SUNY Plattsburgh’s independent student newspaper since 1997
VOLUME 106 - ISSUE 10
FRIDAY, APRIL 29, 2022
CARDINALPOINTSONLINE.COM
Resident threatens Black student BY ALEKSANDRA SIDOROVA
Staff Writer
Plattsburgh City Police arrested resident Dustin Ormsby, 27, for verbally harassing a Black SUNY Plattsburgh student named David Harris April 14. Ormsby was arrested for aggravated harassment in the second degree. College President Dr. Alexander Enyedi addressed the incident in a message on the SUNY Plattsburgh Facebook page, reporting that the incident was being “investigated by City, State and University Police.” University Police Chief Patrick Rascoe, however, clarified that most of UP’s work was not in investigation, but in supporting Harris on campus, while the jurisdiction of the case lay with City Police. City Police Corporal Emily Duprey confirmed this. Enyedi’s message said the incident appeared to be “racially motivated.” Although City Police’s press report issued April 15 mentioned the use of racial slurs, the “racially motivated” nature of the case did not have an effect on how they processed it. “To us, everyone is handled the same,” Duprey said. “It shouldn’t matter who you are, what you look like. Everything should be handled the same.” Duprey said City Police followed Harris’ requests in handling the case. “There’s always room for improvement in absolutely anything that anyone does,” Duprey said. “When it comes to
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[this case], it was handled swiftly, quickly, and everything was done the way that the victim requested. To me, that was a good job, the way that they wanted it done.” Aside from pressing charges and being granted a stay-away order, Harris also specifically requested that Enyedi address the campus on the day of the incident and reviewed his message. Harris said he was “shocked” at how quickly the case was handled and how “genuine” both City and University Police were in their communications with him. He report-
ed that Rascoe called him and drove him away from his home for Ormsby’s arrest. Enyedi and Plattsburgh Mayor Christopher Rosenquest also personally reached out to Harris, and Rosenquest addressed the incident in a Facebook post. “As a Black man who was raised in Plattsburgh, I’m no stranger to being called the N-word. It saddens me to see this still happening in our community,” Rosenquest wrote. Harris said he had a “love-hate relationship” with law enforcement due to traumatic personal encounters in the past and
the portrayal of police in the media. “I’m glad I gave the system a chance to work out and it did work out,” Harris said. “I think that just speaks volumes of itself.” Harris said he thought of privilege while reflecting on the incident. A brother at Phi Beta Sigma, a historically Black fraternity, and an active member of the SUNY Plattsburgh community, Harris has many connections, which he thinks may have influenced how the incident was treated. “I am very well-connected with a lot of different people, different
groups, and I just wondered: if I wasn’t involved as much as I am involved, would I have gotten the same treatment? Would I have gotten the same speed of reaction?” Harris said. “I do think there needs to be a level of priority in terms of answering the call equally for everyone, you know what I’m saying?” Harris shared advice for students who may find themselves in similar situations to his. “I feel like that’s something that definitely needs to be talked about — not always being violent, not always ready to put your
hands on someone, or ready to retaliate,” Harris said. “I would advise people to really think before they react, and really process every possibility that would happen after you react.” Harris shared how the incident could have looked had he retaliated to Ormsby: “I felt like, in an act of retaliation, [my] situation could have went really left. I could have went over there, and we could have engaged in a physical altercation, and then [Ormsby] could have had a weapon that I wasn’t aware of. I’m on his property, so now I become the perpetrator, and now the narrative has changed. What started as a racial slur and a threat on my life ended up becoming now I’m on his property inflicting violence.” Although overall “definitely satisfied” with how the incident was handled, Harris said State and City Police could have done more. Harris explained that City Police know Ormsby to struggle with mental health and to have violent episodes. Prior to the incident, Ormsby called the police on Harris, having misunderstood Harris’ wave for a rude gesture. “If the police are aware of the situation, I’m just wondering what more would they need in order to put him into a place where he can get the help and care that he needs,” Harris said.
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Professors join Ramadan observation BY LARAIB ASIM Staff Writer
As the days get longer, so does the fast for Muslim students and faculty at SUNY Plattsburgh. The fast, which starts at about 4 a.m. every morning and ends at sunset around 8 p.m., lasts almost 16 hours every day. “Despite the physical challenges, we [Muslims] fast with enthusiasm.” Iman Ahmad, a Muslim student, said. “We are learning important skills such as patience and empathy.” Over the course of the past few days professors from different faculties have been invited to come have iftar (evening meal that breaks fast) with students. On April 15, Professor Wanda Haby from the School of Business and Economics (SBE) was invited for iftar at Kent Hall — where the first floor’s teaching kitchen is being used for arranging iftar. As someone who is familiar with Islamic culture, she was ecstatic to experience it here on campus and see how the students have bought it together. “I think the insight into the student experience here at SUNY Plattsburgh [was intriguing],” Haby said. “I was surprised by all the different countries the
students represented and all of the different mother tongues, the different languages the students spoke but [despite that] you all were one family and you all communicated in English even though you celebrate [the faith] differently.” On April 21, Professor Haby was invited again, this time with Professor Mohamad Gaber from the SBE joined students at iftar. Whilst Haby was unable to attend due to time constraints, she showed her love and support for the students by dropping by Kent Hall a few hours early to drop by food items that she had bought specifically for the students from the Arab market from Albany. Mohamed Gaber, professor and chair of accounting, also attended the event. “I joined more than 20 oncampus students and shared food and thoughts in a collegiate and peaceful environment. What was also amazing to me is to see so many students from different countries with different cultures, and all share the joy and festivity with Breaking our fast after day-long fasting.” he said. “I had the pleasure of seeing some students for the first time, and all in all we did represent more than 10 different
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Provided by Ebtisam Mohamad
Students pose at the gathering to observe Ramadan. They fast for 16 hours a day during this time. countries on that day. Students worked so hard all day long to cook several types of food and sweets. Everything they have done was beyond amazing.” Professor Curt Gervich, his wife Professor Amy Gervich and their two young children Eloise and Jacques Gervich came to experience the diverse iftar one Sunday evening. Afterward, ev-
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eryone played Morrocan games and talked about various cultural differences. The evening was buzzing with happiness and was a relaxing way to end the night. Members of the GEO office and Ebtisam Mohamad, Muslim student in her senior year have been persistently trying to reach out to a local Imam
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(the person who leads prayers in mosques) to come lead the students in prayer. Throughout Ramadan, Muslim students Sabit Muderis and Shahidul Islam led students in prayer during the last two prayers of the day whenever possible.
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NEWS
News Editor Olivia Bousquet
Friday, April 29, 2022
Students vote down SA fee BY OLIVIA BOUSQUET News & Managing Editor
April 15 The grounds supervisor reported damage to the grass at 76 Broad Street. The investigation is closed.
April 16
An individual reported to University Police damage to her vehicle’s front bumper and headlight in Lot 18. The investigation is still pending.
April 18
University Police received a damage report from the janitorial staff. They reported damage on the wall of the 6th floor of Moffitt Hall. The investigation is pending.
April 19
A community advocate in Moffitt Hall reported broken glass to the kitchen door on the fifth floor. The investigation is pending.
April 23
University Police conducted a traffic stop for a headlight. This resulted in determining the vehicle was uninspected and registration suspended. The vehicle was towed, and the driver was ticketed.
Weekly Meme
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Campus COVID-19 Tracker Number of positive COVID-19 cases within SUNY Plattsburgh community*:
20 *Results reflect from campus administered and noncampus administered testing for students and employees present on campus.
CP Corrections There are no errors to report this week. If you see an error in Cardinal Points, email cp@cardinalpointsonline.com
The biggest statement at the Student Association senate meeting April 20 came from Adviser Jacob Avery while addressing the Student Association mandatory fee being voted “no” for next academic year. The SA fee supports services such as the shuttle bus, extended library and learning center hours, events and Greek life. However, for the SA elections, 54.6% of 1,011 voting student participants voted “no” for the mandatory fee. Avery started his statement at the end of the SA meeting by saying he was at a loss of words. The vote against the mandatory fee shows the voting student population doesn’t deem the fee as a necessary expense, which would remove many purposes of the SA. Avery said it was “disgusting what happened here,” and asked “why is the SA here?”
“If I was in your shoes, I would be embarrassed,” Avery said to the SA senators. In other SA news, the finance board approved setting the SA mandatory fee at $80 per semester for the 2022-23 fiscal year. The $80 was based on the money spent within the past year, but it was the lowest it could be without jeopardizing the budget. With the current failed mandatory fee, students would be able to decide not to pay the fee. The senate voted and approved of the $80 fee. The senate voted on recipients for two awards. The first was for the Nancy Racette Award, which is awarded to a supporting staff member of the Student Association. There was no nomination for this, and it failed in the voting process. The other award was for William D. Laundry Award, which is awarded to a professor, administrator or faculty. The award had three nominations who were Dr. Camelo, director of the health cen-
ter; Amanda Suriel, the international student adviser in the Global Education Office; Jim Sherman, assistant director of community living and campus housing, and Leah Sweeney, the interim director of events management. The senators wrote one of the nominated names on a blank piece of paper, and the results were tallied by Avery. The recipient will be announced at the end of year banquet. A finance board officer presented the updated finance board policy. There was a change for the art in the voting for the coordinator position. This was decided during the SA election with 88.4% participants voting yes. The change allows for the position to be either elected or appointed rather than solely elected by the student body. Email OLIVIA BOUSQUET cp@cardinalpointsonline.com
Chartwells to increase pricing BY ALEKSANDRA SIDOROVA
Staff Writer
Chartwells, the company providing campus dining, hosted a focus group to with Housing and Community Living at Moffitt Hall Thursday, April 21. The event was open to students living in DeFredenburgh, Moffitt and Wilson Halls. Currently, the Anytime Dining + $125 meal plan all freshmen are put on costs $5,300 per year, and according to an email sent by Moffitt Community Director (CD) Tylea McCarthy-Walker Monday, April 18, the price is set to increase in the coming academic year. Resident District Manager Christopher Mihalyi said meal plan prices increase almost every year. “We have to balance increases in costs of goods, procurement of those goods and labor in order to remain competitive,” Mihalyi wrote in an email. By hosting the focus group, Chartwells aimed to gather feedback on “how they can make the meal plan worth the price.” Ten students gave their
feedback on the variety, value, quality, customer service, healthy options and communications at campus dining locations. Students rated the categories on a scale from one to five and shared both complaints and constructive criticism. Quasi Gittens, a freshman majoring in TV-video production, shared many of his opinions. “I think [the Chartwells representatives] were very respectful, very nice, and I feel like something will be done,” Gittens said. “I know that there will be a change.” The primary criticism was the lack of variety in food, especially retail meals. They also said the campus dining locations offered few gluten-free, vegan and healthy options and were inconsistent with their food quality. Three Chartwells employees, Director of Dining Services Mark Brothers, Mihalyi and Marketing Director Amy Rascoe, were present to ask students questions and take notes of their feedback. Mihalyi said changes may be implemented by next semester. Chartwells will attempt to address specifi-
THREAT Continued from page A1 Although overall “definitely satisfied” with how the incident was handled, Harris said State and City Police could have done more. Harris explained that City Police know Ormsby to struggle with mental health and to have violent episodes. Prior to the incident, Ormsby called the police on Harris, having misunderstood Harris’ wave for a rude gesture. “If the police are aware of the situation, I’m just wondering what more would they need in order to put him into a place where he can get the help and care that he needs,” Harris said. English language arts major Carmen Martinez, a student since 2017, said she was not satisfied with how the school handled the incident. “I shouldn’t have to see activism from just another email,” Martinez said. “It’s very frustrating when there’s a problem, and the only thing that we get is an email.” Martinez said she wants to see more “ownership” from University Police. “I honestly wish [UP] would have sent out a message, too,” Martinez said. “I know it’s out of their hands, but as long as I know that they are at least trying to do their job and they’re trying to provide for students, then I can be OK with knowing that they’re still there.” Martinez noted that post-pandemic, there are fewer conversations about the issues that students of color face. She said it could be due to the pandemic, but mentioned it could be a “new normal” in students’ attitudes. “Having all those events, it didn’t solve the problem, but it made it easier to acknowledge that we have problems,” Martinez said. Martinez said it may be helpful to have more opportunities to discuss issues of race, color and ethnicity: planning more events at the H.U.B. to bring students together and integrating such conversations into classes. “I just know the campus tries,” Martinez said. “I think they really try to solve problems, but I think students are looking less for words and more for action. But the thing is, students don’t exactly know the
cally the top five to 10 points students most voiced. “We want to address everything, but we want to kind of get the lowhanging fruit as much as possible,” Mihalyi said. “If it’s quick to fix, if it’s straightforward, it makes it very straightforward for us to find a resolution. But also if something is more complicated but a lot of students are looking for that change, that’s worth the investment of time, too.” Mihalyi was satisfied with the number of attendees for the focus group, but hoped for more. “It was a very good conversation,” Mihalyi said. “Constructive criticism comes through. It’s exactly what we’re looking for, but these focus groups become even more successful if we have 30 people in the room, because it’s that many more students. While the opinion of five or six students matters very much, a large room to be able to bounce off ideas and have a constructive dialogue would have a larger impact.” Wilson CD Thomas Landon disagreed, saying multiple small-scale
events can gather more feedback by letting every student who attends be heard. Housing will conduct two more focus groups for the remaining residence hall. Mihalyi said there will also be an opportunity for offcampus students to voice their opinions, but such an event required more planning due to a lack of a “centralized office” aside from Fraternity and Sorority Life dedicated to off-campus students. According to Mihalyi, there used to be a “more comprehensive program” of gathering feedback from students before the pandemic. He said students had more “avenues” to share their concerns and feedback, making for a more transparent relationship between Chartwells and the student body. “We want to revisit the conversations because we really want the student voice to drive the development of the program,” Mihalyi said.
Email ALEKSANDRA SIDOROVA cp@cardinalpointsonline.com
solutions that they want. They’re looking toward other people because they realize that these people are older than them, probably wiser than them, and they really need help to the problems that they’re having right now.” However, Martinez also mentioned how it can be difficult for students of color to engage in conversations on race. “I think, when we talk about subjects with people of color, sometimes we’re worried,” Martinez said. “We get so many people who want to hear our opinions, but after a while, it feels like we’re just screaming into an empty void.” Martinez said the city may benefit from communitybuilding events and discussions on race beyond the campus. “I think it’s more often the wider community [at fault] than the campus. The campus is constantly striving — like, they’re really trying,” Martinez said. “People of color, when they’re students, they realize that they have all these resources on campus, but when they reach the outer world, they don’t have as many resources. I don’t know why, but it kind of makes you lose faith in Plattsburgh and your society because of that.” Yancy Carter, a junior English literature major from Chazy, shed light on the issue from the perspective of the North Country community. She explained that in the North Country, people tend to be separated not just by race, but income as well. “There’s no community. [People of different groups] are only ever together [if] they’re in an education setting,” Carter said. Harris believes SUNY Plattsburgh has power to advocate for its students when it comes to issues relating to diversity, and should use it. He suggested that the college work with city officials to “move [Ormsby] into another location that would be safer for students.” “I felt that the school does a great job of making sure that the students are safe and advocating for students,” Harris said. “Because SUNY Plattsburgh is more than a big part of this community, in the city of Plattsburgh, I definitely feel like there’s power within the administration, because the students here are the culture of Plattsburgh.”
Email ALEKSANDRA SIDOROVA
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FRIDAY, APRIL 29, 2022
Kendrick Lamar leaves hiatus, new music BY JEREMY BINNING Staff Writer
Kendrick Lamar is giving fans a new album next month announcing the release of “Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers” dropping Friday, May 13. This is set to be his fifth studio album, almost five years after his last album “DAMN.” was released. This is Lamar’s final album under Top Dawg as he is going to become a free agent after it drops. Both Lamar and Top, CEO of the label, have expressed that they both mutually agree to go separate ways as Lamar has done all he can for the label, bringing in major success. “DAMN.” was the number one album of 2017 according to Pitchfork.com and also received a Pulitzer prize for music. Fans have been flooding the rapper’s comments on Instagram for the past few years begging for a new album, however, Lamar was focused on other things. During his hiatus, he was heard on countless other projects such as his work on the Black Panther sound track and collaborations with fellow label mates like Baby Keem, including their most recent Grammy-winning song “Family Ties.” He was also nominated for an Oscar under the category, “Best Original Song” for his collaboration with Top Dawg artist SZA on “All The Stars.” Lamar is a household name in hip-hop and is highly respected by both fans and other artists, so it’s no shock that this album is projected to move about 350,000 equivalent units in the U.S. in its first week and
is also expected to debut at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart. Lamar sold 603,000 first-week from “DAMN.” This continued his streak of improving his first
for this release will come directly from this source only. As I produce my final TDE album, I feel joy to have been a part of such a cultural imprint after 17 years. The Struggles. The Success. And most importantly, the Brotherhood. May the Most High continue to use Top Dawg as a vessel for candid creators. As I continue to pursue my life’s calling.” This confirmed to fans that this was his final project under the label, but shows the mutual agreement between both parties as there is no love lost between the company and the artist. Kiyanna Noel, a junior majoring in journalism, is anticipating another classic album from the Compton rapper. “He’s different from other artists like Drake and other mainstream rappers because he makes the same hype music they make but he adds knowledge in his lyrics. It’s what separates him from everyone else,” Noel said. “Only J. Cole could be mentioned in the same sentence as him rap-wise.” Lamar has set the stage for this album being his biggest yet, with the increase in streaming numbers every year since his last album release. Lamar has nothing to prove but will give fans what they’ve been waiting for the last five years. For others in the music industry, it’s probably best to not drop music the same week a Kendrick Lamar alROLDNARDY NORELUS /Cardinal Points bum is releasing. week numbers after his two al- M.A.A.D. City. bums previously brought in Lamar announced the al324,000 and 242,000, respec- bum on his Oklama website Email JEREMY BINNING tively, from his 2015s To Pimp in a press release. The release cp@cardinalpointsonline.com a Butterfly and 2012’s Good Kid states: “All factual information
Elon Musk pays 44 billion for Twitter
Prank goes wrong during camping trip
BY JESS JOHNSON Opinions/Managing Editor
The richest man in the world recently claimed his stake in the social media world this past Monday, buying Twitter for $44 billion and causing users and executives to go into a frenzy. Elon Musk, the cofounder and CEO of Tesla, has plans to make Twitter’s company promote more free speech on the platform and encourage more users to have an active political voice. “I hope that even my worst critics remain on Twitter, because that is what free speech means,” Musk tweeted, April 25. According to CNN, Musk wants to “make Twitter better than ever by enhancing the product with new features, making the algorithms open source to increase trust, defeating the spam bots, and authenticating all humans.” He also discussed that he wanted to reform Twitter DMs, by implementing an encryption-like signal to avoid hacking of users’ messages. There are many problems with Musk buying Twitter. Musk is known by users to share memes, argue with politicians, and even call out different news outlets. He also has been controversial for leading users to believe he spread misinformation about COVID-19. He also has made some racy comments toward the LGBT community. As Twitter in the past has not had
BY MATTHEW WENDLER Contributor
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the tightest restrictions on transphobic harassment, many are worried the new changes Musk is making with free speech will allow a broader anti-transgender platform for discriminatory users. For someone who tweeted, “Pronouns suck,” July 24, 2020 to buy Twitter, it’s hard for users to have faith that regardless of Musk’s beliefs there will be equal representation and safety for all users. There also are concerns about rollbacks on Twitter’s previous agenda to stop hate speech, harassment, misinformation, extreme explicit content, and more. Previous founder Jack Dorsey had previously passed the CEO torch to Parag Agrawal, and the board of Twitter is in a time of uncertainty. According to Time magazine, “Musk will have the power to transform the board and fire key individuals who don’t align with his vision
for the platform.” As Musk has made public comments on how he does not have confidence in the management team of the company, he may choose to completely revamp the entire board. It leaves the employees in disarray of what may happen next. As users voice their concerns of Musk buying Twitter, one of the main critics is Musk not allocating some of his funds to help serious social issues, such as the Flint water crisis of April 2014, where residents did not have clean drinking water for a long period of time, and were not getting adequate help from the federal government. One user @JoshuaPotash stated, “One example that really summarizes Elon Musk is when he said he’d fix all the lead pipes in Flint and just donated water filters to 12 schools instead.” TWITTER l A4
It was an annual tradition for the men of the Martin Family to spend Father’s Day weekend in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. William Martin, his father Clyde, his 9-year-old son Douglas, and his 6-year-old son Dennis had entered the park June 13, 1969. His two sons were beaming as they exited the car and prepared to set out into the woods. This trip would be Dennis’s first camping experience overnight in the wilderness. The Martin’s hiked a few hours along the vast trails until they reached a point called the Russell Creek Shelter, where they would stay for the night. They were accompanied by another family, consisting of a father and his two young sons. Oddly enough the two families shared the same last name. It was around 4 p.m. the next day when the families arrived in an area of the park called Spence Field. The spot was located near a path called the Appalachian Trail, which ran along the border of Tennessee and North Carolina. This was the place they intended to camp for the night. To pass the time, the
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children decided to engage in a game of hide and seek. After 30 minutes of playing amongst the grassy meadow, the boys found themselves huddled together and plotting a prank to scare their families. The plan was to quietly sneak up near the men and jump out simultaneously with loud shrieks sure to surprise them. Worried his bright red shirt would give them away, Dennis was told to sneak in from another direction at a farther distance up the hill. William watched Dennis duck behind a bush close to the treeline near the Appalachian Trail. The
three men heard the boys discussing their plan and decided to play along with the prank. When the kids jumped out at them from a nearby bush, the men gave startled cries before bursting into laughter along with the children. All of a sudden, things got quiet. William looked around, expecting to see his son among the group or in the distance, but Dennis had not come out of his spot. William called out for Dennis and checked around the bush he last saw him by, but found no sign of the young boy.
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CARDINAL VOICE
Opinions Editor Jess Johnson
Editorial
Transgender rights restricted Transgender individuals are being discriminated against once again, as Missouri lawmakers hosted a public hearing April 21 where they introduced House Bill 2649. Discussion surrounded the notion that genderaffirming care should not be made available to young adults younger than 25 years old. The aim of the new revisions to the Save Adolescents from Experimentation (SAFE) Act, which currently only applies to people 18-years-old and under, is to restrict access to gender-affirming care for minors. This would include medical professionals prescribing hormones for transitioning transgender and nonbinary individuals, until at least their 25th birthday. According to The Hill, a U.S. political newspaper, a psychologist, Laurie Haynes — who supports conversion therapy, — testified the reasoning behind restrictions surrounding health rights. “Young adults under the age of 25 are unable
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to fully comprehend the “dramatic and drastic and irreparable” changes their bodies will undergo if they receive genderaffirming medical treatments like puberty blockers or hormone therapies,” Haynes said. The prefrontal cortex is not fully developed until the age of 25, therefore it is argued that decision making before then is skewed, as young individuals are still developing their minds. However, the Journal of the American Medical Association, released a recent study that found
that “receiving genderaffirming care, including puberty blockers and hormones, between the ages of 13 and 20 was associated with 60 percent lower odds of moderate or severe depression and 73 percent lower odds of suicidality.” Someone looking at gender reassignment surgery and medical treatments on young individuals from a macro view may only see that these changes are drastic and they do take a toll on ones body, looking at these changes possibly hap-
TWITTER Continued from page A3 Another issue that could have been helped by Musk is the existence of youth homelessness, specifically LGBT, that continues to be a growing problem. Some of the millions out of billions Musk has could have been donated to different outreach organizations for adequate housing, reformative programs, safety and education. Another twitter user, @It’sDanaWhite said, “Working in homelessness, youth homelessness, while watching one man spend $44 billion is a mindf—k.” Regardless of the critiques Musk has been getting online, he seems to be taking the punch backs very lightly. He shared a meme a day ago, of a fake tweet of him saying, “Now I’m going to buy McDonalds and fix all the ice cream machines,” with the caption, “Listen, I can’t do miracles, ok.”
CRIME Continued from page A3 The man began to panic and started heading west along the Appalachian Trail in a desperate attempt to find his son. Roughly two miles of ground was covered before William turned back without a hint as to where Dennis had gone. Clyde hiked a nine-mile trek to the nearest rangers station in Cades Cove and reported Dennis as missing person around 8:30 p.m. An overnight search was launched by the park, but a heavy rain storm hampered and added complications to the ranger’s efforts. What followed the largest and most extensive search in the park’s history. Over 1,400 people had volunteered to help look for Dennis, including the Army National Guard, Special Forces, the Knoxville Fire Department and Boy Scouts. Long periods of rainfall would occur throughout the search, causing many of the trails to flood and possibly washing away key pieces of evidence. The U.S. Army Green Berets were called in to help with the search and had a base established within the park. They had little communication with the park service workers and denied their offer to act as escorts. Some people question whether the Green Berets had found something not known to the public. A trail of child-sized prints were found leading to a stream in the park June 17, 1969. The prints indicated the person who left them had only worn one shoe. It was determined the shoe track was the same type Dennis wore the day he disappeared. Authorities dismissed the information and believed the tracks had come from one of the Boy Scouts helping in the search.
pening during puberty. However, it doesn’t matter if they are able to “fully comprehend it,” because that’s up to an individual’s personal journey with their identity, sexuality, and gender. Not only is this legislation affecting their physical bodies, but it would affect their mental health drastically. There’s nothing plausible to judge a person’s right to gender reassignment surgery. We cannot form our own opinions of someone else’s journey, as each is unique. If someone feels they do
not identify with their sex assigned at birth, and do not feel comfortable in their own skin — no matter the age— they deserve the right to change their physical body. Individuals having gender dysphoria or struggle with body dysmorphia, that hinders them from living day to day as they would like, have a human right in what is being done to their bodies and when. The right to our own bodies is not a political agenda, propaganda, or rouse in what makes discriminatory and bigoted individuals “comfortable.” By enacting these restrictions, legislators are forcing an individual to fit the mold of being cisgender, when they may be having an internal battle within themselves as a child. That child is developing into who they want to become. It can already be a confusing time for someone when they feel they do not identify with their birth sex. Why do legislators need to make it more difficult?
Referring to the original 1885 soda invented by John Pemberton, that contained extract of a coca leaf, Musk also tweeted that same night, “Next I’m buying Coca-Cola to put the cocaine back in.” Musk can joke all he wants about these things, but at the same time the platform of Twitter and the attributes it offers to its users is no joke. Users go on to Twitter because it is a safe space for creators, for conversations, and to see the daily news in the funniest ways. Users make memes viral on the app, use it for daily happiness, and relate to each other daily. With Musk as the head of the platform, who knows what’s next. According to his plan, “For Twitter to deserve public trust, it must be politically neutral, which effectively means upsetting the far right and the far left equally; the extreme antibody reaction from those who fear free speech says it all.”
As weeks passed, new information was uncovered about an odd sighting witnessed in the park the day Dennis disappeared. Harold Key was hiking with his family that day near an area known as Rowan’s Creek around 5 p.m. It was located roughly seven miles from where Dennis was last seen. Key claimed to have heard a loud, troubled scream in the distance as they advanced along a trail. Shortly after, Key’s son claimed he could see a bear and pointed towards a shape darting across the path. The shape, however, was not a bear, but a large, disheveled middle-aged man. He moved anxiously toward the bushes as though he was trying not to be seen and quickly made his way in the direction the Key’s came from. The man allegedly had something large slugged over his shoulder. When Key heard of Dennis’s disappearance, he reflected on the suspicious man he had seen and wondered if there was a connection. Key phoned the F.B.I. and reported the sighting, claiming he’d show them where this incident occurred. The F.B.I. later interviewed Key and told him not to tell anyone what he had seen. William found out about the Key family’s sighting through a reporter and became furious. Both the park service and the F.B.I. had agreed to inform William of all information they’ve gathered during the search. When asked for an explanation for why the sighting was kept from him, the F.B.I. regarded the sighting as irrelevant and claimed no one could make that distance on foot within such little time. A tracker for the park service named Dwight McCarter decided to investigate this claim and hiked the distance from Spence Field to Rowan’s Creek. He completed the trek in nearly 90 minutes, debunking the F.B.I.’s claim. William had also hiked the distance and made it at
Email JESS JOHNSON cp@cardinalpointsonline.com
roughly the same time as McCarter. Their investigation, as well as the sighting from the Key family, added to the belief of the idea that Dennis had been abducted. There is a legend told of a group of feral wildmen that live deep in the woods of the park. Some people suggest one of these men who had kidnapped Dennis and that the Green Berets were only called in to exterminate them. McCarter had made mention of one man that lived off the grid in the park, but he was hardly feral and stayed at a secluded cabin many miles out from Spence Field. The wildmen theory is interesting, but most likely comes from a minor detail taken out of context. In contrast, there are many people who believe that Dennis had just wandered off too far and got lost in the woods. The conditions he had to face through the nights he was alone could have caused him to die of exposure. While it sounds reasonable, it has to be questioned why Dennis would walk away, especially when his mind was already set on sneaking up and scaring his family. It was later found in 1985 that a man failed to report the discovery of a child’s skeletal remains in the park many years earlier. The man was illegally harvesting ginseng from the park at the time and didn’t originally report the find as he feared he’d be prosecuted. He claimed the skeleton was located by an uprooted tree in an area known as Big Hollow. An investigation was conducted there shortly afterwards, but too much time had unfortunately passed and the remains were unable to be located. The search for Dennis Martin was called off Sep. 11, 1969 with no true explanation for his disappearance.
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News Editor Olivia Bousquet
MUSLIM Continued from page A1 On April 22 when two Imams were able to drive from a nearby prison to visit the students and break their fast together, it created a lot of excitement from the students. After iftar, approximately 20 students gathered around to pray in congregation with the Imam’s who, aside from the last two prayers of the day, also led Taraweeh Prayer (a specific prayer prayed during Ramadan). From the first Zoom meeting hosted by Jacqueline Vogl, Chartwells along with College Auxiliary Services (CAS) has been actively supporting Muslim students gain momentum in their plan to celebrate Ramadan during iftar. CAS through Campus Housing & Community Living had arranged for Kent Hall’s teaching kitchen located on the first floor. It was decorated with lights and Ramadan-themed banners and became the hub for a community of students and faculty to come and celebrate the Holy month. Christopher Mihalyi, the representative of Chartwells was in direct communication with Ebtisam (Sam) Mohammad, a double majoring in Computer Science and International Business. He realized that Chartwells could “supply them [Muslim students] with an entire experience to have an observation of Ramadan become more successful” rather than just keep Clinton Dining Hall open for a few more hours. Through the pre-existing meal sign away program,
students could provide a list of ingredients they require every week which would in turn be traded for meal swipes. A roster of approximately 15 to 20 students was provided to Chartwells to allow them to make an accurate decision regarding the quantity of ingredients provided. The meal swipes of the students on the list who were on the Anytime Dining Plan was to be used. Concern arose among the students who were on any one of the three flex meal plans when their meal swipes were deducted daily as this was not a part of the agreement. When Sam communicated the problem with Chartwells and alerted them that some students were worried about their depleting balance not being enough to last the semester, they were quick to respond to the situation and within 24 hours resolved the issue with CAS to ensure food security. The students were not compensated for the meal swipes they had lost (approximately 14 swipes), but after April 18 only students enrolled in the Anytime Dining Plan were a part of the meal sign away program. “Sam had communicated with those students and the balance they had left — we checked with CAS — was more than enough to carry them through the semester. So, there was no reimbursement but there was an acknowledgement [to ensure] that their need for the rest of the semester [was met].” Mihalyi said. Catherine Keleher who represents CAS said, “Our staff member who was looking into it, Evelyn, offered to Sam to meet with any of the students who had questions or concerns
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NEWS
Friday, April 29, 2022
Provided by Ebtisam Mohamad
Muslim students pray for Ramadan. After eating iftar, Muslims offer the fourth of the five daily prayers. about their meal plan.” When talking about the success of this event that was planned weeks before Ramadan began, Mihalyi said: “Chartwells and CAS wants to do nothing more than to give the students the experience that they are looking for, to better contribute to the college experience.
But it is a two way street [in terms of communication] and I think Sam really owned it. Her ability to come in and chat with me, chat with Evelyn and CAS and Executive Chef Laura to make the event successful was why it was a quick turnaround.” He is hopeful that events like this will con-
tinue in the future. “The layout is very straightforward,” he said. “Where it can get refined in the future is probably expanding on what we can procure and what we can get to make the events more inclusive in terms of the food aspect.” He hopes that students can reach out to Chart-
CARDINALPOINTSONLINE.COM
wells and CAS and communicate their ideas as they are open to constructive feedback and willing to work together to help arrange events like Ramadan at Kent Hall.
Email LARAIB ASIM
cp@cardinalpointsonline.com
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News Editor Olivia Bousquet
NEWS
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Friday, April 29, 2022
This Week in Photos: Kids On Campus Photos By Olga Muka
SUNY Plattsburgh hosted an all-day event April 22 for all faculty, staff and student caregivers. The event featured a story time and picnic. All photos are from story time in Feinberg for 3 and 4 year olds.
CARDINALPOINTSONLINE.COM
FRIDAY, APRIL 29, 2022
Track, field takes second BY JESSICA LANDMAN Staff Writer
Photo provided by Rebecca Heller Romeo
Jack Bernie (2) tackles a St. Lawrence player during the championship game of a tournament in Potsdam.
Rugby hopes for national bid BY LIAM SAMPLE Staff Writer
The Plattsburgh men’s rugby team has put together a terrific run this season, boasting a 12-3 overall record and ended their regular season by going undefeated in four games at their recent weekend tournament April 24 in Potsdam. The team, which is a club funded by the recreation fee, is run by longtime Head Coach Sean Morgan. They have created tremendous success this season and are attempting to earn an invite to the Men’s Small College May Madness tournament, which is the national championship for the sport and takes place in New Orleans between
May 28 and May 30. The season is split into two, with both a fall and spring session. They went 5-0 in the fall, which made the players realize their skill. “We came into this year without any expectations about how far we would go,” senior captain Tyler Callahan said. “ I realized ‘oh wait, we have a chance to do something special with this group of guys.’ This mentality followed us into our spring season, going 12-3 and winning our Potsdam tourney today. To be honest, this is the hardest working group of young men I’ve ever been blessed to lead and play with.” To earn an invite, the National Collegiate Rugby (NCR) reviews Plattsburgh and the other teams across
the country. Then, the NCR dictates what teams are most deserving of spots in the May Madness tournament, announcing their selections May 5. The NCR oversees many levels of rugby from Division I to small colleges. Plattsburgh is considered a small college. “Plattsburgh rugby is all about heart and consistency. It doesn’t matter who, when, where we play, we come to every single game with the same intensity as the last,” Club President and junior Mike Barbagallo said. “Coach Morgan gives us the tools and we use them. I am very proud of the boys this season, we’ve come a long way.” With the sport being divided into many conferences, many of these allow automatic qualifications
to the tournament. Unfortunately for the Cardinals, their conference, the Upstate Small College Rugby Conference, does not allow for an automatic bid. This creates a difficult route for the team in getting an invite to New Orleans. Plattsburgh has sent in an application to the NCR for a tournament bid, as they attempt to grab one of the many “at large” spots with their stellar season. Callahan said the team feels they have earned a chance at the tournament, especially after their perfect weekend in Potsdam. The magnitude of winning this tournament is crucial as many feel it has pushed the team over the edge for national eligibility. RUGBY l B3
The men’s and women’s track and field teams traveled to Middlebury over the weekend to compete at the tri-meet. The sun was shining on the Cardinals as both teams took second place overall. The men finished with 80 points and the women ended the day with 83 points. “The Middlebury meet went very well in regards to the whole team,” team member Cameron Guiliano said. “Everybody was really supporting each other.” The meet opened up with the 4x100-meter relays. The men’s team, consisting of Micheal Meddings, Giuliano, Levi Sochia and Aidan Masten, finished second overall with a final time of 47.13 seconds. On the women’s side, Morgan Thompson, Deanna Zoch and Hannah Cluck crossed the line with a time of 53.51 putting them in second place. The next event was the 1,500-meter race with Noah Bonesteel, Logan Van Buren and Denali Rodriguez-Garnica. Bonesteel placed fifth overall with a time of 4:12.33 and Van Buren finished in seventh with a 4:20.37. Rodriguez-Garnica ended with a final time of 4:35.50. In the 400-meter dash, Cody Monnat took first place with a time of 51.16 seconds. Ethan Hodge, being the sole runner in his heat, finished in ninth with a time of 60.39 seconds. For the women, Aislyn McDonough ended with a time of 60.14 seconds putting her in fourth overall. Following the 400-meter was the 100-meter sprint. The only athlete competing for the men was Brexton Montville. He placed
first with a final time of 11.07 seconds. Deanna Zoch ended in sixth place with a time of 13.74 and Jasmine Piper finished with a time of 13.94 earning her ninth place. Running in the 800-meter race was Liam Gildea. He took 10th place overall with a time of 2:10.11. On the women’s side, Madison Myers finished in 10th place as well with a 2:34.62 and Natalia Castro ended with a time of 2:56.94 putting her in 11th place. “I think the one goal I’ve had that’s been consistent is every meet I’m like okay, I’ll get a season’s best and I always do,” Myers said. She was able to accomplish this by dropping five seconds from her previous time at Middlebury. Janyll Barber was the only Cardinal to compete in the 400-meter hurdles. She finished in second overall with a final time of 1:05.83. Following the hurdles was the 200-meter dash. For the men, Montville took first again with a time of 22.39 seconds. McDonough finished in seventh with a time of 27.43 seconds and Thompson crossed the line with a time of 28.05. Lastly, Cluck ended with a time of 30.46 and Katherine Berge was close behind finishing just .03 seconds after Cluck. The last individual event on the track was the 5,000-meter race. Micheal Brockway took second place with a time of 16:16.52 minutes. Justin Kumrow came in after him in fourth place with a time of 16:53.04. Kristen Thomas took third place with a final time of 20:30.22 minutes earning herself a huge personal record. T&F l B2
Men’s lacrosse breaks loss record BY COLLIN BOLEBRUCH Staff Writer
For the eleventh time this season, the Cardinals failed to win. The Plattsburgh men’s lacrosse single-season loss record was set in 2004 when it finished with an abysmal 1-10 record. That record was broken last week. On Saturday, April 23 when the Cardinals (3-11) lost to the Geneseo Knights (7-6) by a score of 4-12. This was also Plattsburgh’s eighth loss of eight or more points. Having already been eliminated from postseason contention, Plattsburgh holds the conference’s worst record at 0-5 while Geneseo holds the conference’s best at 6-0. Despite the losses, the Cardinals’ defense continues to exceed expectations. Out of the Knights’ 60 total shots, only 12 were connected. As far as most other statistics go, they were not in Plattsburgh’s favor. It saved 26 goals to Geneseo’s 12 — mostly the result of the difference in the number of shots. Platts-
DAKOTA GILBERT/Cardinal Points
After lossing the 11th game of the season, the Cardinals are looking to regroup and bounce back next season. burgh has led in turnovers 20-9, whereas the Knights had 31 ground balls to the Cardinals’ 12 and 16 faceoffs to its two. “We had good effort but we just couldn’t put the
ball in the back of the net, we couldn’t score. That was kind of like our big downfall of the game… our offense wasn’t creating enough,” attacker John Eiseman said.
Plattsburgh’s midfielder Gustav Rugg had his season-high in goals with two on four shots, followed by one each from midfielders Stephen Kane on 10 shots and Owen Lorenzetti on
four shots. Kane, Lorenzetti and Eiseman each had a team-leading one assist. Goalie Christian Bassi led in ground balls with three. He also tied with defender Justin Rocovich for
the most caused turnovers with one each. Bassi was Plattsburgh’s only goalie, saving 26 of 38 shots on goal. “Our goalie Chris Bassi has been balling all year long. He’s definitely the mainstay of our defense and the heartbeat of our defense. And just his approach as well has been awesome for us, like the guy where three hours before the game he’s locked in and in practices, he’s locked in,” head coach Andrew Hauk said. On the flip side, Geneseo midfielder Sean Byrne led with three goals on six shots. He was closely followed with two each by attackers Kevin Cook on 12 shots, Christian Marcello on six shots and midfielder Drew Liguori on three shots. Cook was the sole leader in assists with two. Face-off specialist Ryan Lee led in ground balls with 11 and defender Trevor Bollinger led in caused turnovers with three. Mark Pav was the lone goalie, recording 12 saves on 16 shots on goal.
MLAX l B3
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CARDINAL SPORTS
Sports Editor Garrett Collins
Softball season slowed
Friday, April 29, 2022
BY MELANIE LANZO Staff Writer
With doubleheader wins back to back, the softball team is ready for the final games to show everyone what they can do. So far, there have been two postponed games and one canceled game throughout the season. Those who follow the softball games probably have been wondering why the games were postponed. The two rescheduled games were supposed to be April 11 and 12 against Brockport. “The weather hasn’t been that great to us this year so games have been canceled or postponed. It is hard because we are already prepared to play,” Kristina Maggiacomo, the Cardinals pitcher/outfield player, said. Due to the weather that day, the games had to be postponed. For softball, it’s challenging to have good plays when the weather isn’t the best, especially in Plattsburgh where it’s not unusual to see snow in April. What first became a delayed game turned into
Baseball Vs. SUNY Oneonta April 29 3 p.m
Men’s/Women’s Track SLU Twilight Invite April 30 3 p.m
Women’s Lax at Oswego State April 30 1 p.m
Men’s Lax Vs. SUNY New Paltz April 30 1 p.m
Softball Vs. Fredonia April 29 3 p.m/ 5 p.m
Mens and Womens Rugby TNT Tournement 11:30 a.m. April 30 Memeorial Hall
Softball
School SUNYAC Geneseo 13-1 Oneonta 12-4 Cortland 11-3 New Paltz 11-5 Plattsburgh 7-7 Fredonia 6-8 Brockport 4-10 Buffalo State 4-10 Oswego 4-10
Record 27-3 21-10 20-12 24-14 11-15 11-23 11-17 12-20 9-22
Baseball
DAKOTA GILBERT/Cardinal Points
Catcher Danielle Torres and her teammates missed games from April 15-26. The Cardinals have had six games postponed. a postponed one, once the lightning flashed that day. After the rescheduling, the softball team was at 8-14 and 4-6 in SUNYAC play. They totaled eight points in league play, as they are tied for fifth place with four doubleheaders left to play on the SUNYAC schedule. After two more games, the game April 25 was canceled due to the weather again, this time the rain started earlier in the day. “When games get canceled or postponed, if we can still practice in any
way we do,” Maggiacomo said. “It is also a good time to catch up on homework and studying.” The team has been through alot this season, but their goal is to finish the season strong no matter how much work it takes. “I am proud that my teammates and I have kept fighting in close games. We play hard until the end,” Maggiacomo added.
Baseball Runs
Alex Kornblau Christian Lent Connor Gonalski
Hits
Kyle Cremin Alex Kornblau Christian Lent
Top Average
Alex Kornblau
cp@cardinalpointsonline.com
31 29 28 32 31 30 .449
Goals
Caroline Noia Lindsey Guzzetta Emily Caoili
Emily Caoili Caroline Noja Maddy Garcia
Runs
Claire Palmer Kristen Langdon Alexa Murray
Hits
17 12 10
Kristen Langdon Claire Palmer Julia Golino
31 24 22
Top Average Kristen Langdon
.356
Men’s Lax
Women’s Lax
Assists
Email MELANIE LANZO
Softball
23 23 21 16 9 8
Goals
Stephen Kane John Eiseman Zach Gill
Assists
Zach Gill Srephen Kane Micheal Swift
41 15 13 24 10 9
School SUNAYC Record Cortland 11-1 26-8 Oswego 11-1 22-7 Brockport 8-4 26-6 New Paltz 6-6 14-16 Plattsburgh 4-8 15-14 Oneonta 4-11 11-21 Fredonia 1-14 10-21
Men’s Lax
School SUNYAC Record Cortland 6-0 10-6 Geneseo 6-0 8-6 Brockport 4-2 9-4 Oswego 3-3 8-5 Potsdam 2-4 5-7 Oneonta 2-4 3-10 New Paltz 1-5 3-10 Plattsburgh 0-6 3-12
Women’s Lax
School SUNYAC Cortland 8-0 Geneseo 7-1 Brockport 6-2 Oneonta 5-3 New Paltz 4-4 Oswego 4-4 Plattsburgh 3-5 Buffalo State 1-6 Potsdam 1-7
Record 12-4 11-2 9-5 7-7 6-8 5-10 5-8 5-8 6-9
Women’s lax wins two out of three BY GARRETT COLLINS Sports Editor
This past week for the women’s lacrosse team has been anything but consistent. They opened up the week April 20 against the current 9th place team in the SUNYAC, and were already eliminated from playoff contention. The Cardinals have not yet been eliminated from playoff contention and at this point are fighting for their playoff life. The Bears, however, were not going to roll over and allow Plattsburgh to take an easy win. The Cardinals and the Bears went back and forth during the game, with the score margin never climbing past 4 goals. The Cardinals proved in this game that sometimes offense is better than defense. The scoring breakdown of the game was just as close as the score itself. Plattsburgh took 10 more shots
than Potsdam, and only 7 more than Potsdam were on goal. One stat that is apparent when looking at these two teams is the amount of times the two teams were able to successfully clear the ball out of their zone. Plattsburgh was able to clear the ball out of their zone 17-21 times compared to Potsdam only able to complete 14-29 of the clears which is a clear indication of why Plattsburgh was able to get more shots off. This led to more goals, which led to a nice win by the Cardinals. Later in the week, the Cardinals welcomed the number 23 team, Brockport Golden Eagles. Unlike earlier in the week, the Cardinals were not able to handle the sheer offensive side. The Golden Eagles outshot the Cardinals 40-17. After that the numbers don’t deviate much from each other keeping it close all throughout the statsheet. The Cardinals
were able to score twice in the first quarter. After that, the Cardinals were not able to find the back of the net until the fourth quarter. Although the showing for the Cardinals was not something they would like to ponder on, they didn’t have too. Three days later April 27, when New Paltz came to Plattsburgh. Although New Paltz didn’t have a playoff spot locked up yet, they are currently ranked fifth in the SUNYAC and seem to be next in line to pick up another playoff spot. If the Cardinals were going to make a statement. this had to be the game to do it. Although Plattsburgh wasn’t able to outshoot New Paltz, the Cardinals were still able to find the back of the net. The Cardinals found themselves in a rut midway through the second quarter being down by a score of 7-4. DAKOTA GILBERT/Cardinal Points
Rachel Lamar (12) is all smiles because her team won two out of three games. The WLAX B3 teams record is currently 5-8 on the season.
T&F Continued from page B1 Plattsburgh’s two relay teams, both for the men, finished the meet on the track side. The competitive race between Plattsburgh’s B team, consisting of Van Buren, Gildea, Hodge and Rodriguez-Garnica, and Plattburgh’s A team, with Bonesteel, Sean Grady, Jordan Perna and Peter Basile, was close. Team B took first place with an overall time of 9:15.28 with team A not far behind with a time of 9:25.25. In the field for high jump, Piper was the only Plattsburgh athlete. She jumped 1.37 meters taking fourth place. In the long jump, Masten was also the only Cardinal. He jumped a distance of 5.91 meters, landing him in fifth place. In long jump for the women, Barber took first with a jump of 5.36 meters. Kristen Boerke jumped 4.34 meters and Berge had a distance of 4.06 meters. Michaela Schaffer took ninth place with a jump of 4.69 meters. Schaffer also competed in the women’s triple jump. She ended in fourth with a jump of 10.40 meters. The throwing events started with the hammer throw. Jorge Cabrera took third place overall throwing 40.91 meters. Aidan Tous finished in fifth place with a distance of 36.48 meters and Spencer Trudo ended in sixth with 34.14 meters. The women had a clean sweep taking first, second and third. Kaitlyn Bjelko threw 36.20 meters. Piper had a distance of 33.94 meters, and Rhoads finished with 31.28 meters. Alaina Conners competed as well, ending in fifth place with 30.02 meters. Following the hammer throw was javelin. For the men, Tous threw 41.21 meters finishing in fourth just ahead of Cabrera who had a distance of 32.78 meters. Trudeau followed them, ending in sixth place with 28.65 meters. Micheal Meddings threw 24.04 meters, landing him in seventh place. For women’s javelin, Rhoads came in third with a throw of 29.52 meters and Bjelko finished in fourth with 27.37 meters. Finishing in eighth place with a distance of 17.93 meters was Boerke. Lastly, Berge ended in 11th place with a throw of 10.26 meters.
DAKOTA GILBERT/Cardinal Points
Runners leave their mark. The team had nine athletes qualify for SUNYACS in three different events at the tri-meet.
In the men’s shot put, Tous was the sole competitor and he took first place with a throw of 12.22 meters. Bjelko earned second place with a distance of 11.27 meters. Rhoads came in behind Bjelko with a throw of 10.37 meters and Berge finished in seventh with a distance of 5.17 meters. The final field event was the discus throw with Tous, Trudo and Cabrera. Tous took fourth with a throw of 33.92 meters and Trudo finished in sixth place with a distance of 29.88 meters. Coming in just behind was Cabrera with a throw of 29.25 meters. For the women, Piper ended in second place throwing 31.56 meters. Rhoads threw 28.79 meters earning her third and Bjelko finished not far behind with a distance of 27.72
meters. Conner finished in sixth place throwing a distance of 21.88 meters. Looking to the championship season, Tous said, “As long as we all just keep supporting each other and working together I think the team will continue getting better as the years go on.” The men’s and women’s track and field team compete at St. Lawrence next week beginning at 4 p.m. for a twilight meet. The SLU Twilight Invite will be the last meet before both teams head to SUNYAC’s. Email JESSICA LANDMAN cp@cardinalpointsonline.com
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Sports Editor Garrett Collins
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CARDINAL SPORTS
WLAX Continued from page B2
Although Plattsburgh wasn’t able to outshoot New Paltz, the Cardinals were still able to find the back of the net. The Cardinals found themselves in a rut midway through the second quarter being down by a score of 7-4. The comeback started out with a goal late in the 2nd quarter scored by Lindsay Guzzetta. After the clock started ticking into the third quarter the Cardinals turned on a switch and kept New Paltz at bay, not allowing them to score
Assistant Coach Peter Mullen yells to his team, even though the season looks lost.
MLAX Continued from page B1 “There’s a lot of confidence, we were having a lot of fun yesterday. No one was like nervous or anything. The confidence is there, it’s just the actions you put in,” Eiseman said. The first quarter opened up with rapid-fire shooting from both sides, with nine shot attempts in the first 6:10, yet the first goal did not come until Geneseo’s Byrne scored 9:19 in. Plattsburgh ended the quarter with six shots, five turnovers and zero goals. The quarter ended 3-0 Geneseo. The next quarter was also a scoreless one for Plattsburgh, which consisted of four shot attempts and seven turnovers. Geneseo kept piling on the
RUGBY Continued from page B1
“This season has been monumental for Plattsburgh rugby. We have exceeded our expectations as a unit and are crossing barriers we have yet to achieve as a program,” junior inside center Kevin Graber said. Plattsburgh played especially well against local teams. At their recent tournament, they beat Buffalo State, Ithaca, New Paltz and St. Lawrence in the finals. The Cardinals put up a 34-0 shutout in the final game to win the tournament. Their three losses in the regular season came to strong opponents. One loss came to Oswego, which plays in a Division I league. They were also taken down by Sienna twice, which the NCR ranks as the 10th best school nationally among all small colleges. “As the season progressed, we ended up beating all of the teams in our surrounding areas,” Luke Ovadias, who is former president of the club and still plays said. “At this point we and our loyal, invested alumni dubbed our team the
goals, totaling eight before the half. First-half scoring has been a problem for the Cardinals, but this is the first game of the season where they’ve gone into the break without a score. “Defensively, we were sliding and covering really well. Good goalie play as well. I think the things we struggled with were on offense. We have one guy who’s producing for us, but we just don’t have a lot of guys,” Hauk said. Just 3:28 into the second half, Plattsburgh struck gold as Rugg put its first points on the board. The third quarter was not much for action with only one other goal, from Geneseo’s Cook, being scored despite a total of 15 shots being taken. The fourth quarter was Plattsburgh’s most fruitful, scoring three of their total four goals. However, this was too little too late, and Kings of the North. This spring semester has been anything, but average for this current team.” No matter if Plattsburgh will get an invite to the May Madness Tournament, the future is bright. The team recruited 13 new members to the team this year and are trying to add more going into next season. “It’s surreal to say the least and to watch your team shatter all expectations and rise above all obstacles. It almost doesn’t seem real,” Ovadias said. The Cardinals will be playing in their annual TNT tournament April 30 behind Memorial Hall, many of their loyal alumni will be playing against the current team. “We earned every win and feel that we earned the chance to represent the North and show that we are that team to make a miracle,” Callahan said. “You know the ‘Miracle On Ice?’ We’re the miracle on the pitch, a small unknown college rugby club team from the Canadian Border of New York ready to take full advantage of our [potential] shot in the National Tourney.”
Email LIAM SAMPLE cp@cardinalpointsonline.com
DAKOTA GILBERT/Cardinal Points
Geneseo also tacked on three goals. The two traded shots until the game ended, with the Knights finishing as clear winners. “I think a big part of [the loss], you know obviously winning faceoffs, so only winning two out of the 18 faceoffs is kind of hard, you know, not getting the ball right away gives them a lot of opportunities,” Rocovich said. “Also clearing the ball. I thought we did very well on getting it up and out to our deep middies to our short-sticks getting it up the field. But we struggled when we got over the midline.” With two games left in the season, Plattsburgh can still win out and accomplish some things: create a winning locker room environment, gain some confidence and have fun for the seniors. A SUNYAC win would also raise the Cardinals off of the floor from the
conference standings. The Cardinals now travel to Potsdam to take on the Potsdam Bears (4-7) on Wednesday the 27th and come back home to take on the New Paltz (2-10) for the Cardinals’ senior day. The Hawks and Bears stand at a lowly combined 1-9 in the SUNYAC and are both very beatable teams. “So for now, our goal is to go out there and have fun, upset somebody and ruin somebody’s season or make a point for ourselves that we are a really good team. We just had some troubles early in the year that took a while to figure out. To just kind of mold our team and the culture into what we expect to be like next year,” Rocovich said.
Email COLLIN BOLEBRUCH cp@cardinalpointsonline.com
Friday, April 29, 2022
a single goal until 6:01 in the fourth quarter. By then for New Paltz it was too late. The Cardinals had already scored seven unanswered goals, and there was not much time for New Paltz to recover. The Cardinals went on to win the game 12-9. Although the Cardinals are still on the outside looking in, when it comes to playoffs, that won’t stop the Cardinals from competing. The Cardinals are sitting at 5-8 on the season which is something they can recover from and still find their way into the playoffs.
Email GARRETT COLLINS
cp@cardinalpointsonline.com
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FUSE
FUSE Editor Sydney Hakes
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Friday, April 29, 2022
Class lets students explore theater BY JOURNEY MYRICKS Contributor
Lyric scenes is a class offered at SUNY Plattsburgh for students interested in music and theater. It gives students the opportunity to perform on stage, be accompanying musicians or involved in stage management. There is a final performance at the end of the semester. Titled “Another Op’nin’, Another Show.” It will be performed May 6 and 7 in Hartman Theatre in Myers Fine Arts Building and will be free to the public. Seniors Miranda Velez and Mason Barber had some insight into the production process. “I think my favorite form of performing is being in a musical,” Velez said. “It’s the most amazing experience to put on such a big show. Lyric scenes is allowing us to have that musical experience with a bunch of different iconic pieces and dance numbers.” Barber chose to take lyric scenes because it was a performance opportunity he hadn’t taken yet. “It was offered my freshman year, but I was unable to take it. So when I saw that it was being offered again this semester, I had to audition,” Barber said. In the production, students don’t play
specific roles. “We all don’t exactly have roles, but we have solos,” Velez states. “Besides being a part of the ensemble, I have solos in one of our ensemble pieces called ‘America’
featured soloist in a number. Hard work and dedication is needed while working on such a large production. Working with other people can be challenging, but that doesn’t seem to be the case for these artists. “I feel really lucky to have insanely talented professors and peers to work with, so the practicing has honestly just been really fun,” Velez said. “I don’t typically dance, so the dancing aspect has been challenging but also a very fun experience and I’m starting to feel more confident.” As someone heavily involved in theater, Barber said this class is different than other productions. “Preparing for this show has been interesting,” Barber said. “We only rehearse during class time, so we have limited time together, but it is coming along.” Barber also stated that the audience should look forward to the excitement and energy that we will be bringing to the stage. “The audience should be excited to ZOE NGUYEN/Cardinal Points see lively performances of some of their from ‘West Side Story,’ and I will be sing- favorite musical theater pieces and ening a duet from the musical ‘Wicked’ with joy dance numbers,” Velez said. my classmate Olivia [Sorrell].” Email JOURNEY MYRICKS Barber is acting as an assistant direccp@cardinalpointsonline.com tor to Timothy Morningstar, and is a
FASHION Continued from page B6 Cardinal Foundation Seminar’s fashion and sustainability class led by Erika Guay, associate professor of theatre, held a table presentation in the Angell College Center Wednesday, April 20, raising awareness for sustainability in fashion. “This is the second time this class has been offered, and the first time we are tabling here for this movement. I am very excited to get the word out to the students here,” Guay said. The fashion industry is often regarded for its top designers and extravagant r u nw ay displays, however, there is a darker side that is overlooked. “Everyone thinks of oil and garbage when it comes to pollution, but the fashion industry is one of the largest contributors to longterm pollution,” Dan Weldon, a freshman majoring in cyber security, said. “Some companies even try to hide what they do.” This class offers students a new perspective on their wardrobes by teaching them how they can learn exactly where the clothes they own are made and what happens after it is disposed of. There are steps that people can take to lessen their own impact on the environment by looking closer at what companies you will support by buying from them and ways to eliminate the waste when it comes to retiring an article of clothing. “Upcycling is a big thing, repurposing old clothes,” Lily Robson, a member of the DANIELA RAYMOND/Cardinal Points fashion and sustainability class, said. “PeoKhadi Ba, Shawn Robinson, Erolyn Leitch and David Harris pose at the Yard Show. ple can learn to sew. Learning about what
Yard Show energizes Plattsburgh campus BY DANIELA RAYMOND Staff Writer
The courtyard in front of the Angell College Center April 23 was filled with bright colors and students circled up and represented their organizations in vibrant blues, yellows, red, green and orange. The 10th Annual Yard Show was hosted by the Sisters of the Sigma Chapter of Omega Phi Beta Sorority. The show featured performances by Divine 9 and Multicultural organizations and dance teams. The Divine 9 and Multicultural organizations community at SUNY Plattsburgh has been booming in the past 10 years. Students have found a community and lifelong friendships while pursuing and making a change for various social justice issues and bonding together over service. Sisters and brothers throughout New York traveled up to Plattsburgh to support each other. The event started with a short tabling session
where all the organizations set up their boards and assembled them outside, eager to show off their pride in their organization and answer any questions the public might have. The first share of performance included the Zeta Kappa Chapter of Lambda Theta Alpha Latin Sorority, Alpha Delta Chapter of Phi Iota Alpha Fraternity, Omicron Rho Chapter of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority and Beta Sigma Chapter of Lambda Upsilon Lambda Fraternity. Jacob Walcott, a junior biology medical science major and a brother of Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, performed in his first ever yard this past weekend. “Our performance has been in preparation for months, as we got closer to the date we were able to incorporate different ideas and strolls,” Walcott said.“I loved seeing brothers come up that I haven’t seen in a long time, so that love and support made the weekend extra special.” For many, this was their first experience seeing so many Divine 9 and mul-
ticultural organizations in one setting, especially in Plattsburgh. The organizations showcased their chapters’ histories through strolls, steps, chants and dancing. The evening was filled with motion, hype and excitement from the performers and everyone who came to support the event. Greek traditions such as the Yard Show are essential to the Greek community at Plattsburgh. With such a small Divine 9 and Multicultural community, there are few events for the students to display their passion for their organizations. Thomeisha Belle, a junior psychology major and a sister of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, performed in this weekend’s show. “Carrying on this show is a part of the tradition here, especially in Black community, this is such a big piece of our lives and this sisterhood means so much to me. I love showcasing it at the Yard Show,” Belle said. Email DANIELA RAYMOND cp@cardinalpointsonline.com
you are actually buying, where your clothes came from and who is making them.” Reduce, reuse and recycle is a familiar proverb and applying the same ideal to what’s in someone’s closets could have a great impact on the environment. One example given at the table was turning old tshirts into string bags. Another thing people can do is thrift. Second-hand shops offer accessible pre-owned clothing, meaning there is no money going to any company potentially damaging the environment. “People can learn better ways to shop, like really looking at what they are buying,” Ryan Weaver said. “They could also go to a thrift store and find basically the same stuff but a lot cheaper. When you think about it, there is no reason to buy a $80 shirt.” Members of the class handed out fliers with facts and questions about the clothing industry that should be pondered when buying and throwing away old clothes. The Fashion Revolution Week began in 2013 after a garment factory collapsed in Bangladesh. The movement is about creating a more conservative fashion industry that will contribute to the restoration of the environment, improve the working conditions, promote transparency and eliminate the throwaway culture built around fashion. “There is no such thing as ‘sustainable fashion’ because it’s already been manufactured and will eventually be thrown away,” Guay said. “But this class will teach you to be as sustainable as possible.” Email LUCA GROSS cp@cardinalpointsonline.com
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FUSE
FUSE Editor Sydney Hakes
Friday, April 29, 2022
Minor Adjustments takes back the stage BY SYDNEY HAKES FUSE Editor
As one of the few music related clubs on campus, Minor Adjustments A Cappella has been regaining their voice following the setbacks of COVID-19. For the first time since 2019, Minor Adjustments were able to host their spring invitational in-person. The invitation took place April 22 and consisted of multiple musical acts, including JEDI Dance Productions, the Gospel Choir and Cumberland Bay Barbershoppers. Sixty-nine tickets were sold, most being to friends and family. No matter the attendance, the group was enthusiastic to be performing live again. COVID led to the club having to put a hold on any live performances or in-person meetings. “When you sing, you’re expelling so much breath,” Executive Director Hadar Pepperstone said. “There are 11 people on stage and even if we were socially distanced and wore masks, it was particularly unsafe.” They transitioned to fully virtual practices and for the occasional performance would individually record their parts that would then be combined and mixed into a cohesive recording. Pepperstone and Liaison Michael Arcidiacono both stated the importance of keeping the club up and running during COVID, despite the challenges of being virtual. “I was worried that if we took a semester or a year off, we would lose the flow or the traction needed to keep a club running,” Pepperstone said. “And incoming freshmen would miss out on being able to join what
Photo provided by Minor Adjustments
Minor Adjustments performed their first in person invitational since 2019. is one of the few singing groups on campus.” For clubs or organizations at a smaller institution, like Plattsburgh, keeping steady attendance was already a challenge. With a significant drop in enrollment during COVID, this has become a bigger setback for the students who strive to keep their beloved clubs afloat. In fall 2017, total enrollment was listed at 5,719 students. The current SUNY Plattsburgh website lists enrollment at 4,738 students. Clubs, along with majors, organizations, sports teams and most other facets of campus, are being impacted by this significant loss of students to help support and continue these programs. Arcidiacono, whose title of liaison stemmed from his previous
role as secretary, spends a lot of time making freshmen and new members feel comfortable and involved in Minor Adjustments. “It’s also important to have that outreach because many of us aren’t actually music majors,” Arcidiacono, a childhood education major, said. “We come from all over campus and just have a passion for singing that brought us together.” Most current members have been involved in Minor Adjustments since their freshman year, saying that it was the first table they sought out at the Student Involvement Fair. Besides the passion for singing, what seems to have kept students involved for their entire college career up to this point is relationships they have built with one another.
Pepperstone, who joined as a freshman and is still involved now in her final semester, said that she attributed making many of her friends through Minor Adjustments. “We all hang out, get food together after practice, study together and a lot of us even live together,” Pepperstone said. “While we do work really hard, going to practice never feels like work. It’s always fun.” Sophomore Grace Ewing also joined Minor Adjustments as a freshman, and predicts she will be involved until she graduates. “I just love it,” Ewing said. “It’s a time commitment, as we meet Tuesday and Thursday from 8:30 to 10:30 p.m., but if singing is something you enjoy, I wholeheartedly recommend auditioning.”
Minor Adjustments holds auditions at the beginning of every semester. Those who want to audition should prepare two songs. The editorial board watches the performances and accepts or denies students on a multitude of factors. One of those factors is the balance that is needed with a capella. “Even if you have a beautiful voice, we can only take so many sopranos,” Pepperstone said. “I don’t want to discourage anyone from auditioning, as we always have students graduating and spots opening up. And we always need tenors and basses.” With almost two semesters of in-person performances under their belt since 2019, Minor Adjustments is finding their rhythm again. They often are asked to perform at events on campus. In the fall, they sang at the tree planting ceremony for the students of 2020. They also get opportunities to have fun with their song selections. A few of the eboards favorite songs they’ve done has consisted of “September” by Earth, Wind and Fire, “Holding out for a Hero” by Bonnie Tyler, which they perform annually, and they even did “Busted” from television series “Phineas and Ferb.” Minor Adjustments is a place for people who have a passion for singing and performing and have been lucky enough to develop strong friendships along the way. They urge anyone interested to audition in the upcoming fall semester.
Email SYDNEY HAKES
cp@cardinalpointsonline.com
BY SYDNEY HAKES
ARIES
March 21 - April 19
TAURUS
April 20 - May 20
GEMINI
May 21 - June 20
CANCER
June 21 - July 22
Because you’re able to tune into the thoughts and feelings of those around you, you will sense what they want to hear from you and what they want you to do. In an indirect way, giving others what they want and need will ensure that your turn will come, to get your own way.
LEO
Someone is about to make you an offer that is too exciting to resist. Conditions are now ideas for you to make new starts. You won’t think twice when given a chance to push ahead with work and professional affairs. A birthday or anniversary will be celebrated.
VIRGO
New rules may not apply to your role, but you might worry about what impact this will have on your job and in your workplace. Senior colleagues will agree to reflect on new procedures if it might seem there are too many concerns being shared.
LIBRA
It can be hard, at times, to maintain harmony but problems need to be faced and discussed. You would rather keep out of the mainstream of events but in doing so you are also reducing your chances to speak face to face with someone you need to talk to.
SCORPIO
July 23 - August 22
August 23 September 22
September 23 October 22
October 23 November 21
There are gaps in the workplace as some people leave and others are placed into new roles. You can see advantages in applying changes that have been discussed in the past. Decisions about standards and safety standards in particular will benefit staff and clients alike. A friend or someone you work with who is worrying all the time will have a negative effect on you unless you switch off from listening to them. If you know they have nothing to be anxious about you may have to accept this is a side of their nature you’re going to have to get used to. Someone who isn’t aware of all the facts will be too quick to judge and comment. It might sound as if they know what they are talking about but their views are distorted. In all situations check information, ask questions where necessary and come to your own decisions. You aren’t impressed with someone who wants to give up as soon as they encounter the first hurdle. You will want to put your all into a challenge you take on and if they can’t be talked into persevering, you will continue without them. Unlike a negative friend, you are determined to succeed.
SAGITTARIUS
Your challenge is to stay focused and avoid distractions. People are relying on you not to give up too easily. Your interest in local travel and communication can be of benefit to others as you share your knowledge in a team situation.
CAPRICORN
You hadn’t wanted to worry someone at home by revealing recent events that would cause them some concern. You’ve kept quiet about these for a reason but it will become apparent now they half suspect what has been going on and you need to come clean with them.
AQUARIUS
You can’t seem to do right for doing wrong. The more you try to resolve a contentious situation the worse it gets. It might be better to focus on something different for the time being. Hesitation will serve you better than direct action. It is not a good time to issue ultimatums.
PISCES
Getting a change of scenery will help you sort out your thoughts and work out how to cope with some painful memories. If you haven’t done or said anything wrong, why blame yourself for a recent misunderstanding? Ignore anyone who is trying to push the blame onto you.
November 22 - December 21
December 22 January 19
January 20 February 18
February 19 March 20
A CAPELLA l B5
Students reduce, reuse, refashion in sustainability class BY LUCA GROSS Staff Writer
Fashion Revolution Week is an annual activism movement that began Monday, April 18. It is a time to reflect upon the ways in which the fashion industry has affected the environment and what can be done to help. FASHION l B4
ZOE NGUYEN/Cardinal Points