The Connector - October 16, 2018

QUOTH THE RIVERHAWKS

New Column: Things overheard on campus â–ş Page 6

THE UMASS LOWELL

Serving the Student Body Since 1976

October 16, 2018

RIT deals UMass Lowell a 5-4 overtime defeat in Homecoming heartbreaker

In This Issue New Red Line route impresses students

â–ş Page 2

Andrew J. Sciascia Connector Editor

Owen Johnson’s review of ‘Venom’

â–ş Online Hockey wins in home opener against RIT

â–ş Page 7

Final River Hawk Scores Team

Score

W. Soccer vs. Maine

L 1-0

4-7-4

L 3-1

2-17

Volleyball vs. UAlbany

Overall Record

M. Soccer vs. Binghamton

W 3-0 7-4-2

M. Hockey vs. RIT

L 5-4

1-1-0

English department has minor changes Aaron Robinson Connector Editor

There will be an official Creative Writing Reception on Wednesday, Oct. 17, in the Mezzanine of O’Leary library from 1-2 p.m., hosted by Creative Writing students and faculty.

The English department recently announced the addition of the Creative Writing minor in an effort to appeal to students outside of the English major who are interested in writing poetry, fiction, or creative nonfiction. According to English professor Maureen Stanton, the minor has been in the works for about a year. “We had been getting requests from students in other departments to enroll in our [creative writing] workshops,� Stanton said. “But since the workshops--by design--have lower enrollments, and [creative writing] concentration students have priority, it was rare that anyone outside of the concentration was able to enroll.�

With the announcement of the new minor, students who decide to concentrate in the Creative Writing minor will be able to enroll in workshop classes such as Poetry I & II, Creative Writing Fiction I & II, and Creative Writing Nonfiction I & II that were previousâ–ş See “New minor,â€? page 6

Sections News.............................3 Campus Life.................. 6 A&E.............................. 4 Sports........................ 7-8

Saturday’s River Hawk Homecoming rematch between the UMass Lowell River Hawks and the Rochester Institute of Technology Tigers was no defensive chess match. With nine goals scored, and the lead changing hands three times throughout, the River Hawks’ second game of the regular season shaped up to be a comeback story late in the game - but UMass Lowell fell to RIT just 44 seconds into sudden-death overtime at the Tsongas Center. “It probably wasn’t a game that either coach was particularly proud of,� said Wayne Wilson, head coach for the RIT men’s ice hockey team.

It was a game that kept the UMass Lowell fan section at the end of their seats without a doubt. “It was another exciting hockey game‌ Exciting for the fans that is. Maybe not as much for the coaches. But that’s early season hockey. Lots of momentum shifts, lead changes,â€? said UMass Lowell head coach Norm Bazin.

Improving on their slim 2-1 victory over the Tigers Friday night, the River Hawks got off to a much quicker start Saturday.

UMass Lowell outshot RIT at a 12-8 margin in the 1st period of play, and by a far wider 42-30 margin by the time the game was in the books. In their quick first period, the River Hawks managed to score twice in 32 seconds and carry a 2-0 lead into intermission.

The first goal came from the stick of junior forward Kenny Hausinger, who would go on to score once more in the 3rd period, assisted by senior forward, and captain, Conor Wilson and freshman defenseman Seth Barton.

Wilson would create another

goal seconds later, lending a helper to freshman forward Sam Knoblauch for his first career goal.

Barton would also secure a second assist later on in the final period of regulation play.

The River Hawks would hold a strong 2-0 lead as they headed into the 1st intermission, but that would be the end of UMass Lowell’s scoring for some time. RIT would in return lay claim to the entirety of the second period of play, scoring four unanswered goals and forcing the River Hawks to climb their way out of a 4-2 hole in the

Matt Dwyer/Connector

Junior forward Ryan Lohin guards the puck against an RIT defender. â–ş See “Hockey,â€? page 8

“Mario Party:� A party you will soon forget Troy Lafond Connector Staff

“Mario Party� is a long-standing staple on Nintendo consoles. The franchise now boasts 11 installments since its introduction in 1998, as well as a plethora of spin-off titles. “Super Mario Party� is the first title in the franchise to appear on the Nintendo Switch, and the first title in the past three years.

The core gameplay loop in the franchise remains mostly unchanged. It is a Mario-themed board game, where players move around the board based on dice roll, attempting to collect as many coins as possible to be able to purchase stars. Due to its simplicity, it works perfectly for the intended purpose of parties.

There are strategical elements to the game that can add a decent amount of depth for those who prefer deeper games, such as picking one of various dice to use, which branching path to take and which items to use when. However, it is nothing inaccessible for those who like to play casually, nor nothing challenging

enough to truly scratch the itch of someone wanting a truly deep game. But that is not what “Super Mario Party� is made for.

In between each round, there are short minigames that players compete in to win coins. These minigames are not especially challenging, but are great fun in competitive play with friends. There are 80 total minigames, all diverse in gameplay element. Not every single minigame is a home run, but the vast majority of them are very well-executed and enjoyable. A really fun one is “Slaparazzi,� where players slap each other out of the way of a camera to try to be the center.

While the minigames are plentiful, the rest of the central game mode feels a bit sparse. There are only four game boards, less than past entries and also smaller in size. This would be less of an issue if all of the boards were high quality. However, the third board, which is fruit themed, is extremely annoying. It is painstakingly difficult, borderline impossible, to get around the board at whim, which ruins the otherwise â–ş See “Mario Party,â€? page 4

October 16, 2018

UM ASS L OWELL C ONNECTOR

Page 3

OPINIONS & EDITORIALS Op-Ed: So what if I’m not World Ready? “It should be two or less as opposed to four. It definitely shouldn’t be four,� said O’keefe.

Of course, many advisors and faculty members Tyler O’Keefe is an English major who feels his will say that students should utilize tutoring services high school Spanish language classes were easy. In or be taking a language they are already familiar fact, he called high school Spanish “a joke.� Now, with from their high school education. While that he faces a new challenge: that is, UMass Lowell’s may be true, there are students who scored poorly Spanish I course material.

According to him, his professor speaks almost in their high school language classes, which often entirely in Spanish, making it difficult to follow serve as an important preview to college-level matealong. On top of this, foreign languages have diffi- rial. This in turn makes foreign languages a nightcult grammatical rules and a learning process that mare for these students.

It is also questionable whether foreign language requires time‌ too much time. But O’Keefe, like many other students, has a job and works many requirements do more good than bad, as most stuhours outside of school. While he has kept up with dents rely on major specific courses to boost their most of his English major-specific courses during skills and confidence when looking for jobs they his time at UMass Lowell, he has yet to fulfill any think are ideal for them.

Alexandra Silva is another English major not in foreign language requirements. favor of UMass Lowell’s foreign language require“It’s something that has to be my main priority, ments. “If you take four semesters of a foreign lanand it’s my last,� said O’Keefe.

For many students and not just O’Keefe, this re- guage, you can potentially minor in that language. quirement of four semesters of the same language Since I am not going to be teaching a foreign lanmeans being trapped with the language you initial- guage, it is not useful,� said Silva.

Similarly, she finds much difficulty with learning ly chose. Some languages only have one professor, foreign languages on top of major-specific work meaning you’ll have to harden your nerves and stay load. the course despite possible grading biases. “It’s too difficult when the requirements for your Withdrawing out of a foreign language class is out of the question, because it puts students behind major are demanding,� she said.

Silva further expressed her discontent, stating that by two semesters assuming they are not taking the the current rules enforce foreign language requirefirst level of the language. This implies that foreign language classes hold more importance over every- ments for some students, but not all students. “I personally don’t like the fact that we have forthing else, because they are the most likely to hold eign language requirements. Only some of the masomeone back from graduating on time. jors have them. My roommate is a nursing major O’Keefe has yet to pass Spanish I. and she doesn’t have foreign language requirements,� said Silva.

THE UMASS LOWELL These responses are controversial with UMass Lowell’s branding, which states: “Work Ready, Life Ready, World Ready.�

Serving the Student Body Since 1976 If English majors see no use UMASS LOWELL CONNECTOR for a foreign language minor, then why do the rules put them EDITORIAL BOARD in a situation where minoring in TAYLOR CARITO HANNAH MANNING a foreign language would be easEditor-In-Chief Editor-In-Chief iest? Perhaps the higher ups are suggesting that English majors ANDREW J. SCIASCIA need proficiency in a foreign Patrick Chen

Connector Contributor

Managing Editor

AARON ROBINSON Copy Editor CHRISTINA LADEROUTE Web Manager OPEN Social Media Managers MATT DWYER Photo Editor ALECIA CONNOLLY Graphic Designer OPEN Advertising Manager OPEN Distribution Manager

ANDRE RAGEL News Editor

Courtesy of UMass Lowell

UMass Lowell offers courses in eight courses including Khmer, Arabic, German and Portuguese.

Twitter: @UMLConnector

JASON OUNPRASEUTH Sports Editor

Instagram: @UMLConnector

CONOR DAWSON Campus Life Editor

Facebook.com/UMLConnector

OWEN JOHNSON Arts & Entertainment Editor OPEN Comics Editor OPEN Multimedia Director JONATHAN SILVERMAN Advisor

Staff MARCOS AGUILAR BRIGID ARCHIBALD PATRICK CONNELL VERNON GIBBS ANDREW HAVERTY NISA HOLLEY

language more than expertise in marketing or education, to be world ready. While this logic may be true for “World Ready� in a literal sense, to many students, this doesn’t necessarily translate to “Real World Ready.�

Nina Petropoulos, another English major, dislikes UMass Lowell’s foreign language requirements, seeing little to no use for it in the real world. “I understand that requirements have changed, but I think that if [UMass Lowell] wants to produce English majors that are competitive in the job market, they should make students two classes shy of a marketing minor, not a foreign language minor�, Petropoulos said.

There are, however, an exceptional few that see value in the current rules.

Justin Ordway, another English major, feels that students of the English major are probably strong in their grammar and communicational skills, these of which are important in any language. “I feel that since English majors are proficient in their command of language and have a keen understanding of the many mechanics of language, it is practical to require foreign language skills.�

Ordway sees English for what it is: a language, and that allows him to think positively about foreign language requirements.

At the same time, he is not entirely in favor. “I do feel it would be beneficial for this requirement to be interchangeable with other courses,� Ordway said.

JESSICA KERGO TROY LAFOND CHRISTOPHER ROMANO ERIC SMITH DORIAN TAYLOR

Email | Connector@uml.edu Website | www.UMLConnector.com Phone | 978.934.5017 ext. 45017

General: The UMass Lowell Connector is a non-profit student public forum serving the University of Massachusetts Lowell community. The paper is published weekly and distributed to the university community every Tuesday.

Business hours are 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday.

Please be aware that members of the University community are entitled to free newspapers. Please take one!

All UMass Lowell students, regardless of major, are invited to join the Connector staff.

Interested students should contact an editor or manager listed above, or visit the Connector Office in University Crossing 241.

Advertising: The UMass Lowell Connector advertisements reach an estimated 16,000 UMass Lowell students--their friends and

families. To tap this group of future high-income earners, contact our Advertising Manager at 934-5009.

DEADLINE for ALL advertising (TO INCLUDE STUDENT ORGANIZATIONS and ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICES OF THE UNIVERSITY) is Tuesday, 12 p.m. for the following Tuesday’s publication.

No exceptions will be made. Late submissions WILL NOT be accepted.

Classified advertisements are free for students.

The UMass Lowell Connector does not endorse, promote or encourage the purchase or sale of any product or service advertised in this publication. Advertisements are the sole responsibility of the advertiser.

The UMass Lowell Connector disclaims all liability for any damage suffered as the result of any advertisement in this newspaper.

The UMass Lowell Connector reserves the right to refuse any advertising.

Editorial: Letters to the editor must be less than 500 words in length and may be submitted via campus mail, e-mail, or in person. All letters must bear the author’s name, relationship to the University and student body, and a phone number. The author may request to have any part of this information withheld, if published.

Opinions expressed in individual columns, the Opinions Section, advertising, and/or features are those of the author, NOT of the Connector.

The Opinions and Editorials section will not be edited in any way, to include spelling/grammar mistakes.

Submission: The deadline for all submissions (to include Letters to the Editors and Opinions) is Friday at midnight for the following Tuesday’s publication.

Submissions must be e-mailed to Marlon_Pitter@student.uml.edu, attached as a Word document (any version). Accompanying visuals must

be submitted separately; do NOT include graphics in Word file.

All press releases, articles, advertisements, and photographs submitted become the property of The UMass Lowell Connector and will not be returned. The Connector reserves the right to edit or refuse all submissions for copy, content, and length.

The Connector will make every effort to prevent inaccuracy, but assumes no responsibility for errors in advertisements or opinion letters.

The Connector will reprint without charge any advertisement which is incorrect. Credit for errors are made only for first insertion.

October 16, 2018

UM ASS L OWELL C ONNECTOR

Page 3

NEWS

UMass Lowell Vote Coalition lead National Voter Registration Andre Ragel Connector Editor

The Massachusetts Public Interest Research Group (MASSPIRG), UMass Lowell Democrats and the Public Higher Education Network of Massachusetts (PHENOM) hosted the 2018 National Voter Registration Day at University Crossing on September 25th.

Organized by senior sociology major and MASSPIRG chapter chair president Ann Kurian, the event aimed to increase student participation in the polls by helping them register to vote, informing where local polling stations are located and partnering with other student groups on campus such as the UMass Lowell Republicans Club and the Student Government Association to increase the size of their coalition regardless of what their party affiliation is.

“Students are ready to take action without waiting for legislature. We are working to get students excited and passionate about broader issues, as well as educate new voters and increase low voter turnouts,” said Julia

Seremba, MASSPIRG campus organizer.

According to Kurian, National Voter Registration Day is a nonpartisan holiday for democracy, counting on thousands of partners and volunteers across the political spectrum. Started over two decades ago, it is designed to create an annual moment when the entire nation focuses on registering Americans to exercise their right to vote.

The group is well on their way to make their goal of registering 1,000 students by the voter registration deadline of October 17th for the November 6th elections. Throughout the coming days, they will be going to classes, tabling outside buildings and talking to as many students as they can.

Keziah Ulanga, a junior biology major, feels excited as she walked around greeting students entering University Crossing.

“Every vote counts no matter how you feel,” said Ulanga.

PHENOM partnered with MASSPIRG on this effort to inform voters of their agenda on creating a debt-free

Andre Ragel/Connector

MASSPIRG students host National Voter Registration Day at University Crossing.

education.

Graduate student Elizabeth Plume and staff organizer Elizabeth Pellerito from the UMass Lowell Labor Education Program represented PHENOM at the event.

Plume and Pellerito are working with other students to find ways to push student rights on student loans and fully funding public universities back on legislature’s agendas.

Throughout October, they are hosting a campus student forum called Til Debt Do Us Part and a faculty and staff Debt Clinic that will focus on public service loan forgiveness. In the spring, a State House Advocacy Day is in the works.

“If you want to talk to political leaders, a good first step is by voting,” said Seremba.

“It actually hasn’t been that bad:” Red Line’s rerouting positive overall Hannah Manning Connector Editor

At the tail end of the summer, UMass Lowell was presented with a huge problem: the reconstruction of the Pawtucket Street bridge on East Campus. Although the bridge had fallen into disrepair with several potholes making it difficult to drive over, not being able to use it would interfere with transportation routes. The university realized that not only would standard vehicular traffic needed to be routed away from the construction but the Red Line shuttle bus would as well.

The Administrative Services department, directed by Nick Piscitello, schemed an entirely new route for the Red Line in order to avoid the chaos of reconstruction. “[The process] has been interesting,” Piscitello said.

The Red Line shuttle now runs directly from East to South Campus, with the East Campus pickup spot being redirected from in front of Fox Hall to the Campus Recreation Center (CRC) traffic circle. From East Campus, the shuttle travels to Father Morissette Boulevard via Aiken Street and directly to South Campus using Broadway Street.

With the East bus stop being situated closer to newer residence halls such as River Hawk Village and University Suites, the CRC circle represented a “win-win” in terms of accessibility for all of the residential students on East Campus, Piscitello said.

The most controversial change in the Red Line’s new route is that it will no longer travel to University Crossing. Piscitello says that this is because the route no longer requires that the shuttle head down Salem Street to go to South Campus.

“Now that it’s going back out towards Father Morissette and going on Aiken, the natural progression towards South is no longer Salem Street,” Piscitello said. “So we had to make the decision, ‘Do we divert it to service University Crossing or do we have it go directly to South?’”

In its stead, the Orange Line now services University Crossing, allowing students with mobility issues to travel from East Campus to University Crossing.

Beyond some initial confusion from returning students, some of whom were unaware that the shuttle would not be stopping at University Cross-

Courtesy of Transportation Services Students at South Campus board a Red Line shuttle bound for East Campus.

ing anymore, many have embraced the new route.

Amalia Collins, an East Campus resident studying French and Italian, was at first put off by the changes but has grown to like it over the last few weeks since she gets to her classes more quickly.

“I was frustrated when I needed to get to UCrossing and the bus didn’t go there. If I had known ahead of time, I could have gone on a different bus,” she said. “Now that I’ve figured out the new system, it’s fine because it doesn’t have as much as an impact.”

Shaina Gedeon, an exercise science major who lives on East Campus, was also annoyed that the shuttle no longer stopped at University Crossing.

“Everyone usually goes to UCrossing so I think every bus should at least pass by UCrossing and drop anyone that needs to be there,” Gedeon said.

But Gedeon did concede that with the new route changes, her commute to South Campus was quicker. She points out that the benefit to going directly from East to South Campus is that students will get to their classes quicker without needing to worry about a five-minute chunk of time that would have been spent idling at University Crossing.

Brianna Sorenson, a psychology major living on East Campus, believes the

changes to be overwhelmingly positive.

“It actually hasn’t been that bad. I feel like every time I walk out of Fox there’s a Red Line shuttle just about there,” she said. “It’s definitely easier and the shuttles run back and forth between East and South much quicker than they have in the past.”

As students acclimate to the changes, they will figure out which shuttles to take to get to their preferred destination. The Blue Line currently services University Crossing, as does the Orange Line, so students who need to go directly there will find their needs accommodated.

However, there are more changes to the transportation routes looming on the horizon.

Piscitello also mentions that sometime “in the near future,” the other bridge on Pawtucket Street which is closer to South Campus will also be closed for reconstruction. This move will limit traffic coming out of South Campus to one lane, thus moving much of that traffic to Broadway Street.

The impact that initiative will have on the new Red Line shuttle route is unclear, but the university has done its due diligence to prepare for that ensuing construction.

UM ASS L OWELL C ONNECTOR

Page 4

October 16, 2018

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT strong theming of the board.

The other three boards, thankfully, are strong in theming, mobility, and strategical elements. However, the overall lack of map choices, and the small size of all four given ones means that they can run stale rather quickly. Hopefully Nintendo adds more down the line.

Beyond the traditional game mode, “Super Mario Party” also adds some side content to spend time on. In total, there are five separate game modes: “Partner Party,” “Minigames,” “Challenge Road,” “River Survival” and “Sound Stage.” The “Partner Party” mode is a twist on the traditional “Mario Party” mode, where players play on two teams of two and the boards are a little more open and allow freer movement.

The general strategies and gameplay loop are basically identical to the main mode,

so they will not remedy any feeling of getting tired with the maps or the general mode,

tion, but suffers due to a lack of individual content. “Challenge Road” arranges these

The two better game modes are the ones that attempt to truly add something different

Courtesy of Nintendo

The game offers 20 playable characters, including new characters Pom Pom, Goomba and Monty Mole.

but they do allow for some extremely fun partner play. The minigames mode is merely a vessel to play the minigames offered in the main game, which is a serviceable distrac-

minigames and sets certain goals that add a bit more challenge and is easily the best pastime for solo play in the game, but also suffers due to a lack on individual content.

to the game. The first of these is “River Survival,” which is a fully cooperative, rather than competitive, game mode, where players navigate a river and race to get to the end in

time. There are minigames in the form of balloons that can be popped, and these games also have a cooperative nature of them. There are only so many of these, which can make the mode feel a little repetitive, but the mode as a whole is still very entertaining. The other more unique game mode “Sound Stage,” features players competing in rhythm based minigames that are also extremely distinct from the main game minigames. The content is extremely sparse, but the few rounds it lasts are extremely fun.

Overall, “Super Mario Party” is an extremely fun framework of a game that lacks in content to truly take advantage of its strong framework.

It is a wonderful party game for a couple of rounds, but until more content is added, these boards will likely end up at the bottom of the closet collecting dust.

Final Grade: B-

‘A Star is Born,’ and so is a masterpiece Owen Johnson Connector Editor

Giving “A Star is Born” the compliment of calling it the best movie of 2018 so far is an insult. It is easily the best movie that has come out in the last several years.

Ally (Lady Gaga), a waitress who is discovered moonlighting as a singer in a bar by musician Jackson Maine (Bradley Cooper), is thrusted into the spotlight when Maine invites her on stage during one of his concerts.

In an age of proclamations about how every idea has been done, and especially in the case of films, there are no original ideas and everything has to be connected to preexisting artwork, “A Star is Born” is the example of how to do a movie in that case.

Is it original? No, it is the fourth movie with the title “A Star is Born.” Is this anything that has not

been seen before? Nope, the movie contains a lot of tropes from films of this genre. That being said, “A Star is Born” takes all of these things and either gives them an interesting spin or does the best possible job of utilizing them, and the end result in a phenomenal movie that might be filled with ideas that are not necessarily new, but that ultimately does not matter.

The tropes of the genre are apparent. Maine is a musician who is an addict, in this case alcohol, and the movie focuses on two musicians as one rises in popularity and the other one’s career begins to falter, things like that. What “A Star is Born” does right is that it does them in a fresh enough way that it feels like the characters are propelling the tropes as opposed to the tropes propelling them.

The entire story itself is a great indicator to how this worked. There are specific scenes or events that

Courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures

Willie Nelson’s son Lukas helped with writing the music for “A Star is Born.”

UM ASS L OWELL C ONNECTOR

Page 5

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

“Super Mario Party”: The frameworks of a great game ►Continued from front page

October 16, 2018

the audience is aware are going to happen from having a rudimentary knowledge of movies from this genre, but it is impossible to tell how any specific event will impact things until it happens. For example, the audience knows there will be some sort of drama between the two leads, but how that drama will affect their characters could go one of numerous directions.

What really makes all of this work are the performances from Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga, who both excel in their given fields and are spectacular surprises in the new talents they are taking on. Cooper gives a strong performance and Gaga is a talented singer per usual, but Cooper also has a powerful singing voice and Gaga has a lot of range as an actress. On top of this, the two actors have good chemistry and play off each other fluently, which helps make both their relationship and the way they react to the events of the movie believable.

It is not just Cooper and Lady Gaga who have hidden talents which “A Star is Born” helped to reveal, but some of the other cast members do to.

Comedians Dave Chappelle and Andrew Dice Clay also give strong performances, adding them to the ever growing list of comedians such as Steve Carrell and Ed Helms who have shown a side that is capable of dramatic work.

Along with the actors, the music in the movie helps to elevate it. The soundtrack is fantastic, the musical numbers are all well directed and edited and have tremendous impact. Even the scene where Maine invites Ally on stage to sing with him, which is a movie moment that risks being cliché, is incredible and mesmerizing due to how it is handled.

“A Star is Born” has gotten critical acclaim; it will most likely be nominated for Oscars, it should definitely win some Oscars, it is unequivocally the best movie of 2018 and one of the best movies in recent memory.

Final Grade: A+

Twenty One Pilots’ “Trench” is not very deep Troy Lafond Connector Staff

After a full year of near-complete silence from them, Twenty One Pilots have returned to the music industry with their fifth studio album, “Trench,” released on Oct. 5, under Fueled by Ramen. Twenty One Pilots grew a significant underground following for six years, from the release of their debut self-titled album to the worldwide sensation “Blurryface.” They grew a fanbase based on deeply personal and relatable lyrics about mental health and suicide, masked usually under upbeat, pop-rap production and vocal delivery. However, unlike the title may suggest, “Trench” is surprisingly lacking in depth.

To fully interpret the world of “Trench,” it may be important to understand the story that they intend this album to tell. Trench is the world that this album takes place in, and at the bottom of the world is a city called Dema, which Twenty One Pilots spend the album attempting to escape. It is meant to be a concept album in this sense, illustrating not only their own need to escape this city, but also meaning to be symbolic of anyone who is between phases in their own life. This is a bold concept. However, the majority of listeners are unlikely to pick up on it because, frankly, it barely exists in the actual lyrics of the album. This lore is built deep enough into the album to allow some songs to be straight up lyrically confusing without understanding this story, such as in “Nico and the Niners,” but not explicitly told enough to make up for this shortcoming. Any and

all understanding needs to come through the music videos, interviews and fan scavenger hunts across the internet for clues. It is fun for diehard fans, but extremely off-putting for those who want to just lisCourtesy of Fueled by Ramen

“Trench” is Twenty One Pilot’s first album to reach number one in Australia, New Zealand and the Netherlands.

ten to music.

Attempting to tell this story also appears to have taken a toll on their music lyrically. The majority of the songs on the album are lyrically disposable, which is not inherently bad on its own, but is extremely disappointing coming from a band that became known for just that. These songs feel like they lack the passion of everything that has come before,

with many of the songs in the middle of the album sounding like they could have been made by almost any mid-2010’s pop-rock bands. Their sound is still distinguishable enough for this to not come across as a full-blown identity crisis, but it was certainly disappointing to listen to the likes of “Smithereens,” “Cut My Lip,” or “Legend” and feel like they could have been sung by Maroon 5 or OneRepublic.

That being said, there are certainly some promising signs that Twenty One Pilots have not totally lost their way. “Neon Gravestones” is not only the best song on the album, but also one of the best songs of the year, matching a fantastic, engrossing beat with extremely topical and poignant lyrical content about the glorification of suicide, especially amongst celebrities. It is the most direct that Twenty One Pilots have ever written, ditching their traditional flowery metaphors for a direct statement, and it works really well in an album that is desperately lacking in such. Additionally, the fourth single, “My Blood,” feels extremely reminiscent of some of Twenty One Pilots’ past hits in the best way possible. It is catchy, well-produced, well-written and extremely addicting.

In the end, the greatest flaw of “Trench” is that it seems to have gone astray. They aimed to make a gutsy concept album with a strong story, but then lost their way down that path, which resulted in them both losing what made their music unique and anything that could have made this record interesting. Beyond a few good songs, “Trench” is dead on arrival.

Final Grade: D

EARN YOUR ENGINEERING M.S. DEGREE in as little as one year or at your own pace.

Learn more at go.tufts.edu/engmasters

Master’s degrees offered at tufts: Bioengineering Biomedical Engineering Chemical Engineering Civil and Environmental Engineering Computer Engineering Computer Science Data Science Electrical Engineering Engineering Management Human Factors Engineering Human-Robot Interaction Innovation and Management Materials Science and Engineering Mechanical Engineering

UM ASS L OWELL C ONNECTOR

Page 6

October 16, 2018

CAMPUS LIFE Should adjunct faculty contracts be a student concern?

Brigid Achibald Connector Staff

When asked about the conflict between adjunct professors and UMass Lowell over wages and benefits, many students appeared hesitant to speak.

More than one said they don’t think they know enough to speak about it, or like sophomore Jessie Walsh, could only remember one tagline: “They’re treated like second-class citizens or something, right?” The music major was quoting one poster put out by the Union of Adjunct Faculty. However, after speaking to students around campus, it seems that even if they don’t realize it, they’ve seen the effects of the current contracts.

“They’re all just professors to me,” said Dishan Bagayao, a third-year psyPhoto courtesy of Massachusetts Jobs with Justice chology Major, explaining why so few students are aware of the difference UMass Lowell adjuncts gather to protest equal pay and benefits. between adjuncts and tenured profesMeghan O’Brien, a Political Sci- of the adjunct faculty. Students expect . sors. Students expect that when they ence major, exemplified the problem that all their professors make time enter a class, they’re going to receive this creates by pointing to her own to meet with them, but the universithe same attentiveness and quality of major where a majority of the pro- ty responds that adjuncts don’t have education no matter the professor’s fessors are adjunct and said she could to hold office hours. That’s a significontract. However, this is a challenge see how this could be difficult for stu- cant inconsistency between what the for adjuncts, since they must divide dents who need help outside her class. school expects of adjunct professors their time between multiple jobs to O’Brien struggled to find a time in her and the role students think adjuncts make money and don’t have the time schedule for office hours that worked professors should play in a student’s to meet these expectations. for an adjunct who also taught at education. .Walsh said, “You can usually tell Suffolk University. This isn’t just a In the end, many students echoed which professors are full time and phenomenon in the Political Science O’Brien’s opinion when she said, which are adjunct by looking at their department either; adjunct professors “They should receive the bump if syllabus.” He elaborated saying that teach most lower-level classes. they’re doing all the work they claim.” adjuncts typically only dedicate an hour Without realizing it, these students Very few seemed to agree with the or two every week for office hours. hit on a point made by many members university that the adjunct professors

are required to do less than their tenured peers.

Students who had previously heard of the conflict expressed frustration at a lack of information, and an uncertainty as to how they can help.

O’Brien said she has only seen one poster around campus, and she only hears about the events a few days after they happen. It makes sense that communication would be a struggle for adjuncts since students get most of their campus news sent directly to them through email, and are unlikely to have the time to go out of their way to find it. Raymond suggests that a more substantial presence online might help students be aware of events ahead of time.

Teresa George, the director for communications for the Union of Adjunct Faculty, suggests that students who want to help should reach out to the UMass Lowell president’s office via email and phone expressing support for the adjunct faculty, and write letters to newspapers saying they want fair an equitable treatment for adjunct faculty. She also suggests they share content from JusticeForLowell.org on social media and subscribe to the site’s email list. George encourages students to help by going to events on campus like the November 15th rally to be held outside the Tsongas Arena during “A Conversation With Oprah.”

English department hosts Creative Writing reception ►Continued from front page

previously very difficult to get into. These classes are meant to serve as a creative outlet for students to hone and share their writing in the genre of their interest.

Besides the classes, students studying the minor also have a unique opportunity to participate in the existing community of student writers on campus, whom Stanton described as “vibrant and supportive.”

The English department now has minors in journalism/ professional writing, theatre arts, and creative writing.

Stanton still believes there is much more room for the English department to grow.

“We welcome all students who are interested in the study of literature and writing,” Stanton said. “We have a stellar faculty across many disciplines, and are constantly reviewing and innovating our curriculum and course offerings [to reflect student interests].”

The English department is also responsible for bringing in well-known authors such as E.J Levy, Rebecca Morgan Frank, and Stephen King as part of its “Writers on Campus” series. As a part of this series, the authors spend time interacting with the English students and faculty and are also invited to speak to classes and talk about their writing experiences. The new Creative Writing minor would now allow for more students access to incredible experiences and resources normally only available for English Creative Writing majors.

Stanton also said that interested students will be able to learn more about the English department outside of the classroom. “The English Department has an excellent retention rate, one of the highest on campus, which reflects

the investment we make in students, with small class sizes, personal advising, many opportunities for extracurricular activities and clubs, guest lecturers, visiting writers, symposia and other events in which students actively participate, special scholarships for English majors, and an impressive and exciting list of internship opportunities.”

One of these out of classroom activities would be UMass Lowell’s literary magazine, The Offering, which allows students of any major to submit original artwork, poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, or photography. The English department hopes to see an increase in contributions from students as they spread awareness of the new Creative Writing minor.

The minor is the standard 18-24 credits and is taught the same way as the major. Students in the minor are required to take Introduction to Creative Writing, 2 literature courses (compared to 3 for majors), and 3 additional workshops after the Introduction to CW (rather than 5).

However, students are able to take more workshop classes if they wish.

QUOTH THE RIVERHAWKS

Can we make a pact to message each other when we see a cute dog near campus?

- Ucrossing Club Hub

Dude... what is a Riverhawk?

Can you stop quoting vines, I’m trying to study.

– UCrossing

– Lydon Library

You Boston people sound drunk. Like the world is your bar, and this your bar fight.

– Weed Hall

“There’s tea here and I want to sip it.”

– McGauvarn Hall

“I find myself turning in papers like, ‘This is bad, but it’s the best of the bad’ you know?”

– Lydon Library

October 16, 2018

UM ASS L OWELL C ONNECTOR

Page 7

SPORTS

River Hawks win out over RIT in dramatic 2-1 season opener Andrew J Sciascia Connector Editor

The stunning opener to the 2018-19 UMass Lowell men’s hockey season came to a close Friday night under a chorus of jangling keys in the Tsongas Arena. Taunts and chants rained down from the UMass Lowell fan section as the River Hawks officially secured their first win of the regular season.

Chants and taunts aside, however, the River Hawk win came by way of a hotly contested 2-1 showdown with a deep Rochester Institute of Technology Tigers.

“It was a very well-played game from a standpoint of

fans,” said River Hawk head coach Norm Bazin. “We’re excited to get two points, but I think tonight could have easily gone either way; we’re fortunate.”

Fortunate the River Hawks were. Early on, the game was something of a track meet – with both teams racing down the ice with odd man rushes.

Up until just beyond the midway point in regulation, neither team had truly commanded play. Both teams had been presented their fair share of goal scoring opportunities, with the shooting stat favoring RIT by a slim 18-15 margin after two periods of play.

The back and forth nature

the closing minutes of play.

The Tigers converted on this mistake, with junior forward Jordan Peacock scooping the puck up from a disorganized UMass Lowell and centering it to senior forward Mark Logan for a shot attempt that slipped past the blocker of UMass Lowell’s junior goaltender Tyler Wall.

Wall started the season opener much to the surprise of some UMass Lowell fans, who still bore fresh in their minds a troubling sophomore slump that dragged the stellar 2016-17 Hockey East Championship goaltender out of his starting role in exchange for then junior Christoffer HernMatt Dwyer/Connector

The River Hawks won behind a strong performance from junior goaltender Tyler Wall.

competitiveness on both sides.

Both goalies were excellent.

We traded chances and there was a lot of excitement for the

of play gave way in the 2nd period when UMass Lowell committed a costly turnover to the left of their own net in

berg early last fall.

“Adversity is good for you… you appreciate the game a little bit more when you’ve gone

through hard times. It’s very necessary. Don’t feel bad for Tyler. He’s strong enough mentally to handle every bit of it… I think he’s got a long future ahead of him in hockey. I think he’s going to have a great year,” said Coach Bazin to press at Hockey East Media Day on October 2nd.

It would seem Bazin had every reason to be confident in Wall. For if it was not for numerous key saves throughout the game, in which Wall faced a total of 26 shots, RIT could have come away with two points – and victory over the River Hawks.

With Wall and a strong defensive effort, UMass Lowell battled through the tit for tat 1st and 2nd Periods of play and set themselves up for their come-from-behind victory.

“Early season hockey is not a work of art. There’s a lot of momentum shifts. There’s a lot of broken plays and missed passes… But I’m proud of the way the guys battled through some adversity,” said Bazin.

“These are tests that you need to pass if you’re going to be a good team down the line.”

The River Hawks passed with flying colors. The final period of regulation saw a slow start for UMass Lowell, but the team capitalized on the momentum shifts mentioned by Coach Bazin.

What began as a small momentum shift early in the period as senior forward, and captain, Conor Wilson netted a loose puck to tie the game at one, assisted by fellow forwards Ryan Dmowski and Ryan Lohin, soon transformed into a commanding offensive presence of UMass

Lowell.

Almost immediately after the Wilson goal, freshman defenseman Dominik Procopio would net a wrist shot from the right half-board. His goal would be called back upon review for goaltender interference, but it would be too late.

The River Hawks had caught fire, and they proceeded to test the RIT defense and pepper sophomore goaltender Logan Drackett with shots.

UMass Lowell’s composed response entering the final minutes, coupled with a commanding offensive presence would eventually prove to strong for RIT to withstand.

Dmowski would find the score sheet again late in the period, giving UMass Lowell the 2-1 lead with a high wrist shot over the shoulder of Dackett assisted by sophomore defenseman Croiz Evingson and senior forward Nick Master.

The Dmowski goal would be the nail in the coffin and sent RIT back to the drawing board for their second matchup with UMass Lowell in as many days.

Write sports for The Connector!

Currently accepting pitches for professional and collegiate sports

Women’s soccer lose 1-0 to Maine on Pink Night Jason Ounpraseuth Connector Editor

The UMass Lowell women’s soccer team (4-7-4, 2-2-1) lost 1-0 against the Maine Black Bears (6-7-1, 2-4) on a rainy Thursday night at Cushing Field.

“Today we were not good enough.

We came into the game today with a lack of energy, and [we] felt like things were going to fall into place,” said head coach Mira Novak.

The River Hawks controlled possession at the start of the first half. Freshman midfielder Lily Fabian had a chance early, but her shot went wide.

The defense held Maine in check on their corner kick chances blocking their shots and preventing scoring chances each time.

Maine eventually scored a goal off a corner kick with about ten minutes

left in the first half to put Maine up 1-0. Senior defender Mikayla Morin scored off a header that went out of the reach of redshirt sophomore goalkeeper Lauren Huff.

“We knew Maine were dangerous on set pieces. They had a few set pieces in the first half. Obviously, we were punished. [It’s] really hard to come back against a team like them,” said head coach Mira Novak. “Defensively they’re very solid [and] very organized. We knew it would take some effort to break them down, and unfortunately we were not able to do that today.”

Fabian tried to respond minutes later with a shot outside of the box, but the shot was saved by the junior goalkeeper Annalena Kriebisch.

Sophomore midfielder Kristin Birgisdottir and senior midfielder Ra-

chel Morrier both registered shots on goal, but both shots were saved by Kriebisch. That ended the first half with Maine leading 1-0.

Both teams went back and forth in the possession battle in the second half. Morrier led UMass Lowell attack as she tried to create chances through counter attacks.

The River Hawks found their best scoring chances off set piece opportunities. However, the team was not able to capitalize on those opportunities for the equalizer. Freshman midfielder Kristina Bartsch’s low corner kick found Morrier, but her shot was saved

by Kriebisch.

The River Hawks maintained possession for the majority of the second half looking for an equalizer. UMass Lowell’s last shot on target came from freshman defender Dunja Mostarac

whose shot from outside the box was saved by Krisbisch with about 10 minutes to go in the game. Maine kept the ball away from UMass Lowell to hang on and win 1-0.

“I don’t think I’m going to make any excuse about the surface. I think the surface actually works better for us because we like to play [the] passing game,” said Coach Novak. “I just don’t think we were good enough today in the final third [with] finishing, lack of movement [and] timing of runs. I felt like the whole team had a day off today. It wasn’t a great effort. I know we can be better than this.”

The River Hawks will go on a twogame road trip at UMBC and at Vermont and will conclude the season at home against Stony Brook Sunday at 4 p.m.

October 16, 2018

UM ASS L OWELL C ONNECTOR

Page 8

SPORTS

RIT deals UMass Lowell a 5-4 overtime defeat in Homecoming heartbreaker ► continued from front page

final period.

“Most of our turnovers happened on the offensive blue line, and that’s a real no-no. Usually what happens is that comes right back down your throat, because the guys are changing… One of the goals, I think four of our guys changed at once… We committed some particularly egregious turnovers,” said Coach Bazin.

Turnovers seemed to be the name of the game in the 2nd period and, unfortunately for the River Hawks, in overtime as well.

Numerous lost pucks and broken passes on the offensive and defensive blue lines resulted in RIT goals.

Perhaps even more notably was the Tigers’ game-winner, which was scored when Jake Hamacher forced a turnover as UMass Lowell exited the defensive zone and managed to center the puck to fellow sophomore forward Alden Dupuis to end things just 44 seconds into sudden death play.

Hamacher had also happened to assist the first Tigers goal, just minutes into the 2nd period when he snapped a pass to junior forward Jordan Peacock in front of the UMass Lowell net to start the four-goal charge for RIT. Other Tigers notables included junior defenseman Brody Valette, who came away with two important assists, senior forward and captain Abbot Girduckis, who scored two goals of his own, and of course sophomore netminder Logan Dackett.

Along with stopping 22 phenomenal UMass Lowell shots throughout the game, Dackett also made the scoresheet with an assist on the Peacock goal.

“You’d think you’d win with four wouldn’t you? But that second period. You give up 4 goals in the second period and you aren’t going to win too many hockey games,” said Bazin, “You get scored on shorthanded – you’re not going to win too many hockey games.”

Despite the heartbreaking loss, Coach Bazin cited the hard work to tie the game and push RIT into overtime as a strength. One of many strong

U P C OM I N G

aspects on Bazin’s River Hawk Games mind following the game.

Thursday, Oct. 18 7 pm WSOC at Vermont “We’ve got some good things in the Friday, Oct. 19 7 pm WVB vs. New Hampshire locker room… I liked the energy. I was hapSaturday, Oct. 20 7 pm MSOC vs UAlbany py for some of the 7 pm MICE at Miami (OH) Saturday, Oct 20 freshman who were able to contribute Sunday, Oct. 21 1:30 pm FH vs Dartmouth for the first time…

There’s a lot to like,” 4 pm WSOC vs. Stony Brook Sunday, Oct. 22 said Bazin.

The River Hawks For more sports information and full game schedules visit goriverhawks.com Bradel saw strong effort from their entire bench Saturday; returners and freshman alike.

The 3rd period comeback started with the returners but became a team effort. The Hausinger goal, assisted by senior forward Ryan Dmowski and sophomore forward Charlie Levesque lit a fire under the team.

A fire that would be carried on by the younger players. One of who was freshman forward Reid Stefanson, who’s game-tying goal was also the first of his career. The goal was assisted by Barton, a fellow freshman, as well as junior defenseman Mattias Goransson.

The young River Hawks team will look to improve on their 1-1 weekend with RIT next weekend on their first road trip of the 2018-19 season, where they will twice take on Miami University in Oxford, Ohio.

Interested in gaining experience as a sports reporter?

Cover UMass Lowell sports!

Men’s soccer wins big against Binghamton on Alumni Day Marcos Aguilar Connector Staff

The UMass Lowell Men’s Soccer team (7-4-2, 2-20) defeated Binghamton Bearcats (3-8-2, 2-2-0) the 3-0 to snap their losing skid on Alumni Day. The win marks an important win against an America East opponent. The River Hawks were sporting their pink breast cancer awareness jersey in support on Saturday afternoon at Cushing Field.

The River Hawks had control the majority of the contest, beginning with early pressure on the Bearcats defenders. The River Hawks got their goal within the first five minutes, a play starting with great vision from junior midfielder Dario Jovanovski. He found senior Ivan Abramovic who unselfishly dished out an assist to streaking midfielder Roko Prsa for the finish. That was the junior’s fourth goal of the season to go with his three assists coming into the game.

“I thought the guys came out focused and ready to get that early goal and set the tone, ‘ said head coach Christian Figeuora. “It was something we talked about all week at practice and before the game. Setting the tempo always helps this. Getting those two quick goals midway through the second half really changed things for us.”

The Bearcats looked for an equalizer with various opportunities from right midfielder Noah Luescher and target forward Nikos Psarras. The home team stood strong while blocking shots frustrating the visitors. Sophomore defender Giuseppe Granara and fellow sophomore midfielder Hassan Shariff both were playing stand out defense for the River Hawks.

UMass Lowell were leading Binghamton 1-0 at the break while being out five to three but neither goal-

keeper with a save.

The River Hawks were strong contenders for a second goal with two opportunities being created by UMass Lowell midfielder Prsa. He gave a through ball for both sophomore forward Mayele Malango and midfielder Javanovski. Both were unable to capitalize with both shots going wide of the net.

UMass Lowell was able to double their lead during the 61st minute of the contest with a goalie turnover. Pressure form Prsa and other forwards enabled Abramovic to rob Bearcats goalkeeper Chris Shutler of possession and score his second goal of the season.

The hosts didn’t have to wait too long for a match

deciding third goal when midfielder Javonovski crossed a ball into the box where if bounced off a defender back to him, enabling him to one time it into an open net. Goalkeeper Shutler had already dived.

The hosts were not content with continuous pressure for another with shots from forward Malango and senior midfielder Jannick Baumer to finish off the game. Senior River Hawk goalkeeper Zach Rowell was able to keep a clean sheet throughout the contest, snagging a few saves along the way.

The River Hawks return to action this Saturday 7 p.m. at Cushing Field against America East opponent Albany.

Courtesy of UMass Lowell Athletics

UMass Lowell’s offense was kicked off with Prsa’s opening goal.