said she hoped UMass would understand that the protesters were students expressing their beliefs and “not a reason for the University to take action against them.”

Marie MacCune can be reached at mmaccune@umass.edu and followed on Twitter @MarieMacCune.

Fitzgerald Pucci can be reached at fpucci@umass.edu.

DailyCollegian.com

continued from page 3

Obama did not disclose his decisions after the nearly twohour meeting, but he told several dozen agency employees in the CIA entrance hall that “we have momentum and we intend to keep that momentum.”

He said that the ranks of Islamic State fighters have fallen to the lowest level in two years, that the group has not had a successful offensive in nearly a year, and that “we continue to take out their leaders, their commanders and those plotting terrorist attacks.”

In recent months, the Pentagon has armed and helped advise Kurdish militias in northeastern Syria after an ambitious effort to train and arm a Sunni Arab rebel force collapsed last year. About 50 U.S. special operations personnel are based in the Kurdish-held zone.

U.S. intelligence officials have warned for months that funneling too much military and intelligence support to Syrian Kurds risks alienating the Sunni Arab militias that compete for territory with the Kurds, an ethnic minority.

It also could anger the government in Turkey, which hosts a major U.S. air base and is a crucial U.S. partner in the war.

Turkish Kurds have fought for greater autonomy for more than three decades.

The government in Ankara fears that building Kurdish militias - even in Syria - into a stronger fighting force could lead to the formation of a breakaway state along the border.

During a visit to Washington this month for a nuclear summit, Turkish President Recep Tayyip

Erdogan told Obama that he does not want U.S.-backed Kurdish forces to control new territory along the border, including within the Manbij Gap, according to a U.S. official who spoke on condition of anonymity in discussing the private meeting.

Erdogan told Obama that U.S.-backed Kurdish militias moving west of the Euphrates River into the Manbij Gap would be a “red line” for his government, the official said.

It’s unknown how Obama responded.

Turkey increased its shelling of Islamic State positions south of the border after a spate of terrorist attacks by the group, including a March suicide bombing on a high-end shopping street in Istanbul. Last week, U.S. airstrikes and Turkish artillery provided cover for rebel forces to assault the Syrian town of Rai, a border crossing at the western edge of the Manbij Gap. Col. Steve Warren, a Baghdad-based spokesman for the coalition, said Wednesday that over the last two weeks U.S.-backed rebel forces have pushed Islamic State from more than a dozen small villages near the gap.

“While these operations don’t encompass a lot of territory, this is critically important terrain for (Islamic State), because it is their last, best route to move people, money and supplies into Syria and Iraq,” he said.

“There are some very ancient animosities through that region,” Warren said.

“Certainly those have to be accounted for; certainly those will show themselves from time to time as different groups brush up against each other in the course of pursuing and fighting” the

militants.

Jeffrey White, a former Defense Intelligence Agency official, cautioned that closing the Syrian border would hurt Islamic State but wouldn’t be decisive in the war.

“This kind of anaconda strategy and slow attritional strategy, those are very longterm strategies, and (Islamic State) can offset them in various ways,” he said. “The real issue is getting a force on the ground that can defeat them in battle. The Kurds don’t look to be that force. They aren’t large enough and they don’t look to fight outside their traditional areas.”

The U.S. and its allies long have sought to close the smuggling routes that lace Syria’s northern border. The Sunni extremist group has drawn more than 36,500 foreign fighters to Syria and Iraq from around the globe, and many entered through Turkey.

The latest coalition attacks also are aimed at cutting supply routes to Raqqah, the militants’ self-declared capital in Syria. In Iraq, airstrikes and local ground forces already have cut off major roads leading west to Raqqah in an effort to steadily choke the Syrian city.

In February, U.S. special operations forces helped Kurdish fighters seize the northeastern Syrian town of Shadadi, severing what U.S. officials called a key Islamic State supply line.

The Pentagon has argued that the Kurds have proved to be the best allies on the ground in Syria. In October, the Pentagon helped create a Kurdish-led rebel coalition called the Syrian Democratic Forces.

5

THE MASSACHUSETTS DAILY COLLEGIAN

Thursday, April 14, 2016

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Opinion Editorial THE MASSACHUSETTS DAILY COLLEGIAN

“I’m at the corner of 1st and 1st...I must be at the nexus of the universe.” - Kramer

Thursday, April 14, 2016

To the silent victims of mental health issues

Letterstothe edItor

Editorial@DailyCollegian.com

To the Editors: The UMass Graduate Employees Union (United Automobile Workers affiliated) is now currently debating and voting on a resolution as to whether their organization should join the “BDS movement,” a campaign to isolate and stigmatize Israel based on a one-sided and radical perspective on the Middle East conflict.

A few months ago I it process of asking for wrote a column called help and pretending you “Put Yourself First and don’t feel shameful for it.

Eventually you actually Becky Wandel won’t.

Then it’s persist, perSchool Second” in which I sist, persist. Seeking encouraged students who mental health treatment felt out of place at school is a convoluted scary proto seek help and not be cess that is daunting and afraid to take time off. My embarrassing for even target audience was all the most shameless advostudents, but particularly cates for mental health those students who suffer de-stigmatization (me). from one or more mental But you have to do it anyillnesses that effect their way. Don’t give up until capacity for participation you find someone who in standardized educa- can help you regularly tion. and in the way you need.

It occurs to me now From personal experithat there is a whole pop- ence and for the purpose ulation of my peers who I of this article, I advocate did not properly address psychotherapy. It is testin that article – those of ed and effective and most you who suffer quietly importantly it holds you from a mental illness, accountable for your own perhaps undiagnosed. To treatment. Look for someyou I say this: one. Push, push, push.

Many among us are Don’t let yourself fall unsettlingly familiar victim to the trap of feelwith the effects of depres- ing high-maintenance or sion or eating disorders stupid for seeking help. or anxiety, but have been The process can make able to keep it to our- you feel like that, but selves. Many of us have remember your acknowllearned to “cope” with edgement that this is atypical mental health something you need and

It is disappointing to us as faculty that the University of Massachusetts graduate students are considering this misguided and polarizing action. These resolutions, which blame one side entirely for a complex historical conflict, do not promote peace and dialogue between Palestinians and Israelis. They encourage polarization by stigmatizing any engagement or affiliation with Israel.

We encourage open-minded graduate students at UMass Amherst to reject this measure and to vote “no.” Graduate students, like faculty, administrators or anyone else, certainly have the right to their political opinions and should express them. Like-minded graduate students are free to start “graduate students for Palestine” or “graduate students for Israel” or “graduate students for human rights everywhere” or any other group, just as individual faculty can sign whatever petition or join whatever group they like.

But BDS resolutions such as the one currently up for vote do something else. They impose one partisan view of a complex situation on the whole organization as a kind of “loyalty oath.” To be a member of the graduate student union, this resolution suggests, that one must stand against Israel. To anyone who holds a different view, it sends the message that you are not welcome here. Jews are welcome so long as they reject the Jewish state in the way the BDS movement does (or at least keep quiet about it). In its effect, if not its intent, it is thus seen as discriminatory. This was recognized

by UAW International Board when, in December 2015, they clearly rejected a similar measure floated by University of California at Los Angeles graduate students.

In the wake of that decision, it is frankly shocking that UMass students have put this up for a union vote. We hope that UMass graduate students show the good judgment to reject this measure.

Prof. Jay Berkovitz, Judaic & near eastern studies department Prof. Daniel Gordon, history department Prof. Eyal Markman, mathematics & statistics department Prof. Hava Siegelmann, college of info & computer sciences department Prof. Jonathan Skolnik, languages, literatures & cultures department Prof. James Young, English, Judaic & near eastern studies department

Letters to the editor should be no longer than 550 words and can be submitted to either to Editorial@DailyCollegian.com or to DailyCollegian.com. We regret that, due to space constraints, not all letters will be printed but can be found online.

“But the truth is, coping with your illness to the point of being able to maintain a veil of normalcy isn’t necessarily coping at all.”

Why a Kasich nomination is still possible, but not likely John Kasich hit hard against rest of the delegates to reach the Donald Trump and Ted Cruz in a 1,237 needed to grasp the nomination speech on Tuesday. Without specifi- before the Republican convention this summer. Furthermore, he is trailing Bridget Higgins in New York, according to ABC News, with a projected 19 percent of the cally naming the two other GOP can- votes as compared to 20 percent for didates, Kasich described the two Cruz and 56 percent for Trump. paths that Americans have in the He cannot clinch the nomination 2016 presidential election. According before the convention. It’s impossito The Atlantic, one of these paths ble. Perhaps he could be the Vice is Kasich. The other path is one that President. Trump said to USA Today would “drive America down into a that he would consider Kasich, in ditch and not make us great again,” addition to Senator Rubio and Scott according to Kasich. Does the for- Walker, as a possible VP. Kasich, mer path, the one where the United however, would likely not soon agree States faithfully follows Kasich on the to that proposal. In his own words steady road that America has voted on “CBS This Morning” on Tuesday,

as the “establishment” alternative at the GOP national convention.

This comes at an extreme difference to how the 2016 primaries have been going. The race is largely about revolution against the establishment.

The results so far, with Trump in the lead and Cruz not too far behind, show America’s distaste and dissatisfaction with party politics and elites.

The average American voter wants something different.

Luckily for Kasich, the establishment and party elites usually drive the convention. If he manages to get his name on the ballot there, he has a real shot of becoming the nominee.

“I will not take the low road to the highest office in the land,” Kasich has maintained. This is his political brand, his essential selling point to voters. He will stay in the race, no matter how unlikely his chances look, to label himself as the candidate who refused to resort to an “anything goes” policy. He angled himself as a there is “zero chance” he would con- starkly different presidential hopeful than Cruz or Trump. This is necessider being Trump’s running mate.

“Look, I am running for president sary to have a chance at the convenof the United States. And that’s it. tion.

If Kasich stays in the race long If I’m not president, which I think I have an excellent shot to be, I will enough and can cozy up to Republicans finish my term as governor and then who don’t support the “Cruz crew” or maybe I’ll be a co-host on this show. “Make America Great Again” he has You never know,” Kasich said to CBS a genuine shot at being president. The Tuesday. race is far from over, and so is Kasich.

With the option of Vice President eschewed, the only way John Kasich Bridget Higgins is a Collegian columnist and can could win would be to present himself be reached at behiggins@umass.edu.

“The results so far, with Trump in the lead and Cruz not too far behind, show America’s distaste and dissatisfaction with party politics and elites. They average American voter wants something different.” for time and time again, really exist?

Could Kasich truly win?

Yes, but it won’t be easy.

So far, Kasich has won only Ohio, which is his home territory. Outside of that accomplishment, with only 143 delegates, he trails Cruz by almost 400 delegates and Trump by nearly 600. He’s even losing to Marco Rubio by 28 delegates, despite Rubio dropping out after the Florida primaries.

Keep in mind that Kasich needs to win more than 100 percent of the

Editorial@DailyCollegian.com

well enough so that it won’t obstruct the “normal” lives we’ve put together.

But the truth is, coping with your illness to the point of being able to maintain a veil of normalcy isn’t necessarily coping at all. Truly coping with a mental illness involves a lot of things, the most essential being asking for help. This is the thing I see so many people bending over backwards to avoid.

There is a great strength and a great skill in suffering in silence – in being able to plough ahead and be tough. But in the case of health, this is not an ideal path to aspire to.

If you feel like this article is about you, I provide, from great personal experience and at the risk of sounding like a preachy self-help fanatic, the following advice: First, acknowledge that you need a change.

No matter how normal it feels for you to live with your mental illness, no matter how inherent it seems in your personality, take this opportunity to recognize that it is in fact holding you back.

Next you need to seek help. This is a kind of f a k e - i t - t i l l - yo u - m a k e -

want and are entitled to have. Keep revisiting that thought until you find someone who can help you.

I went through this process in high school and because of it I have had the privilege of working with the same psychotherapist for three years and psychiatrist for two.

I could sing my doctors’ praises all day, and I often do, because they changed my life in immeasurably positive ways. A commitment to psychotherapy is a commitment to wellness and, as will always come with it, success.

All of this being said, I am not a doctor, just an observer and a sufferer who wants to help my friends. If you feel like some of this stuff applies to you I encourage you to read this article written by actual doctors. It comprehensively explains what signs indicate a possible need for psychotherapy and how to find a provider etc.

So give it a try. See how it goes. If you need help, you can always email me about it.

You have nothing to lose, so why not?

Becky Wandel is a Collegian columnist and can be reached at rwandel@umass.edu.

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Arts Living THE MASSACHUSETTS DAILY COLLEGIAN

Thursday, April 14, 2016

“I am your wife. I’m the greatest ‘good’ you are ever gonna get!” - Honey Best, ‘The Incredibles’

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CONCERT

‘STOMP’ brings rollicking rhythm back to the FAC Percussive spectacle thrills audiences

By Morgan HugHes Collegian Staff

“STOMP” retur ned to the University of Massachusetts for the first time in nearly a decade, once again bringing the echoes of iconic trash can drums and applause to the Fine Arts Center stage from April 12-13.

The performance, while predictable and redundant at times, brought surprise and excitement to the stage. It was fierce, cheeky, suave, emotional and action-packed.

It was incredible how each performer’s independent, barely noticeable movements and sounds came together to create something that rises in intensity until it filled the entire room.

Unexpected pauses and transitions in the rhythm kept audience members guessing and made them laugh.

The acts that stood out ranged from the tribal, primitive sound of the broom sticks – that were amplified by light that reflected the shadows of the characters like cavemen chanting and dancing around a fire – to phallic jokes meant for the adults in the audience (sinks draining into a bucket placed ironically in front of the males holding them).

Another notable performance used Zippo-like lighters, as the sounds of the lighters flicking open and igniting on created the sound, while the flame created a pattern of light and dark similar to Christmas lights during the holidays.

Other i n t e re s t i n g

OFFICIAL ‘STOMP’ FACEBOOK PAGE

‘STOMP’ returned to the University of Massachusetts campus to deliver a two-night surge of sound, movement and comedic elements to gathered crowds. sequences included an act with crinkled plastic pipes sprinkled with humor perfect for kids and adults alike, and one of the last acts using newspapers and boxes the performers sat on that employed the most vocal sounds and the most immature – but guiltily enjoyable – sense of humor.

Cade Slattery, 19, joined the troupe in December 2015 as the newest and youngest performer in “STOMP.” In an interview with The Massachusetts Daily Collegian before the Fine Arts Center perfor-

mance, Slattery advised, “Watch all the characters.

Watch how they interact and how by the end of the show they all come together.”

Since there’s no words in “STOMP,” it’s like a challenge for the audience.

You have to adapt and figure out what they’re thinking,” he added.

Each character’s personality shined in subtle body movements. They spoke without words. You could feel each character feeding into one another – testing each other, getting a feel for another, picking on the

weaker, yearning for attention, being dismissed – all of them entirely unafraid to cross boundaries.

It’s easy to see which characters are the underdogs of the cast in the performance. They are often made fun of and shoved to the side by other characters, but they someone still seem to bring the spotlight to them.

The buff main character utilized his skill, agility and endurance in several solos. By the middle of the show, this got old. I was upset to see the show end with him doing some sort

those kinds of mistakes.

Flawless transitions of stage and rhythm made up for the miniscule mistakes throughout several acts.

It would be useful to a particularly interested future audience member to sit near the front, as it can be hard to decipher important facial expressions or glances that help tell the story of the characters on stage.

The last time “STOMP” came to the Pioneer Valley, Slattery was a five-year-old boy living in California.

Now, he performs across the country with the group he dreamt of being a part of.

As a child, Slattery took percussion classes at Arts in Motion, a performing arts studio in San Diego. Taught by former “STOMP” performer Chris Rubio, students learned percussion techniques much like the ones the troupe uses to surprise their audience and break down the walls of conventionality. He recalled generation after generation of students auditioning for open positions in “STOMP” groups, until finally it was his turn.

“The dream was kindled,” he said of his experience with Rubio.

The dream may have been kindled for other kids in the Amherst audience like it once was for Slattery.

Only time will tell.

For now we can predict, by the playful stomping and clapping to the beat of audience members’ own rhythms as they exited the auditorium, that this performance at least inspired a little music in everyone.

of clapping and tapping.

Was it meant to be ironic, and how long must he have spent learning all different angles and styles of clapping? Even with his ending call for audience participation where he taught different rhythms and angles to clap at, this portion felt predictable and overdone.

The performances also contained some noticeable mistakes, especially when things were thrown across the stage. Timing and accuracy faltered at times, but the technicality and skill required of a perfor- Morgan Hughes can be reached at mance like this allows for mahughes@umass.edu.

EXHIBITION

Photographers ruminate on varied forms of ‘Dislocation’ Pin, others explore complex realities By seung a reBecca Han Collegian Correspondent

The recently opened exhibition “Dislocation: Negotiating Identity” at Smith College Museum of Art brings together nine South and Southeast Asian photographers pondering on various forms of dislocation through the artistic lens.

Just as project advisor Sandra Matthews writes in the introduction, these works are “very contemporary yet rooted in complex histories.” This seemingly obvious phrase seems to be absolutely accurate and poignant because the artists are photographing the dislocations in contemporary lives, yet the works simultaneously reveal the complex history of each of the subjects and their communities.

The discussions include: daily lives as minorities in a foreign land, hybrid experiences of diaspora communities, tensions between the nations, social class issues and the role of art in many of these painful realities.

Participating artists include: Pete Pin, Bani Abidi, Dayanita Singh, Guari Gill, Huma Mulji, Jyoti Bhatt, Maika Elan,

Nge Lay and Prasiit Sthapit.

In the special exhibitions gallery next to the modern art collection, the three large panels consisting of portraits and smaller photographs confront visitors in an honest and crude manner, as if they are testifying something silently. The three works are by Pete Pin, who was born in the Khao-I-Dang refugee camp to survivors of the Killing Fields in Cambodia and was raised in California.

His works presented in the exhibition discuss several different kinds of dislocation. One is that of the Cambodians after the Khmer Rouge period that took place around 19751979. Countless people not only lost their families but also their country. They became stateless, living in borders and foreign countries as aliens.

The three panels each include a portrait and an object of memory for the subject. Next to the first subject, an elderly woman, is a tattered and faded identification card with her photo as a young woman, which represents her trauma, as the wall description states.

Another form of dislocation is that of these refugees’ children. Pin particularly focuses on the first generation Cambodian

American children, plausibly because he himself represents such dislocation as a first generation Cambodian American.

Although these first generation Cambodian Americans did not experience the bloody massacre in their motherland, they are the manifestation of such traumatic history and furthermore, they themselves are living in struggles, as dark-skinned immigrant children in inner-city neighborhoods.

Their photographs are in a slightly more conventional format, placed on a wall next to the portraits of the older generation.

Here Pin inserts another layer of complexity by addressing the disparity between the lives and perceptions of the parents and those of their children within the layers of preexisting dislocation. Then this disparity becomes a “dislocation of relationship” between the parents and their children. The children no longer speak the language that their parents and grandparents speak and thus there is an increasing absence of communication and connection between them.

Pete Pin’s photographs from the “Here/There” series (the portraits and items of memory of the refugees) are powerful because his subjects are

MADELEINE STAPLES/COLLEGIAN

Combodian American photographer Pete Pin focuses on the gap between bridging family and historical narratives. photographed as individuals, in a dark, black background with a single source of light and their very personal items of memory placed next to them. This characteristic, even intimate portrayal brings the discussion of the massacre not as an abstract history but as a reality that completely changed each of these subjects’ lives.

Refugees are the most vulnerable, easily forgotten and silenced groups of people and Pin’s photographs subvert this matter by capturing these individ-

uals and their memories in a delicate and considerate manner. Some of the portraits even resemble identification photos, with such frontal position and direct gaze, but with a more caring capturing of the subjects.

Pete Pin’s choosing to work in such format was extremely appropriate because as refugees, the only formal photoshoot they had experienced would have been for possibly illegal travelling documents that they held boards with numbers

instead of their names. By offering them a platform to be photographed, not as refugees but as individuals with dignity and memories, Pin attempts to empower and affirm his subjects. “ D i s l o c a t i o n : Negotiating Identity” will be on view at the Smith College Museum of Art until August 14. The museum is open Tuesday to Saturday from 10-4 and Sunday from 12-4.

Seung A Rebecca Han can be reached at seunga@umass.edu and followed on Twitter @seungarebbhan.

8

Thursday, April 14, 2016

SOFTBALL

THE MASSACHUSETTS DAILY COLLEGIAN

VERDI

continued from page 10

Stavinoha (single) drove home Klee and Taylor Carbone in the third to double the Minutewomen’s lead to 4-0.

“The past couple of games we’ve had a problem getting started so to start off the game the way we did, I think it gave the pitchers a big boost and it just brought everyone’s energy up,” Cozza said.

Sophomore pitcher Meg Colleran pitched six innings, earning her 10th win of the season allowing two runs (one earned), while striking out two and walking a single batter. Taylor Carbone came in to pitch the seventh inning without allowing a run.

The Minutewomen proved their defensive focus by only allowing a combined two runs on the day, with only a pair of errors.

Stavinoha, UMass’ second baseman, got in front of almost every ball grounded her way, including a diving stop that she flipped up to Cozza covering second to prevent the advanced runner in the third inning.

Cozza had her own success at shortstop, catching every line drive hit her way.

She also managed to convert a double-play in the bottom of the fifth, catching URI’s

CHRISTINA MOSCHETTO/COLLEGIAN

Kaitlyn Stavinoha stands on second base in UMass’ 2-1 win over St. Joe’s on Sat. Paige Julich, who ran too far off of first after a line drive.

Cozza also performed on the offensive side, aside from her homerun (her third of the season), she also converted a double in the first game and a single in the second game.

UMass drew 11 combined walks off Rams’ pitchers Becca Rogers and Julia Waraksy. Rogers lasted 5.2 innings allowing six earned runs and nine walks on 135 pitches.

Erin Stacevicz, who entered Wednesday’s game with a team-leading .340 batting average, bombed a major triple in the bottom of the fifth to bring in senior

Whitney Cooper, who was previously walked and then stole second base for her first steal of the season.

In preparation for their next doubleheader Saturday against St. Bonaventure, Stefanoni plans to continue to work with the Minutewomen on their offensive assets.

“We need to work on getting ahead earlier,” Stefanoni said. “But I think the biggest pro is that we’re taking the momentum of two wins into this weekend.”

Mollie Walker can be reached at molliewalker@umass.edu and on Twitter at @MWalker2019.

DailyCollegian.com

continued from page 10

you don’t know me’ feeling, but I think we want to win and be successful so that’s the plan,” Stiff said. “We have a lot of talent on the team and a lot of skills, but we just needed the right leader to bring us together and make us solid.”

Athletic director Ryan Bamford has bought into Verdi’s approach and expects big things from the budding women’s basketball program.

“At the end of the day Tory, and Darrice (Griffin, who oversaw the search process) and I have spoke about this – it’s not unlike

the other 20 sports, we want to build a program,” Bamford said. “It’s not about building a team year to year, it’s not about having success one year and wondering if you are going to have success the next year. I don’t think anyone has higher expectations for this program than the head coach we just hired.”

Verdi will have his work cut out for him with UMass’ leading scorer from last year, Cierra Dillard, transferring to Buffalo earlier this week. But he’ll have all but three players from last season’s team returning

and five incoming freshman.

“There is a lot of work left to be done moving forward, but my initial (step) is to take care of our student-athletes and then hiring a staff,” Verdi said. “We will work on that within the next couple of weeks but I am going to, obviously, talk to the current stat that is here. I am eager to visit with them today and then moving forward.”

Adam Aucoin can be reached at aaucoin@umass.edu and followed on Twitter @aaucoin34.

MLB

Red Sox give Orioles first loss of the 2016 season Bogaerts finishes with pair of RBI

By Eduardo a. Encina The Baltimore Sun

BOSTON — Despite their best start in club history, the Orioles were eventually going to lose a game, and their sevengame winning streak to open the season ended abruptly Wednesday night with a 4-2 loss to the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park.

The Orioles’ bats went cold in the Boston chill as they were unable to break

through against Red Sox right-hander Joe Kelly, who tight-roped through trouble throughout his start.

They put 12 runners on base against Kelly – seven hits and five walks – but managed just two runs over the starter’s five innings.

The Orioles stranded nine base runners against Kelly, including the bases loaded in the second inning, when leadoff hitter Joey Rickard hit into an inning-ending fielder’s choice.

With the Orioles up

2-0 on Chris Davis’ tworun homer in the third, Xander Bogaerts hit a tworun double into the leftfield corner off Ubaldo Jimenez, who let the first four batters he faced in the third reach base.

The Red Sox made Jimenez pay for a leadoff walk in the fourth when Jackie Bradley Jr.’s run-scoring triple to right drove in Brock Holt, who drew a six-pitch free pass to open the inning.

Bradley then scored on Mookie Betts’ RBI groundout to give the Red Sox a 4-2 lead.

NBA

Celtics top Miami, draw Atlanta in playoffs Heat, Hornets to play in first round By ira WindErman Sun Sentinel

BOSTON — And in the 82nd and final game of the regular season, the Miami Heat had their opportunity to make their ultimate statement.

And they did. For 24 minutes.

And then one of the most important games of the season turned into arguably the worst of the season, 26-point first-half and 24-point halftime leads squandered.

How do you turn those types of advantages into what turned into a 98-88 loss Wednesday night to the Boston Celtics at TD Garden?

Scoring five points in the third period provides all the answers you need.

Yes, five. The lowestscoring quarter in the Heat’s 28 seasons. And the lowest-scoring quarter in the NBA this season.

And for that putrid effort, the Heat still found themselves ... with a rewarding night.

Because of the Atlanta Hawks’ road loss to the Washington Wizards, the Heat won the tiebreaker from the Hawks for the Southeast Division championship and therefore secured the very No. 3 seed

they were trying to win against the Celtics.

As a result, the Heat will host the Charlotte Hornets as the home team in the best-of-seven opening round of the NBA playoffs, which start this weekend at AmericanAirlines Arena.

The Celtics closed as the No. 5 seed, even with this epic comeback, and will play on the road against the No. 4 seeded Hawks.

At No. 3 it also puts the Heat on the opposite side of the Cleveland Cavaliers’ Eastern Conference bracket, to face LeBron James no sooner than the Eastern Conference finals, should they advance.

But a night to celebrate a division title?

Not quite, just one to reflect on good fortune and one incredibly awful stretch of basketball.

The third quarter was a stunning rebuke to everything the Heat accomplished in the first half.

The Heat closed the third period with five points on 2-of-20 shooting, allowing the Celtics to stand within 67-63 entering the fourth quarter.

The ball movement stopped. The transition defense wasn’t there. And confidence was fractured.

The Celtics outscored the Heat 25-5 in the third.

It was the Heat’s worst 12 minutes of the season at a time when the first 24 had been some of the best.

There then was a wild scrum at the end of the period under the Heat basket, with four technical fouls issued, including one to Heat forward Udonis Haslem, who did not even play.

The Celtics then promptly moved to a 75-71 lead early in the fourth, and kept on going from there, rendering any and all individual stats moot for the Heat.

After winning Tuesday night against the playoffbound Detroit Pistons, their first road victory against a playoff team since Feb. 19, the Heat appeared to finally break through against the Celtics after losing the first two games of the twogame season series.

As it is, that victory in Detroit allowed the Heat to win on Wednesday even while losing. Had the Heat lost in Detroit, they would have ended up as the No. 6 seed in the East.

Point guard Goran Dragic set the early tone for the Heat by scoring 12 points in an aggressive, attacking opening period, a night after losing a tooth in the victory in Detroit.

And this time, for the first time in his three games back in the starting lineup, center Hassan Whiteside was efficient and aggressive from the outset.

With Justise Winslow back a game after sitting out with a sprained left

PEDRO PORTAL/EL NUEVO HERALD

Dwayne Wade attempts a shot in the Celtics’ 105-95 win against the Heat on Nov. 30. ankle in Detroit, practically the entire Heat rotation played in lockstep through the first 24 minutes.

And the Heat did it was an aggressive tenacity on the boards and with measured restrain on offense, after being done in by turnovers in the teams’ previous two meetings.

The Heat got exactly the start they wanted, utilizing a 21-2 run to move to a 35-13 lead at the end of the opening period.

The Celtics’ 22-point deficit at the close of the period was the largest in an opening period at home since 2005.

The Heat shot 17 of 29 over those opening 12 minutes while the Celtics were shooting 5 of 24.

The Celtics’ .208 represented the lowest field-goal percentage in a quarter by a Heat opponent this season.

Dragic shot 6 of 8 in the first period for 12 points to pace the Heat, while the only sign of life in the first period for Boston was Avery Bradley’s 3 of 4, with the rest of the Celtics 2 of 20.

The Heat then took a 62-38 lead into the intermission, with just two turnovers in the first half,

as well a 29-18 rebounding edge over those two periods, with 18 second-chance points over the first 24 minutes.

The 24-point lead at the intermission was the Heat’s largest halftime lead in more than three years.

Heat coach Erik Spoelstra again rotated his rotation, this time playing Josh McRoberts as his first big man off the bench, after going with Amar’e Stoudemire in that role in Tuesday’s victory.

Even with Winslow, Spoelstra also kept Gerald Green in his rotation.

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WO M E N ’ S L AC RO S S E

Minutewomen look to extend winning streak vs. Bonnies

By Henry BrecHter Collegian Staff

At this time of the season, the Massachusetts women’s lacrosse team seems like it cannot lose.

The Minutewomen (11-1, 4-0 Atlantic 10) have been rolling since their only loss of the year against Boston College on March 2nd and now look to continue their run with an eighth-straight win when St. Bonaventure comes to Garber Field Friday afternoon.

A victory over the Bonnies (3-9, 1-3 A-10) would give UMass its 41st consecutive win over an A-10 opponent.

But before the Minutewomen can look too far ahead, Friday’s game against the Bonnies is all they care about.

“The key component for us is to keep playing seven-on-seven, with each one of our players helping out,” UMass coach Angela McMahon said. “We want to be really aggressive and continue to generate scoring opportunities.”

St. Bonaventure is in the midst of a disappointing regular season campaign, which has featured a lot of scoring on the wrong side of the ball. The Bonnies allow a A-10worst 14.7 goals per game, while the Minutewomen have outscored their opponents 101-50 during the current seven-game winning streak.

In last year’s matchup, 11 different UMass players scored in an 18-8 rout in Olean, New York. Junior midfielder Hannah Murphy led the team with four goals, building on an outstanding season in which she was named the conference’s midfielder of the year. Katie Ott, Holly Turner, Callie Santos and Eileen McDonald all added a pair of goals. The win was UMass’ 31st straight league win, making the Minutewomen 11-1 after 12 games.

JUDITH GIBSON-OKUNIEFF/COLLEGIAN

Kate Farnham (14) plays defense in UMass’ 13-7 win against Albany March 23rd at Garber Field. The Minutewomen rank seventh in goals against average (6.58) in the NCAA. Both offense and defense has been coming easily to the Minutewomen, who have climbed to No. 14 in the national rankings. A combination of organized ball movement and athleticism has propelled UMass to many of its wins, as players are seemingly able to outlast and outperform opponents on a regular basis.

“Our focus is always just to play hard and high-pressure,” Murphy said of her team’s defensive play.

“Our ‘go in twos’ strategy allows us to help each other out a lot on defense.”

The entire team has been on a hot streak of late, but none are coming close to matching the production of senior attacker Erika Eipp, who has been stuffing the stat sheet again in her last season as a Minutewoman.

Eipp was named A-10 conference player of the week for her efforts against George Mason and George Washington this past weekend. She had 15 points, including 10 assists,

between the two games. Her nine points against GW tied her singlegame career high and were the fifth-most by an UMass player in a game in the past 10 seasons.

“She works really hard and sets a solid example on and off the field,” McMahon said of Eipp, who leads the A-10 in assists per game by almost a full point.

Eipp averages 2.83 assists with the next best mark being Saint Joseph’s Maggie Egan with 1.75. Eipp also averages a conference best 4.92 points per game, also almost a full point ahead of the second place scorer, fellow UMass attacker Nicole Troost, who averages 3.83.

After Friday’s contest, the Minutewomen have one more game on the homestand before traveling to Richmond, Virginia, where they will face conference foes Richmond and Virginia Commonwealth.

Henry Brechter can be reached at hbrechter@umass.edu.

BEANPOT

Thursday, April 14, 2016 continued from page 10

said. “We left five men (on base) in scoring position, we just need someone to square one up.”

The Minutemen’s first six hitters went a combined 2-for-23 leaving all seven runners on base.

Lever, Avallone and Scifo carried the load going a combined 5-for10 with a run batted in and a run scored.

“The bottom of the order did everything today,” Stone said.

“But we need to get everyone to contribute.”

It has been a struggle for the Minutemen getting those contributions from both the top and bottom of the order. Stone was happy to see the bottom of the order do what they did today, but needs to see more from the hitters at the top of the lineup.

“That’s the point, we need to get everyone on the same page,” Stone said. “It is real important to get the bottom half going but we need the top half to perform too.”

UMass did get strong performances from its pitching staff.

Kevin Hassett was called upon to face the tough Eagles lineup and he delivered. The sophomore went three innings, giving up

REUNION

9

one run while striking out three.

Tim Cassidy followed Hassett and kept the Minutemen in the game.

Cassidy went three innings as well but did not allow a run. Like Hassett, Cassidy struck out three batters.

“They battled and made pitches,” Stone said. “Hassett and Cassidy pitched well and got out of a couple of jams.”

Geannelis relieved Cassidy in the seventh and pitched a strong inning before allowing the game-winning run to cross in the eighth.

BC’s Thomas Lane went 4.1 innings giving up three hits and no runs. John Witkowski got the win in an inning of work for the Eagles, and Jesse Adams nailed down his first save of the year behind a 1-2-3 ninth.

“We had our chances to open the game up,” Stone said. “We did not see anyone overpowering, we were just unable to get guys across.”

Tyler Fiedler can be reached at tfiedler@umass.edu and followed on Twitter @Tyler_Fiedler.

continued from page 10

the new change that he wanted to bring in,” Hill said. “I feel like our program needed a change to be successful. Being a senior, I want to go out with a bang.

“I think it is important for me to step up and be a leader and be a senior. I need to control my team, continue to express, win games and make a change,” she added.

After meeting the Minutewomen for the first time Tuesday night, Verdi was pleased with how they responded to his philosophies of playing faster, with more pressure on the defensive end and increasing offensive possessions.

“I was very, very surprised with the eagerness and the want that they have. They want to be great.

It was stated several times so I am excited about those players that we have in our program, and together, collectively, they can fit the system that we are going to implement,” Verdi said.

“They are hungry, they have a want to and together we are going get there,” he added.

Andrew Cyr can be reached at arcyr@umass.edu, and followed on Twitter @Andrew_Cyr.

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Thursday, April 14, 2016

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WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

‘IT’S TIME TO GAIN RESPECT’

Hill reunites with Verdi after getting recruited by EMU Sr. picked UMass over Eagles in HS

By Andrew cyr Collegian Staff

JUDITH GIBOSN-OKUNIEFF/COLLEGIAN

Newly hired women’s basketball coach Tory Verdi addresses the media for the first time in his introductory press conference Wednesday morning.

Minutewomen introduce Tory Verdi as their next head coach

By AdAm Aucoin Collegian Staff

The University of Massachusetts welcomed a new face to its community Wednesday morning when the new Massachusetts women’s basketball coach Tory Verdi was introduced at the John F. Kennedy Champions Center.

Verdi comes to Amherst after spending four seasons at the helm at Eastern Michigan where he led the Eagles to the Women’s National Invitational Tournament the past two seasons, accumulating a 72-61 record during his tenure.

For Verdi, the most common question that has come up to since his hiring was why he choose UMass. His response was quite clear Wednesday.

“Why not UMass? I truly believe we can win and win big,” Verdi said in his press conference. “We will no longer be outworked and get outplayed. However we will play hard, we will play smart, we will play together,

and we will have a lot of fun.

When you do all of that, you will have success.”

For a team that has shown improvement the past couple seasons, but remained stagnant with a pair of 12-18 seasons, a change in culture was needed to break through.

“Expectations will be on the rise. Accountability will be apparent and a winning attitude will be instilled,” Verdi said. “It’s time to gain respect in the Atlantic 10 conference and the rest of the country. It’s time to win and win big.”

To realize his vision for the future for UMass, recruiting and getting players to buy in will be on the top of Verdi’s to-do list.

With the brand-new Champions Center at their disposal, the Minutewomen should have no problems making the sell to potential recruits, according to Verdi.

“We are an unbelievable institution and we can recruit to that,” Verdi said.

“The first thing you look at is the Champions Center.

This is a ‘wow factor’ for us.

“Expectations will be on the rise.

Accountability will be apparent and a winning attitude will be instilled. It’s time to gain respect in the Atlantic 10 and the rest of the country.”

Tory Verdi UMass coach The place sells itself and I’m excited about that. We can go out and recruit the best players in the country now because now we have something to sell.

“Just connecting with the student-athletes that are here now, visiting them, hearing their stories and spending that time,” Verdi added. “Taking care of what we have right now and then move out and moving forward, continuing to talk to the incoming freshmen – we have five freshman coming in as well. We have to take care of in-house first.”

Two of the Minutewomen’s rising seniors, Kymber Hill and Alyx Stiff, spent their first three seasons under former coach Sharon Dawley

BASEBALL

and will be tasked with being the leaders on Verdi’s team next season. Both expressed excitement in Verdi’s arrival.

“When he came in yesterday he expressed the new change that he wanted to bring in,” Hill said. “I feel like our program needed a change to be successful. In the end, we finished last year with the same record and we want change now. Being a senior, I want to go out with a bang.”

Stiff also recognized the fact that it is tough to transition to a new coach, but she is excited to see what her senior year brings.

“Bringing in a new coach, initially you get that, ‘whoa, see

VERDI on page 8

As the Massachusetts women’s basketball team introduced newly-hired head coach Tory Verdi Wednesday morning at the John Francis Kennedy Champions Center, Kymber Hill watched from the back of the room with a serious, yet sincere look on her face as her new coach took questions from the media.

But as other members of the Minutewomen including Maggie Mulligan, Alyx Stiff and Stephanie Foukaris sat and listened to Verdi speak for the first time, Hill watched separated from the rest of her teammates. Had she made a different decision three years earlier, listening to Verdi talk would have been a part of her daily routine.

“It was shocking, yes. I didn’t think it would happen,” Hill said. “It’s a great thing.”

When it was time for Hill to leave Althoff Catholic High School in her hometown of Belleville, Illinois, she had narrowed her college choice down to two schools: UMass or Eastern Michigan, where Verdi had just completed his first year as head coach of the Eagles.

“I was recruited by him. When I came down to my last two schools, it was Eastern Michigan and

UMass, so it was a really hard decision for me,” Hill said. “Being able to play for him is really exciting.”

Ultimately, Hill ended up choosing UMass, where she has averaged five points and four rebounds per game in 20.8 minutes played while starting 66 of her 88 career games for the Minutewomen.

Verdi finished his fouryear stint in Ypsilanti, Michigan with a 72-61 record, including back-toback trips to the WNIT, where the Eagles reached the “Sweet 16” in the 2014-15 season.

“We could pick (Hill’s) brain, but at the end of the day I don’t think that’s going to do anything,” Stiff said. “We have to learn from him, so I think that’s going to be the biggest thing for us going forward.”

During Hill’s thee years at UMass, the Minutewomen have underperformed with a combined record of 28-63 (12-38 Atlantic 10) under former head coach Sharon Dawley, who was fired three days after they lost to Fordham in the second round of the A-10 tournament.

Despite posting identical 12-18 records after finishing her freshman season 4-27, Hill said UMass needed a change to take its next step forward.

“We are very excited about the change. When he came in yesterday he expressed see

REUNION on page 9

JUDITH GIBSON-OKUNIEFF/COLLEGIAN

Kymber Hill speaks to reporters about getting recruited by Verdi in high shcool.

SOFTBALL

Minutemen drop pitcher’s UM sweeps doubleheader Cozza each duel in first round of Beanpot Klee, hit first-inning HR

By Tyler Fiedler

hard so I was proud of them,” Minutemen (7-14, 2-4 Atlantic 10) coach Mike Stone said.

After falling to Boston “(Losing in the first round) College in the 2015 Beanpot is not what you want, but I tournament final at Fenway told them we played two good Park, the Massachusetts games recently.” baseball team was looking for Defensive issues came revenge as the teams faced back to hurt the Minutemen off in the first round in 2016. in the eighth inning. BC’s A pitching duel ensued, Michael Strem started the but a late eighth-inning run rally with a two-out single off was the difference of Mike Geannelis. as the Eagles (18went on to BC 2 Strem 11, 5-8 Atlantic steal second and Coast Conference) went to third on UMass 1 a wild pitch. The defeated UMass 2-1 for the second next batter, Joe straight time in Cronin, singled to the Beanpot and fifth straight right to drive in the game time overall. winning run.

“We played well and really But the real issue for Daily Collegian

UMass was its inability to drive in runs. The Minutemen’s lone run came in the seventh inning when Vinny Scifo scored freshman Ryan Lever on a bunt to tie the game at one, after Lever poked a one-out single to start the offense. UMass failed to get anything else going in the eighth or ninth inning.

The Minutemen stranded seven runners on base while outhitting the Eagles 7-6 in the loss. Stone was extremely blunt and thinks his team needs to do better in those situations.

“We just need to hit,” Stone see

BEANPOT on page 9

By mollie wAlker Collegian Staff

After being shut out 3-0 by Saint Joseph’s just three days prior, the Massachusetts softball team aimed to put numbers on the board to prove its worth offensively.

And with 10 runs in a twogame sweep of Rhode Island, UMass (12-20, 6-4 Atlantic 10) accomplished that.

The Minutewomen defeated the Rams in their second doubleheader sweep of the season Wednesday afternoon at Sortino Field, topping the Rams (11-18, 2-7 A-10) 3-0 in the back end.

It was déjà vu for UMass

after right fielder Tara Klee started off game two with a first-inning home run to give them a 2-0 lead. Jena Cozza who the Minutewomen off to a hot start in game one with a first-inning home run of her own to start the afternoon.

“It feels really good, that was our big thing for the one day we had practice,” UMass coach Kristi Stefanoni said about the quick offense start.

“We did base running and hitting for probably a good two hours, we just were going to try to score runs, as many runs as we possibly could and it paid off.”

“When everyone’s feeling good and it’s a team win, like it was today, then it just brings energy and makes us play well and feel good,” Cozza said.

Taylor Carbone pitched a complete-game shutout in game two, allowing just four hits while striking out a pair and walking one. It was her second win of the season.

The Minutewomen’s only other run came in the sixth inning came on a sacrifice fly to right field by Kaycee Carbone that scored Dana Barclay, who pinch ran for Taylor Carbone.

Minutewomen bats come alive in game one UMass got off to a hot start in game one off the bat of Cozza en route to a 7-2 win over the Rams.

Olivia Godin (sacrifice fly) and freshman Kaitlyn see

SOFTBALL on page 8