Print Edition of The Observer for Wednesday, September 14, 2016
notre dame, espn deliver oral arguments
Indiana Supreme Court to rule on case concerning access to Notre Dame Security Police records
The supreme c ourt of i ndiana heard arguments from attorneys representing notre d ame and espn on Tuesday, the latest development in an ongoing case hinging on the status of notre d ame s ecurity police ( ndsp ) as a public or private agency. l ike police departments across the state, ndsp responds to, investigates, interrogates and arrests individuals for crimes such as robbery, rape and assault, espn attorney m aggie smith
said, according to an audio recording of the oral arguments available on the i ndiana Judicial branch’s website.
“b ut unlike all the other police departments in the state, including those at public universities, notre d ame wants to keep all the records of their police department secret and insulated from the public accountability that all of the other police departments in the state have,” smith said. notre d ame attorney peter r usthoven said when
see espn paGe 3
SMC professor names new parasite after Obama
By SYDNEY DOYLE news writer
in 2008, retired saint mary’s biology professor Thomas platt was granted a two month sabbatical from the college. he used that period of time, between January and march, to study parasites in malaysia. That’s where he discovered the parasite he named baracktrema obamai after president barack obama. platt stayed and conducted his research at universiti putra in malaysia, where he spent his
time dissecting turtles. platt said he has devoted the bulk of his life to studying the parasites of turtles, and this is where he made his now-famous discovery.
“during the course of those dissections, i found what i was absolutely certain was a new species,” platt said. “and i knew that as soon as i saw it.”
The new species of parasite was found in the circulatory system of the lungs of turtles. The parasite is measured to be two inches long and thinner than a stand of hair. The parasite was
found in two species of turtles: the black marsh turtle and the asian box turtle.
platt said as a taxonomist, it is his job is to discover, name and categorize species for other scientists can use them in research. he said his goal is simply to increase human awareness of what is living on earth.
“w hat i’m attempting to do is add to our knowledge of diversity on the planet,” platt said.
“if somebody then utilizes the
nd
to turn over finances in
Observer Staff Report
The university will be required to turn over evidence showing financial support received by notre dame from the family and businesses tied to a former academic coach who allegedly harassed a notre dame student, according to an article from the south bend Tribune.
The lawsuit, filed oct. 30, 2015, alleges the university employee coerced the student into a sexual relationship with her daughter, according to court documents.
suit
a n order was filed in the st. Joseph circuit court last week, and special Judge m ichael scopelitis ruled today that notre dame must turn over certain records that show the financial ties between the former tutor’s family and the university, the Tribune reported Tuesday.
earlier this month, the lawsuit claimed the university employee had previously harassed a different student, but that the university had failed to
Faculty weigh in on proposed core curriculum
By MEGAN VALLEY news writer
The core curriculum review committee released its final report aug. 31, after taking feedback on a draft report released last november.
The proposed changes would reduce the number of required math and science courses and modify the requirements related to the arts, humanities and social sciences. according to the report, if the changes are accepted, they will be the most significant changes to the core curriculum
in more than 40 years. in order to take effect, the academic council and university president Fr. John Jenkins will have to approve the proposal.
“The old requirement was two math, two science and now it’s one of each plus one more of either — so it indicates a bit of a decrease,” mathematics department chair Jeffrey diller said. “no one likes to see their own area deemphasized. That said, there seems to be a ton of interest
Sophie Lancaster sophomore mcglinn hall “cookies.”
Elizabeth Kochniarzcyk sophomore regina hall
“same – i like brats.”
Sabrina Geitan freshman mcglinn hall
“sophie’s mac’n cheese.”
Tierney Vrdolyak junior breen-phillips hall
“my dad’s hamburgers.”
Jonathan Crass speaks during “Through the Looking Glass: Our View of the Universe” on Tuesday night in Jordan Hall of Science. The lecture was the first in the “Our Universe Revealed” series, which will focus on interesting phenomena in physics.
Today’s Staff
Corrections
The observer regards itself as a professional publication and strives for the highest standards of journalism at all times. we do, however, recognize that we will make mistakes. i f we have made a mistake, please contact us at (574) 631-4541 so we can correct our error.
SMC hosts trafficking survivor
By GINA TWARDOSZ news writer
Theresa Flores is the founder of s ave o ur a dolescents from p rostitution ( s o a p ) — an organization that puts the number for the human trafficking hotline on bars of soap.
s aint m ary’s hosted Flores, an author, award winner and social worker, on Tuesday night to share her personal story as a survivor of human trafficking and discuss ways to work towards eliminating the issue in today’s society.
Flores said she didn’t realize she was a survivor until she was 40-years-old, with a family and a job in social work.
“i had heard about this human trafficking conference from a coworker of mine. s he couldn’t attend and said i should go,” Flores said. “... w ithin five minutes of sitting in that seat, i realized i had found my calling. i never knew what it was called that happened to me. i had never
Harassment
con T inued F rom page 1
discipline her on account of her financial ties to the university.
The suit also alleges university administrators knew about the misconduct and, citing Title vi and Title i X,
espn
con T inued F rom page 1
examining the “plain and ordinary” language of i ndiana’s a ccess to p ublic records a ct ( apra ), the law applies only to governmental agencies and departments.
“There is not a single reference to anything other than public’s right to know what their elected representatives and agencies do,” r usthoven said. “a nd whatever else notre d ame may be, it is not the elected representatives of government.”
espn filed the lawsuit against the university in January 2015 after ndsp refused to release incident reports related to studentathletes on two separate occasions.
The st. Joseph c ounty superior c ourt issued a ruling in notre d ame’s favor in a pril 2015. a fter espn appealed the decision, the i ndiana c ourt of a ppeals reversed the district court’s ruling in m arch 2016. since o ctober 2014, two state officials — p ublic a ccess c ounselor l uke britt and a ttorney g eneral g reg Zoeller — have said they believe notre d ame to be subject to apra b oth attorneys discussed i ndiana house bill 1022, a bill to change the public record
healed.”
That moment was the start of a 10-year career working to educate and empower those working to end human trafficking, Flores said. s he shared her story of how she was forced into sex trade as a teenager.
Flores said she was raped and blackmailed by boys from her high school for two years. Then one night, she said she was taken by several men to an underground criminal ring.
“They beat me, drugged me and took me far away from home,” Flores said.
Flores said the men took her to a hotel where she was auctioned off to several men all through the night. s he said she awoke the next morning, sick and vulnerable, and mustered the courage to leave.
“i know if i had not have left there that morning, i would not be speaking with you here tonight,” Flores said.
Flores said she walked into a nearby diner and talked to an elderly waitress who asked
had a responsibility to intervene for the student’s well being, which was compromised by a racially and sexually hostile environment.
The student’s attorney argued that information about the former employee’s financial relationship with the university could serve as
requirements for private universities, that was vetoed by g ov. m ike pence last m arch.
The bill would have required police departments at private colleges and universities to only release information about incidents that result in arrests or incarcerations, exempting a large number of the cases that occur on college campuses.
“i think this court has to look at that as an express recognition by the legislature that the existing law — which governs this dispute — did not do what notre d ame wanted it to do,” smith said. “it had to come in and change the law to accomplish what they wanted.”
The law would not have affected the case in question, smith added, for it would only apply to future incidences.
r usthoven argued that when the legislature wants to say something, it knows how to say it clearly, noting that no additional attempts at legislation have been made to address the issue.
“This has been out there for a long time,” he said. “i f the legislature wants to change it, they have to do it.”
The i ndiana supreme c ourt granted notre d ame’s appeal on June 30, agreeing to hear the case. There is no schedule for when the decision will be announced.
her if she needed help. s he then called the police.
a bout 100,000 kids are being trafficked around the world, Flores said, and 3,500 kids go missing each day.
“human trafficking is the second leading crime in the world,” she said. “80 percent of victims are women, 20 percent are men and 50 percent of all victims are children.” a common misconception is that human trafficking doesn’t happen here in the united states, Flores said, or that most victims are kidnapped, like the popular movie “Taken.”
“i was trafficked right in my own community,” she said. “o nly 3 percent are kidnapped; 35 percent [were] trafficked because [of] a family member selling them and 62 percent [were] trafficked in the united states because they [were] tricked.”
most victims are coerced from public places like libraries, supermarkets, rest stops and truck stops, or through social media, chat-rooms and
evidence as to whether or not notre dame was aware of the misconduct and failed to take proper action.
according to the court documents, the suit alleges the university employee — “Jane roe” — coerced the plaintiff — “John doe,” an a fricana merican student at the
c raigslist, Flores said. “it’s happening anywhere around you. a nywhere kids are,” Flores said. “i f victims are not found in the first 48 hours, it’s very likely they will become trafficked.”
m any guests stayed after to ask Flores questions about her experience, her work with victims and what they can do to help.
s aint m ary’s alumna a driana petty, who has written her own book on human trafficking, “From p rice Tag to p riceless,” said she thought Flores’ presentation was moving.
“i think her story is something provoking — how she was approached and how she was preyed upon and groomed, this is something that is very common,” petty said. “[Trafficking] doesn’t start off with a frightening first encounter — it’s pretty general and non-threatening from the beginning.”
Contact Gina Twardosz at gtwardosz01@saintmarys.edu
university — into a sexual relationship with her daughter, who attends a “nearby school” but is also an employee of the university. notre dame said it placed the woman on leave after the complaint was filed in august 2015 and fired her in october, after an investigation.
paid a dverT isemen T
new dorms select mascots
Observer Staff Report
a fter several weeks of brainstorming and rounds of voting, Flaherty h all selected the b ears as their hall mascot Tuesday night.
Flaherty h all is the newest female dorm at n otre d ame, situated behind the library on the new e ast Quad. d unne h all, the newest male dorm situated next to Flaherty h all, selected the s entinels as their mascot last week. a dditionally, they chose navy and green as their hall colors.
The colors of Flaherty h all — lavender and navy — were chosen last year by a vote from the women of p angborn h all.
The two dorms are some of the latest additions to campus, along with m c c ourtney h all, the research facility that also opened on e ast Quad at the start of this academic year.
These are the newest dorms since r yan h all was built in 2009. students moved in for the first time in august.
information that i find for other means that is fine by me.” recently, platt found out through one of his cousins that obama is a distant cousin of his; the two share
a common ancestor — a man named george Frederick Toot who lived in middletown, pa., from 1759 to 1815.
platt said despite what one may think, he considers it an honor to have a parasite named after you. he has had two parasites named after himself as recognition for his work. by naming this parasite after obama, platt said he intends to honor his distant family member.
“i voted for obama twice, i think he had done a fine job. i have a great deal of respect for him as a husband
and father,” platt said. “From my perspective, i am recognizing his achievements.”
platt, who retired in 2015, said he is happy this story is getting global attention. he said with the hard work he has done over the course of his career — especially on this eight-and-a-half-year project — and the hard work all other scientists do, expecting nothing in return, it is nice to receive some recognition and feedback.
“i wanted the last organism that i’m going to name in my career to make a little noise,” platt said.
he said the story, which started to gain media attention a week ago, has already began to raise awareness of parasitology. For example, platt added, the journal of parasitology website recently received ten times more hits then it usually does.
“There are a lot of scientists out there who don’t do it for money or recognition but because they love it,” he said. “we are really just interested in discovering diversity on this planet.”
Contact Sydney Doyle at sdoyle1@saintmarys.edu
in math courses, requirements aside, these days. i don’t think we’re very worried about loss of enrollment or something in freshman course offerings.
“lots of people take calculus; i think econ, in particular, has been stressing taking calculus classes even more. The practical effect of it is, in truth, probably not that large for us.”
diller said he felt “neutral” toward the possible decrease in math classes and that his “concerns will be elsewhere,” specifically with students not being able to use ap credit to fill requirements.
“so if you got a five on the calculus bc exam that doesn’t automatically get you out of the university math requirement — you still need to take a math course, but it could be something down the road from calc i or ii,” he said. “we’ll be very concerned that the advising matches that change. it’s a shame if people who took calc i and ii in high school take it again because that’s just the simplest thing to do under the circumstances. we’ll be concerned to find courses where people actually see something new.”
The report indicates that students would be required to take one class each in “quantitative
reasoning” and “science and technology” and one additional course in either. diller said the change in name could indicate an expansion in who can teach classes related to math.
“in truth, even under the old system, it was possible for another department to propose a course that would fulfill the math requirement, but there never were any proposals,” he said. “maybe that will change now for reasons that i can’t see. even with the change in name, there was this opportunity before to have courses offered by people other than us.”
The report also recommends requiring students to take a foundational philosophy course, but allowing a student to take a second course in philosophy or one in “catholicism and the disciplines” (cad), a new category of courses that cover catholic topics, but can be in any field.
“w hen taught well, philosophy courses don’t just give students a body of information,” philosophy department chair Jeff speaks said in an email. “They also teach students to form and defend their own views about the right answers to fundamental questions about the universe and themselves.
“according to the recommendation, cad courses must have this normative dimension
as well. if they really do, then i think that the proposed changes will open up some interesting opportunities for notre dame students. if they don’t, then we will have taken a step in the wrong direction.”
diller said the proposed changes essentially come down to how much the university requires students to step out of their specific field of study.
“is it a good idea to make students take courses outside of their area of interest, or should we be like brown [university], for instance, where there are basically no general requirements and people just take exactly what they want to take?” he said. “That’s somewhat above my paygrade, but i am sort of in favor in pushing people to try stuff outside of their specific area.”
in addition to advising students to take appropriate math classes, diller said he also has concerns about flexibility in course schedules.
“This does make things somewhat more flexible for a lot of students, but not for science or engineering students,” he said. “it would be nice to see more flexibility for them. … i don’t see that the core curriculum has touched on this at all.”
Contact Megan Valley at mvalley@nd.edu
paid a dverT isemen T
Thomas Platt
Keep them close
like many of you, my first few weeks in college were a breath of fresh air. i could do what i wanted, when i wanted, with whom i wanted. a nd, i abused that freedom quite a bit, playing video games until 3 a.m. and drinking diet coke for breakfast. wasn’t i so cool?
of course, what made by libertine streak possible was the lack of parental supervision. Though i live in mishawaka — only a 15-minute drive to campus — my parents decided they would not become the helicopter variety and left me alone for the most part, with only weekly or biweekly updates. as my first year went on, however, i found myself calling them much more often for advice or just to hear their voices. a nd with them living so close to notre dame, i was able to mooch some free meals off of them along the way as well.
a nd this brings me to the thesis statement of the column: don’t be afraid to let your parents in.
as i’m entering my junior year, i can honestly say that i would not be anywhere near as successful if my parents weren’t as involved in my life. i know it sounds corny as heck, but i recommend giving it a try. your parents are some of the best people to talk to because they know exactly what you’re going through. They’ve bombed tests, they’ve missed assignments, been overloaded with work and yes, they’ve even had romantic entanglements that didn’t work out so hot.
with such a wealth of knowledge, they can be very insightful whether it’s knowing how to deal with a psycho professor or a convoluted social scenario. a nd even if they can’t give you a hard and fast answer, i’ve found that talking to them reminds me of a simpler, less stressful time in my life. it provides an escape for whatever you may be dealing with as you realize that there was a time when your problem didn’t even exist and there will be a time in the future when it won’t even matter.
now, i am aware that not everyone is on the best of terms with their parents. it happens, because life isn’t like a sitcom. a nd if this is you, i would say this: give it a chance. if you are on rocky ground with your mom or your dad, it’s probably a two-way street. if they messed up, call them and give them a chance to get back on the right foot, because they don’t want to be mad at you forever. if you messed up, give them a call and make things right. you may be surprised at how forgiving they can be. because while you’re experiencing freedom from them for the first time in your life, they’re experiencing separation from you for the first time in theirs. Just a quick phone call can make their day. let them help you, let them be a part of your life and you won’t be disappointed.
Contact Marek Mazurek at mmazurek@nd.edu
The views expressed in the Inside Column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.
letter to tHe edItor
A call for sexual assault awareness
This past Thursday, s eptember 8, the o bserver published an o bserver s taff r eport titled, “ r ape reported to [ n otre d ame s ecurity p olice ( ndsp )].” i t stated that a rape, allegedly occurring between 7 p.m. a ug. 28 and 10 a.m. a ugust 29 in Keough h all, was reported to ndsp on wednesday, s ept. 7, and that the crime log of another rape, occurring a ug. 5 in the Fischer graduate student apartments, was updated to indicate the rape had been reported to s t. Joseph’s c ounty p olice. The n otre d ame student body did not receive an email alert from ndsp regarding these two reported rapes, nor did it receive emails regarding two other instances of interpersonal violence that have been reported since the beginning of the academic year.
o ur campus cannot understand its problem of interpersonal and sexual violence unless we understand when members of our community are being harmed. The crime alert emails have value, and if our campus culture is supposed to be one where violence is not tolerated and everyone is committed to its betterment, we need to receive them.
yes, information on crimes and allegation reports are available outside of crime alert emails. They are technically accessible on ndsp ’s website, but the crime alerts page has not been updated since n ovember 2015 and a list of all filed crime reports since 2006, which is not sorted chronologically, must be searched by looking for individual crime logs.
yes, these emails can be controversial. They call into question their very purpose: a re they meant to alert students of potential imminent danger or are they meant to inform students of a tragic and senseless problem causing harm to our community? i n the emails sent to students by ndsp after an instance of interpersonal violence, we are told, “on college campuses, perpetrators are more likely to assault an acquaintance than a stranger” and that “sexual assault can happen to anyone,” which i take to mean these emails serve both purposes. They are meant to make us aware of our own safety and call to attention the problem of sexual violence on campus as something that is relevant to us as individuals, going beyond the myth of victim blaming.
yes, there is an argument for why students should be motivated to change campus culture around sexual violence and keep each other safe without being alerted of specific instances of violence, in the name of protecting victims’ identities. b ut, the anonymity of both the alleged victim and alleged perpetrator
respects the difficulty and possible degradation of reporting. a nonymity helps keep the victims safe from judgement and gives them some power of their own stories, possibly as much power as they’ll have in the process of reporting. r eporting a crime of sexual violence requires immense bravery, and it is an injustice to disrespect this bravery by not acknowledging violence on our campus.
yes, i agree with past crime alert emails from ndsp that say “the perpetrator, not the survivor, is responsible for any instance of sexual assault. n othing a survivor does or does not do is an excuse for sexual assault.” b ut, we as a family of brothers and sisters must also recognize that we are responsible for our campus culture, a culture that does not do as much as it should to prevent sexual violence. we can all be better bystanders, better understand and promote the essential importance of consent, more often call out rape culture as it functions on our campus, and more fully cultivate a campus culture that does not tolerate violence and knows that even one instance of harm against a peer is too many instances.
yes, i know and appreciate the changes that are occurring on our campus. i am proud to witness new conversations regarding interpersonal violence taking place between students, faculty and staff. i am encouraged to see people involved in courses, student programming offices, hall events and student organizations that are focused on making a difference. b ut i truly believe that our university can do more, and has a responsibility to involve more people in the cause.
i t starts with letting people know that members of our own community have been wronged, have been harmed in ways we cannot imagine, and have been betrayed by a place they thought was safe and a community they thought was home. yes, we can make n otre d ame a campus community free from harm and full of care for others. yes, we can learn to respond to complex issues facing our campus and other campuses across the country, but first we must know that there are things we must respond to, and work we must continue to do. we need to know our community is hurting. Those emails help us do that; those emails have value.
Joey Wikelski junior s ept. 13
Mark Mazurek sports e ditor
Freshmen: It’s going to be OK
you’re a few weeks into this college thing and you’re feeling overwhelmed. maybe you’re feeling lonely and like everyone else already has more friends. maybe you’re feeling the opposite of lonely, like you’re surrounded by people you don’t know and you don’t like and you don’t know how to get away from them. maybe you’re feeling homesick. maybe you’re feeling scared, uninterested or inept in your new classes. maybe you’ve heard for the last couple years how proud everyone is of you and how you’re going to do great things, but you don’t feel any great things happening yet. maybe you don’t know exactly how you feel, and you can’t identify directly with any of the examples in this paragraph, but there’s still something there. i have something to say to you, freshmen: it’s going to be oK.
it’s all going to be oK.
The first year of college is tough. you are in a completely new environment and part of your life. That’s weird, and even if you’re pretending it’s not weird and ignoring it, it’s there, and it’s okay. your feelings are valid and i guarantee you that plenty of people around you are feeling them, too.
maybe you’re not feeling lonely. maybe you’ve been in a whirlwind of activity, with new friends and new clubs and parties. a nd that’s great! but these next two weeks or so are when burnout is going to start kicking
in. you’ve been away from home and sleeping, eating and drinking much differently than you did at home. classes are going to be ratcheting up a notch. we have three home games in a row, throwing a monkey wrench into your plans for catching up on homework and sleep over the weekend. your dorm and domerfest friendships are going to crack and splinter and fall apart. These are the weeks when, in the eternal words of Kenneth parcell from “30 rock,” “the pig spore will hit the wind-spinner.”
a nd it’s still all going to be oK.
There’s a dichotomy to freshman year that most people feel: feeling lonely and feeling overwhelmed. some people find themselves alone more than surrounded, or vice versa. a nd some people simultaneously feel both and feel alone in a crowded, sweaty dorm, simultaneously wishing that you could leave all of them and wishing that they would be your friends. you are not alone in those feelings. every other freshman is feeling them too, to some extent, in some fashion. every upperclassman went through that and might even be feeling the same way now. heck, your professors and Ta s know the feeling.
you are not a failure at college. you are not a loser. you are not stupid. a nd you are not alone.
soon, you will find your friends. They’ll come into your life slowly, on the peripherals, and suddenly you’ll be in their dorm room for the third 2 a.m. in a row, crying from how hard you’re laughing.
soon, you’ll find your favorite classes. you’ll be in your professor’s office after class, asking them to
explain in more detail what they meant on slide 8 because you can’t get enough. a nd they’ll look at you and ask if you’re considering a career in this field because you have a gift for it, and you’ll suddenly have a career path and a mentor.
soon, you’ll be home for Thanksgiving, explaining to your grandmother about your hall traditions or how hard it is to stay standing up on the bench on the third rendition of the jig.
you’ll figure your life out. you’ll get into a schedule, and a friend group, and a career path. please, please, little freshmen, remember that you are here to learn. Friends, sports, and parties are lots of fun of course, but your education comes first. Focus on your classes and your passions.
your freshman year will be hard, and you’ll have days and weeks when you think it’s too hard. you will cry. you will scream. you will spill coffee on your laptop and drive to walmart at 1 a.m.to buy rice to dry it out. but your tears will dry, your screams will quiet down, and your laptop will sort of work again.
it’s going to be oK.
Courtney Phelan is studying English writing, secondary education and French. She wants to be an English teacher, so that she can get paid to correct people’s grammar. She is in her final year at Saint Mary’s College. Contact her at cphela01@saintmarys. edu
The views expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.
common sense and guns
o ne of the main reasons i am proud to call myself a conservative is the emphasis the ideology places on common sense. From issues ranging from abortion to tax reform, conservatives often observe the facts and formulate logical positions. unfortunately, however, many conservatives seem to lose such a faculty of reason when it comes to the issue of gun control.
w hile some of my fellow conservatives may call me a gun-grabbing marxist for writing this column, i strongly affirm that i am a staunch defender of the s econd a mendment. i completely reject the far-left myth that banning all guns would reduce crime. w ith that said, the s econd a mendment is not an endorsement for any citizen to obtain an arsenal of mass killing machines. i n actuality, everyone recognizes this fact. you do not hear too many people argue for the legalization of fully automatic military rifles or military grade rocket launchers. it is obvious that there is a line between reasonable self-defense measures and unnecessary recklessness. The disagreement is found in where such a line begins. a nd while it may be difficult to pinpoint the exact location of the line, common sense can get us close. i think there is legitimate inquiry warranted to
the question of whether certain legalized weapons in the united states, such as semi-automatic rifles, are not reasonable instruments of self-defense but rather unneeded killing machines. i am not arguing wholeheartedly against semi-automatic weapons, but, at the very least, we should be able to have a reasonable and thoughtful debate. a fter all, many of the arguments i have heard in favor of semi-automatic assault rifles are, frankly, illogical. i f you justify the legalization of semi-automatic assault rifles on self-defense grounds, who are you afraid of breaking into your house? The r ussian military? similarly, defending semi-automatic rifles out of some fear of the a merican government becoming tyrannical is irrational. The a merican government is not going to suddenly transform into a bloodthirsty dictatorship, and if they did, we would not stand a chance — even with semi-automatic weapons.
i understand that criminals will obtain weapons whether they are legal or illegal, but we might as well make it more difficult. i also understand why some people are so passionately opposed to gun control measures. people are afraid that the government is overstepping and infringing on constitutional rights. however, one cannot let common sense succumb to fear. The Founding Fathers never could have foreseen the technological advancement of weaponry. since we cannot ask the Founding
Fathers how far the s econd a mendment extends, we must utilize our g od-given gift of common sense. e ven if some conservatives cannot commit to restricting semi-automatic guns, they should at least agree to other regulations. unfortunately, some conservatives cannot even agree to enforce universal background checks on those buying guns. This frustrates me because arguing against background checks is a complete and utter rejection of common sense.
i am not claiming to have all the answers when it comes to gun control. however, the answer is not to either pass more legislation or to enforce our current laws; it is both. w hen we witness what happened at s andy hook or o rlando, we have to do something. we are not going to eradicate violence of that nature, but we must do anything to make it more difficult to execute. i nstead of wasting time with political banter, let’s just try to curtail the problem. it is time to throw away party platforms and political ideology, and just use some damn common sense.
Eddie is a sophomore from Orland Park, Illinois. He is majoring in economics and political science and considering pursuing law school after his time as an undergraduate at the University of Notre Dame. He can be reached at edamstra@nd.edu
The views expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.
Courtney Phelan
e nglish major in the real world
Eddie Damstra dinner Table Talks
By KELLY McGARRY
ssociate s cene
over a blaring violin, nick cave confesses, “most of us don’t really want to change, really ... but what happens when an event occurs that is so catastrophic, that you just change. you change from a known person to an unknown person.” The catastrophic event to which he alludes to can only be the unexpected death of his teenage son, a tragedy most of us hope to never comprehend. cave’s confession is part of the documentary “one more Time with Feeling,” created in conjunction with his recently released album, “skeleton Tree.” of the albums that nick cave and The bad seeds have released consistently for over 30 years, this is not the first to contemplate death — but it is the bleakest. Though the playfulness of previous works was left out on this album, it does not lack for creativity
a n eerie din introduces the opening track, “Jesus a lone,” and sets a disturbing tone for the album. The track eventually comes to a repeated painful wail subtly reminiscent of clare Torry’s wordless vocals on pink
Floyd’s “great gig in the sky.” From here, the album progresses through various manifestations of grief.
a twinkling instrumental in “rings of saturn” incorporates a dream-pop style rather than the nightmare feeling the rest of the album evokes. The airy instrumental is grounded by cave’s deeply, darkly spoken lyrics that also convey a sense of rightness as the notes fall into place, “a nd in this moment, this is exactly what she is born to be.”
The sense of uncertainty throughout the album is defied only by the most straightforward track, “i need you.” a steady snare drum accompanies some of the album’s only clear lines, “nothing really matters when the one you love is gone,” and the repeated confession, “i need you.” straightforwardness may be a reason cave chose to release this song with a video, a simple but heartfelt performance of the song in a dingy room, recorded in black and white.
proximity to death is at its most tangible in “distant sky,” introduced by organs that call to mind a funeral march. you can almost smell the incense as the female vocalist sings in the style of a church cantor. cave
solidifies the religious imagery when he croons, “They told us our gods would outlive us/but they lied.”
The closing track from which the album gets its name has a cathartic effect, ending with the line, “it’s alright now.” perhaps people are changed by catastrophic events because the person they once were could not have dealt with the experience, but transformation into an unknown person makes acceptance possible.
Contact Kelly McGarry at kmcgarry@nd.edu
“Skeleton Tree”
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
Label: Bad Seed Ltd.
Track: “Girl in Amber,” “Rings of Saturn”
If you like: The National, The Smiths
By MICHAEL DONOVAN
s cene writer
in 1986, bobby gillespie of primal scream and his peers were curating glasgow’s musical zeitgeist in the grimy, smoke-filled rooms of splash one. The club — a snapshot of indie pop in its infancy — served as ground control for the rapidly growing c86 movement. a frequent host to epochal cult outfits like The Jesus and mary chain, The pastels, razorcuts, w ire, The l oft and sonic youth, splash one attracted young, left-ofthe dial romantics from across scotland. here, at the center of the new wave universe, norman blake and raymond mcginley met. Four years later, in 1989, blake and mcginley joined forces with bassist gerard l ove to form Teenage Fanclub.
w ith 1991’s “bandwagonesque,” the group very nearly reached icon status. The power pop masterpiece funneled infectious melodies and transparent sentiments through a gritty, distorted filter to astonishing effect. The album’s unrestrained charisma seemed to rise straight out of glasgow’s musty rock clubs, while the exceedingly catchy hooks clearly channeled a lex chilton — the godfather of power pop and Teenage Fanclub’s most cited influence. a loud, ambitious and fittingly unstable bid for glory on the rapidly evolving alternative scene, “bandwagonesque” managed to inch the band slightly closer to mainstream relevance. its singles even cracked indie charts in both britain and the u s. The market for independent music in 1991, however, was a darwinist landscape that favored primal scream’s dance rock efforts in the u.K. and nirvana’s grunge sound stateside. Teenage Fanclub, unable to get a firm
commercial foothold following “bandwagonesque’s” brief moment in the sun, settled in for the long game.
“here,” Teenage Fanclub’s tenth studio album, comes six years after “shadows” and three decades after blake and mcginley’s first meeting. w hile it’s not necessarily a fresh and innovative feat, the album displays confidence and maturity in its songwriting that only experience can bring. having abandoned their liberal use of feedback and distortion at the turn of the century, the band now weaves addictive hooks and sweeping threepart vocal harmonies though their music with a delicate hand. The result is sincere and endearing. blake, mcginley and l ove — splitting the songwriting duties yet again — approach the strikingly common themes of love and mortality with sensible elegance. blake paints his sentiments in broad strokes. his bright, shimmering lines — “isn’t life such a mystery / i’m in love with your love” — on the opening track exuberantly declare how simple passions can smooth the edges of life’s unexplainable nuances. The song’s straightforward structure, driving major chords and succinct melodic motifs exhibit warm simplicity to match his lucid lyrics. mcginley, on the other hand, is the band’s most introspective writer. he rolls with the nuance instead of over it. “sit down by the fireside / i feel the energy inside her,” he ponders halfway through “steady state.” w ith this simple reverie and the eerie layers melody that accompany it, mcginley illustrates the mysteries of love and connection in their beautifully chaotic natural condition.
The album also offers somber reflections on the passage of youth and the unrelenting pace of time. blake, in “connected to l ife,” wistfully bemoans the notion of
being “a lone in the end / Further and fading from life.” The track — a rolling and ominous acoustic piece — enviously examines youthful vitality from the melancholy perch of experience. on “i have nothing more to say,” g erard l ove sputters, “i’ve been awake too long, and my head is overloaded” amidst softly lapping waves of phased synthesizers and jangly strings. The songwriters hold no illusions. They’re aging fast, moving ceaselessly towards a time when their capacity to make meaningful connections in art and relationships will vanish.
Fortunately, indie rock’s most overlooked underdogs haven’t disappeared yet. “here” — though it doesn’t break new ground or reinvent the band — offers a compelling statement of purpose. The album proves that blake, mcginley and l ove will continue make music as long as they can still write honest and relevant material. it may not punch with the weight of “bandwagonesque,” but it doesn’t need to. a fter all, the zeitgeist belongs to the kids. Teenage Fanclub is too old for that nonsense. Contact Michael Donovan at mdonov10@nd.edu
“Here”
Teenage Fanclub
Label: Merge Records
Track: “I Have Nothing More to Say,” “Connected to Life,” “I’m in Love”
If you like: Primal Scream, My Bloody Valentine
By JOHN DARR s cene writer
upon hearing its bamboozling name during a casual observer meeting, “vegetable buddies” had my curiosity. w hen i learned that it was a concert venue, it had my attention. as my friend and i cruised into downtown south bend that fateful Friday night, questions weighed heavy on our existential senior-year minds. would the venue, a resurrection of a historical but short-lived ‘70s jazz and blues establishment, boast the casual intimacy implied by “buddies?” would it have a salad bar the likes of which we’d never seen? in a delightful turn of events, we entered vegetable buddies to find that, salad bar or no, vegetable buddies boasts everything a concert-goer could wish for.
The first thing that one notices upon entering vegetable buddies is the absolutely lovely atmosphere. vegetable buddies gives off a very relaxed, warm vibe; romantic lighting provided by candles on most of the tables has fantastic interplay with both the dusted amarillo walls and the brick façade of the raised, restaurant-esque seating area and bar. in a word, the visual aesthetic of vegetable buddies is strikingly cozy; if it weren’t for the lively mood of the guests in attendance and the rollicking performances of the bands that come through, i could imagine falling asleep under a blanket in one of the booths.
as long as there’s a show on, however, you can be certain that no one within the walls (or even within a moderate distance outside them) is going to be dozing off. The setup of the venue maximizes the impact of its sizable
stage and powerful sound-system so that the main focus of each night is live music. The aforementioned raised seating area is tiered up from a lower seating area and accompanying standing area; in this way, vegetable buddies functions as a miniature amphitheater with a very wellstocked bar far opposite the stage. The night i attended, the venue was driven by the smoldering soul music of st. eve and the vines and the barreling funk-rock of slow orbit; both shows were highly energetic and filled the space up beautifully. Though we didn’t get to try any of the delicious-looking items on the vegetable buddies menu, my friend and i agreed that we’d be returning to sample the music — and jalapeño hushpuppies with sriracha remoulade — at a later date.
after attending the show, i got in touch with owner Jeffrey harrison to talk about why he resurrected vegetable buddies. The venue was so clearly well-designed that i could only imagine the hours that had been spent in creating the environment i’d experienced. like so many excellent establishments, the force behind its creation was passion. “music is a passion that drives everything i do,” explained harrison. “There is nothing quite like a live music experience. i have always dreamed of creating a space where the magic of live music could happen every weekend. vegetable buddies is that dream come to fruition.”
pun intended or no, vegetable buddies does come off as a refreshingly organic project. The physical makeover that vegetable buddies has undergone puts its previous reincarnation — which was constructed mostly out of reclaimed barn wood — to shame, but the institution still
shares the core purpose and ambition of its former self.
“The original vegetable buddies was only open from 1976 to 1980 and created quite a legend in four short years,” recalls harrison. “The level of talent that played there was the main reason why. muddy waters, John lee hooker, buddy guy. a long list of artist that are now legendary. bruce springsteen and the e street band even played there one night after a performance at the Joyce center.
“The look of the new [vegetable buddies] is a bit different from the original … but the location and most importantly the mission is the same: bring in the best artists from all over the world and at the same time give the deep pool of local talent an amazing venue to showcase themselves.” despite its international outlook, vegetable buddies stands as a local institution geared towards fostering south bend’s own art scene. The venue plans on continuing the integration of notre dame and south bend’s artist pools in the spirit of the bridge project that was established a couple years back; in the works is a recurring Thursday night ticket where notre dame and south bend artists would play in succession. given the quality of the venue and the passion of those who work there, it’s an opportunity that no active student band should miss. here’s to hoping that vegetable buddies continues to be a shining light in south bend’s art scene for years to come.
The venue is currently opening its doors to applications for local artists to perform; interested parties should contact buddiesdtsb.com for more information.
Contact John Darr at jdarr@nd.edu
happy birthday: l ook a bit further down the road and strategize a way to get to where you want to go. a new job will help you achieve greater income, better health and a brighter future. a change in the way you live will do you good and help you alleviate the pressure that someone is putting on you. d on’t give in to demands. your numbers are 8, 14, 21, 25, 33, 38, 43.
ARIES (March 21-April 19): stay on top of whatever project interests you. make plans with someone you want to partner with on future projects or developments. a change in your position will offer you more responsibility as well as a higher income.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20): use your past experiences to pave the road to a better future. your charm will win you favors and help you gather support. discuss your financial plans with someone you trust to push you in the right direction.
GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Forget about past losses and move on to new opportunities. engage in work-related events or activities that will help you become known among influential colleagues. romance is highlighted.
CANCER (June 21-July 22): consider ways to make your home more convenient, or consider making a move that will ease your stress and free up some cash. you are due for a change that will encourage you to interact more with like-minded people.
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): v isiting a place you’ve never been before will encourage your personal growth. a remodeling project at home or a positive physical change should be considered. romance is in the stars and will alter your mood for the better.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): g et involved in something that you find entertaining. The time spent will fuel new ideas and plans that will help you deal with any domestic or family responsibilities. update an old dream to suit today’s trends.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): pay attention to what’s going on with your peers and how they respond to you. Knowing who is in your corner and who isn’t will help you enlist the right people when help is needed. romance and selfimprovement are encouraged.
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Take matters into your own hands and do things your way. a unique approach will surprise onlookers and help you build your reputation as a problem-solver. d on’t allow your emotions to get in the way of your progress. stay focused.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): make the subtle changes that will help make you appear more professional. send out your resume or delve into something that interests you and see if you can turn it into additional income. romance is in the stars.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): c heck out what’s being offered, but don’t sign up for something until you know exactly what’s expected of you. someone’s hidden agenda will surface if you are too trusting. negotiate on your own behalf.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): express your feelings and make a proposal that will help you bring about the changes that will make you happy. a change in the way you earn your living will result from using your unique skills.
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): d on’t let uncertainty cost you. step back and do nothing if you have any reservations about how to handle a situation. work on a creative project that will keep you occupied. avoid arguments of any kind.
Birthday Baby: you are inventive, adaptable and friendly. you are aggressive and intense.
Jumble | david hoyT and JeFF KnureK
sudoku | The mepham group
Just add Water | eric carlson & John roddy
Leicester still has a lot to prove
This week marks the beginning of the e uropean soccer merry-go-round known as the c hampions l eague, in which the top teams in e urope battle for supremacy.
The process is typically one of glitz and glam, with giants like r eal m adrid, b arcelona and b ayern munich fielding teams of international stars to play in front of packed stadiums. The typical best teams from e ngland — such as c helsea and m anchester united — are also usually associated with the competition, but not this year. b oth failed to qualify and, in their place, stands perhaps what is the greatest c inderella story in all of sports: l eicester c ity. l ast season, to the shock of the soccer world, the Foxes — who had only been promoted back to the p remier l eague in 2014 after a 10-year absence and barely escaped relegation the subsequent year — won the p remier l eague title at 5,000-1 odds. 5,000-1. i n a sport where the wellknown teams are always the ones competing for the title and the little ones are fighting for the scraps, the Foxes shattered the status quo. l ed by manager c laudio r anieri, an italian who had coached 14 different teams but had never won a top-level title, and a squad of no-names and journeymen, l eicester began last year as relegation contenders once again. b ut game after game, their simple, direct style worked wonders, and stars emerged. n ’g olo Kante was perhaps the signing of the epl season, as the diminutive box-to-box midfielder seemed to be everywhere at once, making tackles, snagging interceptions and starting counterattacks for r iyad m ahrez — a silky-smooth a lgerian winger who had been signed from the French second division — and striker Jamie vardy — who hadn’t even been playing professionally just five years earlier. yet, somehow, some way, the stars aligned, and l eicester made history. a s the big clubs stumbled, they rose to the top and defied the most rational of expectations.
b ut now what? a fter achieving the impossible, l eicester stares at a long and daunting challenge. not only do they have to defend their title against those same giants, who spent a combined 541.5 million pounds to reinforce
their squads, but they also have to compete on the biggest stage in club soccer. w ith the influx of money from winning the league and qualifying for e urope, the Foxes certainly are not going down quietly. They spent over 70 million pounds this summer, and broke their transfer record three times. The best of the bunch is a lgerian striker i slam s limani, who scored 48 goals for s porting l isbon in 61 starts. a lthough l eicester had to pay 30 million for his services, he should provide a major boost, and link up well with vardy and his fellow a lgerian, m ahrez. The team also signed n igerian forward a hmed musa for 19.5 million and French midfielder nempalys mendy, who they hope can replace the departed Kante, for 15.5 million. These reinforcements should provide a big impact, and help strengthen the squad as they prepare for their toughest test yet.
The p remier l eague just ended its fourth week, and so far, l eicester c ity has had a tough going. The team sits in 16th place, having lost twice already — including a 4-1 dismantling by l iverpool this past s aturday. b ut none of the new signings have yet to play major roles, and the season is a long one. i n many ways, l eicester’s c hampions l eague campaign could be used to jump start its domestic one. it has perhaps the weakest group in the competition, with F c p orto looking like its only real hurdle. i f all goes according to plan, the Foxes should advance and can use the morale and chemistry-boosting opportunities that e uropean football provides to help them in their title defense. however, there is also a downside to playing in an extra competition: l ess rest and more opportunities for injuries are always a threat, and r anieri must do a good job of balancing both campaigns to maximize results. l ast season’s luck has never been seen before, and so it will be fascinating to see if this c inderella story is the real deal or just a farce. p laying under the lights against some of e urope’s oldest and most successful clubs in history may prove the perfect test.
Contact at Tobias Hoonhout thoonhou@nd.edu
The views expressed in this Sports Authority are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.
mets squeak by nationals in extra innings
Associated Press
washing T on — T.J. r ivera homered in the top of the 10th inning to lead the n ew york m ets to a 4-3 victory over the w ashington n ationals on Tuesday night.
The m ets pulled within nine games of washington in the nl e ast and retained their hold on the second nl wild-card spot. n ew york has won eight of its last 10 and is 17-6 since a ug. 20, gaining 3 1/2 games on washington in that stretch.
r ivera, who had three rbi s, drilled an 0-2 pitch with one out in the 10th into the left field seats off n ationals closer m ark m elancon (2-2). The loss snapped w ashington’s fourgame winning streak.
Jeurys Familia (3-3) earned the victory despite surrendering two runs in the ninth to blow his fourth save of the season. l efthander Jerry b levins struck
mlb | marlins 7, braves 5
out d aniel m urphy for the final out to earn his first save.
washington mustered only four hits in the first eight innings, but quickly got to Familia in the ninth. m urphy led off with an infield single, and third baseman Jose r eyes threw b ryce h arper’s grounder into the seats. a nthony r endon and w ilson r amos then delivered consecutive singles to tie it.
Familia then got r yan Zimmerman to line out and pinch-hitter c lint r obinson to hit a soft liner to second that fooled pinch-runner w ilmer d ifo, who was doubled off first.
n oah s yndergaard struck out 10 over seven innings for the m ets, yielding just one run and four hits.
n ationals starter a .J. c ole allowed three runs and nine hits in five innings.
m urphy extended his hitting streak against the m ets
to 18 games and has hit safely in every game against n ew york since signing with the n ationals as a free agent last winter.
t rainer’s room
m ets: in F w ilmer Flores (stiff neck) remained out of the lineup was going to try to hit in the batting cage before the game. Flores has not played since s aturday.
o F Justin r uggiano, on the dl since a ug. 27, underwent left shoulder surgery. h e hit .350 with two homers in 20 at-bats this season.
n ationals: 1 b Zimmerman, who did not start the last two times s yndergaard pitched against washington, was in the lineup against the right-hander. Zimmerman entered the night 1 for 8 lifetime against s yndergaard and went 1 for 3 against him. h e finished the ninth 1 for 4 and is 4 for 28 on the n ationals’ homestand.
suzuki records 900th
multihit game in win
Associated Press
aT lan T a — ichiro s uzuki scored two runs and drove in another in the 900th multihit game of his career and the m iami m arlins boosted their fading wild-card hopes with a 7-5 victory over the a tlanta b raves on Tuesday night.
m iami, which began the night five games out of a playoff spot, won for only the fifth time in its last 17 games.
w ith the m arlins trailing 2-0, s uzuki ripped a single to right in the third to bring home a run. c hristian yelich followed with a two-run double to the gap in right-center.
The 42-year-old s uzuki sparked another three-run outburst in the fifth with the game tied 3-all, hardly looking his age as he sped around the bases for a leadoff triple. he scored the go-ahead run
on m arcell o zuna’s one-out single, and Justin’s b our’s rbi single finished off a tlanta starter m att w isler (6-12).
Freddie Freeman and m att Kemp homered for the b raves.
Justin n icolino (3-6) earned the win with two hitless innings of relief. a .J. r amos worked a perfect ninth for his 35th save.
Freeman reached 30 homers for the first time in his career with a two-run shot in the first. Kemp added a solo shot in the fourth, his 31st and eighth since being acquired by a tlanta on July 30. w isler surrendered 10 hits, walked two and didn’t strike out anyone in 4 1/3 innings.
i n his third career start, Jake e sch lasted only 3 2/3 innings — not long enough to qualify for the win. b ut the rookie did pick up his
first big-league hit on an infield chopper, appropriately enough in the city where he played collegiately at g eorgia Tech.
t raining room
m arlins: o zuna was back in the lineup after being struck on the left knee with a pitch the previous night, forcing him out of the game. “b eing able to get him out of there was good for him,” manager d on m attingly said. “ we were able to keep the swelling down.”
b raves: rhp m ike Foltynewicz was hobbling around the clubhouse on crutches after being struck on the left calf with the line drive in monday night’s win. X-rays were negative, and Foltynewicz felt fortunate to escape with only bruising and swelling.
Tobias Hoonhout sports writer
Notre Dame hosts National Catholic Invitational
By MAREK MAZUREK sports e ditor
c oming off a clean sweep of the top-five spots in both the men’s and women’s competitions at the c rusader o pen two weeks ago, notre d ame will race at home for the first time this season when it hosts the national c atholic i nvitational on Friday.
i rish associate head coach m atthew s parks said he expects the i rish to challenge for the top spots again, but he also emphasized the theme of constant improvement and plans to achieve this by having his more experienced runners run alongside younger members of the team.
“o f course we want to challenge for the win on both sides,” s parks said. “ we feel like we’ve got two good squads that can do that. b ut along the way, we want to try and run a controlled race and hold for the future, bigger events. s ome of the kids that could pull away from the group and win ... we’re going to hold them back a little bit more and pair them with someone younger. s o [sophomore a nthony] w illiams, who’s had a great month of practice, but he’s going to work to run with [freshman] Kevin s alvano and make sure Kevin has a good first experience in the first five mile race of the year.
“ s ame thing with [sophomores] r achel [ d a d amio] and a nnie [ heffernan] — they’ve had a great month of practice, but they’re going to
relax a little bit and work with some of the other girls and make sure the entire team has a good first experience and is confident heading into the notre d ame i nvite, which is going to be a much more competitive event.”
d a d amio and heffernan, along with sophomore a nna r ohrer, will all play big roles in notre d ame’s late season drive, but s parks said a key to success later is to build towards the end as opposed to wearing his athletes out. To that effect, s parks mentioned r ohrer will not race this weekend and the rest of the team’s runners have been told to keep their long-term goals in mind.
“i f you look back at last year’s national c atholic results, a nnie was third overall and then she sort of faded throughout the rest of the year,” s parks said. “ s o we’ve pressed upon, not just a nnie, but all the men and women that it’s a long season and take it week by week. d on’t get overly excited this early. e specially the freshmen are particularly excited to race at home for the first time, the thing we’ll continue to impress upon them is the conference and the regional meet are still a while away. Take things slowly, it’s a long season and stay fresh and healthy throughout.”
For the men, s parks said he is most excited for s alvano and the confidence he brings to the squad.
“[ s alvano] brings a lot of confidence for a young guy,”
s parks said. “he was an i llinois state champion, one of the most competitive states in the country. w henever you’re the state champion from one of those marquee meets, you feel good about yourself and gain a lot of confidence from that experience. a nd that’s transitioned really well in the first month or so he’s been practicing here with us. … he’s young, but he does have a lot of confidence for us as a freshman.”
The national c atholic is the first of two consecutive home meets for the i rish, and for the freshman on the teams, it will be their first home action. s parks said the freshmen tend to get especially excited about racing at home
“i think it helps and hurts you,” s parks said. “it’s still early, and [the freshmen] get pretty fired up running at home and defending their home territory. b ut then early in the year, the season is ten weeks long, and if you come out like gangbusters that first event, where’s your level of enthusiasm going to go from there? you want that intensity to go as the season progresses. s o we’re going to try and temper that enthusiasm a little bit early and continue to grow as the weeks grow because the next home meet’s going to be much more competitive for both the men and women.”
The national c atholic i nvitational is set to get underway at 3:30 p.m. Friday.
Contact Marek Mazurek at mmazurek@nd.edu
mlb
w hite sox rout i ndians at home
Associated Press
chicago — The decisive inning took so long that Jose Quintana got stiff watching from the dugout and retreated to the batting cages to play catch.
w hen he returned, he had all the support he needed to hand the division-leading c leveland i ndians another ugly loss.
Todd Frazier and c arlos s anchez each drove in two runs in a seven-run sixth inning, and the c hicago w hite s ox routed the i ndians 8-1 on Tuesday night.
“ i was trying to stay loose,” Quintana said of the 10 to 12 extra throws. “They scored a lot of runs, so then i just wanted to throw strikes.”
The w hite s ox had seven hits, drew two walks and sent 12 batters to the plate against three pitchers in their highest-scoring inning of the season. The i ndians, who have allowed 19 runs in two games, maintained a six-game lead over d etroit
mlb | piraTes 5, phillies 3
in the al c entral after the Tigers lost to m innesota 8-1. “ we’re going to lose games,” i ndians shortstop Francisco l indor said. “The way we’re losing games is not right.”
Quintana (12-10) held c leveland to five hits over eight innings, including b randon g uyer’s solo homer in the second in c hicago’s fifth win in seven games.
Quintana lowered his era 3.05, but has 10 losses thanks to often getting few runs to work with. That changed in the sixth.
“Q doesn’t get the press he should get in my opinion,” center fielder a dam e aton said. “ h e does a heck of a job with the quality start rate he has, it’s tremendous. a nd it falls on the hitters’ shoulders to score some runs for him.”
Tied at 1, Trevor b auer (117) walked e aton to lead off the sixth. Four hits followed, with Jose a breu driving in the first run and Frazier getting his career-high 92nd rbi to chase b auer.
p irates hold on to playoff hopes
Associated Press
philadelphia — s ean
rodriguez is having his most productive big league season yet, and he had a memorable blast Tuesday night to keep the p ittsburgh p irates’ slim postseason hopes alive.
rodriguez had a pinch-hit three-run homer in the ninth inning, lifting the p ittsburgh p irates over the philadelphia phillies 5-3 on Tuesday night. p ittsburgh remained six games behind the mets for the second nl wild card.
rodriguez’s home run was his career-high 13th of the season and first since a ug.
14. it was also his first pinchhit home run since m ay 25, 2013.
“a couple years ago, yeah i was driving the ball, but i wasn’t necessarily putting the ball in play enough,”
rodriguez said. “This year, i’ve been able to do that.”
rodriguez hit for pitcher Felipe r ivero (1-5) with two on and one out and drilled a 2-2 pitch from reliever Jeanmar g omez (3-4) into the second row of seats in right field.
“it was a tough day for me,”
g omez said. “it was a slider that was up. s ome of my pitches were flat.”
rodriguez put the p irates ahead after Francisco c ervelli reached on a walk and Jordy mercer doubled off g omez.
Tony watson struck out two in the ninth for his 12th save.
playing in just his third major league game, left fielder roman Quinn had two hits and scored a go-ahead run in the eighth on Freddy g alvis’ sacrifice fly.
p irates right-hander ivan nova entered 5-0 since being acquired from the new york yankees on a ug. 1. he allowed two runs and five hits while recording a seasonhigh 11 strikeouts but left the game in the seventh after throwing 92 pitches.
nova missed the chance to become the second p irates pitcher to go 6-0 in his first eight starts.
“i was getting ahead in the count and i threw some good sinkers and that was a good thing for me,” nova said. “They’re an aggressive team and they were out there swinging.”
Observer File Photo | The Observer
Irish graduate student Danielle Aragon sprints during Notre Dame’s National Catholic Championship at Notre Dame’s Burke Golf Course on Sept. 19, 2014. Aragon placed second with a time of 17:20.59.
and to come back from poor performances, such as in the case of sophomore cornerback nick coleman.
“every year, you’re going to lose key players, and you have to be able to prepare for that going into camp and know that somebody is going to be called upon to step up,” Kelly said. “l ook, nick coleman had a poor first game. he would be the first one to admit it, but what we did is went right back to work during the week to get nick coleman to be ready to step back in, and i think the work we did with nick coleman during the week put him in a good position to have a good game against nevada.
“a nd i think that’s coaching, and i think that’s teaching ... and that’s what you have to do to prepare for that next man in. because you’re going to have key injuries, and you have to prepare for those scenarios instead of saying, ‘you stunk today you’re on the bench.’ no, we’re going to need you, nick, and we’re going to need you to bounce back and here is how you’re going to do it. nick now finds himself in
the starting position playing against m ichigan state in a key game.”
offensively, Kelly highlighted the line as a unit that has improved in notre dame’s two contests and said the criticism the unit has received should be directed at play calling in some cases.
“so the center has to be working with one of the guards, so that combination requires the center to be involved in a lot of things,” Kelly said. “so i think the best way to answer it is it’s not always just the five. it’s sometimes getting the right play. There were two or three instances where we were in the wrong play, and it couldn’t be blocked effectively.
“so there is a little bit of that in there. so i think sometimes to some they look at it and go, what’s wrong with the offensive line? is it some of it has to do with getting in the right plays? some of it is combination work that we need to continue to work on and that is two guys, working together, because individually they’re pretty good and they know their assignments. it’s when to come off a block, when to stay on something and that’s where it will continue to get better.”
Kelly also touched on the evolution of the receiving corps, which he felt played well against nevada despite senior captain Torii hunter Jr.’s absence, and the balance of the offense overall, saying he likes how many people are touching the ball.
“i think getting [sophomore] c hris Finke a couple of catches was absolutely a good thing,” Kelly said. “we would have liked to have gotten [freshman Kevin stepherson] the ball down the field. he was beating the corner and we were late in getting him the ball, but he’s gaining more with confidence. we’re gaining a little bit more confidence at the quarterback position, seeing what he can do.
“i thought corey holmes ran a great route on third and 15, and we got him the ball to the wide field. That, to me, was the first time that deshone said, ‘a ll right, i’m going to let this rip to the wide field,’ like he did with w ill Fuller without any hesitation. so we’re starting to see those signs, and, again, those are just small signs. but we’re moving in the right direction to gain that balance with some of those younger receivers.”
Contact Marek Mazurek at mmazurek@nd.edu
page 16
half, but were thwarted each time by c onnecticut redshirt junior goalkeeper s cott l evene. The i rish outshot the huskies 18-8 in the game — including 12-2 after the halftime period — but were always wary of the c onnecticut counterattack and thus could not capitalize on several opportunities, according to c lark. The first of the 10-minute overtime periods garnered little excitement, with the huskies seeming content to come away with a tie, and the i rish unwilling to commit too many people forward.
“i felt we took over, but at the same time i felt they were dangerous enough,” c lark said. “They’re a good
team, they’ve got a lot of good players, and so i was never relaxed during the game.”
however, in the 103rd minute, senior defender b randon a ubrey’s lead pass up the wing found the foot of junior forward Jon g allagher, who promptly powered a shot on goal. The ball split through the hands and legs of l evene and trickled into the goal, ending the game and sending the crowd of 910 inside a lumni s tadium away after a victory for the hosts.
Tuesday’s game was the i rish’s first mid-week game of the year, and thus the team — coming off of classes earlier in the day — looked a bit sluggish to start, as c lark noted.
“This is where we lost it last year — we lost 1-0 to Xavier — and we came out flat, especially in the first half,” c lark said. “i think it’s a little bit harder for the guys, but i thought with the experience from last year — i thought that it was a big effort to do things a little different in our training … and we did our best to solve it.”
The i rish will next take the pitch this Friday, resuming acc play as they travel to face l ouisville in their first acc road test of the season. it will be magnified after a grueling overtime win, but it’s a win c lark said he will take nonetheless.
“it wasn’t perfect by any manner or means,” c lark said. “i could’ve done without the overtime, because we’ve got another huge game at l ouisville on Friday, so we’ll have to make sure that these guys regenerate tomorrow, and that we get ready for l ouisville.”
Contact Joe Everett at jeveret4@nd.edu
paid a dverT isemen T
CAROLINE GENCO | The Observer
Irish sophomore wide receiver Equanimeous St. Brown stiff arms a defender while running down the field during Notre Dame’s 39-10 win over Nevada on Saturday at Notre Dame Stadium.
KATHLEEN DONAHUE | The Observer Graduate student midfielder Evan Panken attempts a kick during Notre Dame’s 1-0 double-overtime victory over UConn.
l eadership
much. From the beginning of the season, the team’s experienced captains have been sources of leadership and success for the irish. yet, as it turns out, two of notre dame’s seniors who are not captains are off to extraordinary seasons. First of all, senior defender brandon aubrey is playing out of his mind and, quite frankly, out of his position.
aubrey’s position carries the requirement of stopping the opposing team’s attack and keeping shots from ever getting on path to his goal. yet, instead of doing simply that for notre dame’s 10th-ranked defense, aubrey is fourth in the nation with six goals on the year, one of only two defenders in the nation’s top-10 goal scorers. he is also amongst the nation’s leaders in points per game with 2.17 and tied for seventh in total points with 13. perhaps most impressively, however, aubrey is tied for first in the nation in game-winning goals with three. a ll of this production over the span of six games, and he is not even in the top-50 players in the country in shots per game.
aubrey is by no means the entirety of the i rish offense, but the example he has set as a dynamic and multi-positional player has led the team to dominate the beginning of the season.
a nother senior who is proving his worth for notre dame so far this year is trusty goalkeeper c hris hubbard. hubbard, who like aubrey is also not a captain, is sixth in the nation in save percentage with a clip of .920. he has led the i rish to four shutouts and has successfully stopped 23 shots that have come in his direction.
w here most teams look to their captains for leadership, notre dame has had the luxury of fielding many talented upperclassmen who provide leadership by example on the field. a nd while non-captains have shined so far this year, the captains have not had poor years by any measurement. graduate student midfielder evan panken is third on the team in points, and his cocaptains — senior defender matt habrowski and graduate student defender m ichael shipp — have held down the back line for the i rish and have been vital to notre dame’s four shutout efforts.
notre dame’s 10 seniors and graduate students have all been through the ups and downs of many seasons before, and this should allow them to continue their current form as the season rolls on.
Contact at R.J. Stempak rstempak@nd.edu
The views expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.
paid a dverT isemen T
KATHLEEN DONAHUE | The Observer
Irish senior defender Brandon Aubrey looks to pass the ball during Notre Dame’s 1-0 double-overtime win over UConn on Tuesday at Alumni Stadium. Aubrey leads the team with six goals with three of them coming off of penalty kick attempts.
Kelly pleased with improvement in secondary
By MAREK MAZUREK sports e ditor
no. 18 notre dame picked up its first win of the season against nevada last saturday, but the i rish have no time to hang their hats as they prepare for a top-25 clash with rival m ichigan state.
heading into the primetime clash with the spartans (1-0), i rish head coach brian Kelly stressed the importance of toughness, both physically and mentally.
“well, you have to play physical football,” Kelly said. “They’re a physical team. They’ve got a mind set of the way they want to play. They’re going to run the football. They’re going to be physical on defense. so you have to be tough minded as a group, you know, in all three phases.
“it’s a winning team, so they know how to win. we watched film after film of their games in the big Ten, and there’s a lot of opponents that have them on the ropes and they find a way to win whether it’s ohio state or i ndiana who has a great chance
to win the game, but they come back and beat them.”
one aspect of mental toughness the i rish (1-1) will have to exhibit is the “next man up” mentality, especially in the secondary. sophomore cornerback shaun crawford tore his achilles tendon in notre dame’s 39-10 win over nevada, senior safety max redfield was dismissed from the team following his arrest last month and graduate student safety avery sebastian suffered from concussion-like symptoms following notre dame’s first game against Texas. additionally, it is uncertain whether junior cornerback nick watkins will return this season, as he is healing from a fractured left humerus.
The secondary is undoubtedly an area of special interest for the i rish, but even if watkins is medically redshirted for the 2016 season, Kelly said no drastic changes will be needed. i nstead, Kelly stressed the need for the team to be able to deal with the loss of key players
men’s soCCer | nd 1, uconn 0 (2 oT )
captains lead i rish to undefeated start
Gallagher hits game-winning goal in double-OT
By JOE EVERETT sports writer
on a clear Tuesday evening inside a lumni stadium, no. 1 notre dame battled with nonconference foe connecticut, eventually the besting the huskies in the second overtime period, 1-0.
The i rish (6-0-0, 1-0-0 acc ) didn’t play their best soccer, but they impressed head coach bobby c lark with the constant pressure they put on the huskies (3-3-0, 0-0-0 aac ).
“one of the words [that i’d use to describe the team] is relentless,” c lark said. “i think that’s exactly what they did – i thought in the second half and in the two overtime periods, we just kept doing what we do well.”
a fter a scoreless but even first half that saw each team take six shots, the i rish threatened with a couple of genuine scoring chances in the second
Leadership gives ND best shot to make title run
no. 1 notre dame has posted its most dominant start to a season since 2012. even though notre dame’s perfect record through six games is its best in half a decade, this team is not unfamiliar with strong starts. in each of the last four seasons, the irish (6-0-0) has won at least three games through five, and has only one loss in that time span. Figuring out the key to this success will be vital in continuing it throughout the season en route to a potential ncaa championship.
The first clear indicator of success is notre dame’s team numbers on offense and defense. The irish are ranked in the top ten in both goals scored and goals against, one of only three teams in division 1 men’s soccer to be able to claim as
KATHLEEN DONAHUE | The Observer
Irish junior Jon Gallagher dribbles across the field in Notre Dame’s 1-0 double-overtime win over UConn on Tuesday at Alumni Stadium. Gallagher scored the game-winning goal against the Huskies.
EMMET FARNAN | The Observer
Irish sophomore cornerback Nick Coleman tackles a receiver during Notre Dame’s 39-10 win over Nevada at Notre Dame Stadium on Saturday. Coleman is expected to start at cornerback against Michigan State.
