February 14, 2013

SPORTS

OPINION

STEPPING UP

Freshman guard Chloe Pavlech steadies women’s basketball team after injuries plague starters p. 9

MOBILE APP

FRIENDS WITH DIFFERENCES

DOWNLOAD THE MOBILE APP

Two columnists face off on whether you can be friends despite fundamentally different values p. 4

Like exclusive offers and news on the go? Scan the QR code at right

The University of Maryland’s Independent Student Newspaper

ISSUE NO. 88

ONLINE AT

103rd Year of Publication

diamondbackonline.com

TOMORROW 50S / Partly Cloudy

thursDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 2013

Mental health priority for univ.

Apts. increase security in wake of crimes

Student shooting, suicides highlight need for resources

By Annika McGinnis Staff writer Kelsea Gerrety and Adrian Dipple were eating breakfast in Stamp Student Union at 9 a.m. Wednesday.

There, in a bustling hub of morning student activity, the juniors felt safe.

But anywhere off the campus, or after dark, was a different story.

“We commute; he won’t walk to my car alone at 9 p.m.,” Gerrety, a psychology major, said.

“I feel like during the day it’s OK, but not any time after that,” added Dipple, a nutrition science major.

In the wake of an off-campus murdersuicide and four armed robberies on and off the campus in the past three weeks,the two are part of a growing number of students concerned about their personal safety. And although several apartment and business owners in the city said they’re heightening security measures in response, many said there’s only so much they can do.

“It’s more and more things that are happening,” said Marti Rowntree, Parkside See safety, Page 2

By Savannah Doane-Malotte Staff writer After Tuesday’s murder-suicide involving a mentally ill student and two student deaths last semester that police described as suicides, the University Health, Help and Counseling Centers hope to expedite funding increases that will enable them to better address mental and emotional health on the campus.

Health officials hope to secure the requested $500,000 of additional university and state funding toward adding more on-campus psychologists, psychiatrists and psychiatric nurse practitioners. That staff would help decrease appointment wait times of up to a month long. Although the health center has added 20 hours per week of psychiatry time as well as three full-time clinical social workers specializing in an off-campus murder-suicide that left two students dead and one injured highlighted the need for increased funding for the university’s mental health services, officials said. Off-campus apartments, including the University View and Varsity, have increased safety measures, but management said there is only so much it can do. photos by charlie deboyace/the diamondback

Student-athletes given free iPads; cost $281K

Students ‘respect’ pope stepping down Catholic students, officials say leader made admirable decision

By Fatimah Waseem Staff writer

Tablets for academic purposes, officials say

By Erin Egan Senior staff writer The athletic department distributed new gadgets to all student-athletes this week, but they weren’t new cleats, sticks or uniforms.

Instead, the athletic department spent more than $281,000 from the NCAA’s Student-Athlete Opportunity Fund on iPads for each team member, said athletics department spokesman Zack Bolno. The fund’s aim is to benefit student-athletes and has traditionally been used for academic purposes.

University officials said the iPads are to help student-athletes in the classroom, noting the money could not have been used for other purposes, but that hasn’t prevented questions from some

See health, Page 2

members of the seven athletic teams that were cut last summer in an effort to balance the department’s budget.

The athletic department isn’t the first to provide students with the popular Apple tablets. Students in the Honors College’s Digital Cultures and Creativity living-learning program began receiving iPads in fall 2010 when the device was integrated into the curriculum.

The iPads will keep all athletes connected academically and help them stay in contact while traveling for games and practices, department officials said. But Craig Morgan, a former member of the track and cross country teams, which were both cut, said such communication

As Pope Benedict XVI’s abdication — the first in 598 years — sends shock waves throughout the world, many Catholic students are coming to peace with what they call a bold, honest and courageous move by the

See ipads, Page 7

The graduate student who killed

85-year-old pontiff.

“We have a shocking reality before us, one that transcends those of the Protestant faith and encompasses all Christians, if not the world,” said Rev. Ray Ranker, Lutheran Campus Ministry chaplain.

Before a small, private group in Vatican City on Monday, the pope, known to many as a formidable theologian who

preached conservative Catholicism in an increasingly secular world, cited a weak “mind and body” as his reasons for stepping down. The pontiff felt he no longer had the strength to fulfill the duties of the position, which he has held since 2005.

Following his abdication — effective See pope, Page 7

Gunman worked for University Police Shooter in Tuesday’s murder-suicide cleared background check

By Yasmeen Abutaleb and Fola Akinnibi Senior staff writers

one of his roommates and injured another in an off-campus murdersuicide briefly worked for University Police, spokesman Maj. Marc Limansky said.

Dayvon Maurice Green — a 23-yearold graduate student who shot and killed Stephen Alex Rane, a 22-year-old See green, Page 3

Proposed gas tax could help fund at-risk Purple Line light rail project Dwindling transportation funding in recent years limiting transit projects’ funding; additional state taxes needed

By Jim Bach and Sandra Müller Senior staff writers Those hoping to see a Purple Line transit rail run from New Carrollton to Bethesda may not see the project completed anytime soon after a report

INDEX

determined the state cannot move forward on the project without additional transportation funding.

The 16-mile light rail, which would run through the campus, has a $2.2 billion price tag and, with the Red Line project planned for Baltimore,

will require an estimated $820 million investment in 2017 to ensure the project finishes on time, according to the state’s Department of Legislative Services.

Additionally, the state’s Department of Transportation will put the project on hold if the General Assembly does

NEWS 2 OPINION 4 FEATURES 5 DIVERSIONS 6 CLASSIFIED 6 SPORTS 9

not raise new revenue to secure future funding for the project.

The news comes after the state has already poured more than $120 million over the last 10 years into planning and the preliminary engineering phase, which is expected to finish this

Submit tips to The Diamondback at newsumdbk@gmail.com

summer. But in 2017, transportation funding will not be able to finance the light rail beyond maintaining current infrastructure, highlighting the need for new revenues, according to estimates in

For breaking news, alerts and more, follow us on Twitter @thedbk

See funding, Page 3

© 2013 THE DIAMONDBACK

2

THE DIAMONDBACK | news | THURSDAY, FEBRuary 14, 2013

health From PAGE 1 psychotherapy since 2005, it hasn’t been enough to address the mounting number of student requests, said Marta Hopkinson, mental health director.

“The demand continues to expand every time we increase capacity, and the level of distress of the students has increased as well,” Hopkinson said. “Our waiting time for either medication management or counseling therapy has only gotten worse.”

Several factors could be contributing to the demand, including the fact that more students are diagnosed with mood or anxiety disorders earlier in their lives, Hopkinson said. This increases the number of college students who know they are struggling with a mental illness and need help, she said.

W h i l e a d m i n i s t ra t o r s haven’t said whether the centers will receive more money, university President Wallace Loh said addressing mental health services remains a high priority. The recent student deaths, coupled with several mass shootings nationally in the last few months in which the gunmen were determined to be mentally ill, have ignited mental health discussions both on the campus and around the country.

In Tuesday’s off-campus murder-suicide, the gunman, 23-year-old graduate student Dayvon Maurice Green, had a mental illness for at least a year, police said.

“There is no question that there is an enormous need for additional mental health professionals to provide counseling,” Loh said. “There will always be more demand than the supply that we can provide, but we are making this a very high priority, hiring more part-time and fulltime people because the mental health well-being of our students is a top priority.”

Demand for mental health services has increased over the past few years, health officials said. The monthlong wait time, attributed to increased demand, is far longer than the wait time at many peer institutions, including Penn State, where wait time averages are about a week, according to Penn State health officials. This university’s health and counseling centers have continually grappled with keeping wait times short.

“Both centers are having a challenge accommodating the students who need ongoing therapy and ongoing medication monitoring,” she said. “When we have to schedule an urgent appointment, we may have to bump a person that may not be in a crisis, which is how the schedule starts to stack up.”

The counseling center has experienced similar problems, as surges of students continue to request mental health services, such as therapy and counseling, which the center offers for free, said Madison Higgins, help center administrator.

“Services available have not increased at a fast enough rate to meet the rising needs,” she said. “Anything to increase the

accessibility of mental health services is good for students.”

While additional university and state funding is still uncertain, the health center hopes to soon add a psychiatric nurse on staff if a student fee increase is approved.

“We are very grateful for all the student groups who raised support for this fee,” she said.

“We’re looking forward to having a staff member that can help students in managing and monitoring their medicine regimens.”

Providing students more access to psychiatrists is imperative, but it is also just as critical to remove negative stereotypes associated with mental illness, said Jen Robinson, co-president of mental health advocacy group Active Minds.

“Therapy should be easily accessible for everyone at an affordable price,” she said.

“However, I think it is equally important to acknowledge that most people who have mental illnesses do not commit these types of crimes, and by grouping these people in our minds we are adding to the stigma and potentially preventing those in need of help from seeking it.”

After yesterday’s tragic events, health officials are realizing the university needs the extra funding more than ever. “ W h e n s u c h t ra ge d i e s happen, they always affect us and make us want to reach all students in distress, even if they don’t ask,” Hopkinson said. “We are in the process of evaluating how we can best do that.” newsumdbk@gmail.com

36th avenue saw a murder-suicide Tuesday morning, leaving many students, residents and local business owners feeling unsafe in College Park. charlie deboyace/the diamondback

safety From PAGE 1 at College Park owner. “After that one shooting in Connecticut, a couple days later there was another shooting in another school, then a couple of days later another shooting. Like, can we just deal with this already?”

There have been reports of four armed robberies since Jan. 27: in The Varsity, on Route 1 in front of Shanghai Cafe, on Lakeland Road and in Lot KK, an incident University Police spokesman Maj. Marc Limansky called the first on-campus armed robbery in 13 months.

And early Tuesday morning, two students died and one was injured in a murder-suicide.

At The Varsity on Jan. 27, a man reportedly displayed a fake handgun and demanded a resident’s laptop. Management at The Varsity did not respond to phone calls or emails for comment, but The Diamondback previously reported the apartment complex temporarily increased patrol following the incident. Still, city councilman Patrick Wojahn said security can be improved.

“In The Varsity, there’s a

CONSIGNMENT SHOP

BIG SALE Return To US

10436 Baltimore Ave. Beltsville, MD Something New Every Day!!

problem with people leaving the back doors open,” he said.

Next door at the University View, management plans to implement ID scanners and has increased nighttime and weekend security, General Manager Sabrina Hunt wrote in an email. At the Enclave, property manager Marco, who asked to be anonymous for confidentiality with ownership, said security measures are already strong, with video cameras, elevator lock access and security guards on duty 12 hours a day.

Despite the steps managements are taking to protect residents, one of the biggest issues is students when they allowing “piggybacking” and unknowingly let strangers into otherwise secure buildings, Hunt wrote.

For instance, in early January at Parkside at College Park, a management assistant noticed a suspicious man “tailgating” into Parkside as residents were leaving.

The assistant, who asked not to be named for personal reasons, said the man left after he saw that she noticed him. She didn’t see him again — until she noticed his photo in a recent article after police arrested him in connection with the Varsity robbery.

“I don’t think anything’s 100 percent foolproof — things can happen any place, any time,” Rowntree said. “We constantly drill into them ‘Be careful when you come in; don’t let anyone you don’t know in.’”

Though Rowntree said Parkside has a good security system with high-tech video surveillance cameras, she said she doesn’t see enough of a police presence around her apartment complex.

“When there’s nothing going on, you don’t see them,” she said.

“They’re not going through the neighborhoods … there should be more patrols on bikes in this area.”

In the next couple of months, the College Park City Council plans to address that issue and increase University Police jurisdiction to places including Lakeland, Crystal Springs and Calvert Hills, councilman Marcus Afzali said. The council will also explore adding more security cameras, Wojahn said, as well as lights on the street, councilman Robert Day added.

Senior family science major David Yeom said he’s already seen more police on the streets when driving in the evening. Sunny Lee, a junior mechanical engineering major, said police brought her home Sunday night after noticing her waiting outside alone.

Employees at local businesses are also feeling anxious about the recent surge in crime.

At Subway on Route 1, assistant manager Regina Brown is very concerned about employees’ safety, especially at night. On Jan. 27, three people were charged with robbing and See safety, Page 7

THURSDAY, FEBRuary 14, 2013 | NEWS | THE DIAMONDBACK

FUNDING From PAGE 1 a December DLS report.

About $42 million is calculated into next year’s transportation budget, which will be reallocated to other MTA projects if the General Assembly does not dig up an additional $100 million

by April, said Henry Kay, executive director for Transit Development and Delivery for the MTA. If that happens, “We have to manage a logical step down from the project,” Kay said.

“It’s a make-or-break year,” he added.

The transportation funding crunch illustrates a much broader debate among legislators over how to keep transportation infrastructure properly funded while also eyeing new development projects such as the Purple Line.

The grips of the recession left the state with few options to balance its budget. The state had to dip into its dedicated stream of transportation funding, known as the Transportation Trust Fund, to remain in the black.

Most of those dollars have been repaid, or they are on a trajectory to be repaid in the next few years. However, there has been a growing consensus in Annapolis that the state will be unable to sustain the increasing cost of maintenance for existing

transportation infrastructure while simultaneously funding big-ticket transit initiatives, including the Purple Line and the Red Line in Baltimore County and City.

“I recognize that those things are going to be among the first to go if there’s not a viable stream of money identified,” said Del. John Olszewski (DBaltimore County).

However, legislators cannot agree over how to find new transportation money. While last year saw several new taxes, the wildly unpopular gas tax proposed by Gov. Martin O’Malley didn’t gain considerable traction last year.

The gas tax would have increased the surcharge by 2 percent each year over the next three years, until it equalizes with the 6 percent state sales tax. This would have been on top of a 23.5-cents-per-gallon tax, a number that has not been indexed to inflation since former Gov. Parris Glendening increased it in 1992.

This year, Senate President Mike Miller has proposed a 3 percent increase on the gas tax, as well as granting local officials the authority to levy a 5-cent-per-gallon tax increase at the wholesale level. Even though a gas tax is unpopular, the legislature understands the need to find “out of the box” ideas to bolster transporta-

3

GREEN From PAGE 1

UNIVERSITY PRESIDENT WALLACE LOH told the SGA last week the Purple Line would help with sustainability goals by reducing the number of cars on the campus. christian jenkins/the diamondback tion revenue, said Sen. Roger Manno (D-Montgomery).

The Purple Line serves as an important staple in the campus’s green initiatives that began to pick up steam under former university President Dan Mote. In last week’s SGA meeting, university President Wallace Loh again echoed the potential sustainability benefits of the light-rail project.

“It will have dramatic impact on the amount of cars and therefore parking spaces needed on campus,” he said.

Students would also benefit from the light rail by saving time and money, said Matt Arnstine, the SGA’s director of communications.

“They have internships in Bethesda or Potomac, and most

of them have no car,” he said.

It would also help the city’s development by connecting the city and therefore attracting people from outside, he added, in regards to the plans on transforming College Park into a vibrant college city with retailers and bars.

The measure can win enough support to pass the Senate, Manno said, but he’s unsure whether the House of Delegates will help propel it to O’Malley’s desk.

“I think folks are starting to understand that we’re running out of resources to build new roads and new transit,” Manno said. “The gas tax has always been very unpopular, but we’ve never been this close to the cliff.” newsumdbk@gmail.com

undergraduate student, and injured a third roommate, also an undergraduate student — served as a police aide for two weeks, Limansky said, from Aug. 28 to Sept. 11. He missed two consecutive shifts without an excuse before he was fired, Limansky said.

The surviving victim was released from the hospital Wednesday, police said, and is resting comfortably at home; an aunt and cousin told The Washington Post that 22-yearold Neal Oa of Frederick was recovering, but police declined to release his name.

Green did not have access to weapons while serving with the department, Limansky said. Police aides cannot call officers directly; instead, they have radios that can access dispatch, which can then call an officer.

“EVERYTHING WAS VERY NORMAL. THERE WAS NO INDICATION OF ANY PROBLEMS WHATSOEVER.” MAJ. MARC LIMANSKY

University Police spokesman

Green suffered from a mental illness for at least a year, family members told police.Police declined to specify the illness, but Green had been prescribed medication, said Julie Parker,Prince George’s County Police spokeswoman.

University Police did not know about Green’s condition, Limansky said. All potential employees undergo a criminal background check, Limansky said, and they did not find anything wrong with Green’s. “ Eve ry t h i n g wa s ve ry normal,” Limansky said. “There was no indication of any problems whatsoever.”

Keep checking The Diamondback for continued coverage of this developing story. newsumdbk@gmail.com

Follow @thedbk on Twitter for alerts, breaking news, updates & more!

4

Opinion

THE DIAMONDBACK | THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 2013

EDITORIAL BOARD

YASMEEN ABUTALEB Editor in Chief

Mike King

Tyler Weyant

Managing Editor

Managing Editor

maria romas Opinion Editor

nadav karasov Opinion Editor

CONTACT US 3150 South Campus Dining Hall | College Park, MD 20742 | newsumdbk@gmail.com OR opinionumdbk@gmail.com PHONE (301) 314-8200

GUEST FEATURE

From the SGA president: Annapolis calling SAMANTHA ZWERLING

W

hen university President Wallace Loh came to the Student Government Association meeting last week, he told us we were the best lobbyists the university has. One of Loh’s main responsibilities is to make sure the state continues to fund this university, but there is only so much he can do.

He will not be the one personally benefiting from the educational experience at the university. Only students can really talk about how they have been helped by the minimal tuition increases over the past couple of years. Only students can really talk about their large class sizes. Only students can really talk about how the College Park Academy will benefit our campus community. That is why we need your help. We need you to come to Annapolis and tell your story. Come to Annapolis and tell legisla-

tors how we could benefit from increased funding.

For the first time in more than six years, Gov. Martin O’Malley is proposing enhancement funding to the University System of Maryland. Not only will USM receive the necessary funds to operate and avoid hiking up tuition exorbitantly if the proposal passes, but we can also invest in our programs. This funding will bring our university into the future so we can continue our upward trajectory. And most importantly, the state will continue to invest in our students.

With the proposed $34.8 million in enhancement money, we can redesign courses so they incorporate more online learning. These courses can be redesigned into blended learning classes, which means that rather than sitting in a 400-person biology class, you can watch the lecture online at home and then come in to a smaller discussion section to ask questions.

What else is this money being used for? About $500,000 of this enhancement money would go toward the College Park Academy, a proposed charter school just blocks away from our campus.

This school will be closely related to our education college, so our education students will get more inclass training. The SGA is already writing a proposal to have students run the after-school programs.

Obviously, all of these things would be great for our university, but we need to make sure the General Assembly does not cut this funding from O’Malley’s budget. Our voices and our stories matter to legislators in the General Assembly. Not only are we their constituents, but we are the future taxpayers and future drivers of the state’s economy.

So how can you make your voice heard? In the past, the SGA has only organized one lobby day: Terrapin Pride Day. This is one day when our campus comes together to lobby our representatives in Annapolis on behalf of our university.

But the fact is, the General Assembly doesn’t give a budget specifically to our campus. Instead, it gives it to USM as a whole and USM divides it between the institutions. This year, we are lobbying as a system and will be with students from all public institutions in the state. We will stand side by side with students from the University of Maryland, Baltimore, Bowie

State University, Frostburg State University and other schools asking the General Assembly to continue its investment in higher education. Not only does this allow us a bigger presence, but it shows the General Assembly that students in the state are united. We are not only thinking about our home institution, but also higher education across the entire state.

The USM Lobby Day is Feb. 28. We will leave campus at 8:30 a.m. and get back at about 2:30 p.m. The SGA will be providing transportation to Annapolis and there will be a free pizza lunch. All students will also receive an excuse note from the Provost’s Office to get out of class. What could be better? You get free lunch, a note out of class and the experience of lobbying for a better quality education. Students can register at studentsformd.com/register.html.

Samantha Zwerling is the Student Government Association president. She is a junior environmental science and policy major and can be reached at sgapresident@umd.edu.

HEAD TO HEAD

What to do when friends have rivaling views VIEW: Take a stand for your core beliefs NADAV KARASOV A recent trans-Atlantic flight revealed two things to me: New Girl is decent, and hollow friendships are a waste of time. But let’s focus on the latter.

Delayed on the runway and trapped in a middle seat, I made the only move possible by entertaining small talk with my neighbor in row 72. She was friendly enough and we casually discussed our trip experiences as we prepared to head back to school.

Like most plane banter, the conversation was glorified small talk. We swapped stories, asked polite questions and drank our respective ginger ales with relative civility.

You don’t pick fights or enter heavy political debates on a plane — you might as well sit quietly if you’re going to pull a punk move like that.

But amid our pleasantries in row 72, my neighbor began referencing a political issue, culminating in a few comments that struck me as misguided and offensive. Her views irked my core, and yet I sat there with a dumb smile, pretending our conversation was delightful. I chose a meaningless and brief friendship over a meaningful and honest discussion.

Frank conversations don’t come easily on planes or in the company of strangers. Instead, we lean on friends. Between trusting and familiar individuals, open and passionate debate flows naturally — or at least in theory. For if you don’t feel comfortable voicing your opinion in the presence of your closest companions, you sacrifice more than interesting conversations. Putting on a mask to accommodate friends is draining and confusing, especially when their values, beliefs or opinions directly compete with your priorities.

Back in row 72, I ate my words in order to avoid the discomfort of an honest conversation. Afterward, that decision ended up eating at my core. Whatever

pleasantries or funny experiences you might share with someone, sometimes a divisive issue can taint your entire perception of that person.

I’m not a person to normally hide from opinionated friends. Surrounding yourself with diverse viewpoints is important, and you can absolutely be friends with people who share differing views if you confront the tension in your relationship with genuine dialogue. Completely agreeing on an issue isn’t essential, nor is constantly wrestling with a topic. But pretending this contradiction doesn’t exist could in many ways lead to a friendship no less superficial than a glorified airplane conversation. You cross paths for a moment in time, only to leave each other without ever delving into the issues you value.

Consider this: If you’re a staunch pro-life advocate who considers abolishing abortions a core value, how could you maintain a close friendship with someone who volunteers at Planned Parenthood and not at least acknowledge your gaps in perspective? Hearing each other out and discussing your contentions, even in only one instance, removes the charade and clarifies the nature of your relationship. Having this conversation may cause stress and even end a relationship, but that’s better than the hollow alternative. If both friends accept the dissonance in the relationship, you can move forward. If not, find a new friend that accepts you as you are.

College is full of superficial relationships already: Who cares if two people both like New Girl, sports, partying or whatever if they don’t respect one another’s intimate beliefs? Maintaining relationships is important, but convenience shouldn’t come at the expense of convictions. Ditch the plane banter.

Nadav Karasov is a junior economics major. He can be reached at njkarasov@gmail.com.

VIEW: You don’t always need to agree JAKE DeVIRGILIIS In 2008, President Obama campaigned on a lot of ideas. In regard to his cabinet, the president said he would surround himself with people with all sorts of opinions, especially those who disagreed with him. As we start to see a clearer picture of what his cabinet will look like over the next four years, one might argue such a strategy has disappeared.

I imagine Obama is probably tired of being completely disagreed with and disrespected — I’m looking at you, birth certificate idiots — all the time. Trying to form a strong professional relationship with someone of a different set of opinions, political beliefs or values is not a totally new idea, though it may seem like none of our esteemed representatives in Washington are doing so. In the past, reaching across the aisle often meant friends were reaching out to strike a deal for the betterment of the nation.

A difference in values shouldn’t preclude a professional relationship any more than it should a friendship. Though certain issues may be hard to discuss, finding out someone disagrees with you about something important to you shouldn’t change your opinion of him or her. Yeah, things might get weird if you find out they don’t believe in science or deny the occurrence of important historical events, but that kind of person needs friends like you to guide them.

Though there is probably a scary number of people with views as unfortunate as those mentioned above, I can’t imagine many of them made it here to this university. What’s more likely is some other value disagreement will occur between friends. But even if you think

you hold the superior value, don’t let that get in the way of your friendship, because a) you are probably wrong and b) having values is cool, but much less important than acting like a good person in the world.

Trying to pick friends based solely on their ideas seems, in part, an arrogant assumption that you are correct about subjective moral ideas and that you aren’t confident enough to even discuss them with dissenters. But the worst part would be denying yourself the chance to spend quality time with people who inevitably agree with you in so many other ways.

I know this well. My vegetarianism has been important to me for more than five years. My friends fall distinctly into two camps: One group contains people who think vegetarianism is interesting and end up trying it, even if only for a day. The other group thinks it’s hilarious and constantly offers me sausage. Both are OK by me. I still retain my values (and the objective data I’ve collected on the benefits of a plant-based diet for personal nutrition, global environmental health, etc.) and the friends who are nice to me in person, even if they smell like pepperoni pizza.

Sure, there are some values that might be deal breakers. People who don’t act polite and respectful or don’t brush their teeth because they have totally different values are probably of a variety of human that I could not be friends with in real life.

Everyone else is some shade of gray close enough to me that I can’t resist. If they like jogging, Animal Collective, the NBA, orange juice or dancing, we have enough in common to get over the other stuff. Friends are important.

Jake DeVirgi liis is a senior government and politics major. He can be reached at j.devirgiliis@gmail.com.

HUMP DAY CONVERSATIONS: VALENTINE’S EDITION

Getting serious and taking the next step is never easy NOAH ROBINSON I consider myself an atheist — I don’t entirely reject the existence of God, but I never seriously considered following a religion. The one guy I’m really interested in just happens to be a devout Catholic. He’s really involved in his local church and participates in a lot of religious activities. Even though I completely accept his lifestyle, I feel as if it’s not worth it to pursue a relationship with someone who thinks I don’t share the same values as he does. Can two people be together if their religious identities don’t match at all?

It can be extremely frustrating when you find someone to whom you’re wildly attracted, only to find out he has different religious values from yourself.

When you meet someone you like, you usually think about a possible future with that person.

Although you know you’re not supposed to get your hopes up too much, you can’t help but imagine what it might be like to be in a serious relationship with that person.

I share similar religious beliefs as you, and actually dated someone who was very religious.

It ended up being a waste of time for both of us.

We were attracted to each other, but we couldn’t ignore our religious differences or the resulting

ASHLEY ZACHERY/the diamondback

dissonance in our relationship.

How do you think your lack of faith will affect the relationship? Perhaps he goes to Sunday morning Mass, and can’t go out with you on Saturday nights.

Maybe he uses religion as a way to deal with issues on which you may want his counsel. Do you care whether he believes in creationism or evolution?

And then there’s the long-term future. Do you want kids? Will you be okay if he wants to send them to church every week? While it may seem kind of crazy to think about these things at such an early stage, it could save you a huge amount of pain in the future. If you ignore these future conflicts, you may end up in love with someone with whom a future is impossible. That will cause a lot more pain than

JOEY LOCKWOOD/the diamondback

deciding not to date him now.

Try to consider whether a future is possible with this guy. You can try out a relationship, but I’ll tell you from personal experience: It’s probably a waste of not only your time, but his, too.

I just started dating this guy, and I want to know when I can change the background of my phone to a picture of us. We’ve only been official for about a week, and met about two months ago. Can I do it?

When you’re starting to date someone, you have a lot of fears about the relationship’s potential. You’re worried your partner may not feel as strongly as you do, so you try to play it cool.

There’s a certain level of reservation you force upon yourself, at least initially, when making sure your partner fully reciprocates your feelings.

Your hesitancy about the background picture comes from this reservation. You’re worried how he’ll react when he sees the picture. But now that you’re official, it’s OK to show him how you really feel. That’s one of the points of becoming official — it’s a conversation where you both validate the feelings you have for one another.

As you grow closer in your relationship, you will begin to form a shared sense of identity with your partner. As you explore this new relationship, don’t move too quickly. The closer you get, the more pain you will feel if you break up. Changing your background picture is perfect, as it’s a small way of telling your new boyfriend you’re excited to be growing closer with him.

Noah Robinson is a junior psychology major. He can be reached at noahumd@gmail.com.To submit an anonymous question, go to tinyurl.com/HumpDayDBK.

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 2013 | THE DIAMONDBACK

5

Features ACROSS 1 Cookie - 4 Shrill barks 8 Uniform trim 13 Firecracker part 14 Egg-shaped 15 Play reveille 16 Calligraphy fluids 17 Large lizard 18 Food consumer 19 Rural addr.

20 Heavy rain 22 Sweet wine 24 Herr von Bismarck 25 Mohawk-sporting actor (2 wds.)

26 Pharaoh’s amulet 28 Beam of light 31 Strode along 34 Weakness 35 Liver secretion 36 Vitality 37 Foil alternative 38 Erelong 39 Dweeb 40 Cop a - 41 Black cattle 42 “What’s up, --?”

43 Misfortunes 44 Fitness center 45 Hoagie 47 Wild felines 51 Ruby-throated - 55 Four-footed pal 56 Not slouching

57 Kinks’ tune 58 Berlin single 59 “Walk Away --” 60 Same, to an annotator 61 Powder, to some 62 Mouthfuls for a PC 63 Oysters’ abodes 64 Constantly, to Poe

CROSSWORD

32 Ersatz butter 33 Ancient scrolls, often 34 Low tract 35 Trite

37 Greasy - 41 Mimicked 43 Drops a line 44 Splits 46 Game-show host

DOWN 1 Coup plotters 2 Inquired about 3 Lo- -- graphics 4 Dairy-case buy 5 St. Teresa’s town 6 Covering 7 Crack up 8 Faint breeze 9 Facetious tribute 10 Ghosting, perhaps 11 Shrink’s reply (2 wds.)

12 Earl -- Biggers 13 Mattress category 20 Brace for trouble 21 No longer asleep 23 Revise 26 Buenos - 27 Final Four org.

29 Baseball family name 30 Itches 31 What banks do

© 2013 United Features Syndicate

PREVIOUS DAY’s puzzle solved:

Today’s crossword sponsored by:

47 Fixed a squeak 48 Hazard a guess 49 It’s above baritone 50 Goulash 51 Sage or basil

52 Deuterium discoverer 53 Smug 54 Be an omen 58 Language suffix

B

HOROSCOPE STELLA WILDER

orn today, you are never one to say no to a challenge, but neither are you the kind to stick with something when all signs point to imminent failure. You know when to cut and run, when to hedge your bets and when to double down. You are an expert gambler -- at least, when you know the rules of the game!

Some may find you rather “hidden” in that you are unwilling to show them what you are feeling at any given time, but your feelings are very much your own business, and you don’t feel the need to advertise what is going on beneath your usually calm surface. You can fool people quite easily by adopting a manner that belies what is going on underneath.

Attractive and charming, you may well have a great many admirers -- of both sexes! You know where you stand, however, and you maintain confidence in who you are and what you want. At the same time, you are not one to condemn another for his or her tastes or feelings.

Also born on this date are: Meg Tilly, actress; Gregory Hines, actor and dancer; Carl Bernstein, reporter and author; Florence Henderson, singer and actress; Hugh Downs, reporter; Jimmy Hoffa, union leader; Jack Benny, comedian; Frederick Douglass, abolitionist.

To see what is in store for you tomorrow, find your birthday and read the corresponding paragraph. Let your birthday star be your daily guide.

COLLEGE INTUITION RICHIE BATES ROGER DOES COLLEGE

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 15 AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18) -- Preparation is the issue today, and you mustn’t hang back and let others get the jump on you. You are able to learn a lot very quickly.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20) -You’re going to have to juggle the conflicting tastes of several people who are in charge of a situation you are responsible for balancing.

ARIES (March 21-April 19) -- There is likely to be very little to criticize about your work today.

Others will come running when you announce what you are doing next.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20) -- You may be too concerned with outdoing a rival than with doing your best work. Focus on the task at hand, and don’t be too competitive.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20) -You’ll be facing a challenge today that is more complicated than it may seem at first. Advice comes your way that you can use at the last minute.

CANCER (June 21-July 22) -What you are trying to accomplish today may require you to be somewhat repetitive until you reach your stride. Then things really take off!

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22) -- You may not know just which way to go when given a choice today, but the road that leads in a wholly new direction may be your best bet.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22) -Your own recent progress has been noteworthy, but you may still feel as though you are falling short of your ultimate goal. Keep going!

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22) -- You’ll be required to provide accurate information to someone who is in a position to request it. Don’t balk -- and don’t delay.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21) -- If it’s a straight answer you are after, you must be sure to ask the right person the right question. Otherwise, you’ll encounter a dead end.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21) -- You may have trouble determining with any real accuracy what someone else is thinking today -- and his or her opinion matters to you.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) -You may feel like you’re at the end of your rope at this time, but take care that you’re not merely overreacting to a temporary situation

COPYRIGHT 2013 UNITED FEATURE SYNDICATE, INC.

Today’s HOROSCOPE sponsored by:

Max Siskind

su | do | ku © Puzzles by Pappocom

Fill in the grid so that every row, column, and 3x3 grid contains the digits 1 through 9.

PREVIOUS DAY’s puzzle solved:

DEGREE OF DIFFICULTY:

HARD

Today’s SUDOKU PUZZLE sponsored by:

6

THE DIAMONDBACK | THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 2013

Diversions

NEVER SAY DIE

REEL NEWS

Senior staff writer Zachary Berman waxes eloquent about why the Die Hard series, which sends its newest installment to theaters today, still stands as a “shining achievement.” For more, check out diamondbackonline.com.

REVIEW | BEAUTIFUL CREATURES

P.s., i hate this

Richard LaGravenese’s lengthy film Beautiful Creatures tries to do too much and ends up with nothing ­— except glaring flaws

By Dean Essner Senior staff writer If we are to forgive Richard LaGravenese’s (P.S., I Love You) messy and merciless Beautiful Creatures for anything, it’s that it is a true kitchen sink film. It’s a tale of unrequited romance in the skeleton of a supernatural fable in a suit of a funny and frothy comedy on the loopy trappings of strange people who live way below the Mason-Dixon Line.

But much to the chagrin of those apt to praise a director for relentlessness, this movie is neither romantic nor scary nor particularly humorous. It’s also more than two hours long. In other words, Beautiful Creatures is a slog that causes a re-emergence

of an age-old lesson in the artistry of filmmaking: Restraint is vital.

The plot, adapted from a novel by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl, begins in the fictional city of Gatlin, S.C., where we meet Ethan Wate (Alden Ehrenreich, Stoker), who gives us the backstory of his hometown, which he can’t wait to leave.

We learn quickly that Ethan is typical of desirable male movie protagonists: good-looking, athletic, independent in his intellect but not overbearingly solipsistic.

He also dresses like a beatnik, which brings to light the film’s grating obsession with the literary canon. There’s an early shot in the film in which the camera pans over a bulletin board with the names of Ethan’s favorite authors and books pegged onto it. They read

like an 11th grade English teacher’s required texts for the year: Kurt Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse-Five, Ayn Rand’s The Fountainhead and J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher In The Rye, to name a few. The fact that they are banned in his town only makes Ethan’s superficiality as a character more apparent — because of both the obviousness of these texts and because his decision to read them stems only from his discontent toward Gatlin. This gets worse once LaGravenese brings up Charles Bukowski, whose work is so sorely misinterpreted in this film that I question whether I’ll ever be able to enjoy his writing again.

The story starts churning once Ethan meets Lena Duchannes (Alice Englert, In Fear), a pretty, mysterious young woman who appar-

had beautiful creatures been one genre of movie — humor, romance, horror — to focus on, the film might have been more poignant. Instead, the final product was simply offensive and corny. photo courtesy of filmofilia.com

photo courtesy of timeinc.net

ently has a dark past. Lena’s classmates hurl myriad insults at her because of this supposed past, their evangelist sensibilities telling them she’s some sort of demonic creature who doesn’t belong in their humble, Jesus-suckling village.

Ethan comes to her defense, and the two rather quickly start a romance built on a shared alienation toward Gatlin as well as a love for Bukowski passages, which they toss around like wide-eyed kids in a literary candy shop.

Lena’s backstory is then slowly revealed, and we learn that she, along with her family, is a Caster — someone who possesses dark magic.

They also live in a bizarre house full of unkempt vines and cobwebbed wood panels on the outside, but on the inside, everything looks like a Tim Burton exhibit at the Guggenheim: all opaque walls, egg-shell chairs and grand, winding staircases. It could have been the movie’s finest and strangest piece of symbolism; like the house, the girl with a cold exterior and woeful gene pool actually proves to be warm and tidy on the inside, and ripe for an unlikely romance. But instead, we get a ridiculous mess of a story filled with ancient spells, witches disguised as mortals and Viola Davis (Won’t Back Down) in body paint.

The film occasionally gets points for injecting a loosey-goosey element of camp into its characters — even in the diciest of situations, the dialogue is rarely spoken with a completely straight face. Yet LaGravenese’s choice to pepper the funny with the scary and romantic is built on a foundation of cornball one-liners and nearly offensive portrayals of Southerners. In fact, the people of Gatlin seem to possess a particularly cartoonish version of the Southern vernacular, full of nativist spite nearly akin to Quentin Tarantino’s mid-19th century Mississippi in Django Unchained.

In the end, Beautiful Creatures has too much substance. Had LaGravenese decided to scale things back, it’s possible his film may have been much better. Bukowski once said, “I wanted the whole world or nothing.” It seems that by shooting for the whole world, LaGravenese, amid all of his artistic pomp, has come up with bupkes. diversionsdbk@gmail.com

Classified RATES 35¢ per word ALL CAPITAL LETTERS Bold Letters

$3.50 minimum 35¢ extra per word 70¢ extra per word

CLASSIFIED DISPLAY ADS • Larger type • Sold in 1” increments • One column wide • $33.00/column inch • Run online at no additional cost OFFICE HOURS 10AM – 4PM Monday – Friday • 3136 South Campus Dining Hall DEADLINES The deadline for ads is 2PM • 2 business days in advance of publication SPECIAL Run the same ad 4 consecutive days and get the 5th day FREE!

All Classified & Classified Display Ads will run online at no additional charge. ¿ ONLINE

To place an ad: PHONE 301-314-8000 | EMAIL advertising@dbk.umd.edu | FAX 301-314-8358 | v m A All ads must be prepaid

Employment

For Rent

New York Deli is hiring part-time delivery drivers. Must have transportation. Please call 301-412-2619 or email newyorkdeli1@gmail.com.

Off-Campus Housing Available For 2013-2014 School Year

$ Bartending $ – $250/day potential. No experience necessary. Training available. 1800-965-6520 x116.

Small Animal hospital close to campus needs a technician. Willing to train the right person. Hours are 2:30 to 7:30 M-F and 2 Saturdays and 1 Sunday per month. Great job for an animal science major. Please Fax Resume to 301-864-4916.

Admin./ Recept. – PT

Insurance Agency in Laurel seeks responsible professional to answer phones and perform admin./support duties M/W/F 8:30-5:00. Office experience, excel. comm. & attention to detail is req. Bilingual (Eng./Span.) a plus. See website for details at www.cisagent.com.

Send resume/cover letter to: hrinfo@cisagent.com or fax to 301-490-5115.

Clinical Assistant

Part time/Full time. Excellent opportunity for a motivated individual who would like to pursue a career in the medical field and gain clinical experience. We are a cardiology clinic in the College Park area who provide comprehensive cardiology services. Attractive salary is offered ($35,000/yr.).

Please email, fax CV, or call.

Tel: 301-277-2290 Fax: 301-277-1241 Email: ashmuhammad@hotmail.com

For Sale BOOKS: Susannah was a young woman in love. She loved Derek, gossip, snooping, chocolate mousse and romantic fantasies.

She was bound to get into trouble in Clumsy Hearts, a slightly misguided romance, by Hysteria Molt. Available via Amazon.com.

For Rent Three residential houses in University Hills – available June 1. All within walking distance, 5 bedrooms, central ac, dishwasher, washer/dryer. Rent range from $3100 up.

Early signing bonus – $500. Dr. Kruger: 301408-4801.

Several 5 BR/2+ BA Houses Available Throughout College Park From $2,499/mo.

We Also Have a Room For Rent Now For $525/mo. Call 202-491-1921 Or Email KMGrentals@gmail.com Today!

College Park Towers – Large 2 bedroom apartment with balcony for 4 persons. Walk to UM. Building security. $2400 (includes utilities + parking for 1 car). 301-598-1130.

For Rent

Look No Further

For Your Housing Needs CollegeParkHousing.org Numerous Listings HOUSES FOR RENT. Close to campus. cphouse4rent.com NEED MONEY FOR RENT? — Call 301-314 -8000, 10 am - 4 pm, Monday - Friday, to place a classified ad and sell your extra stuff!

For Rent

2 Rooms for Rent

With private bath on 2nd floor of home. $400 & $600 – furnished or unfurnished. W. Hyattsville, 12 blks. from Metro, 2 blks. from bus stop. Must be clean & considerate. Pets ok. 407-260-6957.

Services ACADEMIC EDITING — Dissertations, theses, papers. Style manual specialists.

301-474-6000. www.CompuMediaUSA.com/ academic

THURSDAY, FEBRuary 14, 2013 | THE DIAMONDBACK

ipads From PAGE 1 between athletes was never an issue.

“Every athlete already has a cell phone and a computer,” the senior criminology and criminal justice major said.“I don’t see how an iPad will further facilitate communication between the department and athletes and coaches.”

In previous years, the same fund has been used for medical expenses and flights for student-athletes to travel home for funerals, Bolno said.

Last year, the fund helped replace computers in the department’s Academic Support Computer Lab. Department officials said they are unsure of how much money is sectioned off for the fund each year.

“Often times the fund is used for educational purposes, as it was in this case,” department officials said in a news release Tuesday.“It cannot be applied to a general fund,or in the case of the University of Maryland, to reinstate athletic programs.”

And though department officials said they were unable to redistribute money from the fund, Mano Motsiopoulos, a former member of the swimming and diving team, said he felt shortchanged.

“The iPad is just another cog in the comical time line of events that we’ve had to deal with,” the senior economics major said. “Last year,

safety From PAGE 3 punching a student in front of Shanghai Cafe next door. Brown said that although Subway closes at 10 or 11 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, some workers don’t leave until around midnight.

“Sometimeswehavejustfemales working,” Brown said.“Sometimes we don’t know if someone’s watching us when we’re trying to lock up the store — we don’t know if someone’s going to rob us.”

A few times,Brown said,she was working late after the restaurant closed, and people were arguing

we found out they were cutting our teams and everything we had been working for had been cut short.

Next they came out with the move to the Big Ten, and we questioned why they didn’t do that earlier. And now these iPads. I feel cheated.”

Some athletes and coaches, however, said the iPads will help them outside of the classroom as well. For example, coaches can send scouting videos directly to their athletes through quicker, more efficient modes of communication.

“I’m excited about it because in some ways, we can use it as a team, like I can hit a button and they can get scouting reports and videos immediately,” Morgan said, who also plans to make digital playbooks.

“It’s the same notion for a professor during classes where they can be hooked up immediately.”

For Gordon Murie, a center back on the men’s soccer team, the technology is beneficial, if unnecessary.

He received his iPad Monday and has already taken it to class, where the preloaded apps have helped him with note-taking and studying.

“I am definitely enjoying it, but when they first told us, I was like, ‘Why?’ I don’t understand why we really need this,” the senior kinesiology major said. “It’s helpful, but it has definitely annoyed the other students.”

Athletes are liable for their iPads, according to the athletic depart-

outside and pushing against the door“like they were trying to get in.”

“If the door is open, what are we going to do?” Brown said.

But down the street at new vegan and vegetarian restaurant Ovo Simply Veggie, owner Derrick Chang said he’s not as concerned about the recent crime.

Chang said he sees a heavy police presence on Route 1, and he doesn’t keep his store open past 10 p.m. He also keeps windows uncovered to increase store visibility and deals mostly in credit card purchases to avoid holding large quantities of cash. He also puts in extra effort to make sure his workers make it home safely — because the real

7

pope

Maryland Gymnastics @TerpsGymnastics

#GymTerps getting their FREE iPads! Yes, you heard correctly.

From PAGE 1

Maryland Men’s Golf @GoTerpsGolf

The boys with their UMD school issued IPAD’s. Nice to be a student athlete @ Maryland! #TerpPride #terpgolf

Alex Shinksy @Alex_Shinksy Men’s Soccer

Tweeting from my iPad! Thank you University of Maryland!

Lamonte Wade @WadesWorld6 Baseball Thanks umd for the free ipad. #grateful

Jessica Gregory @GregoryJessica Women’s Golf Love the new iPad from UMD #tappingaway

Anna Dessoye @Anna Dessoye Field Hockey free ipad fo meeeee? thanks UMD grahpic by charlie deboyace/the diamondback

ment’s release. Should one break, an athlete must replace it for $600 — each iPad is valued at $558 — because the tablets are university property.

Athletes cannot sell their iPads and must return them before graduating, withdrawing from the university or transferring to another school.

Although this university is following in the footsteps of schools such as Ohio State, Wichita State and Fresno State — where athletes

received iPads last year — some students said it’s unfair to grant athletes special treatment.

“Student-athletes are all students first and athletes second, so they should be treated just like the rest of the students,” said Charles Myers, a senior criminology and criminal justice major. “They shouldn’t be singled out.”

danger is outside the restaurant.

“When we close, it’s highly unlikely that they’ll actually go out to the car,” Chang said. “We leave the store together in a group. They will go straight home.”

Many business owners, city and university officials and students said it’s most important to make responsible personal decisions, because they can’t rely only on the measures in place.

“I feel like sometimes people forget that Maryland isn’t an island; it’s an open campus, so anyone can be here at any time,” said senior environmental science and public policy major Aziz Sani. “You can’t be oblivious — at Regents Drive, Knox, even Route 1, you have to be observant at any time.”

Coming from a very safe neighborhood, freshman psychology major Camille Merai said she has to remind herself that different precautions are needed here.

“I feel less safe, because I’m

one of those people that would be walking home at 2 in the morning,” she said.

More students should also be taking advantages of the resources the university offers, such as Nite Ride and the police escort service, said Shannon Gundy, undergraduate admissions director.

Although university services offer students some protection, more can be done to cut back on crime, community leaders say. Day said the city and university community must work together to make safety a priority.

“We need to be realistic and realize we are on this Earth, and anything can happen anywhere,” he said. “We need to keep our eyes and ears open. The students need to look out for residents, and the residents need to look out for the students.That’s what being a community is all about.”

newsumdbk@gmail.com

newsumdbk@gmail.com

Feb. 28 — he will return to the position of cardinal and use his birth name, Joseph Ratzinger.

“I have had to recognize my incapacity to adequately fulfill the ministry entrusted to me,” he said. “For this reason, and well aware of the seriousness of this act, with full freedom, I declare that I renounce the ministry of bishop of Rome, successor of St. Peter.”

Although the pope has the right to abdicate, the standard practice is to serve until death, and it was Pope Benedict XVI’s decision to buck nearly 600 years of tradition that has the global Catholic community surprised.

Many Catholic students at this university were initially struck by “sheer shock,” but praised the pope’s courage and honesty, saying continuing the job with half a heart or mind would do disservice to the Church and its people.

“This really indicates the humility of Pope Benedict XVI to consciously recognize that he can no longer meet the physical demands of the office he holds,” said Catholic Student Association President David Burkey.

Pope Benedict XVI is abdicating at a time when the Catholic Church also faces challenges, leaving it at a crossroads. The escalation of financial troubles and the continued emergence of sex-abuse scandals rocked the Church’s core in the last year, and leaked documents allege corruption and heated disputes within the Church’s own walls.

The next pope will also have to grapple with an increasingly secular Europe, the spread of Protestant evangelical movements in the U.S., Africa and Latin A m e r i ca a n d a g row i n g Catholic presence in developing countries. Twenty-five percent of all Catholics are at the Vatican’s doorsteps in Europe, but almost 42 percent live thousands of miles away in Latin America, according to Reuters.

“It was an extremely noble testament to the [pope’s]

“Witnessing his gentle and humble yet deeply intellectual demeanor made him a key part of my own spiritual growth.”

DAVID BURKEY

Catholic Student Association president

extreme humility and love and devotion to God, the Church and its people,” said senior history and classics major Matthew Curley, adding that his shock will transform into acceptance and a chance to be closer to the Christian community, “giving way to peace” as he reminds himself “that Christ is the head of the Church.”

Burkey added that although Catholics might not understand the decision, the pope wouldn’t have reached it without a “long period of prayer and reflection.”

The junior accounting and marketing major heard the pope, affectionately referred to by many as “our German shepherd” for his German heritage, speak four times abroad and in the U.S. while growing up.

“Witnessing his gentle and humble yet deeply intellectual demeanor made him a key part of my own spiritual growth,” Burkey said. “So for me personally, it does bring a bit of sadness to see him depart.”

Other Catholics haven’t been so forgiving, saying the pope should not step down even though he has the right to do so.

“The pope is not any man. He is the vicar of Christ. He should stay on to the end, go ahead and bear his cross to the end. This is a huge sign of world destabilization that will weaken the Church,” Italian parliamentarian Alessandra Mussolini told Reuters Monday.

The last pope to leave the office alive, Pope Gregory XII, abdicated in 1415 during a power struggle with two rival popes from separate factions in what historians call the Great Western Schism.

Regardless of his reasons, this pope’s abdication sets a noble example for people of all religious affiliation, Ranker said.

“This is a lesson for all leaders who have power but are reluctant to let it go,” Ranker said. “It takes courage to do something that has not been done in hundreds of years.” newsumdbk@gmail.com

SPORTS

FAUST From PAGE 9 like a temporary way to kickstart a stagnant offense. Guards Pe’Shon Howard and Seth Allen

were tallying far more turnovers than assists at the time, and Faust had run the point for stretches during his freshman year.

Yet with just seven regularseason games remaining, Faust seems entrenched as the squad’s

starting point guard. Turgeon believes playing the Baltimore native up top is simply the only viable option for a group that has struggled to score for much of the season.

The second-year coach prefers to have one of his deep threats — either Jake Layman or Logan Aronhalt — on the hardwood at any given moment, solely to space the floor and allow the Terps to lean on their inside-out principles. Having Faust at the point makes that possible, while also giving the Terps added length on the perimeter. It even allows Allen, a natural shooter and slasher, to concentrate on scoring from the wing.

“The thing about Nick is I have to have shooters on the floor,” Turgeon said Saturday. “If I have Pe’Shon at the point, Nick at the two and Dez at the three, we don’t have enough shooters on the floor.

I have confidence in Nick; he’s got some experience.”

Such confidence may seem misplaced after reviewing Faust’s less-than-stellar numbers. The former All-ACC Freshman Team member is averaging just 6.3 points on 31.4 percent shooting and boasts a 1.1 assist-to-turnover ratio since Turgeon added him to the point-guard mix before a Jan. 13 loss at Miami. The Terps, meanwhile, are 4-5 with Faust as the primary ball-handler.

But Turgeon isn’t too concerned with Faust’s stats, and he doesn’t blame the 19-year-old for the Terps’ recent shortcomings. Turgeon understands that Faust has been asked to do little besides drain jumpers and drive to the basket most of his career. Developing into a true floor general was bound to require an adjustment period.

“I’m trying to do whatever I can to help the team win.”

NICK FAUST

Terrapins men’s basketball guard “Nick’s played one way his whole life and now he’s trying to play a different way,” Turgeon said.

“It’s hard on him.”

Faust has matured in recent weeks. Gone is the me-first player who shot 4-of-15 in the Terps’ season opener. Gone is the frazzled point guard who rushed a host of ill-advised attempts in a second-half meltdown at Duke on Jan. 26.

Over the past four games, Faust has bought into Turgeon’s system and slowed the pace down on offense. He has gone through his reads, generally made precise passes and found the open man standing on the perimeter.

And though Faust has yet to top the eight-point mark this month, Turgeon believes his team is better when a scoring threat runs the offense.

“Slowly and steadily, he’s been getting better at the point,” Aronhalt said. “For him to run the team for us, it’s pretty big.

Because when we have the three guards out there — Nick, Dez and the guys coming off the bench like Seth — we’re so much better around the perimeter.”

Faust realizes as much. It’s why he’s not spending the stretch run of his sophomore season begging for shots or fretting over the NBA. “It’s been good,” Faust said of his new role. “I’m trying to do whatever I can to help the team win and just be a solid point guard for the rest of the year.” sportsdbk@gmail.com

EVEN 2 8

THE DIAMONDBACK THE DIAMONDBACK THE|DIAMONDBACK SPORTS | |THURSDAY, XXXDAY, | FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER FEBRUARY AUGUST XX, 14, 31, 2013 2012

PAVLECH From PAGE 9 guard has been a mainstay for the nation’s No. 7 team. With a steady hand and occasional scoring, Pavlech’s impact has gone far beyond the box score for a Terps backcourt decimated by injuries this year.

“The game is really starting to slow down for me,” said Pavlech, who will run the point against Clemson tonight.

“The biggest change from high school to college is definitely the speed and the pace, and I just needed to slow myself down. Now, I’m starting to notice myself being able to slow the game down.”

Pavlech’s raw numbers hardly impress: 5.7 points per game, 3.9 assists per game and 1.9 rebounds per game. She’s shooting 41.7 percent from the field, and 35.2 percent from three-point range. Even though she’s started 20 straight games at point guard, forward Alyssa Thomas still leads the team in assists. The freshman scored in double figures only three times this year.

But Pavlech doesn’t have to stuff the box score on a nightly basis. She’s surrounded by Thomas — the reigning ACC Player of the Year — and ACC leading scorer Tianna Hawkins. All Frese wants the 5-foot-9 Pavlech to do is take care of the ball and feed the team’s scorers, tasks she’s been more than capable of doing this season.

“With T ianna, I’ve never had someone who turns my airballs into assists,” Pavlech said. “With Alyssa, sometimes I almost find myself watching her during games because she is so amazing and just awesome.

The best thing about those two is they give me so much confidence.”

Pavlech always aimed for College Park, her “dream school” since she was in fifth grade. She trekked to Comcast Center with her mother to watch the women’s basketball NCAA Tournament in middle school. She met Terps legends Kristi Toliver and Marissa Coleman, two of her idols, and eventually Frese. She was hooked.

It was just a question of getting a scholarship offer. Frese and the Terps’ staff knew of her interest.

Guard Chloe PavlecH is averaging 5.7 points and 3.9 assists as a freshman while serving as the Terps’ primary ball-handler and passer on offense. file photos/the diamondback Pavlech frequented Frese’s summer elite camps, giving the staff a chance to get to know her. The Terps’ offer arrived after she attended one in June 2010 before her junior year.

Pavlech had planned on waiting until later in her high school career to make the decision about her future. Some of her older teammates at Sycamore had collegiate potential, and Pavlech wanted as many coaches as possible to see them play. But she wasn’t expecting the Terps to come calling so early.

“Of course, if my dream school offers me, I’m accepting right away,” Pavlech said. “It’s funny because I told [Frese] if she offered me, I’d probably wait. But as soon as she offered me, I accepted right away.”

Pavlech seemed to have everything set. She still had two years left at a Cincinnati basketball powerhouse and she knew where she’d be attending college. It was all figured out. Or so she thought.

“It kind of backfired in a way,” Pavlech

She averaged 11.8 points, 5.4 rebounds and 2.4 assists in a junior season marred by wisdom teeth extraction, eardrum surgery and hip and ankle injuries.

Pavlech was committed to one of the nation’s perennial powers. People expected to see a polished product on the court for Sycamore, but she was still a 17-year-old high schooler.

“I didn’t want people to say, ‘Oh, she’s going to Maryland? Nah, she sucks,’” said Pavlech, who averaged 14 points, seven rebounds and five assists her senior season.

said. “I think I almost got comfortable.”

The Terps had been Pavlech’s goal for so long, and it was now reality — but a reality two years away. She never set her next goal in the meantime, and complacency set in.

After Moseley’s season-ending injury, Frese turned to guard Laurin Mincy to run the offense. In the third game of the year, though, the Terps fell at St. Joseph’s in a turnover-marred performance.

Entering a matchup against American, Frese decided to make a change.

Pavlech, who began the year third on the depth chart, would start.

And after she scored three points, dished out eight assists and turned the ball over just twice against the Eagles, Frese had her point guard.

Pavlech’s next two tasks would prove tall ones. The Terps traveled to thenNo. 21 Nebraska, where Mincy suffered a season-ending ACL tear, and thenNo. 2 Connecticut. Pavlech performed admirably in both games, setting thencareer highs in points with eight and 10, respectively.

Since then, the 19-year-old has continued to develop. She poured in a career-high 20 points in a Jan. 10 win over then-No. 24 Miami, and currently ranks ninth in the ACC in assists.

Pavlech is one of two players other than Hawkins or Thomas to record a teamhigh in points this season.

“Just to come in and do what she’s been doing, I couldn’t be more proud of her,” Thomas said. “It’s a tough position, point guard, to kind of lead the team, but she’s doing a phenomenal job.”

There’s still room to grow, though. In front of a hostile crowd at No. 5 Duke on Monday night, Pavlech turned the ball over nine times and had just one assist.

It was the third straight game she tallied at least as many turnovers as points.

“For Chloe, tonight was the first time playing at Duke, and I’m sure Alyssa can share stories of her first time playing at Duke,” Frese said. “It’s a different element that you’ve got to get comfortable with.”

Still, the Terps’ end goal hasn’t changed. Freshman point guard or not, three torn ACLs or not, they want to play into April.

And though she committed so early and has always wanted to play in College Park, Pavlech still cherishes the Nov. 21 win over American when she was introduced to the Comcast Center crowd for the first time.

It was a stark realization for someone who pined to play for the Terps since elementary school. All she needed was the chance.

“It’s just crazy,” Pavlech said. “When the lights came on and when I finally got announced, I was just like, ‘Oh my gosh. This is where I want to be and I’m achieving my dreams and my dreams are starting to just become goals.’” sportsdbk@gmail.com

QUOTE OF THE DAY Vroni Van Berlo Terps tennis player

“I don’t feel like carrying my laptop every single time to class or matches or anywhere else, so I can just use my iPad for that.”

Sports

ANOTHER WEEK, ANOTHER HONOR Terps gymnasts Stephanie Giameo and Katy Dodds took home EAGL weekly honors. For more, visit diamondbackonline.com.

THURSDAY, February 14, 2013

ON THE BLOG Page 9

MEN’S BASKETBALL

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

Mixed bag for Faust at point guard

Opportunity knocks

Soph. still adjusting to unexpected role

Injuries pave way for Pavlech to start at point guard for ‘dream school’

By Connor Letourneau Senior staff writer Nick Faust had grand hopes for his sophomore campaign.

As the Terps’ top returning scorer, he figured it was time to prove he could be a go-to player. It was time to start taking major steps toward his lifelong dream of making the NBA. But evolving circumstances have made achieving such aspirations this season nearly impossible. Faust struggled with his jump shot during the Terps’ nonconference schedule, allowing forward Dez Wells and center Alex Len to emerge as the team’s top offensive options. And when the Terps’ floor generals struggled with inconsistency at the start of ACC play, coach Mark Turgeon switched Faust to point guard out of necessity.

The mid-January move initially seemed See FAUST, Page 7

By Daniel Gallen Senior staff writer

“This is where I want to be and I’m achieving my dreams.”

– Chloe Pavlech

Guard Nick Faust has started at point guard for the Terps in each of the past eight games. file photo/the diamondback

One Sunday morning in mid-October, Paula Hayden’s cell phone rang with a message from one of her former players 500 miles away.

“Coach, I think I’m going to get a chance,” Chloe Pavlech wrote to her coach at Sycamore High School.

At the time, the Cincinnati native was buried behind a former All-ACC Freshman Team member on the Terrapins women’s basketball team’s bench. She was the least heralded recruit in the nation’s No. 6 class, and she wasn’t even the most highly touted Terps prospect from her home state.

But in a scrimmage that fall morning, sophomore Brene Moseley — the Terps’ projected starting point guard — planted her left leg wrong and her knee buckled.

The next day, the team learned Moseley would miss the season with a torn ACL. There was suddenly an opening for Pavlech.

“Coach, I’m going to be in the lineup,” Pavlech texted Hayden after learning the severity of Moseley’s injury.

Since joining the starting lineup Nov. 21, the freshman See PAVLECH, Page 8

10

THE DIAMONDBACK | THURSDAY, FEBRuary 14, 2013