2-11-19

The Pitt News

T he i n de p e n d e n t s t ude nt ne w spap e r of t he U niversity of Pittsburgh | PIttnews.com | february 11, 2019 ­| Volume 109 | Issue 102

SLATES PRESENT PLATFORMS AT “MEET THE CANDIDATES”

PINK THE PETE | SEE PG.8

Stefan Bordeianu For The Pitt News

It took about 20 years for UPMC, a health care provider, and Highmark, an insurance company, to transform from more modestly sized companies to corporate behemoths.

Beginning in the mid-1980s, UPMC acquired several health care centers in

To prepare for its Feb. 19 election, Student Government Board hosted a “Meet the Candidates” event on Thursday evening with Pitt Tonight host Andrew Dow. At the event, held in the William Pitt Union, the two presidential candidates and 10 board candidates introduced themselves and their reasons for running to the public — though most of the 30 or so people who attended were already affiliated with the board.

Dow, a junior, said the “Meet the Candidates” event was about introducing the candidates, not about grilling them on policies.

“I’m generally not trying to get anyone tied up. I’m trying to show off their personalities and kind of get them to think quickly on their feet,” Dow said. “It’s their chance to be relatable, fun and themselves, and kind of interject their platforms when they can.”

After a brief introduction, Dow introduced each candidate by slate. Slates are unifying affiliations of specific initiatives, similar to political parties. This year there is one independent candidate, and the other candidates represent three slates: the Frontier Slate, the Impact Slate and the 19Forward Slate.

See UPMC on page 3

See SGB on page 2

Roc poses with breast cancer survivors and their families at halftime during Pink the Petersen.

Sarah Cutshall| visual editor

STATE OFFICIALS ATTEMPT TO AVERT UPMC, HIGHMARK BREAKUP

Jon Moss

Contributing Editor With six months until the formal separation of Pittsburgh’s two largest health care companies, UPMC and Highmark, state officials are intervening in the name of protecting consumers from the two health care giants.

To try and halt the split, state Attorney General Josh Shapiro announced a lawsuit against UPMC over its charitable status and the state senate minority leader proposed legislation on Thursday to force the health care companies to contract with each other. But the seven-year history of conflict between the companies may prove difficult to resolve.

News

safe, they’re kind of dealing with a dichotomy of whether or not they should call their friend in trouble or whether or not if they’re going to be safe Students can vote for next year’s SGB board on as well,” Brown said.

Feb. 19 through elections.pitt.edu from 8 a.m. to 8 Caroline Unger (board candidate) p.m.

Year: Sophomore Frontier Slate Major: Philosophy, political science Albert Tanjaya (presidential candidate) Unger is focusing on allowing Dining Dollars Year: Junior to roll over at the end of each year, even if students Major: Computer science, political science change their plans to something cheaper. CurrentTanjaya, if elected, plans on making SGB more ly, unused Dining Dollars expire at the end of every visible to the student body. year, and if students choose smaller meal plans in “I know Maggie [Kennedy, the current SGB the spring semester, they forfeit their remaining president] has taken great efforts into trying to Dining Dollars from the fall semester. make that work in terms of our new town hall stuff “In my eyes, if you paid for those dining dollars, that we’re doing this year, and that’s not anything you should be able to keep them. It’s your money,” that we’ve done before,” Tanjaya said. “I really want Unger said. to continue to make SGB more visible by making She is also focusing on implementing a food SGB Presidential candidates Albert Tanjaya (left) and Zechariah us be more influential in student life, as well as the Brown (right) at SGB’s “Meet the Candidates” event on Thursday insecurity program that would provide free and restudent experience.” night. Kaycee Orwig| staff photographer duced lunches to students in need.

Anais Peterson (board candidate) Unger is also focusing on connecting the Crime Tappan is running on the initiative to create meal plans that Year: Junior Alert and ENS system. Pitt ENS is the emergency notification sysaccommodate students of lower income.

Major: Urban studies tem that will send out alerts to students about emergency situa“I’m running on working for the underserved communities Peterson said her focus is on making the campus both envitions on or near campus. Crime Alert acts the same way as the ENS ronmentally and economically more sustainable, with lead filters such as those that are on financial aid and are working with the system at Pitt, but it is more specific to North and South Oakland. for the water on campus and a $15 minimum wage for student Pitt Pantry in order to create a meal plan that is more accessible Because so many students live off campus, Unger believes it would to students who don’t have the funds to pay for one of our meal workers. increase campus safety to integrate the two systems.

Peterson also said she wants to make sure students are heard at plans,” Tappan said.

Ashima Agarwal (board candidate) Tappan, a member of the Tri Sigma sorority, also hopes to the administrative level.

Year: Sophomore “[Students] have a lot of passion, and I want to really be able change the reputation of Greek life on campus.

Major: Biology, psychology “I’m planning on working with Greek life to change their to amplify that and take that to student government to be a better Agarwal did not attend the “Meet the Candidates” event belink between student population and the administration,” she said. reputation on campus and to just make it a more positive thing cause of academic conflicts in her schedule. Ugner, however, did on campus that people actually look forward to going to,” said Editor’s note: Peterson previously worked for The Pitt News. briefly outline Agarwal’s platform.

Tappan.

Eric Macadangdang (board candidate) Agarwal plans on implementing a peer mentorship program Impact Slate Year: Sophomore in which students are able to help each other and gain more inZechariah Brown (presidential candidate) Major: Urban studies, history and philosophy of science ternship experience, Unger said. Agarwal would also like to incorYear: Junior Macadangdang, who chaired SGB’s Wellness Committee this porate vending machines on campus that sell pads, tampons, and Major: Political science, communication year, is focusing his campaign on personal health, including condoms, and Unger said Agarwal believes it is not reasonable for Brown said he hopes to make SGB more visible and transparphysical and mental well-being. students to go out of their way to attain these resources.

“I believe that our university should be providing free men- ent to the Pitt community through an initiative called “Bonding Scott Glaser (board candidate) strual products on campus,” Macadangdang said. “It’s a double with the Board,” which would allow students to have a closer reYear: Junior standard when this administration could throw condoms our lationship with SGB. Major: Political science Brown would also like to change the school’s alcohol mediway and when we ask for tampons and pads, they start looking To lower the steep costs of living in South and North Oakland, cal amnesty policy, which is designed to encourage students to at their checkbook.”

Glaser plans on creating a tenants union, which would act as a Macadangdang also discussed his belief in the power of SGB call first responders if they are in a situation involving a drug or buffer between students and landlord. This would be completed alcohol emergency. working more closely with students. by expanding the Office of Off-Campus Living. Glaser also plans Currently, Pitt’s medical amnesty policy mitigates University “I think we need to be on the frontier of the student experion expanding the Freshman Programs Office, and he wants to ence, to put students first, not just academically, and also to listen consequences for conduct code violations and protects students’ expand awareness of mental health by implementing a program to them,” Macadangdang said. “Our initiatives, I think, are great, criminal records in case of emergency, but the University can dissimilar but separate from campus clarity. close information regarding the incident to potential employers, but it’s nothing without student support.” other universities and study abroad coordinators.

Victoria Tappan (board candidate) Find the full story online at “If a student’s friend is in trouble and they want to call the poYear: Sophomore lice, and get that person to the hospital or get them somewhere Major: Communication, urban studies

SGB, pg. 1

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February 11, 2019

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UPMC, pg. 1 the Pittsburgh area, before peaking at its current 40 hospitals. The health care juggernaut is the largest employer in Allegheny County, and the largest nongovernmental employer statewide, according to data from the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry.

In the meantime, Highmark began to grow, too. In 2013, the company acquired the West Penn Allegheny Health System — a five-hospital Pittsburgh care network, including West Penn Hospital in Bloomfield — and rebranded it as the Allegheny Health Network.

The two companies ultimately became fully integrated, housing both health insurance and health care provider services under one roof.

But the creation of the Allegheny Health Network proved to be a breaking point for its competitor. UPMC threatened to decline Highmark insurance at its care facilities, which required the intervention of state officials to solve the conflict.

The two companies are currently governed by a five-year extension of the original 2012 consent decrees — legal agreements requiring UPMC to accept Highmark insurance as in-network — brokered by then-Gov. Tom Corbett, the Pennsylvania Insurance Department, the Department of Health and the attorney general.

UPMC and Highmark will officially start unwinding their coverage agreements on July 1 when the consent decrees expire, beginning with Medicare Advantage customers. Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh and the Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic will be the only in-network UPMC hospitals in the Pittsburgh area for Highmark customers, until they become out-of-network, beginning July 2022 and July 2024, respectively.

In the 73-page court filing, Shapiro alleged that UPMC not allowing Highmark customers access to its facilities violated the Solicitation of Funds for Charitable Purposes Act. He also said the use of chartered executive jets and above-average executive compensation violated the Nonprofit Corporation Law. Additionally, he said deceptive marketing tactics were in violation of the Unfair

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UPMC and Highmark have begun a coverage split that will be effective July 1. via cbaile19 | wikimedia commons Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Law. “I can’t sit idly by and watch our seniors and children and workers suffer because of corporate greed,” Shapiro said at a press conference.

He is looking to modify the 2014 extensions to the original consent decrees to ensure in-network coverage and lower rates for both health care companies — changes that Highmark agreed to in late 2018, but UPMC didn’t.

Shapiro is also suing UPMC under the Consumer Protection Law due to alleged deceptive marketing practices and causing public confusion over changes in its insurance policies.

State Senate Minority Leader Jay Costa, D-43, announced on Thursday he was seeking co-sponsors for a set of two bills to force health care companies like UPMC and Highmark to work together to care for patients, and send them to arbitration if contract disputes arise.

“It’s time to undo the damage caused

by the divorce of these two companies,” Costa said. “Disputes between enormous, profitable companies cannot get in the way of patients and their care.”

The legislation is similar to two bills introduced in October 2013 by thenstate Rep. Jim Christiana, R-15, and state Rep. Dan Frankel, D-23. One bill would have forced hospitals that are part of integrated health care companies to “contract with any health insurance carrier that is willing to enter into a contract.”

Another bill would have outlawed limiting or restricting care solely based on the customer’s health insurance. Neither bill made it out of committee.

Costa’s proposed legislation would also introduce a new state Health Care Competition and Oversight Board, which would act as a consumer health care watchdog across the state.

“Health care consumers should not have to worry about whether their insurance will be accepted when they’re sick, injured or simply seeking preven-

February 11, 2019

tive care,” Costa said. “Their only worry should be getting healthy.”

David Holmberg, president and CEO of Highmark, said Highmark supports the proposed modifications to the consent decree.

“We support the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s proposed modified Consent Decree between Highmark and UPMC. It is in the best interest of the communities we serve,” Holmberg said in a statement. “We believe that all health plans and health systems should compete based on their value to the consumer.”

UPMC spokesperson Paul Wood said UPMC is confident consumers will not suffer a lapse in coverage, and consumers have had enough time to be ready for the change.

“The five-year transition as provided for by the Consent Decrees expiring June 30, 2019, has allowed businesses and consumers substantial time to prepare for the end of the UPMC-Highmark relationship in western Pennsylvania,” Wood said. “Consumers have greatly benefited from the heightened competition.”

But some of those affected by the health care conflict say that the two companies’ competition has negatively affected them.

Catherine Tomes, a first-year history major at Pitt from the Pittsburgh area, said she had insurance through Highmark for most of her life, but had to change to insurance during high school.

“I had Highmark all my life, and then my freshman year of high school I had found a breast tumor,” Tomes said. “I had to switch doctors and insurance because the surgeon that they recommended was through UPMC, and so because of that I had to change all of my doctors.”

Tomes added she had to change most of her doctors since the ones she had been going to for years were now considered out of network — an example of how patients are often collateral damage in the fight between the two companies.

“I just think that it’s really selfish of both institutions and they should really think about everybody in the area,” Tomes said. “People come to Pittsburgh for specific medical procedures, and having to deal with the feuding health care is really bad.”

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‘FLYIN’ WEST’ FEATURES FIRST ALL-BLACK CAST Casey Aquiline For The Pitt News

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“Flyin’ West,” a theatre production that showcases the lives of three female AfricanAmerican pioneers, is taking the stage at Pitt for the second time in 25 years — and this time around, it is starring the first all-black student cast in the Theatre Arts Department’s history.

The play will be performed at the Henry Heymann Theatre, under the direction of Karen Gilmer, a professor in Pitt’s theater arts department, beginning this Thursday.

After many long rehearsals, the cast is ready and Gilmer is excited for people to be able to see this story.

“I am most excited for the audience to see African-Americans making their way after slavery,” Gilmer said.

This isn’t the first time “Flyin’ West” has been produced at Pitt — the production premiered in Pittsburgh under the direction of Eileen Morris in the Charity Randall Theatre just under 25 years ago, in 1995. However, the cast then was not strictly made up of students.

According to a recent Tumblr post written by Megan Massanelli, Kuntu Repertory Theatre Project archivist, the show was initially produced by the Kuntu Repertory Theatre. This theater, founded in 1974 and based out of Pitt, was a platform for black students, staff and artists to come and work together in Pittsburgh, both on and off campus. The theater closed in 2013 due to a lack of funds.

“Flyin’ West,” set in 1898 Nicodemus, Kansas, tells the story of three black women who escape the violent South and head west as a result of the Homestead Act — the 1862 act that granted acres of land to those who migrated westward.

The production showcases three sisters — Sophie, Fran and Mini, all of whom are experiencing a true taste of freedom for the first time in their lives. Actress Maya Boyd, a junior theatre arts major who plays the role of Mini, said this is a performance about learning how to live with newly acquired freedom.

According to Boyd, not all of the charac-

February 11, 2019

ters featured in the performance grew up as slaves. However, they all have been exposed to the hate and cruel treatment that black American women faced at this point in history.

“It is a story about life after being freed,” Boyd said. “Through love and through family, they are all trying to figure out what it means to be free in their own way.”

Gilmer said one of the challenges she faced during the one-month production process was the need to quickly build stable relationships among cast members, but the cast immediately formed these relationships. “[The cast] formed a tight-knit group that built trust and fell back on that trust when they needed to,” Gilmer said.

Stage manager Sarah Sokolowski, a senior French and theatre arts major, agreed the bond exists among cast members.

“Given that for each of them it is their first experience in an all-black cast, they all inherently have something really special,” Sokolowski said. “The cast always does their warm-ups together, has learned to laugh over their mistakes and pushes each other to be their best.”

Boyd finds the play more realistic than previous productions she’s been in — most of her other roles were mystical or fantastical in nature. She said she is also able to relate more to her role in “Flyin’ West” compared to previous roles based on her personal experiences.

“It’s also the most relatable for me,” Boyd said. “Specifically in the scene where Miss Leah braids my hair, my mom used to do that for me all the time.”

According to Gilmer, “Flyin’ West” is a production that addresses issues that are often pushed to the side in today’s world because they are difficult to discuss — racism and sexism. She said it was a challenge for the cast to portray characters dealing with such harsh realities.

Find the full story online at

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Opinions

Op-Ed: SGB inaction fails student health and safety pittnews.com

column

from the editorial board

Adopt paid Election Day nationwide Sandusky, Ohio, a city of about 25,000 inhabitants, decided to trade Columbus Day for Election Day as a way of highlighting the importance of voting and voting rights.

The first Tuesday of November, and not Columbus Day, will now be a paid holiday for the more than 200 government employees working in the area, and the city hopes that local businesses will also adopt the practice. Sandusky’s new policy is an excellent idea that will hopefully improve voter turnout, and the rest of the country should follow its lead.

The decision to make a paid holiday out of Election Day wasn’t just motivated by a desire to expand voting rights in Sandusky. City manager Eric Wobser also tied the move to people’s perception of Columbus Day. “Ultimately, we knew that Columbus Day was a day that all of our citizens couldn’t necessarily be proud of celebrating,” he told The Washington Post. “One of the things we’re doing is to begin to celebrate and build on the strength that is our diversity. Columbus Day was not a way for us to show that we value our diversity.”

There has been talk for years of the legitimacy of celebrating Columbus Day, since the Italian explorer perpetrated the genocide and slavery of indigenous peoples. A good replacement for the holiday commemorating such a controversial person is one that promotes civic duty and diversity.

There has also been talk lately of a bill at the federal level that would make Election Day a national holiday. The same bill would also forbid voting rolls from being purged and provide several checks on campaign financing, plus the stipulation that all presidential and vice presidential candidates must release their tax returns.

Although Pew Research Center data

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tells us that 71 percent of Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents and 59 percent of Republicans and Republicanleaning independents support creating a federal holiday out of Election Day, the argument has become extremely partisan on Capitol Hill. Democrats laud the bill as a positive and necessary step towards giving the power to vote to all Americans, while Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell called it a “power grab.”

McConnell’s claim couldn’t be further from the truth, and Democratic lawmakers like Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., took him to task online about it.

“Voting isn’t a ‘power grab,’” Gillibrand tweeted. “It’s democracy, and it’s literally the entire point of our representative government.”

The United States is far behind other world democracies in this respect. According the Pew Research Center, 27 of the 36 member nations of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development hold their elections on the weekend, while the other nine — including the United States — hold theirs on a weekday. Israel’s and South Korea’s election days are national holidays.

Of the 36 OECD countries, the United States ranks 26th in voter turnout, which according to a survey by the U.S. Census Bureau, may be due to the day of the week Election Day falls on. Of the 19 million registered voters who didn’t vote in the 2016 general election, 14.3 percent cited busy schedules as their excuse for not voting.

It’s our government’s duty to make voting as easy as possible for as many people as possible to ensure we have a functioning democracy. And adopting Election Day as a national holiday instead of Columbus Day is a step in the right direction.

VIRGINIA NEEDS TO GET IT TOGETHER

Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax talks on Feb. 2 about the allegations of sexual assault and the possibility of him becoming the next governor of Virginia. steve earley | tns

Devi Ruia

For The Pitt News Now is not exactly a great time to be a resident of the Commonwealth of Virginia — or as Twitter is calling it, “the new Florida.” Unfortunately, I am one of several students here at Pitt who has to call Virginia my home state, and as a result, I have been rather unhappy with the latest news surrounding its state leaders.

Two weeks ago, Gov. Ralph Northam, D-Va., was doused in scandal when a photograph surfaced from his medical school yearbook page depicting someone in Klu Klux Klan robes standing next to another person wearing blackface.

After this surfaced, Attorney General Mark Herring admitted that he had also donned blackface in college. While all of this was happening, sexual assault allegations about Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax came to light.

All three of these men have done ter-

February 11, 2019

rible things that should disqualify them from continuing to serve as state officials. These men are also part of the Democratic Party, which lauds itself as one that champions minorities and women. For them to keep their positions would not only be an insult to the people of Virginia, but a terrible stain on the entire Democratic Party. All of these men should either resign or be removed from office.

When the photograph from Northam’s yearbook page was first released, he admitted to being in the photograph and apologized to the people of Virginia, which prompted a majority of other Democratic officials to call for his resignation. But Northam later claimed that he did not think he was in the photograph and instead admitted that he had donned blackface at a different time, as a part of a Michael Jackson costume in See Ruia on page 6

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Ruia, pg. 5 college. Regardless of which is true, it’s inexcusable, as both were acts perpetuating racism.

Prior to the allegations of sexual assault leveled against Fairfax came to light, many Democratic officials called for Northam to resign and for Fairfax to replace him. The situation quickly got more complex when on Feb. 4, accusations against Fairfax were released by the same conservative news site, Big League Politics, that first published the photo of Northam.

The first woman who accused Fairfax, Dr. Vanessa Tyson, stated that he sexually assaulted her in 2004 at the Democratic National Convention. Fairfax didn’t deny that a sexual encounter occurred between him and Dr. Tyson, but he claims the encounter was completely consensual.

Tyson told more than five individuals over the past two years about being assaulted by Fairfax, prior to the current political unrest in Virginia, and she has worked as an advocate for survivors of sexual assault for years.

One credible allegation should have been enough for officials to call for his resignation. Instead, Democrats seemed hesitant to do so, and those who spoke about it simply called for an investigation to take place.

Two days after Dr. Tyson’s allegations came to light a second woman, Meredith Watson, came forward and accused Fairfax of sexual assault. Watson said that Fairfax raped her in 2000 when they were both attending Duke, and she described the assault as “premeditated and aggressive.” She called for him to resign from his position as lieutenant governor, and her account has been corroborated by two witnesses who attended Duke with her.

One witness, Kaneedreck Adams, said Watson came to her in 2000, around the time of the alleged assault, saying Fairfax raped her. Two years ago, Milagros Joye Brown, a classmate of both Fairfax and Watson, emailed Watson inviting her to a fundraising event for Fairfax.

“Molly, Justin raped me in college and I don’t want to hear anything about him,” Watson said in response to Brown’s email.

“Please, please, please remove me from

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any future emails about him please.”

Fairfax responded with a statement denying Watson’s allegations, saying that their encounter was consensual and that he would not resign. After the second allegation against him came to light, top Democrats started calling for Fairfax’s resignation.

“The allegations against Justin Fairfax are serious and credible,” former Gov. Terry McAuliffe, D-Va., tweeted on Friday. “It is clear to me that he can no longer effectively serve the people of Virginia as Lieutenant Governor. I call for his immediate resignation.”

Several other Democrats have now followed suit in calling for Fairfax’s resignation, although he seems determined to hold onto his position.

Despite the fact that Fairfax denies both of these allegations, they are credible and corroborated by other sources. This is a job, and Fairfax is very credibly accused of committing heinous acts that make him unfit to hold that job any longer.

Fairfax is holding onto his position because he thinks that he can get away with what he has done, and it is quite possible that Fairfax could keep his position.

Though some Democrats in Virginia have discussed impeaching him, and both Dr. Tyson and Watson said they would testify at an impeachment hearing, other Democrats are unsure if that is the right way to go — especially considering who is third in line if Fairfax resigns after Northam.

If he did decide to resign, the third in line to lead Virginia is Herring, who recently revealed that he had also worn blackface as part of a costume in college.

Virginia simply can’t seem to escape its racist leadership.

The Democratic Party has established itself as the hard line against racism and sexual misconduct, but the top three statewide officials in Virginia have all been accused of committing heinous acts.

If Democrats do not condemn those in their party who go against party values, they lose the trust and support of the voters.

Northam, Fairfax and Herring must either resign or be impeached, or the party risks discrediting itself. Virginia has been shifting the past several years from red, to purple and finally to blue. If these officials do not resign, Democrats could lose the important headway they have made in turning Virginia blue.

The Pitt News Editor-in-Chief CHRISTIAN SNYDER

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Brian Gentry | Assistant News Editor Emily Wolfe | Assistant News Editor Jeremy Wang | Assistant Opinions Editor Tessa Sayers | Assistant Sports Editor Thomas Yang | Assistant Visual Editor Eli Savage | Assistant Layout Editor

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Alexa Marzina Maggie Koontz Bailey Sasseville Elizabeth Martinson Ben King Lia Herman Sarah Stager Fay Cairns Nicholas Rivera Maggie Young Peri Walker

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Editorial Policies

Single copies of The Pitt News are free and available at newsstands around campus. Additional copies can be purchased with permission of the editor-in-chief for $.50 each.

Opinions expressed herein are not necessarily those of the students, faculty or University administration.

Opinions expressed in columns, cartoons and letters are not necessarily those of The Pitt News. Any letter intended for publication must be addressed to the editor, be no more than 250 words and include the writer’s name, phone number and University affiliation, if any. Letters may be sent via e-mail to editor@pittnews. com. The Pitt News reserves the right to edit any and all letters. In the event of multiple replies to an issue, The Pitt News may print one letter that represents the majority of responses. Unsigned editorials are a majority opinion of the Editorial Board, listed to the left.

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The editor-in-chief has the final authority on editorial matters and cannot be censored, according to state and federal law. The editor-in-chief is selected by the Pitt News Advisory Board, which includes University staff, faculty and students, as well as journalism professionals. The business and editorial offices of The Pitt News are located at 434 William Pitt Union, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pa. 15260.

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Sports

PITT FALLS TO NO. 25 MIAMI IN 12TH ANNUAL PINK THE PETE GAME

Dominic Campbell Staff Writer

With 2,495 fans in attendance to see the 12th annual Pink the Petersen game, the struggling Pitt women’s basketball team suffered its 11th straight loss Sunday to the No. 25 Miami Hurricanes, 6551.

That makes 18 straight ACC losses for the Panthers (9-16 overall, 0-11 ACC) dating back to last season. It was also their fourth straight Pink the Petersen loss, with the team’s last victory coming in 2015. Despite the result, junior guard Jasmine Whitney was happy to see the fans who came out to support breast cancer survivors through the game of basketball.

“It’s a great atmosphere to see everyone there in their pink shirts and then us walking out the

survivors,” Whitney said. “This game isn’t about us. It’s about all the survivors, all the people going through it, everyone else that’s there. It’s bigger than us, so it’s a fun game to play in.”

As part of the promotion, Pitt sported pink jerseys and handed pink T-shirts to those in attendance. A portion of the ticket sales went to Susan G. Komen Greater Pennsylvania, an organization dedicated to funding research and awareness for breast cancer. At halftime, more than 100 breast cancer survivors were honored at center court.

The first quarter was a close fight between both teams, but Miami took control first with a 9-3 run. Redshirt junior Beatrice Mompremier led the effort with two layups.

The Panthers responded with an 8-2 run to get things back within one. Whitney started it off with a mid-range jumper, sophomore center Cara

Judkins made two layups and senior guard Cassidy Walsh made two free throws. Junior guard/ forward Sarah Mortensen was the only Miami player to score during this time with a 3-pointer.

The quarter ended with a 7-7 draw for both teams, as Miami led 19-18 going into the second quarter. Mompremier continued to dominate for the Hurricanes with two free throws and a layup to give her eight in the quarter, and sophomore guard Kelsey Marshall contributed a 3-pointer.

For the Panthers, Walsh converted an and-one opportunity and senior forward Danielle Garven made two jumpers to give her seven points in the quarter.

The second quarter was a complete disaster for the Panthers, as they had a tough time getting any good looks at the basket. Pitt scored just two points in the quarter, which didn’t come until

Whitney made two free throws with 52 seconds remaining. The Panthers shot 0-11 from the field and 0-5 from 3-point range, making them 0-9 in the half from distance. Senior forward Kauai Bradley went 0-3 in the quarter and Garven was 0-2, including 0-2 from the free throw line.

Miami wasn’t much better, shooting 3-17 from the floor and 1-7 from the 3-point range.

The Hurricanes’ only saving grace was a 6-8 shooting performance from the foul line, and that was good enough to take 32-20 lead going into halftime.

Pitt got back to scoring in the third quarter, but Miami kept control of the game. The Panthers started the quarter well enough, leading an 8-5 run to cut the lead to single digits with eight See Pink the Pete on page 9

WEEKEND SPORTS: WRESTLING RACKS UP THREE WINS

Griffin Floyd Staff Writer

After a hiatus from the win column, Pitt’s wrestling team redeemed itself over the weekend with an impressive three-win showing on the road, including a thrilling upset over a ranked opponent. Pitt athletics didn’t fare well elsewhere, notching losses in tennis, softball and gymnastics.

Wrestling After a disheartening three-match losing streak, Pitt’s No. 16 wrestling team rebounded nicely by sweeping a three-match road trip over the weekend, highlighted by an upset win over a ranked NC State team.

Pitt started the gauntlet on Saturday with a doubleheader against Gardner Webb and Davidson, dominating by margins of 38-4 and 316, respectively. Against Gardner Webb, first-year Nino Bonaccorsi opened with a 6-0 victory in the 184-pound class and Pitt never looked back

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from there, leading the entire way and losing just one of 10 decisions.

It was more of the same versus Davidson, with Pitt winning eight of 10 decisions en route to a comfortable team win. Sophomore Jake Cherry and senior Robert Lee were especially dominant, recording 10-2 and 10-1 wins at 141 and 149 pounds, respectively.

Facing off against the No. 8 NC State Wolfpack Sunday, the Panthers recorded a gutsy 1816 ACC victory, winning the final four matches for a comeback victory.

Bonaccorsi, ranked No. 13 nationally at 184 pounds, pulled off a tremendous upset over No. 3 Nick Reenan, shutting him out 7-0 while the Panthers were in do-or-die mode. Fittingly, it was heavyweight Demetrius Thomas who put the match on ice for the Panthers, a week after losing in sudden death overtime in the deciding match against UNC. Thomas handily dispatched his opponent in a 17-5 major decision

to ensure the crucial win for Pitt.

The Panthers are now 11-3 on the season and picked up their first conference win against the Wolfpack. Their next match comes Feb. 15 against the Duke Blue Devils at the Fitzgerald Field House.

Track The men’s and women’s track teams split into two this weekend, sending the distance-running tandem of junior Nick Wolk, junior Sam Shields and graduate student Kelly Hayes to Washington University’s Husky Classic for the 5,000m run. But with inclement weather out west, the 5,000m competition was cancelled, leaving the trio without a race for the weekend.

Meanwhile, the rest of the team traveled to Kent State for the Doug Raymond National Qualifier on Saturday. First-year sprinter Eddita Pessima led the Panthers with a blazing second place finish in the 60m hurdles — her time of 8.44 seconds was the fifth fastest in school his-

February 11, 2019

tory. Junior Aysha Muhammad finished just behind her in 8.53 seconds, missing the podium at fourth place.

With the conclusion of the regular season, Pitt now looks to the ACC Championships, which begin Feb. 21.

Softball The women’s softball team had a loaded slate in its first action in 2019, traveling to Charleston, South Carolina, for the three-day Cougar Classic. It was a rough session overall, with Pitt going 1-4 in its five games.

The Panthers opened versus Purdue on Friday, scoring three runs in the bottom of the sixth to send the game into extra innings after a scoreless seventh. Things fell apart in the eighth, however, with the Boilermakers tagging on seven runs to secure a 13-9 win. Later that day, Pitt fell 10-4 to the hometown College of Charleston.

See Recap on page 10

8

Pink the Pete, pg. 8 minutes remaining. Judkins’ layup 30 seconds into the third quarter was the first basket for the Panthers since Garven’s mid-range jumper with 23 seconds left in the first quarter.

Soon after, Miami went on an 11-2 run and took away any chance for Pitt to come back and win. The Hurricanes’ success came from threepoint plays. This included two 3-pointers, from Marshall and sophomore guard Mykea Gray, followed by an and-one from Mompremier. Firstyear guard Jahsyni Knight made two free throws for the Panthers as the only player to score during the run.

The rest of the quarter was close, with Miami outscoring Pitt 6-5 down the stretch. But when the dust settled, the Hurricanes had a sizeable 19-point lead entering the fourth quarter.

Pitt finally outscored the Hurricanes in the fourth, 16-11, but it wasn’t anywhere near enough to threaten Miami’s lead. Both teams shot poorly in the quarter, with the Hurricanes shooting 3-13 and the Panthers 5-17 from the field.

Miami managed to maintain its advantage, even without scoring a field goal in the last 5:28 minutes of play. The top players in the quarter were redshirt senior forward Khaila Prather, who scored three points on a layup and a free

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Sophomore center Cara Judkins (11) attempts a layup during Sunday’s Pink the Petersen game against Miami.

Sarah Cutshall| visual editor

February 11, 2019

throw, and Mompremier with two layups. Mompremier and senior forward Emese Hof both finished double-doubles as Mompremier had 23 points and 13 rebounds, while Hof had 11 points and 11 rebounds to demonstrate how dominant Miami was in the post.

“We were trying to send two [players] all of the time to double team them,” Pitt head coach Lance White said, “but again a lot of times they can rebound over the top of us, each of them had four offensive boards, I think they probably scored most of them. That’s an advantage for them … they did what they do extremely well and our counters to that weren’t good enough.”

For Pitt, Garven finished as the leading scorer with 13 points. Whitney also stuffed the stat sheet with nine points and a team-high eight rebounds and six assists. As a team, the Panthers were hampered by their inability to shoot the 3-pointer, going 2-19 from deep.

“I want our kids to shoot open shots. If we create and you’re open, you gotta shoot it and if that’s a three, shoot it,” White said. “You get a little space and you’re a 3-point shooter, you gotta shoot it … whenever they get tentative, then you miss shots.”

Pitt will look for its first ACC win against North Carolina this Thursday at the Petersen Events Center. Tipoff is at 7 p.m.

9

Recap, pg. 8

Junior Demetrius Thomas, pictured here against North Carolina on Feb. 2, won his match against Deonte Wilson of NC State and helped Pitt wrestling break their 3-match losing streak. Bader Abdulmajeed| staff photographer Pitt then played the Central Michigan Chippewas on Saturday, losing 11-6 in a shaky defensive game — six of the Chippewas’ 11 runs were unearned. Sophomore right fielder Hunter Levesque was Pitt’s biggest bright spot, reaching base in all three of her plate appearances with two hits and a walk.

In Saturday’s second game against the Wichita State Shockers, first-year pitcher Brittany Knight pitched a complete game, allowing just two runs to earn Pitt’s first victory of the season, 4-2. Levesque again starred with an RBI double and a drawn walk with the bases loaded.

Pitt rematched the Shockers the next day, and the result was quite different. Wichita State held Pitt to two runs this time around, beating the Panthers 7-2. Sophomore catcher Brie Horrell provided the only offense of the day with a two-run homer in the first inning.

Pitt moves to 1-4 in its first five games under new head coach Jodi Hermanek, and will look to improve upon that record in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge next weekend.

Gymnastics Pitt’s gymnastics team suffered a tough road loss against the NC State Wolfpack, 196.400194.825.

The Panthers had a season-best perfor-

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mance on floor, powered by a season-high 9.825 for both sophomore Jordan Ceccarini and junior Alecia Petrikis, who scored a matching season high on vault. Senior Charli Spivey rounded out the trio with a career-best 9.875 on floor, but the Panthers’ dominance in one area didn’t translate to the rest of the meet, as the Wolfpack scored season highs in all four events.

The Panthers are now 5-5 with a 1-3 mark in EAGL play, and will take part in a crucial quad meet against West Virginia, Cornell and Utah State in Morgantown Sunday, Feb. 17.

Tennis The tennis team suffered its first shutout loss of the season over the weekend, a 7-0 sweep on the road against the 8-0 conference rival Louisville Cardinals.

The third-seed doubles pair of senior Clara Lucas and sophomore Camila Moreno had the best outing, playing their opponents to a tight 5-4 loss. In singles, sophomore Claudia Bartolome was Pitt’s best performer, losing in three sets by scores of 2-6, 6-3 and 7-10. Her middle set was the only singles victory by any of Pitt’s players.

The team is now 3-4 on the season and 0-2 in ACC play, and will take on the Bowling Green Falcons at home Saturday, Feb.16.

The Pitt News SuDoku 2/11/19 courtesy of dailysudoku.com

February 11, 2019

10

I N D E X

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February 11, 2019

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February 11, 2019

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