Emergency ’Hurst

tower system
to start in students
summer;
MSG, admin. rock out to
OK project
NEWS 2 their favorite
games FEATURES 16

Phi Eta Sigma

to host
talent show
Friday in
Taylor Little
Theatre
NEWS 4

Women’s
hockey
sweeps
Quinnipiac
7-1, 7-0 over
weekend
SPORTS 31

Also inside
A&E
OPINION 20
SPORTS 24
17

Available online:
Brotherly love
Senior Nick Giallourakis helps raise money for the Steven Giallourakis
merciad.mercyhurst.edu Adolescence and Young Adult Cancer Research Fund. NEWS 3
PAGE 2
Blue light system comes to ’Hurst
By Ashley Pastor
Staff writer
Mercyhurst College Student
Government (MSG) has recently
partnered with the administra-
tion to pass the proposal for
the installation of an emergency
towers pilot program.
The emergency towers, often
referred to as a “blue light
system,” consists of poles stra-
tegically located around campus
for students or visitors to use if
they feel in danger or in need of
emergency assistance.
Mercyhurst College Direc-
tor of Public Safety Rodger
Gregorich said talk of the blue
light system began in March of
1999.
MSG withdrew its support
soon after the discussion began
in order to focus attention on
other initiatives.
The proposal was resurrected
in 2005 and again was dismissed
by MSG because the project was
too costly, said Gregorich.
“MSG decided to pursue this
project when our survey results
showed that 70 percent of the
students stated that they would
like to have Blue Lights on
campus,” said MSG President
Marissa Starin. “Although many
people feel safe on campus
in general, there are at least a
few spots on campus that lack
proper lighting and have had
incidents occur on more then
one occasion.”
Mercyhurst College Director
of Administration Tom Billings-
ley has confirmed the installation
of the pilot program.
“Right now we have agreed
to do a pilot program of around
two to four poles, depending on
what the current price per pole
is,” said Billingsley.
Billingsley said he believes
the price is around $5,000-7,000
per pole. He also said sev-
eral different models of the
system exist.
“We also took into consider-
ation the pricing on solar pow-
ered blue lights, which would
decrease energy consumption
and still provide the same safe
atmosphere,” said Starin.
Billingsley said the installation
is planned for this summer.
Gregorich said that extensive
research was done by police
and safety when the system was
suggested in 1999. They found
infor mation on companies,
prices and possible locations for
the towers.
Locations of the towers are
crucial for the system to work,
said Billingsley.
“We have decided student life
and police and safety will make
suggestions about the location of
the lights,” said Billingsley.
Gregorich collected location
ideas from Mercyhurst College
Chief of Police and Safety Ken
Sidun, and other officers to get
an idea of where they felt the
towers should be placed.
The officers gave Gregorich a
map of the campus with around
12 possible locations for the
towers.
Some locations include outside
the underground parking garages
and around the borders of the
campus.
Mercyhurst College Associ-
ate Director of Residence Life
and Student Conduct Justin
Ross recently met with Starin
and MSG Health and Safety
Committee Chair senior Chris
Davis to discuss locations for
the poles.
Ross said the three walked
around campus during the eve-
ning to get an idea of where to
suggest locations for the blue
light system poles.
Ross said several locations are
being considered.
One location is parking lot 16,
near the R/IAP building.
Another location is between
the maintenance building and the
NEWS Jan. 30, 2008
Briggs Avenue apartments.
“The locations we chose are
isolated areas,” said Ross. “Stu-
dents would have to run to get
to a call box from these loca-
tions.”
For this reason, Ross said
places such as Lewis Avenue are
not being considered.
“There is a lot of traffic in
these areas and students are
always out and around,” said
Ross. “It wouldn’t make sense to
put poles in these places.”
Although the locations near
the R/IAP and maintenance
buildings are the top choices,
Ross, Davis and Starin selected
several to propose.
Ross said one of the sug-
gested locations is near the pavil-
ion between Briggs and Lewis
avenues. Another is between the
Audrey Hirt Academic Building
and the Cohen Student Health
Center.
The area around the freshmen
dorms will not be on the list of
suggested places at this point.
“The freshman area is close to
the center of campus and police
and safety is very close,” said
Ross. “We didn’t find any places
to suggest in that area.”
Ross said the residence life
staff was also asked to make
suggestions. Scoot Williams photo
“ResLife does regular rounds Mercyhurst College will install an emergency towers system
and knows the campus,” said similar to the blue light security system found on the
Ross. “We thought that they may Gannon University campus.
have some good ideas for loca- At the time of the first pro- can increase security on campus
tions that need poles.” posal, Gregorich contacted is a good investment,” said Gre-
Billingsley said the suggested some of the other colleges just gorich.
locations from all of the differ- to get an idea of whether the Sidun agrees the system would
ent sources will be taken into system was beneficial. be a positive feature to security.
consideration. “University of Pittsburgh “If it prevents an incident
“We are going to pick what has over 500 towers on their and protects students, it’s a good
we believe are the most impor- campus,” said Gregorich. “When initiative,” said Sidun.
tant locations to put the first I spoke with a person from this Sidun also said the system will
poles and then continue over campus, they said that the towers put parents at ease.
the years to add poles until we were a great asset to campus “Parents will feel better about
feel campus is complete,” said security.” their kids coming to school here
Billingsley. Gregorich said he is personally with safety tools like the blue
The blue light system can be in favor of installing the new lights,” said Sidun. “That’s what
found on numerous college and system. we’re here to do - take care of
university campuses. “Any system that potentially students and the college.”
Jan. 30, 2008 NEWS PAGE 3

’Hurst students help raise money for cancer fund

By Tim Hucko
Contributing writer

Mercyhurst College senior

Nick Giallourakis looks to a dif-
ferent figure of inspiration and
heroism than most.
Steven Giallourakis is a 17-
year-old cancer survivor who
was diagnosed with stage four
bone cancer in his lower spine
and lungs in March 2006.
The news came as a shock to
the family of five, particularly to
brother Nick.
It was an uphill battle for
Steven and his family during 10
months of chemotherapy treat-
ment, radiation and two spinal
surgeries.
Rallying behind the young
fighter, the family started the
Steven Giallourakis Adoles-
cence and Young Adult Cancer
Research Fund – designed to Contributed photo

improve cancer outcomes in
young adults by assisting Rain-
bow’s AYA Cancer Research
Initiative.
The money raised will help
pay the salary of a research fel-
low for approximately three to
four years.
Since the establishment of the
fund, the Giallourakis family has
raised nearly $70,000 through a
multitude of functions ranging
from church socials to bar spe-
cials.
“The goal is $100,000, but
who knows where it will go from
there,” said Giallourakis. “In the
future, the family plans to hold
a local basketball tournament as
well as a golf tournament when
the weather turns more pleas-
ant.”
Moved by the overwhelming
support back home, Gialloura-
kis decided to bring the fight to
Mercyhurst.
“I love my brother and want to
help him in any way I can,” said
Giallourakis.
Fellow friend and professor,
Mercyhurst College senior Nick Giallourakis, far right, and his two brothers Phil and Steven are working together, along
with the rest of the Mercyhurst community, to raise money for the Steven Giallourakis AYA Cancer Research Fund.
Jill Slomski initiated the local
campaign with the help of her
marketing class.
Last spring, after her class
had completed a fundraiser for
autism, Slomski spoke with Gial-
lourakis and asked if there was
any way her students could help
out his brother’s fund.
The pair spoke over the en-
suing months and worked out
a plan to present to Slomski’s
marketing class.
“I gave them some back-
ground information and spoke
a little about the fund, and Ms.
Slomski split them into groups
and briefed them on the project,”
said Giallourakis.
“I assigned the project last
Monday. I usually only give them
a week but we have been doing
such really great fundraisers that
I wanted to see what they could
do with two weeks this time,”
said Slomski.
The class responded with
a whirlwind of activities and
events.
“The goal was set at $3,000,
but I think they might raise
more,” said Giallourakis.
So far students have held
raffles at women’s hockey games
as well as in Herrmann Student
Union.
This past weekend, a raffle
for a basket of Cleveland Cava-
liers merchandise was held dur-
ing the student production of
“Seussical.”
Other groups have gone
outside the Mercyhurst Com-
munity and joined forces with
Wal-Mart to do a $500 matching
of funds.
Some students have even got
the valets at Presque Isle Downs
and Casino to donate a percent-
age of tips earned for the fund.
The fundraising will end Feb.
4 when the marketing groups
present their assignments and
calculate their total sums.
“Historically, the responses
have been great for these fund-
raisers, and we have raised over
$3,000 for each one,” said Slom-
ski. “In the spring, the marketing
class will be undertaking a new
fundraiser for epilepsy.”
While this is the first fund-
raising event for the Steven
Giallourakis fund at Mercyhurst,
there are plans for future en-
deavors.
“I am graduating this May, but I
would really like to see continued
support and maybe make this an
annual thing,” said Giallourakis.
“This has to do with cancer
patients who are our age, and I
believe students realize this and
respond more positively.”
While Steven has recovered and
actively participates in school and
sports, the fight is far from over.
Every year hundreds of young
adults are faced with the chal-
lenge of cancer and fight a
battle many students will never
experience.
According to the American
Cancer Society, one in every 168
Americans develops invasive
cancer between the ages of 15
to 30.
In the 1950s, childhood cancer
became a singular focus of treat-
ment and research.
In 1971, the National Cancer
Act added adult (ages 30+) cancer
as a research priority.
Meanwhile, substantially less
attention has been given to the age
group in between. As a result, the
relative improvement in the sur-
vival rate among young adults has
not kept pace with that achieved
in younger or older patients.
If you have questions about
the Steven Giallourakis AYA
Cancer Research Fund or Rain-
bow AYA Cancer Research
Initiative, or would like to make
a donation, please send an e-mail
to Harry and Angie Giallourakis at
angiegiallourakis@yahoo.com.
PAGE 4
’Hurst students let ‘talent show’
By Javeria Cubillos
Staff writer
Do you have talent; a skill you
are dying to share?
Mercyhurst College students
now have a chance to reveal their
hidden talents.
The Phi Eta Sigma Honor
Society is sponsoring a talent
show in the Taylor Little Theatre
Friday, Feb. 1 at 8 p.m.
Students can buy tickets for $3
from a Phi Eta Sigma member
and they will also be available at
the door.
The tickets allow students to
vote and win prizes.
The more tickets students buy,
the more chances students have
to win.
Two tickets give students the
chance to win raffle prizes, and
’Hurst Civic Institute benefits Erie
By Abigail Grasinger
Contributing writer
Mercyhurst College recently
held an event on Feb. 29 high-
lighting accomplishments of the
Erie County Policy and Planning
Council for Children and Fami-
lies (PPC).
Mercyhurst College President
Dr. Thomas Gamble gave open-
ing remarks explaining how the
college’s Civic Institute played an
important role in the council.
Mercyhurst’s Civic Institute is
a division of the Social Sciences
Department. It is the primary
facilitator of the Erie County
Policy and Planning Council.
Along with Gamble, Erie City
Councilman Joe Giles and Nurse-
Family Partnership spokesperson
Charlotte Berringer spoke as
well.
Erie County Policy and Plan-
three tickets allow them to vote
for their favorite act.
Each act will have its own
c a n w h e r e vo t e s c a n b e
dropped.
The act that has the most votes
at the end of the evening will
win the first prize and receive
$100, while second place will
receive $50.
There will also be 10 prizes
from the raffle that include a gift
card for Eat-n-Park, fudge from
The Fudgery and tickets to an
Erie Otters game.
There will be singers, danc-
ers, bands and more among the
10 acts performing at the show.
All performers are Mercy-
hurst students, such as freshman
Gaby Meza, who will be dancing
salsa with senior Ricardo
Ve l a s q u e z a n d f r e s h m a n
Boris Gabriel.
ning Council was established in
1996 with hope to provide plan-
ning for issues faced by families
in the community.
In around 12 years, the PCC
brought in more than $5.1 mil-
lion in grant funds to benefit area
families.
There are 60 PCC members
representing different com-
munity sectors, such as educa-
tion, government, health and
religion.
Some programs that have
been created due to the Coun-
cil’s evaluations are Berringer’s
Nurse-Family Partnership, which
works with low income first time
mothers, Promoting Alternative
Thinking Strategies, PATHS,
which helps kids in the Erie
school district.
Two of the Council’s newest
programs are Trauma-Focused
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
(TF-CBT), which works with the
NEWS
“I’m excited to show one of
the most typical Latin American
dances to the audience,” said
Meza.
Sophomore Trevor Sones
will be dancing to the music of
“Footloose.”
Sones is a dance major who
choreographed his own dance
which includes many jumps,
tricks and turns said Sones.
“I will also be attempting to
dress like Kevin Bacon,” he
said.
Leslie Soltis, advisor for Phi
Eta Sigma, said last year’s talent
show was a great success.
“I predict the second show
will have the same results,” said
Soltis. “This year’s committee
is working very hard - with some
experience under their belts
- to bring quality acts, desirable
auction prizes and delicious
youth and their families who have
experienced any kind of trauma,
and a program which focuses on
placement of high risk youth,
called Multi-Dimensional Treat-
ment Fostercare (MTFC).
Through the efforts of those
involved with the Council, there
are notable increases in grade
point averages and a decrease in
truancy among the youth.
Since the Erie Family Center
and Union City Family Support
Center were established, its
ideas and programs have spread
to neighboring cities such as
Harborcreek.
Director of the Mercyhurst
College Civic Institute Amy
Eisert, recommends the Healthy
Youth Development, which is
aimed at spreading the philoso-
phy that youth are indeed an asset
in our community and should be
viewed as such.
Another subcommittee is
concessions.”
Last year, the talent show
raised $1,000, which was donated
to Pete Geddes of the athlet-
ics department to care for his
ill son.
This year the proceeds will
go to sophomore Billy Krawc-
zyk’s father, who returned from
Iraq two years ago but is still suf-
fering physical and psychological
injuries.
Junior Stephanie Oliver is
organizing and also participating
in the event.
Oliver said she is happy to help
with the event.
“We’re really excited to be
raising money for this cause
because Billy is one of our
own, and it’s great to be lend-
ing a hand to a member of our
Mercyhurst community,” she
said.
Parent and Provider Partner-
ship, which brings parents and
service providers together to
work toward service improve-
ment, education and parent
support for those having a child
in any system, whether it be child
welfare, juvenile justice, mental
health, special education or early
intervention.
Other areas in which people
can get involved is through
Parent as Presenters, where
parents trained how to effec-
tively tell their stories on what
it is like having a special needs
child or child involved in a ser-
vice system, and then parents
are invited to worker trainings
or college classrooms to edu-
cate current and future service
providers on the parent’s per-
spective.
If interested in getting involved
with the Council, students can
attend their meetings or work
Jan. 30, 2008
Oliver said she thinks the
talent show is a great way to raise
money for charity and hopes to
make the talent show an annual
fundraiser.
“For me, this is a way of
thanking not just First Sergeant
Krawczyk but all the brave men
and women who sacrifice so
much to protect the country,”
said Oliver.
President of Phi Eta Sigma
senior Amelia Diaz is proud to
organize the show.
She said the event celebrates
Mercyhurst’s generosity and
willingness to work towards a
common cause and help those
in need.
“We thank all of those who are
participating to make this event
possible, and welcome everyone
to come and support our effort,”
said Diaz.
with the Council’s subcommit-
tees.
Junior Sarah Muhlberger said
that it is great that the campus is
getting involved with improving
the community.
“It is important to work to
improve the city around our
school because Erie reflects upon
Mercyhurst’s reputation,” said
Muhlberger.
The programs follow a model
created through Communities
That Care – a program that
helps assess what the community
needs and what programs can be
established and used.
The Civic Institute serves as a
main storage central for informa-
tion pertaining to Erie’s social
and civic challenges, along with
opportunities for both the city
and the Commonwealth.
Their main goal is to improve
public policies and processes of
Erie to benefit its community.
 Jan. 30, 2008 NEWS PAGE 5

Keeping ’Hurst hearts healthy

By Jen Helbig
Staff writer
Since 1963, February has been
annually proclaimed American
Heart Month.
As scholars and agents of
their own bodies, Mercyhurst
students and professors can
use February as a reminder
that heart disease can affect all
people, and that today’s choices
have an impact on tomorrow’s
health.
Many times heart disease is
not perceived as an issue that is
in the forefront of Americans’
minds.
Celeste Shefferly, a sophomore
Intelligence major, said that she
has not given much thought to
heart health, but lives a heart
healthy lifestyle.
“I do not smoke, I exercise all
the time by playing lacrosse and
I believe that I eat a healthy diet,”
said Shefferly.
Heart disease is not one con-
dition.
It is a term used to describe
a variety of conditions that
the heart may acquire, such
as cardiovascular disease or a
heart attack.
Heart disease is dangerous
because it can develop silently
and progressively over time.
It is the number one killer of
Americans.
The American Heart Associa-
tion suggests the ABC approach
to heart health: avoid tobacco,
be more active and choose good
nutrition.
Smoking cessation is the first
emphasis because although it is
difficult to quit, it is more dif-
ficult to recover from a heart
attack or stroke or to live with
chronic heart disease.
It is widely accepted that
tobacco smoke can cause emphy-
sema, chronic obstructive pul-
monary disease, cancer and heart
disease.
Sophomore Denise Wheelock
has recently stopped smoking.
“I know it’s bad for me but I
never wanted to stop because for
some reason I just liked it,” said
Wheelock.
“One day I realized what a
hypocrite I was because I was
telling one of my friends to stop
smoking and be healthy. I decided
that it was time to stop, and so
far, I have been good. I would
not say that I haven’t smoked at
all, but I’m making progress. It’s
a process to give it up.”
While smoking cessation might
be difficult and stressful, a small
addition of stress today will be
much less stress than dealing
with heart disease later in life.
Becoming more active is the
second emphasis of the Ameri-
can Heart Association.
Studies have shown that get-
ting 30 to 60 minutes of physi-
cal activity on most days of the
week can help lower blood pres-
sure, lower cholesterol and keep
weight at a healthy level.
If 30 minutes is too much, a
person should aim for any physi-
cal activity, as many days of the
week as possible.
Some exercise is better than
no exercise.
Shefferly plans to maintain her
healthy exercise habits through-
out life.
“I’ll probably continue to be
active when I’m older, because
I’ll want to keep up with my
kids,” said Shefferly. “I know
that doing cardio is really good
for your heart, and could be
anything that makes your heart
work for an extended amount
of time.”

laker briefs
Good nutrition is the last
emphasis on heart health pro-
motion.
With better nutrition, a person
New transfer scholarships can lower his or her cholesterol,
Students at Mercyhurst North East, Mercyhurst West and
triglycerides, blood pressure
the Mercyhurst Corry Center are now eligible to receive up to
and weight for better heart and
$10,000 in scholarship money to transfer to the Mercyhurst
circulatory health.
Erie campus and complete their Bachelor’s degree. For more
Another component to good
information on Mercyhurst’s Dean’s Achievement Scholarships,
nutrition that is sometimes for- Scoot Williams photo
contact Shirley Williams, internal transfer coordinator, at (814) Freshman Calvin Corso exercises daily at the gym to work
gotten is alcohol consumption.
725-6106. towards a healthy heart.
Alcohol should be excluded
from the diet or consumed only
in moderation. alcohol can lead to elevated The American Heart Associa-
Valentine Basket Raffle This issue can be difficult blood pressure, heart failure, tion offers a wealth of diet and
The basket amounts to $100.00 in gifts that include gift
for students, but the long-term stroke and high triglycerides. lifestyle information that can be
certificates for one dozen roses and to Pufferbelly’s Restaurant
implication of binge drinking In addition to affecting useful for a person concerned
as well as a box of chocolates. Tickets are $5.00 for two and
should be considered instead of heart health alcohol consump- with heart disease.
are available in the education department. The drawing will be
only the implication on current tion contributes to obesity, Visit the Web site (www.ameri-
held on Feb. 11.
social life. alcoholism, suicide and acci- canheart.org)at least once in Feb-
-lakernet.mercyhurst.edu Excessive consumption of dents. ruary for your heart’s sake.
PAGE 6
Election 2008
Read between
the lines
When you go looking for news on the presidential
candidates, don’t be surprised if it’s hard to find.
After checking out popular news sources like CNN.
com and FOXNEWS.com, there was a lack of sub-
stance in the reporting.
News sources like these should focus on the issues like
where the candidates stand on the War on Iraq or what
universal healthcare plans they plan to promote.
Instead, we already see a
Commentary shift to sensationalism.
The articles that pop
By Amanda Valauri up first when looking for
updates on the election
are mostly about the bickering between candidates in
their own parties.
Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton, two Democratic
candidates, seem be having a new tiff every week about
one calling the other a name.
Mitt Romney and John McCain, two Republican
candidates, have been arguing lately over capability to
lead the country due to age.
While this bickering may be entertaining at times,
it’s time to get beyond it and start looking at the real
issues.
It is distressing to see FOXNEWS.com and CNN.
com posting stories about the petty name calling that
goes on behind the scenes of the race.
It’s a waste of time.
As frustrating as it may be, it does give us insight into
the media’s exaggerated role in this election.
Uncovering insignificant secrets from the candidate’s
pasts or recording offhand comments does not consti-
tute as political reporting.
Major news sources are making it difficult to con-
centrate on the issues that matter, making the election
more about voting against who you dislike rather than
for a candidate you like.
While it may be hard to stay focused, it’s becoming
more and more important that you don’t get lost in the
political banter.
It’s important to keep in mind these candidates are not
here for entertainment - they’re our potential leaders.
ELECTION NEWS
barackobama.com
Sen. Barack Obama is a 2008
Democratic Presidential candidate.
War in Iraq: Before the war in Iraq ever
started, Obama said that it was wrong in
its conception. Since then, he has laid out
a plan on the way forward in Iraq that has
largely been affirmed by the bipartisan Iraq
Study Group.
Immigration: Obama believes the immigra-
tion issue has been exploited by politicians
to divide the nation. This divisiveness has
allowed the illegal immigration problem to
worsen, with borders that are less secure
than ever and an economy that depends on
millions of workers living in the shadows.
Healthcare: “We now face an opportu-
nity - and an obligation - to turn the page
on the failed politics of yesterday’s health
care debates. It’s time to bring together
businesses, the medical community, and
members of both parties around a compre-
hensive solution to this crisis, and it’s time to
let the drug and insurance industries know
that while they’ll get a seat at the table, they
don’t get to buy every chair.” - Obama
barackobama.com
Jan. 30, 2008
vote-usa.org
Mitt Romney is a 2008
Republican Presidential candidate.
War in Iraq: We must strengthen our mili-
tary by increasing the size of our military
by 100,000 troops and dedicating at least
four percent of our gross domestic product
to defense. We must transform our domes-
tic civilian international efforts to meet
a new generation of global challenges
and ensure that our intelligence and law
enforcement efforts are able to address
threats before they reach our shores.
Immigration: The number of illegal immi-
grants in the U.S. has exploded in the last
decade from 3 million to over 12 million.
We must secure the border, implement an
enforceable employer verification system,
punish sanctuary cities and reject amnesty
if we are to restore Americans’ faith in the
rule of law.
Healthcare: By expanding and deregulat-
ing the private health insurance market,
we can decrease costs and ensure that
more Americans have access to affordable,
portable, quality, private health insurance.
mittromney.com
Jan. 30, 2008
Education students turn to art
Mercyhurst College Education Department works to develop active learners
By Javeria Cubillos
Staff writer
The Mercyhurst College Edu-
cation Department has started a
new program called “Pedagogy
and Practices in Aesthetic Edu-
cation.”
Using works of art (WOA),
the objective of the course is
to teach the Mercyhurst pre-
service educators how to teach
critical thinking skills and dif-
ferent perceptional abilities to
young children.
Dr. Leanne Roberts, assistant
professor of education, is one
of the instructorss involved in
the project.
According to Roberts, the
program has been a success.
“It seems to be a highlight
for the elementary students
and Mercyhurst students have
Senior gift update
School of Social Sciences ahead of the game
By Ashley Pastor
Staff writer
The numbers are in. As of
Tuesday, Jan. 29, the total was
tallied for donations funding the
2008 Senior Gift.
The current total is $7,329,
which includes donations from
the five academic schools.
Senior Gift Committee Chair
senior Marty Wallenhorst said
the collection of donations for
the senior gift kicked off on
Jan. 8.
He said the fundraising goal
is to total $20,000 by graduation
in May.
“Historically the bulk for
fundraising was done by the 100
offered positive feedback thus
far,” said Roberts.
The hope of the program is
that teachers will learn a new
way to conduct their classes,
said Roberts.
The program has partnered
with kindergarten classes at
Jefferson Elementary School to
give students firsthand experi-
ence doing this.
By relying on a WOA, stu-
dents and teachers develop
inquiry that utilizes natural
curiosity of children.
The WOA can be anything
from music, poems, photo-
graphs or paintings, as long as
they are not created by either the
student or the teacher.
Ideally the WOA will be by an
artist who visits the classroom
or can be visited by students.
Senior Amanda Placek is
enrolled in the course and said
days date,” said Wallenhorst. “We
hope to reach $15,000 by then.”
Wallenhorst said many dona-
tions have already been collected,
and he expects a large amount by
and on the 100 days celebration.
He was surprised by the number
of students who have donated
their entire housing deposits.
The first parent donation was
received this week, which was
also exciting for Wallenhorst and
the committee.
“We have done very, very well
for the first three weeks,” said
Wallenhorst.
The School of Social Sciences
is the current leader in donation
dollars, standing at $2,228 in ten
donations.
The School of Business and
NEWS
she likes to see other teachers in
action because it helps her learn
classroom techniques.
“There is a lot to learn about
teaching from watching the
wonderful artists we’ve worked
with,” said Placek.
Senior Stephanie Mastandrea
agrees with Placek.
“The kids really enjoy hav-
ing works of art in the class-
room,” said Mastandrea. “Their
excitement is a joy to see.”
Currently, the artists par-
ticipate as WOA’s for the course
are folk artist Kelly Armos and
dancer Shelly Walker.
The WOA will change every
term, depending on the artist-
in-residence.
Roberts said it is important
for education to be connected to
the arts instead of being a “skill,
drill, kill” type of learning.
Recently schools have fo-
Communications follows with
$1,800 in six donations.
The School of Natural Sci-
ences and Math are close behind
with nine donations amounting
to $1,645.
The School of Arts and Hu-
manities raised $928 in six
donations.
Trudging along with $728 is
the School of Educational and
Behavioral Sciences with six
donations.
The school who donates the
most money will receive a re-
ward at the end of the fundrais-
ing, according to Wallenhorst.
“I’m surprised and grateful
with our progress and want to
thank everyone who has already
donated,” he said.
cused on standardized testing
more than ever.
This means they limit class-
room activities to skills that are
necessary for the tests.
Roberts disagrees with this.
“I worry that we are creating a
generation of passive learners,”
she said.
“While information is im-
portant, the ability to think,
synthesize and evaluate and
solve problems is essential to
our existence.”
Mastandrea ag rees with
Roberts.
“(This type of teaching)
really provides the students with
another angle at which they
can understand vital concepts
that they need to understand
at their young age to be able to
develop their reading, writing
and math skills,” said Mastan-
drea.
Do your
friends call
you nosey?
Always the
first to know
about campus
gossip?
Write for the
news section Corrections from
of the Merciad. Jan. 23 issue
Interested?
E-mail Amanda
Valauri at
newsmerciad
@mercyhurst.edu.
PAGE 7
Roberts said she finds this
program extremely appropriate
considering it works toward
creating a “minds-on” class-
room.
She supports and challenges
all pre-service teachers to en-
courage their students to inquire,
think and be active learners.
The course will undergo
changes when needed as any
“content sound” and “pedagogi-
cally sound” course does, said
Roberts.
Roberts said she is dedicated
to creating classroom environ-
ments where active learning is
the key.
“My interest in pre-ser-
vice teacher education has al-
ways been linked to creating a
classroom culture,” said Rob-
erts. “One in which students
question, think, ponder and can
be a bit self-directed.”
Commitment
to accuracy
To report corrections
and clarifications,
contact managing
editor Casey Greene
at mgeditormerciad@
mercyhurst.edu or
(814) 824-2376.
In the article “Global warm-
ing: The transcendent
challenge of our times,” the
text was supposed to read
“4-year campaign” instead
of, “14-year campaign.”
PAGE 8 NEWS
Police log Improving intramurals
By Ashley Pastor
Liquor Law Violation Burglary Staff writer
3829 Briggs Mercy 300
Jan. 19 Jan. 21 Mercyhurst Student Gov-
State citation Unfound ernment (MSG) has recently
developed a proposal to reform
the intramural sports program
Disorderly Conduct Burglary for the 2008-2009 school year.
3939 Lewis Mercy 300 Being an avid member of
Jan. 19 Jan. 21 intramural sports since her
College Discipline Pending investigation freshman year, MSG Presi-
dent Marissa Starin said she is
excited to present the proposal
in hopes to get the new pro-
Larceny/Theft Burglary gram started by Fall 2008.
Mercy 100 Mercy 300 The proposal is to be pre-
Jan. 20 Jan. 21 sented to the Athletic Depart-
Closed Pending investigation ment, Intramural Department
and Student Life before spring
break.
Burglary Burglary “I have enjoyed the intramu-
Mercy 200 Mercy 300 ral experience very much, but
noticed the lack of enthusiasm
Jan. 21 Jan. 21
from other students,” Starin
Pending investigation Pending investigation said.
In hearing student complaints
and suggestions, Starin said
Burglary Burglary she decided to pull together a
Mercy 200 Mercy 300 proposal concerning student
Jan. 21 Jan. 21 frustrations and generated rec-
Pending investigation Pending investigation ommendations for ways MSG
could go about fixing these
problems.
Starin and four MSG repre-
sentatives pulled together to
form an Intramural Ad-hoc
Are you good with committee to do research and
create the proposal.
money? The proposal suggests many
ideas to improve the intra-
mural program in numerous
Interested in marketing ways, including how to have
and advertising? knowledgeable referees, pre-
vent forfeiting, provide a vis-
ible scoreboard, better public
Apply for the 2008-09 relations events and revamp
the Web site.
advertising manager “We researched about 12
position at the Mercid. other schools that we are similar
in size to and used that informa-
tion to help us create a direction
To apply or for more information
in which we are looking to go,”
contact Casey Greene at Starin said.
mgeditormerciad@mercyhurst.edu. The most helpful informa-
tion, according to Starin, was the
The flag football intramural championship was won by
junior Jamie Walczak’s (bottom center) team for the third
consecutive year.
feedback received from the MSG
Fall 2007 survey in which the
majority of the questions were
geared toward intramurals.
“Some new ideas we are
sug gesting is a free agency
program/discussion board in
which students that want to
play can submit a letter or post
their name up so that they
can be recruited to join other
teams or placed on one,” said
Starin. “No one is left out.”
Starin said that it also sug-
gests utilizing the website more
for submission of rosters,
schedules for the season, etc.,
offering an easy way for stu-
dents to submit and receive
information.
“From the survey we were
also able to create a schedule
of what term leagues could
be played,” said Starin. “We
were able to see which leagues
students liked most and saw
some new ideas surface such as
badminton and cornhole.”
The committee said it hopes
in the future the Intramural
Program can have specific
gym time set aside only for its
leagues.
They said that this would help
Jan. 30, 2008
Contributed photo
to create a set schedule for the
season, rather than receiving
calls on a week-to-week basis.
A large component of the
proposal is increased organiza-
tion and involvement of cap-
tains in the league.
“We would love to see the
captains hold more responsibil-
ity by having to attend a cap-
tains’ meeting prior to the start
of the league to learn the rules
and receive their schedule,” said
Starin.
Starin said that captains would
be responsible for properly
returning equipment that is
property of the Intramural
Department.
She said that missing and
broken equipment has been
a problem for the Intramural
Department.
The 15-page proposal is meant
to help the intramural program
obtain greater participation
percentages by giving the stu-
dent precisely for what they are
looking.
“I couldn’t be more proud of
the document that this commit-
tee has created and look for-
ward to presenting this to the
administration,” said Starin.
Jan. 30, 2008
Langer to the rescue Study abroad
By Amy Zielinski
News editor made affordable
Mercyhurst College alum-
nus John Langer will not leave
anyone stranded, ever.
He has helped more than
125,000 people survive the bitter
cold since his creation of H.
Jack’s Plumbing and Heating
in 2000.
Langer, a 1995 graduate,
earned a degree in marketing
and is now the owner and pres-
ident of the Cleveland-based
business that first started in Erie
in 1980.
H. Jack’s company is full
service for commercial and
residential plumbing, heating,
and air-conditioning that serves
clients throughout New York,
Pennsylvania, and Ohio with
emergency needs.
The company began in 1980
and Langer has been involved all
throughout his school years.
“It was close to home and I
could still pursue a career,” said
Langer. “I was typically working
in the business all the time so I
could get involved.”
During his four years at
Mercyhurst, Langer did not only
dedicate his time toward his
education and the family busi-
ness, but also to the football
team.
Langer played as a defensive
lineman, was captain for two
years, and named most valuable
player for two years.
He also worked very closely
with the administration doing
fundraisers for the football pro-
gram.
While on the football team,
Langer met Mercyhurst graduate
and now H. Jack’s Company’s
vice president, Patrick Koteck.
It was years later that Langer and
Koteck started the Cleveland
operation together.
“After graduating, my ambition
was to duplicate what the family
John Langer is a 1995 graduate of Mercyhurst College and
currently runs H. Jack’s Plumbing and Heating.
had done in Erie,” he said.
H. Jack’s company has been
featured on the covers of three
national trade publications,
various business journals, and
received regional and national
attention.
“We have never been closed
one hour of one day,” said
Langer. “Whether it’s an emer-
gency situation or a senior citizen
in Buffalo, N.Y. we are there
within 60 minutes.”
Langer said his toughest chal-
lenge is never becoming fully
satisfied.
He said he is always looking
for the next biggest opportunity
to come along.
“It’s easy to get to the top of
the mountain, but it’s harder to
stay there,” said Langer. “You
always need to stay aggres-
sive.”
NEWS
Contributed photo
On Jan. 21, Langer appeared
on ABC’s World News Tonight
with Charles Gibson.
Langer said it was a great
honor because there are thou-
sands of heating companies and
for ABC to select them was an
honor.
“We’ve always had good cred-
ibility, but getting national news
lifted our credibility within the
business world in general,” said
Langer.
Langer said he really enjoys
being apart of the industry
and believes there is a coaching
aspect to his company.
“It’s important for me to be
able to motivate these guys and
have them push further than
they typically would,” he said.
“Once we do that, it gives them
a certain level of achievement
and that’s essential.”
By Amy Zielinski
New writer
Mercyhurst College students
who are studying abroad will
not have to dig deep into their
pockets.
Summer study abroad grants
are available to students who
are studying abroad in the sum-
mer.
Students must be enrolled in
a study abroad program when
applying for the grant.
The maximum amount of
an individual grant is $2,000
depending on the nature of
the project and student needs,
according to Mercyhurst
Assistant Professor of Po-
litical Science Dr. Michele
Crumley.
Nearly a dozen students
received the grant last year.
Senior Sandy Newell was
one of the students to receive a
summer study abroad grant.
She did her study abroad
program in England and in
Ireland.
“The grant made it easier to
cover the high costs of the trip,”
said Newell.
To apply, students must fill
out an application at the In-
ternational Student Center or
at Crumley’s office in Preston
115.
After the application is com-
pleted, students must turn in a
proposal expressing financial
need and a description of the
program they are attending.
A statement of goals, resume,
transcript and two letters of rec-
ommendation – one being from
a Mercyhurst faculty member
- are also needed when applying
for the grant.
Proposals must be dropped
off to Mary Jeanne Weiser in
Preston 216 by Feb. 20.
PAGE 9
Requirements for grants:
- Must be enrolled in a study
abroad program at the time
of application
-Complete application
at the International
Student Center or
Preston 115
- Submit proposal of finacial
need
- Include statement of goals,
resume, transcript and two
letters of reconmmenda-
tion
- Must be handed in to Mary
Jeanne Weiser in Preston
Deadline: Feb. 20
The International Education
Committee (IEC) will review
the applications and notify the
students by early April.
“Applications are based
on merit and it is extremely
competitive,” said Crumley.
The IEC consists of four
faculty members, Mercyhurst
Director of Inter national
A d m i s s i o n s E r i c E v a n s,
Director of Inter national
Education Admissions Hei-
di Hosey, and two student
representatives of the Mer-
cyhurst Student Government
(MSG).
Crumley said MSG has done
a tremendous job helping the
committee market the summer
study abroad grant.
Although part of the IEC,
MSG representatives will not
be able to see any applicant’s
confidential information.
“I think any experience abroad
is personally and professionally
rewarding,” said Crumley.
“It will help students look at
their culture differently.”
PAGE 10
’Hurst students sponsor ski meet
By Liz Maier
Staff writer
Mercyhurst College student
volunteers are sponsoring and
coordinating a Special Olympics
ski meet for students in the spe-
cial education programs of Erie
City Schools.
The event will be held on
Thursday, Feb. 7 at Peek’n Peak
Resort from 9 a.m to 12 p.m.
Co-coordinator senior Kristin
Franks said the winter Olympi-
ans will show off their talents
while participating in different
skiing events.
Some include cross coun-
try Nordic, Nordic snowshoe,
downhill or alpine and the Olym-
pic village.
“The Olympic Village is a
place inside the resort where
Mercyhurst student volunteers
organize and help student ath-
letes participate in making winter
crafts,” said Franks.
Franks said volunteers from
Mercyhurst help keep times,
cheer on the student athletes, act
as buddies, help in the Olympic
Village, give awards and, most
importantly, make the student
athletes’ experience one-of-a-
kind.
Franks has been volunteering
for the Special Olympics since
high school. She decided to run
for the position as coordinator
of the Special Olympics for
Mercyhurst’s Council of Excep-
tional Children.
Helping coordinate the Special
Olympics, sophomore Danielle
Ohman said she loves volun-
teering at the events because the
children get so excited.
“It is a great way to give back
to the children of Erie and the
smiles on their faces are price-
less,” said Ohman.
Dr. Richard O’Dell, assistant
professor of education and
advisor of Council for Excep-
tional Children (CEC), said the
Mercyhurst College special education students are sponsoring the Special Olympics ski meet on Thursday, Feb. 7 at the
Peak’n Peak Resort.
majority of the organization
for the event is done by CEC
members.
“They get volunteers recruit-
ed, organize rides, assure all
positions are covered and com-
municate with Special Olympics
organizers from the Erie School
District,” O’Dell said.
O’Dell also said Mercyhurst
organizes volunteers for the
event.
“Typically, Mercyhurst pro-
vides up to 80 student volun-
teers,” O’Dell said. “There would
be no Erie Special Olympics
without Mercyhurst students
because we provide 100 percent
of the volunteers.”
Sophomore Lauren Roberts
attended last year’s ski meet.
“It was an excellent experi-
ence for both me and them,”
said Roberts. “They enjoyed
themselves as much as I did and
it really helped prepare me for
working with students of all dis-
abilities and ages.”
Sophomore Katie Riolo also
attended last year’s Special Olym-
pics.
She is volunteering again this
year because she enjoyed it so
much.
NEWS
“It was really fun and what I
liked best about the whole ex-
perience was that the kids really
appreciated us,” Riolo said.
Sophomore Nadine Beres
agreed.
“It was an awesome feeling to
see how happy the Special Olym-
pics event made them and it was
nice to think that I was a part of
that happiness,” Beres said.
Transportation to Peek’n Peak
is via car pool provided by stu-
dent volunteers.
At sign up, students are asked
to state whether or not they can
provide their own transporta-
tion.
“With that information, we
find everyone a ride and then
set up a car pool outside of Hirt
the morning of the meet,” said
Franks. “We hand out directions
and drive to the Peek together.”
Even though education stu-
dents make up the majority of
volunteers, the event is open to
any Mercyhurst students willing
to volunteer.
“I would love to have non-
education majors volunteer to
help,” said Franks. “The student
athletes absolutely love to meet
college students and be their
buddy for a day.”
O’Dell said student volunteers
will be able to apply for service
hours and education majors may
receive credit in their special
education classes.
He also said he will send letters
to student volunteers’ professors
excusing them from class the day
of the meet.
Interested, but don’t know
how to ski or snowboard?
“No one needs to know how
to ski or snowboard in order to
volunteer,” said Franks. “Volun-
teers will just need to dress warm
Can’t find any more copies of
the Merciad?
Interested in the latest news hap-
pening on campus?
Go to merciad.mercyhurst.edu for
up-to-date news.
Jan. 30, 2008
pknpk.com
because they will more than likely
be outside.”
The entrance fee, a breakfast
snack and lunch will be provided,
Franks said.
“Student volunteers are for-
bidden to ski or snowboard
during the events. However after
the activities are over; they are
welcome to ski or snowboard,
as well as receive a discounted
pass,” said Franks.
If you would like to volunteer
for the Special Olympics, con-
tact Kristin Franks at kfranks@
adelphia.net.
Jan. 30, 2008 FEATURES PAGE 11

If the truth be told

Students find that academic honesty requires originality
By Carla Hart
Staff writer
Staying at the top of the class
is a worthwhile effort.
However ethical reasoning
often falls to the wayside, and
college students sometimes
resort to cheating while trying
to make the grade.
According to published
reports in The New York
Times, “two-thirds of the
62,000 undergraduates sur-
veyed admitted cheating,”
based on a study conducted by
Rutgers University professor
Don McCabe.
McCabe is the founder of
the Center for Academic Integ-
rity.
The results of a non-scientific
survey conducted by a Merciad
staff member show that out
of 40 Mercyhurst students, 22
admitted to cheating on exams
and papers, and 11 students
said they would do it again.
According to the Office of
Academic Affairs, “students
found guilty of willful academic
Williams agrees with Lebec’s
teaching methodology.
“He makes you do video
projects instead of tests, quiz-
zes and papers,” Williams said.
“This way you have to creatively
show that you know how to edit
properly.”
Mercyhurst College President
Thomas J. Gamble said the
college is trying to improve its
performance on all fronts.
“We not only have an obliga-
tion to discover and punish
cheating, we have a responsibil-
ity to teach students what counts
as cheating,” said Gamble.
While majoring in education,
Mercyhurst students Stepha-
nie Carideo, Cindy Dixon and
Danielle Wilkinson discuss
academic honesty in many of
their classes.
“If you’re stealing someone
else’s work, it’s not proving
your intelligence,” said senior
Carideo. “It’s simply proving
the ability to steal someone
else’s.”
Freshmen Dixon and Wilkin-
son agreed.
Dixon said more cheating Scoot Williams photo

dishonesty may be subject to a
broad range of sanctions.”
Students at Mercyhurst are
encouraged to maintain aca-
demic integrity.
Punishment for academic
dishonesty is at the professor’s
discretion.
Dennis Lebec, an instructor
of communications, said he
is disappointed when students
cheat and he tries to give assign-
ments that lend to self-expres-
sion.
“I try to construct assign-
ments that will lead a person to
have their own expression and
input into it,” Lebec said.
Senior archeology major Gary
seemed to occur in high-
school.
“It was unheard of to cheat
in middle school, since students
were not allowed to use Inter-
net sources at all,” she said.
Wilkinson also pointed to the
lack of open-mindedness dem-
onstrated by some teachers.
“There can be one-sidedness,
and students feel like they have
to do what the teacher wants,
without having their own views
and opinions,” she said.
Director of the Center for
Instr uctional Technolog y,
Barbara Pittman, hopes to
strengthen communication
between educators and stu-
Mercyhurst student demonstrates a common method of cheating.
dents.
She recommended a tech-
nology for Mercyhurst called,
“Turnitin,” which is a web-
based company that compares
student’s written work to other
published works on the Inter-
net.
The pilot program r uns
through the spring term and
will assist educators in provid-
ing additional instruction for
students on the proper way to
cite information.
“It’s pretty useful in the sense
that if you were a student and
got an originality report, it
would make you stop and look
at how you’re citing sources,”
said Pittman.
In addition, after submitting
papers, students receive con-
structive criticism with peer
reviews.
Students will have the option
whether or not to participate.
“Initially students at many
campuses tend to be afraid,”
said Pittman. “But I think
we should be able to reassure
students that this is a teaching
tool, not entrapment.”
Dr. Anne Zaphiris, one of the
faculty members involved in
the pilot, referred to “Turnitin”
as a learning tool.
“With so much access to
information through tech-
nology sometimes, perhaps,
the understanding of how to
cite sources might become
blurred,” said Zaphiris.
Making the grade requires
hard work. Originality doesn’t
come cheap.
With belief in oneself and
honesty, life’s lessons may be
easier to learn.
PAGE 12
Graduate school 101
By Shannon Kelley
Staff writer
As seniors just finished regis-
tering for their last trimesters at
Mercyhurst, many are looking
toward the job markets.
However some will choose
to sit in the classroom a little
longer, by continuing on to
graduate school.
Upon graduating with a Bach-
elor’s degree, one could go into
a two-year graduate program,
where upon graduation he or
she would receive a Master’s de-
gree in his or her profession.
Many students opt to con-
tinue their learning process
rather than head right into the
work force.
According to a study in the
New York Times, while job
recruiters are helping fewer
graduates find work, admis-
sions officers at many of the
nation’s graduate programs
say they are overloaded with
applications.
The article said officers at
Emory University business
school reported their applica-
tions were up 80 percent.
For Mercyhurst students the
choice to continue on or enter
the workforce is an individual
decision.
“I don’t want to continue on
with school now,” said senior
Cassi Meier. “As an educator,
sometimes it is harder to find
work because school districts
don’t want to pay more for
someone with more degrees
compared to a recent college
grad.”
With more and more students
choosing this path after their
Bachelor’s degree, it leaves
many wondering as to what the
application process entails.
A great website to get more
information about the graduate
school process is www.Grad-
Schools.com.
Career services on the second floor of Old Main offers
graduate school information to students interested.
On this site viewers can navi-
gate through the different
types of programs offered at
different schools and can ask
questions about the application
process or programs.
Regardless of what exact field
or program one wants to enter,
nearly all grad-school applica-
tion processes involve the same
four criteria: A transcript, GRE
or other specialized test scores,
letters of recommendation and
a personal essay.
Depending on one’s specific
program or school, application
deadlines are different.
Nonetheless, earlier is always
better.
It is not something to mull
over the week before you grad-
uate.
All testing and another ap-
plications should be all sent
away after the start of your
senior year.
With applications on the rise,
and more and more students
choosing to enroll in gradu-
ate programs, the competition
also rises.
Much like the SAT or ACT,
the standardized tests for grad-
uate school should be taken
early and only when one has
FEATURES
Scoot Williams photo
thoroughly studied and feels
ready.
Many of the tests have a
required fee between $200 and
$400.
To brave the unknown world
and job market, or to continue
on and perfect your skills, is the
question for many graduating
seniors.
No answer seems wrong for
this one. Both jobs and gradu-
ate schools will always be there
between which students can
choose.
The Merciad is looking for
editors for the
2008-09 school year!
If you’re interested, contact
mgeditormerciad@
mercyhurst.edu
Tips on how to be
a good neighbor
By Stacey Minchin
Staff writer
While some neighbors resort
to calling the cops every once
in awhile, others simply un-
derstand what it means to be a
college student.
But being that fun-loving,
student-next-door-type is not
always the ideal friendly neigh-
bor people had in mind.
Even living next to someone
your own age, there still seem
to be unwritten rules by which
everyone should abide.
“To be a good neighbor, you
should be courteous when it
comes to noise, have an open
door policy and show a friendly
wave every once in a while,”
senior Stephanie Alward said.
Most students would agree
that it is courteous to say “hi”
to those who live in your build-
ing when crossing paths.
“I actually really like the
people who live in my build-
ing,” junior Katlin Hess said.
“They all make a point to say hi
anytime I see them on campus
and have also saved me many
Jan. 30, 2008
times when I’ve been locked
out of the building.”
Besides keeping noise to an
appropriate volume, many stu-
dents would like neighbors to
keep their doors open more of-
ten, as a way to mingle without
having to constantly knock.
“I would prefer if everyone
would keep their door open
because it gives me the op-
portunity to meet them,” said
sophomore Celeste Shefferly.
“I also enjoy people who actu-
ally sleep at night.”
The rules to living off-cam-
pus are not so different from
the expectations of those living
on-campus.
Students are still held to
certain standards, including
respecting those around you.
“I am sure my neighbors ex-
pect us to keep a clean house
because no one wants to look
out their window and see a pig
sty,” said senior Kevin Trant.
“We take care of our property
and try to keep the partying to
a minimum.”
So be a good neighbor and
there shouldn’t be any problems
with the people next door.
NEED MATH
HELP??
Come to the
Math Lab
Located in the
Library 304 A & B
Sunday-Thursday
For Exact
Hours Call
Ext: 2078
Jan. 30, 2008 FEATURES PAGE 13

THE LAKER
Winter Term
Racism and
Galley Grill
Lunch: Dinner:
the runway?
M - Ham and Cheese on S - Laker Burger Fashion designers using fewer and
Croissant M - Steak Salad
T - Soft Tacos T - Open Face Turkey Sandwich
fewer African American models
W - Potato Bowl W - Slice Of Pizza, 5 Wings hired the most African Ameri-
Th - Turkey Reuben Th - Swedish Meatballs w/ Noodles By Sandy Watro
can models.
F - Chicken and Biscuits Staff writer
F - Sizzle Salad Diane Von Furstenberg,
S - Southwest Burger S - Cup of Chili w/ Cheese, Side of who serves as President to the
Nacho Chips The fashion industry has Council of Fashion Designers
Board Specials pulled it off yet again: Another of America, hired the most
Hours of Operation: moral disaster, which cata- ethnically mixed models of all
Lunch $4.75
pulted it into a deeper ethical the designers.
Dinner $5.50 Monday-Friday 8:00 a.m.-1:00 a.m. grave than has already been dug Von Furstenberg hired a fair
Saturday 1:00 p.m.-1:00 a.m. for itself. number of African American
Sunday 5:00 p.m.-1:00 a.m. Earlier this year at Fashion models, which in total added up
Week in New York City it was to a lofty seven in total.
Look for New Menu Items! raised to the public that more The typical amount of models
Mac & Cheese Bites Black Bean Burger than one-third of shows held hired and contracted to per-
New Salads: in New York and Europe had form in a show usually averages
Chicken BLT-Veggie(no cheese)-Spinach-Asian Chicken- no African American models around 20 or more, depending
Greek-Caesar at all. on the show and collection.
Many believe this is appalling The only other two designers
Subconnection to be seen in an industry whose
primary goal is to encourage
that outshown Von Fursten-
berg in diversity were Baby Phat
6” Sub $3.75 Combo $4.75 Special Features and embrace diversity. and Heatherette.
This year was paramount Senior Andrea Bodnar was
12”Sub $5.75 Combo $6.75 Wrap combo-Veggie $5.59 in the absence of African surprised when informed about
other wraps $5.79 American models, which was this issue.
‘Wrap It Yourself’- Veggie $3.99 unusual in comparison with “Fashion is usually an area
Baja and Buffalo Chicken Subs:
other years. where things like this either
6” Sub $4.00 Combo $5.25 other wraps $ 4.19 Designers like Prada, Chanel, don’t occur or happen infre-
12” Sub $6.00 Combo $ 7.00 Hours of Operation: Jil Sander, Chloe and Balen- quently, but these numbers are
Monday-Friday 11:30 a.m.-9:00 p.m. ciaga had absolutely no black extremely low,” she said.
models. This ignorance proves to be
Saturday 1:00 p.m.-9:00 p.m. Apparently, the devil most another step into darkness,
Sunday 5:00 p.m.-9:00 p.m. definitely wears Prada. or perhaps one should say
The fashion industry is sup- lack thereof, for the fashion
posed to act as a catalyst for industry.
Laker Express change, not a deterrent.
Most fashion followers are
Just as it showed hope by
acknowledging the fact that
Board Equivalency Available: Look for Laker Express aware of the banning of overly issues such as the environ-
skinny models from runway ment probably matter, the
11:30 a.m.-8:00 p.m. Minute Meals! shows in Europe. industry proceeds to recess
This leads one to think that into this medieval and morally
Board Specials Hours of Operation: our fashion “leaders” across debauched controversy.
Lunch $4.75 Mon.-Thurs. 11:30 a.m.-8:00 p.m. the sea actually have some sort Fashion is supposed to
of grasp on reality. Appar- embrace, support and response
Dinner $5.50 Friday 11:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. ently not. to diversity.
Saturday & Sunday Closed In fact this year at fash- After all, is that not what the
ion week in New York and entire industry is supposedly
Europe, American designers built upon?
PAGE 14 FEATURES Jan. 30, 2008

I Food Fix
ERI The Super Bowl is coming
up this weekend so I turned to
my friend and football fan Jeff
Cagle for inspiration for this
week’s article.
Contributed photo
I asked him what his favorite
The lounge area of the Zodiac Dinor is colorful and fun.
football-watching snack is and
he gave me the recipe for this
With Meg
is the fact that it is so easy to
make and throws a little twist
on typical nachos.
It is a great snack and can be
made very quickly to please a
crowd.
If you are health conscious, I
would recommend that you use

Go back in time at Zodiac simple chili dip.

Owner Mike Incandella has
By Shelley Turk
used vintage-inspired kitchen
Staff writer
pieces including bright colored
table tops with grooved alumi-
Breakfast items include three-
egg omelets ranging from $6.25
to $6.75 with home fries or
hash browns and toast.
“This is the most incredible,
delicious dip you will ever eat,”
Cagle said. “Everyone should
try it for Super Bowl Sunday!”
The best part about this dip
fat-free or low-fat cream cheese
and a healthier alternative to
salty tortilla chips, such as pita
chips or even vegetables.
-Meghan Dolney

Chili Dip
This week, I Heart Erie is num edges to send visitors back Start off with a salad for lunch
going back in time, visiting the to a time of cheeseburgers and or go straight for the entrée
retro café Zodiac Dinor. poodle skirts. with hot and cold sandwiches
Opening up a year-and-a-half Mercyhurst senior Stacey Zig- and daily specials, including a
ago, the diner has been serving man said she enjoys the diner buffalo chicken sandwich with
dishes in a blast-from-the-past and their weekend hours. French fries. Ingredients
atmosphere. “Zodiac is open a lot over the Zodiac Dinor also serves up
Inspired by a 1950s color weekends so it’s a great place great homemade desserts like
palette, the restaurant, located to for lunch or after the bar,” peanut butter pie and cheese- 2 blocks of cream cheese
at 2516 State Street, is a quick she said. cake. 2 cans chili (with or without beans)
trip from campus and easy on Senior Jimmy Mason agreed The restaurant is open Mon-
the budget. with the late night hours. day through Thursday from 7 1 bag of shredded taco cheese
One cook and one server “The atmosphere is amazing, a.m. to 4:30 p.m. 1 bag tortilla chips
staff the restaurant during open the staff is friendly and it’s a On Fridays the diner is open
hours and the conversation of great place to hang out with 24 hours a day, beginning at 7
morning and mid-day regulars friends for some laughs and late a.m. Friday until close on Sun-
makes you feel right at home. night fun,” said Mason. day at 3 p.m.
Directions
Get to know... 1. Soften the blocks of cream cheese,
Name: Katie Zinn then spread them on the bottom of a
Year: Senior glass dish.
Major: Social Work 2. Spread the chili over the cream
Hometown: Cleveland, Ohio
Favorite thing about Mercyhurst: Small campus at- cheese.
mosphere, my wonderful roommates and the new Friday 3. Spread the cheese over the chili
specials at the Stone
Least favorite thing: The past four years have gone way
and heat in the oven until the cheese is
too fast melted.
Campus activities: Social Work Club, Senior Class Gift 4. Eat with chips, scooping out of the
Committee, Christmas on Campus
Anything else interesting about you: Currently intern- dish.
Katie Zinn
ing at Shriners Children’s Hospital
Jan. 30, 2008 FEATURES PAGE 15

What to watch guide

Decent shows still remain despite 12 weeks of writers’ strike
For those females out there with a motherly instinct deep down
in their hearts, you will fall in love with Kate and Jon Gosselin and
their eight children. With two sets of multiples – 7-year-old twins
and 3-year-old sextuplets – Kate and Jon surely have their hands full.
With the constant drama and craziness that seems to run their lives,
the family still remembers to love each other and have fun along the
way. Jon and Kate Plus 8 airs Monday nights on TLC.
askville.amazon.com
Jon and Kate plus 8

Nip/Tuck follows the lives of two plastic surgeons, Sean McNamara

and Christian Troy, as they delve into the lives of very interesting
patients. The contrasting personalities of the characters balance each
other out to form a humorous bond. Often controversial due to the
nature of the show – blood, gore, nudity, corruption – Nip/Tuck
possesses a cult-like following among female and male viewers alike.
It airs Tuesday evenings on FX.
mediablvd.com
Nip/Tuck

Christina Applegate stars as Samantha, a real estate company

president who suffers from amnesia after a hit-and-run car accident.
Throughout each episode, Samantha struggles to rediscover her life,
friends, family and love life in an always-comedic way. Recently
nominated for a Screen Actors Guild award for Best Actress in a
comedy television show, Applegate brings humor and feeling to a
character who otherwise remembers nothing. Samantha Who? airs
Samantha Who?
seriemaniacos.com
Monday evenings on ABC.

Calling all design gurus! The creative flair flies high on Project
Runway, which features a cast of up-and-coming designers who face
weekly challenges to create the best outfit. Ranging from the most
traditional to the most obscure, each challenge tests the designers’
originality and time management skills, as there is a deadline of less
than 24 hours. With personalities constantly clashing and imagina-
tions reaching high levels, contestants continue to impress viewers.
New episodes air Wednesday evenings on Bravo.
huffingtonpost.com
Project Runway
PAGE 16 FEATURES Jan. 30, 2008

SAG Award results

By Jen Gildea
Features editor
The Screen Actors Guild
Awards were held on Sunday,
Jan. 27, honoring achievement
in both movie and television
excellence.
Winners include:
Outstanding performance
by a cast in a motion picture
– “No Country for Old Men”
Outstanding performance
by a male actor in a lead-
ing role – Daniel Day-Lewis,
pulpfiction.com
“There Will Be Blood”
Candy Land ranks among the top of college students’ favorite board games. Outstanding performance
by a female actor in a lead-
ing role – Julie Christie, “Away
Outstanding performance
by a male actor in a drama
series – James Gandolfini,
“The Sopranos”
Outstanding performance
by a female actor in a drama
series – Edie Falco, “The
Sopranos”
Outstanding performance
by a male actor in a comedy
series – Alec Baldwin, “30
Rock”
Outstanding performance
by a female actor in a comedy
series – Tina Fey, “30 Rock”
Outstanding performance
by an ensemble in a drama
series – “The Sopranos”
Outstanding performance
by an ensemble in a comedy

Gaming fun for students

From Her” series – “The Office”

Guitar Hero, developed seems to be everywhere we

By Carly Lyons
Staff writer
We’ve all heard of classic
board games such as Monop-
oly, Scrabble and Connect Four,
but it seems that in more recent
years those classics have faded
away for a new generation of
games, involving not only tech-
nology, but also new twists on
old favorites.
In college it seems that stu-
dents never have enough time
for homework, but always
enough time for a board or
video game every once in a
while.
So what are the games that
students like to play?
One of the games at the
top of the list for Mercyhurst
College students, as well as
thousands of other college
students across the country, is
Guitar Hero.
“My favorite is Guitar Hero,”
said freshman Kathyrn Gard-
ner. “It’s fun if you’re just
starting or if you’re really good.
Most of the songs are ones that
people know.”
in 2005 by RedOctoane and
Activision, is a game in which
the player’s goal is to success-
fully press the correct notes
on the guitar game controller
in order to correctly perform
a song.
The songs range from the
1960s to the present.
One can play solo, or can
compete ag ainst another
player.
Since 2005, Guitar Hero has
evolved into Guitar Hero II, III
and Guitar Hero Encore.
“It’s fun to play with friends
because you get really involved
in it,” said freshman Char
Lichtinger.
Despite Guitar Hero’s incred-
ible following, it is not the only
video game that is popular
among college students.
“I enjoy playing NHL 2007
on PlayStation because hockey
is my favorite sport,” said fresh-
man Jesse Scanzano.
Some other favorites include
Grand Theft Auto on PlaySta-
tion2, Mario Party and NHL
2008.
Even though technology
look, traditional board games
are still popular with college
students.
Freshman Cali Bala said that
her favorite board game is an
old classic.
“Candy Land is the best for
sure because you’re never too
old to play,” she said.
Freshman Libby McNamara
agreed.
“I have never played video
games before but my favorite
board game would have to be
Candy Land,” she said. “I was
in love with Queen Frosting
when I was young.”
Other favorite games included
Apples to Apples, Paintball and
Cranium.
Freshman Megan Duane
prefers board games that make
you think.
“My favorite is Cranium
because it can get a ton of
people to bond,” she said. “I
play with friends or family and
it seems like when you play you
never stop laughing.”
Additional favorites are
Monopoly, Scrabble, Piction-
ary and Yahtzee.
Jan. 30, 2008 ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT PAGE 17

tHe ‘Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close’ in review

BuZz
of the novel, including one visit part of cute filler in the book,
By Kyle King
in which he asks a woman in her as do Oskar’s pictures from his
Contributing writer
forties if they could kiss for a Things I’ve Done notebook
little bit and another in which he (which includes pictures of
Jonathan Safran Foer won and another boarder in his apart- thespian Sir Laurence Olivier,
JAN. 31. Sick of It All.
numerous awards for his first ment complex make a foray into a paper airplane, and Australian
Diesel Club Lounge,
novel, “Everything is Illumi- the Empire State Building. tennis player Lleyton Hewitt,
Pittsburgh.
nated” (2002), which was also The material concerning Sept. among others).
turned into a movie directed 11 is viewed as though through Without giving the plot away,
FEB. 2. Martina Mc-
by Liev Schreiber and starring a lens. the story finally reaches the
Bride, Jack Ingram, Lady
Elijah Wood. Without actually stating the climax and resolution when the
Antebellum. Wolstein
Now, Foer returns with an obvious, Oskar’s 9-year-old journey with the key leads to an
Center, Cleveland.
extremely poignant look at a mind is constantly inventing unexpected discovery.
young boy whose father died in seemingly random inventions The mixed media offerings
FEB. 22. Comedy. Larry
the World Trade Center attacks such as a birdseed suit that do not take anything away from
the Cable Guy. Tullio
of Sept. 11, 2001, in his novel would help an individual fly, the the story. Contributed photo
Arena, Erie.
“Extremely Loud and Incred- ulterior motive being the pre- If nothing else, they inject the ‘Extremely Loud and Incred-
ibly Close.” vention of another airborne act novel with a beautiful range of ibly Close’ is available on
FEB. 22. Erie Broad- Amazon.com.
Dealing with the subject of of terrorism. emotions and help us get closer
way Series. “Dirty Rotten
Sept. 11 is tricky for an author These sad moments make the to Oskar.
Scoundrels.”
to navigate. reader realize Oskar’s age, for all However, upon reflection, However, these shortcomings
Foer’s approach is almost tan- his precociousness. more of the pages come off as can at least be partly accounted
FEB. 23. Buckwheat
gential because so much of the This same boy who writes let- filler. for by considering Oskar’s one-
Zydeco. Reg Lenna Civic
narration is done by a 9-year-old ters to Stephen Hawking and For as much as we learn about track mind. Their stories may
Center, Jamestown. N.Y.
child, Oskar Schell, who under- ‘stars’ as Yorick in his class pro- Oskar and Thomas Schell, Sr., simply be less integral from his
stands what transpired incom- duction of “Hamlet” struggles Oskar’s parents seem like veri- perspective.
FEB. 26. Angels and Air-
pletely. to comprehend basic social situ- table wellsprings of material left “Extremely Loud & Incred-
waves. House of Blues,
He is an extremely quirky but ations. Readers find themselves relatively untouched. ibly Close” does a superb job in
Cleveland.
likeable character, as are most in wanting to meet Oskar in real Oskar’s father, Thomas creating poignant, bittersweet
the novel, describing himself on life to give him a hug. Schell Jr., is given some of moments.
MARCH 1. George Strait,
his ‘business card’ as an “inven- As the plot moves on, there Foer’s characteristic attention Though there is no explana-
Little Big Town. Quicken
tor, jewelry designer, jewelry are other explicative stories to detail;Thomas reads the New tion for some of the scrambled
Loans Arena, Cleveland.
fabricator, amateur entomolo- going on in the Schell family, York Times with a red pen to narrative tactics, the depths of
On sale date TBA.
gist, Francophile, vegan, origa- most descriptively in the case of circle errors, works at a jewelry Oskar and his grandparents’
mist, pacifist, percussionist, Oskar’s grandparents. store, and is an avowed athe- characters make up for it.
MARCH 1. The Chief-
amateur astronomer, computer His grandmother lives across ist, which makes closure even One only wishes, upon finish-
tains. Palace Theatre,
consultant, amateur astronomer, the street from him and always harder after his death. ing, that Safran Foer had added
Cleveland.
computer consultant, amateur seems to be there, in contrast to Oskar’s mother is relegated another fifty pages of explica-
archaeologist, and collector of: his mute German émigré grand- to the backburner until Oskar tion to dig a little deeper and
MARCH 5. Bon Jovi,
rare coins, butterflies that died father, whose letters to his son makes some discoveries late pull at our heartstrings more.
Daughtry. Mellon Arena,
natural deaths, miniature cacti, precede his appearance in the in the novel, and her ‘friend’ “Extremely Loud & Incred-
Pittsburgh.
Beatles memorabilia, semipre- present tense. Ron, whose grieving story had ibly Close,” published by Mari-
cious stones and other things” Thomas Schell, Sr’s notebook a lot of potential, is left largely ner Books in 2006, is available
MARCH 8. Disney’s
(99). scribblings constitute a large untold. for $11.16 at Amazon.com.
“High School Musical:
The plot gets moving when
The Ice Tour.” Mellon
Oskar finds a key inside an
Arena, Pittsburgh.
envelope labeled “Black” inside
his father’s closest. Interested in becoming an editor for
MARCH 18. Erie Broad-
He decides his raison d’être,
way Series. Michael
as he himself puts it, is to dis- the Merciad for 2008-09?
Flatley’s “Lord of the
cover the lock to which said
Dance.”
key belongs, doing computer
research and deciding to visit
E-mail editormerciad@mercyhurst.edu
M A RC H 2 5 . Ro b i n for more information
every person with the last name
Trower. Tralf, Buffalo.
Black in New York City.
These visits constitute some
Courtesy of Goerie.com
of the most touching moments
PAGE 18
PAC announces spring film season
By Mason Lorek
Staff writer
The Mercyhurst College Mary
D’Angelo Perfor ming Arts
Center is showing some awe-
some movies in 2008. I’m being
super serial. For real.
OK, I’m done.
But seriously, this is arguably
the best film series we’ve brought
to the college to date.
The list boasts eight Golden
Globes, two Grammy nomina-
tions and top prize winners
at film festivals in Edinburgh,
Venice, Palm Springs, Rome,
Cannes, London, Chicago and
Los Angeles, to say nothing of
the Oscar buzz surrounding
most of them.
This series cut back on the
number of foreign films shown,
in favor of movies that you’ve
likely seen and heard more
about.
Here’s a quick overview of the
fantastic films scheduled for the
remainder of the school year.
1/30: “The 11th Hour:” A
look at the state of the global
environment including vision-
ary and practical solutions for
restoring the planet’s ecosystems.
Produced and narrated by Leon-
ardo DiCaprio.
2/6: “Once:” The story of an
Irish street musician and a Czech
immigrant during an eventful
week, in which they write and
record songs that reveal their
unique love story.
2/13: “In the Shadow of the
Moon:” The excitement, maj-
esty and extraordinary accom-
plishment of the American
lunar program featuring stories
from former crew members on
NASA’s Apollo missions.
2/20: “Into the Wild:”
Directed by Sean Penn, the true
story of an Emory University
graduate, who abandoned his
possessions and hitchhiked to
Alaska to live in the wilderness.
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT Jan. 30, 2008
2/27: “The Rape of Europa:”
The remarkable story of a mul-
tinational force of art experts
in World War II who saved and
recovered art, including five mil-
lion works stolen by the Nazis.
3/5: “No Country for Old
Men:” Violence and mayhem
ensue after a hunter stumbles
upon some dead bodies, a stash
of heroin and more than $2 mil-
lion in cash near the Rio Grande.
Tommy Lee Jones and Javier
Bardem star.
3/12: “Lake of Fire:” Blend-
ing ethical philosophy, human
drama and disturbing images, this
documentary compels audiences
to re-examine their own feelings
about abortion.
3/19: “The Violin:” This
finely crafted and absorbing
drama follows an aging musician
who fiddles his way into the front
lines of Mexico’s peasant revolts
during the 1970s.
3/26: “Atonement:” When PAC photo
13 year-old Briony Tallis falsely “Atonement” will be shown at the PAC on March 26 at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m.
accuses her sister’s lover of a
crime in 1935, it sets into motion Evening:” A solitary writer’s Islamic Revolution. Famous Romani musicians tour
a trail of events that follows them life is shaken by the arrival of an 6/11: “Killer of Sheep:” Life the U.S. in celebration of gypsy
through World War II. ambitious graduate student who in a black Los Angeles ghetto in music and culture from around
4/2: “Control:” Somber, convinces him that her thesis can 1970s, told through the eyes of the globe.
sad and compelling, this biopic resurrect his career. Stan, a sensitive dreamer who is The films are shown at the
reveals the painfully tormented 5/14: “Lars and the Real Girl:” becoming numb from the toll of PAC on Wednesdays at 2 p.m.
soul of Ian Curtis, the lead singer Ryan Gosling is a sweet-hearted, working at a slaughterhouse. and 8 p.m. Tickets are free for
of the ’80s post-punk band Joy lonely young man who begins an 6/18: “When the Road Bends” Mercyhurst students with a stu-
Division. unconventional and outrageous Tales of a Gypsy Caravan:” dent ID (one per ID).
4/9: “The Diving Bell and the relationship with a doll he finds
Butterfly:” A man finds himself on the Internet.
immobilized after a stroke and 5/21: “This is England:” This
begins to discover how his life’s
passions can help him achieve a
brutal film offers a look at how
a lonely, troubled, fatherless boy
Are you interested in becoming
life without boundaries.
4/16: “Sir! No Sir!:” This film
joins the skinhead movement of the next Arts and Entertainment
the early 1980s.
depicts the 1960s movement by 5/28: “I’m Not There:” section editor?
U.S. military personnel to oppose Reflections on the life of Bob
the Vietnam War with peaceful Dylan as a series of shifting
demonstration and subversion.
4/23: “There Will be Blood:”
personae, each performed by
different actors that embody
Do you enjoy writing and editing?
A story about family, greed, unique aspects of the musician’s
religion and oil, centered around life and work.
a turn-of-the-century Texas
prospector in the early days of
6/4: “Persepolis:” The poi- Please contact Casey Greene at
gnant coming-of-age story of a
the business. precocious and outspoken young
mgeditormerciad@Mercyhurst.edu
5/7: “Starting Out in the Iranian girl that begins during the
 Jan. 30, 2008 ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT PAGE 19

Snap them fingers

and tap them toes
By Greg Summy
Staff writer
A brand new sound is reso-
nating across the shores of Lake
Erie from Cleveland, Ohio.
Five-piece swing/rock band
Shake It is the guilty party.
Shake It originated as a side
project from Cleveland bands
Skies of December and The
Critically Acclaimed and has
since become a well-respected
name within the northeast Ohio
music scene.
The band has also gained a
Contributed photo large fan base across the coun-
Dr. Albert Glinsky (center), with Mercyhurst student composers Kirsten Rispin (left), and try thanks to their unique sound
Lauren Stenroos (right), after last year’s composer concert in May 2007. and captivating personalities.
Fronted by the charismatic
more on the instruments play-
ing rather than Puckett’s voice
while still maintaining the same
powerful vocal presence as the
previous tracks.
“Dreamer,” a piano driven,
melodic and soothing track
highlights Puckett’s ability on
the ivories. The band seam-
lessly blends the rest of the
instruments in with the piano
while still managing to keep the
sound rich and powerful, focus-
ing on the lyrics.
Pisk shows us just how good
he really is on the next track
“Footsteps.” He uses the basic
swing beat, blends it with rock,
a touch of dance, and a light
metal influence to produce a ter-
rific percussion arrangement to

Students premiere new works vocalist Jamison Puckett, Shake

By Stacey Minchin
Staff writer
Ranging from a high school
senior to graduate students,
Mercyhurst College will be hold-
ing its annual composer concert
a little early this year.
Dr. Albert Glinsky, master of
ceremonies, helped music stu-
dents compose pieces for the
concert to be held this Wednes-
day. He will be taking a sabbati-
cal during the spring when the
concert is usually held.
The concert consists of varia-
tions which will be performed
by students and profession-
als. The pieces have been put
together by students who either
major in composition or simply
have a passion for composition.
The musical works showcased
include piano, percussion and
even a string quartet, among
others.
The composers began work-
ing on their pieces, dating back
to the beginning of the school
year. They take private lessons
with Glinsky on a weekly basis
to perfect their piece for the
performance.
“I get to know their musical
styles,” Glinsky said. “I have
seen so much progression since
September and it’s neat to watch
the students develop. There are
a lot of possibilities with music,
so I encourage them to be cre-
ative.”
Junior dance major Lauren
Stenroos is a music minor. She
has composed a duet for two
pianos.
She received her inspiration
for a piece from composer
David Borden, as well as con-
temporary piano styles.
Stenroos is a unique student
in the music department due to
her extensive dance background.
Not only does she have the abil-
ity to compose her own music,
but she has also taken her com-
positions and choreographed
dance routines to them.
“In the past, I have incor-
porated composing with dance
by choreographing to my own
music,”said Stenroos.
“Usually, I am inspired to write
a piece of music after hearing
someone else’s music that I like,
or after seeing a dance piece that
has music and movements that
capture me,” she said.
Even though Stenroos hopes
to have a future in dance, she
would still like to develop as a
composer of her own original
works.
“Dance and music are so
intertwined these days that the
sky’s the limit, anything is pos-
sible,” said Stenroos.
“My goal is to utilize both my
dancing and composing after I
graduate.”
If you would like to see the
premiere of Stenroos’s compo-
sition or the musical pieces of
other students, the concert will
be held on Jan. 30th at 8 p.m. in
the Walker Recital Hall. It is free
and open to the public.
It recently released their debut
EP “Intermission.” The band
also includes Chris Manocchio
on bass, Ricky Zaborowski on
guitar, Steve Pisk on drums and
Will Armstrong on lead guitar.
The opening track, “It’s
About Time, That We Stepped
Outta Line,” is a full-throttle
rock song with explosive doses
of swing and dance.
Puckett commands the lis-
tener to “snap them fingers and
tap them toes,” as if they were
not already captivated by the
music.
The band continues with the
high-energy sound as they enter
“Don’t Flip the Jukebox,” a
song with captivating choruses
and just enough variation to
keep you guessing.
A sure-fire fan favorite, this
second track is more than just a
song, but motivation to get up
and dance.
Armstrong opens the next
song with a classical acoustic
guitar introduction that only
adds to the band’s repertoire.
“Set This Home on Fire” focuses
compliment the band’s efforts.
“The Intermission” is exactly
that- Puckett’s electronically
altered voice soars over the
relaxing piano arrangement.
Armstrong and Zaborowski
are featured predominately in
the final tack of the EP, “If
These Secrets Could Talk.”
Soaring sweeps and hooks
from both guitarists are among
a multitude of layers within this
song that make it the deepest,
richest and fullest song on the
EP.
The unsung hero on the
album is most definitely Manoc-
chio. His bass lines, while not
a featured piece of the Shake It
sound, are able to bring together
the intricacies of the guitars, the
bounce of the drums and the
power of the vocals into a solid
mix.
Shake It will be sharing the
stage in Cleveland with bands
like Driver Side Impact, The
Morning Of, Every Avenue, and
Four Letter Lie.
Stay updated on Shake It
news, music and concert dates
at myspace.com/shakeitband.
 PAGE 20
MSG squashes the dregs of progressivism
By Keith
Nemeth
Staff writer &
political analyst
Twice now MSG has
squelched the possibility of
increasing the philanthropy
matching opportunities given to
RSCOs. Twice now the govern-
ment has decided that there are
more important ways to spend
money than to just simply give it
away. Frankly I’m quite appalled
Did you hear about minding your own business?
By Michelle
LaSlavic
Staff writer
Did you hear about Sarah?
Well, she said...
As much as I love Mercyhurst
and the closeness of the school,
sometimes I can’t help but feel
overwhelmed with how much
everyone knows about every-
one’s business.
Monday’s are the worst.
The weekend is freshly over
and the latest gossip and stories
begin to surface, if they have
Doubletalk known in political communities, game shows
By Ellen
Koenig
Staff writer
Doubletalk, famous among
salesmen, John Kerry and game
show hosts, has become a com-
munication practice of our own
student government.
Believing that “they will rep-
resent the interests of students
who elected them to that posi-
tion,” yet again I am disap-
pointed by their actions, or lack
thereof. You are attending a
service based, Catholic-affiliated
school. Despite what it was that
attracted you to the community,
you are here and a part of the
that these so-called “represen-
tatives” decide how money is
allocated on campus. It isn’t like
they are elected to that position
by a plurality of votes by the
student body.
So what exactly is this philan-
thropy matching program that I
read about last week in the Mer-
ciad? Apparently, if an RSCO
raises $115 per term, MSG will
match that amount. This modest
amount of $350 per academic
year is just a little too low for
not already been spread.
Stories can be overheard in
the Laker and around campus
being told by people who barely
even know the person or people
about whom they are talking.
I think it’s even quite
possible that break-ups get
around campus before the
couple is not together.
I guess I just don’t understand
having a fascination for know-
ing what’s going on with every-
one else’s life.
It’s fine to discuss your friends’
problems or drama that’s going
on with those closest to you, but
larger Mercyhurst experience.
Within this community we
are all peers and I would like to
remind the student government
that when a group of students
has approached you multiple
times about an issue, I suggest
you listen without preconcep-
tion.
As elected officials of the
student body it is your responsi-
bility to represent. Student gov-
ernment claims there are a great
number of reforms taking place
for next year, many students
are probably unaware of this
due to the extremely ineffective
communication tactics used by
MSG. I suggest you introduce
term limits so students are lim-
OPINION
the tastes of Amnesty Interna-
tional, who wants to increase
the amount to $480 per year.
Fellow readers, you do not even
understand the gravity of this
situation. This amount clearly
needs raised, even though only
one club has requested philan-
thropy this year and it wasn’t
Amnesty International.
You know, I just can’t agree
more with this line of thought.
I really can’t think of a better
way to spend my tuition than by
stop there.
Seriously, I don’t get why it’s
so important to know what’s
going on with people you barely
know.
What happened to privacy
and people minding their own
business?
Are we so bored with our
own lives that we have to turn to
what’s going on with Sarah from
class for entertainment?
I can’t seclude this problem to
just Mercyhurst, though.
Look at our media and news-
papers.
Our society has become so
ited to the amount of years they
may serve, thus creating variety
on the otherwise homogeneous
government majority.
Currently members tend to
be swayed by the majority with
very few representatives actu-
ally standing up to the beast
and marking other interests. For
future reference, members of
RSCOs should know there is a
philanthropy fund where MSG
will match $350 their organiza-
tions have raised for a charity.
I encourage you to fundraise
as much as possible and largely
exceed the $4,500 they have bud-
geted. Perhaps then this item
will finally get the attention it
deserves.
just donating it to other causes.
It isn’t like I see that money
anyway.
Who cares about acquiring
new and improved equipment
for the school while there are
people out there suffering! Isn’t
it the onus of the student gov-
ernment of a small liberal arts
college to right the wrongs of
the world? If you thought it was
about education, then clearly
you are out of sync with us true
Progressives out there.
obsessed with Hollywood and
what our stars, athletes and
public figures are doing.
We know more about
Jessica Simpson’s love life
than the reasons for why we
are at war in Iraq, or who the
candidates are for the
upcoming elections.
It’s fine to want to stay
in-tune with what’s going on
around campus.
I think that maybe we should
all just focus a little bit more on
our own lives and what we are
doing rather than obsess with
everyone else’s.
One member of MSG openly
stated the “apathy” they face
from the student body. I was out-
raged by last week’s article about
philanthropy because it failed to
outline the overall issue, however
did a fantastic job to display the
apathy of our own student gov-
ernment.
Students of Amnesty Interna-
tional are catalysts for change.
They are examples of people
most willing to speak up and deal
with the MSG doubletalk. Hope-
fully other students will speak
up and keep the governing body
accountable. On a word to MSG
and SAC affiliates, I suggest you
get in tune with the rest of the
student body and take notes.
Jan. 30, 2008
The Good,
the Bad &
the Ugly
The Good
The weather took a turn
for the better. It wasn’t
easy to have a bad day
when you walked out of
class and felt the sun shin-
ing on your face.
Get ready for Super
Bowl parties, Tom Petty
& the Heartbreakers’ per-
formance at halftime and,
of course, those crazy
commercials.
The Bad
The water polo team’s
van slid off Interstate 90
on the way back from
practice last weekend.
Finals are sneaking up on
us. These last few weeks
of the term will be filled
with papers, presentations
and massive amounts of
studying.
The Ugly
Keep your ger ms to
yourself, please. It seems a
large portion of students
are hacking and sniffling.
Want to sit in the fourth
row of the VIP section
for the Super Bowl this
weekend? Two such tickets
are available on eBay for a
mere $23,700. But how is
this for icing on the cake: a
parking pass is $49.95.
Please e-mail any suggetions to
opinionmerciad@mercyhurst.edu.
The GB&U is a compilation of
student opinions.
 Jan. 30, 2008 OPINION PAGE 21

It is OK to love the ’Hurst and its ‘good people’

By Bill
Swafford
Staff writer
As I reflect back on my years
here at the ’Hurst, I can say
there are several things that I
can distinctly remember.
These memories can include
late night stumbles down
38th Street, overdrinking
Natural Light and bottom-shelf
liquor, long hours in the library
or RIAP lab and, of course, the
class of 2008’s second home,
the Cornerstone.
I have seen students come
and go.
I have been involved in my
fair share of short-term love
flings.
I can honestly say I have
earned a top-notch education
from a diversified faculty.
It was along the way here that
I have met “good people.”
I use this term to reference
genuinely good people that
have something unique to offer
to the world.
At the ’Hurst, you can find an
upper class prude who offers
you insight on what it is like to
have a butler.
On the other hand, you can
find a blue-collar guy from
Rocky River who can tell you
every Cleveland Browns stat
there is to know.
You can find bony guys who
write for the newspaper, and
will eventually work for the
Enquirer.
No one can forget about
the hippies who make you feel
good about not recycling or
driving a Volkswagon van.
There are also the jocks that
lift far too much but also makes
for a good time under the
influence of alcohol.
Let us also not forget the
dancers, who never let their
hair down or eat, however
always seem to have a good
joke to tell.
The MSG/SAC students let
you know exactly what is going
on around campus and ensure
that there are still good people
in the world.
Lastly, the ROTC guys who
will dominate the conversation
about the U.S. Army every-
where they go.
These groups of people help
you to understand life outside
of your upbringing and your
hometown.
Although we came to Mer-
cyhurst to get a good educa-
tion, we have grown to love
Mercyhurst because of these
“good people.”

Ten years gone, imagine what is on the horizon

By Chris Cummings
Contributing writer
When driving into the main
gate of Mercyhurst College, the
first structure that catches one’s
eye is the beautiful design of the
Hammermill Library.
This magnificent piece of
architecture draws people onto
the campus.
It compliments the other
buildings and adds to the ele-
gance and beauty that make the
campus unique.
It is hard to believe that the
library was not always this pleas-
ing to the eye. But before 1998,
the library was a flat-topped,
three-story building.
Therefore, 2008 marks the
10-year anniversary of the com-
pletion of the renovations made
to the library.
In the mid 1990s, a plan was
contrived to increase the build-
ing’s size and capacity.
The most prominent con-
struction done to the structure
of the building was the addition
of the fourth floor.
The fourth floor now houses
administrative offices such as
Alumni Relations, Public Rela-
tions and Institutional Advance-
ment.
Two special rooms were
constructed and have beauti-
ful views of not only the city
of Erie, but of the shoreline as
well.
These rooms are the Louis
J. Tullio Room and the Sennett
Board Room.
Part of Weber Hall, what is 3R,
houses a study space and many
computers for students use.
Many students use this area
as well as the Catherine Walker
Reading Room during exam
time, as it is usually a quiet place
to study.
The other structural change
was the roof.
Before 1998, it was a flat-
topped roof, which, to an extent,
drew away from the other build-
ings.
The new roof reaches 60
feet above the ground and fits
in with the other buildings and
their Tudor architectural style.
“My office use to be a court-
yard,” said Joe Kloss, the
library’s Circulation Supervisor.
“Where the circulation desk is,
was actually outside.”
The circulation desk was rede-
signed and moved to where it is
now and gives library employees
more space and room to work.
Although these structural
alterations had an impact on
everyone, there was more than
met the eye to these changes.
The card catalog used to
be wooden drawers where
the patron would have to flip
through card after card until
they found the book card they
were looking for.
Now with just the click of a
button patrons can access the
entire library’s database online.
This technological upgrade
has made it possible for students
to access information from any-
where in the world.
This was done to enter into
Mercyhurst grad.
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Not only is the card catalog another school and have it sent
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magazines they wish to locate. cross that reaches 80 feet above
The changes made in 1998 ground, imagine 11 years ago,
have benefited Mercyhurst when all these changes were just
enormously. on paper.
Not only did it increase the How different would the
beauty of the campus but it campus be without these
ushered in a new era, an era of changes?
growth and improvement. One can speculate but just
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 PAGE 22 OPINION Jan. 30, 2008

This I believe: It is hard to argue with a screaming soul

Mercyhurst’s Ethical Reflection Committee has initiated “This I Believe” to foster reflection within the entire college community on the values by which we live. We hope that these essays will inspire
further introspection, thoughtful discussion, and innovative ways of integrating holistically some of the ideas and values expressed here into our personal, academic, social, spiritual, professional and com-
munal life.
For example, faculty might introduce appropriate essays into class discussion; students might initiate conversations in class and beyond; administrators and staff might explore these with colleagues.
Responses may be directed to the Merciad at editormerciad@mercyhurst.edu or to committee chair, Rev. Lyta Seddig at lseddig@mercyhurst.edu.
Share how these thoughts have had an impact in your life!
Cathy Pedler began working at Mercyhurst in 1991 as a researcher in the Archeological Institute. After years of cultivating environmental projects and initiatives in the college community, she became
Mercyhurst’s Environmental Sustainability Coordinator in 2004. What she likes most about Mercyhurst is its potential for change through initiatives that, as she puts it, “not just push, but tear the
envelope.”

By Cathy Pedler
Contributing writer
I believe I am wrong. Believ-
ing I am wrong helps me look at
the world in a completely differ-
ent way—almost by the hour.
When I decide there is a
chance I may be wrong, new
paths open in my mind and in
whatever it is inside of us that
connects us to all other life.
Being wrong allows me to start
an exploratory process where I
know I will never be right, but
maybe I’ll be less wrong for a
while simply for changing direc-
tion.
When I was 18 my path was
one of an evangelical mission-
ary. The earth then was a gift
from God. Cultures other than
my own were fascinating, but
condemned and in need of
redemption. During my first
year of college a recruiter for
one of the mission agencies
explained to me that their group
didn’t need any more women.
They needed men, because
women couldn’t be spiritual
leaders. I think my mind broke
in a thousand ways that day.
But the cracks were fertile, and
allowed me to question myself
and my culture.
Because I realized I was
wrong, it followed that the dic-
tates that structured my world
were also wrong.
I’ve embraced that early expe-
rience as an adaptive strategy
for my life.
I find that allowing myself to
be wrong gives me the tools I
need to question the bars that
form our personal and societal
cages—and the spaces between,
which we collectively call our
freedoms.
Today, at 42, I find myself
questioning what I had, until
recently, considered to be my
rights and freedoms. I find
myself wondering why speak-
ing freely and defending our-
selves are defined as rights. In
traditional societies, speaking
freely and defending oneself
are simply considered personal
virtues, not requiring a formal
declaration.
Moreover, why do we con-
sider private property a right?
In a short period of time (when
one considers the antiquity of
Joshua Wilwohl
Casey Greene
Amy Zielinski & Amanda Valauri
Jen Gildea
Merissa Frank
Chris Davis & Brittany Jackett
Nicole Cerilli
Scoot Williams
earth) this right has turned living the hills. I was overwhelmed
things into spirit-less packages. with a sick feeling of frustration
The sacred is lost when life is and helplessness that grew to
traded as a marketable resource. rage and sorrow.
I had a dream not long ago. Sometimes dreams allow us to
I stood beside the Allegheny understand what in waking life
River. we are afraid to face—that there
I looked up from the water to might be something dreadfully
see that what had been forested wrong with both ourselves and
hills were now bare mounds of the world we live in.
earth—no trees, no birds, no I may be wrong in even posing
bears—nothing but two yellow these questions, but it is hard to
earth movers winding around argue with a screaming soul.
Editor-in-Chief editormerciad@mercyhurst.edu
Managing Editor editormerciad@mercyhurst.edu
News Editors newsmerciad@mercyhurst.edu
Features Editor featuremerciad@mercyhurst.edu
Opinion Editor opinionmerciad@mercyhurst.edu
Sports Editors sportsmerciad@mercyhurst.edu
A&E entertainmentmerciad@mercyhurst.edu
Photographer photomerciad@mercyhurst.edu

Stars or stripes? Tiffany Cook

By Casey Greene
Managing editor
Are you paying attention to
the right things yet?
Getting interested in the
things that matter?
Think I’m talkin about the
Super Bowl?
Or maybe you thought I
meant the naming of Jayme
Lynn Spears’ baby.
Unfortunately, you would be
wrong.
I’m talking about the 2008
presidential race.
By this point in the game,
you should be able to name the
frontrunners from both political
parties - even know their stance
on a few issues.
If you know more about
Heath Ledger’s death or the
pregnancy of Gwen Stefani
than political issues, then you
need to reassess.
While celebrities may be more
entertaining, they do not run
our country.
T. J. Ineman
Leslie Ruchala
Production Editor prodmerciad@mercyhurst.edu
Online Editor webedmerciad@mercyhurst.edu
Advertising Manager admerciad@mercyhurst.edu
Noelle Lelakus Copy Editor copymerciad@mercyhurst.edu
Ashley Pastor General Assignment apasto22@mercyhurst.edu
Lenore Skomal Advisor lskomal@mercyhurst.edu
The Merciad is the student-produced newspaper of Mercyhurst College. It is
published throughout the school year, with the exception of finals week. Our
office is in Hirt, Room 120B. Our telephone number is (814) 824-2376.
The Merciad welcomes letters to the editor. All letters must be signed and
names will be included with the letters. Although we will not edit the letters for
content, we reserve the right to trim letters to fit. Letters are due the Thursday
before publication and may not be longer than
300 words. Submit letters to box PH 485.
Jan. 30, 2008
More than ’Hurst can chew Letter to the editor: Amnesty and MSG
By Rhonda Marable
Staff writer
When a college or univer-
sity decides to pick up a sport,
what sort of benefits do they
consider before making their
choice?
Popularity?
Potential?
They seem like reasonable
considerations, but it appears
Mercyhurst College has appar-
ently neglected all of them as
well as the most important one,
facilities.
You’d think an establishment
that wanted to offer a Division
II sports program would offer
facilities that would at least rep-
resent the school in a positive
way.
You’d think.
Mercyhurst offers a variety
of athletic programs that they
don’t provide adequate facili-
ties for, but water polo is one
that really takes some blows.
The sport obviously needs to
be played in a pool, but not just
any pool; there are regulations
that go along with it.
Unlike swimming, both ends
of the pool have depth regula-
tions that need to be addressed
for a pool to be appropriate for
not only game but also champi-
onship play.
Not only is the facility that
we use for the polo program
not regulation, it’s also 20 min-
utes away at Mercyhurst North
East.
Twenty minutes may not
seem like a long time for a 15-
mile drive.
But this time of year in Erie,
20 turns into 40 and the safety
of 15 water polo players is
compromised.
Saturday, Jan. 19, after our
three-hour practice that began
at 9 a.m., the van leading back
to campus slid, fishtailed and
crashed into the center embank-
ment with a wave of snow.
Seven of us, including the
assistant coach, sat frozen
between a pileup and traffic on
Interstate 90.
We were all unharmed, but
just feet away from a bridge;
the story could have resulted
much differently.
Of course there are risks
whenever a team needs to travel
away for games. For a collegiate
athletic team, the need to leave
daily for practices is something
that Mercyhurst should have
thought about more in depth.
Erie sees some of the heavi-
est snowfalls in the country and
I-90 is often closed because of
a pileup or unsafe conditions.
Mercyhurst wouldn’t expect
the team to practice if the
roads are bad but how does the
school expect the team to be
able to compete against others
that don’t have to cancel prac-
tices because of not having an
on-campus pool?
The water polo team is
already at a disadvantage having
to play games in a shallow-deep
pool.
The style and strategy of the
game changes when players are
forced to change position due
to the presence of the bottom,
on which you are not permitted
to stand.
Teams with on-campus,
regulation pools have a huge
advantage over Mercyhurst.
Not to mention that the clos-
est competition at Gannon and
Penn State Behrend also have
the inconvenience of a shal-
low-deep pools.
At the end of the day, how-
ever, it seems all we can do on
the polo team is complain.
After the accident on Satur-
day, a new joke circuited around
the pool deck among players.
“We could use the accident to
talk about how we need a pool
on-campus…but then again
they’d just cut the program to
save money.”
Too bad the joke’s on us.
OPINION
By Patty Evanoff
Contributing writer
Late Tuesday night I got a call
that shocked me; news that the
philanthropy issue would be fea-
tured as the leading story in the
Merciad. I was pleasantly sur-
prised that a largely unknown,
but important, issue could make
the news so fast.
However perhaps because of
the rushed nature of the article,
the story has been only half
told.
First of all I’d like to clarify
the situation. The issue is not
merely in raising the amount
from the current $350 per year
clubs are permitted to match.
The issue is that this $350 is a
reduction from the $500 that has
been permitted for at least the
past four years. In asking for the
$480, I was actually requesting
a compromised amount from
a reduction that I don’t believe
had a basis in the first place.
The $4,500 total for philan-
thropy is a miniscule percent of
the hundreds of thousands of
dollars MSG has (the estimates
that have been given to us range
from around 300,000 to nearly
half a million). There has been
no “lack of participation” in
years past, since the amount of
requests always far exceeds this
line item.
I, along with other members
of Amnesty, wondered what
MSG’s rationale for decreasing
the amount was, and got the
answer of “opportunity” for
more clubs to use the philan-
thropy fund.
However this theory does
not work in function, but only
theory. It seems (and especially
so in the lack of requests) that
the same clubs are requesting,
but now must request less. In my
opinion-and others both within
and outside of our Amnesty
Chapter-if MSG truly wanted
to increase opportunity, they
would have made an increase in
the line item.
The request for the restora-
tion of the amount does not
alone come from my own desire
to act in solidarity with others.
In choosing to attend Mer-
cyhurst, students, whether we
realize it or not, make a com-
mitment to mercy.
Our mission statement and
core values clearly illustrate this,
stating “the College community
is inspired by the image of stu-
dents whose choices, in life and
work, will enable them to realize
the human and spiritual values
embedded in everyday realities
and to exercise leadership in
service toward a just world.” In
discussion with MSG, they sug-
gested we bring up this issue
with the school, rather than
MSG.
However MSG is not an
institution higher than those of
which our school is modeled.
Despite the mission statement
being “new,” as MSG put it, the
sentiments are embedded within
the entire history of our school,
established by the Sisters of
Mercy.
The mission statement is
meant to govern over every
aspect of the college.
The philanthropy fund in
itself is a way to motivate and
reward students for being
involved.
Furthermore, although I have
tried to detail the situation as
not to slander but inform, the
issue is bigger than the techni-
cal shifts of funds. This is about
people.
This is about the $500 more
Amnesty International was able
to give to suffering people in
Darfur last year because we
could match that amount, and
the many other clubs that did
so.
I have attempted to approach
this situation with respect to
MSG, in hope that our meetings
would allow representatives to
PAGE 23
carry out their duty as a voice
of the students.
Although I applaud their will-
ingness to meet with us, in the
end I do not believe they made
a decision that shows mutual
respect I would expect from
an organization representing
my voice and others who speak
out.
In several talks with MSG,
there has been the complaint
about “apathy” from students.
Is it apathy, or unwillingness
to have respect for arguments
from those who care? I say this
not as a student who sits back
and complains that MSG is
oppressive.
Rather I say this as a student
who has genuinely tried to com-
municate with them in a mature
and informed manner.
However I have been disap-
pointed. It is my hope that this
article will not bring mere dis-
gust at what MSG has not done,
or undone, but as a wake-up
call that more voices need to be
heard.
If it were not for my involve-
ment with Amnesty Interna-
tional, who successfully uses
diplomacy to ensure human
rights, I may view this as a lost
cause.
However change has, can and
is happening all the time. This
change cannot occur if we sit
back idly.
It is in this spirit that I hope
we will still be able to negotiate
a change whether it is for the
amount clubs can request alone
or for an increase in the line
item with MSG.
At the end of your college
career, you can look back and
know that you fought for some-
thing bigger than yourself.
MSG, it is time to prove that
you care.
Clubs, consider requesting
philanthropy.
Students, it is time to speak
up. I’ve done enough talking; it
is your turn.
 PAGE 24 INTRAMURAL/SPORTS Jan. 30, 2008

Intramural basketball playoffs begin this week Final Standings

By Jeffrey Stoll
Staff writer
Sunday marks the start of the
intramural basketball playoffs.
This is the first of three
consecutive Sundays in which
games will be played, in a one-
game elimination format, until a
victor is declared.
The top seed in the tourna-
ments is Schmidt’s team (5-0).
This is nothing new to team
Schmidt which has run away
with the tournament during the
past three years.
It is the only undefeated team
this year and was given a bye
game, as there are nine teams in
the tournament.
The teams seeded 2-6
(Coaches, Giallourakis, Gaert-
ner, D. Johnson and Brown) all
have identical records of 4-1
and, as indicated by their records
there should be some very close
games among these teams.
The seeding was decided
by the total number of points
The intramural basketball playoffs are set to begin with
games starting on Sunday.
scored throughout the regular
season.
The seventh place seed is
Kampman’s team with a record
of 3-1, while the final two seeds
are M. Johnson and Stokes, both
with records of 3-2.
Scoot Williams photo
The first game will be played
at 2:15 by the eight and nine
seeds of Stokes and M. John-
son.
The winner of this game will
have to stick around until 5
p.m. to take on the undefeated
I
Schmidt team in the last game.
N 1 Schmidt 5-0*
“Our team is playing with
great confidence right now,” the
T 5 Gaertner 4-1*
captain of the only undefeated R 5 Coaches 4-1*
team, senior Josh Schmidt said. A
5 D. Johnson 4-1*
“We are firing on all cylinders. M
I like our chances to get to the U 5 Giallourakis 4-1*
championship game.” R 5 Brown 4-1*
“I’m excited to play a number A 6 Kampman 3-1*
of different teams that we have L
not seen yet,” he said. 8 M.Johnson 3-2*
Brown will take on the higher
B 8 Stokes 3-2*
seeded Giallourakis squad.
While Giallourakis’ team may
A 13 Hubert 1-4
be seeded higher it should be a S 13 Flanagan 1-4
great game, as both the teams’ K
13 Finn 1-4
records currently stand identi- E
cal. T 13 Blackburn 1-4
The same goes for the game B 13 Denman 1-4
following, as Gaertner’s team A 14 Dillay 1-3
takes on D. Johnson in a battle L
of equal records. L 16 Patcher 0-4
The lower seeded Kampman’s 16 Elliott 0-4
team will take on the Coaches at
* in playoffs
4:30 p.m. to see who survives to
play another week.
The second round of games
will be Feb. 9, as only four teams Intramural Sports
will remain to fight for the
championship.

Cavaliers along with LeBron defeat the Lakers, Kobe I

By Kyle Craig
Staff writer
Growing up in the iPod gen-
eration, we have had the oppor-
tunity to witness some great
miracles in modern sports.
Not only have we had the
opportunity to witness them,
but we can watch them over
and over again on TiVo or
DVDs. In addition we’ve had
the opportunity to argue who
some of the greatest players are
in each sport, such as Manning
or Brady, Daisuke Matsuzaka or
Dontrelle Willis, Jordan or Shaq,
Phil or Tiger and even Hull or
Gretzky.
The debates heated up once
again when at the time 18-year-
old LeBron James was drafted
by his hometown Cleveland
Cavaliers. Since that fateful day,
LeBron has been compared to
the greats like as Michael Jordan
and Kobe Bryant. Many have
marvelled in the opportunity
to watch LeBron square off
against Kobe.
For the second time on
Sunday, both players had the
chance to strut their stuff in
front of one another to prove
who reigns supreme in the world
of basketball.
For the second time this
season, and in dominating fash-
ion, James showed the sports
world just how special he is. The
first match-up saw Cleveland
ousting LA 94-90, as LeBron led
all scorers with 33 points. The
second game was even better
for King James, as he was able
N
to put up 41 points over Kobe’s seven assists and eight rebounds Scores
33. per game. Kobe is just slightly
T
So exactly who is the best behind, posting 27 points, five R
A Schmidt
player in the game? Well if you assists and six rebounds per defeated Cherie
ask LeBron, according to ESPN game. M (2-0)
analyst Brian Windhorst, James “Sunday night’s game showed U
says, “Kobe is still No. 1, to me. that LeBron is clearly a better R Marissa
He’s still the best player in the leader, considering Kobe’s A defeated Katie
world. Kobe is dominant; he off- season issues with Laker L (2-0)
plays on the highest level all the management,” junior Jef-
time.” frey McIntyre said. “Kobe has Travis
V defeated Jenelle
According to an FSN poll proven himself on the court
completed in January prior to but I believe LeBron has quickly
O (2-0)
Kobe vs. James #1, 65 percent caught up to his stature.” L
L Jenelle
of the fans believed that Kobe The debate will rage on until defeated Cameron
was clearly the better basket- both are finally inducted into E (2-0)
ball player. While Kobe cer- the Basketball Hall of Fame. Y
tainly has the championships Until then let’s just kick back B
and the experience, King James and enjoy two of the greatest A
is quickly making his mark on players to ever play the game, L
basketball. Both players are set- and hope that someday we will L
ting nearly equal numbers with get to watch them battle on the
Lebron averaging 30 points, game’s biggest stage.
Jan. 30, 2008 CLUB SPORTS PAGE 25

Club hockey falls to No. 10 Kent

By Matt Ferris
Staff writer

This past weekend the Mer-

cyhurst College club hockey
team suffered two tough losses
to Kent State University, ranked
10th in the nation among the
American Collegiate Hockey
Association (ACHA).
The Flashes outscored the
Lakers both Friday and Satur-
day nights, 6-3 and 5-3, respec-
tively.
The Flashes started the first
period Friday strong, scoring
two back-to-back goals.
The first goal for the Flashes
was scored by Eddie Martin at
10:38.
At the end of the period,
Kevin Colleran scored for the
Flashes at the two-minute mark,
giving them a two goal lead.
The Lakers stepped up their
effort in the second period with
a goal by freshman Steve Stepa-
nian, when his shot found the
back of the net at 19:44. Contributed photo

Stepanian was pleased to
give his team its first goal of
the game.
“Being down 2-0 at the end
of the first was not a comfort-
able feeling,” he said. “Our
team needed to step up to get
back in the game.”
[Junior Korey] O’Connor
fed me a great pass out of the
corner and I was able to knock
it in,” said Stepanian.
The Lakers would then repeat
scoring another two goals from
freshman Patrick Leone and
then freshman Cruise Lizik.
Both goals would find their
way past Flashes’ netminder
Ryan Gregory, while Lizik’s
goal gave the Lakers the lead.
Kent State would rebound
with two goals toward the end
of the period, making the score
at the end of the second period
4-3 Flashes.
Mercyhurst remained score-
The Mercyhurst club hockey will look to get back in the win column as they travel for games against John Carroll and Slip-
pery Rock this weekend.
less in the third, while the
Flashes were able to bank
another two goals on netminder
freshman Rob Kelley.
Toward the end of the third
period the game got physical,
as both Mercyhurst and Kent
State lost two players to dis-
qualification penalties.
Saturday’s game was a close
battle for the two teams, as
both put in there all.
Both teams battled it out
during the second match up
with a scoreless first period.
However as the second
period came to a close, the
score was tied at 1-1.
Early into the final period
the Flashes’ Kevin Colleran
scored his team’s second goal
of the game giving them the
point advantage.
Mercyhurst then scored two
back-to-back goals, from Ste-
fanski, and freshman Pat Leone
giving the Lakers the lead 3-2.
With Kent State’s man advan-
tage, the team was able to score
a power-play goal on freshman
Carson Loveday, which made
the score even at 3-3.
After Kent State’s power-
play goal, they were able to
get a go-ahead goal from Tim
Okicki with 3:25 remaining in
the third period.
As the third period came to
a close, coach Thomas McKin-
non tried to even the score by
pulling Loveday, for the man
advantage.
With unfortunate luck, the
Flashes intercepted a pass
between Mercyhurst players
and scored on the empty net,
making the final score 5-3.
Mercyhurst was plagued with
penalties, giving Kent State
numerous power play oppor-
tunities; three of their five
goals occurred on their power
play, while there final goal was
shorthanded.
“Unfortunately we came out
with two losses,” said McKin-
non who was disappointed with
the series results.
“We were hoping at least
to steal one, but I mean [they
were] two hard-fought games,”
he said.
This marked a good weekend
for the freshmen members of
the club team, as all received
points.
Lizik, Leone, and Stepanian
all had goals Friday night, while
Pat Scherer had an assist in that
game.
The other freshmen to score
Saturday night were David
Gaines and Leone.
The Lakers now stand at 10-
9-5 overall, and 5-3-1 within
the Eastern Collegiate Hockey
League (ECHL).
The Lakers travel to Cleve-
land on Friday night to play
John Carroll University at the
Gilmour Academy complex
arena at 8:10 p.m.
Mercyhurst will then travel
to Pittsburgh, Pa. on Saturday
where they will compete against
Slippery Rock University at 7
p.m. at the Blade Runners Ice
Complex.
 PAGE 26
NHL all-star festivities turn out
to be a major disappointment
By Kenny Hunt
Contributing writer
The 56th annual NHL All-
Star Game, at first, seemed like
a bleak and half-hearted effort
to continue the tradition that
dates back to the first All-Star
Game held in 1933 to honor the
injured Ace Bailey.
This year’s game was held in
the hockey hotbed of Atlanta,
Ga., clearly not the ideal ice
hockey setting.
Eight of the game’s best
players were not in the lineup;
Sidney Crosby, arguably the
game’s best player, was side-
lined with a high ankle sprain
Joining him on the IR were
the likes of Henrik Zetterburg,
Dany Heatley, Paul Stastny and
Sergei Zubov.
The other three- Roberto
Luongo, Martin Brodeur and
Mats Sundin- were all selected
to the All-Star weekend but
chose not to play, citing
personal reasons.
All of these superstars not in
attendance made way for a pleth-
ora of questionable All-Stars:
Duncan Keith of the Chicago
Blackhawks, Corey Perry of the
Anaheim Ducks, Tim Thomas
from the Boston Bruins filling
in for Brodeur and the list of
NHL All-Stars you have never
heard of goes on.
A majority of the six goal-
tenders playing this past Sunday
were also borderline all-stars
at best.
Chris Osgood was put most
likely in place of Luongo and
was the worst goaltender in
Atlanta, giving up five goals in
the first period to the Eastern
Conference stars.
Joining Osgood in the
questionable goalies category
were Thomas and Thomas
Vokoun, who were very ques-
tionable in their credentials
that landed them the nod for
Sunday’s game.
With all that said, the situa-
tion looked optimistic for Sat-
urday’s skills competition.
Changes were made to the
former puck control relay, the
breakaway competition and the
speed-skating events.
Sadly, Saturday turned
out to be a disappointment
for not only the NHL, but
also its national television
broadcaster; Versus.
The obstacle course, as it is
now named, was very awkward,
and, along with the breakaway
competitions, featured a new
‘behind the player’ camera angle
that allowed for a dizzying and
awful viewer experience.
The speed-skating became a
straight spring from goal line to
blue line, which was not a bad
idea at all.
The problem was the
timers that malfunctioned and
did not record many of the
players’ times.
The most comical event of
the night was the introduction
of the judges for the breakaway
contest, which was now also
based on style points.
The judges included Friday
Night Lights star Tom Kitsch,
former Atlanta Hawk Domi-
nique Wilkins, former NHL
fourth liner Scott Mellanby and
Versus analyst Bill Clement.
Certainly the two non-hockey
playing judges knew noth-
ing about the difficulty of the
moves performed on the break-
aways and Mellanby himself
commented that if he was in this
competition he would “dump
the puck in and change.”
After a comically awful skills
competition that was saved only
by the high-scoring, action-
packed Young Stars Game, the
main event took place on Sunday
SPORTS
with even the best hockey fans
expecting a disaster.
Perhaps the missing eight All-
Stars left the game with a blue-
collar feel, because the intensity
started early and remained until
the final buzzer.
Rick Nash scored the first of
his three goals only 12 seconds
into the game on a breakaway.
After an explosive start, the
West settled in a little too com-
fortably and allowed five goals
in the first period.
After the West mounted a
comeback in the second, the
game was tied 7-7 late in the
third period.
In a nail-biting finish, Buffa-
lo’s Brian Campbell set up late
addition Marc Savard for the
game winning goal with less
than 20 seconds left.
The Eastern Conference held
on for the victory and forward
Eric Staal was awarded the All-
Star MVP for his three-point
night (two goals, one assist).
Overall the All-Star game
more than made up for the
awkward and mismanaged skills
competition.
The passing was crisp, cre-
ative and fun to watch; the
goaltending had its high points,
including Evgeni Nabokov’s
incredible glove save on Ilya
Kovalchuk and a strong perfor-
mance from Rick DiPietro and
two-goal performances from
Alexander Ovechkin and Staal
combined with Nash’s hat-trick
made for a high-scoring affair.
The game had a younger,
more energetic feel contrary
to those of the past, which
felt more like watching an old-
timers’ exhibition game, and
that made for a more enjoyable
experience.
Maybe this type of game and
the success it had will be able
to extend hockey to a wider
audience.
Tiger Woods, who picked a win this past weekend, looks to
move up the all-time career victory list.
Tiger Woods has opportunity
for a grand slam season
By Kyle Criag
Staff writer
The PGA tour is merely one
tournament into Tiger Woods’
2008 season and there is already
talk about the possibility of a
grand slam season. For Tiger,
this would mean winning the
Masters, US Open, British
Open and the PGA Champion-
ship all in the same season.
Is all of this hype worth ignor-
ing or is there a real opportunity
there with Tiger blowing out the
competition at this years Buick
Open?
This year’s eight-shot victory
at Torrey Pines gave Woods his
fourth straight victory at the
Buick Open and made a state-
ment among the golf commu-
nity.
Charles Howell III stated to
the Associated Press, “You’d
like to think it’s surprising, but
it’s not. It’s Tiger.”
With the win he also joins an
elite group, tying Arnold Palmer
for fourth all-time in victories
with 62.
According to the Associated
Press, Palmer stated, “I’m sure
there are many, many more
coming in the future. There isn’t
Jan. 30, 2008
CNN photo
any question about that.”
Tiger has a lot to prove this
year, as his only major victory
came in a two-shot win at last
year’s PGA Championship,
which gave him his thirteenth
major championship of his
career. He sits just five shy of
Jack Nicklaus’ record 18 major
championship victories.
More importantly he contin-
ues to play for his father Earl
Woods, who passed away in
2006, and also his daughter Sam
Alexis Woods.
“I’m starting to get better. I’m
hitting shots that I never could
hit before, even in 2000,” stated
Woods in an interview on his
fan website with Joan Alexander.
“People think, yeah you played
great, but I made everything. I
still have holes in my game that
I need to fix and improve on.”
It will certainly be great to see
if Tiger can finally win the cov-
eted grand slam.
Unfortunately we will not be
able to see him on a golf course
until late February, when he
takes the course at the Accen-
ture Match Play Championship.
Tiger sits merely two more
victories behind third-place
Ben Hogan, who has 64 career
victories.
Jan. 30, 2008
Wrestling goes 3-1 at East Coast duals
By Kirk Campbell
Staff writer
The No. 12 Mercyhurst Col-
lege wrestling team won three of
four matches at the East Coast
Duals this past weekend in Pem-
broke, N.C.
The Lakers opened action on
Friday, as they downed Pem-
broke 24-14 and dominated
Anderson 40-3. Saturday, the
Lakers finished competition by
defeating Carson-Newman 33-
10 and losing to No. 10 New-
berry, 20-12.
Mercyhurst, now 7-9 on the
year, had impressive perfor-
mances from junior Brian Pogel
and sophomore Andy Laman-
cusa, both of whom were 4-0
on the weekend. Pogel recorded
three falls and a 5-0 decision
while Lamancusa earned a fall,
two major-decisions and a deci-
sion.
When asked what match was
most important for the Lakers
this past weekend Pogel said,
“The big match that we really
tried focusing on was the match
against Newberry. With them
ahead of us in the rankings we
Men’s tennis and new coach set to open season beginning on Sunday
By Christine Mersch
Staff writer
The Mercyhurst College men’s
tennis team has begun its spring
season with a few familiar faces
back on the sideline.
Head Coach Ray Yost, who
stepped down from the position
last year to become the opera-
tor of Spring Break Tennis in
Hilton Head, SC, has returned to
run both the women’s and men’s
programs.
Yost, who coached from 1995-
2007, has compiled a 134-130
record with the women and 96-
Junior Brian Pogel went 4-0 this weekend in helping the
Lakers to a 3-1 record at the East Coast duals.
knew it was going to be a big
match. Although we came up
short, I feel with a full lineup we
would beat that team.”
Against Pembroke, the Lakers
found themselves in an early 10-0
deficit but a fall from the nation’s
No. 3 wrestler Pogel over Aaron
Hollifield and a major-decision
for Lamancusa over Rasahaad
Saunders, 16-7, pulled the Lakers
107 with the men. He led both
programs to the NCAA playoffs
in 2004 and 2005 and was named
GLIAC Coach of the year in
2003 and 2005.
“Where Coach Yost has
helped us is in bringing back the
intensity and ethos we had while
playing with last year’s seniors, to
make us know we have to earn
everything,” said sophomore co-
captain Kyle King.
Assisting Coach Yost this
season is Andy Findlay. Findlay,
a 1981 graduate of Mercyhurst
College, also acted as head coach
from 1982-86 and was inducted
into the Mercyhurst Athletic Hall
SPORTS
Sports information photo
back within one point, 10-9.
After dropping the 157-
pound bout, the Lakers bounced
back when senior Hudson Har-
rison earned a major-decision
over John Henry Clemmer, 15-2,
after bumping up a weight class
to 174. Junior Bryan Wolff fol-
lowed with a major-decision at
184, while junior Trevor Gallo
and freshman Nathan Sharp
of Fame in 2004.
According to King, Findlay
has already provided players with
valuable strategies and tactical
advice to improve their games.
“He has helped us get more
out of the respective strengths of
our game together,” said King.
This past week the Lakers held
their first practices of the spring
season.
The team is coming off a 0-2
fall campaign, where they faced
two strong, non-conference
opponents in Allegheny and
Duquesne.
This coming weekend the
team welcomes another non-
closed the match with decisions
at 197 and heavyweight sealing
the Lakers’ 24-14 victory against
Pembroke.
In the Lakers’ next match,
they dominated Anderson only
dropping one bout, while receiv-
ing three pins-falls from Pogel at
149 over Nick DiCarlo, Laman-
cusa at 157 over Isaac Stovall and
Gallo at 197 over Logan Watson.
The Lakers’ other victories came
from Payne Lint at 125, fresh-
man Lance Pitcel at 133, Har-
rison at 165, Trevor Delahoy at
174, Wolff at 184 and Sharp at
heavyweight, giving Mercyhurst
a convincing 40-3 victory.
In the first match on Satur-
day the Lakers lost to No. 10
Newberry 20-12 while only win-
ning four of ten matches, all
of which were decisions. Pitcel
beat Andrew Young 6-5 at 133,
Pogel captured a 5-0 victory over
Latra Collick at 149, Lamancusa
defeated Christian Johnson 5-2
at 157 and Harrison recorded
a 3-0 win over Dustin Harvey
at 165.
“After getting two pins on
Friday night, I was confident
going into Saturday’s match
against Collick because he was
conference opponent Carnegie
Mellon University to Pennbrier
Athletic Club.
King feels the matchup against
Carnegie Mellon will be a good
test for the young team.
“I think the match this coming
weekend against Carnegie could
be a good indicator of where we
are and how and what we need
to improve to get to where we
need to be,” he said.
This spring’s squad includes
co-captains King and Mio Cotic,
Ronnie Heurich and Mateusz
Przybysz, all sophomores who
were key contributors to last
year’s squad.
PAGE 27
No. 2 in the East Regional. I was
ok with the 5-0 win but I felt that
I could have done a little more
to help the team pick up a major
decision,” said Pogel.
However Mercyhurst bounced
back later that afternoon, as they
defeated Carson-Newman 33-10,
receiving pin-falls from Pogel at
149 and Gallo at 197. The Lakers
looked sharp in their rout of the
Eagles.
The Lakers also picked up vic-
tories from Lint at 125, as he won
5-0, and junior Braxdon Scaletta
at 141, as he earned a technical-
fall over Drew Roberts 15-0.
Lamancusa won his fourth
match of the weekend when he
beat Alex Cate by major-decision
15-4 at 157. Harrison and senior
Kenny Bluska also picked up
wins for the Lakers, securing the
33-10 victory over the Eagles.
Mercyhurst returns to action
on Feb. 2 when they travel to
Ithaca, N.Y. for a tri-match
against Binghamton, Ithaca and
Millersville.
“I feel that we can definitely
contend with the D-I schools
this weekend and am confident
our team can come out on top,”
said Pogel.
Rounding out the roster are
four freshman and two juniors.
With Yost back running the
program and Findlay assisting,
King feels the team is improv-
ing and, most importantly, their
morale is high.
“There are already noticeable
improvements in most of the
guys in terms of conditioning
and dedication. People want to
play their best tennis for Ray,”
said King.
The Lakers step onto the court
on Sunday for their first match
of the season. They welcome
Carnegie Mellon to the Penn-
brier Athletic Club at 10 a.m.
 PAGE 28
Effort for volleyball seen,
but still winless on season
By Samantha Sellinger
Staff writer
Even though the Mercyhurst
College men’s volleyball team
continues to perform with better
technical skill than last year, it is
still struggling to pick up its first
win of the season.
This past week the Lakers
dropped their first three away
matches to Medaille College (3-
2), Juniata College (3-1) and St.
Francis University (3-0).
Tuesday’s game versus Medai-
lle seemed hopeful after the
Lakers won the first game 30-25,
but just was not strong enough
in the second and third games
to keep their lead. The fourth
game went better and they man-
aged to pick up a win, 30-28.
With the match tied 2-2, the
teams entered into a fifth game,
where the Lakers used their
momentum from their last win
to take an early lead. Unfortu-
nately, Medaille was really on
its game and managed to snatch
the win, 15-12.
Dave Newman and Jonathan
Gurr each finished the match
with 15 kills, and Tim Wagner
added 14. Dave Hatten had 44
assists, and Newman had seven
blocks.
Friday’s game against Juniata
was challenging from the begin-
ning, but after losing the first
game the Lakers came back to
win the second, 39-37. Juniata
was just too strong and picked
up the win in four games.
However the Lakers saw vico-
tory in game two.
After Juniata took the initial
lead, Mercyhurst made back-to-
back kills by Newman and Jeff
Hartman to make it 29-28, and
then tied the match on a Juniata
attack error.
The Lakers trailed 32-31
Men’s volleyball is still searching for its first win, with their
next game on Friday at home against Loyola-Chicago.
at the fourth game point, but
Newman made another kill to
tie the game 37-37. Because
of two errors from the Eagles,
Mercyhurst was able to win the
game and even out the match.
During the third game neither
team got a large lead until the
end, when Juniata scored three
consecutive points for the win.
In the fourth game the Lakers
struggled to catch up, but man-
aged to tie the game at 24-24,
thanks to a kill from Wagner.
After a quick timeout, though,
the Eagles battled back to lead
and take the win.
The team was disappointed
by the loss, but improvements in
their overall game were encour-
aging.
“We made some good come-
backs, but couldn’t pull the whole
thing off,” said head coach Ryan
Patton. “The second game was
our second long overtime win of
the year, games that go past 30
points, which I don’t think would
have happened last year.”
Brian Ritter was especially
effective, scoring a career-high
of 10 kills.
The team looked sluggish
in Saturday’s match against St.
Francis.
The Lakers were not able to
SPORTS
Scoot Williams photo
get any wins and lost the match
in three close games.
“We looked fatigued against
St. Francis,” said Patton. “We
had a big-time chance to extend
the first game and we would
have been hard to beat at that
point because of momentum.”
But the guys just were not on
their game, and a disappointing
match ensued.
Newman led the Lakers with
13 kills and six blocks. Wagner
and Hartman each dished out 11
kills, and Hatten had 32 assists.
Overall the team did well this
weekend in comparison to past
seasons.
“I’m not satisfied not win-
ning, but this was probably our
best weekend of the year and
perhaps in the past three years,”
said Patton.
This weekend the Lakers will
battle Loyola University and
Lewis University at home, and
expect some exciting, challeng-
ing games.
“Lewis and Loyola are both
talented teams that have very
high goals,” Patton said.
But although the teams are
good, the Lakers believe that if
they play to their strengths they
will have a strong chance of
finally picking up a win.
Women’s b-ball drops a pair
By Rhonda Marable
Staff writer
The Mercyhurst College
women’s basketball team came
home empty handed from its
two-game road trip last week.
Thursday the Lakers fell 71-
37 to Hillsdale College and on
Saturday could not break their
losing streak, falling 93-73 to
Wayne State.
Mercyhurst is now 6-14
for the season and 1-9 in the
GLIAC.
At this point the Lakers have
seven opportunities to break
their current four-game slide.
Freshman forward Amy
Achesinski was brilliant in the
defeat against Wayne State,
however, scoring a career high
38 points.
Her 38 points is the highest
single-game total for a Mercy-
hurst player in over 15 years and
she is the first Laker to score
30 points in a game since Amy
Galla against Lake Superior
State in 2001.
The first 10 minutes of Sat-
urday’s game was hard-fought,
with junior guard Stephanie
Prischak and Achesinski leading
the charge.
Halfway into the period after
three lead changes and one tied
game, the Lakers trailed by just
one point.
Wayne State fired up its
offense, scoring four three-
pointers in five minutes and
had a 10-point lead at the half,
44-34. Both teams were evenly
matched with points in the paint
but Wayne state capitalized on
15 points from turnovers com-
pared to the Lakers’ three.
The Lakers struggled against
Wayne State in the second half.
The Warriors pushed the
offense and pulled away to earn
leads by as many as 29 points.
Achesinski went to work in
the second half to keep the
Lakers alive, scoring 22 points
and grabbing six rebounds.
Jan. 30, 2008
Wayne State’s sophomore
guard Brooke Bowers also had
a sensational game, scoring a
team-high nine three-point-
ers toward her career-high 35
points.
Bowers also brought down
four rebounds and played the
longest collegiate game thus far
with 38 minutes.
Following Achesinski’s lead,
sophomore guard Mara Drei-
ser contributed 20 points and
five rebounds, while sophomore
guard Stevie Spetosky tallied
eight points and four rebounds.
The game against Wayne
State was a big improvement
from Thursday’s game against
Hillsdale.
The Chargers pushed that
pace on the Lakers for 40 min-
utes and at the end of the game
only one Laker, Dreiser, scored
in the double digits.
The Lakers held their own
against Hillsdale for six minutes
until they let 17 points go unan-
swered.
The Chargers capitalized on
22 points from the Lakers’ 21
turnovers in the first half.
Hillsdale outscored Mercy-
hurst by 24 points and the Lakers
could not come back from that
deficit in the second half.
The Lakers could only come
up with three more points in the
second half than the first with
20, but managed to cut down on
their turnovers with just 12.
Offensively, Dreiser had help
from Prischak and sophomore
guard Paris Pugliese with nine
and six points, respectively. Spe-
tosky added four points and a
career high nine rebounds.
With the week’s losses the
Lakers will look to improve
to pick up the pace in the last
stretch of the season.
“We have goals that we are
going to work on for the next
seven games,” said Spetosky.
Mercyhurst will try to accom-
plish those goals against North-
wood in the MAC on Thursday
at 6 p.m.
Jan. 30, 2008 SPORTS PAGE 29

Men’s hockey now five points out of first

By Chris Davis
Sports editor

Mercyhurst College men’s

hockey is very familiar with
overtime games this year as they
picked up two more ties against
Bentley College in Waltham,
Mass. this weekend.
It marked the seventh time
that the Lakers have been taken
to the extra session this season,
as stalemates occurred during
the last four overtime games.
Both Friday and Saturday’s
games turned out to be identical
outcomes, ending with 3-3 ties
on both nights.
With still a month of impor-
tant conference games left to
be played, the Atlantic Hockey
Association (AHA) has the con-
ference title slowly narrowing
down to a fascinating battle.
Even with the two ties against
Bentley, the Lakers moved a
point closer to first place on
the weekend. Now trailing first-
place leading RIT by only five Jim Cooper photo

points.
“The one thing I look at is
that us and Sacred Heart have
the least losses in the confer-
ence and to me that is the magic
number,” head coach Rick
Gotkin said.
“We want to have the least
losses in the conference and if
we can do that will be in great
shape.”
“I like the character of our
team and the way we battled,”
he said. “Everything we want
to accomplish is still very
attainable.
“We’re finally getting some
production from guys that we
need to get production from,”
he said refering to sophomores
Chris Risi and Cullen Eddy,
along with junior Matt Pierce.
Lakers’ junior goaltender Matt
Lundin helped the Lakers, who
were outshot in both games, to
come away with a pair of ties.
Lundin made a combined 77
Freshman Steve Cameron (32) helped the Lakers by scoring the game tying goal in Friday’s 3-3 stalemate. That goal gave
him his sixth of the season to go with his four assists for a total of 10-points.
saves during both games and
now stands with an individual
record of 5-7-4 on the season.
Mercyhurst opened Friday’s
AHA contest battling from
behind, as Bentley scored 5:31
into the game on a goal by
freshman Erik Peterson.
Bentley’s lead would not last
for long, as the Lakers roared
back less than two minutes later.
Mercyhurst scored two goals
in less than 35 seconds to take
them a 2-1 lead.
Eddy put in the first Laker
goal and Risi added his first goal
of the season to give Mercy-
hurst to a 2-1 lead heading into
the second period.
Bentley would catch momen-
tum in the second period; first
tying up the game and then
regaining the lead 3-2.
Justin Kemmerer tied it up at
two, before Peterson netted his
second goal of the game to put
Bentley ahead heading into the
second intermission.
Mercyhurst would then
receive an answer from fresh-
man Steve Cameron, who tied
up the score with 17:37 to go
into the third.
The goal happened six sec-
onds after Bentley’s Dustin
Cloutier’s two-minute roughing
penalty expired.
The score stayed that way
throughout the rest of regula-
tion and overtime.
In the tie the following day, the
Lakers would draw first blood
when they received a power play
goal from Pierce with 12:39 to
go in the first period.
The lead stayed intact until
Peterson came to the rescue of
Bentley by putting in his first of
two goals of the game and third
of the weekend.
Bentley gained its first lead
of the game four-and-a-half
minutes later on a Jeff Gumaer
goal.
Mercyhurst answered with
a goal of its own from sopho-
more Neil Graham to tie the
game 2-2.
Nothing major would happen
until the 15:35 mark of the third
when the Lakers thought they
would get a victory after Pierce
found the back of the net with
his second goal of the game.
But Peterson replied with a
goal with 13 seconds remain-
ing in regulation to tie the
score 3-3.
“Its been a tough grind, but
our guys have battled pretty well
through this thing [the first four
games of the six-game road
trip],” he said.
“And even though were 0-1-3
and the one game we lost was
by a goal, we could be talking
about being 4-0.”
“We had a penalty shot and
two breakaway opportunities
that we didn’t capitalize on,”
said Gotkin.
“We have to bear down and
make our opportunities to score
to count because you don’t get a
lot of opportunities.”
Mercyhurst will travel to Holy
Cross in Worcester, Mass. to
play this Friday and Saturday.
They return to the Mercyhurst
Ice Center Feb. 8 and 9 for a
two-game home stand with the
Air Force Academy.
 PAGE 30 SPORTS Jan. 30, 2008

Laker Sports ‘Quick Hits’

Last week’s results...

Men’s b-ball dominant
Men’s basketball………………................……................Jan. 24, W 59-58, Hillsdale Lakers move to fourth place in GLIAC South
with wins over Hillsdale, Wayne State
Jan. 26, W 68-60, Wayne State
Women’s basketball…….............………….....................Jan. 24, L 71-37, Hillsdale
Jan. 26, L 93-73, Wayne State
Men’s hockey………….................................……………..........Jan. 25, T 3-3, Bentley
Jan. 26, T 3-3, Bentley
Women’s hockey……………….......................................Jan. 25, W 7-1, Quinnipiac By Christine Mersch
Jan. 26, W 7-0, Quinnipiac Staff writer
Wrestling..........................................................Jan. 25, W 25-14, UNC Pembroke
Jan. 25, W 40-3, Anderson
Jan. 26, L 20-12, Newberry The state of Michigan treated
Jan. 26, W 33-10, Carson-Newman the Mercyhurst College men’s
Men’s volleyball……………………..........................................Jan. 25, L 3-1, Juniata
Jan. 26, L 3-0, St. Francis (PA)
basketball team very well this
past weekend, as the Lakers
defeated two GLIAC oppo-
Agosta/Pogel athletes of the week nents, Hillsdale University and
Wayne State University.
Women’s hockey sophomore Meghan Agosta and wrestler junior Brian Pogel On Thursday the Lakers
earned athlete of the week honors. Agosta earned athlete of the week for the
second straight week, picking up eight points on the weekend (five goals,
(10-10, 4-6 GLIAC) arrived
in Hillsdale looking to snap a Junior Brian McTear Senior Terry Smith
three assists) in a weekend sweep of Quinnipiac. She leads Division I with 36
goals and ranks second with 2.23 points per game. three-game skid. They ended
Pogel picked up three pins at the East Coast Duals as he went 4-0, helping their losing streak in dramatic Lakers the victory. rebounds.
the Lakers to a 3-1 record on the weekend. He currently leads the team with
fashion by topping Hillsdale 59- McTear finished with nine At this point, McTear took
23 wins on the year and is ranked No. 3 individually at 149 pounds. over scoring eight straight
58. points, seven rebounds, four
Hillsdale (10-7, 5-4 GLIAC), assists and four steals. points in three minutes to build
Men’s basketball team of the week
entered the game ranked first in Senior Terry Smith led the a 58-53 lead.
Men’s basketball moved into fourth place in the GLIAC South after a week- the GLIAC in scoring, trailed Lakers with 21 points and 10 The Lakers spent the rest of
end sweep of Hillsdale and Wayne State. These victories have positioned Mercyhurst at the half, 32-26. rebounds, his first double- the night at the line, sealing the
the Lakers for a run at the conference playoffs. Mercyhurst picked up a double of the season. victory with foul shots.
59-58 win at Hillsdale on Thursday and then defeated Wayne State 68-60 The Lakers pushed their lead
Saturday. to eight with two minutes left in Sophomore Ryan Bradford Smith chipped in 16 points
the contest. once again had a strong perfor- and four assists and senior T.J.
Women’s hockey now tied at No. 6 in USCHO.com poll However Hillsdale stepped mance, finishing with 12 points. Mathis finished with 15 points
up its intensity and quickly cut Carrying momentum into and five rebounds for the
Team (First Place) Record Pts Last Week
the lead to three with three free Saturday’s game against Wayne Lakers.
1. Harvard (6) 17-1-0 139 2 Mercyhurst shot 52 percent
throws and a lay-up from Evan State (9-9, 3-7 GLIAC), Mer-
2. New Hampshire (6) 21-3-1 135 1
3. Minnesota Duluth (3) 22-3-1 131 3 Steward. The Lakers responded cyhurst was able to turn a three from the field and hit 12-of-15
4. Minnesota 19-4-3 102 4 by committing a turnover, a pair point deficit with six minutes free throws.
5. Wisconsin 18-6-2 86 5
of personal fouls and a techni- remaining into a 18-7 run to “Our team picked up two
6. Mercyhurst 19-5-2 71 6 big wins this weekend,” said
cal foul in a nine-second span. close out the contest and come
6. St. Lawrence 19-7-0 71 7
8. Connecticut 16-4-4 38 8 These gave Hillsdale an away with a 68-60 win over the head coach Gary Manchel. “It
9. Clarkson 18-5-3 25 NR opportunity to take control with home team. is good to see that our team
10. St. Cloud State 15-7-4 21 9
47 seconds left. McTear once again took con- continues to improve each and
Steward answered by sinking trol of the contest in the final every week.”
Athletic department to honor past men’s basketball teams minutes, scoring 10 of his team- “We look forward to coming
three straight foul shots to tie
The Mercyhurst athletic department will honor the successes of the 1972- the game at 58. high 20 points in the final six back home and making a play-
73 and 1977-78 men’s basketball teams and their late head coach Dick Then the Chargers found minutes. off run,” he said. “We have two
Fox on Saturday for the first “Back To The Future” day. The teams will be Keith MacKenzie for a go- During the first half, the more tough games this week-
recognized at halftime of the Laker men’s basketball game against Saginaw Lakers were up as many as 18 end.”
Valley State, which begins at 3 p.m. in the MAC. The athletic department is ahead, three-point try.
also asking for all fans and students to dress in their 1970’s-style clothing, However his shot was swat- points until Wayne State was “Winning on the road is hard,
with prizes that will be awarded to those judged to have the best outfits. ted away by Mercyhurst junior able to get within seven, 35-28, so getting two wins gives us
Brian McTear with five seconds at the break. confidence to go on a winning
Lundin, Cameron and Pierce make AHA honor roll left and the Lakers gained pos- The Warriors took the lead streak with four home games in
session. in the second half with 9:17 a row,” said senior Luke Hand-
Mercyhurst freshman forward Steve Cameron, junior goaltender Matt Lundin ley.
As time expired, McTear was remaining after Wynn Sarden
and junior forward Matt Pierce were named to the Atlantic Hockey Associa-
tion (AHA) Honor Roll. All three played key roles in helping the Lakers land a fouled. Heading to the line for hit a jumper to push Wayne The Lakers begin a four-game
pair of 3-3 overtime ties against Bentley over the weekend. the first time that evening, he State ahead 51-50. Sarden fin- home stand starting Thursday
sank his free throw, giving the ished with 23 points and 10 against Northwood at 8 p.m.
Jan. 30, 2008 SPORTS PAGE 31

Women’s hockey picks up two impressive wins

By Kyle Craig
Staff writer

Any team bidding for a play-

off spot would love to have a
true leader step up and take con-
trol, giving the team needed con-
fidence when it matters most.
This year’s Mercyhurst women’s
hockey team has found that and
more out of sophomore Meghan
Agosta.
Over the last four games,
Agosta has posted 10 goals and
received Athlete of the Week
honors in back-to-back week-
ends. With the team needing
near-perfection in their remain-
ing games, Agosta has risen to
the challenge, leading the women
to a five-game winning streak
with a sweep of Quinnipiac 7-1
and 7-0 last weekend.
Since their last loss at Provi-
dence, the Lakers have gone on a
tear, outscoring their opponents
26-6 with an average win differ-
ential of four goals.
Freshman Cassea Schols and
junior Valerie Chouinard each
added two goals of their own
while senior Danielle Ayearst
knotched her first goal of the
year on Friday night.
Mercyhurst never looked
back against Quinnipiac, as they
jumped out to an early 5-0 lead
in the first period, with assists Scoot Williams photo

coming from seven separate
Lakers.
Early in the second period, it
looked as though Quinnipiac was
going to be able to break out of
the Mercyhurst defense chains
after a goal by Breana Burton.
However the goal mearly gave
the Lakers more motivation to
knock the Bobcats out of con-
tention, as Chouinard scored the
final two goals in the game in the
second and third periods. Also
coming up big for the Lakers was
junior Natalie Payne, as she was
able to lend a hand four separate
times. In addition the five goals
in the first period gave junior
Junior Valerie Chouinard, who scored the final two goals in Friday’s 7-1 victory over Quinnipiac, attempts a shot during
Saturday’s 7-0 win at the Mercyhurst Ice Center helping the Lakers pick up a sweep.
Nicole Nelson a chance to shine need to simply control what we her scoring streak to 20 games, saves for Quinnipiac.
in goal, as senior Laura Hosier can control and let fate deal with as she mounted another hat-trick The Lakers have the week off
was pulled after the first period. the rest.” on back-to-back weekends. and will not return to play until
Nelson finished the night only Quinnipiac did not have much Freshman Jesse Scanzano also Feb. 8, as they will battle Wayne
giving up one goal and made more to look forward to on Sat- had a big night, as she posted the State. The Lakers will look to
eight saves. urday night, as Mercyhurst junior first two goals of the night in continue their five-game winning
“As a team, I expect us to Courtney Drennon looked to seal the first period, which gave her streak and keep a playoff berth
keep growing as a team and the home sweep. In possibly one nine on the year. This helped in their grasp.
individuals on and off the ice,” of her best games of the year, seal yet another CHA Rookie of “We need to take small steps
stated Agosta. “We continue to Drennon knotched her second the Week honor for Scanzano, forward to make us better,”
improve as a team and need to shutout of the year improving her fifth for the year. Mercyhurst stated Agosta. “We seem to con-
take it one game at a time. We her record to 5-1-0 with 15 saves outshot the Bobcats 62-15, as tinue to improve every time we
can’t look too far ahead as we on the night. Agosta extended freshman Tia Wishart posted 55 step onto the ice.”
PAGE 32 SPORTS Jan. 30, 2008

Laker sports

Basketball moves into

GLIAC playoff hunt with sweep
>> Page 30

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