Vol. 136 No. 12

The Springfield Student Est. 1910

December 9, 2021

scstudentmedia.com // @TheSpfldStudent

Volume 136 No. 12

Winners/Finalists for five Society of Professional Journalist (SPJ) awards in 2021

Trouble in Paradise Answering questions surrounding two residence halls on campus.

See pages 2 & 3 (Photos courtesy of Springfield College)

inside CommUnity Dance, Page 4 Springfield College Students Participate In “Hack Holyoke,” Page 6 CAB Wins National Award, Page 7 Best of Broadway Photos, Page 8 And more...

Campus News

December 9, 2021

PAGE 2

The future of Gulick Hall

There is no room for anything other than a ‘family-like’ atmosphere in the tight quarters of the first-year residence hall. Is it time for the ‘Dirty Gu’ to go?

Gulick Hall during its construction on the campus of Springfield College. (Photo courtesy of the Springfield College

___ By Garrett Cote ___ @garrett_cote

When first-year students, along with their seniority resident assistants, roam into Gulick Hall, they’re met with a percolating family-like atmosphere. A family-like atmosphere that no other first-year residence hall emits.

From the thin hallways just wide enough to narrowly fit two people, making it impossible to ignore those walking by, to the certainty of getting lost and asking a fellow Gulick resident for a sense of direction, Gulick Hall has provided plenty of memories and has been a staple in first-year living.

“Everytime I see the people from my floor freshman year, I stop and have conversations with them,” said junior Kevin Velazquez-Rivera, a former Gulick resident and RA. “Even if I don’t see them all the time, I still remember the memories from that year. The best part about Gulick is you have no other option but to talk to your floor.

You’re going to hear them,

you’re going to see them.

There’s no other option.”

Back in the September of 2018, during Springfield College President Mary-Beth Cooper’s annual All-College Meeting, she announced the colossal plan to reconstruct the famous first-year residence building.

Over three years later, not only is the same old Gulick Hall standing strong, but there are now no current or immediate plans to transform it into a beautiful, modern building like there once were, according to Springfield College Director of Facilities, Kevin Roy, who said, “we have no definitive plans for Gulick as of today.”

With that said, although there are no definitive plans, it surely can be implied that some form of conversation about the future of Gulick has taken place. Because of that, a lingering question has continuously come up: What’s more important?

The long-lasting history, or the need for a new and improved space for first-

year students?

Gulick Hall’s first form of construction came in the summer of 1968, with the intention of becoming the first dormitory building built to house both men and women, and was completed in the fall of 1969. A dedication to the building was held at the conclusion of the 1969-’70 school year, and the dorm officially opened for housing the following year.

The dorm is named after Dr. Luther Halsey Gulick, Springfield College’s first physical training department director, inventor of the inverted triangle, and creator of the Humanics philosophy, educating everyone in “spirit, mind and body.” Gulick Hall is the most iconic resident hall on campus, regardless of class. With nicknames such as “Gu” and “The Dirty Gu”, some of the best and most appreciable moments for students have occurred in the oddly-shaped building. “The best part about Gulick is meeting so many different people when walking around the

building,” Velazquez-Rivera said. “For the first two weeks, everyone has their doors open and it’s an inviting culture. Everyone is trying to meet as many people as possible.

I’ve had some of the best memories and experiences in that building and I wouldn’t trade it for anything.”

Unfortunately, Gulick Hall has encountered a laundry list of problems -- problems that can’t be ignored when living there.

“I honestly believe they should fix it, because there are issues in that building without a doubt,” said Velazquez-Rivera.

“Whether it’s the size of the halls and rooms or the size of the bathrooms, poor ventilation inside, the size of the windows, the list goes on and on. I get it though, that is a lot of money and it takes a lot of time.”

Today, Gulick Hall is responsible for housing almost half of the firstyear student body, which makes it a daunting task to rebuild considering the time crunch. There simply

is no place to put roughly 300 students while their new living quarters are being constructed.

“You just have no space to put people,” said Velazquez-Rivera.

“Back in 2020 when we left in early March would have been the time to do it, because there was a six-month period where nobody was here. Granted, it is tough tearing it down, seeing how that whole building holds the largest amount of freshmen on campus. It leaves the school with no option to put these students.”

There are 25-30 people per floor in Gulick along with the 11 “floors”, or residential wings, that are each separated by a section of stairs. The overall makeup and design of the place is nothing short of unique, and the aforementioned history undisputedly makes for a harsh goodbye. Similar to the last three years, a close eye will certainly be kept on the fate of Gulick Hall as the 2021-2022 school year reaches its halfway point.

Campus News

December 9, 2021

PAGE 3

International Hall of horrors Known fondly as “Inty,” International Hall has had its fair share of issues this semester. (Photo courtesy of Springfield College)

__ By Cait Kemp __ @caitlinkemp09

International Hall, nicknamed by the Springfield College community as “Inty”, has been the talk of the campus this semester with issue after issue popping up in regards to it’s conditions.

Despite being the newest dorm building on campus, it seems to be in the worst state. From the mold concerns back in October, to now an incident with the elevator, it is easy to understand the concerns that students may have for their own well-being as residents of the hall.

Last Tuesday, five residents of Inty were in the elevator when it suddenly got stuck and stopped moving. They were stuck in the elevator for almost an hour waiting for the fire department to arrive to get them out.

“I felt pretty calm most of the time except for when we got the elevator

door opened and realized we were in between floors.

That’s when I started to feel pretty uneasy,” said Logan Kinsman, one of the students that was stuck in the elevator.

Another student, Lauren Lemay, recognized the help they received from public safety in the scary situation that her and her friends experienced.

“A woman from public safety was extremely calming and friendly and was talking to us through the door for a while,” said Lemay. “Once public safety tried to turn off the elevator and that didn’t work, they had to call the firefighters. That’s when the panic started.”

Despite the calming help from public safety workers and their attempts at making the girls feel better, this was a situation that was hard to not be worried about.

Being stuck in a small

Questions about Inty loom after five students were trapped in the dorm’s elevator and earlier concerns of mold remain unresolved.

space feels like something out of a horror film, and can trigger people’s fears and panic.

“Being stuck with four other girls was very scary, but we did our best to remain calm for as long as possible. Being stuck for around 45 minutes can make people really anxious and afraid, I feel like we did the best we could,” said Lemay.

Otis Worldwide Corporation, a transport company that develops, manufactures and repairs elevators, escalators, and other indoor movement equipment, came to fix the Inty elevator last week to ensure that it was safe for student use again.

“Otis Elevator repaired the car last week, it was tested thoroughly and put back in service,” said Kevin Roy, Director of Facilities Management.

“They replaced some rubber car guides on the elevator. We don’t anticipate any issues.”

Concerns of the safety

of Inty have begun to stir after this incident, which has brought back up the issues with mold and mildew growing around the dorm. Back in October, parents took to social media to share photos from their children in Inty of what appeared to be black mold growing in various areas of the bedrooms and bathrooms. There was a growing concern for the air quality that students were being exposed to, and confusion when facilities seemed to not be looking at the building as a whole and only dealing with each individual work order, when it was a dorm-wide situation.

After reporting to the locations of the few complaints from students and dealing with the individual situations, Facilities decided to do some deeper cleaning in those problem areas, and ran air quality testing that results have still yet to be collected.

“There are no new updates with the air

quality tests in International. We will be doing some cleaning over winter break. Residence Life will be sending some more information on that schedule soon,” Roy said.

It is reassuring to know that Facilities and the College Administration is aware of the issues in the building, but who knows what could be next? Inty might be the newest dorm, but its list of problems continues to grow. However, with the work that is being done and the attention the problem is receiving, students can hope to see improvement after winter break going into the spring semester.

Campus News

December 9, 2021

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Choreographing CommUnity As part of the William Simpson Fine Arts Series, the Springfield College dance program will host a three-day concert from Dec. 10-12.

Performers from last year’s dance concert showcased their skills in a campus parking lot due to COVID restrictions last year. (Photo courtesy of Springfield College) _ By Collin Atwood _ @collinatwood17

Unity is something that we as a nation are drifting far away from.

The constant instances of social injustice and the scare of new COVID variants is putting a divide between everyone. It’s impossible for everyone to agree, but we can surely do better than this.

The chances of a

small college fixing the country are slim, but Springfield College has always given tremendous effort when trying to bring the community together. Springfield has hosted marches, organized public speeches and even changed our education to unite us.

This weekend, the message remains the

same, but through dance.

The William Simpson Fine Arts Series at Springfield College is ready to present their fall dance concert and the theme is all about uniting everyone or in another word, “CommUnity.” Sarah Zehndler, Assistant Professor and Director of Dance

at Springfield College, thought of the idea hoping that everyone could come together as one.

“Dance is one of those ways, I believe, that can bring people together in a really special way to address different issues happening within our community,” Zehnder said.

A big reason why this performance will be successful in uniting us is because all of the choreographers bring something special to the table. They have all come from different walks of life and every single one of them is supportive of the message.

“I think all of us are really like-minded in the sense that we understand the importance of community and this idea of coming together,” Zehnder said.

The performance will include choreographed pieces from two Springfield dance faculty members, Kodee Van Nort and Jennifer Polins. Van Nort has created a contemporary

ballet piece and Polins’ piece contains guided improvisation.

The performance also includes pieces of work from Darrell Grand Moultrie, Tatiana Desardouin and Alan Franco.

Moultrie has had his work performed at the Juilliard School, countless ballets across America and he has also choreographed for Beyonce’s Mrs. Carter World Tour. He created a new piece that dancers from Springfield College will be premiering at the concert.

Desardouin is a professional dancer who is also the founder of Passion Fruit Dance Company, a company that encourages dancers to express their feelings about social issues through dance. She has partnered with a musical artist to create a hip-hop and house piece for the show.

Franco is a dancer from Mexico City and he built the first salsa and bachata dance community not too far away in the Berkshires, Mas-

Campus News

December 9, 2021 sachusetts. He will be premiering a cuban-salsa piece, but this is not Franco’s first time on campus.

Earlier in the semester, Franco came to Springfield to teach students and their families different dance styles like salsa, bachata, and merengue.

Zehnder has also provided a unique experience for some of her dancers through her New York City and

Massachusetts based company, Zehnder Dance. Professional dancers from her company are coming to the show to perform a piece that will involve four students from Springfield.

“They’re getting the chance to work with professionals in the field as well as be involved in the creation of this piece,” Zehnder said.

These students aren’t the only people from

Springfield College who will be involved in this piece. Alexandra Ludwig, Associate Professor of Music at Springfield College, has created an original song that she will be singing as part of the performance with Zehnder Dance.

The success of this show lies in the hands of many individuals, but that’s what Zehdner is relying on. She wants a group of people to come together and make

this three-day event an unforgettable one.

“I really want to just bring people together, in person, and help remind people that we as individuals are all connected and have important roles to play within our communities,” Zehdner said, “we all impact one another in ways we may never know, and we have the power to invoke positive change within our communities if we work together.”

PAGE 5 There will be three showings of this concert with the first being on Friday, Dec. 10 at 7:30 p.m. Saturday’s show will also be at 7:30 p.m. followed by a Q&A with the dancers and choreographers.

Sunday’s show will be at 3:30 p.m. and every performance will take place at the Appleton Auditorium in the Fuller Arts Center.

Campus News

December 9, 2021

PAGE 6

Cracking the code Prashant Timalsina and Nadia Salett, students in computer science, participated in the “Hack Holyoke” program where they created a card-matching game from scratch with code. __ By Cait Kemp __ @caitlinkemp09

Springfield College is known for its renowned health science and sports medicine related majors, attracting thousands of students for its Physical Therapy, Occupational Therapy, and Athletic Training programs, to just name a few.

There are many lesser-known majors at this school that are still doing impressive work and giving students a wonderful education here on Alden Street. One of these is the computer science department.

Prashant Timalsina, a sophomore in the computer science and multimedia design programs, recently competed in a computer coding competition called “Hack Holyoke”.

This program is a 24 hour “hackathon” that is run by Mount Holyoke College students who invite college students of all levels to virtually join them in the competition.

According to its website, Hack Holyoke strives for and achieves

a 1:1 gender ratio and looks to “shatter misconceptions about STEM fields and to celebrate diversity in these fields through creating an inclusive environment for anyone regardless of gender, racial, or academic background.”

The program also included workshops that students could attend to learn more about different topics such as LinkedIn, Web Development, Intro to Robotics, and more. They had a schedule of events so participants were able to find what they were interested in and attend the sessions they wanted.

Timalsina was joined by Nadia Salett, a senior in the multimedia design program, for the hackathon and together they created a Covid-related facts card matching game that was fully functional and created by scratch through coding.

“We were there, scratching our heads trying to come up with an idea...we basically

didn’t take any breaks in between. We were there doing our thing and we are so happy that we actually made it,” said Tinalsina.

Salett designed all the graphics for the cards, sketched digitally by hand. Timalsina generated all of the codes for the game, in order for the cards to flip over, match with their pairs, and even include background music and sound effects.

“We did make it from scratch… It was so hard. We did it all by ourselves,” he said. He noted that many people may use graphics found on the internet, but they used Salett’s designs that she created herself.

As only a sophomore, Tinalsina has not progressed far into his academic program yet, only taking the basic courses thus far. Much of his knowledge is selftaught, and he has been able to advance far past the level that a student of his age would be expected to be at.

Aside from the Hack

Prashant Timalsina (left) and Nadia Solett (right) show off their COVID-related card matching game at “Hack Holyoke”.

(Photo courtesy of Springfield College)

Holyoke event, Tinalsina has been in the process of creating a website for his father’s business that is in its start-up phase. Through his work outside of school, he has gained offers for internships from Amazon, an opportunity he recognizes as an honor.

Although the computer science program is small, Tinalsina hopes to see it grow in the near future. He was able to be a part of the

process of hiring a new staff member, and looks forward to working with his peers more in person soon, now that classes are back to a normal-looking schedule.

Computer science is a fascinating field, and Springfield College is helping to create the next generation of these intelligent professionals.

December 9, 2021

News Campus

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CAB wins national award The Springfield College Campus Activities Board received the National Association for Campus Activities’ Excellence in Programming Award in October. ___ By Irene Rotondo ___ @irenerrotondo

Springfield College’s Campus Activities Board, more commonly known as CAB, works tirelessly year-round to ensure students’ lives are enriched with entertaining events and programs.

Their dedication to the Humanics philosophy and Spirit, Mind, and Body was recognized at the National Association for Campus Activities (NACA) Northeast Regional Conference as recipients of the 2021 Excellence in Programming Award in late October.

Schools from all over the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic regions annually submit their top programs to the NACA Northeast Conference that their CAB organizations have put on from Nov. of the previous academic year to the Sept. of the current conference year.

They must first submit a written application including information like the club’s mission, structure, budget, how they operate, and more.

Springfield College’s CAB submitted a writeup of four programs

they deemed to be most reflective of the overall atmosphere of what they do at the College. They included the missions, challenges and successes, goals, budget breakdown, and the attendance of each event.

“This year, we highlighted the SCDM celebration that was held in May, the ‘Let’s Get Thrifty’ student shop popup event that was held last semester, the ‘Skating Through the Chocolate Factory’ that happened over last year’s Welcome Back Week, and the ‘We’re Not Really Strangers,’ which is based on a card game to create human connection to folks that you don’t know too well,” said Brianna Kirk, CAB advisor and assistant director of student activities and campus union.

If selected, schools will then move onto the next round of NACA judging with a 15 minute presentation to a secret judge panel at the Northeast Conference. Springfield’s CAB was able to attend and present in-person this year, a step up from last

year’s virtual conference.

“Our theme of this year’s presentation was ‘travelling’ through our different events of the semester. It was a way for us to show what we brought to our campus and what worked to inspire other schools, and to help market our school as well,” said CAB e-board member Sarah McNicholas.

“At the end of it, [the audience] asked us questions about it and the different events… it was definitely intimidating to be back in front of a whole crowd, but everybody was so happy and wanted to be there that it made us more comfortable to talk about things we’re passionate about,” McNicholas added.

The conference, which had about 300-400 students in attendance this year, also consists of various vendors selling their products, performances, and services to CAB organizations from all schools attending.

This year featured poets, magicians, singers, photo booth owners, and more merchants with “knick-knacks” to try to

Members of the Springfield College CAB posing in the Student Union. (Photo courtesy of Springfield College)

get the attention of any college CAB. Springfield’s CAB club has won the Excellence in Programming Award consecutively since 2017.

Director of Student Activities, Annie Warchol, is amazed by the group’s continual talent and commitment to their mission.

“When I first started at Springfield College, I would go to the awards ceremony… and always the same schools would win. The reaction at the tables: ‘No, not again,’ and now we’re one of those schools. It brightens my heart to say, ‘Look how far we’ve come,’ in our time since my first conference at this school in 2009 as assistant director,” said Warchol.

Now, Springfield’s CAB is thinking even more innovatively about what kind of events they should plan after seeing the impressions their programming made on other schools. Warchol says she has personally seen other

colleges and universities like Quinnipiac, Eastern Connecticut State, and UConn implement activities from Springfield through individuals who have worked with Springfield’s CAB before and gone on to work for those institutions.

Amber Miracle, another Springfield CAB e-board member and presenter at the conference, was excited to attend the conference for her first time this year, and is happy to be a part of something so special.

“Even being just a part of programming was really rewarding to me,” stated Miracle.

“It shows how much work we’ve put in as a whole CAB, and just being recognized for the awesome events we put on campus, everything we try to do to get the students engaged, just being recognized for that was really awesome especially as my first year on the presentation.”

December 9, 2021

Campus News

Best of Broadway Photos courtesy of Springfield College.

PAGE 8

December 9, 2021

Sports

PAGE 9

Stephanie Lyons

Stephanie Lyons drives on Endicott in a win for women’s basketball on Nov. 17. (Joe Arruda/The Student)

Stephanie Lyons edged her Springfield College women’s basketball teammate Sam Hourihan to win The Springfield Student’s Athlete of the Week twitter poll. Lyons earned 51% of the vote after her performance in the team’s dominant 93-59 win over Westfield State on Thursday.

A senior guard, Lyons scored a team-high 19 points in the win while also tallying three rebounds, two assists and two steals.

Following that win over Westfield State, the women’s basketball team improved to 8-0 and earned a spot in the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) national rankings at No. 24.

Hourihan, who has made a mark on the women’s basketball team since stepping on campus, finished second in the poll with 19% of the vote.

The junior produced a dominant performance in that win over Westfield State scoring 17 points while she shot 7-10 from the field. Hourihan napped 14 rebounds and tallied seven assists, three steals and five blocks in the game.

The women’s basketball team improved to 9-0 after a 19-point win over Worcester State on Tuesday.

The swim and dive teams took to WPI this past weekend, producing a fifth-place finish in the three-day Gompei Invitational. Two swimmers rounded out the poll as Lefteri Roba and Grace Moore each put together impressive performances in the pool.

Roba edged Moore by receiving 16% of the vote after the junior won the 200 breaststroke on Friday with a time of 2:22.32. Roba was also part of the sixthplace 800 free relay group on Friday, and competed in the 400 medley relay on Saturday.

Moore earned 14% of the vote after she was the runner-up in the 200 IM with a time of 2:08.89 on the first day of the event. She swam as part of the eighthplace 800 free relay team on Friday, and both the 200 free relay and the 400 medley team’s on day two

Collin Lindsay In the men’s poll, Collin Lindsay ran away with a win after the men’s basketball team earned its first pair over the weekend. Competing in the Ed Hockenbury Classic at Norwich University, the “Birthplace Boys” defeated Maine - Fort Kent and Norwich to claim the title, effectively snapping their five-game losing skid to open the season.

Lindsay was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player following his 29 points, seven rebounds, three assists, two steals and two blocks over the course of the two games.

James Chan finished second in the poll with 32% of the vote after breaking his third individual Springfield College record at the Gompei Invitational over the weekend. When he finished in 50.57 in the 100 fly, Chan narrowly beat the previous mark of 50.61 set by Kent Parsons

in 2018.

The men’s team also finished in fifthplace at the Gompei Invitational.

Chan’s teammate Daniel Forsythe finished third in the polls after the senior was part of the eight-place 200 medley relay group, and also registered a 22.68 in the 50 free and a 2:11.90 in the 200 breast. Forsythe also contributed to the 1:42.90 200 mixed relay finish.

Daryl Costa rounded out the poll with 12% of the vote following his unselfish performance at Norwich this weekend.

Over the two-game stretch, Costa totaled 22 points, 12 rebounds, 14 assists and three steals.

To vote in next week’s poll, be sure to follow The Student on Twitter @TheSpfldStudent!

Collin Lindsay drives in men’s basketball’s three-point loss to Eastern Conn. on Nov. 17. (Joe Arruda/The Student)

December 9, 2021

Sports

PAGE 10

Back on track The Springfield College men’s and women’s indoor track and field teams competed for the first time in 651 days last weekend.

____ By Carley Crain ____ @carley_crain12

For the first time in 651 days, the Springfield College men’s and women’s track teams hosted an indoor meet at home. The Pride competed against American International, Westfield State, Union, Sage, Brandeis, Lasell and Rhode Island College (RIC).

Indoor track is often a hard transition for athletes because of the cold weather and the lack of oxygen in indoor track facilities.

“Indoor track is difficult to adjust to sometimes due to the tight turns and stuffy air but proper preparation has smoothed those transitions, explained junior Aidan Harmer when asked about moving into a different season. “The adjustment so far has been better than expected due to the support of the coaches and all members involved.”

Both the men and

women were dominant in the field and sprinting events, which has historically been what they are the strongest at. This season, the “Bomb Squad” -- as they call themselves, a nickname that the group has had for years-- has added some new talent with a mix of impressive first-year students.

Mackenzie Gingras and Katelynn Taylor finished second and third respectively in the shot put, and will be key factors moving forward in the field events for the Pride.

Upperclassmen Lily Gould and Christa Carr have been dominant field event student-athletes for Springfield the past few years. Carr began her season with a 11.72 meter throw in the shot put to take first place in the event, as well as Gould placing third with a 13.67 meter attempt. Carr was

Abigail Clinch. (Lucy Hamilton/The Student)

also recognized by the college and was named Maroon Club Athlete of the Week.

The Pride have also added more depth in the

pole vault, as first-years Ella Smith and Jillian Scott jumped heights of 2.95 and 2.96 meters, respectively. Junior Emily Raccana is eye-

ing the indoor school record this season, and had solid attempts at it last weekend. She will certainly be an athlete to watch this year.

Sports

December 9, 2021

Brady Cote. (Lucy Hamilton/The Student)

Matlyn Gross and Madelyn Vianney have dominated both the long and triple jump for the Pride over the past few seasons and started off this winter strong, as Gross won both the long and triple jump.

Vianney finished third overall in the long jump with her 5.13-meter attempt.

Reigning outdoor NEWMAC high jump champion Chloe Dewhurst is competing in her last indoor season

for the Pride, and started the year off strong with her high jump mark of 1.61 meters.

She is hoping to qualify again for Division III Nationals.

On the sprints side, the women showed off their depth, starting with the 60 meter dash, where transfer student Hope Maher and senior Sydney Fackrell took the top two spots, finishing with times of 8.01 and 8.16 seconds, respectively.

Maher and Fackrell also led for the Pride in the 200 meter dash, proving not only their versatility but their excellent endurance as well.

For the longer events, graduate student Rachel Wentnick and first-year Shae Gallagher were the top finishers for the Pride in the 3,000 meter race and the one mile. As the season continues to progress and with more speedy workouts under

their belt, expect the longer distance athletes to put up some fast times.

On the men’s side, the Pride dominated in the sprinting events due to the team’s depth. David Cataloni, who has been one of Springfield’s top hurdlers pre-Covid and during last spring’s outdoor track season, had a great start to his season as he placed second overall with a time of 8.92 seconds.

In the short sprints, first-years came away with impressive finishes, as Evan Weber and Micheal Scott had solid races in both the 60 and 200 meter dashes.

For the longer events, the duo of juniors Rece Gobel and Thomas Czerwinski ran impressive times in the 600 meter dash, with Gobel winning in 1:24 and Czerwinki following right behind him in 1:26.

Gobel has proven to be one of Springfield’s top mid-distance runners and has a great amount of strength and endurance.

Senior Russell Allen had an impressive race in the 3,000 meters, as he ran a huge personal best of 8:58 and placed first overall in a field full of talent.

In a recent Strava post he wrote about how this is just the beginning for him. “Once I get the legs back up to speed we are going to be dangerous,” Allen said.

After a collegiate career plagued with injuries, junior Aidan Harmer ran his first-ever indoor race and won the mile in 4:39.

PAGE 11 Harmer is another solid mid-distance runner for the Pride that has great versatility.

“The first meet was an incredible opportunity for the whole team to get back into racing. The past year has been difficult due to the limited amount of races. Each event had a personal record, qualification mark or collegiate best,” explained Harmer.

“It has been great to watch the camaraderie of the track team thus far. With such a great turnout at the meet, the track culture is strong at Springfield.”

The field event athletes had a great showing for their first meet of the season.

Sophomore Kevin Lee had a huge day in the triple jump, as he came away with a new 54 cm personal best of 13.77 meters and was one of 10 qualifiers for DIII New England’s. Junior Colby Wilson also had himself a day, as he won the triple jump with a 6.84 jump, and is eyeing qualifying for DIII Nationals this season.

Mason Yusko, another first-year standout, won the high jump and qualified for DIII New England’s with his jump of 1.85 meters. For both the men and women’high jump is another event where they have a deep roster from all grade levels.

The Pride will continue their indoor season at Tufts on Saturday and are looking to build off of last weekend’s success.

December 9, 2021

Sports

PAGE 12

A legend of the game The life and legacy of long-time Springfield College wrestling coach Doug Parker, who passed away in April, was honored during his namesake invitational.

Doug Parker. (Photo courtesy of Springfield College Archives and Special Collections) __ By Jac St. Jean __ @jacsaintj

Saturday, Dec. 20, 2021 marked the 31st annual Doug Parker Invitational Tournament. The history of the highly-competitive tournament can be traced back to Somers, Conn., where the first Doug Parker Invitational was held in 1990, the same year as Coach Parker’s retirement, as a top-level high school competition.

Later the event moved to Enfield High School in Enfield, Conn., where Parker’s son Kirk coached for 25 years.

The Springfield College Wrestling team took the name in 2013, a year after the Doug Parker Wrestling Room was dedicated at the PE Complex, and carries on the annual tradition to this day.

This year’s tournament was the first one held since the passing of the legendary coach the tournament is named after. Parker is regarded as the greatest college wrestling coach in Springfield College history, NCAA Division III history and arguably one of the greatest across all three divisions in the NCAA.

After serving in WWII in the Army Airborne Division and graduating in 1944 from Gloucester High School in Gloucester, Mass., Parker would head to Springfield College to earn a degree in Physical Education, as well as participate on the wrestling team in the 137-pound weight class. After graduating in 1951, Parker stuck

around Alden Street and eventually took over the wrestling program, and became a professor of physical education.

In his 35-year coaching career for the Pride, Parker never had a losing season, and accumulated a dual meet record of 485 wins, 159 losses, and 11 ties. Those wins – combined with that of the coaches before and

December 9, 2021 after Parker – his career totals to an astounding 1,047, which notches Springfield College as the third-winningest wrestling program amongst all wrestling teams across all three divisions in the NCAA, sitting below two Division I powerhouses in Iowa State University (1,085) and Oklahoma State University (1,133).

Parker’s coaching legacy also includes two NCAA Division II Eastern Regional titles, 21 New England Championships, New England “Coach of the Year” in 1970, 1972, and 1978, and 24 All-Americans, including 2x NCAA Division II National Champion Jeff Blatnick ‘79, who went on to win a gold medal in the super heavyweight Greco-Roman division in the 1984 Summer Olympic Games in Los Angeles.

The list of Parker’s accomplishments and accolades go on and on.

But what Parker is most commended for is his time and effort spent on Alden Street, educating and impacting the people he crossed paths with; not only his wrestlers and students, but also his fellow coaches who were amazed by his character.

Women’s basketball coach Naomi Graves (G ‘85) regarded Parker as “one of the good ones” at Springfield College, and a prime example of what a coach should be. “[Coach Parker] was the epitome of a good teacher, and a good coach,” Graves said,

“and he loved Springfield College, he just did.”

While Graves did not have too many personal experiences with Coach Parker, she was astounded by his passion for and ability to teach any student or student-athlete any of his skills. Whether it was wrestling, physical education, or his most famous class, square dancing. “[Coach Parker] was the most animated teacher,” Graves explained, “and the students absolutely loved him. His energy, his approachability, and his collegiality: the best.”

Graves would see Coach Parker teaching his square dancing class as she would be teaching an adaptive sports class right after. Aside from seeing him in the classroom, Graves would also see Parker every now and again on campus, and would always see him with a smile on his face, and a positive greeting toward everyone. “[Coach Parker] always greeted everyone in a positive way,” Graves said, “so no matter how hard or how bad my game brought me down, I try really hard to be that person. I think he set that tone by his actions.”

During Parker’s time as a coach, there was not a lot of sport specialization, and Graves believes his generation helped create that concept.

“He could teach anybody his skills,” Graves

Sports

said. “He would create wrestlers, that’s the difference. Those old coaches created the sport-specific kid because most of the kids here were athletes and they weren’t specialized… he was so involved in wanting the athletes to be good.”

Parker’s caring for his student-athletes was something also noted by men’s lacrosse coach Keith Bugbee, who considered Parker as a mentor when he started head coaching at Springfield College.

“To me, he was one of the legends of the game,” Bugbee said.

“For wrestling he was at that level. I was very fortunate to watch him for a few years and get to know him.”

After former men’s lacrosse head coach Larry Giusti retired in 1983, Parker, along with assistant football coach Jack Holick and former track and field and lacrosse coach Vernon Cox, were all selected onto a search committee to find a new head coach for the program. Bugbee, who was a graduate assistant coach for the team at the time, applied for the position, and had an “interview” with the three legendary coaches.

“It was so informal,” Bugbee laughed. “We sat in a room and we talked about the Red Sox for 10 minutes, then the Pats for 10 minutes… they were so laid back, after a while Coach Parker said to me ‘Keith, do you want the job?’ I said ‘Yeah, I would’ and he said

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Doug Parker. (Photo courtesy of Springfield College Archives and Special Collections)

‘Well, I think you’d be great at it.’”

It was a unanimous decision for Bugbee to be selected as the new head coach. Working amongst a legend in Parker, Bugbee was extremely thankful to have had the opportunity to work next to him, and tries to emulate his ability to establish relationships with his athletes.

“If there’s any coach here that I can think back on that I’d love to model, it would be him,” Bugbee stated.

Coach Doug Parker passed away on April 25, 2021 at the age of 95. He was immortalized in the Springfield College Athletics Hall of Fame in 1983, the NCAA Division II

Wrestling Hall of Fame in 1997, and was a recipient of the Lifetime Service To Wrestling Award from the National Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2000.

Everyone who crossed paths with Coach Parker will always remember the two words that he expressed and led by example with every day: Keep Smiling.

December 9, 2021

Sports

Getting there With a young, inexperienced roster, the Springfield College men’s basketball team is searching for its new identity in 2021.

Zeke Blauner during the men’s basketball game against Eastern Conn. on Nov. 17, 2021.

(Joe Arruda/The Student)

___ By Chris Gionta ___ @ChrisGionta2

The Springfield College men’s basketball team has taken upon a new identity for the 2021-22 season. They have seen new faces emerge, taking the place of the ones that were etched in Alden Street immortality.

Some of the new faces emerged immediately

in the Pride’s opening matchup against Western New England on Nov. 5.

Sophomores Zeke Blauner and Cameron Garber were the team’s leading scorers as they gathered 12 points each.

Blauner continued making great first impressions, as he scored 17 points in their next game

against Roger Williams.

The Blake Arena crowd got a fantastic first look at the sophomore guard in his home debut. He scored 27 points against Eastern Connecticut State, including 23 in the game’s final 25 minutes.

He was also extremely efficient, as he went 8-for-12 from the field

and 9-for-9 from the free-throw line. Springfield head coach Charlie Brock was particularly impressed with Blauner’s performance that night. “(Blauner) was great,” said Brock after the game. “And I also think he did a great job of being active defensively.

And I think the thing that he has learned, and is learning, is that he can be strong with the ball when he tries to score and not fade away — he got fouled a couple times on strong moves to the basket, and if he doesn’t get fouled, he’s got a pretty good chance of making it, and maybe getting an and-one.”

Blauner is the team’s leading scorer through the team’s first eight games of the season with his 14.4 points per game average. It is best not to put him on the foul line from an opponent’s perspective, as he has an 85.7% free throw percentage so far this year.

His defense has also been top tier with 1.8 steals per game.

Along with impact performances from someone in their first year of collegiate basketball, there have been some good seasons being put together from upperclassmen. This is most notable with senior guard Collin Lindsay, who is averaging 12.6 points per game along with 5.4 rebounds per game. He has also been an incredibly accurate shooter with a 64.9% field goal percentage.

Everything came together for the Pride

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this past weekend at the Ed Hockenbury Classic.

They defeated University of Maine at Fort Kent by the score of 68-54. This was a coming-out party for first-year forward Jacob Morales, who led the team with 14 points. The game was more about Springfield’s defense, as they held their opponent to a 33.3% field goal percentage.

Their second and final game of the tournament saw the Pride defeat Norwich, 78-55. This featured 19 points from Lindsay, 17 points from Blauner, and 13 points from Panayiotis Kapanides, who was 4-for-5 from behind the three point line on Sunday.

Once again, Springfield’s defense held their opponent to a 33.3% field goal percentage.

“It was definitely a boost for our morale, we needed one,” Brock said on the team’s first win of the season over Maine – Fort Kent on Friday. “I think as much as anything, they learned and they enjoyed working hard and having it work out. It was getting harder and harder to work hard because it wasn’t working. It was definitely a boost for us to go back to the drawing board every day and work harder.”

Their most recent game was a loss to No. 21 ranked Amherst by a score of 75-61, and they look to bounce back in their final game during the fall semester against Williams on Saturday at 4 p.m.

December 9, 2021

Sports

PAGE 15

(Lucy Hamiltone/The Student)

(Joe Arruda/The Student)

(Joe Arruda/The Student)

(Springfield Athletics)

(Gillian Dube/The Student)

This week on Alden Street (Gillian Dube/The Student)

Friday, Dec. 10 ––– Wrestling vs. Roger Williams, 7 p.m.

Saturday, Dec. 11 ––– Swimming & Diving vs. Middlebury, 1 p.m.

Saturday, Dec. 11 ––– Women’s Basketball vs. Conn. College, 2 p.m.

Saturday, Dec. 11 ––– Men’s Basketball vs. Williams, 4 p.m.

SPORTS The Springfield Student

DECEMBER 9, 2021

Legendary

VOL. 136 NO. 12

Reflecting on the extraordinary life of Springfield wrestling icon, coach Doug Parker.

See page 12

Men’s and women’s indoor track and field teams are excited to be back in action after 651 days.

As a young team, men’s basketball is still searching for its identity this season.