Print Edition of The Observer for Tuesday, April 24, 2018

To uncover the truth and report it accurately

Volume 52, Issue 199 | tuesday, april 24, 2018 | ndsmcobserver.com

AnTostal celebrates end of year Week-long festival seeks to alleviate pre-finals anxiety as warm weather arrives

By THOMAS MURPHY News Writer

The days leading up to final exams are often filled with stress and anxiety, but this week the Student Union Board (SUB) is hoping to use its annual AnTostal to alleviate students’ anxiety and encourage them to enjoy themselves.

AnTostal, Irish for “the festival,” has been an annual celebration of spring and the end of the school year since the 1960s. Senior Audrey Thellman, SUB’s director of programming, said that AnTostal has always sought to provide students with some comfort in the form of giveaways as they prepare for exams. “[AnTostal] is a weeklong series of events where we just try to show students

they’re appreciated by giving them free food and free activities,” Thellman said.

“It’s a last final stretch before finals week and we’ve got to make the most of the good weather that’s finally starting to happen.”

Junior Nicole Emery, AnTostal’s lead programmer this year, said that the event allows students some rest by refamiliarizing them with life outside of college. “[AnTostal gives] students the break that they deserve and brings things to campus that almost make you feel like you’re a little bit a part of the real world again,” she said.

This year’s theme is “Tailgate Tostal.” Thellman said this theme was developed as the event’s planners sentimentalized over their final year at Notre Dame and

Former player dies Observer Staff Report

SELENA PONIO | The Observer

Students start their day off with free Rise’n Roll donuts outside DeBartolo Hall during last year’s AnTostal celebration.

realized the week would coincide with the spring football game.

“We came up with the theme because all of us were

like ‘Oh, we miss football season, [we’re] graduating, we’re not going to have see AnTOSTAL PAGE 4

Kona Schwenke, who played on Notre Dame’s defensive line from 2010-2013, died Sunday, the University announced in a press release Monday.

“A four-year Monogram winner and defensive lineman for the University of Notre Dame football team, [Schwenke] died Sunday (April 22) at his home in Laie, Hawai’i. He was 25,” the press release said.

Schwenke played in 31 games over the course of his career and made nine starts. He won the football program’s Next Man Award in 2013 and made 30 tackles over the course of his career.

Schwenke graduated from the University in 2014, earning a degree in anthropology.

Students, faculty Valedictorian looks back reflect on move to on friendships, academics new building

By SARA SCHLECHT News Writer

Editor’s note: This is the second of a five-part series profiling the valedictorians of Saint Mary’s class of 2018.

Saint Mary’s class of 2018 has made history as the first to have five students graduating with the honor of valedictorian. Among these five

Photo courtesy of Alex Daugherty

Walsh Family Hall will house the School of Architecture starting next fall. The building blends urbanism and classical architecture.

By ALEX DAUGHERTY News Writer

Notre Dame’s School of Architecture is known for being one of the few architecture schools in the country that teaches a classical style of architecture. W hen the School of Architecture leaves its current home in

NEWS PAGE 3

Bond Hall and moves into the Matthew and Joyce Walsh Family Hall, the institution will move into a building designed to ref lect this style.

Michael Lykoudis, dean of the School of Architecture, said the faculty felt it was see WALSH PAGE 4

SCENE PAGE 5

students is senior integrative biolog y major Makenzie Duncan.

Duncan was always interested in the kind of education a school like Saint Mary’s could offer.

“I always wanted to go to a small school, preferably Catholic,” Duncan said.

Duncan said when she visited Saint Mary’s, she got the

feeling that it was just the right school for her.

“It wasn’t this huge moment where I realized I wanted to go to Saint Mary’s,” she said. “I liked it way more here [than other schools]” During her time at Saint Mary’s, Duncan said she has served as an ally with see DUNCAN PAGE 4

After-school program engages with community

By TEAGAN DILLON News Writer

The differences between human rights and civil rights can be subtle. Defining and identif ying these concepts can be a difficult task.

Investigating this

VIEWPOINT PAGE 6

difference was the central topic during a five-week community engagement project with seventh and eighth grade students at Marshall Intermediate Center in South Bend. Led by three Notre Dame seniors and associate professor of

MEN’S GOLF PAGE 12

history Richard Pierce, the after-school program aimed to help students map their environment, an idea developed by Stuart Greene, associate professor of Africana Studies. see RIGHTS PAGE 3

SOFTBALL PAGE 12

2

TODAY

The observer | tuesday, april 24, 2018 | ndsmcobserver.com

Question of the Day: ndsmcobserver.com

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What is your go-to snack during finals?

P.O. Box 779, Notre Dame, IN 46556 024 South Dining Hall, Notre Dame, IN 46556

Evelyn Martinez

Nohemi Toledo

senior Le Mans Hall

senior Le Mans Hall

“Twix.”

“Reese’s cups.”

Josie Bruni

Kerry Rose McDonald

junior Le Mans Hall

junior Le Mans Hall

“Peanut M&M’s.”

“Rise’n Roll donuts with tears on top.”

(574) 631-4542 cbecker3@nd.edu

Anna Perry

Elizabeth Ramirez

Managing Editor

junior Le Mans Hall

junior Le Mans Hall

“Apples and peanut butter.”

“Usually strawberries (any kind of fruit) or pretzels.”

Editor-in-Chief Courtney Becker Managing Editor Tobias Hoonhout

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Today’s Staff News

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Tom Naatz Ciara Hopkinson Nicole Simon

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Photo courtesy of Erin Bradford

Students compete in a cornhole tournament on South Quad as part of Notre Dame’s annual AnTostal. Irish for “the festival,” AnTostal is a week-long series of events that helps students relax before finals week. This year’s theme is “Tailgate Tostal.”

The next Five days:

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Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

Saturday

“Judging Redmond and Carson” 1030 Jenkins and Nanovic Halls 3:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.

Alvin Jackson speaks.

Yoga Class in Italian Smith Center Studio 1 3:30p.m.- 4:30p.m.

Come relax and enjoy Yoga class in Italian.

Free and open to all.

The Catholic Reform: A Master Class Geddes Hall noon - 1:30 p.m.

Coffee and lunch provided.

“Mapping an Agenda for Digital Scholarship” 231 A Hesburgh Library 4 p.m. - 5 p.m.

TEDxUND 2018 DeBartolo Performing Arts Center 10:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.

Live sessions begin at 10:30 a.m. and 2 p.m.

Yoga in the Galleries Snite Museum of Art 4 p.m. - 5 p.m.

Relax and recharge with teacher Steve Krojniewski.

Reading by Jeff VanderMeer Eck Center Auditorium 7 p.m. - 8:30 p.m.

Free and open to the public.

Panel: “The Church an China in the Age of Francis” 1050 Jenkins and Nanovic Halls 12:15 p.m. - 1:30p.m.

“Young Törless” with Volker Schlöndorff Browning Cinema 7 p.m.- 9 p.m.

A talk and Screening with the director.

Concert: Notre Dame University Band Leighton Concert Hall 3 p.m.- 4:30 p.m.

Featuring music from a variety of genres.

News

ndsmcobserver.com | tuesday, april 24, 2018 | The Observer

3

Expert discusses resisting radical Islam

By MADDIE BOLLENBACHER News Writer

Dr. Zuhdi Jasser, president of A merican Forum for Democracy, addressed the question of Islamism and combating the Islamist establishment in a Monday lecture hosted by the Young Americans for Freedom and Notre Dame College Republicans.

Islam is often v iewed through the lens of terrorism, but, for Jasser, this explanation is insufficient because it fogs the narrative of what is happening w ithin the Muslim communit y, Jasser said.

“If we simply treat the sy mptom of terrorism, we’re not going to get any where,” Jasser said. “We’ll continue this sort of ‘whack-a-mole’ program that does not deal w ith the central problem.”

Jasser said the Islamist establishment is the root cause of the issues Muslims and Islam face.

“There are always two parties — the part y of the past and the part y of the future; the establishment and the movement,” Jasser said, evoking a quote from Ralph Waldo Emerson.

The Islamic Establishment is mostly outside of the United States, and unlike

Rights Continued from page 1

“The idea is that they can claim their space and give credence to their space, their memories and realities based on that space,” Pierce said.

“By mapping, they have an opportunity to say, ‘This is a safe space for me, this is a political space for me or this is a recreational space for me.’ So we thought we’d take that rubric to Marshall.”

Meeting every Thursday evening from February until mid-March, seniors Promise Choice, Asha Barnes and Frederick Canteen helped both develop lesson plans and direct discussions with

Christianit y throughout Europe in the 17th centur y, there has been no revolution w ithin Islam, Jasser said. As a result, Jasser said, there is often a disconnect bet ween the lay Muslim communit y in America and the Muslim leadership who are often Islamist in ideolog y.

“W hat radicalizes the militants [is the establishment] telling them that they would die for the Islamic state,” Jasser said. “W hat inoculated [Jasser] against radicalization, was the belief that the only thing [Jasser] ever want[s] to die for is the United States, a countr y built on a constitution that separated mosque, or church and state.”

Jasser noted that Iran has the largest rate of people converting to atheism due to the fact that the people do not want to be governed by a theocracy. Thus, he suggests that in order to combat radicalization, there is a need to separate mosque and state in Islamic nations, and the only way to do this is through a period of revolution.

In 2011, many A rab nations experienced revolution, in what has become know n as the Arab Spring, and Jasser believes these movements have changed the entire narrative.

the six Marshall students.

“We started thinking about things that I didn’t have in school and things that I would have wanted because my school was also predominantly black and Latino,” Choice said. “W hat we wanted to do was give the kids a place to talk about things that they don’t ordinarily get to talk about.”

After the first session, Choice explained, the lessons shifted into defining and discussing human rights and civil rights, drawing from the Constitution, Bill of Rights and Supreme Court cases.

“Clean water was one they threw out that should be a human right, but it is not,”

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ROSIE LoVOI | The Observer

Dr. Zudhi Jasser, president of American Forum for Democracy, discusses the causes of Islamist radicalization. Jasser explained the dividing tensions between new and old order Muslim ideology.

“W hat changed with the revolutions is that, for so long in the 20th centur y we thought that the Middle East and Muslim consciousness was inextricably wedded to being either theocracts or being under militar y dictatorship,” Jasser said. ”Ultimately the revolutions began a process of modernization.”

Though revolution may be difficult and painful, it is

an important ingredient for a nation’s evolution, Jasser said, as for over 30 years in the 17th centur y, western European nations were involved in wars against theocracies. Today, Jasser suggests, Islam is going through a similar transformation.

But, the war against radicalization cannot be won through militar y action.

Instead, Jasser suggested the United States and other

Western nations must begin the campaign by countering the ideolog y.

“The main laborator y where we can do reform and renewal is in the West,” he said. “It is time for us to take the offense against these guys ideologically. We’re not going to win this war militarily.”

Pierce said. “It depends on where you live. The right to go to school — they thought was a human right. Well, it’s a civil right. That took us a little longer than we thought, so instead of mapping we ended up with human rights and civil rights as our fulcrum.”

For Pierce, trust is a vital component of a successful discussion. He said that young children have the potential to be critical, and winning them over was key to the program’s success.

“They’re looking at us like, ‘Are you worth my time? ’” he said. “And I think that was one thing that those kids did.

They judged us. And in the second week, I think they thought, ‘Yeah, these guys are worth our time.’ That was a moment of breakthrough.”

For Choice, this breakthrough was an empowering experience.

“I realized that kids learn better when it comes from kids like me. I think that’s why Professor Greene chose to involve us,” Choice said.

“If it’s a student of color that’s gone through that same

system, then they’re more likely to listen and we’re better able to empathize.”

By the end of the five weeks, the students were leading the discussions.

“Once we found ways to explain it in things that were relevant to them, like clothes and food, they cared,” Choice said. “If we took it in terms of their community and what resources they saw in their community, then that was more relatable to them.”

As with most projects in their initial year, there were some growing pains. From logistical issues or lack of resources to the snow days, there were several hurdles that prevented consistent planning and progress, Choice said. In addition, Marshall’s principal, who was the connection through which the program began, was stretched thin following the announcement of the school’s closing at the end of the school year.

Despite these setbacks, Choice said it is important for the program to continue.

“It’s such a small commitment, but it’s something that

matters so much,” she said.

“W hen I was in school, no one ever came in and took the time to volunteer and talk to us. Just to see someone making an effort is validating, and to give someone a platform to speak on what they think is important.”

W hether the program continues to focus on human and civ il rights or shifts to political rights and activism, Pierce said he would also like to see more engagement w ith local schools in the future.

“Any kind of binary work that will allow students to see that they have an active voice in the world,” he said. “That’s what the overall goal of this program was — to see how students of every age have an opportunity to impact their community and how they can do that, whether it be through activism, information, education or using whatever means they have to educate their community to make it a more intimate community.”

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Contact Maddie Bollenbacher at mbollenb@nd.edu

Contact Teagan Dillon at tdillon@nd.edu

4

NEWS

The observer | tuesday, april 24, 2018 | ndsmcobserver.com

Walsh Continued from page 1

important that the School of Architecture’s physical home ref lected its academic program.

“The school’s facult y believes that traditional and classical architecture and urbanism are essential to the dialogue in contemporar y architecture,” he said. “If we talk the talk, we should walk the walk. Realizing a building such as the one we are constructing is part of the validation of the philosophical direction.”

Walsh Family Hall w ill prov ide updated facilities and technologies that Bond Hall, which was originally designed to ser ve as the Universit y’s librar y, does not offer. The new building w ill boast larger studios to increase interaction between classes, improved display areas for student work, an expanded librar y, a digital studio w ith upgraded technolog y, a historic preservation workshop, a larger auditorium and its basement w ill ser ve as the home of one of the Universit y’s three geothermal plants. Neotraditional architect Leon Krier has also donated his archives to the School’s librar y, and a specially crafted staircase to complete a stoa is currently being designed in France. A Hall of Casts w ill ser ve as both a place for teaching and a museum.

W hile the new hall w ill not have Bond Hall’s lakeside v iews or its famous red carpet, its location w ill bring the School of A rchitecture closer to other major buildings and the South Bend communit y as a whole, professor Philip Bess said.

“Not w ithstanding my

AnTostal Continued from page 1

a student football season again,’ and it worked out that AnTostal started the day of the Blue and Gold Game and The Shirt reveal, so we wanted to incorporate that into our week,” Thellman said.

Emery said that “Tailgate Tostal” was also chosen because its relation to sports and Notre Dame football helps expand the event’s appeal.

“I think AnTostal is one of those events that really appeals to certain students, but others are like ‘W hat is it? ’ so one of our goals for this year was making it an event that was really relevant to students,” Emery said. “I tried to come up with a theme that everyone would love. …

[Tailgating] is a big part of the culture at Notre Dame, especially during football season.”

regrets at leav ing the northwest side of campus behind, my hope is that the move w ill make the School of Architecture less culturally isolated, less ‘mysterious’ — in a bad way — than we currently are,” he said. “It w ill be good to be closer to DPAC and to the Nanov ic Center and The Law School, to engineering and to business; and v ice versa.”

Despite the updates and expanded capacities Walsh Family Hall w ill prov ide, the transition from Bond Hall w ill not occur w ithout nostalgia, professor A lan DeFrees said.

“My love for Bond Hall goes back to the first time I walked through the doors in the fall of 1969,” he said. “I was a freshman, struggling in Mechanical Engineering and wondering if M.E. was the right choice. I was roaming around the Main Quad, dwelling on my problems, when I noticed strange and rather festive green and yellow lights at the end of a sidewalk. I walked to the west to see what it was and found myself at the foot of the steps to the architecture building [Bond Hall]. The strange lights were from the mercur y vapor fixtures in the archway and yellow glow emanating from the arched w indow above the main entrance. As I walked into the main lobby, I was struck by the reverberations of dozens of students working in their studios. As I walked around the lobby, I saw the beautiful draw ings and models on display. From that time for ward I knew that architecture was my new path.”

Even those who have not been familiar w ith the building for as long w ill miss it. Cole Rembecki, a fourthyear architecture student,

is not looking for ward to leav ing.

“I w ill miss Bond Hall so much it hurts,” he said. “I’ve made so many memories in that building. I honestly feel like I’m leav ing my childhood home. I just hope they don’t let that building go to waste, because it’s a beautiful building and it deser ves to be treated as such.”

Sophomore architecture student Hollie Hastings said the new facilities are an exciting development for students, but emotional ties to Bond Hall w ill still ex ist.

“I’ve asked around the sophomore studio if others w ill also miss it and the opinion is unanimous,” she said. “Bond Hall has become both a home and a family and it’ll be a shame to leave it behind.”

The new structure w ill prov ide updated resources for architecture students to advance in their ow n careers, as well as advance the field of architecture as a whole, Bess said.

“The cha llenges facing t he upcoming generation of Notre Dame architecture facult y and t heir students seem to me far different t han t he cha llenges faced by my Boomer demographic cohort,” he said. “A fter 30 years, we now k now it is in fact possible to initiate young adults into a tradition of building beautif ully and building well, at t he sca le of bot h traditiona l urbanism and traditiona l architecture; and to do so such t hat v irtua lly ever y graduate of t he Notre Dame School of A rchitecture who wants a job in t he architecturerelated professions can get one.”

Events such as the Fisher Regatta and O’Neill Hall’s Cornhole tournament look to add to the sporting atmosphere surrounding AnTostal, however many of AnTostal’s events simply focus on making life easier for students as the school year comes to an end. Thellman said her favorite part of this year’s event are the free breakfasts in the courtyard outside DeBartolo Hall every morning.

“Every day in the morning we have either bagels and coffee or donuts and [orange juice],” she said. “I always liked the breakfast because I was always running late for class so when I saw that I was like ‘Perfect, I don’t have to struggle through class without my coffee.’”

Other events this year include a hot wings eating contest hosted by Pasquerilla East Hall, a Silent Disco on South Quad and an Escape Room in the LaFortune

Student Center.

But AnTostal is not all fun and games for everyone.

SUB’s program leaders face the daunting task of organizing dozens of events, a process which begins in September and is not fully completed until the final events are cleaned up. After describing the timeline of planning AnTostal, Emery expressed amazement that everything got done.

“It’s kind of a whirlwind,” she said. “Ref lecting back on it, I’m not sure how it all came together.”

Thellman said that after so much planning and work, SUB is looking forward to seeing the event come to fruition.

“We’re just really excited.

People always ask, ‘What is AnTostal?’ or ‘Why do you do it?’ and it’s just a week long fun event for students run by students,” she said.

Duncan Continued from page 1

the Belles Against Violence Office and is currently the secretary for Biology Club, where she sends weekly updates called “Mondays with Mak.” Additionally, she has played for the Belles softball team all four of her years at the College. Duncan said she has particularly enjoyed her work in the biology department.

“Being a part of the biology department has been really special for me,” Duncan said. “I got to do research with Dr. [Laura] Kloepper, who is our bat biologist.”

Duncan said her research on bat guano allowed her to travel to Auburn University one summer.

In a blog post she wrote about the experience, Duncan said, “It was a life changing week-and-a-half filled with the typical and atypical ups and downs of research.”

For Duncan, conducting this research is one of her favorite memories because it was something she didn’t think would be possible during her undergraduate career.

Nevertheless, Duncan said many of her fond memories of Saint Mary’s have been small moments, Duncan said, such as running into friends in the dining hall.

“It’s nice that I can have those small memories,” she said. “I don’t have big memories that make me say ‘This is my favorite part of Saint

Mary’s.’ It’s the everyday things that are special to me.”

Her appreciation for the everyday experiences extends to her favorite place on campus, which Duncan said is the third f loor of the library.

“I always go by the windows,” she said. “I like looking out at the Science Hall.”

In pursuing a successful college career, Duncan encouraged students not to be too hard on themselves and to strike a balance in their lives.

“Give yourself credit,” Duncan said “I think rewarding yourself is really important, making sure that you have a balance between your academic life and your personal life, so that one is not overpowering the other because both are important.”

At Commencement on May 19, Duncan and the other four valedictorians will each speak on one of the College’s core values. Duncan will discuss learning.

“I chose to do the learning core value, so I will be speaking about the different aspects of learning that I have experienced at Saint Mary’s,” Duncan said.

Following graduation, Duncan said she will begin pursuing her Master’s degree at Midwestern University in order to become a physician’s assistant.

Contact Sara Schlecht at sschlecht01@saintmarys.edu

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The observer | tuesday, april 24, 2018 | ndsmcobserver.com

By CATHERINE BARRA Scene Writer

The Patricia George Decio Theatre is dark. The stage is set with a step-down extension. There are books, lamps, chairs and tables haphazardly yet carefully placed around the perimeter of the stage forming a carefullycreated mess of school and household items. A looming scaffold adorns the back of the stage, under which the band plays. The whole scene is bathed in deep blues and bright reds, exuding the rock and edge, helping to bridge the gap between the 21st century and late 19th century Germany, when the show is set. The air is filled with anticipation.

This is the Film, Television and Theater department’s production of “Spring Awakening,” a six-show run from April 18-22.

The musical is a funny, awkward, devastating and passionate coming-of-age story about 15-year-olds that sometimes feels like a plot-infused rock concert. The actors, however, dressed in 19th-century garb, do a great job of bringing the past into the present, and make it clear that these kids’ stories are relevant to our contemporary culture.

Teagan Earley and Jorge “Jay” Donovan Rivera-Herrans play the leads, Wendla Bergmann and Melchior Gabor, whose lusty romance drives the play. Earley conveyed

the perfect mixture of naivety and curiosity that eventually gives way to a heartbreaking end, shown particularly in the poignant song “Whispering,” when she realizes both the consequence of her night with Melchior and her mother’s disappointment. Rivera-Herrans displayed all of Melchior’s rebellious, intelligent and headstrong qualities yet betrayed his vulnerability when necessary.

Shane Dolan, as Melchior’s best friend Moritz, effectively portrayed the angsty downward-spiral of a teen boy who struggles with depression caused by tremendous pressure placed on him by his father.

Joseph Robert Blakey and Caroline Lezny’s performances as the Adult Men and Women were wonderfully nuanced. They tactfully differentiated all of the roles, particularly nailing the coldness of the headmasters.

This performance contrasted well with Lezny’s portrayal of Melchior’s conflicted mother, who, though sympathetic and eager to help, is often misguided in her methods.

Savanna Morgan and Grace Weissend, who played Martha and Ilse, had a standout duet performance during the song “The Dark I Know Well,” about the sexual abuse they each face at the hands of their fathers.

Editor’s note: Grace Weissend is a Scene writer for The Observer.

Though typically played with sadness as the two huddle before a microphone, the performance’s direction allowed the actresses to take on a more complex tone,

incorporating more anger and betrayal. Their bitter isolation proved devastating.

The entire cast had fantastic vocals that blended together very well, and the chemistry among the actors was palpable for the audience. The number that best exhibited their cohesion was the angst-ridden rock song “Totally F-----,” which takes place in the midst of the brewing chaos that begins the show’s climax. This number included all of the children in the cast as they ravaged the carefully-placed items on stage, throwing and breaking books and chairs. The furniture wreckage get removed, but the stage remains strewn with books for the rest of the show, and the actors have to navigate around the destruction in the remaining scenes, a symbol of the hardships they face due to their repressive, hypocritical parents and teachers.

“Spring Awakening” suggests the importance of sexual education, something that is certainly a contentious subject on our Catholic campus. But the musical does much more than that. The show, in the end, highlights how crucial it is for parents to communicate with and respect their children; and vice versa. It is meant to start a truthful dialogue between adults and their children, and I hope that this powerful and entertaining performance did so.

Contact Catherine Barra at cbarra@nd.edu

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The observer | tuesday, april 24, 2018 | ndsmcobserver.com

Onto the stage

Inside Column

A reflection on procrastination Sara Schlecht News Writer

In trying to come up with ideas for this Inside Column, I drew a blank. Repeatedly. So in order to have something to fill this space, I asked several friends what I should write. The answers were varied, some realistic, others ridiculous or reflective.

So in lieu of coming up with my own idea (cut me some slack — my creativity is running low as finals approach), I will share the ideas my friends have given me.

“How about appreciation of joints — like knees?” one suggested. “Life without them would be terrible.”

Indeed, I do appreciate my knees. Without them, I would not be able to walk between my typical writing spots as I procrastinate further on writing this very column. So now I thank my knees for giving me the wonderful ability to walk away from my work. It truly is a gift.

“Ball and socket joints are great,” another friend added. “You could thank them all. But maybe not hips. … That could get too controversial.”

Now I thank the rest of my joints — excluding my hips, since I can’t afford to be even remotely controversial. You’re all pretty great. Elbows and wrists, thank you for letting me close my laptop so I don’t have to stare at the mostly blank screen. Ankles, thank you for easily getting twisted so I can distract myself with pain that I probably deserve for walking away from my work.

Knuckles, the sound you make when you crack is awful, but thank you for being you anyway.

“How about that leaf dragon, whose population is disappearing?” yet another friend said.

It turns out that the leafy sea dragon is an endangered species. I’d never heard of it before, but it’s quite interesting. Also, the animated images that come up when searching the internet for “leaf dragon” are amusing enough to make me scroll through them. They allowed me to procrastinate for another minute or two, and I am eternally grateful. Anyways, protect the leafy sea dragons.

“What are you interested in?” was another response someone gave me.

Wow, that’s a tough one. I had to actually think about it, which really didn’t let me procrastinate. Which is unfortunate, since this has become something like a reflection on procrastination. I don’t have the space to write my thought process in determining that it’s really difficult to list what I’m interested in. Short answer: adjectives and sarcasm. But I couldn’t have stretched that into 400 words, could I? Contact Sara Schlecht at sschlecht01@saintmarys.edu The views expressed in the Inside Column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.

Ray Ramirez The Crooked Path

Standardized tests are inherently limited as tools to measure competency and predict future success.

No test has come under more sustained scrutiny in this regard than the SAT, owned and administered by the College Board. In response to claims of racial, economic and cultural bias, questions have been scrubbed with the intent to minimize preferences for students with backgrounds similar to the drafters of the test. Additional efforts have been made to measure critical analytical and communication skills, foremost being the essay section added to the SAT early in this century.

The essay section rewards people who can respond to and fulfill certain limited criteria reflected in a grading rubric applied by persons grading the essays — known as “readers.” Originally the essays could receive a maximum of six points, up to two points for each of three grading areas: reading, analysis and writing. The readers do not measure creativity, originality, impact and memorability, though. Readers with a scant few minutes for each essay perforce must hew to a more easily assessed and defended rubric.

The limits of the SAT essay soon caught the attention of numerous critics, and the Atlantic magazine even ran an article in 2004 titled “Would Shakespeare Get into Swarthmore?” which subjected various essays to the grading rubric applied by actual readers. The authors started with a prompt from the American humorist, Art Linkletter: “The four stages of life are infancy, childhood, adolescence and obsolescence.”

They submitted the following soliloquy, as spoken

by Jaques in “As You Like It,” as a responsive essay, from a certain William Shakespeare: “All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players: They have their exits and their entrances; and one man in his time plays many parts, his acts being seven ages. At first the infant, mewling and puking in the nurse’s arms. And then the whining schoolboy with his satchel and shining morning face, creeping like snail unwillingly to school. And then the lover, sighing like furnace, with a woeful ballad made to his mistress’ eyebrow. Then a soldier, full of strange oaths and bearded like the pard, jealous in honour, sudden and quick in quarrel, seeking the bubble reputation even in the cannon’s mouth. And then the justice, in fair round belly with good capon lined, with eyes severe and beard of formal cut, full of wise saws and modern instances; and so he plays his part. The sixth age shifts into the lean and slipper’d pantaloon, with spectacles on nose and pouch on side; his youthful hose, well saved, a world too wide for his shrunk shank; and his big manly voice, turning again towards childish treble, pipes and whistles in his sound. Last scene of all, that ends this strange eventful history, is second childishness and mere oblivion, sans teeth, sans eyes, sans taste, sans everything.”

The Atlantic also ran an online contest, asking readers to submit essays prompted by Shakespeare’s soliloquy. In the spirit of “we don’t need no stinkin’ rubrics,” yours truly submitted the following (as a 10-line, two-stanza, curtal sonnet): “On life’s stage we are all just players. / We come and go in a show of seven acts: / From drooling babes without woes or cares / To students weighted by books upon their backs. / Next we enter full of love’s afflictions, / Then seek our fame in war’s unending horrors. / We pose and praise and spout our maledictions. / Now aged, we squeak and schlep in outsized drawers. / And as the lights grow dim and curtains tumble, / We end our play sans roar, with just a mumble.”

So, how did we do? Here’s the reader’s evaluation of my entry: “Mr. Ramirez’s decision to write his essay in verse is certainly daring, but his clever and creative rhymes win him no points in this context.

In fact, he must be punished for them. There are a few fancy words here, but no clear topic and concluding sentences. It totally lacks examples. And it is way too short; altogether it is only six sentences long. Grade: 2 out of 6.”

Ouch. But at least I had good company; here the reader’s take on Shakespeare: “This essay is poorly organized, with only one paragraph. …. It is riddled with errors in syntax, incomplete sentences being the most noticeable problem. Although his supporting sentences are vivid in their description, they are vague and general, not true examples. And he unfortunately spells ‘honor’ with the extraneous ‘u.’

Grade: 2 out of 6.”

What does it take to meet the SAT essay requirements? Here is the reader’s analysis of one essay that checked all the boxes: “Mr. K__’s essay is well-developed, displays an impressive vocabulary and makes good use of supporting examples. He also demonstrates an understanding of how to use simple, compound, and complex sentences. Grade: 6 out of 6.” This essay was the work of the “Unabomber,” Ted Kaczynski, whose efforts in the 1980s and 1990s resulted in 23 injured victims and three deaths.

Kaczynski did get into an institution of some renown, as he currently resides in Colorado’s ADXFlorence supermax prison.

The world may not always value your efforts to be creative and demonstrate skills beyond those that meet a mandated standard of performance. As you move into the working world you may not be fully appreciated by your first (or second or third) employer, but trust in your talents and give people more, and perhaps even something different, than they expect. Do your best and have faith that, as Hamlet observed, “There’s a divinity that shapes our ends, / Rough-hew them how we will—.” Now, take a deep breath, and step onto the stage.

Ray Ramirez is an attorney practicing, yet never perfecting, law in Texas while waiting patiently for a MacArthur Genius Grant. You may contact him at patrayram@sbcglobal.net The views expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.

Join the conversation.

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The observer | tuesday, april 24, 2018 | ndsmcobserver.com

7

LETTER TO THE EDITOR

Sorin has bats?

A question I never thought I would be asking on freshmen move-in day.

It was August 18 and my mind was filled with anxiety and excitement for the friends, football games and classes of college life. However, just as I was settling into my new dorm, Sorin, I discovered my third-floor quad had more to offer than just decades of tradition.

A bat.

As my quad-mates and I fled into the hallway, I couldn’t help but be surprised that such a pest was allowed to reside in my future room. I expected to find the occasional spider or cockroach in the 130-year-old residence hall, but I figured the infestation would stop with insects.

After this initial shock, I extensively researched the diseases bats carry and the risks they present to humans.

I found that bats are the most common vectors of rabies — a disease that leads to a violent and certain death if not treated before symptoms present themselves. Although the risk of being bitten is low for the average person, when our campus home is infested with these creatures the risk increases exponentially — we just have to hope we can get treatment in time if infected.

Since that eventful first day, I have experienced six other bat encounters and there have been many others I have not personally witnessed. Many would ask what to do when you find a bat in your room. Wait an hour for NDSP to respond to your call for help? Call an exterminator to come capture it the next day? Or send a herd of college guys armed with nets and tennis rackets to haphazardly resolve the problem themselves?

Usually it’s the last.

Our calls to NDSP are not considered high priority, and

to leave a bat in the dorm overnight while waiting for an exterminator would leave sleeping residents at risk of being bitten without defense. Thus my fellow Sorin Otters and I run around the halls trying to capture the bat so it can be removed and tested for rabies. What an unnecessary stress to have.

How naive of me to think that “bat extermination” would be covered by the large sum of money students pay to the University for room and board every year.

Despite our requests for an extensive extermination, nothing serious is being done, and the bats continue to come back. The administration fails to accept its moral responsibility to protect students from physical harm in this respect. And it is not even motivated by the enormous lawsuit that would follow if such a horrible infection were to harm myself or one of my fellow dormmates.

And Sorin is not alone — the bats are just an extravagant example of a campus wide dorm maintenance problem.

Lewis has exploding sinks and a slight, but persistent sulfur smell.

Pasquerilla East (along with many other dorms) is infested with stinkbugs.

And, well, Morrissey has been voted one of the worst dorms in America.

And there are countless more examples The worst part about the administration not addressing these glaring issues is that, beginning with the class of 2022, students will be required to live on campus for six semesters. So, not only will the future Sorin Otters have to live in a bat-infested dorm, but they will not be able to escape until their senior year.

Nonetheless, many dorms are in the process of being renovated, which is a step in the right direction,

but unfortunately a slow-developing one. Badin will be brand new next year, Morrissey the year after that and Dillon in 2020. But where is Sorin, or Fisher or Lyons on that list? Often the responsibility to fix these issues is eschewed by statements that it will happen in the future, which is great … for the future. I will go my entire college career without living in a renovated Sorin, and if Sorin is not next on the list, the incoming freshmen will not either. Timeliness is important to the effectiveness of solutions, but it is a factor often ignored by those with power to create change. And to add insult to injury, the Notre Dame price tag continues to rise. Despite having both tuition revenue and an enormous endowment, is there somehow not enough money to fix these important issues? And why should my tuition dollars be spent to renovate Badin when I will never see similar effects of that work myself in Sorin? I may never receive answers to these questions, but I know one thing for sure — no one should be forced to live in a dorm with bats.

I want to emphasize that I’m not trashing the dorm system as a whole, because I genuinely love the tradition of Sorin, and other students who live elsewhere would agree about their own dorms, but there are persistent problems all dorms face that need to be addressed.

Students should not be forced to sacrifice personal safety or basic peace of mind in their on campus homes. I’m just wondering how many complaints, or even personal injuries will be necessary for the administration to even bat an eye to these serious and dangerous issues.

Ben Walter freshman April 22

War is over?

Erin Shang Brave New World

“Damascus, ‘Pearl of the East,’ the pride of Syria, the fabled garden of Eden, the home of princes and genii of the Arabian Nights, the oldest metropolis on Earth, the one city in all the world that has kept its name and held its place and looked serenely on while the kingdoms and empires of 4,000 years have risen to life, enjoyed their little season of pride and pomp, and then vanished and been forgotten.”

— Mark Twain, “The Innocents Abroad” Since I heard the news that Syria was bombed last week, a picture comes to my mind, in which my favorite artist Yoko Ono and her late husband John Lennon, dressed in white, were holding a large piece of paperboard. It reads, “War is Over!”

That exclamation mark seemed assertive and inspiring, and never ceased to make me feel strong. It was the year of 1969. Nearly 50 years ago, the war in Vietnam was reaching a climax as American deaths peaked. It was also the time when the anti-war movement reached a climax. I have always admired Ono and Lennon’s courage of standing up against the war, as any war, from my point of view, is a crime against humanity itself and cannot be excused.

However, what people often didn’t notice is that below this statement on the paperboard, there reads a much more powerless phrase: “If you want it.”

Their message was addressed to the Americans, who eagerly awaited their loved ones at home, a peaceful home flooded with anxiety and apprehension. It petitioned them all to stand up against the horrendous war.

I don’t know whether the fact that the second half of the phrase being printed in a much smaller font size indicated something, or if it was on purpose. To me, it seemed to acknowledge that “we” don’t have the final say after all.

But who, then?

On April 14, 2018, following President Trump’s tweets that missiles “will be coming” to Syria, three sites that allegedly had chemical weapons were bombed by the U.S. military, in conjunction with British and French forces.

Airstrikes have always been of western democracies’ preference, as they reduce casualties to a certain extent. Yet airstrikes are also the privileges of western democracies, as they leaves smaller countries, like Syria, no other option but to flee.

While writing this article, I did a google search on Syria.

To my expected astonishment, most articles that came up focused on how this attack could become a milestone for the U.S. — whether it be in its relationship with Russia, or for world peace — but somehow this simple Google search told me much about the United States Federal Government’s well-known egotism.

Only an article published by a British correspondent demonstrated the other side of the story. The bulk of my search results did not speak to how the 110 bombs landed on Syria last week destroyed the homes of millions of innocent souls.

Syria was founded as a proud Islamic state, and on this land steadily rose the civilization of humanity. It was once a bustling and vibrant place that has been burned down with clashes. The once proliferous Damascus, a busy and lively metropolitan, has been bombarded to ruins. All of the six Syrian sites that were recognized as World Culture Heritage, are all destroyed. Needless to say, the bombs that landed on Syria last week were not helping repair these. What I hope could be understood by the people who placed the order and took control is that, the destruction of humanity is not only the loss of Syrians, but the loss of humanity in its entirety.

I am never a big fan of exploring the truths, as I don’t know what truth is when camouflaged by politicians’ underlying motives that are allegedly kind, nor when the media is clearly filtered, and maybe opinionated and biased. But I do know that everything that happened in Syria this past week is at the expense of humanity, and no excuse can justify this.

Seeing this, when the heaven on earth has become hell and is literally inches away, and when children were wailing and shaking in fear and pain, how could we not question ourselves: “Are we any better than the gatekeepers of hell?”

Countless Syrians would rather flee on a cargo ship, and risk being abandoned and drowned in the Mediterranean Sea than stay in their own country, a place that they once

were proud to call home. Women were being smuggled and sold as prostitutes. Men were used as cheap labor and suffered from strenuous physical duress.

I don’t want to leave the impression that I urge the three western giants to take fault for everything that was mentioned above, as that would be very unfair of me to do so.

The message I hope to convey is that, what was done by them does not seem to be fixing, but instead seems to be merely destroying. How can we call this peacemaking when clearly peace is once more violated?

Dr. Bashar Jaafari, the Syrian representative to the United Nations, said in a speech on April 9: “The violation of the nonproliferation regime is the specialty of the western states.”

I don’t know if I necessarily agree with Jaafari entirely, but I do know that China in the 19th century, Vietnam in the 20th century and Iraq 10 years ago have all been the victims of such imperialism. The only difference now is that as the war is now not being fought at the expense of America, people have become relentless and forgotten what has been learned in the past.

Being a sophomore at the University, my shallow mind cannot comprehend the complexity of political motives and the right way to fight against terrorism. I do not know whether the western states should intervene, and if so in what way, so please offer me some forgiveness if I failed to bring up some wise strategies of my own. Yet what I do hope, is that in this barbaric slaughterhouse that we once called humanity, there still exists faint glimmers of civilization and the war will one day be over.

Erin Shang seeks to find the black and white from this world of messed up palette, the polygons from monotonous lines and passion from the shattered dreams in this brave new world we’re all living in. She is a sophomore studying finance and ACMS at Notre Dame, living in Cavanaugh Hall. Erin welcomes comments of any kind, and can be reached at yshang1@nd.edu The views expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.

8

DAILY

The observer | tuesday, april 24, 2018 | ndsmcobserver.com

Crossword | Will Shortz

Horoscope | Eugenia Last Happy Birthday: Consider your alternatives this year. Maintain structure and stability in your life by keeping busy with activities that promise to encourage a better state of mind as well as a healthy body. Added discipline will help you achieve goals you set, so don’t just think about what to do — take action. Don’t let the past hold you back. Your numbers are 9, 15, 22, 28, 35, 39, 47.

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Use your brain and power of persuasion to get your way. An exciting offer will lead to a tough choice. Take the path that will give you the most in return. Put your needs first.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Don’t let an emotional issue get you down when you should be moving forward. Look for any chance you get to improve your status and your standard of living. Children or an unpredictable individual will pose a problem if you aren’t firm.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Helping others, offering suggestions and taking on responsibilities around the house will all contribute to better relationships with the people around you. Open your home for group meetings or as a gathering place for friends.

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Venture out and discover something new. Be receptive to group meetings, creative endeavors and expanding your circle of friends. Activities that encourage you to be a participant should be your priority. Romance will improve your personal life and relationship.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Make a difference. Speak up and do your best to bring about changes at home or work that will improve morale. Getting along and accepting others’ suggestions will turn you into the type of leader who gets things done and gains popularity.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Don’t worry so much about what others are doing. As long as you are happy with your performance and what you accomplish, that’s all that matters. You will learn how best to get ahead by doing your own thing.

LIBR A (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Keep your opinions to yourself if you want to avoid discord. Domestic changes will turn out to be more difficult than anticipated. Focus more on what you can do to help a cause or to help those in need of assistance.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Being too possessive, controlling or excessive will send the wrong signal to someone you are trying to impress. Put your emotional energ y into a creative endeavor instead of trying to coerce others to do things your way. A romantic gesture is encouraged.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Communication is key to getting what you want. Be open to suggestions, and you will also receive hands-on help initiating what you want to achieve. Presenting what you have discovered or developed will be well-received. Networking and meetings are favored.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Look at the big picture when dealing with situations that have the potential to change suddenly. Know your alternatives and make a decision based on facts. Short notice will be the tactic someone uses to catch you off guard.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Don’t get dragged into someone else’s melodrama. Distance yourself from people ex hibiting bad habits or making poor lifestyle choices. It’s better to be there to pick up the pieces than to join in the mayhem. Focus on healthy relationships and choices.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): Take care of your responsibilities and you’ll avoid complaints. Once you’re finished, you will have time to explore some of the pastimes that interest you. Share your feelings and concerns; you’ll get a different perspective from someone you respect.

Birthday Baby: You are dedicated, persuasive and stubborn. You are ambitious and resilient.

WINGin’ it | OLIVIA WANG & BAILEE EGAN

Sudoku | The Mepham Group

Jumble | David Hoyt and Jeff knurek

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sports

ndsmcobserver.com | tuesday, april 24, 2018 | The Observer

Sports Authority

nd women’s tennis | florida state 6, nd 1; miami 6, nd 1

MLB should cut regular season Connor Mulvena Associate Sports Editor

The baseball season is way too long.

I love baseball. I grew up in a household where baseball, specifically the New York Mets, reigned supreme, and it’s my favorite sport to follow by far. And yet, I still have trouble making it a point of emphasis to tune in for a Tuesday night Mets game against the Braves, one of 20 times the two teams will meet this season.

Baseball is dying. Viewership is down and millennials are killing America’s pastime. Baseball certainly isn’t what it was 50 years ago, or even 20 years ago.

I don’t think the lively spirit of what baseball once was is unsalvageable, but I also don’t think limiting mound visits or implementing shot-clock-esque time limits on pitchers will revive what used to be a real part of American identity.

Maybe the solution is simpler.

Major League Baseball (MLB) should take a page out of the NFL’s book — perhaps the only page worth paying attention to — and just make the season shorter.

The 2017 MLB season spanned from early April to November 1. That’s roughly eight months of virtually nonstop baseball. Of course, some of the other major sports, like hockey and basketball, rival the MLB in season length in terms of months, but when you take into account the 162 games each team plays, the MLB season sometimes seems like a neverending marathon.

One-hundred-sixty-two games is a ton of games, and when you play so many, each individual contest loses significance. Division rivalry matchups, much like a Mets–Braves game, become easy to ignore, and as a result, it can be easy to lose track of a team’s season progress. Soon enough you find yourself approaching playoffs and your team’s season is a blur.

I get it, each game means something, each out counts, each pitch is important: “That’s the beauty of baseball.” But come on, a Tuesday night Padres–Rockies game in June doesn’t exactly move the needle for the average fan.

Plus, baseball is naturally a

9

warm weather sport. It’s played outside, on dirt and grass, both of which need to be manicured in April, not November. Have you ever tried to hit a baseball in 22-degree weather? It’s not fun, and it’s hard. When it’s cold, pitchers can’t throw as hard, the ball doesn’t pop off the bat like it does in July and the level of competition isn’t nearly as good as it is in warm weather.

If the majority of the season is played in 70-degree weather, why would you schedule the most important set of games, the World Series, in November?

Let’s keep baseball in the spring and summer, and to do that, you can’t schedule 162 games.

How about a 90-game season?

You can cut the season down by about two months — start it in late March and end it in late August or early September. Each game would matter more. With teams no longer playing each other upwards of 17 times, division rivalries would likely heat up and with more emphasis on each game, it’s likely that viewership would increase, as fans are less inclined to skip games and lose track of their team’s season. The level of play would be higher — pitchers would pitch fewer games, so we probably wouldn’t hear about a UCL tear every other day on SportsCenter, and players wouldn’t get injured as frequently. And 90 games is still more than enough baseball, so the hardcore fans can still get their fix.

Now, I know old school baseball fans tend to get all up in arms when you suggest changing something about the sport.

God forbid the “purity” of baseball be tainted by something as heinous as the wild card or the designated hitter. But baseball fans on the whole need to face the facts. People don’t want to watch 162 three-hour games that don’t have playoff race implications. If baseball purists continue to refuse significant change, then baseball may actually die. I would personally rather a new baseball that people still care about than a “pure” baseball that doesn’t exist.

Contact Connor Mulvena at cmulvena@nd.edu The views expressed in this Sports Authority are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.

Follow us on Twitter. @ObserverSports

Irish struggle at home against top-20 opponents

By MEAGAN BENS Sports Writer

In the final weekend of conference play, Notre Dame dropped two top-20 home matchups, losing to No. 18 Florida State on Friday afternoon and No. 17 Miami on Sunday afternoon, both by a score of 6-1 .

After winning nine of their first three non-conference matchups, the Irish (11-14, 2-12 ACC) have struggled against a tough field of ACC competition, featuring six teams ranked in the top-25.

On Friday, freshman Ally Bojczuk was the only scoring member for the Irish against the Seminoles (18-7, 9-3) as Notre Dame played outside for the first time this season. Continuing her strong singles performance against the Hurricanes (15-6, 11-3) on Sunday, Bojczuk was once again the only member of the team to score.

In the doubles competition, Seminoles sophomore Carla Touly and junior Anna Rahmanparast defeated senior Brooke Broda and sophomore Zoe Spence 6-1 on court No. 1. On court No. 2, Bojczuk and senior Allison Miller held their own with a 3-2 lead before play was suspended.

Meanwhile, junior Rachel Chong and freshman Caroline Dunleavy were also beaten 6-1 on the third doubles court.

Moving on to singles, Florida State quickly was within one point of clinching the match on the first two courts. Freshman Petra Hule defeated Broda (6-2, 6-1) on two before Touly took down Miller 6-0, 6-2 at court No. 1.

Bojczuk walked away with the lone Notre Dame win on court No. 4, 6-3, 6-1. Despite a strong effort by Spence on court No. 3, forcing a third set but ultimately losing 10-6, Florida State sealed the match after sophomore Andrea Garcia’s 6-2, 6-4 victory over Dunleavy on court six.

“Zoe Spence, Rachel Chong and Ally Bojczuk all played really well,” Irish head coach Jay Louderback said. “We were in all three matches. Rachel was up 5-4 in the first and ended up losing a tight one, 7-5. Zoe did a great job and lost a tiebreak. I felt like we played like we have all year, we played close. We battled it hard.”

With a short turnaround, the Irish hosted the Hurricanes, who took the first doubles

rosie lovoi | The Observer

Irish sophomore Zoe Spence serves the ball during Notre Dame’s 6-1 loss to North Carolina on April 6 at Eck Tennis Pavilion.

decision on court No. 3 as freshman Ulyana Shirokova and sophomore Dominika Paterova defeated Bojczuk and Chong, 6-2. The teams were toe-to-toe on courts No. 1 and 2, but the Hurricanes captured the doubles point with a 6-4 win over Miller and sophomore Bess Waldram.

Broda and Spence held a 5-4 lead over sophomore Estela Perez-Somarriba and junior Daniella Roldan when play was suspended.

In the singles round, Miami extended their lead winning five of six courts. They clinched the victory with a 6-4, 6-4 defeat of Chong by Shirokova on court No. 5. Once again, Bojczuk paced the Irish in their lone point, winning 1-0 in a tiebreaker.

“We lost both matches 6-1, but we had some tight matches,” Louderback said. “We were up two match points at one doubles and lost a close one at two. We were very close at doubles and just lost some tough ones. Ally Bojczuk had a good one at [court No.] 4.

[Miami] looked good and played well. It was good for us to get to play outside.

Hopefully, we will be outdoors

at our conference this week.”

Although Notre Dame dropped the senior day match, Louderback said he was pleased with Miller’s performance during her last home match.

“We’ve been gone a lot,” Louderback said. “It was nice to be at home, and they’re both top-20 schools. Allison Miller was the one senior who had her last home match.

That’s always an emotional one but she played well and competed well. … It’s always a tough last match you have to play. She’s been unbelievable for us for four years. Started off playing four and five singles for us freshman year and number three doubles, and she’s worked her way to play No. 1 singles as a senior and either one or two doubles. She’s made great improvement and she’s just a hard worker.

Probably one of the hardest workers that has played for me.”

The Irish will face Wake Forest as the No. 14-seed in Cary, North Carolina, on Wednesday.

Contact Meagan Bens at mbens@nd.edu

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10

Sports

The observer | tuesday, april 24, 2018 | ndsmcobserver.com

M Golf Continued from page 12

Lamb, Felitto and Chatfield, juniors Miguel Delgado and Ben Albin have each led the team in scoring at different tournaments. This varied attack has made the Irish an extremely tough opponent in ACC play.

“We have a lot of depth on our team right now. There were only five guys in this tournament, but we have several guys at home who have been pushing these guys too,” Handrigan said. “It’s hard to pick which guy I think is going to do well each week, because every single week it seems to be a different guy. Once we get all five guys stepping up together we could really do some special things this post season.”

The Irish have three underclassmen and no seniors in their top five this season, and will not be graduating anyone from a squad that was just 10 strokes off the ACC title pace. In Handrigan’s first season at Notre Dame, the team’s improvement over last year’s ACC tournament

Baseball Continued from page 12

closer. On Saturday with a huge crowd present, the matchup did not disappoint, as the Irish walked off in 12 innings with the 8-7 win. Leading the way for the Irish was graduate student starter Scott Tully, who last 8 1/3 innings on the day. After having given up just two runs over the first eight innings, the southpaw did eventually give up three with one out in the ninth inning, erasing the 5-2 lead the Notre Dame lead as the Hokies forced the game into extra innings. Despite falling behind 7-5 in the top of the 12th, the Irish were able to end the day on a high note behind a spectacular comeback in the bottom

result was impressive. It is clear that the culture surrounding the program has changed, but he credited his players hard work for the improvement.

“The 10 guys on our team have changed the culture of Notre Dame golf. We’re back on the map now as one of the top teams in the country,” Handrigan said.

“It’s drastically improved this year thanks to these 10 guys.

The future is bright. It’s going to be a great program for years to come.”

Considering the strong showing by the ACC on the national stage — tied with the Pac-12 for third most ranked teams with four, behind the Big 10 and SEC — the momentum the team gained this past weekend should serve them well in the coming weeks as they await seeding for the NCAA Regional tournament. The tournament is scheduled on May 14 and will determine who advances to the NCAA Championships in Stillwater, Oklahoma.

Chris collins | The Observer

Contact Jack Concannon at jconcan2@nd.edu

Irish sophomore Davis Lamb finishes his swing during the Fighting Irish Classic on Oct. 8 at the Warren Golf Course. During the ACC Championship this weekend, Lamb led the Irish by finishing nine-under par.

of the inning, capped off with a walk-off single to left center by junior right fielder Eric Gilgenbach to close the game.

Sunday saw Notre Dame snag their third series win of the season with a 6-5 victory. Down 3-2 in the fifth inning, the Irish got back-to-back solo home runs from junior second baseman Nick Podkul and junior third baseman Matt Vierling to secure the lead. Freshman Spencer Myers would add a third run on the inning, and Podkul tacked on a second RBI for the day in the sixth to provide all the offense Notre Dame would need to secure the win.

Podkul came up just a triple shy of the cycle to cap the strong weekend.

Moving forward, the Irish still have work to do if they want to

make up ground in conference standings. They currently sit in sixth place in the ACC Atlantic division, but the gap is thin, as they are only two wins behind Wake Forest and Louisville in conference play. While Tuesday’s matchup is non-conference, it will still play a factor in the Irish being able to keep momentum going moving forward. After Valparaiso, Notre

eddie griesedieck | The Observer

Irish junior outfielder Eric Gilgenbach takes a swing during Notre Dame’s 2-0 loss to Northwestern on April 11 at Frank Eck Stadium.

Dame will head into a weekend series against Boston College before another midweek matchup next Tuesday against Western Michigan. Following that is another home series in ACC play when Pittsburgh comes to town as the Irish wrap up their home stand.

Tuesday’s matchup against the Crusaders will be nearly a year to the day since the two Paid Advertisement

teams last faced off on April 25.

Although the Irish easily earned a 10-3 victory, the Crusaders have the ability to hit, with five batters currently averaging over .500 and 30 home runs on the season for the team. Notre Dame will look hope to keep the momentum going as Mik Aoki’s squad seeks to play consistent baseball with the regular season winding down.

Sports

M Tennis Continued from page 12

victories. The doubles pairs of Kempin and McCormick and Cabrera and Lebedev recorded wins on courts No. 1 and 3, respectively.

Irish head coach Ryan Sachire said he was proud of how his team competed this weekend.

“Any road match in the conference are tough matches,” he said. “I thought we got the best level and best effort from our opponents that they could give, and our guys answered the bell, which is a great testament to their grit and toughness mentally throughout the course of the weekend. I’m super proud of the character we showed. They were tough matches and tough places to play, and anytime you can come out on top on the road in our conference, it’s a good weekend.”

Sachire said he also liked the way his team fought through adversity in both matches.

“I thought the two matches were a little different, but in both … especially with Georgia Tech … it was resilience,” Sachire said. “We lost the doubles point, and they won three of the first six sets of singles as well, so 90 minutes into the match, they were the team in position to win the dual match and our guys just came back and fought. The

Softball Continued from page 12

in the top of the fourth inning.

Bonamy singled and scored on an error and Wester singled to score Bazos to tie the game up at three.

But Notre Dame allowed three unearned runs in the bottom of the fourth inning and the Eagles surged right back to a 6-3 lead that Notre

ndsmcobserver.com | tuesday, april 24, 2018 | The Observer

11

second sets that all six of our singles guys played at Georgia Tech was fantastic. … There were three matches where we won the first set, we would win in straight sets and the three where we lost the first sets we made a push and came back and ultimately ended up winning two of those three matches as well, so that was really good … against Clemson, it was a very tough crowd. It was their Senior Day and they had a lot of people there. We found ourselves down in doubles again and really battled to come back and win the doubles points. That took a little energy out of the crowd and the team, and then our guys, particularly the lower lineup guys, played awesome yesterday and won easily to get the team win for us.”

When asked what he thought his team needed to work on, Sachire continued to stress the importance of a strong doubles performance.

“Doubles is such a big point,” he said. “It is the first point of the match and really creates some momentum and quite frankly our record is pretty darn good when we won the doubles point and it puts us in good position to win the team match. We’re certainly going to continue to emphasize that, but at the same time we will also continue to attack working on and improving the singles games of our guys

too.”

Notre Dame will return to the action this Friday when they travel to Cary, North Carolina, to compete in the ACC championships as the No. 4-seed.

Sachire said his team will prepare for the conference tournament the same way they have prepared for most of their matches this season.

“We’ll take a couple days, today and tomorrow, to recover and refresh and travel down to North Carolina tomorrow and hopefully get two good practices in down there and then come out and compete hard on Friday,” Sachire said.

The team will face the winner of Thursday’s matchup between No. 5-seed Virginia Tech and the winner of the play-in game between Georgia Tech and Boston College on Wednesday.

“Regardless of who we play — Virginia Tech, Boston College or Georgia Tech — we know it is going to be a quality opponent and a tough match,” Sachire said. “They all are, so we are going to have to play good tennis and compete our best. If we do that, I think we are going to have the chance to be successful, but we know the margins are thin and we need to bring our best effort and best attitude every day.”

Contact Michael Ivey at mivey@hcc-nd.edu

Irish junior Grayson Broadus prepares to return the ball with a forehand during Notre Dame’s 6-1 loss to North Carolina on March 23.

Dame was unable to overcome and Boston College took the second game of the series 6-4.

In Sunday’s rubber match, Notre Dame’s defense proved suspect as the Eagles scored six unearned runs on two Irish errors and secured a 9-6 victory and series win.

Notre Dame scored in the first inning to make it 1-0. The Irish scored first in each game on the weekend. But Boston College quickly jumped out

to a 3-1 run on a three-run, three-hit bottom of the first inning.

Notre Dame tied the game up in the next frame. With two outs, Bazos slapped a single to center field which scored both Brooks and Rochford.

The Irish continued the momentum in the third frame, adding three more runs.

Marino, Rochford and Reed loaded the bases with Bonamy up at the plate. Bonamy

missed out on a grand slam by inches, instead hitting a long single, but scoring Marino and Reed. Rockford later scored at the end of the third inning to extend the Irish lead three.

But Boston College came back for the second time in as many days to seal the series win. An error on a pop fly which would have ended the fourth inning came back to bite the Irish as Eagles freshman catcher Emme Martinez

sarah olson | The Observer

Irish freshman pitcher Alexis Holloway winds up during Notre Dame’s 8-4 loss to Loyola Chicago on April 11 at Melissa Cook Stadium.

Ann curtis | The Observer

launched a three-run home run on the next pitch.

Boston College tacked on an insurance run in the sixth to make the final score 9-6.

Next up for Notre Dame is a home game on Tuesday against Bowling Green. Then, the Irish will host No. 11 Florida State in the final ACC series of the year.

The Irish and the Falcons (24-19, 7-9 MAC) are set to play at 5 p.m. on Tuesday at Melissa Cook Stadium.

SARah olson | The Observer

Irish junior first baseman MK Bonamy fouls away a pitch during Notre Dame’s 8-4 loss to Loyola Chicago on April 11. In this weekend’s series, Bonamy had three RBIs and just missed a grand slam Sunday.

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The observer | tuesday, april 24, 2018 | ndsmcobserver.com

men’s golf | acc championship

men’s tennis | nd 5, georga tech 2; nd 5, clemson 2

Notre Dame sweeps last Squad takes sixth weekend of regular season in ACC tourney

By MICHAEL IVEY

By JACK CONCANNON

Sports Writer

Sports Writer

Notre Dame ended the regular season on a high note this weekend, winning two conference road matches. The Irish took down Georgia Tech on Friday 5-2 before defeating Clemson by the same score on Sunday.

In the first matchup against the Yellow Jackets (6-16, 2-10 ACC), Notre Dame (17-12, 7-5) was powered to victory by singles victories from sophomore Guillermo Cabrera, freshman Richard Ciamarra, sophomore Matt Gamble, junior Alex Lebedev and freshman Tristian McCormick, along with a doubles victory from Ciamarra and junior Grayson Broadus.

Against the Tigers (10-12, 3-9) on Sunday, Broadus got in on the action with a 6-3, 6-2 win on court No. 6. Meanwhile, Gamble (6-4, 6-2), Lebedev (6-1, 5-7, 15-13) and McCormick (62, 6-3) also contributed singles

The Irish have worked this entire season to put their skills on the line at the ACC Championship. The Irish were tied for second at 17-under after two rounds and ended tied for sixth with North Carolina after a 2-under par final round.

The team was 19-under-par for the tournament, carding the second lowest full tournament score in the history of the program.

“The guys played really solid.

It wasn’t our best today [in the final round] but being in the final group in the ACC tournament was definitely an attribute to what the guys did all year,” Irish head coach John Handrigan said. “We held our own. It was an impressive week for us which is going to help us into the next part of our season.”

The team was seeded 10th out of 12 teams coming into the tournament, coming off of a 10th-place finish in the 2017 ACC tournament. Exceeding

see M TENNIS PAGE 11

ann curtis | The Observer

Irish freshman Tristan McCormick prepares to deliver a serve during Notre Dame’s 6-1 loss to North Carolina on March 23.

nd softball | nd 8, bc 4; bc 6, nd 4; bc 9, nd 6

Irish drop two of three to Eagles Observer Sports Staff

After scoring just three runs or less in four of their previous five games, the Irish bats came alive against Boston College over the weekend, scoring 18 runs over the course of three games.

However, Notre Dame’s offensive burst wasn’t enough to secure a series victory as the Irish (29-18, 12-8 ACC) lost two out of three against the Eagles (25-18, 11-6 ACC).

The Irish won the series opener on Friday 8-4, with four runs in the first inning and three runs in the sixth. Senior designated player Morgan Reed and junior third baseman Melissa Rochford each knocked RBI hits in the opening inning and a passed ball aided the Irish scoring effort to give freshman starting pitcher Alexis Holloway a comfortable lead on the mound.

The right-hander picked up her 17th win of the season as a starter, and kept Boston College to just one run

until the sixth inning when the Eagles picked up a pair.

However, Notre Dame also found a late-game surge of offense. The Irish put up three runs in the top of the sixth with junior second baseman Ali Wester, junior left fielder Cait Brooks and sophomore shortstop Katie Marino all recording RBIs in the inning.

After the Eagles answered to make it 7-3 going into the seventh inning, Notre Dame added an insurance run as junior first baseman MK Bonamy scored on an RBI grounder from sophomore right fielder Alexis Bazos. Boston College added another run to make the final score 8-4.

The rest of the series did not go as well for the Irish, however. On Saturday, Notre Dame fell 6-4.

The Irish fell behind early after senior Katie Beriont gave up three runs in the bottom of the third inning to make it 3-1. Notre Dame battled back see SOFTBALL PAGE 11

expectations, they upset several top-ranked teams, including No. 4-seed Florida State, who is currently ranked No. 20 nationally.

“We had high expectations because we’ve been playing well the last few events,” Handrigan said. “We didn’t win any but we’ve had some top three finishes and our team has been playing great. They’ve been working extremely hard.

We haven’t had the best weather so we’ve been working on our game inside, but they’ve been grinding really hard.”

Sophomore Davis Lamb led the way for the Irish with a nine under for the tournament, including a strong 68 in the final round. Freshman Davis Chatfield and sophomore John Felitto finished 12th and 19th, respectively, scoring under par on the weekend.

This balanced performance at the conference championship is reflective of the entire season, with standout performances across the board. Along with see M GOLF PAGE 10

Baseball

ND looks for momentum as home matchups continue Observer Sports Staff

EDDIE GRIESEDIECK | The Observer

Irish junior infielder Nick Podkul waits for the pitch during Notre Dame’s 2-0 loss to Northwestern on April 11 at Frank Eck Stadium.

Notre Dame will look to keep their strong play rolling at home when Valparaiso makes the short trip into town for a matchup at Frank Eck Stadium today.

For the Irish, this will mark their fourth contest in a string of eleven straight home games over the next three weeks, and they will look to capitalize on the home-field advantage, just as they did this past weekend against Virginia Tech.

The Irish (17-23, 8-13 ACC) are entering Tuesday’s matchup against the Crusaders (1420, 4-5 Horizon) after winning the final two games of a threegame series against the Hokies (17-23, 7-14). The Irish struggled early in the initial matchup, losing 9-1. But the team was able to bounce back for close wins on both Saturday and Sunday to secure the series win and improve their standing in the conference with the postseason tournament growing ever see BASEBALL PAGE 10