2012-04-13

THE TUFTS DAILY

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TUFTSDAILY.COM

Friday, April 13, 2012

VOLUME LXIII, NUMBER 49

Where You Read It First Est. 1980

Business Plan Competition winners announced

by Sharon

Lam

Daily Staff Writer

Winners of Tufts’ eighth-annual $100K Business Plan Competition were announced last Wednesday following the second and final screening of a round of ten finalists.

The annual competition, sponsored by the Gordon Institute’s Entrepreneurial Leadership Program, awarded two first-place prizes to Tufts undergraduates Adrienne

Dreyfus and Hillary Sieber for their business proposals in the Classical Business Plan Competition and the Social Entrepreneurship Competition, respectively.

Presenters pitched their business proposals in the Alumnae Lounge. The application deadline for participants was Jan. 23.

Dreyfus’ winning project, PriceTrack, provides feedback to retailers about see BUSINESS, page 3

Kyra Sturgill for The Tufts Daily

Tufts Voices for Choice, commonly known as VOX, promotes women’s reproductive rights on campus and is affiliated with Planned Parenthood.

Women’s health issues dominate campaign politics by

Lily Sieradzki

Daily Editorial Board

Election season is approaching, and, as usual, sharp rhetoric is flying between the Democrats and Republicans. This year, however, women’s health issues — such as contraception and abortion — dominate much of the debate. These issues center on a growing controversy that some call a “war on women,” and women’s reactions to it have the potential to shape the outcome of the 2012 elections.

This past year has seen a series of contentious and inflammatory events surrounding women’s health, such as the Komen Fund/Planned Parenthood controversy, the sharp backlash to Rush Limbaugh’s comments about Georgetown law student

Sandra Fluke and the debate over the implications of the Affordable Care Act. As media coverage ramps up and partisan divides escalate, many women, including Director of the Women’s Center Steph Gauchel, see these incidents as a fundamental challenge to the rights of women.

“While these issues and attacks are not new, there has recently been an incredible increase in politicians’ and large portions of the media’s aggressive and relentless attack on women’s rights to control and make decisions about their health, privacy and their own bodies,” she told the Daily in an email.

In February, Fluke testified before the House Democrats in support of national insurance coverage for consee WOMEN, page 2

Tufts comedy team takes on Emerson in Rooftop competition The four members of Tufts’ comedy team are currently facing off against Emerson College in the regionals round of the fifth-annual Rooftop Comedy National College Comedy Competition.

The members of the team are seniors Matt Nazarian and Ian Donovan, sophomore Haydn Forrest and freshman

Max Cohen.

Online voting lasts until Sunday at 2:59 p.m. on Rooftop Comedy’s website. The winner of this round will go up against the winner of the Boston College vs. Boston University match-up in the quarterfinals.

—by Laina Piera

Scott tingley / the tufts daily

Adrienne Dreyfus is one of two first-place winners of Tufts’ eighth-annual $100K Business Plan Competition. Results were announced last Wednesday.

Tufts computer science students to host university’s first Hackathon

by James

Pouliot

Contributing Writer

A group of Tufts Computer Science students tonight are hosting Tufts’ first-ever Hackathon, a 24-hour marathon of programming and design during which they will work on project ideas and meet with technology leaders.

Inside this issue

Juniors Marshall Moutenot, Alden Keefe Sampson, Russell Stern and Adrienne Dreyfus organized the event.

The Hackathon, presented

by Evernote, a privately held company based in California that specializes in note-taking technology, is sponsored by Microsoft, Crashlytics, GitHub, Thoughtbot and New England

Venture Capital Association.

The team of up to three students that best uses Evernote’s note-taking technology in their project will win the grand prize — a trip to Silicon Valley to attend the Evernote Trunk Conference this summer, where they will be able to network see HACKATHON, page 3

Today’s sections

M. Ward’s new album pleases fans while appealing to firsttime listeners.

The Tufts Marathon Team will send 98 runners to Monday’s Boston Marathon.

see ARTS, page 5

see SPORTS, page 11

News & Features Arts & Living Comics

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Classifieds Sports

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THE TUFTS DAILY Daniel J. Rathman Editor-in-Chief

Editorial Craig Frucht Ethan Sturm Managing Editors Laina Piera Brionna Jimerson Elizabeth McKay Mahpari Sotoudeh Jenna Buckle Shana Friedman Nina Goldman Lizz Grainger Stephanie Haven Leah Lazer Victoria Leistman Patrick McGrath Melissa Wang Falcon Reese Amelia Quinn Victoria Rathsmill Derek Schlom Hannah Fingerhut Nadezhda Kazakova Lily Sieradzki

Executive News Editor News Editors Assistant News Editors

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Matthew Welch Executive Arts Editor Zach Drucker Arts Editors Adam Kulewicz Melissa MacEwen Anna Majeski Joseph Stile Kate Griffiths Assistant Arts Editors Alexander Hanno Chris Poldoian Bhushan Deshpande David Kellogg Seth Teleky Ard Ardalan Yiota Kastritis Elayne Stecker Devon Colmer Wes Engel Louie Zong Jonathan Green Elliot Philips Michael Restiano Carter Rogers Jyot Singh

Executive Op-Ed Editor Op-Ed Editors

VOX earlier this month co-sponsored an event called ‘Let’s Get Political’ with the Tufts Democrats, bringing Planned Parenthood representatives to campus to speak about the organization’s fight for women’s reproductive rights.

Cartoonists

Tufts students, professors weigh in on healthcare debate

Editorialists

WOMEN

continued from page 1

Aaron Leibowitz Executive Sports Editor Matthew Berger Sports Editors Lauren Flament Claire Kemp Kate Klots David McIntyre Alex Prewitt Alex Baudoin Assistant Sports Editors Zachey Kliger Connor Rose Justin McCallum Jodi Bosin William Butt Ashley Seenauth Scott Tingley Caroline Geiling Takuma Koide Misako Ono Oliver Porter Andrew Schneer Kyra Sturgill Kristen Collins Alex Dennett Dilys Ong

kyra sturgil for the tufts daily

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traceptives. She spoke out against Georgetown’s lack of birth control coverage, arguing that “contraception is basic health care.” In response, conservative talk-show host Rush Limbaugh called her a “slut” and a “prostitute,” igniting a furious public reaction and earning Fluke a phone call from President Barack Obama.

Sophomore Aliza Gordon believes this issue is indicative of systemic health-related inequalities for American women. Gordon is president of Tufts Voices for Choice ( VOX), a student organization that promotes reproductive rights and is affiliated with Planned Parenthood.

“People that need basic medical care, want their birth control covered, are being called ‘sluts’ on a national level and are being told that they’re asking people to pay for their sex,” Gordon said. “How can you be saying that we’re in a post-feminist world when stuff like this is continually happening? It seems like we’re backtracking in terms of women’s health, which is really in terms of equality.”

The increasing focus on women’s health can also be traced back to Obama’s signature healthcare overhaul, which became law in March 2010 after nearly a year of intensely partisan debate.

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act included a mandate that employers must cover contraceptives in their insurance, with the exception of churches and places of worship. But the mandate did not specify exemptions for religious institutions that are morally opposed to contraception, sparking outrage from Catholic institutions and from Republican presidential candidates, who said the mandate was an affront to religious liberty.

In response, Republican senators proposed the Blunt Amendment, which was co-sponsored by Massachusetts Senator Scott Brown (LA ’81). This sweeping amendment would have allowed any employer to exempt themselves on moral objections from any provision of the healthcare law.

It was defeated in the Senate, and an accommodation was implemented to allow religious institutions to deflect contraception coverage to the insurance companies rather than provide it themselves.

Sinclair Stafford, president of Tufts Republicans, sees the healthcare law and its contraception provision as the government trampling religious and moral convictions.

“The fact that it violates religious liberty, especially Christians’ religious liberty, is a big deal for the GOP. It should be a big deal for everyone,” she said. “[Many people] don’t understand

that to Catholics, this is a big deal, and even just to be an accessory to providing birth control is essentially the equivalent to doing a grave sin.”

Many women, however, have strong negative reactions to the Republican Party’s stance on these issues, particularly former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney’s and former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum’s positions to restrict abortion rights and contraceptive use.

“There’s a blunt assertion by dominant elements of the Republican party that women’s reproductive rights should be regulated. It’s an assault on the reproductive rights of women,” Associate Professor of Political Science Richard Eichenberg, who concentrates on gender politics, said.

“It’s upsetting, it’s insulting to me, the things they’ve said about contraceptives,” freshman Zobella Vinik said. “It’s really disappointing to me that I don’t feel like there is a Republican candidate that can say, ‘I’m standing for women, I want women to have equal pay, I want women to pay the same for health insurance as men, I want women to feel safe and feel like they can get the services they need.’”

Along with access to birth control, abortion is another hot topic within the debate on women’s access to health care. At Let’s Get Political, an event cosponsored by VOX and Tufts Democrats in early April, representatives from Massachusetts Planned Parenthood spoke about their ongoing battle against “state attacks on women’s health.”

Recent anti-abortion measures include Virginia’s law requiring that women considering an abortion undergo an external ultrasound to gain information about their pregnancy. The original form of the law stipulated that women undergo a transvaginal ultrasound, which was widely condemned as invasive.

Many states have instituted 20-week abortion bans and Indiana, New Hampshire and North Carolina have eliminated state funding to Planned Parenthood, which provides many women’s health services, such as mammograms and pelvic exams, in addition to performing abortions and providing access to contraception.

According to Gordon, the strong presence of these issues in the media is fostering widespread anger, particularly among women.

“Every single day in the news, there’s something that’s happening, an attack against women’s rights,” she said. “I think that is bringing a sense of awareness to this and creating a sense of outrage.”

Eichenberg sees this outrage among his students and advisees at Tufts.

“My perception is anger, that young

women are angry that their rights are being challenged,” he said. “It’s not the ordinary amount of interest or concern about this or that political issue. I would go so far as to say that they are very angry.”

Eichenberg said this anger has huge mobilizing potential for young, women voters and will have a substantial impact on the presidential race. He said that since the 1980s, female voters have been more likely to support Democrats than Republicans, so any event that pushes women even further toward the Democrats gives that party an advantage.

“The evidence is overwhelming, from the last two to three weeks, that this is happening in a major way,” he said. “Surely women are angry and mobilized on the issue of reproductive rights — but what’s being overlooked is that the entire question of access to quality healthcare is one that women favor slightly more than men and tends to associate them with the Democratic Party.”

In addition, Eichenberg asserts that youth — and young women in particular — will be an invaluable voting demographic for the Democrats just as it was in the 2008 election.

He cited a recent poll in USA Today that showed an overwhelming shift of women’s support toward Obama in key swing states. While 30 percent of women under 50 support Romney, 60 percent support Obama. Obama leads all women by 18 points, and women identify as Democrats by a 41 percent to 24 percent margin.

“Anywhere from the middle to the left of the spectrum, on reproductive rights and access to healthcare, this is a mobilizing and energizing constituency that will help Obama,” Eichenberg said. “This has been, on the part of the Republicans, a supreme act of political suicide.”

Vinik said these issues have motivated her to be more politically active.

“In the last presidential election, I was somewhat involved, but this is the first one I’ll be voting in,” she said.

“That’s extremely exciting and because of that, I feel like I need to be more engaged. As a woman, these women’s issues are very important to me.”

She will not only vote, but will also take action by encouraging more women to register to vote. Another priority of both Vinik and Gordon is increasing education on women’s health issues within their communities and at Tufts.

“I think the biggest thing that needs to be done is that people need to know what’s happening,” Gordon said. “Honestly, if they know what’s happening, especially at Tufts, I feel like they’re going to understand where the reproductive rights community is coming from on this.”

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Friday, April 13, 2012

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News & features

Buisiness competition winners plan future expansions on projects BUSINESS

continued from page 1

their consumer base and informs consumers about pricing. She received $15,000 in cash and $15,000 in in-kind services from Cummings Properties.

“Essentially, PriceTrack is a service that allows consumers to track prices of clothing online and, additionally, provides retailers with information about their consumers’ behavior,” Dreyfus, a junior, said.

Sieber, a senior, explained that her product, Keepin’ Tabs, is a tool that synthesizes communication technology and life management in order to facilitate communication between senior citizens and their families. She received $10,000 in cash and $25,000 in in-kind services from Cummings Properties.

Sieber said an Entrepreneurial Leadership class was one of her main motivations behind her application to the competition.

“It’s a web-based application, designed for a tablet that’s designed for senior citizens to help them keep in touch with their younger relatives and help them manage their daily life,” Sieber said. “I took [Tisch College of Citizenship and Public Service] Professor Nancy Wilson’s innovating social enterprises class on a whim. I’ve always been interested in non-profit organization and corporate social responsibility and loved it, and had a great experience.”

In total, sponsors contributed about $120,000 total in cash and in-kind ser-

vices, which include legal and advisory services such as office space.

“This year, we had $40,000 in cash and $80,000 in-kind which was divvied up among winners ranging from legal services, design and [The Capital Network] services,” Director of the 2012 Tufts Business Plan Competition Inge Milde said.

Runner-up prizes of the Classical Business Plan Competition were awarded to Gordon Institute graduate students Jeremy Jo, Rachel Pratt, Scott Rioux and David Tse for their proposal of a 70-decibel Whisper hair dryer.

Second place for the Social Entrepreneurship Competition was a tie between Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy students Shashank Pasrija, Ravi Kaneriya and Amogh Basavaraj for Ghazalah, an innovative transportation system, and Root to Fruit, a distributor to make food more accessible, presented by Carolyn Pace, a senior.

The criteria by which projects were judged involved the projected social impact and sustainability of the project. The competition also allows winners automatic entry into the second round of MassChallenge, the startup competition for all of Boston.

As in previous years, the only requirement for eligibility of a team in the competition is that each team must contain one Tufts undergraduate student, graduate student or recent alumnus/a in an executive role, according to Milde.

The competition, which was judged

by a panel of five judges from competitive business backgrounds, did not differ markedly from years past.

The few changes that were implemented this year were because of the departure of founder Pamela Goldberg and the expansion of the program to include more partners, such as the New England Conservatory and the Museum of Fine Arts, according to Milde. Although the competition saw fewer competitors this year due to leadership transitions, Milde anticipates that the applicant pool will grow in future years.

“Our program director Pamela Goldberg had left. She founded it and she was very instrumental in getting students involved,” Milde said. “I came to oversee the continuation of it. We’re going to have a new director [next year] and we can learn a lot from this year’s competition and how to get the word out.”

Sieber said the greatest challenges of the competition were the technical and pragmatic aspects of project developments, but she was able to overcome these initial stumbling blocks.

“It’s a steep learning curve,” Sieber said. “Having taken mostly history and English and film classes, I didn’t know all the technicalities, but the class really helped get me started.”

Dreyfus was mainly concerned that her project, which was still in its nascent stages, would be at a disadvantage compared to the more developed projects of her older peers.

“I was going against people in their

mid-20s, and mine was very much more like a seed,” she said. “One of the biggest challenges was just being the only one on the team. There was a lot of selfdoubt, but I learned a lot from it.”

Both Dreyfus and Sieber plan to use the award money to further develop their respective projects. Dreyfus said she hopes to assemble a team that could further develop her project’s domain name and service shape.

“I understand that the [entrepreneurial leadership minor] is one of the fastest growing minors, and I think that entering it as a career option and something worth studying about is something growing on campus. And I think that is reflective of a general trend, not just at Tufts,” Milde said.

Milde discussed the changing dynamics of social entrepreneurship and the offering of similar competitions in other schools. She said the benefits reaped for participating in the competition outweigh any dismay she feels over not being a finalist.

“Each team is paired up with a mentor, faculty or alum. An exciting part of my job is who has the expertise to coach and bring businesses to the next level. Feedback alone is invaluable,” Milde said.

Dreyfus and Sieber echoed Milde and said their mentors supported them tremendously throughout the process.

“I met [my mentor] a couple times and I envisioned him playing a large role in my future endeavors,” Dreyfus said. “It was a solid connection that Tufts provided.”

Students to compete for trip to Silicon Valley in Tufts’ first-ever Hackathon HACKATHON

continued from page 1

with developers.

The event begins at 5:00 p.m. at 196 Boston Ave. Registrants will form small teams for a full day of brainstorming, coding and constructing new software projects from the ground up.

Faculty and guest judges will award prizes for the best ideas and executions.

“We’re expecting around 80 to 90 people with about a dozen sponsors and mentors coming,” Moutenot said. “With school going on, you always have these cute little ideas, but never have time to execute them. My hope is that people will finally have a chance to get momentum with those projects.”

The event will also feature speeches from technology leaders as well as from Tufts Computer Science Lecturer Ming Chow (E ‘02).

Senior Lecturer of Computer Science Benjamin Hescott, who guided the four students in the initial stages of planning, said he was impressed that they were able to secure outside sponsors.

“They got all of the sponsors on their own,” Hescott said. “We basically said that [the Department of Computer Science] could be a safety net, but they went out and approached all of the sponsors on their own. They did an amazing job.”

Sampson said he and his team reached out to the Boston entrepreneur and technology communities for funding.

“Raising money was actually a lot easier than I anticipated,” he said. “Companies were really excited about sponsoring it.

Getting students to work on projects using a company’s technology is great for that company.

If you could write an application that interfaces with their system, then that application gets published and more people start using their services.”

Sampson said the idea for the Hackathon originated from a blog post.

“I thought, that’s something that we don’t do at Tufts, but it sounds like it’d be pretty fun, so

hackNY via Flickr Creative Commons

Computer Science students tonight are hosting Tufts’ first-ever Hackathon, a 24-hour coding marathon where students will work on project ideas for the chance to win prizes.

I brought it up to my group of friends who are now planning it all together,” he said.

Other Boston-area schools have previously hosted hackathons, Moutenot said.

“There are a lot of events in Boston happening where people network, or have meetings, or see a bunch of lightning talks about new productions,” he said. “We thought it was weird that Tufts has such a big

Computer Science department but has never had a hackathon. Northeastern [University], MIT [Massachusetts Institute of Technology], they’ve all had Hackathons, so we thought it’d be a great opportunity to get Tufts more connected with the Boston startup community and companies elsewhere.”

According to Moutenot, although Tufts’ first Hackathon has attracted a larger crowd

than previous events at MIT, few people not affiliated with the Department of Computer Science have registered.

“It seems like the way we marketed it was primarily aimed at developers and computer scientists,” he said. “In the future, we hope to get a wider variety, maybe entrepreneurs, maybe people who are interested in product design or aesthetics. Companies like

Facebook and Microsoft have armies of these graphic designers and artistic people.”

Moutenot and his colleagues remain optimistic about the future of the Hackathon.

“I think this is probably not going to be a one-shot event,” Sampson said. “There’s more to come, so keep an eye out, and hopefully we’ll have some cool products and ideas that get launched at the event.”

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Arts & Living

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tuftsdaily.com

Music Review

M. Ward returns with subtlety and poise ‘A Wasteland Companion’ affirms songwriter’s classic style by

Matthew Welch

Daily Editorial Board

Fans of hushed folk music rejoice: M. Ward has released a new album. His latest record,

A Wasteland Companion M. Ward Merge Records “A Wasteland Companion,” follows the example set by his previous albums. Though fans may not see a new side of singer-songwriter Matthew Ward, they’ll get a solid dose of everything they liked about him in the first place. What “A Wasteland Companion” may lack in originality it more than makes up for with its poignant, understated songwriting and high production values.

The album opens on a hopeful note with the aptly titled “Clean Slate.” Delicately strummed guitars underlie Ward’s endearingly modest vocals as they whisper, “Yeah, I only had to wait a while/ Before I got my/ Clean slate.”

Clocking in at just under three minutes, the album’s opener doesn’t go very far from where it starts, but it doesn’t have to.

Even with the simplest chord progressions and melodies, Ward creates an immersive sound that draws the listener in with its subtlety.

M. Ward kicks up the energy level of the album with the next track, the tongue-in-

Kiddwidd via Flickr Creative Commons

M. Ward’s soft-spoken vocals make for easy listening, even though his lyrics are poignant and complex. cheek “Primitive Girl.” Ward details the laconic behavior of a girl over a chugging rhythm section that throws doo-wopstyle piano together with a pop drumbeat. “She’s a primitive girl/ Don’t like to boast/ From

her natural head/ To her natural toes.” Though this song is hardly a rocker, it’s one of the liveliest tracks on “A Wasteland Companion.” M. Ward doesn’t handle the track with the same poise as his quieter folk songs,

but he does manage to project over the rest of the band with a slight snarkiness that gives the lyrics their much-needed edge. The rest of the album sees him in a more comfortable zone.

“Me and My Shadow” walks a happy line between the first two tracks. With its interlocking guitar lines and foreboding vocal melody, the song is edgsee WASTELAND, page 6

TV Review

‘The Mentalist’ features solid writing, great cast by

Kate Griffiths

Daily Editorial Board

Currently in its fourth season, the procedural show “The Mentalist” is showing why it was just renewed for a fifth.

The Mentalist Starring Simon Baker, Robin Tunney, Tim Kang Airs Thursdays at 10 p.m. on CBS The show centers on protagonist Patrick Jane (Simon Baker), a consultant with a haunted past who works for the fictional California Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

Having previously used his smarts and observational skills as a pretense on a faux-psychic show, Jane was punished cruelly for his baiting of a notorious serial killer known as Red John when he murdered his wife and daughter.

Now, in an effort to rectify his mistakes, Jane is on a destructive and wholly entertaining path to redemption and vengeance. Red John remains an unobtrusive part of the overarching plot arc, but as with all procedural shows there is a case-per-episode formula.

Unlike most of the forensics shows on television, such as “CSI” and “Bones,” “The Mentalist” is definitely a characterdriven show. Jane joins up with a small team in the CBI, headed by the tiny yet exceedingly tough Teresa Lisbon (Robin Tunney), who gradually begins to enjoy Jane’s company. What started as a partnership of convenience becomes a union based on mutual trust and respect, with Lisbon recently admitting that Jane is a

Simon Baker perfectly captures the haunted past of Patrick Jane in ‘The Mentalist.’ necessary part of their team.

A notable aspect of their relationship is its lack of romance. The writers keep the characters as believable as possible, and this includes not forcing a love story down the viewers’ throats. As much as he may have moved on, Jane

is still mourning the loss of his wife and realistically would not be able to form any romantic attachment so soon.

Thankfully, this does not stop the writers from doing something rarely done in television these days: allowing the male and female leads to form a normal and

whitetina36 via FlickR Creative Commons

believably strong friendship.

There are also other valuable members of the team ­— the sensitive Grace Van Pelt (Amanda Righetti), stolid Wayne Rigsby (Owain Yeoman) and see MENTALIST, page 6

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Arts & Living

Friday, April 13, 2012

M. Ward delivers nuanced, introspective record WASTELAND

continued from page 5

ier than most M. Ward tracks.

When the drums kick in halfway through the song, M. Ward keeps up with much greater gusto than he did on “Primitive Girl.� A thick, fuzzed-out bass line is added to the mix, upping the intensity of the track, but the song never feels like it reaches the climax at which it’s hinting. Listeners who like bombast in their music may find “A Wasteland Companion� a little underwhelming, but fans who are willing to judge M. Ward by his own standards will find plenty of energy on the album. “A Wasteland Companion� doesn’t hit its full stride until

“The First Time I Ran Away� at the album’s halfway mark.

Spaced-out synth string arrangements, whispered vocals and quietly propulsive guitar strumming mark the song as one of M. Ward’s most characteristic tunes. It’s easy to see how M. Ward has drawn fans from folk, psychedelic and even shoe-gaze genres with his unique blend of acoustic folk and impressionistic layered soundscapes. Both of these elements are on full display in “The First Time I Ran Away,� and they show how compelling M. Ward can be when he’s in his element.

The remainder of the album gradually tapers the intensity until the final track, “Pure Joy,� which throws layers of over-

dubbed, breathy vocals against the plaintive strumming of M. Ward’s acoustic guitar. Such a closing track is more than appropriate considering the tone of the album.

While M. Ward doesn’t explore too wide a variety of moods on “A Wasteland Companion,� his introspective approach finds a wealth of material in the sounds he does focus on. “A Wasteland Companion� certainly could have been a more ambitious album, and it doesn’t mark any departure from M. Ward’s well-cemented oeuvre, but this is hardly a complaint.

Fans and newcomers should both find something they like on this record.

Guus Krol via Flickr Creative Commons

While he may not have the most varied approach, M. Ward has carved out a unique sonic niche.

‘The Mentalist’ more than just a standard crime show MENTALIST

continued from page 5

stoic Kimball Cho (Tim Kang) — each of whom develops over the seasons as a well-rounded character rife with flaws and admirable qualities. The writers have created a group of characters who change as people often do: slowly and often not for the best. Each character has a backstory that is gradually revealed. What appeared at first to be a predictable relationship between Van Pelt and Rigsby evolved into a complicated and satisfyingly tense break-up and friendship.

The show’s only downside is its relatively formulaic approach to each episode, which generally follows the same pattern as most crime shows do. Most shows find unpredictability

within this limited framework, but the standout episodes are the rare ones that involve Red John. This madman brings out the dangerously manipulative side of Patrick Jane, who usually only uses his methods of persuasion and hypnosis to help with cases. Jane’s vendetta against Red John always concludes with some sort of cliffhanger ending to an episode or a new revelation about previously unimportant characters, as all good season finales should.

Recurring guest characters appear throughout the seasons, often coming back long after they first appeared, adding a sense of genuine continuity to the show. Fans of “The OC� (2003-2007) will recognize Samaire Armstrong (who played

Anna Stern) playing Summer Edgecombe, Cho’s informantturned-girlfriend in an odd turn of events during the current season. Malcolm McDowell of “A Clockwork Orange� (1971) fame also appears several times as Bret Stiles, the leader of a potentially dangerous cult. “The Mentalist� is similar to all other procedural shows simply because of the basic formula they all follow, but it has an added twist of humor that makes it far more enjoyable.

Each character brings something unique to the show; no one is unused or overlooked, and the writers seem to have a solid, clear plan. Those elements may seem simple but, when put together, they result in one of the best crime shows on TV today.

goodidea-gift via FlickR Creative Commons

In ‘The Mentalist,’ all of the characters are given enough screen time to round out their personalities and relationships.

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8

Comics

Friday, April 13, 2012

Doonesbury

Crossword

by

Garry Trudeau

Non Sequitur

Thursday’s Solution

Married to the Sea

www.marriedtothesea.com

SUDOKU Level: Hatching three dragon eggs

Late Night at the Daily

Thursday’s Solution

Jen: “If you cared about him as much as you care about me, I’d be really mad at you.”

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The Tufts Daily

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After tough loss to MIT, No. 1 Amherst awaits MEN’S TENNIS

continued from page 11

But the positive results ended after the doubles portion for the Jumbos.

In their last match against Bowdoin, it was the doubles teams that struggled, but in this match the singles players allowed MIT to roar back and win five of six matches to take the win.

Only one of the matches pushed past a second set — Lutz’s attempt to hold on, which stretched into the evening. The final result — 6-7 (10), 7-5, 10-5 — was not decided until more than an hour after the other teams had wrapped up.

The one win the Jumbos took in singles came from sophomore Matt Pataro, who took home a tidy 6-3, 6-0 victory over a challenging MIT counterpart. “[Pataro] played the best match that I’ve ever seen him play,” said Bossen, who noted that Pataro took down a player that handily beat a now-graduated Jumbo the last time they played.

“Lutz and I lost a really close match at [No. 1] doubles,” Pataro said. “We had it and we were right there, so I was pretty determined to not let another one get lost. I didn’t really care who the guy was, and I ended up playing well.”

Though Pataro had one of his best

days of the season, the rest of the squad found itself disheartened by yet another loss to the Engineers.

“It’s not a conference match, so at the end of the day it’s not the biggest deal if you’re looking big picture,” Bossen said. “But it’s a disappointing loss. They’re a good team and we really wanted to beat them. It’s very disappointing to not come out on top.”

“MIT hit a lot of really big shots and I think we weren’t really ready for that in particular,” Pataro said.

When the match finally came to an end, the coaching staff called the players together in an effort to shore up some of the issues the team has been struggling with lately. Though the Jumbos will look to iron out some of the kinks in their next few practices, they do not have much time to prepare before heading to Amherst on Sunday to take on the nation’s number-one team.

The top-ranked Lord Jeffs are the defending national champions, and every player for the Jumbos will need to play his strongest match of the season to have any chance at an upset.

“I think that we’re headed in the right direction as a team, even though we lost [ Wednesday],” Bossen said.

“It’s a question of if everyone can put together their best effort.”

Limiting man-up chances will be crucial for Tufts against Amherst KEYS

continued from page 11

4. Rides Tufts’ transition game has kicked into high gear at the offensive end this season, and the Jumbos’ attackmen have proven both fast and aggressive, riding opposing defenses well after shooting or turning the ball over to force failed clears and changes of possession.

While the Jumbos have converted 85.5 percent of their clears, they have held opponents to a 74.6 conversion percentage. On Tuesday, Endicott managed to clear just 17 of 27 attempts over midfield.

Even if the Jumbos are unable to force turnovers or failed clears at midfield, strong rides from the attackmen can slow the Lord Jeffs’ transition game and allow the Jumbos’ defense to prepare for settled situations. Redwood in particular is known for his speed and by breaking up the fluidity of the Lord Jeffs’ transition game, the Jumbos can minimize his impact and afford themselves a better chance to get back on the defensive end.

9

Sports

5. Keeping composure In the Jumbos’ closer games this season, including some victories, they have shown weaknesses on defense when penalties stack up and opposing offenses are presented with ample man-up opportunities. Against Middlebury, Tufts gave up three extra-man goals, nearly relinquishing a five-goal lead late in the third quarter.

Against Amherst, it will be crucial for Tufts’ defenders to keep level heads and play smart. With players as skilled as Redwood, Cherney and Acton firing on them, there will be little room for error should the Lord Jeffs get multiple man-up chances. They will likely cash in where weaker teams like Williams —which went 0 for 7 on man-ups last Saturday — were unable to do so. In Tufts’ loss to No. 16 Trinity, the Bantams converted three of four extra-man looks.

The Jumbos cannot afford any lapses in composure against the Lord Jeffs. While its man-down defense has improved of late, Tufts cannot give Amherst that edge if it hopes to come away with a win on Saturday.

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After tapering workouts, runners anxiously await the starting gun MARATHON

continued from page 11

them is I don’t run for them,” he said. “I do everything else.”

The team has been training since the fall, gradually increasing the intensity of its workouts and then tapering down.

According to Bansil, the runners progressed from 10 miles in November to about 12 at the end of first semester, 15 in February and finally 19 in early March.

Since then, they have been tapering; on Wednesday, they were all the way down to four miles.

For the runners, seeing the crowds surrounding the course is one of the most unique parts of the experience.

Approximately 500,000 people come out to watch each year, including thousands of college students who gather at hotspots including Heartbreak Hill and the finish line in Copley Square.

With the race just three days away, emotions are running high.

“On Monday at 10:40 a.m., I was thinking about starting, envisioning every single hour,” Bansil said. “I kind of find myself thinking about the things I’m going to say to coach Megerle [at the finish line].”

But Megerle knows how it will go. There won’t be much need for words.

“When I see Sapna at the end of the marathon,” he said, “we’ll both hug each other and cry.”

SCHEDULE | April 13 - April 17 FRI at Colby 4 p.m.

at Colby 12 p.m. at Colby 2:30 p.m.

Baseball

vs. Colby 3 p.m.

vs. Colby 12 p.m. vs. Colby 3 p.m.

SUN

MON

TUE

Women’s Lacrosse

at Amherst 12 p.m.

vs. Bates 5 p.m.

Men’s Lacrosse

vs. Amherst 1 p.m.

at Bates 7 p.m.

Women’s Tennis

vs. Emory 10:30 a.m.

Men’s Tennis

at Amherst 11 a.m.

Women’s Track and Field

Women’s Sailing

Co-ed Sailing

kyra sturgill / the Tufts Daily

SAT

Softball

Men’s Track and Field

Junior midfielder Sam Diss’ speed has helped the Jumbos push the ball in transition, where their offense thrives.

Virginia Bledsoe / The Tufts Daily Archives

The 98 runners representing the Tufts Marathon Team on Monday have been training for the Boston Marathon since last fall.

at Skyhawk Classic Tufts Heptathalon/ Decathalon 11 a.m.

Tufts Heptathalon/ Decathalon 11 a.m.

at Skyhawk Classic Tufts Heptathalon/ Decathalon Tufts Heptathalon/ 11 a.m.

Decathalon 11 a.m.

at Emily Wick Trophy 9:30 a.m.

at Emily Wick Trophy 9:30 a.m.

at Oberg Trophy/ at Oberg Trophy/ New England Dinghy New England Dinghy Championships Championships 10:30 a.m.

10:30 a.m.

Women’s Crew

vs. Wesleyan, Wellesley & Bates 9 a.m.

Men’s Crew

vs. Wesleyan & Bates 9 a.m.

vs. Bates 1 p.m.

The Tufts Daily

10

Fournier has Jumbos riding high FOURNIER

continued from Back

you from experience you are scared once you get one strike on you. After she gets that first strike, she has so many weapons that she can get you out with from there.”

In spite of her early success, Fournier has worked tirelessly with the coaching staff to continue to perfect her craft. She currently overpowers hitters with her natural ability to throw hard, despite the fact that she sometimes has trouble locating her pitches.

“With great hitting teams, they will get to her because she doesn’t necessarily put it where it can’t be hit,” Milligan said. “There are three aspects of pitching: velocity, spin rate per second and location. The first two Allyson has down very well. It’s about that third aspect, the location. She doesn’t always hit spots the way she can.”

Although Fournier sports an intense, all-business demeanor when she toes the rubber, she is known to crack jokes and lighten the mood off the field.

She is constantly smiling and providing comic relief, and her teammates rank her among the best on the team at dugout banter.

“Allyson is a huge goofball,” Clair said.

“She has a very different personality and loves to keep the mood light. A lot of people like to be around her because she’s always positive with a smile on her face.

She shows she loves the game, which is an attitude that everyone thrives off of.”

“It helps her on the mound,” Milligan added. “She doesn’t keep a big psychological edge.”

Fournier has the potential to carry the Tufts softball program through the next four seasons. After losing in the NESCAC championship game a year ago, the Jumbos have raced to a 19-3 start in 2012 and are currently ranked 11th in the nation.

With Fournier on the mound, the possibilities appear limitless.

Sports

Friday, April 13, 2012

Tufts and Amherst offenses are mirror images MEN’S LACROSSE continued from Back

the Jumbos with two goals and two helpers. Though Endicott answered with an unassisted tally just over two minutes later, Tufts grabbed the reigns at the end of the first quarter in exciting fashion.

Senior co-captain Sean Kirwan, who has been sidelined with a severe ankle sprain all season, limped onto the field for a man-up opportunity ready to accept his first feed of 2012. Kirwan quickly reminded everyone what the Jumbos had been missing, taking a pass from classmate attackman Jordan Korinis on the crease and putting it in to give Tufts a 2-1 lead in the last minute of the period.

The goal not only seemed to spark the Jumbos’ offense — which reached double digits for the fourth game in a row — but also electrified a crowd that instantly remembered just how effective Kirwan, Tufts’ leading goal-scorer last year with 66, can be.

“To get back on the field and contribute was great,” Kirwan said. “It’s been a long month and I’m happy to finally get back out there and help the team out in any way possible. As far as playing time goes, there is really no way to tell. My ankle feels better every day and I just need to focus on what I’m doing to get consistently better and trust that my coaches will make the best decision for the team come game time.”

An invigorated Tufts squad took the second quarter 3-1, with senior cocaptain midfielder Kevin McCormick, sophomore attackman Beau Wood and senior midfielder Ben Saperstein pushing the Jumbos’ halftime lead to 5-2.

After the break, Tufts continued its stellar play on both sides of the ball. The offense went on a 5-1 streak to open the second half, while the defense took the third quarter ground ball battle 11-6 and allowed Endicott to complete just five of eight clear attempts.

“We as a defense, along with the rest of the team, just like to focus on being the same guy every day,” sophomore defenseman Dan Alles said of the team’s success in the backfield on Tuesday.

“The guy who loves challenges. The guy who is never satisfied and is always chasing perfection. [Endicott] handed us a tough loss last year, and we were given another opportunity to play against them on an awesome night on our home field. How lucky are we?”

Bailey opened the second-half scoring on a feed from Saperstein.

The Gulls answered less than a minute later to make it 6-3 with 11:35 left in the third, but the Jumbos closed the visitors out from that point on as sophomore Peter Bowers, Wood, McCormick and Bailey scored the next four goals unassisted to wind down the clock to 5:43. Wood traded one more goal with Endicott in the third to make it 11-4 before coach Mike Daly tapped into his reserves.

The win displayed a Tufts squad reminiscent of the past few years, with Kirwan on the crease — though only part-time on Tuesday — a high-assist offense and an aggressive defense. That winning combination held Endicott to 31 shots on goal, forced 23 turnovers and allowed just 17 of 27 clears to be completed, putting Tufts atop the NESCAC in goals, assists, shots, points and ground balls per game.

On top of all that, the victory came at the perfect time: The Jumbos now have a four-game NESCAC slate to close out the regular season, starting tomorrow at home with the team’s biggest conference matchup this year, against No. 13 Amherst.

“This is what we play for. There is nothing like being out on your home turf,” Alles said. “Especially for our seniors and for this team as a whole, we are only guaranteed so much. We have to earn the right to keep this season going, and I’m confident in our guys and our coaches to make this thing last as long as we can. We expect

to win games, and we expect to keep playing, but there is going to be a lot of blood, sweat and tears in there to make sure it goes the right way.”

The Lord Jeffs sit behind the Jumbos in most categories and have lost three of their last four games to unranked Wesleyan, Hamilton and Springfield.

But Amherst could still pose a challenge. The Lord Jeffs have three of the league’s top five point-scorers and the best shooting percentage in the NESCAC, and they kill more penalties, give up fewer man-ups and have turned the ball over 38 times fewer than the Jumbos.

Amherst’s offense strongly resembles the Jumbos’, which should bode well for a Tufts team that is well-versed in stopping a scoring trio like its own.

“As far as practicing against guys like Beau and Cole, I think that playing against guys like that day in and day out is always great when preparing for any game,” Alles said. “We all love to compete, and we challenge each other every day. But when it comes down to it, I think the real credit goes to the ... teams who work so hard to challenge the offense and defense in the practices leading up to the games.”

On Saturday, all eyes will be on the matchup between Tufts’ and Amherst’s offensive tandems: McCormick, Wood, Bailey and possibly Kirwan versus sophomore Devin Acton and seniors midfielder Evan Redwood and attackman Cole Cherney. With Tufts allowing fewer goals this season and winning more faceoffs than in the past — not to mention riding a four-game winning streak while Amherst has floundered — it seems the Jumbos should have the upper hand.

With the NESCAC tournament approaching, a win tomorrow would have significant implications.

“Coach always says, ‘We need a onegame win streak,’” Kirwan said. “Right now, we are focused on a very good Amherst team and no one else. They have our full attention.”

NESCAC Roundup Each week, the staff at NESCAC Insider, the Tufts Daily’s NESCAC blog, will compile a roundup of the top news throughout Div. III’s top conference. For more up-to-the-minute analysis and comprehensive coverage of the NESCAC, visit blogs.tuftsdaily.com/nescacinsider or follow on Twitter @NESCACInsider.

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Men’s Lacrosse | Ephs get supermodel shoutout After a monumental upset, Williams got a little hotter.

The Ephs’ men’s lacrosse team took down national No. 5 Union on Wednesday night 8-6, just Williams’ third win of the season.

After falling behind 2-0 on the road, the Ephs rallied behind 14 saves from goalie Sean Dougherty and consistent defensive play that overcame a 13-5 deficit on faceoffs and withstood 44 Dutchmen shots.

The 3-6 Ephs broke a two-game losing streak and flexed their muscles, holding Union scoreless in the second and third periods while building up a 5-2 lead entering the final period in the process.

Following the game, bikini model and Sports Illustrated cover girl Kate Upton tweeted her support for the Ephs, writing from her account @KateUpton, “Congrats to my cousin’s team @Ephslacrosse for their win!! Love you Stephen!!”

Stephen Upton, a sophomore midfielder from Alexandria, Va., ranks eighth on the team in scoring with a goal and four assists through nine games this season. He’s come off the bench in all nine.

Williams returns to action on Saturday when it hosts Colby in a NESCAC matchup at 1 p.m.

Softball | Leet has Amherst hard to beat The Tufts softball team has received a great deal of local attention for its star freshman, pitcher Allyson Fournier, she of the perfect game and 17-strikeout performance.

Turns out that Amherst has a first-year ace in store as well, except this one is tearing it up on the offensive end.

Freshman Donna Leet has already broken the Lord Jeffs’ single-season RBI record after she went 6-for-7 with four RBIs in Amherst’s doubleheader sweep over

Western New England on Wednesday.

That bumped her season total up to 34, which broke the previous record of 31 set

by Sarah Rinaldi in 1998.

Leet leads Amherst — which at 24-1 is currently receiving votes in the latest Div. III NFCA coaches national poll — with a .460 batting average and a conferencehigh 11 doubles. Her 34 RBIs also top the conference, three ahead of Middlebury’s Jessica Poracky. Amherst is undefeated in the NESCAC West and has a three-game series this weekend against Hamilton (4-13, 0-6 NESCAC), so look for Leet to pad her stats against a Continentals pitching unit that sports a team ERA of 5.24.

Baseball | Jumbled mess in NESCAC East Trinity’s sweep of Tufts gave the Bantams the inside track to the top seed in the NESCAC East and a legitimate shot at dethroning the two-time defending conference champs, but both the Jumbos and Bowdoin are lurking in the wings.

The Polar Bears dropped the opener of a threegame series against the Bates Bobcats, spoiling yet another strong outing from ace Christian Martin, who struck out nine and allowed two runs in seven innings. Reliever Henry Van Zant started the eighth and recorded just two outs, surrendering two runs on three singles.

Bowdoin rebounded to take two of three from Bates on Saturday, however. Oliver Van Zant went the distance in the seven-inning game, allowing just four hits while fanning nine in a 3-0 win. Tim Welch went deep into the nine-inning rubber match, striking out four in eight innings.

The Bantams, meanwhile, steamrolled the Jumbos at Huskins Field, sweeping them and setting up a critical three-game series this weekend in Brunswick, Maine. A sweep or even a series win for Trinity would all but lock up the top seed for the Bantams.

Bowdoin, on the other hand, has more work to do. It will likely need to win this weekend’s series, hold serve against Colby next weekend and then enter the April 27-28 series versus Tufts with a playoff spot on the line.

—by Alex Prewitt

The Tufts Daily

Friday, April 13, 2012

11

Sports

Men’s Tennis

Jumbos start fast, lose steam against Engineers in 6-3 defeat by

Marcus Budline

Senior Staff Writer

After MIT had already secured a victory on Wednesday, junior Andrew Lutz’s match continued on into the evening, leaving the rest of the men’s tennis team to sit in the cold under the setting sun and look on. As Lutz battled until the very end of his second marathon match of the day, the Jumbos found themselves contemplating the results of the match before it had even ended.

“It’s frustrating,” co-captain Morrie Bossen said. “As a senior, we’ve played MIT every year, and every year we’ve lost a close match to them. It definitely is disappointing.”

When Lutz finally succumbed to his Engineer opponent, the Jumbos once again were on the wrong end of a losing effort, falling 6-3 on the road in their second loss in a row.

The marathon of a match began far better than it ended for Tufts, which jumped out to a 2-1 lead in doubles thanks to victories from its second and third pairings.

In the No. 2 doubles spot, freshman Brian Tan was forced to replace an absent senior co-captain Sam Laber and filled in admirably, winning 9-8 (5) alongside junior Ben Barad. The other victory came from Bossen and Mark Westerfield, who pulled out an 8-5 win.

“I was pretty pleased how Mark and I played as a team,” Bossen said.

“Mentally, we were the most dialed in of every match we’ve been in. So many games went to deuce, and we pulled out so many games.”

scott tingley / the tufts Daily

see MEN’S TENNIS, page 9

Sophomore Matt Pataro played one of the best matches of his career on Wednesday, earning the Jumbos’ lone singles victory against MIT by a score of 6-3, 6-0.

Fan the Fire

Fan the Fire to hit Bello and Huskins tomorrow The second Fan the Fire event of the spring season will take place this Saturday, when the men’s lacrosse and baseball teams host NESCAC foes on Bello and Huskins Fields, respectively.

The baseball team (12-6) will square off against NESCAC East counterpart Colby in a doubleheader, with games beginning at noon and 3:00 p.m. The twinbill will conclude a three-game series between the Jumbos and Mules that begins on Friday.

At Bello Field, the men’s lacrosse team (9-2) will face Amherst and look to continue its charge up the NESCAC ladder. The No. 7 Jumbos, who regained a top-10 ranking in the latest United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association poll after downing non-conference Endicott, will look to keep putting the pressure on Trinity, which currently stands atop the conference standings.

Saturday’s event is co-sponsored

by Level the Field, an organization run by the Athletic Department that promotes teamwork, leadership and sportsmanship. The program gives middle school students in East Somerville a chance to interact with varsity Tufts athletes, who teach them about lessons and values developed through sports.

Free Fan the Fire t-shirts will be distributed at the event, and students who wear their Fan the Fire shirts will receive raffle tickets for prizes, including Fan the Fire blankets and long-sleeve shirts and Level the Field gear.

—by David McIntyre

Men’s Lacrosse

Marathon Team

Tufts sends 100 runners Tufts vs. Amherst: Five keys to coming out on top to Boston Marathon by

Aaron Leibowitz

Daily Editorial Board

When second-year Tufts graduate student Sapna Bansil began training for the Boston Marathon this past September, she had never run a race in her life. She wasn’t an athlete. She wasn’t even exercising on a regular basis. Now, just seven months later, Bansil is ready to compete in one of the premier athletic events in the world.

“I think that’s the great thing about being on the Tufts team,” Bansil said. “You don’t have to be a world-class athlete.”

On Monday, Bansil will be one of 98 runners representing this year’s Tufts Marathon Team, which includes graduates and undergraduates, alumni, parents, faculty and staff. While the size of the team was reduced this year from 200 to 100 — and then to 98 after two runners dropped out due to injury and pregnancy — by its sponsor, John Hancock, the team has still managed to raise more than $500,000 in support of childhood obesity research at the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy.

The team is overseen by Don Megerle, who spent 33 years at the helm of the men’s swimming program at Tufts and is now in his eighth year coaching the marathon team. While Megerle has never personally run a marathon, he fell in love with the event as a spectator. “[The runners’] reactions, expressions, the tears, the joy — it was just indescribable,” Megerle said. “You have to be there to see it.”

Since then, Megerle has been as dedicated to his runners as

they are to the race.

“Three years ago, I waited until a quarter to 10 for someone to finish,” he said. “When she crossed the finish line, you’d think she’d won the thing.”

The marathon course begins in Hopkinton, Mass., crosses the Wellesley and Boston College campuses, heads into downtown Boston and ends in Copley Square.

The last half of the marathon is notoriously difficult, including the 0.4-mile-long Heartbreak Hill in Newton at roughly the 20-mile mark of the race.

While training hasn’t been easy, especially for first-time runners, Megerle has been there every step of the way. When Bansil recently received treatment on a sore foot at 7 a.m., Megerle was there with her. When first-year graduate student and fellow first-time marathoner Jen Iassogna needed treatment on her leg a couple of weeks ago, Megerle was at every 7:30 a.m. physical therapy session.

“He’s one of the most important people I’ve ever met,” Iassogna said. “He loves Tufts and loves his runners.”

“His dedication to each and every one of us — for me, that was the thing that got me through in the beginning when the training runs were very hard,” Bansil added.

While some of the more experienced runners don’t require as much guidance from Megerle, he constantly sends the team emails with mental advice and does whatever he can to help them through the experience.

“The only thing I don’t do for see MARATHON, page 9

by

Kate Klots

Daily Editorial Board

Tomorrow at 1 p.m. on Bello Field, the seventh-ranked men’s lacrosse team will host No. 13 Amherst in a highly anticipated matchup between two of the top squads in the NESCAC. The Daily breaks down the five keys to a Tufts victory: 1. The fearsome trio Before returning briefly in Tuesday night’s contest against Endicott, senior co-captain Sean Kirwan, the Jumbos’ most dominant crease man, had been sidelined with a high ankle sprain. In his absence, the trio of senior and fellow co-captain Kevin McCormick, sophomore Beau Wood and freshman Cole Bailey have stepped up to lead the Jumbos, and the NESCAC, in offensive production.

The Jumbos lead the conference in points per game, averaging 18.11, while the Lord Jeffs are a close second at 17.00. Following a threegoal performance Tuesday, Wood jumped to third in overall scoring in the conference with 33 points, trailing only Amherst’s own senior quad-captain Evan Redwood and sophomore Devin Acton.

Wood leads the conference in points per game, while McCormick has proven his willingness to shoot, firing a league-leading 102 shots.

In his first year of collegiate play, Bailey has also stepped up in a starting role and has proven himself as a trusty feeder from behind the cage, posting a league-leading 18 assists through nine games.

In Tufts’ two losses, to No. 4 Stevenson and No. 16 Trinity, the trio was held to a combined four

and six points, respectively. In the Jumbos’ nine wins, they averaged a combined 11.11 points. If these three can get open looks and exercise patience with their shots Saturday, they will be able to diffuse pressure from the rest of the offense and set the tone early by putting the Lord Jeffs’ defenders on their heels.

2. Containing Amherst’s trio The Lord Jeffs boast their own menacing offensive trio, and perhaps the only other threesome in the NESCAC capable of putting up points like the Jumbos’ top scorers do. Redwood, Acton and senior attackman Cole Cherney have combined for 103 points in 11 games and have been a thorn in the side of many teams with weaker defenses.

This season, one of Tufts’ biggest strengths is its experience and depth on the defensive end. The Jumbos have seen strong play from a core close-defensive unit as well as from their bench, their shortstick defensive midfielders and their long-stick midfielders. All have played both solid settled defense and transition defense, and have been quick to force turnovers and capture possessions at midfield.

It remains to be seen whether the Jumbos will approach the trio with a prescription of man defense and strict matchup assignments or work in a zone to slide and push out on the threesome. Although both teams enjoy extreme depth on attack — the Lord Jeffs have outscored opponents 118 to 95 — expect Tufts’ proven

back lines to stand tall barring a negative penalty margin or a sensational day from Amherst’s premier scorers.

3. Fast breaks and transition Transition scoring has always been a cornerstone of Tufts’ offensive game, and the Jumbos have exploited opposing midfields and defenses well in their victories this season. Senior midfielder Nick Rhoads has helped the cause, winning a league-leading 62.9 percent of his faceoffs to give the Jumbos quick numbers and looks at the cage. Meanwhile, Amherst sophomore Duncan Morrissey ranks just seventh in the conference, winning 50.8 percent of faceoffs.

Strong wing play from sophomore Kane Delaney, junior Ryan Jorgenson, senior Mark Findaro and freshman Tim LaBeau has helped Rhoads earn his impressive percentage. If the Jumbos can keep up the stellar work on faceoffs, they will secure crucial possessions and, perhaps more importantly, keep the ball out of Amherst’s hands.

When starting possessions from their defense, Tufts must get upfield fast, maximizing McCormick’s and junior midfielder Sam Diss’ speed to push the ball in transition and find Bailey, Wood and other offensive targets before Amherst’s defense has a chance to recover.

While Bailey is a strong feeding option from behind the net in a settled offense, the Jumbos would do well to maximize both efficiency and production without slowing down — since they play their best lacrosse at a fast pace. see KEYS, page 9

Sports

12

INSIDE Marathon 11 Men’s Lacrosse 11 Men’s Tennis 11

tuftsdaily.com

Softball

Perfect Fourm: Freshman pitcher off to 9-0 start this spring by

Alex Baudoin

Daily Editorial Board

To say that Allyson Fournier has transitioned smoothly into collegiate softball would be an understatement.

Halfway through her first season on the mound in brown and blue, the 5-foot-8 right-hander has accomplished several feats that most pitchers only dream of achieving.

Fournier, now 9-0, has already been named NESCAC Pitcher of the Week twice. She managed to fan the side in four consecutive innings on the way to a 17-strikeout performance against Babson. She leads the NESCAC with a 0.61 ERA and four shutouts while pitching a staggering 57 2/3 innings.

And if that’s not enough, she threw a perfect game last Sunday.

“Allyson clearly has the talent,” coach Cheryl Milligan said. “Her spin rates and the movements of her pitches have been at a high level for awhile and are still at a very high level for the college game.

It’s not necessarily something you can teach. It’s definitely talent.”

Fournier’s catcher, sophomore Jo Clair, has been able to witness her stuff firsthand. “[Catching Fournier] is a lot of fun, to be honest with you, because I really haven’t had the experience catching someone as fast and with the offspeed pitches like Allyson in a long time,” Clair said. “She makes my job as a catcher easy.”

Hailing from South Windsor, Conn., Fournier has been a softball player since she could walk. Starting with tee-ball as a three-year-old, she went on to dominate at East Catholic High School while also playing for a competitive travel team every weekend during the summers.

“My dad was definitely a huge supporter for me all the way through,” Fournier said. “He brought me to pitch-

ing lessons, he brought me to all my practices. He was my coach through elementary and middle school.”

A dedicated math and chemistry student in high school, Fournier, now a chemical engineering major, wanted to attend a university with a well-rounded engineering program and a campus close to a major city.

Deciding between Cornell, Williams and Tufts, Fournier chose to play for the Jumbos because it allowed her to pursue all her interests academically, athletically and socially. She also was excited to have the opportunity to swim in college — that’s right, she’s on the swim team, too.

“I met Allyson through a travel softball team in Connecticut that we had several players from, including recent graduates,” Milligan said. “I found out she was bright, smart and interested in engineering, and we were definitely interested in her. She was also interested in us, and we went from there.”

Since Fournier’s arrival on campus, neither side could have been happier about her decision. Fournier has fit in flawlessly with a team that was in desperate need of a new ace following the graduation of Izzie Santone (E ’11), who led the squad in wins in 2011. On the mound, she is an imposing presence, mixing a hard fastball with a polished riser, a screwball and a developing changeup.

“She really is very, very good at getting ahead in the counts, and I think that is what makes her a dominating pitcher,” said Clair, who came from the same high school travel team organization as Fournier.

Even Clair, who holds Tufts’ singleseason home run record, is intimidated.

“Once she gets strike one on you, as a batter you get nervous,” she said. “I faced her in high school, and I can tell

courtesy patricia cordeiro

see FOURNIER, page 10

Halfway through her first season at Tufts, freshman Allyson Fournier already boasts a 9-0 record, a 0.61 ERA, two NESCAC Pitcher of the Week honors and a perfect game.

Men’s Lacrosse

Women’s Lacrosse

Tufts whacks Wheaton for third straight win

virginia bledsoe / the tufts Daily archives

Senior co-captain Sean Kirwan saw his first action of the season on Tuesday against Endicott, scoring a goal just seconds after entering the game to give Tufts a lead it would not relinquish.

Tufts back in top 10 after crushing Endicott on Tuesday by

Claire Kemp

Daily Editorial Board

Before Tuesday’s home matchup against Endicott, the men’s lacrosse team had played five games in a row on the road and, after dropping one in overtime to then-unranked Trinity, had fallen out of the USILA’s top 10. But by Tuesday

morning, the No. 7 Jumbos again found themselves among the Div. III elite and took to Bello Field that afternoon for the first time in over two weeks with a chance to do two things: confirm their status as national contenders, and reap revenge on the only non-conference team to beat them in last year’s regular season.

With an 11-5 thrashing of the Gulls, they did both.

Tufts dominated from the start, as two freshmen attackmen combined for the first goal of the game in just 31 seconds.

Chris Schoenhut notched the goal on an assist from Cole Bailey, who would go on to lead see MEN’S LACROSSE, page 10

The women’s lacrosse team continued its winning ways yesterday, demolishing Wheaton by a final score of 13-6. The win, the Jumbos’ third in a row, lifts the team’s record to 7-3 and will certainly serve as a confidence-booster for Tufts heading into its crucial road showdown with No. 11 Amherst tomorrow.

In dreary, rainy conditions on Bello Field, the Jumbos dominated the Lyons from start to finish. Senior tri-captain attackman Lara Kozin had six goals and three assists for Tufts, while junior attackman Kerry Eaton contributed four goals and two assists in the victory. Tufts’ offense as a whole performed well for the third game in a row and has averaged 14.6 goals over that span.

The defense also stifled the Wheaton attack, holding the Lyons to just 12 shots while dominating the middle of the field. Although the defense was victimized during the team’s midseason three-game losing streak, the squad has rebounded with three strong performances in a row against Endicott, Williams and now Wheaton.

While earning the midweek non-conference win was important for Tufts, the game served as a prelude to a huge NESCAC game this weekend.

Tomorrow’s matchup against Amherst will be critical in determining Tufts’ place in the conference standings.

The Lord Jeffs are currently tied with Bowdoin for fourth place in the conference with a record of 4-3. Since the Jumbos have a conference record of 3-3, they would leapfrog the Jeffs in the standings with a road win tomorrow.

Amherst’s strength lies in its defense, which has allowed the second-fewest goals of any team in the conference — the Lord Jeffs have allowed 46, while the Trinity Bantams have surrendered just 44.

But Amherst’s offense ranks at or near the bottom of the NESCAC in several categories, including goals and assists per game. Even though they have not allowed more than nine goals in any conference game this season, the Lord Jeffs have struggled to conjure up the offensive firepower needed to win.

Regardless of the teams’ specific strengths and weaknesses, both squads are sure to be motivated. The winner will have the upper hand heading into the stretch run of the regular season.

—by David McIntyre