The Connector - December 6, 2016

Band of UMass Lowell alums release new album â–ş UMLConnector.com

THE UMASS LOWELL

Serving the Student Body Since 1976

December 6, 2016

MSNBC’s Steve Kornacki addresses lingering shock of presidential election results

In This Issue SadFish personifies

style with ease

Jessica Kergo

â–ş Page 4

Connector Editor

Students take risks while staying safe

â–ş Page 6 Joel Bancroft resigns from coaching job

â–ş Page 7

Final River Hawk Scores Team

Score

Hockey at UConn

T 2-2

Men’s Basketball vs. NJIT

L 75-74

Overall Record 8-5-3 2-7

Hockey vs. UConn

L 3-2 8-5-2

Women’s Basketball at Columbia

L 75-56

0-8

Men’s basketball falls in 75-74 heartbreaker to NJIT Hannah Manning Connector Editor

The River Hawks clawed back from a 15-point deficit after the first half, coming within seven points of the New Jersey Institute of Technology Highlanders only four minutes into the second half.

They came within one point six minutes in. Scoring was back and forth, and the two teams were neck and neck. With 3:23 on the clock, UMass Lowell tied the score with a free throw made by junior guard Matt Harris.

With 2:58 on the clock, the River Hawks took a lead and the air in the Tsongas Center was charged with anticipation and hope.

But in the waning minutes of the second half, the River Hawks slipped up and committed fouls, allowing NJIT to climb back up and force a tie with under a minute remaining.

The Highlanders then regained their lead on a free throw shot, and the game ended with a 75-74 win for NJIT. The score was tied at four points in the game, and the lead changed five times.

With the loss, the River Hawks now trail 4-3 in their all-time series against NJIT, and are 2-7 in their overall record this season. They are currently on a three-game losing streak. “I’m disappointed with the outcome, [but] a little more disappointed with our effort in the first half. It was very uncharacteristic of

The media’s and polls’ generally inaccurate prediction of the 2016 presidential election could not have prepared the country any less for what was to become of the U.S. presidency.

MSNBC Political Correspondent and former UMass Lowell student, Steve Kornacki addressed the evident post-election shock and confusion in the on-campus discussion Election 2016: What the #&*! Happened. The discussion cleared up some confusion on erroneous polls, incorrect predictions and the Electoral College.

Kornacki is an anchor for the 4 p.m. MSNBC news coverage who fre-

Jessica Kergo/Connector

Steve Kornacki’s expertise helped demystify the results of the presidential election.

quently provided analysis of voting patterns, exit polls and electoral data over the course of the months leading up to the election. The UMass Lowell Center for Public Opinion, the Office of the Dean of Fine Arts, Humanities and Social

Sciences and the Political Science Department hosted the discussion on Dec. 2 in the O’Leary Library Mezzanine.

During his speech, Kornacki explained how the distribution of President-elect Donald Trump’s voters and Sen.

â–ş See “Kornacki,â€? page 3

WUML’s Rock for Tots kicks off a generous holiday season Kathryn Leeber Connector Staff

Raising money for two local charities, the Rock for Tots event featured four bands from around the area in a relaxed evening of music.

The night showcased the talents of Daisy Bones, Oldsoul, Soft Cactus and Bay Faction.

Ticket sales supported UTEC, an organization in Lowell that aims

to help at-risk youth in various ways, and The Izzy Foundation, a nonprofit group that helps children with life-threatening illnesses. With the holidays getting closer, any donations received by these groups is surely appreciated.

After a bit of a delayed start, Daisy Bones opened the night with their unique and funky sound.

The group had played at MEISA’s Rocktoberfest in October under a

â–ş See “Men’s basketball,â€? page 8

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

Hillary Clinton’s inability to perform exceptionally among nonwhites, in a further diversified U.S., was critical in his winning of the Electoral College. Clinton’s margin of victory was smaller than President Barack

Christopher Romano/Connector

WUML brought dozens of people to Moloney Hall for the benefit concert.

different name, but they were just as enjoyable tonight.

The band centers around their instruments and the lead singer has a distinctive style; he sings fast, but in a way that makes it difficult to understand at times.

Especially with strong and unusual drumming, as well as the guitar work that stands out, his voice was lost at some points.

Nonetheless, Daisy Bones was a wonderful act to kick off the night.

With their upbeat personalities and lighthearted sounds, the group was very energetic and had the whole crowd dancing.

Next to take the stage was Oldsoul, a group based in Lowell.

The lead singer, Jess Hall, mentioned that she is a student at UMass Lowell and this is her last year. With amazing songs and great stage presence, the band undoubtedly makes the university proud.

Oldsoul was a bit more emotional than Daisy Bones, but still had an indie rock element, â–ş See “Rock for Tots,â€? page 5v

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December 6, 2016

OPINIONS & EDITORIALS Thank you, 2016.

Taylor Carito Connector Editor

I don’t know about the rest of you, but 2016 has been the weirdest year of my life.

David Bowie passed away.

That’s how the year started, with this incredibly influential and overall good role model who inspired so many people dying. We should’ve known that that the death of a man who promoted being different is okay was going to make for a weird year. We just didn’t

Courtesy Photo

David Bowie’s death marked the start of a crazy 2016.

know how weird it was going to get.

I could talk for hours about Pokemon Go, climate change, Harambe, Brexit, ISIS, the Olympics, refugees, marijuana, Colin Kaepernick, police brutality, the bees, coral reefs, the Cubs, Gene Wilder, Russia, Zika, Jupiter, Donald Trump, DAPL, Ohio State, medicine, Castro, social media, and who knows what else. Thank you, 2016, for defying the world.

I don’t even know where to go from there, because so much happened this year that it’s hard to pick a next thing to talk about. But how about that election? I have never seen such an event that just divided the country emotionally. Ultimately it just shows how divided we’ve always been, and moving forward it is up to us as a nation to truly solve these problems despite who is president.

Or how about the Dakota Access Pipeline? The one that

thousands of Native Americans are risking their lives to prevent and preserve the little land we allow them to own after taking their country from them. Who knows, by the end of 2016 we may successfully remove all Native Americans and control all of the land like our founding fathers strived for through manifest destiny.

Who knows? we may witness the world’s first successful genocide.

On a side note to the pipeline, climate change is still happening. Bee species in Hawaii are rapidly dying, and so are honey bees on the main land too. Wild bee populations are plummeting due to pesticides, mites, and several other factors. Also more and more coral reefs are bleaching, which does not mean they are “dead� but that they’re dying. As the temperature of the earth increases, the more the reefs will bleach. All coral reefs may be dead by 2020.

I cannot look over the trag-

edy that happened at Ohio State recently. Being a college student, I feel invincible when I am on campus, as though nothing can happen to me. To hear and see the horrific incident that resulted in deaths by a terrorist, and yes I call him a terrorist, heartbreaking.

The victims are our age. They had dreams of graduating, getting jobs, and having long lives. And one person decided that wasn’t okay. I send my thoughts to them right now, to all those people who are physically and mentally wounded, because I cannot imagine and I cannot even begin to understand what it is like to have that idea of safety on campus ripped out from under me.

I hope I never understand.

This isn’t the first case of terrorism this year either. There have been nearly 20 terrorist attacks in the United States alone in 2016.

Good things happened this year too, and I think that is even more important to ac-

knowledge than dead people and dying bees. The Cubs won the World Series, Juno landed on Jupiter, and we made countless breakthroughs in medicine in terms of AIDS, cancer, ALS, Alzheimer’s, and heart disease. Despite the craziness and all the hardships in 2016, it was also a year of serious progress.

All of these things don’t just end when 2016 does. For most, I wish it did, but Trump will still be our president, bees will still be dying, ISIS will still be active, the UK will still leave the EU, and so on. If we thought 2016 was weird, my theory is 2017 is going to be even weirder.

Thank you, 2016, for changing the world. Thank you for reminding us how fragile life is, how the world is dying, how evil people can be, how wonderful people can be, and how hard we are going to have it next year. I wish I could say I won’t miss you, but I will.

Thank you.

THE UMASS LOWELL

Serving the Student Body Since 1976

Twitter: @UMLConnector

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December 6, 2016

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NEWS A SadFish lifestyle: Two students following their dreams Alex Salucco Connector Editor

Creating an original clothing line is one of the most competitive fields in terms of businesses, but two local college students have managed to gain a following for their minimalistic looks, cheap prices and passion.

Matt Caruccio and Lukas Narkevicius of Danvers, Mass. have been developing their “clean but a little weird” brand SadFish since last year. Take a standard sweatshirt, hat or t-shirt and picture a fish skeleton with its head still on and a frowning face – that is the signature SadFish style.

The pair have been inseparable since early childhood. After running around their hometown for years, they had to part ways this summer as college arrived. Narkevicius chose Salem State University while Caruccio chose UMass Lowell. Although they were separated, they promised to never neglect their business SadFish.

“At SadFish we really care about making steezy [style with ease] clothes and not charging a fortune,” said Narkevicius. “We understand what it’s like to be broke because we are broke, too, so why try to rob people?” he said.

That is only part of what makes them different. Their hands-on attitude is what really separates their work.

“Sadfish is different because it’s not like a typical clothing brand,” says Jon Walsh, 18, a good friend of Caruccio and Narkevicius for the past seven years. “All of the clothes are handmade by Lukas and Matt, from designing the logos and prints, to picking colors for the background of the clothing, to actually printing the clothes and sending them out,” he says.

There is a lot that goes into making the clothes. With no manufacturing

help, they do everything themselves.

“We order blank clothes, and we have vinyl, a heat press and a vinyl cutter.

So we make designs on the computer, put it into the vinyl cutter that cuts out designs for us and then we press all of them individually ourselves,” says Caruccio.

Living apart for the first time while they have been in business together, each have had to focus on specific aspects of the business. “Ever since they have been separated for college, Lukas works more on producing the product end, while Matt works on advertising,” said Gwen Gallagher, a long-time friend of the SadFish duo.

Caruccio and Narkevicius are not in this for the money – this is what they love to do.

Narkevicius is the team’s designer.

“It comes naturally to me and I love it,” he says. “I also run the production of the merchandise. I literally see the designs coming to life.”

Although he is currently a health sciences major, Narkevicius has interest in being a graphic designer. “Starting SadFish has changed our lives,” he said.

“Whenever Lukas is in class he just draws,” says Caruccio. While Narkevicius handles the designs, Caruccio is

the one that decides how the branding will be laid out. “We together handle the business as a whole in terms of promotions and marketing and other things that need to be taken care of,” he said.

Caruccio’s marketing style is simple but effective. “We really like to do weird marketing things like take chalk, go out at four in the morning and write SadFish everywhere,” he says. “I had people texting me saying that random people were putting it in their snapchat stories wondering what it was. It is just a way to get some publicity and make people wonder what it is.”

In just over a year these life-long friends have built something that have changed their lives, but they are not forgetting about the importance in having fun and not letting the business interfere with their friendship.

“I wouldn’t be doing it if weren’t for him,” said Caruccio. “This is something we can only do if we do it together and it is very important that he is a part of this,” he said. “SadFish isn’t him, it isn’t me; it’s us.”

Narkevicius echoes this sentiment.

“He’s not just my best friend. He’s like my brother,” he said. “I consider his family to be my second family.”

The two have been friends since birth and inseparable since middle school. “They do everything together,” says Walsh. “Matt, despite being Italian by birth, has even attended a Lithuanian cultural camp with Lukas for the past five or six years,” he said.

They work at the camp with Gallagher, and she said she knows just how close they are. “Matt and Lukas have such a strong and goofy friendship that they act like brothers, she says.

“They are so similar yet so different that they can always bounce off of each other for ideas,” Gallagher said.

And with the brand still in its infancy, the boys a SadFish have some ideas for what is coming next.

“We’ve been working on a winter line which features some really nice embroidered hoodies and beanies,” All photos courtesy of Jennifer Wall said Caruccio. “We want to have a lot more regular drops for clothing and try to get our clothing into stores. Having pop-up-shops where we can directly sell our clothes to people would be huge to meet our clientele.”

What started off as something to do for fun is quickly becoming a dream for them – a dream they did not even realize existed until they started.

“It kind of came out of nowhere,” Caruccio said. “Lukas started making clothes before any of this happened, and then we started SadFish and it started to get bigger and bigger,” he says.

Narkevicius was once told “chase your dreams and you’ll be a happy person,” and he is doing just that.

“I have high expectation for SadFish,” he said. “It’s a dream of ours to see SadFish blow up. I want SadFish to be more popular than fedoras, and that is saying a lot.”

Courtesy of SadFish

The official logo for SadFish clothing company.

Steve Kornaki from MSNBC speaks about election ►Continued from front page

in the Latino, Asian and African-American voter demographics. Another unexpected result was that Clinton did not win college educated whites, a demographic that usually votes Republican, but was expected to be driven away by Trump. Kornacki reported that Mrs. Clinton also did not accumulate as much of the female vote as expected.

According to, Kornacki, Trump’s supporters were more enthusiastic and in just the right places with just the right tightly packed density to win more of the electorate than Clinton.

Kornacki offered an explanation of the night of Nov. 8, saying that he “went into election night with the same expectation that just about everyone had.”

It was not until around 9 p.m. that later results came in from Florida, beginning to show an unexpectedly small lead by Clinton over Trump. “I couldn’t find one particular county where this was coming from,” said Kornacki. He later realized that Trump was generating a sizably larger turnout than expected.

“The Democrats got good news out of their three counties, but the Republicans were getting good news everywhere else,” said Kornacki.

He said how similarly, unexpected results were being shown in the state of North Carolina, where Clinton had retrieved the summation of her support while Trump was still accumulating votes. He said, “That wasn’t what the exit polls said was going to happen.” According to Kornacki, polls of the state of Virginia were also wrong, as Clinton was expected to win this state with ease. “It’s that feeling of every expectation and assumption that you’ve made just dissolves on the spot,” said Kornacki.

While Americans may have been shocked by the results of the election, the UMass Lowell campus community continues to move forward.

David Todisco, sophomore political science major and founder and president of UMass Lowell’s College Democrats expresses his optimism for the campus moving forward. He said that although he saw “a lot of sadness and concern in people’s faces after the election,” he also saw “a lot of faculty taking measures to unite the campus.” He has positive expectations for the Democratic Party. “There’s been a lot of discussion about how to move forward and oppose legislation, so I think we’re really looking at how to work with this as a party,” said Todisco.

Kornacki, a native of Groton, Mass., presented

MSNBC’s coverage of an internationally recognized poll from the University’s Center for Public Opinion that found that almost a quarter of millennials would prefer a meteor strike to the 2016 presidential candidates.

The poll asked millennials to choose their preference between Clinton as president, Trump as president, a random lottery to choose the president from all U.S. citizens, Barack Obama appointing himself to a life term as president or a giant meteor striking Earth and extinguishing all human life. Over a Clinton or Trump presidency, 39 percent of those surveyed said they preferred Obama serve a life term, 26 percent prefer a random lottery to choose the next president and 23 percent prefer a giant meteor to strike the earth.

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December 6, 2016

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT Abel Tesfaye proves star status with ‘Starboy’ Andrew Haverty Connector Staff

There is no denying the impressive rise to fame The Weeknd has had the past few years. Most people probably do not even know that “Beauty behind the Madness” was not his first studio album.

The Toronto native, whose real name is Abel Makkonen Tesfaye, actually recorded his first mixtapes back in 2011.

Bringing his own unique style to the R&B genre, The Weeknd soon separated himself from the basic smooth R&B artists that flooded the radio waves. And with chart topping hits like “Can’t feel my Face” and “The Hills,” The Weeknd has solidified his status as one of the pop powerhouses in the music industry today. His third official studio album “Starboy” is simple proof that Tesfayehas has no plans on letting anybody steal his rightfully deserved spotlight.

The album begins with the title track “Starboy,” one of the most electric pop singles of the year. The tone is a bit darker than some of his previous singles, with the artist bragging about his newfound fame as he spirals out of control with the overwhelming fortune that comes with it all.

This is all brought together by the masterful production of the legendary Daft Punk.

The melody bursts with braggadocio with its frantic, furi-

ous bass-hits, while it subtly hits the listener with the tragic undertones of the piano. Daft Punk absolutely nailed this track from head to toe, and it will surely be on everyone’s “best singles” list by the end of the year.

Then we are hit with “Party Monster” for those hoping for a more bass-heavy track. It is

ing his Lamborghini for the umpteenth time. But that is okay because he is allowed to do that when his songs sound this good. Nice, smooth underlying basslines mixed with his signature R&B/Rap hybrid flow; this could easily be his next single.

The first act of the album cleans up with the groovy,

Feet Under,” one of the more entertaining hip-hop tracks of the album with some stand out Weeknd vocals leading up to an all-too catchy chorus.

“Love to Lay” is okay, but feels out of place after the Kendrick and Future collaborations that came previously. It is catchy but not catchy enough to stand out, and its

Courtesy of Conway Recording Studios

Following the release of “Trilogy,” Canadian pop star The Weeknd has launched into stardom.

tracks like these that prove the Weeknd’s uncanny ability to blend his smooth vocals with hard hip-hop production.

He brings a sort of swagger unlike any other R&B artist when he makes lines like, “Got up, thank the Lord for the day / Woke up by a girl, I don’t even know her name.”

This is followed by the out of control but entertaining “False Alarm” and then the first big surprise of the album, “Reminder,” a track where he just could not resist mention-

club-thumping “Rockin” and the addictive, pink & purple neon-synth “Secrets” that calls back to 80s hit “Talking in Your Sleep” by The Romantics.

After the promising first act, the rest of the album is a series of unique tracks unfortunately mixed with some easily skippable ones. Luckily, the remaining songs start with a Kendrick feature in “Sidewalks,” which is always a treat, and then we get some Future collaboration in “Six

poppy chorus does not fully take off like it should. And The Weeknd has always had similarities with the great Michael Jackson, but “A Lonely Night” feels like a tame mimic at times.

Thankfully the album finishes strong with “Die for You,” featuring a chorus that truly reaches the heights and expectations of its listeners.

And for the finale, Daft Punk helps conclude the album they introduced with the track “I Feel It Coming.” Tesfaye

certainly saved one of the best for last, as the ending track bursts with sounds of 80s synth and funk. It is essentially the Weeknd and Daft Punk’s baby that was bound to come from “Random Access Memories” and “Beauty behind the Madness.”

Going into The Weeknd’s third studio effort, expectations were high. Though it is definitely a more sonically cohesive, and admittedly entertaining, album than his last effort, it still suffers from the same problems. It picks up momentum early on with hit singles and punchy production, but then stumbles at the finish with more ordinary feeling tracks in comparison.

The singles are fantastic, and Daft Punk in particular does a great job in setting the tone and ending on one that feels right. But it does not quite feel like the complete package we hoped for. Who knows though? Maybe The Weeknd will consider taking an extra year to complete his fourth album. He is capable of something truly special, and maybe the extra time could be beneficial. “Starboy” really seems like just a taste of what the Weeknd is capable of, which makes the anticipation for the next inevitable project that much stronger.

Final Grade: A

Underrated Classics: ‘Gremlins’ Owen Johnson Connector Staff

Like last year’s “Krampus,” “Gremlins” is a strange mix between horror and comedy, as well as Christmas and Halloween themed movies that manage to blend together surprisingly well.

For a Christmas present, Billy Peltzer (Zach Galligan) receives a Mogwai named Gizmo from his father. The Mogwai comes with three very important rules that cannot be broken: do not expose it to bright light, do not feed it after midnight, and do not let it get wet. Billy inadvertently breaks these rules, resulting in a horde of vicious Gremlins to run amok in his small home town.

Along with Billy and his family, the town is filled with an array of colorful characters that work to get the audience invested in the town as a whole for when the creatures start their attack. Among these characters is Billy’s slightly xenophobic neighbor Murray Futterman (Dick Miller), mean-spirited Mrs. Deagle (Polly Holliday) and Billy’s coworker and love interest Kate (Phoebe Cates).

However, there is some sloppiness with the script.

A couple of the characters are introduced, and while they are enjoyable on screen, do not really do much. Mrs. Deagle’s character has nothing to do in

the movie other than to taunt Billy about wanting to harm his dog, and one of Billy’s co-workers (Judge Reinhold) just vanishes from the movie completely after the 30 minute mark. The sloppiness is not just with the characters. Even the rules themselves, one of the most iconic aspects of the movie, make no sense. For example, it is technically always after

Courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures

This was filmed on the same set as “Back to the Future.”

midnight, so when can you feed the Mogwai?

While there is some mild sloppiness here and there, there are also a number of good ideas that are present in the script. For example, when Billy’s Mogwai multiplies when he accidentally spills water on it, he smartly takes the creature to the most experienced science-figure in his town for help.

The best part of the movie, though, are the Gremlins themselves, as they are unique in many ways.

Not only are they visually creative and a creature design that has not been, or at the very least prevalently, shown before, but they are also very unique in their personality, managing to be both menacing and belligerent. The usage of the creatures is also well handled, where the filmmakers took a que from successful creature features like “Jaws” and “Alien,” and decided for there to be buildup before the monsters are revealed.

“Gremlins” also manages to balance its conflicting tones and movie types very successfully. The comedic and Christmas nature of the movie never downgrades the horror elements of the movie, and vice versa. They even play well off of each other in some scenes, like when the recording of a typically happy holiday song is used as mood music to build suspense.

“Gremlins” is an occasionally sloppy movie that makes up for its problems with its creativity, levity and intelligence when it comes to mixing two conflicting tones and moods.

Final Grade: A-

December 6, 2016

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ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

‘Final Fantasy XV:’ Worth the wait?

Brendan Jacques Connector Editor

“Final Fantasy XV” is a game whose very existence seems to defy expectations. Originally revealed back in 2006 under the name “Final Fantasy Versus XIII,” the game not only has to deal with the baggage that comes from having one of the longest development periods in gaming history, but also needs to contend with a very different gaming landscape from the one it was originally meant to a part of. Now with a decade of fan expectations to contend with, a marketing budget that puts even the “Call of Duty” series to shame, and an entire theatrical film released to flesh out the game’s world, “Final Fantasy XV” is shaping up to be one of the most ambitious titles to ever be released.

Luckily for fans, that ambition seems to have paid off.

The game’s story takes place in the world of Eos, which for the past several years has been embroiled in a war between the magically-empowered kingdom of Lucis and the militaristic empire of Niflheim. While there is a fair bit of lore surrounding both nations and the history of the world they inhabit, the plot itself is straightforward: the player is tasked with guiding Noctis, the crown prince of the kingdom of Lucis, on a quest to acquire the Royal Arms, a collection of magical artifacts that hold the key to turning the tide of the conflict and pushing back the Empire’s advance.

What is most surprising about this set-up is that, while the stakes of the story are serious with the fate of the entire world hanging in the balance, the game opts not to focus on its overarching plot for most of its 60 hour runtime. Instead, the game is most concerned with fleshing out Noctis and the relationship he has with his

party of friends/bodyguards as they travel across a massive open-world hunting monsters, searching for treasure, and just barely making enough money to get by. Most of the game has the energy of a fantasy road trip movie, with all four friends sharing near-constant witty banter, sightseeing tours of important landmarks, and most major plot events being bookended with the entire party camping out in the wilderness.

While this approach does lead to a weirdly paced plot that never seems to feel as serious as it should, the extra time given to character growth helps to make Noctis and his friends more compelling characters than they otherwise would have been, which helps to keep players invested in the story.

For a story with such dire circumstances, it is refreshing to see that the game is not afraid of giving the player and characters time to breathe, which only serves to accentuate major plot moments when they come up. That said, the plot does suffer from several incomplete plot holes, with multiple major events happening entirely offscreen. The worst instance of this is how the plot’s inciting incident is not shown to the player at all, with the full details of the event instead being the focus of the game’s tie-in film, “Kingsglaive.” While the plot holes do sour the experience at times and lead to a game with even more difficult pacing issues, the plot points that do end up landing have a good enough impact to make up for any issues.

In contrast to the story, the core gameplay takes a massive departure from previous “Final Fantasy” games.

For the first time in the series, the player is given a fully open-world to explore, filled to the brim with side missions to complete, hidden dungeons to conquer and rare monsters to hunt.

Courtesy of Square Enix

“Final Fantasy XV” is already the most successful entry in series history, with an estimated 5 million copies sold on launch day.

While where the player can go in the world is somewhat restricted by plot progression, the world itself is breathtaking in scope and is more often than not an absolute joy to explore. The amount of care that went into making every area feel distinct and lively is staggering, more than matching its contemporaries in the genre, such as “Skyrim” and “The Witcher 3.”

Combat has been completely reworked from past entries, with the series’ famous turn-based combat replaced by a real-time action system reminiscent of Square Enix’s “Kingdom Hearts” series. During battle, the player is only given control over Noctis, with the actions of his friends being entirely controlled by the game’s AI. To make up for this, Noctis is given the ability to teleport long distances, switch between multiple weapon types on the fly and take advantage of powerful magic spells that his party members are unable to wield, leaving Noctis feeling powerful and distinct.

His friends are far from useless however, with each of them having their own suite of combat abilities as well as various special attacks that can very

easily turn the tide of battle. In the end, while the combat does lack the nuance and responsiveness of more dedicated action games, it has just enough variety and depth to stay enjoyable from beginning to end, which is much better than what the series has accomplished previously.

In the end, “Final Fantasy XV” is an absolute triumph of a game, more than living up to the expectations placed on it by close to a decade’s worth of hype. It is by no means a perfect game, and it certainly will not be a game that pleases everyone, especially not diehard fans of the series. But for those who are willing to give the game a chance, it will not be the story inconsistencies or the occasional gameplay faults that will be most memorable once the credits roll. It will be the story of four brothers with the weight of the world on their shoulders that hold each other up right until the end.

“Final Fantasy XV” is available on PS4 and Xbox One for $60. For those interested in learning the game’s full story, the tie-in film “Kingsglaive: Final Fantasy XV” is available on DVD and Blu-Ray for $15.

WUML’s Rock for Tots joins music with charity ►Continued from front page reminiscent of the first band. Also more instrumentally based, the band started their set with a long instrumental solo that was put together very nicely.

There are two vocalists who each play guitar and they are joined by a bassist and drummer. All of the instruments stand out in a positive way, in the sense that listeners can hear each one and the importance they each have in their songs.

The group played a song they had not yet record-

Christopher Romano/UML Connector

Rock for Tots was hosted in Maloney Hall on Dec. 1.

ed, but also mentioned that they are working on new material.

Slowing down the evening, Soft Cactus was next to perform. With a mellow, jazz-like sound, this band played much calmer songs as compared to the first two bands. Lead singer Melissa Mills had an incredibly powerful voice and was very personable on stage. Backed by soft, rhythmic drumming and smooth guitars with some effects, Mills sang many relaxed songs.

At times, some of the songs seemed to sound very similar, but they were still enjoyable and kept in line with the style of Soft Cactus. Some songs would start off with minimal instruments and sounded more acoustic, but then the drums would come in, the guitars would pick up and the song would progress to a heavier sound. This is an interesting way of structuring a song, but it worked incredibly well for this band.

Closing out the night was Bay Faction, a smaller group with just a singer/guitarist, bassist and drummer. The group was interactive and danced around the stage. The singer had a calmer voice that was juxtaposed with heavier instruments, which made

Christopher Romano/UML Connector

Bay Faction released their first self-titled album in 2015.

for a unique sound. They picked up the pace following Soft Cactus with more of a rock and punk sound.

All of these excellent bands performed well and it made for an entertaining night. Even though the crowd was fairly small, everyone was dancing and enjoying the music. To support two great charities, the night was a success. Most of the bands mentioned they would be releasing new music soon, so be sure to check them out.

UM ASS L OWELL C ONNECTOR

Page 6

December 6, 2016

CAMPUS LIFE

Promise of bonus points gets students to attend tutoring Hannah Manning Connetor Editor

Organic chemistry is a course so notoriously difficult that Dr. Khalilah Reddie offers students an extra seven points on their final score. Of course, there is a catch: to earn the points, students have to attend 30 half-hour tutoring sessions during the semester.

Unlike other science courses, attendance and participation does not factor into a student’s organic chemistry recitation grade. In those courses, Dr. Reddie said, attendance and participation may count as much as 10 percent towards a student’s grade.

“I thought somewhere between [a] five to 10 percent bonus would provide enough incentive for students to participate in the program,” said Dr. Reddie.

The organic chemistry tutoring program offers not just the promise of a boosted grade. Students attending tutoring also deepen their understanding of the material and find that it fosters a space for them to learn. It also makes studying a much less lonely experience by encouraging students to collaborate on practice problems and reach out to peer tutors for an explanation on concepts they do not yet grasp.

The tutors are students that have already taken both organic chemistry

courses and are picked by Dr. Reddie herself. They all seem to possess a deep appreciation for the material that they teach, which can be gleaned from their detailed and energetic explanations.

One of the tutors even took time out of their day to paint a picture of a volumetric flask. The painting hangs on the left corner of one of the whiteboards. The flask is bulbous at the bottom and leads into a narrow neck.

The artist utilized a purple and white palette for the flask, with the background being streaks of peach emanating from the flask, the centerpiece of the paper.

On a busy day, during the week of an exam, Southwick 320 holds as much as 40 or 50 students frantically studying their structures. There is often just sitting room for them. They will sit on the floor, anywhere they can find a spot.

“One time I was in there for five hours straight the day before an exam, and I literally think I lost my mind a little bit by the time that I left,” said Melanie Conner-Myers, a sophomore chemistry major and organic chemistry tutor. “But it’s good, because a lot of people are just trying to check what they know. Not everyone is completely lost, so they help each other.”

The tutoring set-up encourages stu-

Northern Essex

Community College

dents not only to utilize their tutors but also their classmates. Tutees that were spoken to found that tutoring helped them branch out within their majors and make new friends.

“It’s this place where we can all come together after class; for the most part, people are on the same page. We just need a little bit of extra help and understanding. So there’s a sense of camaraderie,” said Jessica Allen, a sophomore chemistry major.

Allen tries to go to tutoring at least three times a week, often after her classes end. She says that through lab and tutoring, she has gotten to know her fellow chemistry majors better and that she has expanded her social circle.

Hansen said that as an organic chemistry student, he initially just went to class and studied on his own with a friend. Upon learning of the bonus points offered by Dr. Reddie, he decided to try tutoring out. While he found the seven points a nice perk of the program, Hansen found that the best aspect of the situation was the tutoring itself.

“We went and realized pretty quickly that yes, the seven points are good, but it’s more important to come here to learn, because it creates an atmosphere of learning. So you learn and then you do better on your tests. The

Record breaking GAD Shane Foley Connector Editor

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work you do here helps better than the seven points you get,” said Hansen.

More students, she says, go to organic chemistry tutoring because they have that extra push. “[Tutoring] makes me make sure that I do the work in the green book [of practice problems], and that it also incentivizes studying the material because I get bonus points out of it,” said Dan Rabin, a sophomore chemical engineering major.

Rabin tries to go to tutoring every day but often ends up going four times a week, by his own estimation. He says that he treats tutoring as another class.

“I like it a lot. I feel like the tutoring center has a really calm environment.

Nobody really stresses you out, and the tutors know what they’re doing.

They’ve experienced the class before, and they’re very willing to help you,” he said.

Rabin finds the organic chemistry program to be a successful one.

“I think it makes people to want to do well, because it gives the ability to increase their grade in their hands, and they’re not forcing you to do work outside of class, but if you do the work you get credit for it, which is really good,” said Rabin.

In its fourth year of operation, The Gambling After Dark decimated its previous attendance record, now clocking in at 455 attendees this year.

Many improvements were implemented by the Gambling After Dark team to make this year’s event much larger than years past. One of the biggest changes they were able to make was their advertising campaign. An increase in funding led to more advertising seen around campus prior to the event.

“We also started pushing a lot of the departments that we work with to advertise,” said Justin Killgoar, member of the E-board for Gambling After Dark. The event also benefited from a more efficiently organized floor plan. The E-board took special care to make sure that the flow of the crowds were not too difficult to manage, with there being more tables to navigate.

“Mostly last year [the tables] were along the walls, and there was sort of a crowd blocking everything,” said Alex Drolette, a former attendee who was quite impressed with this year’s installment. “Now, with more of a circular motion...it just helped the flow of things.”

Even with the improved layout of the tables, some attractions still had long lines, due the enormously high attendance. Drollete said that the roulette tables were particularly packed, and it took some effort to finally be at a table.

“You had to sort of identify the zone and get in there,” said Drolette.

Another popular attraction this year was the horseracing station. This year, the horses were animated, done on a program created by Brandon Rogers, who set up the station. “I was very impressed with the horse racing,” said Drolette. “Brandon Rogers really stepped up with an animation. The horses are kind of just going across the line, [and] it looks like he put a lot of effort into it and it was quite impressive.”

While the event was a huge success, the team for Gambling After Dark still want to make improvements to the event. One big thing on their todo list is to create a permanent floor plan that they can reference for future years.

“Every year we essentially look [at] what we had last year, and we build off of it, but we’ve never had anything firm that we use every year that we keep coming back to,” said Killgoar.

“So, we’re going to work between now and next year’s event to establish our advertisement, etc. We’re going to essentially use something we can always go back to instead of recreating the event every year.”

Overall, the E-board for the event was very pleased with the turnout this year. “To be able to get such a huge attendance this year,” said Killgoar, “it’s a very satisfying feeling. We’re all ecstatic about what happened this year, and we’re going to keep going with this and hope that future years go even better.”

UM ASS L OWELL C ONNECTOR

Page 7

December 6, 2016

SPORTS

Joel Bancroft resigns as women’s head soccer coach UMass Lowell Athletics

LOWELL, Mass. – UMass Lowell Senior Associate Athletic Director Sandra Niedergall announced on Friday afternoon that Joel Bancroft has resigned as head coach of the River Hawk Women’s Soccer team.

“On behalf of the University, I would like to

Joel Bancroft has been with the River Hawks since their transition to Division I play.

thank Joel and his staff for all of their work in the last three years,” said Niedergall. “The women’s soccer program has made steady gains during the transition to Division I and I am grateful for all the work that has been done to establish a solid foundation for the program moving forward.”

Bancroft worked four years for the River Hawks, including a three-year stint as head coach. During his tenure, Bancroft complied a 16-35-3 overall record, including an 8-15-1 mark in America East play.

The River Hawks are coming off their most successful Division I season yet, with a 5-9-0 overall mark and a 3-5-0 record in league play this past season. Had the squad been eligible for post-season play, the River Hawks would have qualified for a spot in the America East Championship for the first time since the university’s transition to Division I. In the 2016 season opener, the River Hawks set a new program attendance record with 1,071 fans at the recently renovated Cushing Field Complex in a

All photos by UMass Lowell Athletics

Bancroft’s River Hawks have had a 16-35-3 record.

victory against Bryant.

Over the past two seasons, Bancroft has led his squad to two upset wins against reigning conference champions Hartford and UAlbany, as well as an impressive 2-1 win against New Hampshire in the conference finale this past October. A national search for a new head coach will commence immediately.

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UM ASS L OWELL C ONNECTOR

December 6, 2016

Page 8

SPORTS Men’s basketball comes close in 75-74 nailbiter against NJIT ► Continued from front page

us, the way we came out and played, but I’m very proud of the way we played in the second half. That’s definitely the UMass Lowell team that I know and I love working with every day,” said head coach Pat Duquette.

The River Hawks had a strong start in the first half, but NJIT was able to come back and assert themselves thanks to their quick hands. The Highlanders often broke up the River Hawks’ momentum by intercepting passes.

UMass Lowell allowed two breakaways in the first half. In the first attempt, redshirt sophomore Dontavious Smith swatted the ball

away from the Highlander player in the last second. The next attempt would be a successful one, a layup that redshirt junior Jahad Thomas could not quite get his hands on.

However, the River Hawks displayed a strong defensive game in the first half, which would improve in the second. Their pressure often forced the Highlanders to pass the ball around and fight to get to the basket. The River Hawks ran out NJIT’s clock twice in the first half and once in the second.

The River Hawks were proactive in blocking NJIT shot attempts and then charging down the court to score. In a

All photos by Matt Dwyer/Connector

Ryan Jones makes a move around an NJIT defender.

particular play early in the second half, senior forward Tyler Livingston blocked a shot, and then came back down the court to later shoot a three-pointer.

UMass Lowell became much less shy in making three point attempts in the second half, with sophomore guards Ryan Jones and Isaac White shooting back-to-back threes. The River Hawks went five for eight threepoint field goal attempts in the second half, and had a 40 percent success rate overall.

Reassessing plays on the fly was also a strong component of their second half comeback. Matt Harris went down on a breakaway that fell apart, but got sophomore guard/forward Logan Primerano the ball. Primerano shot from under the net and drew a chance at a threepoint play.

Free throws were huge in this particular game, with the very outcome of the game dependent on one. UMass Lowell has an 83.3 percent success rate in free throws, going 11 for

11 in the second half alone.

Harris was perfect on the free throw, going five for five. He finished the night with 17 points, the most of any other River Hawk.

Jones finished with 16 points, and went four for five on the line for UMass Lowell.

He earned Star of the Game honors for his play.

“Typically, we’re a good free throw-shooting team. We have to be. We’ve got other deficiencies, but as a team I think we’re shooting almost 80 percent for the season. So that’s an area of strength for us,” said coach Duquette.

But Duquette also noted that the River Hawks could not coast on their free throw prowess.

“We’ve got to focus on the things we can control, and the way that we came out in the first half, that’s got to be our focus, because we need to make sure that doesn’t happen again,” said coach Duquette.

No. 3 River Hawks skate to 2-2 tie at UConn UMass Lowell Athletics

HARTFORD, Conn. – The No. 3 ranked UMass Lowell Hockey team skated to a 2-2 tie against UConn on Saturday afternoon in Hockey East play at the XL Center in the series finale.

With the tie, the River Hawks stand at 8-5-3 overall (4-3-1 HEA), while the Huskies move to 5-6-6 overall (3-3-2 HEA).

The teams skated to a scoreless opening period with UConn outshooting the River Hawks by a 13-6 margin.

UConn’s Spencer Naas opening the scoring in the game with his seventh tally of the season at 6:33 of the second frame. Senior defenseman Michael Kapla (Eau Claire, Wis.) notched his first goal of the season for the River Hawks to tie the game at 1-1 less than two minutes later on a power play tally.

The Huskies tied the game with 1:03 left in the middle stanza on Karl El-Mir’s sixth goal of the year to even the score at 2-2. Freshman goaltender Garrett Metcalf (Salt Lake City, Utah) earned his first collegiate start for the River Hawks and finished the day with 34 saves, which included 12 saves in the first and third periods. Adam Huska notched 34 stops in his eighth start of the year for the Huskies in the tie.

Junior forward C.J. Smith (Des Moines, Iowa)

notched a game-high six shots on goal for the River Hawks. Freshman forward Ryan Lohin (Chadds Ford, Pa.) led the way for UMass Lowell in the faceoff circle winning 13-of-17 (76%).

Both teams notched 36 shots on goal in the game, with the River Hawks holding a 17-11 shot advantage in the second period. The River Hawks were a perfect 3-for-3 on the penalty kill.

UMass Lowell returns to action on Friday, December 9th against Merrimack College in Hockey East play. Game time from the Tsongas Center is 7:15 p.m. The team will wear their commemorative 50th anniversary third jerseys against the Warriors.

Senior forward Joe Gambardella had two assists in the final game against UConn.

U P C OM I N G

River Hawk Games Tuesday, Dec. 6

7 pm

MBB at Sacred Heart

Friday, Dec. 9

6 pm

MHOC vs. Merrimack

Saturday, Dec. 10

2 pmS

Saturday, Dec. 10

7:15 pm

Sunday, Dec. 18

1 pm

WBB vs. Colgate

Sunday, Dec. 18

1 pm

MBB vs. CCSU

WBB at Holy Cross

MHOC at Merrimack

For more sports information and full game schedules visit goriverhawks.com

Men’s hockey edged by UConn 3-2 Kathryn Leeber Connector Staff

The UMass Lowell men’s hockey team kicked off the first of two games Friday night against the University of Connecticut Huskies, losing 3-2 in the effort.

The game was slow to warm up, but UConn was quick to score. The first goal of the night was scored

by UConn junior Spencer Naas, assisted by Justin Howell.

The River Hawks were able to follow with a goal from freshman forward Colin O’Neill, his first of the season. He went on to score the team’s second goal to tie the game at 2-2.

“It definitely feels good [to score], but it would have been better if we would’ve won the game,” said O’Neill.

Another freshman, goaltender Tyler Wall, received the start for the River Hawks and was able to stop eight out of 10 shots on goal by UConn in the first period. All in all, Wall had 18 saves in the game.

The first period was very much a back and forth game, with neither team holding more possession than the other.

“We got caught chasing the game, but we responded to their two goals by coming back twice,” said head coach Norm Bazin.

Despite tying it up at some points, UMass Lowell’s passing was rather weak and UConn was able to steal the puck many times. Nonetheless, the first period was very calm and without penalties.

The second period was a whole different story, with each team receiving three penalties. Most of the penalties were for holding or interference, and one was from having too many players on the ice.

Even though it was a more aggressive period, only the Huskies scored. Tage Thompson scored the Huskies’ third goal off a power play to take the lead, 3-2.

With 11:30 left to go in the period, Wall made a huge save to keep the score stagnant. The team would continue to play forcefully and won a majority of the face-offs. In the first two periods, the River Hawks won 23 out of 42 face-offs.

Even with the possession in their favor, UMass Lowell was not able to score again. In the third period, the team had many opportunities, but UConn goaltender Adam Huska continually blocked the shots.

At one point, a UMass Lowell player shot so powerfully from a distance that he broke his stick. This clearly showed the effort put into the game from the River Hawks, but ultimately it did not end in their favor.