10-8-19

The Pitt News

T h e i n d e 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 | October 8, 2019 ­| Volume 110 | Issue 38

PITT BAND ‘FLIPS’ OUT FOR SHEET MUSIC APP

NAVARATRI GARBA STORY ONLINE AT PITTNEWS.COM

Martha Layne Staff Writer

There are 305 students in Pitt’s marching band. Multiply that number by pages upon pages of sheet music, and the band could easily go through a lot of paper in a year. But thanks to a new app developed by a Pitt student, physical sheet music is in the past of Pitt band.

The electronic flip folder app, designed last year by Pitt student Marcus Dubreuil, allows band directors to share music virtually with band members through their cell phones. This replaces the traditional physical setup — comprised of flip folder, sheet music and portable music stands.

Now, the portable music stands have been re- Participants dance in circles in the O’Hara Student Center ballroom during the Hindu Students Council’s Navaratri designed to hold phones instead of sheet music. celebration. Romita Das staff photographer A few years ago, in an effort to be more efficient and eco-friendly, the band switched to using Pitt’s Box feature, a storage cloud system, for accessing music. Members would pull up a PDF version of their sheet music through the Box service on their Natalie Frank tween Forbes and Fifth avenues from Nov. have a lot of classes in Cathy.” phones. But Box was not designed for music, and For The Pitt News 1 to Aug. 15, 2020, as part of a $23.7 milAmong the improvements in the projthere were many issues, such as orientation and Julia Case, a sophomore biology major, lion reconstruction of both Bigelow and ect’s first phase, lasting between Novemconnectivity, according to several band directors just learned she is one of many Pitt stu- the William Pitt Union driveway, financed ber and December, is replacement of aging and members. dents who will have to take a detour on by Pitt in partnership with the common- utility lines and other major infrastructure Dubreuil, a senior majoring in computer sci- her daily commute to class starting next wealth and the City. improvements. Construction and closures ence and music composition and the leader of the month.

Case said the project will “100%” affect will then grow to include the William Pitt Bigelow Boulevard will be closed be- the time it takes to get to her classes.

See Music App on page 2 See Bigelow on page 2 “I’m all kinds of pissed,” Case said. “I

BIGELOW CLOSURE ONE MONTH AWAY

News Music App, pg. 1

Pitt band’s trombone section, said his inspiration for creating the app wasn’t commercial or largescale, but a personal one.

“Going into my junior year, they made the switch to go entirely to paperless music. And I was like, ‘that sucks,’ because I actually wasn’t a fan of electronic music at that point,” Dubreuil said. “So I literally made the app for myself … it came out of a band member’s perspective.”

Dubreuil created an app designed specifically for music groups to use for their music. The free app has both iOS and Android versions, in addition to a separate website. At the 2018 spring football scrimmage, the app was tested out with the small band playing at the game. The test was successful, and the entire band utilized the app starting in the fall 2018 season. As of this past summer, the app is available through Apple’s App Store and the Google Play Store. It also won a fourth place prize in the 2019 Randall Family Big Idea Competition run through Pitt’s Innovation Institute.

Band directors can go to the website, link their music through a cloud storage system

Bigelow, pg. 1 Union from December to June 2020, when utility work will continue and landscaping and streetscaping will begin.

The final phase of the project, slated to happen from June to August 2020, includes general landscaping, plaza and road upgrades along Fifth and Forbes avenues, in addition to Bigelow Boulevard and the WPU. The project plans to improve safety and traffic flow in the area by expanding crosswalks and sidewalks and improving bus stop areas. Accessibility between the Cathedral and the William Pitt Union will also be “significantly improved.”

The Bigelow project also adds new green spaces in front of the WPU and energy efficiencies — the sustainability system being installed will “manage rainfall through sustainable landscaping practices.”

Pitt spokesperson Kevin Zwick said the

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or directly, and then create a band, consisting of a band name and a connect ID to be shared throughout the band. Then, members can connect to the band and download the music for their specific part.

The app’s biggest selling point, according to Dubreuil, is that a band director has the ability to pull a song up on their phone and automatically load the piece on the screen of every user in the band — using technology similar to screen mirroring. And because Dubreuil is in the band, he’s able to stay up to date on changes that students want, in addition to troubleshooting problems as they arise.

Josh Young, a junior chemical engineering major and vice president of operations for Mu Kappa Upsilon, a band service fraternity, said the app changed his band experience. It was especially helpful to Young, he said, since he has additional responsibilities as an operations officer handing out music and lyres and generally maintaining instruments.

“Marcus’ app is a freaking godsend,” Young said. “My freshman year we didn’t have this app, and we used Box. Before that, they just used paper … you had to flip through your folder to find the song. It would be a pretty laborious process.”

Brad Townsend, Pitt’s band director for the past seven years, said that while the app has improved the band’s performance, the more noteworthy effect it’s had is the push for greener solutions in the band program.

“I don’t know if there’s any cause and effect here, but I’ve noticed that the band has been talking more about sustainability in other ways,” Townsend said. “Just last night, we had a meeting of students that wanted to talk about how to be more sustainable. [I] think anything like that, when it’s organic, is much more powerful and much more sustained.”

According to Townsend, neither of the band’s two ways of procuring music has drastically changed with the new app. The majority of the band’s music is written by their in-house arranger and associate director, Mel Orange. The band works with a company or the music copyright holder to purchase music. They can also buy stock arrangements, pieces that have already been written and arranged, which need only be converted to PDF files. The only new step of this process is the need to convert or buy music in PDF files in order to use the app.

Dubreiul said the legal aspect of creating the app and brand has been the most chal-

lenging. The app is currently going through a rebranding process. After not being able to copyright the app’s original name “EFlip Folder,” Dubreuil is currently in the process of rebranding and trademarking to “Flip Folder.”

Debreuil and Pitt’s band directors presented the app last May at the College Band Directors National Association conference in Seattle. The presentation drew the attention of many band directors there who have implemented the technology in their bands, such as the University of Kentucky, Duke University and the Arkansas Hogwild Pep Band, among others.

Mike Kane, a sophomore chemical engineering major and trumpet player, said that compared to how his high school’s band distributed music, the app makes football games more efficient and fun.

“There was a lot of differences, positive and negative with both. Because sometimes technology does fail, and it stinks. But for the most part, it’s so much better [than high school] … I mean, being paperless overall, it’s really great,” Kane said. “It’s nice to be sustainable and realize we’re doing something good for the environment and helping out.”

project will redesign a key part of Pitt’s Oakland campus.

“The overall design will create a welcoming, appealing pathway to Schenley Plaza, the Oakland business district and the Oakland community, as well as providing a flexible new space for student activities and programming outside the William Pitt Union,” Zwick said.

Due to the construction, the midblock crosswalk between the Cathedral of Learning and the William Pitt Union will be closed, and the students will only be able to cross Bigelow at either crosswalk located at the corners with Forbes or Fifth avenues. Pitt shuttle stops located on Bigelow Boulevard will be moved to alternate locations.

Zwick said the University has been working with numerous community organizations on new shuttle routes, which will be published soon.

“The Bigelow Block Routing Plan will be available next week that will provide a clear, cohesive routing plan to navigate

transportation, including bus stop, shuttle stop and ADA locations during this period,” Zwick said.

Despite the alternatives Pitt will be providing, some students are not thrilled that Bigelow will be closed during the middle of the academic year.

Paige Wheeler, a junior developmental psychology major, said she thinks there could have been better timing for the project that did not have to interfere with the school year.

“Couldn’t [the project] have been a rush project they do in the summer?”

Wheeler said.

Zwick said the project was timed so that the most extensive work will occur during the summer months to minimize disruptions and ensure completion before Welcome Week 2020.

The project will not only affect student life at Pitt, but also vendors that frequent the area.

Chaz Bonasorte, the longtime owner of The Pittsburgh Stop, a Pitt clothing stand

on the corner of Bigelow Boulevard and Forbes Avenue, will have to relocate or downsize his shop during the construction.

“We were told we would be allowed to stay, but we might have to make [the shop] smaller, so I’ll just adjust to whatever the University wants,” Bonasorte said.

After operating the shop for 31 years, Bonasorte does not think the construction will have a negative effect on business and is remaining positive that his shop will not be affected too much during the ninemonth period.

“Maybe April to May or May to June when all that is done, I might have to go across the street for a month,” Bonasorte said.

Bonasorte said the project will create a nice area that will positively affect the daily lives of students on campus once completed.

“I think the project is going to be beautiful for the campus,” Bonasorte said. “It’s going to be nice for the students.”

October 8, 2019

2

Opinions

ONLINE

LGBTQ+ rights in the workplace shouldn’t be up for debate at pittnews.com

column

El-Sayed Podcast highlights intersection of health and politics

Loretta Donoghue For The Pitt News

At a time when our nation’s leaders are bickering back and forth on Twitter, reaching the masses with no more than 280 characters at a time, political podcasts offer a refreshing alternative.

Even within the world of digital audio, there are more than 750,000 podcast shows, and more than 30 million episodes — finding a podcast that you can rely on for accurate information can seem daunting.

The one podcast that has proven to rise above the rest is “America Dissected,” the joint project of Crooked Media and Dr. Abdul ElSayed, a physician and activist. El-Sayed’s podcast captures the interconnectedness of health and politics — as he will tell you, the two fields cannot be separated from each other. We have to recognize this connectedness in order to advance politically.

El-Sayed draws from his personal experiences in politics and public health, which includes serving as Health Commissioner for the City of Detroit, a candidate for Governor of Michigan and professor at Columbia University’s Department of Epidemiology. The intersection of health and politics is clear in almost every medical issue, including the prices of prescription drugs — the topic of El-Sayed’s third podcast episode. The example El-Sayed uses is Sovaldi, a medicine used to treat hepatitis C. When Gilead, an American pharmaceutical company, released Sovaldi in 2013, it was clear that the drug was much more effective than past treatments.

Capitalizing on this, and knowing that people needed the treatment to survive, Gilead released Sovaldi at the price of $84,000 for a 12week treatment. The majority of people who needed the drug could not afford it, even if they had health insurance. American drug prices are some of the highest, and unlike every other developed country, the U.S. government does not regulate or negotiate drug prices. The United

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Dr. Abdul El-Sayed hosts the “America Dissected” podcast.

Image via Wikimedia Commons States has the science to create effective treatments, but the reluctance of our government to regulate prices has made prescription drugs unavailable to people who need them.

Another pressing issue in our country is government inaction against the anti-vaccination movement. Most notably, the anti-vaccination movement has fueled the global resurgence in measles, by leading the push for philosophical exemptions from vaccine requirements. This dangerous movement has made the measles vaccine less effective, as it lowers herd immunity, which only protects a group if most people in the

group are vaccinated.

The measles vaccine is 97% effective, but as more people refuse to vaccinate themselves and/ or their children, the risk of the disease spreading increases. The anti-vaccination movement itself was born out of irrational fears — such as the idea that vaccines cause autism — and has continued to be based in inaccurate statistics ever since. A deadly disease that was once eradicated is being brought back to life through a misinformed movement as the government stands back and watches.

There are currently 15 states that allow “phil-

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osophical exemptions for those who object to immunizations because of personal, moral or other beliefs.” By letting people refuse to vaccinate their kids without a sound reason, these state governments are impeding the effectiveness of vaccines — and increasing the chance that the rest of us get sick.

As El-Sayed puts it, the way “misinformation is mixed with politics” has caused yet another example of government affecting health.

By coming to understand the politics behind the limited effectiveness of vaccines, we can work to better eradicate diseases by correcting misinformation within the anti-vaccination community and, more importantly, push the government to have stricter laws requiring children to get vaccinated.

Perhaps the most urgent matter between health and politics is health care — specifically, who should administer our health insurance and what exactly it should cover. In the most recent Democratic debate, health care was discussed more than any other issue, taking up 21% of the three-hour event.

This makes sense, considering the president has a lot of power over the U.S. health care system, from altering public health programs’ budgets to reforming our national health insurance system. While Donald Trump has been focused on repealing the Affordable Care Act, most Democrats running support Medicare for All, or some form of it. Regardless of your political beliefs, our government and presidential election can have drastic effects on your health care, and subsequently, your wellbeing.

Whether it’s vaccines, medicine or health insurance, the intersection of health and politics is prominent in many of the health issues in our country. “America Dissected” is an urgent reminder that in order to overcome the issues our nation is facing, from high drug prices to unworkable health care, we need to acknowledge this intersectionality and learn how to move beyond it.

3

Culture

Stephen Chbosky talks new book ‘Imaginary Friend’ Sarah Connor

Contributing Editor Twenty years after the release of the New York Times Bestseller “The Perks of Being a Wallflower,” author Stephen Chbosky is back with his second novel, “Imaginary Friend.” The novel is a stark contrast to Chbosky’s previous work, as he delves into the horror genre.

In promotion of the new book, Chbosky stopped by the Carnegie Lecture Hall in Oakland on Monday evening to read an excerpt from “Imaginary Friend” and answer questions from fans.

To fans, and especially fans from Pittsburgh, Chbosky is kind of a big deal. He is a Pittsburgh native who grew up in the Upper St. Clair suburb about 15 miles outside the City. Both the book and film versions of “The Perks of Being a Wallflower” feature iconic snapshots of Pittsburgh, which brings the story even closer to the hearts of local fans.

Not only has he written a bestseller, but he also directed and wrote the screenplay for the film adaptation of “Perks of Being a Wallflower,” wrote and directed the 2017 film “Wonder,” and wrote the screenplay for the 2017 live-action adaptation of Disney’s “Beauty and the Beast.” But long before Chbosky was literary and film royalty, he was a student at Upper St. Clair School District.

The beloved writer and filmmaker now resides in Los Angeles, but looks back on his memories of growing up in Pittsburgh fondly. He shared stories of writing and reading for the first time in elementary school, shouting out his teachers by name. One of the teachers he mentioned was in the audience Monday night. Robin Pleta was Chbosky’s third grade teacher, and he said he remembered her in-class library as his first introduction to literature.

Chbosky’s third grade year was Pleta’s first year teaching, and at the time she was known as Mrs. Ferguson.

“Mrs. Ferguson is incredibly special to me and I never forgot her,” Chbosky said. “I’m grateful to her forever because she created her own library inside the classroom, and I remember I brought in so many Snoopy books, that she just said ‘you

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Stephen Chbosky, author of “The Perks of Being a Wallflower,” speaks about his new book, “Imaginary Friend,” at Carnegie Library Lecture Hall on Monday evening. Hannah Heisler senior staff photographer gotta take these home.’ But my first real literary “‘Perks’ was originally given to me in the sumdiscussions I ever had were about Snoopy and mer of 2004 by my oldest friend, before I left to Charlie Brown with Mrs. Ferguson.” be a freshman at Penn State. We’d been friends For Pleta, seeing her former student on stage since kindergarten and she gave me a copy as my was surreal, rewarding and exciting. going-away-to-college present, and now 14 years “This is what every teacher dreams of,” Pleta later I teach the book,” she said. said. “Especially an elementary school teacher, Though “Perks” is Chbosky’s most wellin third grade, we don’t, as often, get to see our known work, it was not the center of Monday’s students blossom like they do at the high school event. The star of the show was the new novel level. But to think that, it was my very first year “Imaginary Friend,” which is a departure from of teaching, and I still remember his blonde hair the teen drama of “Perks.” and his parents were so nice. I still have two of the “I am excited for the new book, I think it’s Christmas ornaments that he gave me that first so interesting that it’s a departure from what he’s Christmas.” done before. I’m used to, both with ‘Perks’ and Pleta was not the only educator in attendance with ‘Wonder,’ them being a little bit more realistic for Chbosky’s reading. Many teachers and ad- fiction,” Lyskava said. “It’s interesting that he took ministrators from his alma mater were in atten- a turn into the supernatural.” dance, as well as Claire Lyskava, a high school After an introduction to the reading, Chbosky English teacher at City Charter High School in read a chapter from the new novel, enticing fans Downtown. Lyskava brought a group of students with the chilling tales of youth horror. “Imaginary to the reading, since she teaches “The Perks of Be- Friend” follows a young boy named Christopher ing a Wallflower” in class. However, the book also through his adventures into the woods alone, holds significance to her in her personal life. only to disappear for days. Christopher starts to

October 8, 2019

hear voices as well, which he believes to be imaginary friends, but one can infer that it might not be that simple in a horror novel. Despite the scary elements of the book, Chbosky believes he holds on some of the best elements of “Perks” in the new novel, especially in terms of creating relatable characters that readers can learn from.

“A lot of people know my work in terms of the emotion that I bring to the characters, and the emotional storytelling I bring with them. In this case, I went back to a very early love of genre, a love of horror and Stephen King,” Chbosky said in an interview before the event. “What I really wanted to do was create characters that you love and care about, like I have throughout my whole career, and then put them in jeopardy.”

After spooking the audience with a reading from “Imaginary Friend,” Chbosky answered questions. Fans asked him about everything from advice for entering the film industry, to representation in film to the importance of creativity in education. To finish out the evening, Chbosky surprised fans by reading a new addition to “Perks” that he wrote for the special 20th anniversary edition.

The excerpt said the main character, Charlie, who was emotionally troubled, had “made it,” — that he was sad at one point and needed help, and he got it. Chbosky sent the message that Charlie was okay, and the reader will be too. After the event, he signed copies of both the new and old novels, and the line wrapped all the way around the building’s hallways.

For Chbosky, being back home gave him the opportunity to do more than just interact with fans, friends and family. His trip also meant that he could spend the evening after his event taking advantage of the novelties Pittsburgh offered to him growing up, many of which inspired parts of both “Perks” and “Imaginary Friend.”

“I love to drive through the [Fort Pitt] tunnel,” he said, referencing an iconic scene from “Perks.” “I did it twice last night, and I’ll do it again tonight. I went to Eat n’ Park, I had a Saris chocolate pretzel, and tonight after my event, I’m going to get cheese fries at The ‘O.’ I cannot wait. They are my favorite in the world.”

4

Reel Q Film Festival brings queer cinema to Lawrenceville Matthew Monroy For the Pitt News

The Row House Cinema was bustling Saturday with festival organizers, sporting “drag queen in training” pins on their shirts as they maneuvered lines stretching into the hallways beyond the small, 83-seat theater.

The 34th annual Reel Q Pittsburgh LGBTQ+ Film Festival kicked off its third day on Saturday with a stacked lineup of queer-centric cinema — including 12 short films, one documentary and three feature-length movies. The festival provides audiences with a diverse selection of LGBTQ+ films from Oct. 3 to 12. Tickets were priced at 10$ for general admission and $7 for students, with other higher-priced options for multiple-day passes.

Reel Q Film Festival’s Executive Director T.J. Murphy said the festival was a special opportunity for audiences to see films that are not typically shown anywhere else.

“People are hungry to see things like this,” Murphy said. “The content is out there, and the filmmakers want it to be seen, so I think that we need to create that space for the audience.”

Since he assumed the head manager position last year, Murphy has looked to expand the festival’s size and program variety. Last year’s festival lasted only a weekend, but this year, the festival is presenting a full lineup of 19 feature-length films and 60 short films over the course of a week. Audiences flocked to all of the screenings Saturday, despite the fact that this was the festival’s first year at Row House Cinema. Hannah Waltz, Reel Q’s programming director, said the switch was just another part of their continued outreach initiative.

“This is kind of a new era for Reel Q,” Waltz said. “We’re really beefing up our programming and our other programming arms around the City, and Lawrenceville is another neighborhood that we’re trying to grow a community in.

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This theater is super community-oriented, so it’s a really good fit.

In previous years, the festival took place at the Harris Theater in Downtown, although Murphy said that multiple venues across Pittsburgh have called themselves home to Reel Q at some point since the festival began in 1985.

“We’ve also been at the [Andy] Warhol [Museum],” Murphy said. “We’ve been at Southside Works, we’ve kind of moved around a little bit. We tend to stay somewhere for a few years and then make a transition from there.”

The 16 films screened Saturday night were chosen from a batch of 300 short films and 6070 feature-length submissions submitted to the festival throughout the first six months of the year. Although the festival favors films made

by Pittsburgh locals, submissions were not excluded based on origin, and many were made by international filmmakers, spanning a broad range of genres and subject matters.

In charge of sifting through the hundreds of submissions was the festival’s 13-person screening committee. David Doorley, Reel Q’s marketing director and screening committee member, said the committee goes through an exhaustive watching-and-discussing process before settling on a film for the festival.

“I’d say that for every film we show, we’ve probably seen 10 or 15 others that we decided not to use,” Doorley said.

Though it is now a large festival receiving hundreds of submissions, Reel Q started small, bolstered by deep roots in Pittsburgh’s LGBTQ+ scene. It was founded in 1985 as a part of Pittsburgh’s Gay and Lesbian Community Center, now known as the Pittsburgh Equality Center. Originally a subset of the Center’s Lesbian and Gay Film Series, the series eventually grew into its own entity, forming a board of directors and holding its first official film festival in 1986.

The festival eventually became a non-profit

The Row House Cinema is home to the 34th annual Reel Q Pittsburgh LGBTQ+ Film Festival. Image via Wikimedia Common organization in 1987 and continued to broaden its services through the ’90s. As expansive and in-depth as the Reel Q Festival’s history is, it’s humble background was not lost on Murphy, even with his fairly recent involvement.

“Through the 90s it grew by days, and then it was a week, and then it was 10 days,” Murphy said. “We changed locations all over and started doing more one-off projects outside of the festival.”

Now in its 34th year, the festival hosts a robust selection of year-round programs in addition to Reel Q. Lighter-hearted, kid-friendly films are featured during the Reel Youth program at the Glitterbox Theater in Oakland, and Reel Stories, held at City of Asylum in Northside, focuses on international films.

As the audience walked into each film screening that night, festival organizers handed everyone a pink ballot where they could rate the movie they were about to see — a way for the festival to collect audience reactions and grant awards to the films at the end of the festival.

The festival compiled the awards into a variety of categories for men, women and trans-

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gender people, including best feature film, short film and documentary. However, Murphy said the award winner’s prizes are increased publicity and visibility, not money.

“We send out laurels and promote [the award winners] throughout the year,” Murphy said. “I mean, if films come back and have their anniversaries we’ll usually replay them at the festival. We definitely continue to promote those films. And it would be nice if eventually one day we had enough money to give somebody a cash prize.”

Although each of the films shown on Saturday spanned a wide range of styles and subject matters, each one promoted the festival’s main point, which is to increase the amount of queer representation in cinema. Longtime Reel Q board member Doorley said that it was his personal experience with the lack of gay representation on screen that pushed him to create a space for fellow LGBTQ+ community members.

“I can remember when I was growing up, or even into the ’80s, when I never saw gay characters on screen,” Doorley said.

5

Sports

FOOTBALL TAKEAWAYS: FORD, DEFENSE SHINE AGAIN Jack Clay Staff Writer

The Panthers escaped Durham with a key ACC Coastal victory over Duke, 33-30, on Saturday night. Pitt dominated early and by the third quarter led 26-3. The Panthers proceeded to give up 27 unanswered points, only to rally for the game-winning touchdown in the last 30 seconds. It was a nail-biter of a game, but Pitt found a way to pull through off a strong performance from its defense and a timely game-winning drive.

Offensive Inconsistencies No one has known what to expect from the Panther offense all season long, and Saturday’s

game proved that.

There were times when junior quarterback Kenny Pickett looked like Russell Wilson in the pocket, bobbing and weaving through defenders before delivering picture-perfect passes to receivers on the run. But there were also times when he was missing wide-open receivers, holding the ball too long and forcing inside shots that were easily intercepted.

Duke especially suffocated Pickett during its scoring run of the third and fourth quarters, but he rebounded in crunch time to orchestrate a beautiful four-play, 82-yard drive to win the game. The Panthers will need better consistency from Pickett in the future if they want to continue their momentum, especially against higher-

ranked opponents.

Pickett wasn’t the only one to blame — the entire offense was equally unreliable. Senior wide receiver Maurice Ffrench had a decent game, finishing with 10 receptions for 54 yards, including a circus catch and a long punt return, but he also suffered numerous drops and muffed a punt return.

Versatile sophomore V’Lique Carter was bottled up for most of the game, ammassing only 18 yards on 13 carries. Eventually he saved the day with the game-winning touchdown by way of a nifty spin move to shake a defender and find the end zone.

The only Panthers on offense to provide a true 60-minute effort were junior receiver Taysir Mack and sophomore running back Todd Sibley Jr. Mack has stood out as a consistent playmaker all season long, and the rest of the offense should take notes.

The story of 2019 so far has been Pitt’s defense carrying the unreliable offense, and the Panthers must find some sort of stability on that

side of the ball if they want to break into the top 25.

Paris Ford Breaks Out Paris Ford had himself an interesting game.

Statistically, it was a breakout performance for the sophomore defensive back, despite fumbling a punt return. He finished with 12 tackles and two interceptions, one of which was returned 26 yards for a touchdown. Both interceptions came in the first quarter and were his first forced turnovers as a Panther.

But in the fourth quarter, Ford was ejected for a targeting hit on Duke junior Scott Bracey.

The call was questionable, as it appeared Bracey lowered his head and Ford led with the shoulder anyway, but the call stood and he was tossed from the game.

Ford was visibly angry after the ejection call, bouncing up and down while his teammates struggled to hold him back. He was either yelling at the referees or trying to hype up See Football on page 7

PITT MEN’S SOCCER STYMIES HOWARD, 6-0 Elliott Borawski Staff Writer

The Pitt men’s soccer team (5-4-2) dominated the Howard Bison (2-7-1) by a score of 6-0 at Ambrose Urbanic Field Monday night, thoroughly outshooting its opponent 30-2. The lopsided victory served as a confidence booster for the Panthers after a close loss to No. 20 UNC last Friday.

Pitt head coach Jay Vidovich said after the game that the play of junior defender Bryce Washington and first-year defender Arturo Ordonez was crucial to the team’s success.

“The way we marked up defensively … They knew we had to start getting that organized, so I think they just did a very good job of organizing the whole group, and the willingness of the front-runners to press and defend, as well,” Vidovich said. “So it was just a great group effort.”

The Panthers controlled the pace in

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the first half, outshooting the Bison 15-2.

This included five shots on goal compared to only one by Howard.

First-year midfielder Veljko Petkovic offered up Pitt’s first shot on a free kick in the fourth minute, but it was saved by senior Howard goalkeeper Carlos Caro. The Panthers took an early lead in the 10th minute on a highlight-reel goal from firstyear midfielder Valentin Noel, assisted by Petkovic. It came from a free kick on the left side, where Petkovic received the pass from Noel and passed it right back to him for a long, bending shot into the top right corner of the net.

Pitt scored again soon after in the 16th minute. Petkovic crossed a perfectly placed pass from the left side into the box, where junior forward Edward Kizza finished the play with a diving header goal.

“I have a good relationship with Veljko and once he got the ball, I started to run,” Kizza said. “And he was able to find me.

I was in the right position, right timing, and just got the goal.”

Pitt found openings like this with ease all night, getting two more shots on goal before the period ended. The Panthers led 2-0 at the half behind a strong effort from the defense, which only allowed two shots — a deflection in the 25th minute and a save by redshirt junior goalkeeper Arie Ammann in the 42nd minute.

Pitt only improved its play in the second half, putting 12 of its 15 shots on goal and scoring four of them. With Caro out of the net following a scramble in the 49th minute, Howard had an exceptional team save on sophomore midfielder Rodrigo Almeida. But Almeida got his chance again in the 61st minute, this time netting a goal from long distance.

Despite being up by three goals, the Panthers stayed aggressive until the final whistle. A minute after Almeida’s goal, Pitt scored again on a goal from Kizza, set

October 8, 2019

up by junior forward Alexander Dexter.

It came on a play that was seemingly going to end up in Howard’s possession in its own zone. But Dexter showed extreme hustle, stealing the ball in the opposite zone and creating the wide-open shot for Kizza.

With a comfortable lead, Pitt found the opportunity to play some of its reserve players, but those players did not shy away from the moment. First-year defender Anthony Harding scored a goal in the 85th minute, assisted by redshirt sophomore Chad Stout. Redshirt freshman midfielder Alec Townsend also contributed a goal in the 88th minute, ending the game with a score of 6-0. Both goals marked the first of the season for each player.

Pitt will look to build off of this positive performance when Virginia Tech visits on Friday night at 7 p.m. The Hokies are 6-2-2 on the year and coming off a tie against the Clemson Tigers.

6

Football, pg. 6 his teammates, but in any case he was so upset that he needed a police escort to exit the game.

Immediately after he departed, the Panthers let up a 44-yard touchdown as senior quarterback Quentin Harris connected with junior running back Deon Jackson.

Needless to say, Ford is an integral piece of Pitt’s stout defense, and he plays with more passion than anyone else on the field. He’s always been that kind of player, but only recently have his numbers began to back up his personality.

The college football world is starting to take notice, as he was selected to the Pro Football Focus Eckrich defensive Team of the Week along with teammate sophomore linebacker Cam Bright.

Ford has evolved into not just a standout player, but a leader for one of college football’s top defenses. Now he just needs to keep it up.

Finding Ways to Win This season has been nothing but close calls for the Panthers. Pitt has now finished within 10 points of its opponent in every game since a 30-14 season-opening loss to Virginia. Despite this, the Panthers are finding ways to close out sloppy games with wins.

With three sacks, Pitt’s front seven put up the most tackles behind the line on Duke quarterback Quentin Harris for the season during Saturday’s 33-30 victory over the Blue Devils.Thomas Yang assistant visual editor Pitt has shown a habit this season of playing up or down to its opponent. This can be a valuable trait when facing opponents who might be viewed as superior on paper, such as Penn State or Central Florida. Pitt gave Penn State a run for

its money in Happy Valley, losing by just seven, before coming back to defeat UCF, 35-34, on the miracle play dubbed “The Pitt Special.”

But in games where the Panthers are favored to win, this whole playing-to-your-

opponent routine becomes frustrating for Pitt fans. They almost blew a game in which they began as nearly 30-point favorites against Delaware, and they nearly choked again on Saturday against Duke.

Against the Blue Devils, things looked very bleak for Pitt as the team helplessly sat back and watched its 23-point lead melt away. The entire stadium was rocking while the Blue Devils grabbed sole possession of the game’s momentum for the entirety of the fourth quarter. But for the third straight game, the Panthers took a deep breath and put together a game-winning drive to leave Durham with a win.

Since the heartbreaking loss at Penn State, Pitt has found a way to close out tight games, regardless of the strength of opponent. These close calls are an effective way to raise the blood pressure of Pitt fans everywhere, but wins are wins nonetheless.

Pitt must continue to salvage victories out of 50/50 games, although a blowout or two along the way wouldn’t hurt in easing the minds of fans.

Pitt has a chance to iron out the mistakes this week in practice as it has a bye before traveling to Syracuse to take on the Orange in the Carrier Dome.

The Pitt News SuDoku 10/8/19 courtesy of dailysudoku.com

pittnews.com

October 8, 2019

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I N D E X

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Available immedi­ ately. Pet Friendly & Parking. CALL NOW! 412‑455‑5600 Before signing a lease, be aware that no more than 3 unre­lated people can share a single unit. Check property’s compliance with codes. Call City’s Per­mits, Licensing & In­spections.

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Employment Employment Other Part Time Banquet Servers needed at The Priory Hotel. Starting rate of $11 an hour. If interested please email zach@priory.com or call 412‑224‑6306.

Services Educational The Phlebotomy Training Center www. justphlebotomy.org 2 evening classes weekly, 5 weeks + excellent Clinicals.

Call 412‑521‑7334.

South Oakland

October 8, 2019

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