Print Edition for The Observer for Wednesday, February 16, 2022

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Volume 56, Issue 48 | wednesday, February 16, 2022 | ndsmcobserver.com

Amy Coney Barrett addresses Law School ‘Law is king’: Justice Barrett discusses constitutional interpretation, life on Supreme Court

Courtesy of Matt Cashore/University of Notre Dame

concerning fairness and justice w ithin the law, and how the debate bet ween law and fairness mirrors that of constitutional interpretation.

She concluded her appearance by answering questions about her transition to the U.S. Supreme Court.

“The relationship bet ween law and equit y is of interest to us all, even to nonlaw yers,” Barrett said. “At root, it’s about the tension bet ween the demands of the law, which constrains, and the demands of fairness, which is f lex ible. That tension permeates almost ever y area of our law.”

Amy Coney Barrett, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, delivered the Notre Dame Law Review’s Federal Courts Symposium keynote address Monday afternoon in the McCartan Courtroom.

see BARRETT PAGE 3

By RYAN PETERS Associate News Editor

Editor’s Note: A previous version of this story was published online on Feb. 15.

Twent y-five years ago, Amy Coney Barrett helped lay the groundwork for the Notre Dame Law Rev iew’s Federal Courts issue as executive editor. On Monday, Barrett returned to Notre Dame to speak at the Law Rev iew’s Federal Courts Sy mposium, though this time as a U.S. Supreme Court justice.

During her key note address for the sy mposium, Barrett discussed federal equit y power, or federal courts’ abilit y to issue remedies

Researcher makes cancer discovery

By BELLA LAUFENBERG Staff Writer

No one wanted these mice.

Fresh out of the National Institute of Health (NIH), the mice — bred w ithout the mesothelia protein found on the outside of the cell — were going to waste until Sharon Stack, professor of biochemistr y at Notre Dame and a director for the Harper Cancer Research Institute,

asked one of her researchers to do a project w ith them.

With the help of the prev iously unwanted NIH mice, assistant research professor Ty vette Hilliard has found an important link bet ween mesothelin and ovarian cancer that can be used to help cancer patients in the future.

“Principal investigators see CANCER PAGE 3

Eating Disorder Awareness Club holds first meeting

By LIAM PRICE Staff Writer

Editor’s Note: This story includes mention of eating disorders and self harm. A list of resources can be found on the National Eating Disorder Association website or through their helpline.

Approved this November by the Student Activ ities Office (SAO), the Notre Dame Eating Disorder

Awareness Club (EDAC) held its first meeting last Thursday in the Duncan Student Center.

The meeting featured psychologist Michelle Mannia, who spoke about issues surrounding food.

The event kicked off by exploring several central questions relating to eating disorders.

“W hat is diet culture, why are eating

disorders so dangerous and what qualifies as disordered eating? ” sophomore and Notre Dame EDAC president Mollie McKone said.

EDAC was founded and approved in September 2021 at Saint Mar y’s by junior Julia O’Grady.

Though the Saint Mar y’s and Notre Dame see AWARENESS PAGE 4

College offers faith opportunities

By ROSE ANDROWICH News Writer

Editor’s Note: A previous version of this story was published online on Feb. 14.

Saint Mary’s Campus Ministry has recently began new pop-up sessions with the College’s Protestant chaplain Pastor Carrie Badertscher.

NEWS PAGE 5

Since Badertscher started at the College, she has hoped to create a space where students from various faiths could come to feel seen and heard. The pop-up sessions which take place every Thursday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. are an extension of see FAITH PAGE 3

VIEWPOINT PAGE 7

Courtesy of Lane Obringer

Sophomores and EDAC leaders Lane Obringer (left) and Mollie McKone (right) pose with psychologist Michelle Mannia (center) at the club’s first meeting last Thursday in the Duncan Student Center.

SCENE PAGE 9

mEN’s basketball PAGE 15

baseball PAGE 16

2

TODAY

The observer | wednesday, February 16, 2022 | ndsmcobserver.com

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What is your favorite winter Olympic sport?

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“Ice dancing.”

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“Curling.”

“Hockey.”

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KATE NAESSENS | The Observer

Anyone visiting Notre Dame’s campus can take a short walk around St. Joseph’s or St. Mary’s lake and get a peek at the many ducks that call them home. Even in the cold winter months, the ducks can be seen in droves swimming and flying around the lakes.

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Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

Saturday

Sunday

Black History Month Lunch and Learn virtual noon - 1 p.m.

Conversation on critical race theory.

Blood Drive LaFortune Student Center 11 a.m. - 5 p.m.

Sponsored by the American Red Cross.

“Dressers and Delph Stories in Western Ireland” 1050 Jenkins Nanovic 3:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.

Livestream available.

Alex Wilson Invitational Loftus Sports Center all day Track and field meet.

Free with student ID.

Chinese Spring Festival Celebration LaFortune Ballroom noon - 1 p.m.

All are welcome to come and celebrate.

Galentine’s Day with Breen-Phillips Hall Rice Commons 6 p.m. - 7:30 p.m.

Speed friending and goody bags.

An Evening with Jaume Plensa Snite Museum of Art 6 p.m. - 7 p.m.

Internationally renowned sculptor.

“Cyrano” DeBartolo Performing Arts Center 7:30 p.m. - 9:30 p.m.

A love story with a modern musical twist.

Midwest Dueling Pianos Legends 10 p.m. - midnight Open to all students and JPW families.

Misa en Español Basilica of the Sacred Heart 3:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.

Everyone is invited to celebrate Mass.

News

Barrett Continued from page 1

Barrett called returning to Notre Dame to speak to students and facult y at an academic sy mposium a slice of her “old life.” Adjusting to her new life as a U.S. Supreme Court justice and a public figure has proven challenging, she explained.

“It’s like learning to ride a bike w ith ever ybody watching you,” she said.

As the first woman to ever have school-aged children while sitting on the Supreme Court, Barrett said the balancing act of ser v ing as a mother and a justice presents not only challenges but also advantages. Barrett joked that she was the only Supreme Court justice to have thesoundtrack

Cancer Continued from page 1

are so quick to say, ‘Oh, this little side project, that should be an easy publication,’” Hilliard explained.

“That easy publication turns into years and years of work.”

Hilliard discovered that when she injected the mice w ith ovarian cancer cells, smaller collections of cancer cells were produced.

There was also a significant decrease in the number of metastatic tumors formed throughout the abdomen.

Hilliard’s results, published in the International Journal of Molecular Sciences and titled “Host

ndsmcobserver.com | wednesday, February 16, 2022 | The Observer

from the Disney movie “Encanto” stuck in her head while walking into the courtroom.

“I t hin k I have a dif ferent perspect ive just because I’m seeing a dif ferent slice of life,” Ba rrett sa id of her perspect ive on her career in cont rast w it h her col leag ues.

The lecture primarily focused on the role of equit y and its “love-hate relationship” w ith the law. Barrett defined equit y as a set of rights, remedies and procedures that judges can turn to when there is no adequate legal relief.

She emphasized that the role of judges is not to act as angels and dispense justice on their ow n whims, but rather to interpret the law. Equit y is a specific and technical branch of law,

Barrett said, not a license for judges to abuse their power. Instead, Congress is the body that can use law to dispense justice.

“Judges have no authorit y to override the law in the interest of justice,” Barrett said. “Now, while formulas and practices agree on this foundational principle, they don’t always agree on how it applies in indiv idual cases. And that’s why there’s a debate about constitutional interpretation.”

Barrett said this argument over judicial discretion in federal equit y power ref lects the debates on constitutional interpretation, namely originalism versus the liv ing Constitution. Originalists believe that the Constitution is meant to be understood as those

who drafted the Constitution would have intended, while those who believe in a liv ing Constitution argue constitutional law should evolve w ith changing circumstances and times.

A self-proclaimed formalist — a closely associated school of thought to originalism — Barrett said allow ing too much f lex ibilit y and judicial discretion can be dangerous. Judges should maintain a strict fidelit y to the law, she said.

She said while one may be draw n to the idea of allow ing a lot of judicial discretion to a judge who sees the world the same way as they do, it ultimately is not appealing for the possibilit y of a judge hav ing a differing v iew point to that of the person mired in the law.

Barrett concluded her

speech by referencing two statues that sit outside the Supreme Court. One represents justice and equit y and the other represents the law and aspirations of fairness and justice. Both of these elements are necessar y in the judicial system, she said, though the law itself is what most reliably delivers justice.

“We want both in our system, and most often the law itself is what delivers justice,” Barrett said. “But when it doesn’t, it’s up to you as the people to change it. Law and equit y sit [at] the steps of the court as they do in the law books inside it. Both present, sometimes pulling in opposite directions.”

Mesothelin Expression Increases Ovarian Cancer Metastasis in the Peritoneal Microenv ironment,” point back to a prev iously studied potential link bet ween ovarian cancer and the overproduction of the mesothelin protein.

Ovarian cancer has a relatively low sur v ival rate compared to other cancers of the female reproductive system. This is due to its tendency to spread to other areas of the body early in development and due to the lack of early detection methods.

Study ing the ease w ith which ovarian cancer spreads is essential to increasing the prognosis, Stack said, noting that ovarian cancer spreads in a unique

manner due to its location.

“Most tumors w ill bore into a blood vessel and get in and circulate through the vasculature, and then come out at a distant site and metastasize that way, but ovarian tumors don’t,” she said.

“The cancer cells are shed off the tumor on the ovar y or the fallopian tube.”

The cancer cells f loat around in what’s called ascites f luid that surrounds the organs in the abdominal cav it y. Stack explained that this buildup of f luid in women w ith ovarian cancer helps the cancer cells spread around and stick to many different internal organs — specifically adhering to the mesothelin layer of cells.

“Even in the mouse [w ithout mesothelin], we still do

see some tumor implantation,” Stack said.

She described that like w ith a lot of things in nature, the remaining tumor implantation can be explained by compensator y mechanisms — if one pathway is blocked, the cells w ill adapt and find a different way to sur v ive.

Determining the connection bet ween the mesothelin protein and the decreased tumor load in ovarian cancer was the easy part, Hilliard said. The hard part was understanding the why.

“Our hy pothesis was correct. But then you want to know why this is happening,” Hilliard said. “The why was the hardest part.”

She said she tried many different techniques to

determine the cause of the decreased tumor load that was obser ved in the mice.

Eventually, she said she determined that something about the cancer cells’ adhesion proteins changes when mesothelia is not present, and the cells are then unable to stick to the portion of the organs that they would have prev iously been able to attach to.

Hilliard said she hopes to investigate this mechanism further in future studies.

Stack said her hope is that this study w ill help identif y mesothelin as a potential drug target to prolong the lives of women w ith recurrent ovarian tumors.

Faith

today.”

First-year student Sincere Cannon encourages involvement within Campus Ministry.

“Others should get involved with campus ministry for two reasons,” Cannon said. “First, it is a safe and welcoming space where you can confide in people about anything under the sun. Also, even if you are not Catholic or Christian, it is always a helpful tool to have religious literacy of different cultures around you.

Perhaps, you might find a love for religious dialogue as I did and you might even meet people who change your life for the better — Pastor Carrie is that person for me.”

Cannon is just one student who appreciates what Campus Ministry and Badertscher has done for her.

First-year Tess Hayes also shared her experience with Badertscher.

“I met Carrie one afternoon walking to class and she welcomed me,” Hayes said. “I kept coming back because Carrie is a community builder and has given me many

opportunities to establish relationships with the girls who attend her pop-up events, as well as relationships with other members of the South Bend community.”

Newly hired Campus Minister Allison D’Ambrosia also believes the College should take a position of listening. D’Ambrosia is a 2016 alumna of the College and has spent the last seven years working at Oxford University in London.

D’Ambrosia is excited to return to the College and its nurturing environment.

“It’s a very supportive community — more so than I realized when I was there,” she said. “It’s easy to get caught up to day-to-day life while you are there. The vision of empowering women is really important and I think that it’s going to be really fun and exciting to be apart of.”

D’Ambrosia is open to expanding services, but first wants to inventory students’ faith traditions.

“I think it’s important to figure out what faith we have and figure out what is missing

to be able to figure out what ministries we are going to do [and] figure out what our students are and what they believe,” D’Ambrosia said.

In addition, D’Ambrosia wants Campus Ministry to be a place for all students — including students in different places in their faith journey.

“Campus Ministry is not just for the uber-Catholics who go to Mass,” D’Ambrosia said. “It is a place for all students [because] Campus Ministry is a place that can help them discover it even deeper. It doesn’t have to be for a specific subset of students.”

Badertscher echoes a similar message.

“I wou ld inv ite students rega rd less of how t hey feel to come a nd have a conversat ion about God,” Bader tscher sa id. “Ca mpus Minist r y is a g reat place to do t hat. Students a re too of ten a f ra id not to have a nswers, but it’s okay to not k now a l l t hings.”

Continued from page 1

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3

the safe space [where students can] share faith that Badertscher has been hopeful to implement.

“I would say I’m new to Saint Mary’s, but I have known the administration and the faculty and staff to [take] a posture of listening. Instead of programs, they are looking at the needs of the students and trying to ensure that they are met,” Badertscher said.

Badertscher also believes the administration creates a good balance between supporting Catholic and nonCatholic students.

“I see the administration building on the strong Catholic foundation of the school and also recognizing that not everyone has had the same upbringing of faith,” she said. “But God is big enough to help us navigate the large experience of faith.”

The pop-ups according to Badertscher are meant to be “a specific open door and a place to be who you are

Contact Ryan Peters at rpeters5@nd.edu

Contact Bella Laufenberg at ilaufenb@nd.edu

Contact Rose Androwich at randrowich01@saintmarys.edu

4

NEWS

The observer | wednesday, February 16, 2022 | ndsmcobserver.com

Professor publishes novel on Hurricane Maria

By KATHRYN MUCHNICK News Writer

It has been almost five years since Hurricane María hit the island of Puerto Rico, but its memor y is far from gone.

This is especially true for Xav ier Navarro Aquino, assistant professor of creative w riting at Notre Dame and a facult y fellow at the Institute for Latino Studies.

This Januar y, Aquino published his debut novel, ”Velorio,“which chronicles the devastation of Hurricane María in Puerto Rico.

The Institute for Latino Studies, in partnership w ith the creative w riting department and the Initiative on Race and Resilience, hosted a book launch last week celebrating the success of Velorio. The event featured a reading from ”Velorio“ by Aquino and a conversation w ith Marisel Moreno, associate professor of Spanish at Notre Dame. ”Velorio“ follows a cast of characters on their journey to a supposed utopia called Memoria. They face both the natural disaster brought by the hurricane and human v iolence enacted during the hurricane response.

The characters — among them fishmongers,

Awareness Continued from page 1

chapters each focus on their respective campuses, the t wo collaborate extensively on club events.

O’Grady described the club’s mission by explaining its three goals.

“T he overa l l t h ree goa ls of t he club a re prevent ion of eat i ng d isorders, awa reness a nd to help dest ig mat i ze eat i ng d isorders,” she sa id.

T he leaders sa id t hey hope to ma ke an i mpact on ca mpus t h roug h club event s a nd pol ic y cha nge advocac y. A s one of t hei r debut events, club leaders pla n to obser ve Nat iona l Eat i ng Disorder Awa reness Week nex t week, f rom Feb. 21 to Feb. 27.

T he week w i l l consist of tabl i ng events to spread awa reness about ca mpus resou rces, lect u res f rom g uest spea kers, a ca nd lel ig ht v ig i l a nd a ded icated Su nday Ma ss on Feb. 27.

“We’re goi ng to have people l ig ht ca nd les for people [who] a re st r ug g l i ng or people t hat have lost t hei r l ives to an eat i ng d isorder,”

universit y students, street peddlers and a griev ing sister — “search for any semblance of hope in a dystopian setting during the aftermath of Hurricane María,” Aquino said in an email to The Obser ver.

Each of these characters “brings a different perspective and different ways of processing their grief,” Aquino said in the email.

Because “the stor y of María belongs to the larger communit y that experienced its effects,” Aquino said he knew he wanted to include multiple points of v iew to explore the collective memor y of María for the people of Puerto Rico.

The name ”Velorio“ comes from the Spanish word for a funeral wake. Aquino referenced the famous painting, ”El Velorio,“ by Francisco Oller, which depicts a crowded house after a funeral.

Like the painting, “the novel centers on communit y gathering,” Aquino said.

Aquino himself was born and raised in Puerto Rico. At the launch, he spoke about his experience returning to Puerto Rico after Hurricane María in 2017 before drafting ”Velorio“ in the fall of 2019.

W hen asked v ia email about how he wove the

McKone sa id, ex pla i n i ng t he prayer v ig i l.

McKone a nd EDAC v ice president sophomore L a ne Obr i nger sa id t hey a i m to re-educate Not re Da me st udent s on food habits a nd cu lt u re. Hig h schools, Obr i nger sa id, do not adequately teach about eat i ng d isorders.

“I remember sit t i ng in my hea lt h cla ss bei ng l i ke, ‘T hat wou ld never happen to me,’” she sa id.

But it d id. Obr i nger a nd McKone sa id t hey bot h ca me to col lege a f ter recover i ng f rom eat i ng d isorders a nd ex per ienced ex t ra cha l lenges w it h l i fe on a col lege ca mpus.

“W hat Mol ly a nd I a re work i ng rea l ly ha rd to do is educate on how col lege st udent s a re more at r isk because it is such a t i me of cha nge, because t here’s more st ress a nd pressu re,” Obr i nger sa id.

T he club’s goa ls h it close to home for its leaders.

“A s bot h recovered i nd iv idua ls f rom eat i ng d isorders, it wa s k i nd of concer n i ng to us how l it t le resou rces t here [were ],” McKone sa id.

Obr i nger sa id st udent s face obstacles to get t he help t hey need for eat i ng

personal grief and the political ramifications of Hurricane María together in ”Velorio,“ Aquino said that the t wo are inseparable.

“The colonial condition of Puerto Rico is always political, whether subtle or overt.

Grief is a constant even if it is not performed,” he said in an email.

“To be Puerto Rican is to experience a unique and sinister condition that is part of how we process the ever yday,” Aquino said. “So, processing the hurricane and its aftermath was and is a political act. Our collective anger over what we lost and how we move for ward are all things ’Velorio‘ brings into question.”

Aquino said Notre Dame students might want to read the novel “if they feel intrigued” by what it explores.

“My hope is that the novel carries topics that are large in scope — the dangers of climate change, the human condition, poetr y, authoritarianism, trauma and grief, resilience,” Aquino said.

Aquino also advocates for an active reading process, including looking up the many references to Puerto Rican histor y and politics that he makes in the novel.

“A reader should not limit their experience because

d isorders.

“We k now t hat i f a st udent is t r y i ng to seek help a nd t hey don’t k now where to go, t hat’s not ver y product ive,” Obr i nger sa id.

W hen obta i n i ng approva l f rom SAO, club leaders sa id t hey faced t he cha l lenge of d ist i ng u ish i ng EDAC f rom Act ive Mi nds, a big menta l hea lt h orga n i zat ion on ca mpus.

“One of t he com ment s f rom ou r SAO person wa s t hat t hey t houg ht ou r club wa s too n iche,” Obr i nger sa id. “But food is a relat ionsh ip t hat ever ybody ha s, whet her it’s posit ive or negat ive.”

Besides spread i ng awa reness a nd educat ion, Obr i nger sa id t he club hopes to work w it h Ca mpus Di n i ng a nd RecSpor t s on pol ic y cha nges.

“So, work i ng w it h RecSpor t s on educat i ng about d isordered exercise habit s, a s wel l a s worki ng w it h [Not re Da me Ca mpus] Di n i ng to ma ke bet ter establ ished mea l pla ns, especia l ly relat i ng to t hose w it h d isabi l it ies a nd d ieta r y rest r ict ions,” she sa id.

Contact Liam Price at lprice3@nd.edu

Courtesy of HarperCollins Publishers

“Velorio,” published this year by HarperCollins Publishers, was written by Notre Dame creative wrting professor Xavier Navarro Aquino.

they may not know … about a certain histor y,” Aquino said. “I think that’s why we read. To expand empathy.” ”Velorio“ can be purchased

at the Notre Dame bookstore or online.

Contact Kathryn Muchnick at kmuchnic@nd.edu

News

ndsmcobserver.com | wednesday, February 16, 2022 | The Observer

5

British Lord speaks on combating genocide

By KATE ROSS News Writer

David Alton, member of the British House of Lords for Liverpool, visited the Hesburgh Center for International Studies on Tuesday to give a speech on the horrors of genocide, why “never again happens all over again” and what can be done to prevent it.

Known for his work in human rights advocacy, Alton was a member of the House of Commons for 18 years before he was appointed a life peer in 1997.

He currently serves on the House of Lords International Relations and Defence Select Committee.

Alton has traveled around the world and witnessed some of the sites of horrific genocides, including Burma, Rwanda and China, seeing firsthand the “appalling consequences” of genocide.

The first genocide of the 20th century, Alton said, was the genocide of indigenous Herero and Namaqua people of Southwest Africa (a then German colony, now present-day Namibia) by German military forces from 1904 to 1908. Those who weren’t killed or expelled from the land were forced into concentration camps.

This was one of the precursors to the genocide of European Jews in the Holocaust, Alton said, but it was not the only one.

The next came seven years later in Turkey’s Ottoman Empire.

During World War I, over 1 million Armenians and many Assyrians and Greek Christians were murdered for their identities. Atrocities like these do not

come out of nowhere, and Alton pointed to several “canaries in the coal mine,” or signs of impending genocide.

Four-time British Prime Minister William Ewart Gladstone pointed out one of those canaries in the Armenian genocide during a public rally in Liverpool. Gladstone spoke at this rally because two Armenian gentlemen approached him with their stories of the crimes against humanity they had seen.

Denouncing the horrors of what he had heard from these two men, he told the crowd, “If they were indifferent when people in faraway provinces were slaughtered, it would only be a matter of time before the same horrors were visited upon them.”

To this day, the Armenian genocide remains unrecognized by the Turkish government. It has been wiped from books, movies and other media while opposition has been squashed by the Turkish government, Alton said. Only 32 countries recognize the things that happened to the Armenian people as a genocide.

Without recognizing the truth about genocides, they will keep happening, Alton said.

“If you don’t want history to repeat itself, you must at least be told truthfully about historical events,” he said.

The Armenian genocide convinced Hitler he could also get away with mass murder, Alton said.

“The same rationale, a culture of impunity, led to the

industrialized murders of the concentration camps,” he said.

“With collective amnesia about what had gone before, it led to Hitler’s ideology of a purified master race directly inspired by the biological vision of a purified pan-Turkism based on racial origins and racial superiority.”

Polish Jewish lawyer Raphael Lemkin coined the term genocide, Alton explained, combining the Greek “genos,” meaning race, and the Latin “cidere,” meaning killing.

Alton is studying Lemkin’s work as a part of his upcoming book, co-authored with human rights activist Ewelina U. Ochab. Fortynine of Lemkin’s own relatives were murdered in the Holocaust.

He sought to find a word to define the atrocities he saw happening in the Holocaust after Winston Churchill described them as a “crime without a name.”

Alton pioneered the “genocide amendment” through Parliament in 2021, which attempts to address the failings of how the government handles genocides. They must do better at predicting and preventing genocide, punishing those who commit it and protecting its victims, he said.

“The promise to break the relentless and devastating cycles has not been kept, and I argue that in recent years, things have actually gotten worse,” he said.

In China, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is committing genocide against the Uyghurs and other religious minorities in Xinjiang. Uyghurs have

KATE ROSS | The Observer

Politician and human rights advocate David Alton delivered a Nanovic Institute address on genocide Tuesday at the Hesburgh Center.

been put in internment camps the CCP says are educational and training facilities, although satellite images show there are several of what look like crematoriums in the facilities, Alton said.

Countries must confront that other countries they have economic ties to, like China, are committing genocide, he said. An important step of action against genocide is to change your trading habits and economic support for these countries, Alton said, although some are wary of the idea.

Key witnesses at the hearing of the House of Lords International Relations and Defence Select Committee declined to say whether they should continue

trade with countries accused of committing genocide.

“One said there are many countries in the world with appalling human rights records with which we’ve had an economic relationship over many decades,” Alton said. “That’s been a traditional position of the United Kingdom.

It shouldn’t be.”

There must be a reconsideration of policies and a recalibration of resources in order to prevent and better handle genocide, Alton said. He called for a “much greater political will in concluding the unfinished business of 1948.”

Contact Kate Ross at kross7@nd.edu

Lecture discusses potential threats in space

By GABBY BEECHERT News Writer

In the third installment of this year’s “Ten Years Hence” lecture series themed “Life Beyond Earth,” Lt. Gen. William J. Liquori discussed the creation of Space Force and its plans for dealing with international space threats.

Liquori spoke with Notre Dame professor James O’Rourke via Zoom webinar Friday morning.

Liquori is the USSF deputy chief of staff for space operations, strategy, plans, programs, requirements and analysis. Civilian Pentagon worker and Notre Dame graduate Kara Trohaugh, who Liquori called the “intel expert” regarding space capabilities of adversarial nations, joined Liquori on the call.

Trohaugh graduated in 2010 with a degree in aerospace engineering.

The first time there seemed to be a push to form the Space Force, Liquori recalled, was in 2017. The Trump administration had just taken over the White House. Then national security advisor Gen. McMaster asked National Security Council members to write down strategic issues that should be addressed in the next four years.

One of those issues — Space

security.

“The first half of the vital national interest was described as unfettered access and freedom to operate in space,” Liquori said.

“The second half was in order to advance our national security, economic prosperity and scientific knowledge.”

On Dec. 20, 2019, the National Defense Authorization Act signed the Space Force into law.

In each year since the creation of the Space Force, Liquori said, there has been a specific “theme” characterizing its development.

The establishment of the service defined the first year. A big part of this is the “iconography” of the Space Force, such as the uniforms, logos and flags. While these details may seem trivial, Liquori believes they are critical for developing a culture within the new branch.

Space Force also established an organizational structure with Pentagon workers were divided into four different directorates.

They also established the force’s military rankings. The Guardians also wrote their doctrine, a document that explains the goals of this military branch.

Integration characterized their

second year, Liquori said. This included communicating with Allied nations and communicating with commercial and industrial partners.

Through this third year, the goal is delivery. Liquori said the Space Force will continue the work that has already been done and ensure that the strategies of the new administration are well-informed by Space Force intelligence, including potential threats.

And, according to Trohaugh, two of these biggest threats are Russia and China.

Trohaugh explained that these two nations have a multitude of techniques that could infringe upon “unfettered access” to outer space. These include earth-bound sensors that track US satellites and potentially target them, and lasers that “dazzle” satellites and sensors by temporarily blinding them.

More specifically, Russia has its “Cosmos” device that acts as a Russian nesting doll of satellites.

China also possesses its “Shijian 17” satellite, which has a metal arm that could potentially harm other space-bound objects.

Liquori addressed other concerns regarding the space domains, including using nuclear

micro-reactors on satellites and objects reentering the atmosphere.

According to Liquori, low orbit satellites typically use only fuel and burn up on re-entry into the atmosphere. The satellites that harness nuclear power travel into deep space and end up in the “graveyard orbit” which is out of operational areas. Nevertheless, the Space Force has taken precautions.

“We have a unit in the Space Force, the 18 Space Surveillance squadron that is responsible for monitoring all of the objects that are in space, right now monitoring upwards of 40,000 objects,” Liquori said. “Those objects are working satellites. They are bodies of rockets that put satellites in orbit. They could be bolts from previous satellites or parts of breakups.”

In addition to monitoring internal government activity, the Space Force must also coordinate with non-military organizations operating in space, such as NASA and the private sector.

“Obviously the organization responsible for human spaceflight is very interested in making sure that domains remain safe, stable and sustainable,” Liquori said, referring to NASA. “They’ll be a key

voice in interagency dialogue on norms of responsible behavior.”

The private sector provides an industrial base for the activities of the Guardians, something Liquori views as a strength “I’m confident that our industry will continue to exist and continue to push the bounds regardless of which names are involved,” Liquori said. “But at the end of the day, there are some incredible things that SpaceX and many other companies have provided and will continue to provide.”

Despite being the youngest branch of the military, Liquori believes that the Space Force, as well as its resources and relationships, will play a vital role in protecting international cooperation in space and countering potential threats.

“We, the United States, are actively pursuing norms of international behavior in addition to treaties,” Liquori said. “We certainly want everyone that operates in the domain to do so in a responsible fashion so that we preserve it as a safe, stable and sustainable domain.”

Contact Gabby Beechert at gbeecher@nd.edu

6

The observer | Wednesday, February 16, 2022 | ndsmcobserver.com

This column is about nothing

Inside Column

Can you speak louder?

Ellie Konfrst Elizabeth Prater

Butterfly Effects

Viewpoint Copy Editor

Growing up, I was always the shy kid in the classroom. Even if I knew the answer or wanted to contribute an idea, my lack of confidence and spiraling thoughts would prevent me from communicating what I wanted to say. I suppose that’s why I turned to writing; documenting my ideas in a way that couldn’t be negated by someone else and wouldn’t be diminished by someone following up, asking me to “speak louder.”

However, while writing offered a temporary escape from this dilemma, I also didn’t want my teachers to think I was apathetic and that my lack of speaking was from general disinterest. My parents helped me to try to “come out of my shell” by encouraging me to play both piano and violin at recitals.

Playing piano recitals terrified me, and I recall forgetting where I was mid-Chopin’s “Mazurka,” sitting on the bench with a beet-red face and a heart thumping louder than the sustaining pedal ringing in the church.

One winter, I begged my mother to call my violin instructor to tell him that I couldn’t make the recital because of the inch of snow that had barely peppered the streets in the Pacific Northwest. I was worried that my sweaty palms would distort my Perlman vibrato (as my teacher called it) and that I would fall flat when shifting to eighth position during a difficult concerto.

While these experiences subtly helped me build better stage presence and comfortability with being in front of crowds, I started to develop new insecurities. It wasn’t merely about being afraid to be in front of others, but new thoughts started to consume me. Was my piece trite compared to those before me? Was my poor posture distracting and would my teacher reprimand me afterward? Would I stumble and forget to mention the opus of the piece I was performing?

While my time spent consumed by music was beneficial in some aspects, it wasn’t these experiences that had changed my outlook, but rather words themselves. I remember that in order to combat the nerves that I felt when reading aloud in class, I would check out books from the library and read them aloud to my dog who would patiently wait by my side — page by page, chapter by chapter. I soon replaced these books with writings of my own and began to share with the rest of my family the tales that I weaved with my active imagination and prose-like inclinations.

It wasn’t until my first year of high school that something clicked. After reading a book for class (“Samurai’s Garden” by Gail Tsukiyama), we were asked to create an artistic response and share it with our peers. For an introvert like me, the words “share with the class” were enough for me to lose sleep over.

I composed my poem that night and waited in trepidation in my seat the next day.

Near the end of class, my teacher realized I had yet to share, so she invited me to stand in front of my peers’ watchful eyes and present.

I timidly walked up to the front of the room and a few of my friends gave me an encouraging thumbs-up. I smiled meekly and, after fumbling with my printed copy for a few seconds, began to share my verses. While I was reading, I didn’t pay much attention to the audience but rather to the words that were printed on the page. Each stanza I read felt like a small personal victory. I stuttered on my words significantly, and I had to catch my breath a few times. When I finished reading my piece, I took a huge breath of relief as I raced back to my seat without waiting to see my classmates’ reactions.

My friend nudged me to look over at someone on the opposite end of the classroom, proclaiming, “You made her cry.” Streams of tears were gliding down another student’s face and she quickly wiped them away in fear of embarrassment. It wasn’t my intention to induce any form of catharsis, as I was merely sharing my thoughts about the grief-filled themes that the novel portrayed. However, at that moment, I realized that my words had resonated with someone else — someone that I did not know. These were the same words that I tried so hard to conceal.

For once, it wasn’t about the volume of my voice or whether I was performing appropriate dynamics at a violin recital, but it was about pure emotion and thought. With that epiphany, I reached a state of tranquility, a sense of rest after being at war with my own skin, intellect and voice for so long.

While my attempt to cultivate confidence and speak aloud has been nonlinear, Notre Dame has helped tremendously, particularly through my seminars in the Program of Liberal Studies, where participation and discourse are the motor of the major. However, there are days I feel like that first-grader who is tongue-tied behind her desk, her pinky stained by the pages of stories that fill her notebook.

As I walk alongside St. Joseph’s Lake in the winter months, where the frozen water is still and the murmur of footsteps is hushed by the snow, I am reminded that there is true fortitude in quietness. The quality of one’s thoughts shouldn’t be limited by external perceptions or expectations, but rather should reveal one’s nature and inclination to know, learn and grow.

In a world where it seems like the loudest voices are the ones that get heard, I have come to realize that, sometimes, the quietest sounds can have the biggest impact. The sound of lead breaking, pages being softly turned in the corner… these are the voices of the future.

You can contact Elizabeth at eprater@nd.edu The views expressed in this Inside Column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.

I have to be honest for a second. I have no idea what to write this column about.

Normally, my discernment process for column topics is pretty easy: I think about whatever I’ve seen or read or heard that made me feel something in the past two weeks (that something is usually anger) and decide whether I have 800-1,000 words to say about it. If I do, I spend some time, usually either in the shower or while I’m falling asleep at night, and think about how to frame my idea in an interesting way. If I decide I don’t have 800-1,000 words in me to express something like “I hate being cold,” I move on and wait until something else comes to me.

Reading that over now, it sounds like kind of a passive process, doesn’t it? I let ideas come to me. I don’t go out searching for them. But for the past year and a half that I’ve been a columnist, it’s worked. When I originally applied to be a columnist, I did so because I felt like I was overflowing with ideas that couldn’t be contained in a tweet or dining hall conversation with a friend worried about her next midterm. It was incredibly humbling to find out that my friends at The Observer thought I had enough thoughts to sustain a biweekly column, and as soon as I started writing, it felt natural. Things would happen, I would have some reaction, and I would try to articulate my thoughts by 5 p.m. on Sundays.

At this point, it’s probably clear that for whatever reason nothing has really happened to elicit a column-worthy reaction from me these past two weeks. So here I am, doing something it seems most writers feel the inescapable urge to do at some point: I am writing about writing.

It’s strange to me that I feel the need to write about writing columns at all, considering I’ve always thought it was some of the easiest writing I do. In contrast to academic writing, I can write entirely in my voice and I can write about whatever I want. In contrast to fiction writing, I don’t have to do difficult character or plot work and I don’t struggle with making my writing sound authentic.

In a way, though, the freedom I have in my columns makes it the most daunting writing I’ve ever done. As long as I cite things that need to be cited, keep it within a general word limit, and turn it in on time, The Observer has given me an incredible amount of leeway to write about whatever I want. The words, the ideas, and the arguments on this page are plucked exclusively from my own brain.

These columns are really the most vulnerable I’ve ever been in a public setting, and I think that makes me feel like each one needs to have something to say. Even if you read some of my lighter columns, I have a tendency to try to conclude with something profound to give the reader the sense that

they read something that matters. That probably has something to do with the imposter syndrome I feel in everything I do, the very capitalistic idea that time is money so we need to spend ours well and a deepseated feeling I have that all writing must have something grand and poignant to say.

Even my columns that take a longer and more winding path to “the point” have one: A point that I came up with in the shower before I even opened my Google Doc. But writing is an art, is it not? And art does sometimes, maybe often, has something to say about humanity. But sometimes it doesn’t. I don’t mean that in a the-curtainsare-just-blue, anti-critical-engagement kind of way, but more in an art-is-intenselypersonal, not-everything-is-about-sociopolitical-issues kind of way. Great art can be about one person’s experience in particular or one feeling in particular. It doesn’t need to be about everyone to have value. That’s been a hard lesson for me to learn when it comes to my own writing, though.

I’m not an artist by any means. I liked the art classes I took in high school, but always approached them from an analytical perspective. I wanted to succeed at art, get an A in the class, and make something free of mistakes. Expressing myself through visual art is something I always wanted to feel natural but it never did.

Writing, though, is a different story.

Even in my academic writing, I have always found it easy to make my voice shine through. I love the process of untangling the mangled spider web of thoughts in my head and filtering them into something expressive and coherent. It may be obvious, considering I voluntarily write an essay for fun every two weeks, but I really like writing. And if I’m being honest, I think my writing takes a hit when I feel a need to twist it and shape it into something important. It becomes less real, less interesting and less authentic to me as a writer.

I’m at 862 words right now and am actively fighting the urge to write a paragraph explaining why this should matter to you, the person reading this. This column isn’t about what it means to be human or the writer’s experience or even the Viewpoint columnist’s experience. It is about my experience, in particular. Maybe that isn’t profound or interesting in any way. Maybe it is. Either way, I had fun writing it.

Ellie Konfrst is a senior studying political science with a minor in the Hesburgh Program for Public Service. Originally from Des Moines, Iowa, she’s excited people will once again be forced to listen to her extremely good takes. You can find her off campus trying to decide whether or not she’ll go to law school or bragging that Taylor Swift follows her on Tumblr.

She can be reached at egloverk@nd.edu or @elliekonfrst13 on Twitter.

The views expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.

Interested in joining Viewpoint? Email us at viewpoint@ndsmcobserver.com

The observer | Wednesday, February 16, 2022 | ndsmcobserver.com

7

A lesson from the campaign trail Pablo Lacayo My Two Cordobas Worth

The life of a Notre Dame student is jam-packed w ith activ it y. Beyond the burden of academic responsibilit y, adding the weight of extracurriculars, part time jobs, recruitment and a social life can quick ly consume ever y last minute of your day. My life is not exempt from this, and upon coming back from w inter break, I quick ly pivoted from home’s tranquilit y to the usual grind I had become accustomed to in my preceding five semesters here. In no time, I had gone back to working hard on my classes, devoting countless hours to the dining hall and enjoy ing spending time w ith my friends on late nights and weekends.

W hen my dear friend, Patrick Lee, announced his intention to petition to run for student body president, I was ecstatic to find ways to contribute to his campaign. I have know n Patrick since the ver y beginning of college and have worked ver y closely w ith him throughout his tenure as Stanford Hall president, ser v ing as our dorm’s multicultural commissioner. I knew that joining the campaign team implied a significant time commitment that would be hard to balance out w ith my ex isting engagements. W hen I accepted the offer to be the Lee-Stitt campaign manager, I understood that I was also accepting countless sleepless nights and a f lurr y of additional responsibilities that would quick ly strain my schedule. The follow ing two weeks were some of the most ex hilarating in my entire time at Notre Dame, dare I say my life. Overall, this year’s student body presidential election was one of the most enriching and rewarding moments of my life so far, as it was a highly transformative experience that shifted many of my v iew points and forced me to develop skills I didn’t even dare to dream about.

Leading up to election day, the campaign team

barnstormed the Universit y, talking to hundreds of students all around while campaigning and canvassing around both dining halls, outside academic buildings, hall governments, Duncan Student Center and other locations on campus.

On election day alone, I probably approached easily 500 students as I spent the entire day making rounds inside North Dining Hall, pitching the ticket’s main selling points and encouraging ever yone in sight to whip out their phones and vote on the spot. Encountering highly apathetic students and talking w ith people who weren’t even aware an election was going on was not unusual. W hen compared to a national election, voting for the Notre Dame student body president and v ice president seems extremely low stakes. In addition, the limitations of the position and the strict rules regarding the nature of the campaign likely prevented students from engaging in student body elections as intensely as they w ill this coming fall during the midterms or when 2024 rolls around. Throughout the campaign period, one question I repeatedly asked myself was: “How is all of this important? ”, falling in line w ith the points just made and spiraling on the same disinterested comments so many students made as I tried to reach them.

Eventually, the answer came to me. It was all about communit y. W hen inv iting students to vote for the Lee-Stitt ticket, I wasn’t simply asking them to cast a vote of confidence for t wo wonderful people w ith an astounding drive and desire to make Notre Dame a better place.

Instead, I was asking them to vote for t wo people who were the voice and mouthpiece for hundreds of other voices, who had formulated their concerns and presented it to them to fight for.

W hen debating the ins and outs of what should be changed w ithin Our Lady’s Universit y, they weren’t just speaking for themselves; they were speaking on behalf of students intimately involved in the issue aware of where the most

pressing needs lie. A campaign may run to elect t wo people, but in realit y, it is the collective roar of hundreds more, who through their contributions and their work give those riding the wave the material and the substance they need to climb over the edge.

Since I can remember, politicians in the United States and around the world have loved to stress that their campaigns surpass an indiv idual and are, instead, “a movement.” Prior to this, I had learnt to dismiss that as cliche and probably rolled my eyes upon hearing it countless times, especially throughout the hellscape that was the 2020 presidential election in the United States.

Yet, a lot of truth rings to that statement, as it’s impossible for a single person to embody and fight for what is worth fighting for in this world.

Throughout the waning days of Januar y and early days of Februar y, I w itnessed firsthand how a campaign actually evolves into a movement, as it brings together so many voices, so many v isions and so many hearts that altogether thirst to see changes happen w ithin their communities. I saw how people, driven by an internal push to work for the betterment of those around them, f locked together from ever y corner of this campus and were w illing to put in the effort needed to make a difference.

One of the most common questions I received from students was: “W hy should I vote for the ticket you’re telling me to vote for? ” During the campaign trail, I’d reply w ith the elevator pitch we honed to a tee. Now, I’d say it’s because the voices worth hearing the most are the voices that echo and repeat in hundreds of other voices, in a search of answers.

Pablo Lacayo is a junior majoring in finance with a minor in Chinese. Originally from Nicaragua, he is now a happy resident of Stanford Hall. Reach him at placayo @nd.edu over email.

The views expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.

LETTER TO THE EDITOR

A whisper of a thrill Dea r reader, Good mor n i ng, good a f ter noon, good even ing a nd good n ig ht !

I hope t hat you a re doi ng wel l a nd a re hav ing t he t ime of you r l ife, si nce t hat too is how I felt t hat one Thu rsday mor n ing, a few week s ago.

A f ter a l l, i n t h is shor t stor y, I was he a nd she was her.

I cord ia l ly ex tend my inv itat ion for you to joi n me on a shor t st rol l dow n my memor y la ne a nd to feel t he emot ion, passion a nd con nect ion of my recent fa ir y ta le – “A W h isper of a T h r i l l.” Wit hout f u r t her ado, here is my absolutely wonder f u l, u nabr idged ex per ience : W hen he awoke, she lay beside h i m. He saw her. He smel led her. He felt her wa r m body pressed aga i nst h is, a r ms locked toget her, her ha nd hold i ng h is. Her head rested so peacef u l ly on h is chest, a nd w it h each gent le breat h her head rose a nd fel l as if it were a boat tet hered closely to shore, bobbi ng up a nd dow n w it h one ta me wave a f ter a not her.

Ti me br ief ly stood st i l l. Her gent le breat hs broke t he si lence, but not t he bl iss. T he apr icot rays of t he su n broke t he da rk ness, i l lu m i nati ng t he room, yet not f ract u r i ng t h is ephemera l rapt u re. The r ust l i ng of her luscious ha i r br ushed aga i nst h is sh i r t, but held no sway i n d isr upt ing h is odyssey into t h is Elysia n Field. Ever so slowly, a rat her insig n if ica nt

occu r rence beckoned h im back to rea lit y. Her g racef u l st irs developed a nat u ra l cadence — cu lm inat ing w it h her rest f u l eyes crack ing open t heir shades. His ma hoga ny eyes met hers a nd h is sm i le was sw if t ly reciprocated. A s she slowly was swept back into h is fa m i lia r it y, she g rasped h im close.

A moment passed, a nd a not her a nd a not her ...

She t hen spoke f ive words ; f ive words t hat melted t h roug h h is crad led body — “I cou ld stay here forever” a nd d iv u lged a sig h. He broug ht her close, felt t h is gorgeous woma n enveloped in h is bu rly embrace. He looked upwa rds a nd felt t hat lig ht n ing had st r uck h is hea r t, subsequent ly decid ing to keen ly let h imself go. It was t hen t hat he k new; he k new t hat he wou ld be forever wed to t h is f leet ing moment a nd its intox icat ing prescr ipt ion of some u npin nable feeling he sensed was love. He u ncaged h is m ind a nd let it soa r as if it were a fa lcon f irst ta k ing f lig ht.

His pi lg r image f rom t he day of t heir in it ia l acqua inta nce was wel l wor t h its weig ht. So serend ipitous was t heir int roduct ion a nd so sweet was t heir reu n ion. He too w ished t hat he cou ld stay t here forever, as she had bat hed h im in t hat wh isper of a t h r i l l — somet h ing so spel lbind ing t hat it lev itated h is hea r t h ig h above t he h i l ls a nd va l leys of t h is la nd.

A s t he roles a nd responsibi lit ies of col leg iate

l ife ha rkened t hem back to t he present, he went on w it h h is day a nd she went on w it h her day.

He fond ly g la nced back; back to t hat in nocent moment of del ir ious happiness a nd he never forgot t he subl ime impact of t hat sensat ion or t hose f ive words.

Days later, he yea r ned for her touch, her embrace, her chest aga inst h is a nd t heir t wo hea r ts wa lt zing by t he sa me beat.

T he plausible not ion of her slipping away tor mented h is sou l, roast ing h is hea r t over a crack l ing f la me. A s h is tempera ment wa xed a nd wa ned, he wondered, cou ld he weat her t hese v icissit udes in a f fect ion or wou ld he be ma rooned in a forlor n pu rgator y, ta l k ing to t he moon…

I hope t hat however cr y pt ic t he d ict ion, however pa in f u l ly i l lust rat ive t he imager y a nd however seem ing ly impossible t he sit uat ion, you too were able to feel how I felt in t hose ha lc yon days - t hat is what I bel ieve w r it ing is a l l about; bestow ing t he reader w it h you r raw ex per ience in h ig h hopes t hat t hey too w i l l feel as you once felt.

You rs Tr u ly, Cruz Martinez junior Feb. 9

8

The observer | WEDNESDAY, February 16, 2022 | ndsmcobserver.com

LETTER TO THE EDITOR

Gateway 9.0s: Still without a home Dear Notre Dame community, Last week, members of the Notre Dame-Gateway 9.0 program learned that the student cohort coming after them, to graduate in 2026 — the 10.0s — will be guaranteed on-campus housing beginning their first semester of their sophomore year upon transferring to Notre Dame.

We applaud the Notre Dame administration and the Office of Residential Life for resolving this issue for the next cohort; it’s clear that the Gateway program, which supports the success of Holy Cross College, would not have survived without such a solution, since families choose Notre Dame primarily for its hallmark on-campus residential life community experience.

We are writing to remind the Notre Dame community that 96 of us, Gateway 9.0s, remain deprived of this residential life community as we are without an on-campus home in the fall of 2022, at the start of our sophomore years.

Many of us have felt betrayed by this whole experience and we have learned that some members of the Notre Dame and Holy Cross administration knew of this housing crunch, yet failed to fully disclose this reality while we were making our college selections as seniors in high school.

On Friday, we received an email entitled “Gateway Recruitment Update” which alerted us that future Gateways would be guaranteed on-campus housing. This email thanked the 9.0s for their “enthusiasm to welcome the prospective 10.0s to campus soon and to tell them all about Gateway.”

So, in other words, we are essentially now being asked to recruit future Gateways for a program that can’t or

Ella Sundstrom John Graney Grace Martin Michael Manning Matthew McManus Grace Kayastha Peter O’Connor Olivia Hrivnak Ben Reifschneider Anna Merriam Tommy Toole Aoife Kelly Will Miller Lauren Liebezeit Pancho Septien Grace Capko Finn McClintock Caroline Donahue Drew Smetana Moira Ferry Drew Vitale Grace Pugh Jimmy Collins Maria Tobias Nico Schmidt Sabine Go Ikaika Van Dyke Claire McArthur Kiki Riley Maire Brennan Nettie Rooney Feb. 15

won’t resolve our situation, making us the sole cohort in the history of the program without on-campus housing once we become sophomores. We’d be less than honest if we didn’t say that this latest development particularly stings.

All of us have had to scramble to find roommates and try to secure off-campus leases just weeks into our college experiences, before even knowing if we would be accepted to Notre Dame. While many of us have reluctantly signed agreements, very few of us have confirmation of an actual apartment.

We are proud of how we have pulled together as a cohort, supporting each other and working hard to earn our place into the Notre Dame community.

To Fr. John Jenkins and Fr. Gerard Olinger: Please don’t forget about us. Smart minds employing innovative solutions can figure this out creatively. Many solutions have been suggested. This is a problem that can, and should, be fixed.

To the rectors of the 32 residential dorms: We only need a handful of spots per dorm and we promise you that we will be enthusiastic contributors to dorm life as sophomores if you give us that chance. Please find a way forward for us. Thank you for listening.

Respectfully, Liam Redmond Kate Fitzgerald Christian Farls Brooke Collins Robert Corrato

No Yuzuru Hanyu slander will be tolerated Caitlin Brannigan Pop Culture Apologist

Figure skating is by far my favorite Olympic sport.

From the comfort of the couch in my dorm’s basement my friends and I can judge the outrageous outfits, chuckle at the commentators’ cringeworthy quips and have highly sophisticated discussions of technical elements whenever a skater slips (just for the record, I aced all of these maneuvers on the Wii back in 2012, so I am EXTREMELY qualified). This year, I was most eager to see if Yuzuru Hanyu, a two-time Olympic champion, would earn his third gold medal.

Heavy expectations burdened him, yet he still gave his all in the two main competitions: the short program and the free skate. After missing a crucial jump in the short program, Hanyu attempted a quadruple axel in the free skate—something that no one had successfully performed in a competition before.

He nearly landed it.

Despite two heart-rending falls, Hanyu’s performance in the free skate was still breathtaking. He brushed off his mistakes with ease and stunned the audience with both his stellar technique and graceful movements. He was able to push through both the physical and mental pain of his falls to give an emotional performance with tranquil fluidity that showed his dedication to the sport, earning fourth place as a result.

To be an Olympic skater—to train for four years and have the kind of insane expectations placed upon you that Hanyu has and still perform at the highest level after falling with the world watching—that is truly admirable.

I’ve seen so many headlines claiming that this year’s Olympics are a disappointment for Hanyu. However, I think they’re approaching it from the wrong angle.

There’s so much pressure at this level of competition to give a performance that goes above and beyond people’s expectations. Skaters are constantly challenging themselves to perfect exhausting moves that require an insane amount of focus, all the while dealing with the anxiety that comes with being on national television.

The sheer amount of skaters falling and making other technical mistakes is due in part to their determination to push themselves to their limits with tiring techniques in their routines, making it very difficult to skate perfectly throughout. Hanyu, however, has consistently recovered quickly from these failures and proceeded to skate beautifully. This is why he’s one of the most respected athletes in his sport.

Plenty of people face the fear of failure and, by extension, disappointing themselves and other people. As college students, many of us battle this on a regular basis. Each exam, lab or interview can feel like the potential end or beginning of our futures. We obsess over the perfect GPA to get into medical or graduate school. We stress about flawlessly networking with future employers. We even tough out frightening encounters in our day-to-day life. I tremble carrying my plate around South Dining Hall, constantly aware of the intense repercussions of dropping it. I think twice about which clothes I put in the dryer before I shrink my favorite shirt—once again becoming the family disappointment. On a more serious note, having the courage to continuously step up to the plate and take on daunting new challenges demonstrates

our courage and resilience. No matter the outcome, these trials will inevitably lead to our personal growth.

So what if Hanyu didn’t land the quadruple axel? The fact that he nearly succeeded in something that had never been done before is amazing. To criticize flawed technique is valid, but to say that Hanyu’s entire performance was a disappointment is completely inaccurate. Hanyu has demonstrated that failing once or twice doesn’t mean that you’ll never find success. This isn’t just true of figure skating, but all aspects of life. Respected author Jack London dropped out of college to participate in a sadly unsuccessful gold rush, then wrote every single day for years until his work become popular. JAY-Z was rejected by every single major label in the U.S. at the beginning of his career and now he’s one of the most iconic rappers of our time. After an interview or test goes especially badly, it can be easy to fall into the toxic mindset of thinking “I’ll never do well in this.” Everyone has moments like that—no one is going to do everything absolutely perfectly. One or two missteps aren’t representative of your overall ability in a certain area. If you truly love something, keep trying to succeed in it and you will.

Caitlin Brannigan is a first-year from New Jersey studying psychology and pre-health studies. She will forever defend her favorite young adult novels and is overjoyed to have a platform to rant. She can be reached for comment at cbrannig@nd.edu or @CaitlinBrannig on Twitter.

The views expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.

Submit a Letter to the Editor: viewpoint@ndsmcobserver.com

The observer | wednesday, February 16, 2022 | ndsmcobserver.com

By BELLA LAUFENBERG Staff Writer

Will Arnett, widely known for his roles as Gob in “Arrested Development” and as the titular character in “BoJack Horseman,” is now starring in a new Netflix comedy show called “Murderville.”

“Murderville” is based on a British sitcom called “Murder in Successville,” as all good American television is, such as “The Office.”

The central action of the show follows Detective Terry Seattle (Will Arnett), who spends each episode solving whatever murder falls upon his desk on a given day. But “Murderville” is no conventional police drama. The twist lies in the fact that the episodes’ celebrity guest stars — ranging from NFL player Marshawn Lynch to “Schitt’s Creek” star Annie Murphy — are not given scripts and therefore must improvise their way through the investigation. This use of improv really makes the show unique and truly gives each guest star a chance to make their episode special, sprinkling in their own personality along the way.

Each episode begins with Detective Seattle stumbling into the office, mumbling about whatever trouble he got into that morning. He is greeted by his

By JP SPOONMORE Scene Writer

Every year, film critics and fans alike gripe about their favorite films or actors getting snubbed once Oscar nominations go public. I usually complain alongside them, since most of my yearly top 10 are left off of the list — but this year is different. Rather than lamenting the Academy’s preference for unknown films instead of crowd-pleasers, I am concerned with the sheer lack of films in general.

Scrolling through the award categories, I see four dominating films: “Dune,” “Belfast,” “West Side Story” and “The Power of the Dog.” On its own, “The Power of the Dog” was able to land 11.9% of all possible feature film nominations.

Together, the top five nominated films claimed 41.5% of nominations. For context, there was more variety in last year’s nominations (41 films in 2021 vs. 37 films for 2022) during the lockdown, during which theaters were closed and barely any films were released.

This imbalance often happens when epic releases such as “Dune” dominate every category — in this case, the film in question was nominated for the Cinematography, Editing, Production Design and Visual Effects categories — but I am baffled at the lack of variety across all categories.

Where are the nominations for “The Green Knight” or “The French Dispatch”? Where is Nicolas Cage for “Pig” or Jake Gyllenhaal for “The Guilty?” In the past, these films would

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captain and ex-wife Rhonda Jenkins-Seattle, played by Haneefah Wood, delivering him a new partner. Seattle and the celebrity guest proceed to have an interview of sorts until Rhonda appears to deliver the news that “There’s been a murder!”

As Seattle and his new partner attempt to interrogate suspects and solve the murder with which they’ve been presented, they always seem to get into hilarious hijinks along the way (usually involving horrible disguises and earpieces, both surefire ingredients for comedy). At the end of each episode, it is up to the celebrity guest to announce who committed the murder.

Trust me, they do not always guess correctly, but rest assured, Captain Rhonda always serves justice to the true murderer... and fires the celebrity guest.

Along with new characters and situations with each new episode, the show also features some more continuous plotlines, among them the tension between Seattle and his ex-wife and Seattle’s dead partner.

“Murderville” strikes a good balance between original and running jokes and narratives.

I am a huge Will Arnett fan, and I can safely say that this series lives up to his hilarious reputation. His comedic timing in this show is extremely similar to his work in “Arrested Development” — his performances

are littered with sneaky puns, deadpan sarcasm and lots of (poorly hidden) laughter. Perhaps next season, “Murderville” can feature Arnett’s old “Arrested Development” co-stars, Jason Bateman (Michael Bluth) and David Cross (Tobias Funke)... or I might just need to re-watch “Arrested Development” for the fifth time.

Reminiscent of crime shows but with no gore, “Murderville” is the perfect sitcom watch for both crime junkies and comedy lovers.

be surefire bets to win (or, at least, to be nominated) in their categories, but now it seems they have failed to meet any of the requirements for academy recognition.

Yet on the opposite end of the spectrum, there’s Netflix’s “Don’t Look Up.” Nominated for Best Picture, Original Screenplay and Editing, this by-the-numbers comedy somehow found its name next to the most prestigious category. I don’t think it deserves any of them — especially for editing — but the Academy clearly disagrees. Whether they are using the film to demonstrate their support for its shallow satire of media politics or baiting Netflix’s massive audience for TV ratings, these surprising nominations are sure to rake in new viewers. It feels like a smart move to boost demographics, but as a targeted audience member, I feel cheated.

This year’s nominations especially point out the meaning of what it takes to be “Oscar-worthy.” Films like “tick, tick… BOOM!” are ignored to elevate the overtly political, self-congratulatory story of “Don’t Look Up.” Smaller films, like “The Green Knight,” are strangely ignored as well, but in favor of entries like “The Power of the Dog,” possibly due to the latter’s unique LGBTQ+ representation. Musicals and period pieces being dethroned by comedies and an antiWestern? Something else is at play. The problem is that the Academy’s nominations are not for the “best” films; a nomination signifies the way that the Academy wants to be perceived by the world, which is apparent in their preference for stories with different voices over drama or themes.

I do not want to downplay the value of Oscar awards going to minority and international creators. It’s a beautiful sight when the cinematic establishment recognizes that film is a medium for everyone, everywhere. The show’s publicity alone incentivizes studios to produce new kinds of films never before seen. What I worry about is the public seeing “Oscar winner” as a plaque of perfectionism. I doubt it ever stood for that, but in recent years, the Academy is investing all of its nomination eggs into one basket: representation. This move is certainly admirable and important. However, decreasing the number of many films that are recognized feels contradictory, as this still results in a failure to highlight many great stories.

Realistically, this concentration of Oscar nominations is probably temporary. With representation and inclusion standards only being issued by the Academy back in 2020, films following the added guidelines for overall crew diversity have yet to be released. Until the entire industry shifts to what the Academy is promoting, the growing pains of stacked nominations will carry on, meaning some of our favorite films in the future will continue to be snubbed. I still plan to watch the Oscars this year, but if this scarcity becomes a trend, I’ll be content having a free afternoon to watch my own choices for Best Picture.

Contact Bella Laufenberg at ilaufenb@nd.edu

“Murderville” Starring: Will Arnett, Haneefah Wood Favorite Episode(s): “Triplet Homicide” (featuring Marshawn Lynch) If you liked: “Arrested Development,” “Brooklyn NineNine”

Contact JP Spoonmore at jspoonmo@nd.edu

MAKAYLA HERNANDEZ | The Observer | Image sources: endirecto, webstock review

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The observer | wednesday, February 16, 2022 | ndsmcobserver.com

By MARY O’CONNOR Scene Writer

Netflix’s hit show “Too Hot To Handle” returned for its third season this January and continued its trend of shocking fans with its new twists and turns. The show takes a group of “sexed-up singles” from around the world to a tropical beach oasis under the premise that they are on “Pleasure Island,” a fake show centered around a summer of parties and casual hook-ups with other guests. However, the hopeful singles are shocked in episode one when it’s revealed they are, in fact, on “Too Hot to Handle,” where all physical touch of a sexual nature is strictly banned. To incentivize guests to obey the rules, a prize fund is guaranteed to the lucky winners at the end of the season. The powerful enforcer of these rules is the small-but-mighty robot, affectionately named Lana, who administers both punishments and rewards to the guests during their time on the show.

While every season comes with new twists and turns, this season was arguably the most shocking fans have ever seen.

With the prize fund doubled to $200,000, and not one but two episodes featuring new arrivals to the show, this season was truly like no other. Perhaps most staggering, though, is that the guests managed to spend all $200,000 of their prize fund. All-powerful Lana took a break from her duties when she pretended to be disconnected due to technical difficulties, as a test of guest’s true dedication to the show’s mission.

By CECILIA SWARTZ Scene Writer

This weekend L.A. based contemporary dance company, BODYTRAFFIC, performed at the Debartolo Performing Arts Center. The troupe delivered a two-hour show comprised of four shorter pieces, and I would say that my thoughts are mixed after seeing them.

Before anything else, I need to say that the dancing itself was phenomenal. The contemporary dance was clearly based on strong ballet techniques. Every single dancer was a master of their craft and made difficult and complex movements look easy and effortless. Each piece had choreography that was packed with movement and saw the dancers transitioning from one step to the next quickly and precisely. All the steps were sharp and beautiful to watch. I could not believe the strength and control that was evident in each of the movements.

The dancers also succeeded emotionally. They were able to convey a wide range of emotions and moods. They expressed anguish to carefree joy through their interactions with one another and with the music. The larger group numbers did a great job of seeming frantic and chaotic when all the dancers were interacting with each other, while still making it clear that each dancer knew exactly what they needed to do and when.

The staging, however, was a bit odd, and there were several points where I was very, very confused. This show was contemporary dance and not classical ballet, so I went in expecting something a little bit out there.

During this time, coupled-up guests Holly and Nathan managed to rack up a $69,000 tab during their stay in the private suite, the most expensive rule break possible on the show. However, they were given a chance to redeem themselves after draining the prize fund and losing the trust of the other guests. The couple managed to gain $90,000 back for the group, returning some cash to the fund and providing their fellow guests with a renewed sense of trust and respect for them. The show wrapped up with Harry and Beaux, another fan-favorite couple, taking home the prize fund after proving themselves to be committed to following the rules and living out the mission of the show: making a long-lasting, meaningful connection in the absence of sexual relationships.

As an enthusiastic fan of the series, I can confidently say this season was a significant departure from the traditional trajectory of the first two seasons. While guests remained consistent with their money-draining rule breaks, the prize fund reaching $0 was a new and jaw-dropping twist, and for the first time, I actually agreed with who won the prize fund at the end of the show. Winners Harry and Beaux are still happily in love in the outside world, providing a new sense of legitimacy to the seemingly ridiculous process.

But despite these developments, this season had a lot going on in just 10 45-minute episodes. The introduction of new arrivals added some flavor to the already wellestablished group dynamic. However, it felt like a forced

way to develop the plot by manufacturing competition and drama. Moreover, Lana’s “glitch” presented itself as just another way for guests to break rules and stir the pot, taking away from the part of the show which showcases the change in the fun and flirty singles over the course of their stay. To be frank, this season of “Too Hot to Handle” went overboard on its delivery of drama and plot twists.

Instead of rallying fans behind the core group who arrived on the island the first day, producers focused too much on adding flavor to an already engaging plotline.

The show is likely to be renewed for a fourth season because of its success. Perhaps the next season will deliver what fans love most: a healthy balance of drama, plot twists and character development.

However, there were points where I could not figure out what was going on. As an audience member, that detracted from the experience because it took me out of the dancing.

The first piece they performed was a preview of a piece called “The One to Stay With,” and this one was the most confusing. It opened with three dancers standing in silhouette with their backs to the audience surrounding a bowl of water catching drops from the ceiling and lit from below. As the dance progressed, the lights grew brighter, and more dancers joined them onstage. All wore costumes that looked somewhere between a maintenance worker’s uniform and something from a post-apocalyptic, teen dystopian movie. There was clearly some sort of implied message, and I spent the entire dance trying to figure out what it was. The staging was interesting and the dancing breathtaking, but I was lost as to what the piece meant.

A similar thing happened to in the second piece, “SNAP,” which opened with a soloist performing to hip hop music, who was then joined on stage by more dancers wearing color-coordinated, stylized streetwear. The music then cut out in a record scratch, and all the dancers froze before continuing to dance to the record-scratching sound. The piece continued like this, and at one point they were dancing to motorcycle noises. Again, it was cool, very artsy and made no sense.

The third piece, “(d)elusive minds,” was explained in the program as showing a man with Schizophrenia who had killed his mother and was now writing letters to her.

This one had an explanation and made sense, which meant instead of trying to figure it out, I could enjoy it.

And I did. It was a duet where the two dancers alternated between acting out the scene of the murder and the various visions and thoughts from the man. It was thought provoking but comprehensible, and the two dancers did an amazing job of portraying the wide array of characters and scenes in the piece, making it my favorite of the three.

The final piece, “PACOPEPELUTO,” featured nothing but three nearly naked men dancing to songs including “That’s Amore” by Dean Martin. It was fun but odd, and it left me thinking “Why?” Overall, I would call the performance puzzling. It showcased stunning dance talent in several, rather confusing pieces. I personally did not get it, but it received a standing ovation on Friday, so maybe I am missing something. I would give it four out of five shamrocks, mostly because the dancing itself was so good.

Contact Mary O’Connor at moconn25@nd.edu

“Too Hot to Handle” Starring: Beaux Raymond, Georgia Hassarati Favorite Episode(s): “The Truth Hurts” If you liked: “Love is Blind,” “Love Island,” “The Bachelor” Where to Watch: Netflix

Contact Cecilia Swartz at cswartz@nd.edu

“BODYTRAFFIC” Directors: Tine Berkett, Lillian Barbeito Where: DeBartolo Performing Arts Center

EMMMA KIRNER | The Observer | Image sources: facebook, netflix

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Crossword | Will Shortz

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Horoscope | Eugenia Last Happy Birthday: Take the edge off and lighten up, and you’ll accomplish so much more than you originally plan. Pat yourself on the back, and look for the good in everyone and everything. A positive attitude makes for a better environment and choices as you take on new and exciting challenges. Live in the moment and embrace the future with optimism. Your numbers are 9, 17, 20, 27, 31, 36, 45.

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Trust in your ability to get things done. Don’t wait for someone to finish what you start. Take care of responsibilities, and feel good about what you accomplish. Refuse to let someone’s negativity slow you down. Reward your efforts; do something entertaining.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Refuse to let what others decide to do limit you. Follow through with your plans, and don’t worry about any complaints you encounter. You must satisfy yourself instead of bending over backward trying to please others. Live life your way.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Put more effort into your surroundings, comfort and convenience. Making your life more leisurely will help you be productive and give you more time to enjoy downtime with favored people. Good timing coupled with discipline and hard work will lead to praise.

CANCER ( June 21-July 22): Educate yourself, and implement what you learn into your everyday life. The changes you make will fortify your plans and help you succeed. The more energy you put behind your dreams, the easier it will be to get others to contribute.

LEO ( July 23-Aug. 22): Accept, adapt and carry on with your day. A steadfast approach to accomplishing something will ensure you reach your mark.

Choose your words carefully when others ask for support. Promising too much will put a dent in how much you achieve.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Go someplace that stimulates your mind, body and soul. A hike, museum, art gallery or sports event will motivate you to do things differently and explore possibilities. What you experience today will promote personal growth. Romance is favored.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): If you like someone or enjoy doing something, carry on and don’t stop until you’ve had your fill. Refuse to let a lack of motivation stand between you and doing something that will enrich your life. Concentrate on achievement and rewards.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Don’t show emotion when dealing with professional situations. Do what others expect of you, but give whatever you do a unique twist. Take on projects that require ingenuity, and present ideas that favor the outcome you want to achieve.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Take better care of your health and financial matters. Don’t spend unnecessarily; being overly generous or careless will result in loss. Someone will take advantage of you if you aren’t careful. Don’t share with strangers or get involved in a joint venture.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): You’ll face opposition today, but don’t let that stop you. Take a different approach and offer something that will make it easier for others to accept and support what you want to pursue. Use finesse to get your way.

AQUARIUS ( Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Settle any differences peacefully. Be ready to compromise to ensure fair play is maintained. Keep your emotions under control, and let your intellect help you navigate your way to victory. Thoughtful planning and precise execution are your tickets to success.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): If you second-guess yourself, you’ll fall short.

Own whatever you decide to do, and follow through with precision and gusto. A take-charge attitude will help you gain respect and get things done with plenty of time to spare for relaxation.

Sudoku | The Mepham Group

Jumble | David Hoyt and Jeff knurek

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Sports Authority

Sports Authority

NFL franchises that disappoint Nate Moller Sports Writer

As I was watching the Super Bowl on Sunday as a proud Minnesota Vikings fan, I could not help but feel a bit sorr y for myself yet again. A lthough the Vikings have made four Super Bowls (all long before I was born), they have lost them all, and I have w itnessed two NFC Championship losses in my lifetime. It’s a tough life.

Along with the Vikings, there are plenty of other disappointing franchises. I’ll rank the most disappointing franchises in the NFL. W hile simply being bad qualifies a team as disappointing, the teams ranked highest on the list are teams that have been good enough to w in playoff games but have come up short of a Super Bowl.

6. Atlanta Falcons The Falcons are 0-2 in Super Bowls, and the main reason they are on this list is their infamous loss to the Patriots in Super Bowl LI in which they blew a 28-3 lead. The pain of that loss doesn’t just go away, and it w ill be felt until this franchise gets a ring.

5. Detroit Lions Matthew Stafford winning the Super Bowl in his first year away from the Lions shows just how atrocious this team is. Since 1957, the Lions have won only one playoff game (1991). The Lions have also not won a division title since 1993 when they were still in the Central Division.

They currently have a eight game losing streak in the playoffs as well.

4. Cleveland Browns Disappointing is an understatement. This franchise has been an embarrassment for a while and has struggled to make the playoffs w ith any consistency.

Before finally w inning a playoff game in 2020, they hadn’t made the playoffs since 2002 or won a playoff game since 1994. On paper, it looks like the Brow ns should have had one of the better teams over the last couple of seasons, but they have been mediocre at best.

3. Cincinnati Bengals With Sunday’s disappointing loss to the Rams, the Bengals move up to number

three on the list because of their three Super Bowl losses and consistent struggles in the playoffs. Before their stunning Super Bowl run this season, the Bengals had lost eight straight playoff games dating back to 1990. In the teams’ three Super Bowl losses, the Bengals have lost by a combined 12 points. This team has struggled consistently, and they have been all so close to finally getting a ring, but they just can’t seem to get over the hump.

2. Minnesota Vikings The Vikings are an interesting case. The Vikings rank seventh in the NFL in all time winning percentage, and they are no strangers to the playoffs by any means. Despite their success in the regular season, the team’s kryptonite seems to be a Super Bowl ring, as they are 0-4 in Super Bowls.

Despite their poor record, the Vikings haven’t made a Super Bowl since their loss to Oakland in 1977.

This doesn’t mean they haven’t been successful, though, as they have lost in a staggering five NFC Championship games since that loss in 1977. Two losses that stick out are the losses in 1998 and 2009 in which the Vikings lost both games on game w inning field goals in overtime.

1. Buffalo Bills Despite the Vikings’ misfortunes, the Bills check in at number one. The Bills had arguably one of the greatest runs ever in the 1990s, making four Super Bowls in a row.

Unfortunately for the Bills, they lost all four of those games by an average of 16.5 points per game. The most painful of these losses was definitely the loss in Super Bowl XXV to the Giants.

The Bills lost 20-19 on a field goal that famously went “wide right.” it seems like the Bills have been jinxed since then. Their struggles in the playoffs as of late have shown the curse still persists, especially after their stunning defensive collapse against the Chiefs in this year’s playoffs.

Honorable Mentions Chicago Bears, Jacksonville Jaguars, Houston Texans, New York Jets Contact Nate Moller at nmoller@nd.edu The views expressed in this Sports Authority are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.

NCAA hockey bracketology Tom Zwiller Sports Writer

Last weekend I detailed what I thought would be the most likely Big 10 playoff scenario and tried to map out who Notre Dame would have to beat to lock up an auto bid for the Big Dance. So, to build off of what I did last week, I thought it would be fun to project what the NCAA Hockey tournament could look like right now. A brief bracketology, if you will. While it certainly might be my first try at college hockey, it is not my first try at playoff predictions. After all, I did predict the LA Rams would win the Superbowl in August (sorry, I had to plug that. You would too).

The tournament format is relatively straightforward: 16 teams will compete in a single-elimination tournament. There are four rounds, the first being the regional semifinal, then the regional finals.

The next round is the Frozen Four, which comprises two rounds, a national semifinal and a national championship.

The first two rounds will occur at four different sites across the country, and the Frozen Four will occur at the TD Garden in Boston.

How teams are selected is somewhat similar to how March Madness picks teams: Conference champions receive an auto-bid to the tournament, with all the remaining spots given to “at-large” teams. The D-1 Men’s Hockey Committee decides the at-large bids.

Central Collegiate Hockey Association For the CCHA, powerhouse Minnesota State (currently ranking first in the polls) leads the conference with 56 points and boasts an overall record of 25-5-2-0. A bit of a juggernaut. The next closest team is No. 14 Michigan Tech, currently 17-4-1-5 with 49 conference points.

This is another top-heavy conference; PlayoffStatus.com gives State a 63% chance to win the conference and Michigan Tech a 20% chance. Given the overwhelming odds, I will ride with State, but Tech winning could significantly affect the tournament field.

Eastern College Conference

Athletic

Next up is the ECAC, another conference that feels like it might be reasonably easy to predict.

Quinnipiac (4) and Clarkson (15) are the current heavyweights.

Quinnipiac is currently 23-2-2-1 with 45 conference points, which seems like a comfortable point total. However, Quinnipiac is neck and neck with Clarkson, who is 17-6-0-1 overall with 44 points. I am intrigued by the possibility of Clarkson winning the conference (just 21%, according to our good friends at PlayoffStatus.com), as they are certainly a bubble team.

Should Clarkson win the conference tournament, they would take up a spot not guaranteed to them, while Quinnipiac would be a lock to take an at large bid. This conference championship is one to keep an eye on.

Big Ten Since I already picked Michigan as my Big 10 champion last week, I think it makes sense to continue with that assumption.

PlayoffStatus.com, which is my go-to for research on college hockey, currently has Michigan with a 40% chance of becoming B10 hockey champs. The next closest is Minnesota at 26%.

If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.

Atlantic Hockey The current leader in points is American International at 48 (16-7-0-4), with the second closest team being Canisius at 37 (12-102-2). According to PlayoffStatus. com, there is a 45% chance that the Atlantic Hockey tournament winner will be one of these two teams. American International has a 29% chance of winning the tournament, and Canisius has a 16% chance.

Interestingly enough, neither team is likely to get an at-large bid. AIC ranks 21st by USCHO’s Pairwise Rankings, with Canisius sitting at 37th. That suggests that the winner of this conference is likely to be the only representative in the NCAA tournament. For this conference, you’re either in or out.

Hockey East I understand why Notre Dame left Hockey East, but I felt a little nostalgia when looking at the conference standings.

Nostalgia aside, the Hockey East feels like the most wide-open division. The top six seams are within five points of first, with the top four being within two of first.

Because of how close the race is, there is not a clear favorite. Tied for first at 37 points are No. 10 UMass (14-6-2-3) and No. 16 UMass Lowell (15-8-1-0).

Next are No. 20 Connecticut (149-2-2) and No. 17 Boston University (14-8-3-2) at 35 points. At 33 and 32 points, respectively, are Merrimack (15-8-0-4) and Northeastern (17-8-2-1).

Massachusetts currently has a 24% chance of being the Hockey East Champions. Of all the conference champion favorites, Massachusetts has the lowest probability of making the Championship game (43%).

UMass Lowell sits at just 14% (they have played more games than the other teams). Connecticut sits at 13%, and Boston University currently has a 14% chance.

Merrimack only has a 6% chance,

which feels surprising considering that Northeastern has a 16% chance.

Massachusetts will win the conference, but Northeastern is a severe threat. According to College Hockey News, Northeastern is No. 17, while Mass.-Lowell is 16th.

National Collegiate Hockey Conference Alright, last one! In the NCHC, there are three serious contenders: No. 3 Denver, No. 9 North Dakota and No. 6 Western Michigan.

Denver leads the conference with 41 points, North Dakota at 39 points and Western Michigan with 34. Denver is third in the country with a record of 20-6-1-0 and, regardless of the conference tournament result, they will secure a spot in the NCAA Tournament. North Dakota has an overall record of 17-9-0-2, and Western has a record of 17-6-2-1 (despite having a worse conference record).

Denver is the most likely to win the conference championship, according to PlayoffStatus.com, with a 31% chance. Next is Western at 28%, which, I will be honest, really surprised me. Those percentages will likely change this weekend as Western has a critical series against Denver. North Dakota is the least likely of the three at 15%.

So, while I think it would be great if Western could win, I think Denver can take the conference.

Bracket time The six auto bid teams are Michigan, American International, Minnesota State, Quninipac, Massachusetts and Denver, indicated by an italicized font in the bracket below. The at-large teams are Minnesota, Western Michigan, Minnesota Duluth, St. Cloud State, North Dakota, Michigan Tech, Ohio State, Notre Dame Clarkson and UMass Lowell.

I picked the at-large teams by combining the NCAA rankings and the College Hockey Pairwise Rankings.

No. 1 Minnesota State vs. No. 16 American International No. 8 St. Cloud State v. No. 9 Massachusetts No. 4 Quinnipiac vs. No. 13 Notre Dame No. 5 Minnesota vs. No. 12 North Dakota No. 2 Michigan vs. No. 15 UMass Lowell No. 7 Minnesota Duluth v. No. 10 Ohio State No. 3 Denver vs. No. 14 Clarkson No. 6 Western Michigan v. No. 11 Michigan Tech Contact Tom Zwiller at tzwiller@hcc-nd.edu The views expressed in this Sports Authority are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.

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ND WOMEN’s Lacrosse | 24-5, 11-7

Irish dominate Chippewas, fall to Wolverines

By LIAM COOLICAN Sports Writer

Notre Dame women’s lacrosse opened its season by splitting a pair of contests at home this weekend.

The Irish, who had been ranked 5th in the Inside Lacrosse poll to open the season, dominated Central Michigan Friday night to open the campaign.

Junior attack Madison Ahern scored a career-high six goals to lead Notre Dame past the Chippewas 24-5. The Irish scored the first 23 goals of the contest, and Central Michigan didn’t score until the final quarter of play after Notre Dame pulled their starting goalie, graduate student Bridget Deehan.

She was forced to make just two saves while shutting out the Chippewas over the first three quarters of action.

In addition to A hern, graduate student attack Maddie Howe was excellent for the Irish, w ith five points on four goals and an assist. 13 players tallied points for the Irish, and they outshot Central Michigan 40-13 on

Baseball Continued from page 16

He tacked on another walk-off bomb against Louisville, and his breakout campaign was off. Cole led the team with a .336 average and was second to Kavadas with nine home runs.

Cole was quick to credit teammates and coaches for his and the team’s success.

“You never really know when you’re gonna get your opportunity. What contributed the most was just great teammates and a great coach that believed in me,” Cole said. “At the end of the day, you still gotta go out and earn a spot and help your team. Everyone is important.

Last year, I think we won as many games as we did because it wasn’t just one or two guys.”

Outside the three starters, senior Jack Zyska and sophomore TJ Williams could get some run.

Williams is a speed option off the bench, and Zyska notched 11 starts last season. Jefferson remains a freshman to watch.

Previewing staff

the

pitching

The Irish may find their biggest strengths on the mound, although a lot of roles may take a while to develop. Last season, Notre Dame rolled with just one traditional starter and a bevy of bullpen arms.

Graduate student John Michael Bertrand returns as the potential ace of the staff.

the night.

The team couldn’t carry their momentum over to Sunday night’s contest, however, falling 11-7 to No. 23 Michigan. Ahern, senior midfield Madison Mote, and junior midfielder Kasey Choma each scored twice for the Irish, but their contributions weren’t enough to overcome the Wolverines’ strong defense. Deehan made 7 saves on 18 shots on goal.

The Irish ultimately had more shots, shots on goal, and draw controls than their opponent, but Michigan made the most of their opportunities, and goalie Arielle Weissman made 13 saves, deny ing the Irish time and time again. Notre Dame didn’t take advantage of Michigan’s fouls, either; they were just 2-9 from free position shots.

Michigan opened the match w ith a goal just 17 seconds into the contest, setting the tone for what was to come. The teams traded goals for the rest of the first quarter. Choma tied it at one, and when Michigan retook the lead, Mote answered for

the Irish. Michigan scored t wo consecutive goals, but A hern responded w ith her second of the night just before the end of the quarter.

In the second frame, Michigan came out red-hot, scoring the first four goals to open up an 8-3 advantage that proved too large for the Irish to overcome.

A hern brought one back on a free position shot just before the break, and Notre Dame trailed by four heading into halftime.

Notre Dame outscored the Wolverines in the third quarter 2-1 thanks to goals from Choma and senior midfield Hannah Dorney, but Michigan scored t w ice to open the final quarter to effectively seal the game.

The Irish fell to 12th in the Inside Lacrosse poll after the loss, while Michigan jumped them to 11th. Notre Dame w ill tr y and regroup as they head south to Nashv ille for their first road game of the season Saturday afternoon against Vanderbilt.

He went 8-2 with a 3.21 ERA last season, making 14 starts. He will be a primary starting option, but southpaw senior Aidan Tyrell emerged as a viable starter as well. Tyrell dazzled last season to the tune of a 2.70 ERA, the best mark for any Irish hurler with at least five appearances. While he only made eight starts in 2021, Tyrell fired a career-high eight innings in Game 2 of the Super Regional.

Tyrell said he enjoyed the versatile role he played last year.

“It was fun, a good challenge.

I think I was ready for it,” he said. “Coach Jarrett told me I’d be a jack-of-all-trades guy. As long as I got in the game and gave us a chance to win, that’s all I really wanted.”

Jarett noted he was grooming “six or seven” guys as potential starters, including senior Will Mercer. Mercer, Tyrell and Bertrand combined for 33 starts in 2021, so they hold an early experience edge. However, Alex Rao and Liam Simon both offer intriguing stuff out of the bullpen, with the former boasting a 3.16 ERA over 15 games (one start). Jack Findlay is a touted freshman, and Austin Temple has impressed as a graduate transfer.

Whoever doesn’t start will get shifted to a deep bullpen. Jarrett noted that Seton Hall graduate transfer Ryan McKlinskey has been impressive early. Jarrett doesn’t always establish a traditional closer, preferring to use his best reliever in what he

feels is the highest-leverage situation. However, he noted that McKlinskey would be in contention for that role, as well as freshmen Roman Kimball and Radek Birkholz.

“Kimball and Birkholz have shown flashes of really dynamic stuff. Good velocity, secondary pitches that appear to be swing-and-miss pitches which we really need,” Jarrett noted.

“McKlinksey is a grad transfer and he’s been good. He can be a leverage guy. I like the pieces of our staff — it may be a little deeper than last year.”

Contact Liam Coolican at lcoolica@nd.edu

Target on their back The Irish surprised everyone and won the conference outright last year. This year, the Irish are ranked around the top 10 and won’t take too many people by surprise. Cole said that the rankings don’t affect the team’s mentality too much.

“It’s nice to get a little respect,” he said. “We’ve always known we’re just as good as the best of the country.”

Prajzner emphasized the same idea.

“We believed we were one of the best teams in the country last year, and I think we went out and proved that,” Prajzner said.

“We’re excited to build on that.”

Putz added that the motivation of avenging that Super Regional loss outweighs concerns about the pressure that comes with the high rankings.

“Last year didn’t end the way we wanted,” Putz said. “We all

Continued from page 15

“The main focus for us going into Purdue and Northwestern was our presence out on the courts, specifically our body language and how we were handling different situations,” Silverio said. “We had opportunities [against Northwestern] and just couldn’t quite convert consistently.”

Looking ahead, the Irish will try to build upon their strong start to the season

MBB Continued from page 15

back in the last ten minutes making plays.”

When Wesley cooled off after halftime, senior guard Dane Goodwin scored 16 of his 20 points in the second half, including a personal 7-0 run. Goodwin leads the Irish with 14.8 ppg and has scored in double figures in 24 of 25 games this season.

The Irish have also benefited from an uptick in production from Cormac Ryan. The senior guard has started the last two games in place of senior forward Nate Laszewski, who came back after missing the Louisville win with a leg contusion and played 16 minutes Saturday.

used that as motivation this offseason ... I think we love the idea of being challenged, having that target on our backs. We want to be a team that everyone circles on their calendar. That pushes us to work harder.”

The Irish are getting some respect, but there’s more to be earned. Despite a strong season last year, the Irish were picked to finish third in the ACC behind NC State and Florida State. The Irish will get an immediate chance to make a statement against NC State in their first ACC series of the year on the road.

However, Notre Dame is used to being overlooked, and while there’s a target on their back this year, the chip on their shoulder isn’t going away. Regardless of the rankings, Jarrett noted he doesn’t change his approach.

“There’s no talk of Omaha or rankings,” he said. “I didn’t care last year whether we were picked last or first. It doesn’t have a significant impact on me or my presentation to the team.”

Omaha hunting After coming up one game short last year, there’s one goal for this year’s Irish on the diamond: Make it to Omaha and win a national championship.

Despite the lofty goals, players don’t feel any concern with overlooking anything early on the schedule as they commence the long season this weekend.

“Everyone is antsy and ready to get out and play. There’s

and put Sunday’s loss behind them as they return home to face Washington (6-3) next Sunday.

“The experience that we’re getting through our wins and through our losses have all been great lessons and we’re looking forward to continuing that into next weekend,” Silverio said. “The determined mindset in our preparation this week will be vital as we go into our last non-conference match.”

Contact Matthew Crow at mcrow@nd.edu

Ryan finished with 13 points vs. the Tigers and went 3 of 4 from beyond the arc.

“I think keeping the aggressive mindset is key,” he said. “I like to always be ready.”

Boston College has a chance to win its third consecutive game vs. Notre Dame for the first time in 25 years. Eagles’ senior center James Karnik led all players with 17 points and 13 rebounds last time out against the Irish and is coming off a 21-point performance in a 72-61 loss vs. Duke Saturday.

Tip-off Wednesday is scheduled for 7 p.m. The game will air on ESPNU. Contact Greg McKenna at gmckenn2@nd.edu

definitely a bad taste from the last series of last year, so there’s already that fuel to the fire,” Bertrand said. “There’s no need for extra energy. It’s baseball season, I don’t think it can be any more exciting than that.”

Jarrett spoke on the edge his players are carrying.

“The guys saw themselves play at a very high level for an extended period of time.

Winning breeds wanting to win more, and these guys are phenomenal workers,” he said.

“They refocused and came back wanting to perform. Going into the offseason, being so close to getting to the College World Series, there’s that sense of accomplishment but it’s bubblewrapped in a little frustration.”

Every game is important, particularly for solidifying home games in the NCAA Tournament, which can create a big advantage, as the Irish learned in 2021. So, the Irish remain locked in on their onegame-at-a-time approach, and they’re not letting any of the outside noise influence their mentality.

“There’s no difference between this year and last year besides what the outside people are saying,” Bertrand said. “The voices that matter are inside the clubhouse. We know we have an Omaha-caliber team, and we just have to go out there and compete like that every day.”

Contact Aidan Thomas at athoma28@nd.edu

sports

ndsmcobserver.com | wednesday, February 16, 2022 | The Observer

HOCKEY | 5-3, 3-2

15

ND MEN’S basketball

Squad splits series Irish look to hold ACC place

By NATE MOLLER Sports Writer

The No. 11 Notre Dame hockey team (21-9-0, 13-7-0-5-1-0 B1G) split a weekend series in Madison against the Wisconsin Badgers (9-20-3, 6-15-1-1-2-0), losing Saturday’s game by a score of 5-3 but winning the series finale on Sunday by a 3-2 margin.

The Irish opened the series with a disappointing 5-3 loss, despite outshooting the Badgers by a 41-15 margin.

The Irish dominated the Badgers in the first seven minutes, controlling the game in their offensive zone. They had nothing to show for it, however, as Badger goaltender Jared Moe saved all ten Irish shots.

At the 11:53 mark of the period, the Badgers got on the board with Mathieu De St. Phalle finding the back of the net on the Badgers’ first shot on goal of the game.

The Irish fought back with two minutes left in the period to tie the score at one apiece. The goal came off the stick of sophomore forward Ryder Rolston, who found the back of the net for his tenth goal of the season. Ryder was assisted by senior defenseman Charlie Raith and junior forward Solag Bakich on the play.

The Irish almost scored again just moments later with junior forward Max Ellis having a breakaway opportunity, but the shot hit the crossbar. The play was reviewed, but the call on the ice stood and no goal was rewarded. The Badgers then took the lead back moments later with Ryder Donovan finding the back of the net.

It got even worse for the Irish moments later with Anthony Kehrer slipping another shot past Irish junior goaltender Ryan Bischel to give the Badgers a 3-1 lead. The goal was scored at the 19:18 mark of the period.

The Irish opened the second period on a power play, but they failed to cut into the Wisconsin lead.

The Badgers did not get their first shot of the second period until the 10:58 mark, and graduate student Matthew Galajda was there to make the save. Galajda was subbed in before the second period after Bischel gave up three goals off of just five shots.

Ellis had another chance to score for the Irish at the 13:11 mark of the period, but the Badgers once again answered with a goal of their own to take a convincing 4-1 lead.

The Irish successfully killed off a Wisconsin power play at the end of the period to go into the locker room after 40 minutes of play trailing by a three-goal margin. The Irish nearly scored again six minutes into the third period with junior forward Trevor Janicke hitting a one-timer off the post.

Although the Irish were finally able to score at the end of

the game, it was too late. Solag Bakich found the back of the net with 2:30 left in the game, and then sophomore forward Grant Silianoff tacked another one on moments later to make it a 4-3 game.

The Badgers thwarted the Irish comeback, however, and tacked on an empty-netter with 26 seconds remaining to win 5-3.

Despite the disappointing loss on Saturday, the Irish bounced back to earn an exciting 3-2 win on Sunday.

The Irish found the back of the net early on Sunday when junior forward Jesse Lansdell found the back of the net just 8 seconds into a power play at the 2:02 mark of the first period. Lansdell was assisted by Trevor Janicke and senior defenseman Spencer Stastney.

The Badgers then got a power play, but the Irish killed it off to maintain their lead. The Badgers had plenty of looks in the first period but Matthew Galajda stood strong, making 15 saves and giving the Irish a 1-0 advantage at the first intermission.

The Irish tacked on another goal at the 7:43 mark of the second period off the stick of freshman forward Hunter Strand, who scored from the right circle.

Just after Max Ellis nearly made it a 3-0 lead for the Irish, the Badgers got on the board at the end of the second period to bring the score to 2-1 at the second intermission. The Irish nearly scored again at the 5:34 mark of the third period with senior forward Cam Burke sending a shot off the crossbar.

At the 12:17 mark of the third period, Trevor Janicke extended the Irish lead with his 12th goal of the season by redirecting a shot from freshman defenseman Jake Boltmann from the point.

The Badgers got a goal back with seven minutes to play to narrow the lead to 3-2, but a major penalty on Roman Ahcan for a high elbow with 1:31 to play gave the Irish a power play. The Irish were then able to hold onto the puck for the remainder of the game and avoid a series sweep in Madison. Sunday’s win marked the 71st of Matthew Galajda’s career, moving him into a tie for 18th all-time in NCAA men’s Division I hockey.

The series split for the Irish doesn’t fare too well for them in the Big Ten standings, though, as they now sit a distant seven points behind third-placed Ohio State. The series split did clinch the Irish a home series for the first round of the Big Ten Tournament, and it looks like they will be playing as the fourth seed. The Irish will return to action next weekend in East Lansing against the Michigan State Spartans.

Contact Nate Moller at nmoller2@nd.edu

By GREG McKENNA Sports Writer

Mike Brey’s “road dogs” did it again this past weekend.

With a comfortable 76-61 win at Clemson, the Irish grabbed a league-leading seventh ACC road win to keep pace with Duke atop the ACC standings.

Notre Dame hasn’t been bad at home either. The Irish are 11-1 at Purcell Pavilion this season (with the lone blemish coming against the Blue Devils), where they will host Boston College Wednesday.

Two-and-a-half months ago, no one was talking about the Irish challenging for the program’s first ACC regular season title. Notre Dame’s first conference game of the season came in Chestnut Hill, where the Eagles, picked to finish bottom of the conference in preseason, dominated Notre Dame en route to a 7357 victory.

Both teams’ fortunes have

diverged since. Notre Dame (18-7, 11-3 ACC) rebounded from the loss at Conte Forum to upset then-No. 10 Kentucky in South Bend. Since Dec. 20, the Irish have won 14 of their last 16 games, including wins in eight of their last nine and four consecutive victories.

The Eagles (9-14, 4-9 ACC), meanwhile, have lost three straight and five of their last six games. They currently sit fourth from bottom in the ACC. Brey said he is trying to downplay the theme of revenge ahead of the rematch against BC. “First of all, give them credit,” the Notre Dame head coach said of the Eagles. “I thought they played really hard and well and beat us up, but we didn’t have much of an identity. Yesterday I said, ‘how about the identity we’ve created and developed?’ That’s the one thing that’s really kind of cool.”

Not that any of the Irish

have forgotten about what happened on Dec. 3.

“They remember the ugliest night of the season,” Brey said. “We all do. That was a long flight.”

Three-time ACC freshman of the week Blake Wesley rebounded from some difficult shooting performances of late with a blazing start against the Tigers.

The guard from South Bend scored 18 points in the first 10 minutes Saturday, starting 6 of 6 from the field and 4 of 4 from 3.

Brey said he and his staff have coached Wesley “pretty hard” this season.

“Shot selection and taking care of the ball are important, and if we have to get you out to talk about it, we’ll do it,” Brey said. “And he has not sulked.

He has not checked out. There are times where he’s been out and then all of a sudden he’s see MBB PAGE 14

ND WOMEN’S TENNIS | 6-1, 1-6

Irish go 1-1 on the weekend

By MATTHEW CROW Sports Writer

Notre Dame women’s tennis split a pair of matches over the weekend to move to 6-3 on the season. The Irish defeated Purdue 6-1 at home on Friday before falling at Northwestern on Sunday by the same margin.

The Irish entered the weekend with momentum on their side, coming off a doubleheader sweep at home against Yale and Northern Illinois the previous Sunday.

“Anytime we go 2-0, that’s certainly a successful weekend, not just from the winning perspective, but [also] in the way we played and competed,” Irish head coach Alison Silverio said. “We carried that into Friday’s match against Purdue and kept our focus.”

The Irish got off to a strong start against Purdue (5-2) in the Eck Tennis Pavilion by sweeping the doubles point.

The veteran duo of junior Page Freeman and sophomore Julia Andreach earned the first win of the day on court No. 1, defeating Purdue’s Csilla Fodor and Tara Kataina Milic 6-2 in a strong performance. Minutes later, freshmen Maria Olivia Castedo and Nibedita Ghosh won 6-3 on court No. 3 to seal the doubles result and give Notre Dame a 1-0 lead in the match. Meghan Coleman and Carrie Beckman led 5-4 on court No. 2 before being cut short when the doubles point was clinched.

“We definitely believe in

our doubles and know that it is a strength for our program,” Silverio said. “We found a great rhythm against Purdue and that always sets a great tone for the match.”

Notre Dame followed up the win in doubles with a dominant showing in the singles matches, as three Irish players won in straight sets. Castedo started things off with a quick 6-1, 6-3 win on court No. 6, and Andreach defeated Fodor 6-3, 6-4 on court No. 1. The Irish claimed victory with Freeman’s 7-6, 6-4 win on court No. 2. Even after sealing the match, Notre Dame continued to battle, as Irish freshman Ghosh (4-6, 6-2, 6-1) and Beckman (7-6, 7-5) earned hard-fought wins on courts No. 3 and 4, while Coleman fell to the Boilermakers’ Carmen Gallardo Guev in a close defeat on court No. 5.

Coach Silverio spoke about how impressed she has been with the success and the development of the Irish’s young roster, which includes three freshmen who played this weekend.

“We do have a younger squad this year and they’ve been stepping up in the lineup,” Silverio said. “They’ve been competing and representing our program in the right way.”

Notre Dame had little time to celebrate Friday’s win, though, as they quickly turned their attention to Sunday afternoon’s match against Northwestern on the road at Evanston’s Combe Tennis Center.

The Irish went with the same

doubles lineup that they used against Purdue, but were unable to replicate the result, as Northwestern (2-3) took the doubles point. Freeman and Andreach were defeated 6-3

by Clarissa Hand and Maria Shusharina on court No. 1, while Coleman and Beckman fell 6-2 on court No. 2. Castedo and Ghosh were trailing 5-3 when the point was decided.

In singles, Notre Dame hoped to erase the deficit. However, Northwestern continued their strong play on the day, as Beckman fell 6-0, 6-0 on court No. 5 and Andreach was defeated 6-3, 6-4 by the Wildcats’ Hand, the 85th ranked singles player in the nation. Irish sophomore Yashna Yellayi played a tight match on court No. 4 in her first appearance of the weekend. After falling 6-0 in the first set, Yellayi recovered with a 6-0 win in the second set before ultimately succumbing 6-3 in a close final set as Northwestern picked up their fourth point, clinching the match.

On court No. 2, Freeman earned the Irish’s lone win of the day, dropping the first set before earning an impressive comeback win, 4-6, 6-0, 6-4.

This finished a strong weekend for Freeman, as she won both of her singles matches along with her doubles match against Purdue. Northwestern closed things out by picking up two more narrow wins, as Castedo (1-6, 6-2, 6-3) was defeated on court No. 6 and Ghosh (7-6, 7-6) fell on court No. 3. see W TENNIS PAGE 14

16

The observer | wednesday, February 16, 2022 | ndsmcobserver.com

BASEBALL

MAGGIE KLAERS | The Observer | Photo Courtesy of ND Athletics

After falling one win short of Omaha, experienced Irish squad seeks to crack field in 2022

By AIDAN THOMAS Associate Sports Editor

As Notre Dame prepares for their opening southern swing to begin their baseball season, their vision for 2022 is fueled by the end of the 2021 season. In front of a record-setting crowd in Starkville, Mississippi, Notre Dame took eventual national champion Mississippi State to three games in the best-ofthree Super Regional. However, they fell one victory short of the College World Series, college baseball’s eight-team championship event held in Omaha, Nebraska.

“That was a crushing loss.

I remember going to bed the night before, and I could almost feel what it would be like to win that game — the dogpile to go to Omaha,” senior shortstop Zack Prajzner said. “We all looked at each other when we got back to the hotel, and we knew we were going to be back, and the outcome is going to be different this time.”

Experienced roster displays winning culture Notre Dame returns their top three starting pitchers, a mass of bullpen arms and eight of nine members of their starting lineup. Four Irish starters opted

to return for a graduate year, utilizing an extra year of eligibility granted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The mass of extra returners is a tribute to the improving culture and program under third-year head coach Link Jarrett. “[Jarrett] completely turned it around. The winning mentality, the confidence that the players have in him,” said graduate student outfielder Ryan Cole. “With the team chemistry and success we had last year, I enjoyed every single bit of it.

I had an extra bit of eligibility, and it was a pretty easy decision …I’ve always wanted to play baseball until somebody tells me that I can’t anymore.”

There were some swirling rumors that Jarrett may not return to the Irish. After a 45-15 record in two years with Notre Dame, Jarrett was getting plenty of interest. But leaving wasn’t part of the plan, he said.

“I love it here. My intention is to stay here for a long time,” Jarrett noted. “These kids are remarkable. If you’re doing your job, there’s always going to be interest from other people.

That doesn’t mean you want to be at other places. I love where I am.”

Jarrett inked an extension that will keep him in South

Bend through 2026. With their manager in place long-term, the Irish can look forward to a 2022 season with high expectations.

Lineup preview With eight of nine starters returning, the offense should be able to largely pick up where it left off, with one major void.

Previewing the infield The biggest offensive concern for Notre Dame is replacing Niko Kavadas. The Boston Red Sox draft selection hammered 22 home runs, hit .302 last season and provided steady defense at first base. For a lineup that returns eight starters, that’s certainly a sizable hole.

Senior first baseman Carter Putz spent last season as the designated hitter, hitting .305, and he’ll prepare to be the fulltime first baseman in 2022.

“I learned so much from Niko. He was a great leader for us,” Putz said. “I’m looking forward to trying to take a bigger role and help the team as much as I can.”

While Putz heads to first base, that leaves an open slot at designated hitter. Jarrett mentioned freshmen DM Jefferson and Joey Spence as possibilities. Spence was an 18th round pick in the MLB Draft this past

summer but honored his commitment to the Irish. He slots in as the backup catcher to graduate student David LaManna.

Jarrett described Jefferson as possibly their “most dynamic bat” early in the season, high praise for a freshman on an extremely experienced roster.

Elsewhere in the infield, the Irish return Jared Miller and Zack Prajzner at the middle infield positions. They anchored Notre Dame’s No. 1-ranked fielding unit last year.

“Jared is probably the smartest player I’ve ever played with,” Prajzner praised his doubleplay partner. “He’s so steady, he’s an incredible second baseman and I’m so lucky to share the field with him.”

Both players are solid offensive contributors as well.

Prajzner hit .280 and Miller knocked his way to a .257 average, with the duo combining for 10 home runs.

At third base, the Irish have a curious situation. More often than not, Jack Brannigan will occupy the hot corner. A .295 hitter with some pop (six home runs), Brannigan is a valuable middle-of-the-order bat. He also stole eight bases last season. However, the junior is a two-way player, contributing on the mound as well. He made

six appearances last year, and Jarrett plans on increasing that usage in 2022.

“We are grooming him to throw multiple innings,” Jarrett commented. “It’s on him — he knows the stuff is there and it’s repeating the delivery and commanding his secondary pitches a little bit better.”

When Brannigan is on the mound, that opens up a new starting role. Jarrett mentioned freshman Jack Penney, calling him an “elite defender,” as a fillin possibility.

Previewing the outfield The outfield figures to transition seamlessly from last season. Defensively, Cole, senior Brooks Coetzee and graduate student Spencer Myers were elite. They made just one error last year combined. Myers hit .295 with 15 stolen bases out of the leadoff spot in the lineup, while Coetzee blasted six bombs and stole 11 bases.

However, a lot of eyes will be on Cole. He broke out last season after not having a starting role entering the season. Cole hit a walk-off home run in Notre Dame’s home opener against Duke, having entered the game as a defensive replacement. see BASEBALL PAGE 14