THURSDAY
APRIL 20 2017 Vol. LI No. 16
Student Art Exhibit at the gallery See Page 5
FREMONT, CA OHLONEMONITOR.COM
Ohlone negotiating with developer over frontage property
ROB ADAMIC STAFF WRITER
The Ohlone College Board of Trustees voted last week to enter negotiations with a company over the development of the frontage property along Mission Boulevard. at the Fremont campus. The development of this property has been talked about for many years and has long been thought of as a safety net that would bring financial stability to the school. “A few years ago when we had the economic downturn, the funding from the state was reduced so we had to cut our classes and… couldn’t offer the classes to the level that the students needed them,” exFrontage project would include 275 housing units. plained Ohlone President Dr. Gari Browning. buildings that would house 275 to build the project. In return for “If we had an income source units. There are also plans for the development, Ohlone Colthat was separate from that, that a mixed use town center which lege would receive $1,332,936 couldn’t be controlled by the could be used for public events in rent per year from the comstate and it wasn’t at the mercy and would hold 17,910 square pany with a 99-year lease. of the economy and it came in feet of retail and/or office space. Ohlone has explored develall the time, then we could keep The town square would serve oping the property many times things even.” This would mean as a gateway to the college and over the past 25 years. The that regardless of the economy would link up to the apartments most recent was in 2014, when or funding from Sacramento, by way of the protected olive a deal was struck with Carmel Ohlone would never be forced tree grove which would become Partners. But by 2015 the deto cut classes or programs. a “pedestrian pathway” con- veloper pulled out because of Steelwave, LLC. was the necting the new development unforeseen complications. company chosen by the board to Ohlone College and Mission “I have really huge concerns out of the two proposals that Boulevard. that the developer will walk were received. The company’s Steelwave estimates the com- again, especially considering proposal calls for 18 apartment pany would spend $106 million the hostile environment that
Former Ohlone student on Pulitzer Prize team MARIO LEAL and VICENTE VERA STAFF WRITERS
On April 10, the East Bay Times was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for breaking news in the coverage of the Ghost Ship Fire in Oakland. This is the fifth time that the
Aric Crabb Bay Area News Group was honored with such a prize. Proudly, photographer and former Ohlone Moni-
tor staff, Aric Crabb, was a contributing member of the awarded team. Still in disbelief, Crabb told the Monitor, “It’s a huge honor, we never expected this, to be honest.” The Pulitzer Prize is awarded for achievements in journalism in the United States. The accolade is among the most prestigious prizes that a journalist can obtain. Crabb has been a photographer with the Bay Area News Group since 1998. Passionate about surfing and and environmental photography, Aric describes photography as, “The ability to see lines, colors, and picturing the different graphic interpretations.” His assignments have ranged from Little League games to covering the Super Bowl. Crabb has worked with freelance clients such as the Allsport Picture AgenContinued on Page 2
ROB ADAMIC/MONITOR
the city is now taking towards development,” Board Chair Richard Watters told the other trustees at the meeting. Watters was in favor of a proposal from Dutra Principals. which was the only other proposal the board received. “I worry about selecting this particular developer because I don’t find that they have necessarily a vested interest in Fremont where as the other proposal, even though it wasn’t as financially lucrative, does.” Ohlone would only make $558,000 per year from the
Dutra deal. Some of the complications in the past came from state level regulations that the college has since gotten a waiver for. However, there may be many complications locally. A good number of Fremont residents have been against the idea of building housing or retail space on the property for fear that it would worsen the already congested traffic on Mission Boulevard. These vocal residents could influence the city, which would Continued on Page 2
Academic core milestone
STAFF PHOTO/MONITOR
The new Academic Core building will reach a milestone next week. The final beam will be installed at the Topping Off Ceremony on April 26. This builders’ tradition is observed when the last beam is placed atop a new structure. The ceremony will take place in the Quad in front of the Bookstore at 2 p.m. All are welcomed. R.S.V.P. by email to collegeadvancement@ohlone.edu by April 24.
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NEWS BITES Tai Chi Qigong Day The seventh annual World Tai Chi Qigong Day will be taking place on the Newark Campus on Saturday, April 29 from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Tai Chi is noncompetitive martial arts known for its defense techniques and health benefits. Qigong is an ancient Chinese health practice that involves physical posture, and breathing techniques. This is a free event that is open to the public and will include an educational program about nutrition, exercise, and how to manage their stress. The Tai Chai Qigong Club will also hold a pizza fundraiser during lunchtime. For more information go to www.ohlone. edu/instr/health/worldtaichiqigongday.html
ComedySportz ComedySportz is a fast and fun improv comedy show at the Jackson Theatre, Smith Center on Friday, April 28 at 8:30 p.m. ComedySportz is an award-winning interactive comedy show that allows the audience to participate throughout the show while two teams compete on stage. The two teams take audience member’s suggestion to improv scenes and games to earn points. A special guest appearance from comedian and news anchor Mike Inouye from NBC’s Today in the Bay. Tickets are available online or at the box office.
Ohlone student is part of Pulitzer Prize team Continued from Page 1
cy, NCAA Photos, Sports Illustrated,SURFING Magazine, and the Arena Football League. Crabb is proud of his team’s coverage of the Ghost Ship fire. “Our coverage made the city look into the problems they have. That’s the real definition of journalism,” explained Crabb. Crabb also illustrates the situation of his team throughout the coverage as hectic. “People were constantly on the phone talking to their sources.” Amazed,
Crabb pointed out that one of the reporters received a call regarding the fire at 3:45 a.m., and by 4:15 a.m., a story concerning the fire was already published online. During his time at worked Ohlone, Aric with photo adviser Gerry Mooney. When asked what advice he would give for aspiring journalists, Crabb said, “You need to be well rounded, you have to be able to both write and record audio and video.”
SV ComicCon grows
ROB ADAMIC/MONITOR
Silicon Valley ComicCon runs Friday, April 21 to Sunday, April 23. It is expanding to include four venues in downtown San Jose.
Ohlone negotiating with developer over frontage property Continued from Page 1
likely have to rezone the frontage property before buidling could commence. The board members themselves may also add complications. Last week’s vote, means that Ohlone will now begin negotiating with Steelwave over the final plan. This is when board members can tweak parts of the proposal, express concerns, or ask that stipulations be included in the plan. Board Vice Chair Greg Bonaccorsi said that he
would like to see the apartments be set aside for educators like Ohlone College faculty as well as staff from other local schools. Board Trustee Ishan Shah asked that at least some of the apartments be reserved for senior housing. “It is a balance between the economics for the district and the socially conscious balance but… also …the project has to be economically viable for the developer,” cautioned Susan Yeager, Ohlone College vice president of Ad-
ministrative Services, who presented the two proposals. “I think that’s what this period is intended to work at and I think that we can do that.” Board Trustee Shah is a former Ohlone student who went to the school during the economic downturn and saw many classes canceled. He described the period as a “dark time” and said, “this frontage property is a way for us to insure that we have some sort of lifeline away from the State of California and the decisions…
from Sacramento.” Shah supported the Steelwave proposal: “We at least owe our students a conversation with this developer. We owe exploration of this idea to see if we can truly strike a compromise. No one is going to be fully happy. No one ever is.” Ohlone now enters a 60 -day negotiating period with Steelwave after the 6 -1 board vote. The Board of Trustees will report on the progress of the negotiations at the next meeting, scheduled for May 10.
ASOC election results The Associated Students of Ohlone College election results will be available today. There were only six candidates running for ASOC this year. All candidates were unopposed. The candidates were Marty Kludjian for President, Wafaa Elshawarbi for Vice-President, Raza Bakr for Secretary, Qasim Iqbal for Treasurer, Kenneth M. Oku for Legislative Representative, and Miguel Fuentes for Board of Trustees student representative. The ASOC is the student governing body for Ohlone College and serves as a bridge between the administration and student body. To see the election results go to ohlone.edu/ org/asoc.
– Compiled by Monitor staff
ROB ADAMIC/MONITOR
The new Warm Springs station has a curved atrium feature.
BART arrives after 23 years ROB ADAMIC STAFF WRITER
It was a wet and windy day – which seemed appropriate for the grand opening of the Warm Springs/South Fremont BART station – considering how many issues the station had run up against to finally get to this point. Back in 1994 when the 4.5-mile extension was first planned, no one could have known that it would take another 23 years for that plan to come to fruition.
After years of budget issues and construction delays the Warm Springs BART station was finally finished in 2016, but it didn’t open, leaving many commuters frustrated as they drove past the vacant station. “The end game was a little difficult in system integration,” explained BART director Thomas Blalock. “The subcontractor didn’t have a good handle on what they needed to do to integrate everything.” The main issue appears to have been getting
the Warm Springs station’s new computer systems to talk to the 40-year-old computers that are used elsewhere on the BART system. Those systems have to connect to insure that the trains are the proper distance from one another on the tracks or they will crash. This took several months to correct and delayed other testing that BART needed to do. To make matters worse, the cable that provides power to the BART trains began failing in the middle of testing and
needed to be replaced. The new Warm Springs station and track did eventually pass all the testing and was finally opened to the public on March 25, 2017. Could any of these problems resurface and affect the Milpitas BART station that is scheduled to open by fall of this year? “I don’t think so. I think we’ve solved the problems that we had and I don’t think they’re going to face that” said a confident Blalock. Only time will tell.
OHLONE COLLEGE
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CONTACT US: Offices: Room 5310 Call: 510.659.6075 E-mail: monitor@ohlone.edu Read: facebook.com/Ohlone. Monitor www.ohlonemonitor.com
The Monitor is written, edited and produced by students enrolled in the Journalism Program at Ohlone College. Articles and opinions written in the Monitor reflect the thoughts of our students, and they are solely responsible for the accuracy of the content. Articles and opinions that appear in the Monitor do not reflect the views or opinions of Ohlone College.
NEWS
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OPINONS / FEATURES
Nintendo switches up game industry JEREMY MARTIN STAFF WRITER
There have been many struggles for Nintendo in the most recent console generation. With the failure of the WiiU in 2014, Nintendo had to think about the new hardware they wanted to produce. Nintendo knew they had to fight an uphill battle against the emerging mobile gaming market. On March 17, 2015, Nintendo announced that they would be creating their seventh major home video game console. In development, Nintendo only referred to their new hardware by the codename NX. Then in early 2016, they announced that NX would be released worldwide in early 2017. At the 2016 Electronic Entertainment Expo, they did announce that the main launch title, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of The Wild, would be released for both the WiiU and NX.
Many rumors about the details of the console started to circulate. It wasn’t until last October that Nintendo officially announced the console under the name, Nintendo Switch.
This was announced alongside a teaser trailer, showing off the console and its confirmed function as a hybrid console. The Nintendo Switch was officially released on March 3, 2017. The console itself consists of the main unit, two Joy-Con controllers, a Joy-Con grip, the main unit’s dock, AC adapter, and HDMI cable. These are all included upon purchase.
The main unit is a rectangular screen, similar to an iPad or any other tablet, equipped with a charger port and a kickstand. This is because of its functionality as a tablet like device. The console as a whole is amazing. It is a slim and sleek little unit that can display games with high quality graphics and can be enjoyed almost anywhere. It converts from TV mode into handheld mode flawlessly. The JoyCons can break apart but it can be awkward. In addition, by using the Joy-con grip, a couple of awkward controllers turn into one excellent sleek, comfortable and outstanding controller, perfect for almost any game. It will be a much better fit for your hands as well as bring more comfortable controls to any game. However, The switch has had its own share of problems. Not long after its
release, there were many complaints of the left JoyCon not syncing to the console. This complicated gameplay as the console wouldn’t pick up commands from the player. The switch has a very bright future with more than 50 games said to be in development. In North America, there are only six games currently out for the console. These include 1-2 Switch, Bomberman, The Binding of Isaac, Hasbeen Heros, and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. It has been said that there are many third-party games in developmet for the Switch, but the full potential of the console is unclear. Many of the games released do not use all of the consoles primary features. The only game that really
takes advantage of anything new is 1-2 Switch. This is a game designed to show off some of the Switch’s key features. It encourages the player to feel vibration and movement through the JoyCon, rather then looking at the screen. However, you need two players to play and it requires that you use the Joy-Cons separately, rather than in the Joy-Con Grip. The Switch is an impressive console. It allows players to switch from a home console to a handheld in a matter of seconds and offers quality graphics as well as an overall decent library of games. It is nearly flawless. With that being said, I think the Nintendo Switch will be a huge success and bring quality gaming, enjoyable for many years to come.
Ohlone’s first deaf dance choreographer EILEEN STREET CONTRIBUTING WRITER
Ohlone College offers several dance classes on campus, including hip-hop. Twice a week dancers meet near the Smith Center to practice poppin n’ lockin and other styles of the popular dance genre. Every one gives it their all during this very challenging and physically demanding class. One of those students is Noelle Wilder, who enjoys the class like everyone else, but experiences it in a slightly different way. Wilder keeps a close eye on the instructors and has two sign-language interpreters who take turns sitting a stone’s throw away from where Wilder dances. While Wilder ensures she doesn’t miss a beat; her interpreters ensure Wilder doesn’t miss a word of what the teacher explains. “I grew up always dancing; dancing has always been part of my life,” said Wilder. Looking at the other dancers, you can tell Wilder has experience in many other styles of dance, besides hiphop. Watching the instructor and having the two interpreters sign definitely helps Wilder learn the moves quickly. However, it’s not
the only way she picks up choreography. “One of the older studios I danced at had a speaker on the floor. So I was able to go up there and touch the stereo because if I couldn’t figure out the music’s count, then I would just touch it [the stereo], and then I was able to know,” explained Wilder. The music in class is so loud that the room vibrates. You can feel the music pulsing throughout your body. This helps Wilder stay on count. Since Wilder is only hard of hearing, not completely deaf, she can hear the music at a level that would be considered normal for everyone else in the class. Wilder’s hard work in this hip-hop class and other dance classes at Ohlone hasn’t gone unnoticed. She is currently one of the choreographers for Ohlone’s Dance Department; the first, and only, deaf choreographer on campus. If you’re interested in seeing Wilder perform, she’ll be dancing, and having some of her choreographed pieces performed, April 20-22, 2017, at Ohlone College’s Spring Dance Production, “In, Over, Around, and Through.” Tickets are $12-$15, and available at the Smith Center.
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Travel ban affects an Ohlone student’s life JULIAN MONCALEANO CONTRIBUTING WRITER
The controversy surrounding President Trump’s travel ban has made some Ohlone students worried about their status and their families abroad. Shahad Bagdadi is an Ohlone student who is from Iraq. From knowing little to no English, Bagdadi has come a long way since she first arrived here in the States. President Trump’s recent alteration to his travel ban, removed Iraq from the list
and that gave Bagdadi a huge sigh of relief. But within that short time that Iraq was on the list, Bagdadi started to panic and filled her head with worries and wonders if that could change again. "My father is still there, he works everyday — bombs are set off every day and it is really scary," says Bagdadi. She continued to say. "My father still has hopes to come join us here in the States, but with everything going on it worries me." With the constant concern for her father in Iraq, Bag-
dadi still manages to stay in-tune with her studies. Ohlone's campus separates itself from others with its level of diversity and that has benefitted Bagdadi by not feeling isolated. "Everyone here at Ohlone have been wonderful and so comforting. Many people understood what I was going through so it made it easy to show up to class." Along with Bagdadi, her mother and sister have had a rough time dealing with the possibility of maybe never being able to see their father.
"It has been hard on my mom, she has felt depressed and has been worried nonstop." The likelihood of Iraq being put back on the ban list is very unlikely, but if it was to occur it would cause a demand for answers for families like the Bagdadi's. "I can’t imagine how life would be without my father, I keep thinking about our times together in our garden and sipping tea — it's moments like those that keep me up at night." As of now, The Ameri-
can Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has filed 13 Freedom of Information Act lawsuits this week in response to President Donald Trump’s travel ban against civilians from majority-Muslim countries. With activists continuing to make strides, Bagdadi can just hope to see her father once more. When asked about what she would say to her father if he was here right now, she shared, "I love you dad. I miss you so much. Please be careful."
Annual Student Art Exhibition ALEXANDRA ROMERO FEATURES EDITOR
The Annual Ohlone College Student Art Exhibition is currently open in the Louie-Meager Gallery, located in the Smith Center. Students in the Museum Studies and Gallery Techniques class, Art 117, organized the exhibition as well
as created art work. For this juried exhibition, 79 students submitted more than 250 works of arts. There is a broad set of works of art that range from flowers in a light bulb, to ceramic sculptures, to a watercolor painting that everyone in the audience will enjoy. There were 10 awards of $100 apiece; nine media, plus
a Best-in-Show award. The gallery is open Monday throughWednesday 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and Tuesday/ Thursday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The students’ art exhibition will be held on display until May 11. Awards were presented during a reception on April 19. STAFF PHOTOS/MONITOR
Among the winners in the Student Art Exhibit were these works by Angelica Zabal, above; Tetiana Taganska, below; and Helene Ha, bottom.
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OPINIONS
Obamacare policy broken down VICENTE VERA Opinions Editor
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, dubbed “Obamacare,” is the current system that was put in place by the Obama administration. According to a Washington Post - ABC survey, Americans are closely divided on repealing the Affordable Care Act, 46 percent in support and 47 percent opposed. There are many benefits, but also problems to be found within the Affordable Care Act (ACA). One of the ways that the ACA gets funded, is through individual mandates, which means that everyone in America is required to buy insurance, or pay a penalty. This system was implemented to avoid the “free rider” problem, and end the cycle of people avoiding insurance until they get sick. The Act also does not cover illegal immigrants, and denies them subsidies. Individual mandates are one of the most criticized aspects of the ACA Republicans cite this as an example of socialism, which would undermine our republic and capitalist system, as we are forcing citizens to incur the costs of others. This is social-
ism in the sense that everyone chips in, but some people benefit from the system more than others. This tax system is the structure that supports universal healthcare in Britain, known as the National Health Service (NHS). CNN reports that citizens in Britain pay as much as a 50% income tax and 20% sales tax. While, the average American only pays a 10% income tax. According to Kaiser Health News, some people can be exempted from the insurance requirement, because of financial hardship or religious beliefs. There is also an “employer mandate” in the ACA. Businesses that employ 50 or more people but do not offer health insurance to their full-time employees, pay a tax penalty if the government has subsidized a fulltime employee's healthcare through tax deductions or other means. This encourages more businesses to give healthcare to their employees, or risk paying tax penalties. However, those opposing the ACA argue that this employer mandate would cause employers to
favor part-time employment over full-time employment. This would mean, permanent jobs would diminish, as employees would be fired and replaced so that businesses can avoid paying tax penalties. The ACA would require everyone to be guaranteed “essential health benefits.”
Healthcare.gov lists these essential health benefits as, doctors’ services, inpatient and outpatient hospital care, prescription drug coverage, pregnancy, childbirth, mental health services and more. This would also include accessible health care for women, such as approved contraceptive methods, sterilization procedures, and patient education and counseling for all women with reproductive capacity. But states can't use federal tax credits and subsidies to offset the cost of abortions.
Religious institutions would be exempt from mandate if they choose. To convince private insurance companies to jump into the ACA market, programs such as the “riskcorridor program” were implemented. According to the New England Journal of Medicine, “For 3 years — from 2014 through 2016 — the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) would cover some of the losses for insurers whose plans performed worse than they expected.” This was to also create more competition, as to not turn healthcare into a monopoly and so citizens would have more options on healthcare. Unfortunately, it did not go as planned, Congressional Republicans "railed against" the program as a 'bailout' for insurers. The ACA ended up eliminating the risk-corridor program, prompting lawsuits from companies that did not get the funds they were promised. The ACA also prevents patients from paying unaffordable fees. The Blue Care Network states, “An out-ofpocket maximum is the most
you'll have to pay during a policy period (usually a year) for health care services. Once you've reached your out-ofpocket maximum, your plan begins to pay 100 percent of the allowed amount for covered services.” Preventive care, vaccinations and medical screenings would not be subject to copayments or deductibles. Kaiser News Health states that “One of the main ways the Affordable Care Act seeks to reduce healthcare costs is by encouraging doctors, hospitals and other health care providers to form networks that coordinate patient care and become eligible for bonuses when they deliver that care more efficiently.” If doctors are motivated by financial bonuses to treat patients more effectively, this would mean that fewer people would be left ill. Ultimately, we as citizens have the right to advocate for healthcare reform and have the government provide the best foundation for universal healthcare, so that everyone, whether rich or poor, old or young, can have access to the tools they need to live out the American dream.
The importance of peaceful protesting VICENTE VERA Opinions Editor
As opposition to the current administration continues to grow, protests around the country have grown more frequent, or at least more frequently covered by social media. Consequently, this new found exposure allows people to see the ugliest moments of these otherwise peaceful protests. This allows opponents of the movement to vilify the protest as a whole, leaving the protest to become remembered as a failure in the eyes of partisan news outlets. It is such a shame that it only takes one link to rendering chain useless. When participating in a protest, remember that you represent the movement. Should you do something regretful, your action reflects
on those who did not. Have respect for your cause, if you bring material for your protest, make sure it is appropriate and sensitive to the issue at hand. Bringing unnecessary attention to yourself could be seen as a mockery of the event if executed improperly. Public speaking is important, especially when speaking to a crowd with the entirety of social media ready to dissect and analyze every statement you make. Planned speeches leave a huge impact. One
of the advantages of having social media at your disposal, is that even your fiercest opponents could watch your speech and be swayed by
your passion. When approaching an issue, it is important to look at them in a non partisan view, political beliefs should not be inherent. Just as all long
term issues, we often feel compelled to remain consistent. If we were to remain forever consistent with our views, there will eventually be no room for progression. Protests should come with strict adherence to the movement. This creates a community, then forms assemblies. The protesters go from solely wanting to benefit from the movement, to benefiting the movement as a main priority. Another form of civil disobedience is boycotting. Cesar Chavez proved that boycotting is an effective form of protest with his
strikes for better working conditions. With assemblies, more work and planning could go into future demonstrations. Common understandings develop within the group, leading to a less tense attitude toward protesting. Tensions would ease, since you would be working with those you are at the very least familiar with. Remaining as calm and civil as possible in the face of your opponent will agonize them more than any physical injuries. The benefits of peacefully assembling will make itself known when your opponents have less ammunition to strike down your cause with. If it wasn’t for protests and rebellion, we would all be in chains. Every successful movement, breaks a link. Check out our website at www.Ohlonemonitor.com
SPORTS Drop the puck By SARA BIELA SPORTS EDITOR
The New “Even Year?” After a tough postseason series loss to the World Champion Chicago Cubs, the San Francisco Giants are ready to bounce back. They came in third place in Cactus league play, going 19-16 in Spring Training. The Giants had a lot of positives last season, but the one negative that brought them down the most was the bullpen. Fixing the bullpen was definitely their main focus over the offseason. They released Sergio Romo and their closer Santiago Casilla – who now plays for the Oakland A’s. To replace him, they picked up a strong closer– Mark Melancon from the Washington Nationals. They pretty much kept the rest of their roster the same, with only a few new additions – among them are Gorkys Hernandez, Nick Hundley and Aaron Hill. One standout is their starting rotation. Just look at it – it’s definitely not one to mess around with. You got Madison Bumgarner, Johnny Cueto, Matt Moore, Jeff Samardzija and Matt Cain. One word: stacked. Plus, the Giants have a healthy lineup to start off the season – Buster Posey was reactivated a few days ago, and only a few players are on the DL. However, there seems to be trouble in paradise right now. The Giants are unexpectedly off to a slow start, sitting in second to last place in the National League West division at 6-9. The season did just start about few weeks ago, so it’s still too early to worry about anything (hopefully). Coming off a heartbreaking postseason and successful offseason, there are definitely high expectations of the team this year. Will 2017 be the new “even year” for the Giants? There’s a good chance it just might be.
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Quakes’ inconsistent start MARIO LEAL STAFF WRITER
A sellout crowd of 18,000 at the Avaya Stadium made the ground shake after Anibal Godoy’s long range shot touched the net, picturing one of the most beautiful goals that we will see in this season. This goal didn’t just make the team climb from a 0-2 hole, it made a whole city to dream of having a playoff season again, the San Jose Earthquakes showed creativity, desire, and capacity to react from adversities. However, fans’ dreamful speculations went to the floor again as seven days later a weaker and vulnerable Earthquakes team showed in Kansas, losing against Sporting Kansas City 2-1. Despite the effort of the defender Florian Jungwirth to score one back in the last minutes of the match, the squad showed no reaction after being 2-0 down. With four games so far, the Earthquakes left the image of a team having to different faces, one at home and one on the road. Still, we can analyze both pros and cons of these first games in the campaign.
Victories over Montreal Impact and the Vancouver Whitecaps displayed an image of a team that could win games. On both occasions, the Quakes outnumbered their opponents in shots and possession. Moreover, on the other two games against American soccer powerhouses, Seattle Sounders and Dallas FC, the team dominated both matches in chances created and could tie both games in the last minutes. Clearly, if visitors want to steal points at San Jose, they should plan a more conservative strategy.
2.Transfers following the flow With four new players for this season, the plan of the Earthquakes’ board to give depth and balance to the squad has already made some effect. For instance, Albanian international, Jahmir Hyka, has made the biggest impact so far by providing two assists and one game winning goal. Moreover, Costa Rican forward, Marcos Ureña and German defender, Florian Jungwirth, have also contribPros uted to the cause by scoring 1. The Avaya Stadium was one goal each. a Fortress All new signings haven’t With two victories and two struggle yet to fit into the thrilling last minute draws at team’s rhythm and mentality. home, the Earthquakes, just as last season, proved again 3. A new kid in town that they are going to be a Another player who has tough team to beat at home. also made a big contribu-
tion to the team so far is the homegrown, Nick Lima. It’s hard for rookies to adapt to a whole new level when they first come to play to the MLS, but for this kid this is no big deal. The 22 year older has reinforce the defense with speed and energy. In addition, the youngster has also contributed to the offense by scoring one goal against the Vancouver Whitecaps. With much more still to show, it’s worth to keep an eye on the development of this prospect. Cons 1. Mirror, mirror, on the wall In fact, San Jose have shown that they can win at home. However, this seems a a reflection of the sins of last season as the Quakes yet can’t beat teams on the road. With two losses away against Sporting Kansas City and New York City FC, the squad hasn’t shown any highlight of good football nor control of the match. If the team wants to reach a playoff spot, starting to consider a new strategy for ..away games would be ideal.
2. The need of coming back San Jose’s defense has been average so far. Receiving eight goals in six matches isn’t the end of the world but neither something to praise about. However, on four of those six matches, their rivals have score first. Obviously, scoring first has a big psychological impact on the game. Furthermore, in this modern game being the one who receives first normally is the one who loses, especially when receiving against teams that rely on their defensive game to win matches. Pursuing the playoffs involves more that reacting against adversities, it’s all about being focus the entire 90 min. If the coach doesn’t attend to this issue, fans should start giving up on being at the Finals. As mentioned, it’s still too early to give a prediction about this season for the Earthquakes. However, if we put these games into perspective, we are going to see another mediocre season at San Jose.
Come support the Renegades! BASEBALL: (31-3) April 27 vs. Canada at 2:30 p.m. April 28 vs. Hartnell at 2:30 p.m. SOFTBALL: (22-13) April 20 vs. San Mateo at 4:00 p.m. SWIMMING: April 20-22: Coast Conference Championships at the Ohlone pool. All day event.
Come join us!
CRISTINA GASTELU-VILLARREAL/MONITOR
Giants vs. Padres at AT&T Park
Interested in writing for the Monitor next semester? Drop on by or register for JOUR-172!
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Table tennis wins in Wisconsin SARA BIELA SPORTS EDITOR
After much success in the regional tournament last month, the Ohlone table tennis team travelled to Eau Claire, Wisconsin to compete in the National Collegiate Table Tennis Association (NCTTA) Championship competition. On April 7 through April 9, the table tennis team won second place in the women’s team championship and third place in the Co-Ed team championship. Emily Wang and Yi Wu won third place in the women’s doubles event. In a recent interview with the team’s coach, Yong Gao, he knew exactly how to prepare his players before competing.
PHOTO COURTESY OF GRANT BERGMANN
Left to right: Willy Leparulo (President of NCTTA), Marles Martin (TMS Director), Ying Wang (President of OhloneTable Tennis Club), Yi Wu, Yongxiang Gao (Adivsor of Ohlone Table Tennis Club), Tianxin Zhou, Weida Guan “Our players are profes- forget winning or losing, be sionals and have had a lot of yourself, relax, and focus.” experience in competitions Through all the dramatic like these,” said Gao, “The and competitive action with only things I wanted our play- 40 other teams, Ohlone’s ers to keep in mind were to table tennis team received a
lot of recognition. Gao was very pleased with how the team performed. “We had another successful year because we reached our goal – to try our best and have fun,” said Gao. The table tennis team will be hosting a tournament of their own at Ohlone College on April 29. It will be held in the gym from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. All local table tennis clubs, players, and college students are welcome to participate. This event may get rescheduled, but sign-ups are still being accepted. Contact Audrey Lui (luiaudre@ gmail.com) or President Ying Wang (yingwang947@ gmail.com) for more information.
Campus comment then and now In 1990, students reacted to the Raiders return to Oakland. In 2017, students are now reacting to the Raiders leaving for Vegas. “What is your opinion on the Raiders?” “I hated it because the Raiders, being in the Bay Area, creates a lot of unity to Raiders fans.” Nalani Scates
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“It is sad that they’re leaving because we were season ticketholders.” Selena Gomez
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From Vol. XXIII, No. 21/March 21, 1990
“It sucks because the Raiders are synonymous with Oakland. It’s a suckerpunch to all the fans that have been with them for so long..” Genesis Ednalino
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SARA BIELA/MONITOR
A’s vs. Diamondbacks at Hohokam Stadium
Drop the puck By SARA BIELA SPORTS EDITOR
Rooted in Oakland
Spring Training is over, and the Oakland A’s season is officially underway. The team got off to a good start in Mesa, but ultimately finished 16-18 in Cactus league play. With back to back disappointing seasons in the American League West division, the team is already on the outs of making the playoffs. The trade deadline moves of Josh Reddick, Rich Hill and Coco Crisp, in addition to the offseason move of Danny Valencia, had a lot of people questioning whether the organization would ever get back to place they were in 2012 and 2013. With those acquisitions and free agency pickups came nearly an entire new roster. For these new arrivals, most of them aren’t new at all – Jed Lowrie, Rajai Davis, Santiago Casilla and Adam Rosales have all played for the A’s. As for the new players, such as Matt Joyce and Trevor Plouffe, they bring positive energy to the clubhouse. Plus, promising prospects from past trades are starting to showcase their skills. Franklin Barreto had a very successful Spring Training, going 13-27 with a .481 batting average. Other prospects that made an impression were Matt Chapman, A.J. Puk and Frankie Montas. Rookie right handed pitcher Jharel Cotton had a great Spring Training, going 3-0, and was rewarded with a spot in the starting rotation. With losing fan-favorite players but gaining hopeful returnees and newbies, will the outcome still be what everyone is expecting? Or will A’s fans be surprised with a wild card spot, or even a division title? A lot has to happen to even consider them a playoff contender. The odds are definitely against the A’s right now, but I wouldn’t count them out just yet.