flat hat 2 21 2012
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Issue of the Flat HatTRANSCRIPT
Vol. 101, Iss. 34 | Tuesday, February 21, 2012 The Twice-Weekly Student Newspaper of The College of William and Mary Flathatnews.com | Follow us:
CAMPUS
Troy Pelish rememberedStudents and community gather for service
All seats were filled and there was no standing room left at the memorial service held in honor of Troy Pelish ’15 in the Chapel of the Sir Christopher Wren Building Monday.
Red carnations, yellow daisies and candles graced the altar as guests at the memorial service filed in to their seats. Several speakers, ranging from Pelish’s childhood friends to a member of the Office of the Dean of Students, described Pelish’s positive qualities.
As a tribute to his many years as a Boy Scout and his Eagle Scout Award, two fellow scouts presented an American flag while a third, Matt Rosendahl, spoke about the ideals that Pelish strived to live by as a member of the organization.
Rosendahl not only recited the Boy Scout oath and law but also explained what they mean to each scout and how admirably he felt Pelish had exemplified them.
“Troy truly lived because he lived by the oath and law,” Rosendahl said. “He had touched many other scouts’ lives by working at a summer camp for several years.”
Four friends of Pelish then spoke briefly about their time with him.
All of the speakers lit a candle after they concluded their speeches, which illuminated the altar in a celebration of Troy’s life.
After a prayer led by another friend of Pelish’s, College of William and Mary President Taylor Reveley gave his remarks.
“Death brings somber and anguish to the College community,” Reveley said. “But a sudden, unexpected death is especially difficult to cope with.”
The ceremony concluded with Reverend Jeffrey Buffkin’s closing remarks.
In his address, he asked how could the community move on.
The answer, according to Buffkin, could be found in connecting with one another, as the Fauquier Hall residents did when they slept in one of the lounges to keep each other company after they learned of Pelish’s death.
Buffkin punctuated the service with a piece of Hebrew wisdom from the book of Ecclesiastes: “A cord of three strands is not easily broken.”
Pelish was found dead in his Fauquier dorm room Feb. 12. Campus officials notified students
by ANNIe SCoggINSThe FlaT haT
The F lat HatThe F lat HatReSeARCH
PolITICS
While much of the world remains fixated on the possible dangers of nuclear proliferation, academic researchers’ recent engineering of a more infectious strain of the avian flu could carry even greater potential for disaster and raises serious questions about the ethics of such research.
Two separate research teams from the University of Wisconsin and Erasmus Medical Center in the Netherlands developed a version of the H5N1 bird flu virus to be more transmissible between mammals. Despite the teams’ assurances that the research benefits public health, the U.S. government quickly moved to prevent the publication of the findings for fear that the information could allow someone to weaponize the virus.
“I think there’s a lot of potential for good by people knowing about what the mutations are and how many it’ll take … People in a position to do something about monitoring should be aware of what these mutants are, where they’re located in the genome,” assistant professor of biology Kurt Williamson, who teaches courses in virology at the College of William and Mary, said.
“But in terms of publishing it to everybody … they do have a point that there is a risk that somebody with ill intent could misuse this information.”
The H5N1 virus was first detected in East Asia in 1997, and has remained transmissible from birds to humans, and, in rare cases, between humans. More than 50 percent of the 600 known cases have been fatal, and the American and Dutch teams found in the course of their research that the virus can mutate in ferrets to become airborne.
“This is what everybody’s worried about: What if it becomes transferable easily human-to-human?” Williamson said. “We already have labs throughout the world that monitor what variants of flu are currently in circulation in human populations. This is where the seasonal vaccines come from, so by taking stock of what’s out there, we can develop the best vaccine against it.”
Williamson cited his graduate research study interests in bioremediation, the use of bacteria to clean up harmful material in contaminated or polluted environments, as research that would techniquely fall under official oversight.
by CHASe HoPkINSFlaT haT assoc. news ediTor
Political junkies from around the country are turning their attention to Virginia in anticipation of November’s race between two former Virginia governors. The election is predicted to dramatically change the political face of the U.S. Senate.
Even in the middle of February, political positioning for the election is already underway as a retiring senator’s vacant seat is being actively sought by George Allen, R, and Tim Kaine, D.
The race is currently in a dead heat as both candidates jockey for a better position. Virginia is predicted to be a critical state in the presidential election and a major player in the fight for Democrats to keep the Senate under their control — despite many retiring members.
“Whoever wins the presidential race in Virginia, the same party will win the Senate race as well,”
First Vice Chairman of the College
Republicans Chandler Crenshaw ’14 said. “I think it is different for one senator to tackle unemployment but generally speaking the more senators the Republican Party has, the more opportunities there will be to pass balanced budgets.”
The Young Democrats argue that Tim Kaine is a more effective politician judging by his record as governor. They believe that political gridlock in Washington, like that which caused this summer’s debt crisis, could be alleviated by a senator like Kaine.
“If you look at their past records, Tim Kaine was a more successful governor than George Allen was,” president of the Young Democrats Katie Deabler ’12 said. “George Allen was governor several years before Tim Kaine was, and he was very divisive, and he was also not particularly friendly toward education. … His record shows he is not particularly good at compromising.”
However, the Allen campaign believes
his time spent in the commonwealth’s gubernatorial office illustrates his dedication to ensuring that Virginians largely determine the course of their state schools. He advocates for decreased federal involvement in all levels of education.
“As Governor, [Allen] fought federal intrusion into Virginia education and worked with parents, teachers, administrators and legislators to reform Virginia public education, raise academic standards, and make our schools accountable to parents,
students and taxpayers,” the Allen campaign said in a public statement. “There [also] needs to be a constitutional amendment requiring a balanced budget.”
In contrast, Kaine focuses more on improving the struggle of many college students to find work post-commencement. While the national
Virginia Senate race to be clash of two titansElection between two former governors certain to have national implications
Viral researchBioengineering of a more dangerous bird flu strain creates extra bioethical dilemma
See pelish, page 3
kaine Allen
“It’s universal. An active citizen can be anyone who uses their hands,” Kaveh Sadeghian ’12 said. “Service is not limited.”
Sadeghian, along with 239 others, attended the William and Mary Active Citizens Conference, hosted by the Office of Community Engagement and Scholarship, Feb. 17-18.
The conference brought various leaders in social entrepreneurship together with students and colleagues in the field from up and down the East Coast. Thirty schools, representing more than 13 states, attended Active Citizens Conference to connect with 15 non-profit agencies.
“The purpose was to create a state-wide conference for students to gather to discuss issues of shared interest and shared best practices and models in community engagement and to have William and Mary alumni and experts in the field provide mentorship and expertise,” Director of the Office of Community Engagement and
Student service
by ellIe kAUFMANFlaT haT chieF sTaFF wriTer
OCES summit held on civics
CoMMUNITy SeRVICe
See eleCTiON, page 2 See CONfereNCe, page 3
CloudyHigh 55, Low 41
IndexNews Insight 2News 3Opinions 4Variety 5Variety 6Sports 7Sports 8
Today’s Weather Inside oPINIoNSNew dining policy difficult to digestBy requiring that students have a meal plan for the entirety of their time on campus, the College is only hurting itself. page 4
Inside SPoRTSTribe wins two of threeStellar starting pitching led the way for the College in its first two games of a three-game series against Rhode Island. page 8
by keN lINFlaT haT assoc. news ediTor
See eThiCs, page 2
PHoTo IllUSTRATIoN by MICHelle gAbRo / The FlaT haT
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John lee / the FLAt hAt
A ThoUSAnD WoRDS
newsinsightThe F lat Hat
news editor Katherine Chiglinsky news editor Vanessa Remmers
The PUlSeAll The News ThAT’s uNfiT To priNT
The University of Virginia’s Living Wage Campaign announced a hunger strike at a rally on the steps of the Rotunda Saturday. According to the Cavalier Daily, 12 students involved with the campaign will not eat until the university’s administrators meet the demands of the organization: a $13 minimum wage, with annual adjustments, for all university employees.
According to the Virginia Gazette, two new bills have been introduced into the Virginia General Assembly that further the state’s restrictions on synthetic drugs. Last year a bill was unanimously passed a bill that outlaws synthetic marijuana, more commonly known as its street names “spice” and “K2,” but rapid development of chemicals in labs have already made this law obsolete. The new bill will add to the restrictions in order to include a new type of designer drugs known as “bath salts” which are synthetic stimulants that reportedly cause a cocaine-like high, but which can result in nausea, seizures and death in some cases.
Thousands of people gathered outside the Virginia capital Monday, Feb. 20 to protest the House of Delegates’ passage of two bills that would further restrict abortion rights in Virginia. The Richmond Times Dispatch reported that the protestors locked arms in silence and filled the sidewalks and streets of the Capitol Square, with the protests concluding in a rally at the Capitol Bell Tower. The two bills being protested include a personhood bill that would define life beginning at conception and a bill that would require all women seeking an abortion to undergo a trans-vaginal ultrasound.
The Williamsburg-Yorktown Daily reported that the James River plantation Carter’s Grove will be put up for sale, pending the release of bankruptcy documents from the current owner, dot-com entrepreneur Halsey Minor, founder of Cnet.com. The 476-acre estate was purchased for $15.3 million in 2007 from the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, for the declared use of being a private residence and as a center for thoroughbred horse breeding.
| tuesday, February 21, 2011 | Page 2
CoRReCTIonS
The BUZZ
“ I think that service happens in every moment of our lives. ... It is a matter of harnessing that and being able to channel it in different ways intentionally.
—Student Assembly President Kaveh Sadeghian ’12
BeYonD The ‘BURG
The F lat Hat‘STABIlITAS eT FIDeS’ | eStABLISheD OCt. 3, 1911
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The Flat Hat wishes to correct any facts printed incorrectly. Corrections may be submitted by email to the editor of the section in which the incorrect information was printed. Requests for corrections will be accepted at any time.
Controversial decision spurs Kean University walkout
This past Thursday, students at Kean University walked out of their classes to protest the university’s governing board’s decision to not fire the school president despite mistakes found on his resume. Occurring to the New Jersey Local News, the walk-out occurred at 1:30 p.m. and was organized by a group which began as an off-shoot of
Ohio State University honors astronaut John Glenn
According to the Huffington Post, on Monday the Ohio State University Alumni Association hosted a banquet to honor John Glenn’s accomplishments and influence. The date marked the 50th anniversary of the astronaut’s historic flight aboard Friendship 7. The voyage made Glenn the first American to orbit the earth. The keynote speaker for the tribute was Captain Mark Kelly, the commander of the space shuttle Endeavour’s final mission. Glenn has strong ties to the university, including establishing the John Glenn School of Public Affairs in 2006, which trains students in public service, leadership and civic engagement.
CoURTeSY PhoTo / WIKIPeDIA.ORGeighty-five cases of the contagious Norovirus were diagnosed at Goerge Washington Univsersity. the virus can be spread for up to two weeks after symptoms
Penn State students dance their way to $10 million
This past weekend Pennsylvania State University raised $10.68 million dollars to support pediatric cancer patients. According to the Huffington Post, this past Friday Penn State started its annual 46 hour dance marathon. The event, the Interfraternity Council/Panhellenic Penn State Dance Marathon, or more commonly known as THON, is the largest student-run philanthropy in the world. During the event, no sleeping or sitting is allowed — only dancing. The money raised this year exceeded last year’s proceeds by roughly a million dollars. The event has happened annually since 1973.
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Elizabeth DeBusk Opinions EditorStephanie Hubbard Copy ChiefKatherine Hoptay Copy ChiefMichelle Gabro Photo EditorWalter Hickey Online Editor
Mike Barnes Editor-in-Chief Becky Koenig Managing Editor — Jill Found Executive Editor
Ellie Kaufman Chief Staff Writer
Mike Barnes Editor-in-Chief Becky Koenig Managing Editor — Jill Found Executive Editor
Ellie Kaufman Chief Staff Writer
Ariel Cohen Assoc. News EditorChase Hopkins Assoc. News Editor
Ken Lin Assoc. News Editor Maggie Kern Assoc. News Editor
Meredith Ramey Assoc. News EditorRob Marty Assoc. News Editor
Chris McKenna Senior News WriterChris Weber Assoc. Sports EditorAbby Boyle Assoc. Variety Editor
Bailey Kirkpatrick Assoc. Variety EditorSarah Caspari Assoc. Variety EditorSophie Mason Assoc. Variety Editor
Ellen Wexler Assoc. Opinions EditorElliott Hay Assoc. Opinions Editor
Zach Hardy Assoc. Online EditorHarika Peddibhotla Assoc. Online Editor
Alex Bramsen Copy EditorColleen Leonard Copy EditorGarrett Hendrickson Copy EditorLauren Becker Copy EditorLiz McGlynn Copy EditorMegan Elmore Copy EditorMeredith Luze Copy EditorAllison Hicks CartoonistMolly Adair CartoonistRachel Brooks CartoonistRachel Pulley CartoonistAlex Cooper Editorial WriterNara Yoon Business ManagerKarin Krause Social Media ManagerAnita Jiang Assoc. Photo EditorJohn Lee Assoc. Photo Editor
The F lat Hat‘STABIlITAS eT FIDeS’ | eStABLISheD OCt. 3, 1911
25 Campus Center, The College of William and Mary, Williamsburg, Va. 23185
Newsroom (757) 221-3283 — Advertising Dept. (757) 221-3283 / [email protected]
Editor [email protected] [email protected]
Sports [email protected]
Opinions [email protected] [email protected] [email protected]
Katherine Chiglinsky News EditorVanessa Remmers News Editor
Hailey Arnold Variety EditorKatie Demeria Variety EditorJared Foretek Sports Editor
Elizabeth DeBusk Opinions EditorStephanie Hubbard Copy ChiefKatherine Hoptay Copy ChiefMichelle Gabro Photo EditorWalter Hickey Online Editor
Occupy Wall Street. It was discovered that University President Dawood Farahi had for decades shown carelessness with his resumes. Despite this, the trustees announced Wednesday they would not take action against the president. Farahi issues a statement apologizing for the negative attention he brought to the university, and took full responsibility for his errors.
Outbreak at George Washigton University
According to The Washington Post, an outbreak of the highly contagious Norovirus was confirmed at George Washington University Wednesday. So far, 85 cases have been diagnosed, and the virus has been found on both the central Foggy Bottom campus and the Mount Vernon campus. The university has begun efforts to stop the spread of the virus. High-traffic communal areas are being cleaned dilligently, and more hand sanitizer dispensers are being installed. The Norovirus causes gastrointestinal problems, symptoms of which generally stop after 48 to 72 hours.However, people are contagious for up to two weeks after the onset of symptoms. Princeton University and Rider University also recently reported outbreaks of the Norovirus on campus.
Senate race turns heads in Virginia
unemployment rate is currently 8.3 percent, it is 13.3 percent for Americans aged 20 to 24.
“Governor Kaine is committed to ensuring that Virginia’s higher education system adequately prepares its graduates to compete in an increasingly challenging job market,” Deputy Press Secretary for the Kaine for Virginia Campaign Hannah Schwartz said. “All Virginia students deserve access to affordable higher education, but it’s equally important that the degrees they earn give them the skills necessary to compete for top-quality jobs in an environment with limited opportunities.”
Because polling results position the competing candidates, Allen and Kaine, in a virtual tie, many are quick to emphasize the relevance of younger voters in the election. While the college-age electorate usually has the worst election participation rates, they could alter the outcome of this election due to the percentage of college-age eligible voters.
“This election is going to be so close; if students want to come out and make a difference in an election, they really can,” Crenshaw said.
ELECTION from page 1
Ethics of research debated “If we continued on that line of research
of engineering viruses to deliver genes to bacteria, eventually we would hit an impasse because we wouldn’t be able to execute it at the field level,” Williamson said. “The release of genetically modified organisms is very heavily controlled, and for good reason, because you just don’t know what’s going to happen once they’re out.”
College Director of Research Communications Joseph McClain, who has reported on science issues in the past, could not recall any specific instances of the federal government blocking scientific research at the College.
“Government is by far more of an enabler of research than an inhibitor,” McClain said. “I can say there is a difference between repression of research and repression of results.”
Vice Provost for research and graduate professional studies Dennis Manos justified such research on the grounds that it often helped scientists to perceive future threats and even turn them into positive innovations for humanity. The creation of radar technology, Manos noted, began as an experimental “death ray.”
“Why would people do work along these lines? The answer is it is ethically complicated. … There are good, fundamental reasons why you would want to study something like the transmissibility of a virus,” Manos said. “From my perspective, the vast majority of
these things are for good, because they are intended to protect the people.”
U.S. and international authorities continue to monitor this situation. Northern Arizona University professor Paul Keim, who serves as chair of the National Science Advisory Board for Biosecurity, traveled to a World Health Organization (WHO) summit last week in Geneva to prevent the publication of the avian flu research results.
“Science will not progress faster by ignoring these quandaries but rather by recognizing them as they arise,” Keim said in an email. “Society pays for science to be done and everyone needs to be a part of determining what is ethical and what is not. Responsible science means transparency and engagement of the broader stakeholders.”
As of the weekend, WHO has recommended that the findings be published in their entirety, overriding the concerns of U.S. authorities.
“As research scientists we already limit the experiments that we perform. … As science progresses and technology changes, there are times when the sciences advances faster that the policy and ethics,” Keim said in an email. “We also restrict the information that we publish and distribute. We would not publish the names of persons in clinical trials and all scientist[s] restrict information that has commercial value until after our institutions can protect property rights. …This is an unusual case because it is happening so late and in an [unprecedented] situation.”
ETHICS from page 1
The F lat Hat Tuesday, February 21, 2012 Page 3
Active citizens conference discusses engaged scholarship
Law schooL
Mock legislature discusses LGBT civil rightsby chase hoPkinsFlaT haT assoc. news ediTor
Bells rang across Duke of Gloucester Street Thursday — not from the Sir Christopher Wren Building, but from the former state capitol. Inside, Marshall-Wythe School of Law students sat together as burgesses did centuries ago. By candlelight, they conducted a mock debate in the style of Thomas Jefferson 1762, Henry Clay and other early American leaders.
The mock legislature, organized by the George Wythe Society of Citizen Lawyers, was presided over by Virginia senator Tommy Norment, R-3. Law students debated two proposed bills in the style of a parliamentary debate, beginning with wisdom from Thomas Jefferson.
“In matters of fashion swim with the current. But in matters of principle, stand firm like a rock,” Jefferson said.
The students then began to debate the legal definition of marriage, confronting issues of LGBT civil rights. They were assigned districts in the mock legislature and their political parties were likewise not of their choosing.
Many students argued in favor of revising the commonwealth’s definition of marriage to include
any two consenting individuals, regardless of gender.“If we cannot do what is right for the sake of being
right, perhaps we can do it because what is wrong comes at a cost,” David Kaufman J.D. ’14 said.
Other students raised the question of past referendums that indicated a lack of majority public support in Virginia for the right of homosexuals to marry.
“We were not elected to base our legislative decisions on political opinions or ideals. We were elected to represent the people,” Sara Beason J.D. ’14 MPP ’12 said.
Yet other students took a different tact —examining the issue in light of Virginia’s nationally recognized campaign to attract more business.
“The most effective workforce is a diverse workforce. States that cannot recognize gay marriage put their employers at a disadvantage by shrinking the pool of applicants that can be considered. Therefore, according to the laws of supply and demand, you are increasing the cost of workers,” Mike Kaestner J.D. ’14 said.
The bill revising the definition of marriage without concern to gender was passed by a vote of 19 to 12. Debate then turned toward another bill that would counter the Patient Protection and Affordable Care act, colloquially known as “Obamacare.”
“Such a law flies in the face of our concept of democracy and individual freedom. The citizens of Virginia are less free if such a [federal] law is accepted,” Caitlin Cater J.D. ’14 said.
Different students instead argued along more humanitarian lines, saying the federal act increases social support for disadvantaged sectors of the population.
“The market [for health insurance] has, alas, failed the citizens of Virginia,” David Weilnau J.D. ’14 said.
Extended counterarguments stemmed from
the proposal by some students that the act was permissible under the Constitution’s Commerce Clause. Many argue that this section, which allows Congress to regulate areas of interstate commerce, is irrelevant because the act goes further than simple regulation.
“Congress is trying to create market; it is not regulating an actual market,” Chelsea Bobo J.D. ’14 said.
The bill explicitly protecting commonwealth citizens from coercive purchase of health care passed by a narrower margin of 17 to 15.
ken Lin / The FlaT haT law students debate the commonwealth’s definition of marriage at the mock legislature modeled in historical fashion.
Senator Norment presides over mock parliamentary debate held in former colonial capitol
Memorial service held for studentvia email of the death later that evening.
Medical examiners have yet to confirm the cause of death, but investigators at the scene determined it to be an apparent suicide.
Pelish was a second-semester freshman from
Vinton, Va. “Troy was a 2011 graduate from William Byrd
High School where he was an excellent student, having earned national recognition for his performance on the National German and Latin Exams,” Ambler said in a campus-wide email sent Feb. 12.
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PELISH from page 1
Scholarship Drew Stelljes said.The second annual conference came from an idea
from the Virginia Engage Network, a board of leaders in community engagement throughout the state.
“We get together on a quarterly basis to discuss current issues about community engagement,” Stelljes said. “Many of us felt that a state-wide conference aimed at educating and inspiring students toward active citizenship would be a benefit, so I was intentional and purposeful at launching that at William and Mary.”
In one year, the conference doubled its attendance in terms of numbers of attendants and schools represented. Stelljes plans to continue the
event in the future.“This year, we saw more faculty presenting
on unique and innovative practices in engaged scholarship,” Stelljes said. “In the future, I think we are going to pursue every opportunity to have workshop proposals that are co-presented by faculty, students and community partners.”
The theme of the conference was the hand. Sadeghian worked to promote the conference through media by creating a video focusing on this theme with the tagline of “We all have two hands, one to help ourselves and one to help others.”
“Last year it was overlapping hands, but this year I decided to just do one hand,” Sadeghian said. “I shifted it more to the individual and how we can all collectively
help rather than needing to be together to help. It starts with you.”
Attendees were given pins displaying the symbol when checking into the conference Friday evening.
“It shows that you can do service and be an active citizen in so many places all of the time. It is not something that you need to compartmentalize. You always are,” Sadeghian said. “That was the idea with the pins. It is the notion that when you wear these pins, you are saying that you are an active citizen.”
Sagra Alvarado ’15 worked and attended the conference. Alvarado attended the conference for her education course and works at OCES during the year, but the conference added another dimension to her work.
“It can be overwhelming as a freshman with all of the opportunities and options to get involved,” Alvarado said. “Through OCES and the conference, it kind of gave me a path to sort of follow through all of the speakers — the William and Mary alumni — who went through that process to get a non-profit started at a young age. It made everything clear for me, and now I have an idea of how to get started when I feel like I am ready for it.”
For many of the attendees, the call to service will influence their lives beyond the conference.
“I think that service happens in every moment of our lives,” Sadeghian said. “It happens when we laugh with someone, when we check in with someone and see how they are doing. It is a matter of harnessing that and being able to channel it in different ways intentionally.”
CONFERENCE from page 1
Dana DyTanG / The FlaT haT students gather at the memorial for Troy Pelish ‘15 in the crowded wren chapel Monday. Pelish lived in Fauquier.
Starting with the Class of 2015, all students living on campus will be required to purchase a meal plan in an attempt to raise revenue for Dining Services. The Student Assembly is in the middle of an attempt to publicize this policy, which was put into place at the end of last year and will go into effect at the beginning of next semester. While I’m sure everyone in our community is sympathetic to the budget problems faced by the administration, this is not the right way to go about trying to solve these issues. The restrictive nature of this measure is likely to alienate students further and may end up being counterproductive to the goals of Dining Services and of the administration.
You may expect this sort of policy from an institution that had built up good credit with students with regard to on-campus dining. For example, Virginia Tech has the same requirement the College of William and Mary is about to impose; the difference is that their campus food is consistently ranked among the best in the country. The College’s, to put it very kindly, isn’t. The nicest word that gets used to describe our food is “tolerable.” For what they get, a lot of students aren’t particularly thrilled about paying upward of $3,500 a year for their meals. If most students wouldn’t pay $10 for what’s on their plates anywhere else, why would they want to do it at the Commons Dining Hall?
That’s not to suggest that on-campus dining is obsolete. For many students, it’s easier than buying groceries and healthier than a constant rotation between Domino’s, Chick-Fil-A and vending machines. Moreover, the College’s dining locations are important social hubs. Many students, however, don’t want to put up with subpar food at that price and drop the meal plan the second they
can. Most students, at the very least, seemed to be content with having that choice, but the College has ripped it away from them unreasonably.
The dining system, which was already hanging by a finger due to unreasonable restrictions on swipe usage and refusal to roll over unused swipes to the next semester, is in danger of falling off a cliff. By forcing students to buy meal plans, the College does a disservice to the local businesses whose food the students seem to prefer. Every meal a student is forced to eat on campus is one they don’t eat at the Green Leafe Cafe. Students are going to keep their money in Williamsburg regardless, and it’s not good for any of us if the local restaurants where we like to eat are affected adversely because many students can’t afford them anymore.
The College is liable to drive many of its students off campus. If the new restriction isn’t a deal-breaker, which it would be for me, it will at least be a major factor in the decisions of many students. It’s not implausible that the school could cost itself
more money in housing than it makes in meal plans.
Such a plan reflects exceptionally poorly on the quality of the College. It’s very easy for prospective students to find out very detailed information on schools, including quality of food. The Internet Age
means that universities have to be more careful about what their students think than ever before, and that sticking up a big middle finger at your student body isn’t going to fly anymore.
The College doesn’t help anyone by acting like a bully and attempting to monopolize more facets of student life. It shouldn’t be in the business of telling students, particularly returning students, how to live their lives. Students consistently say that one of the most important aspects of campus dining is having options, but instead of taking concrete steps to make on-campus food more desirable in the first place, the College is going to try and simply squeeze more money out of its students. The College may not like the results.
Email Carter Lockwood [email protected].
““
Few things possess
The apparent suicide of a College of William and Mary freshman last week once again brings up the issue of student mental health and the measures the College can take to prevent future suicides.
Last year, a University of Virginia study found that suicide is the leading cause of death for American college students. Until 2010, there had been 10 suicides at the College in the previous 42 years — then in 2010 there were three student suicides over eight months. The recent death of Troy Pelish, if confirmed as a suicide, is
one of many tragic cases to afflict the College in the past few years.
I do not believe college environments cause suicides; a multitude of factors explain why college campuses are often the site of so many suicides. Young adults, many living independently for the first time, can be overwhelmed by the sudden transition to college life and the pressure to make new friends. The rigor of academics can compound despair and frustration at times. Students at the College are among the best the nation has to offer, but the drive to do well in school only intensifies with time.
A couple of years ago, I attended a lecture on suicide prevention by a U.S. Air Force lieutenant colonel who had worked with service members suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. The key point he made was that in any organization, whether military or academic, we are all essentially our
brother’s keeper, and it is our duty to provide moral support to those who need it.
Obviously a battlefield is far more jarring than any college campus, but the same principles apply. The College emphasizes a small, tight-knit community where nobody is truly alone. Counseling services are always available, along with friends and professors who are there to listen and should keep an eye out for behavioral changes. People often show signs when they are in need, just as a suicide attempt often serves as a cry for help. Once those at risk for suicide have made the decision to go through with the act, they often show a suddenly improved demeanor because they know that the burden of life soon will be gone. This makes peer intervention and constant vigilance even more necessary.
And so I close with a plea to the
Tribe: Watch each other’s backs. If you see a troubled friend, don’t hesitate to offer your help. If someone you know has been going through tough times, let them know that you’re there to listen.
For someone on the brink of suicide, just having someone else to open up to can be enough to save a life.
Email Ken Lin at [email protected].
Staff Editorial
Active service
The College doesn’t help anyone by attempting to monopolize student life.
Over the past weekend, the College of William and Mary played host to more than 200 students from across the country for the second annual
Active Citizens Conference. The conference had keynote speakers from some of the most well-respected nonprofit organizations in the United States, including some that were founded on this campus. The overarching goal of the conference was to inform students about active citizenship, a theory of social change in which the individual moves on a continuum, beginning as a member of a community and evolving into an active citizen whose life is dedicated to fighting social injustice. The conference provided service-oriented college students and professionals with a space to discuss theories and practices to create positive social change within communities.
The fact that the College was able to host such a large scale conference is representative of the Tribe’s dedication to service. As a whole, students at the College are committed to giving back to the community. Our Haiti Compact was only one of five chosen to be created by Break Away, a nonprofit organization. Alpha Phi Omega, the co-ed service fraternity is celebrating its 50th year at the College; in fact, our new Chancellor, Robert Gates ’65, is a member. This conference solidifies the College’s position as a leader in service, something which all students should value highly.
Three individuals who attended the conference, Cosmo Fujiyama ’07, George Srour ’08 and Doug Bunch ’06, are alumni who have gone on to their own organizations.Fujiyama and Srour both started their organizations, Students Helping Honduras and Building Tomorrow, respectively, while still undergraduate students at the College. Current college students were not only given a chance to see what they can accomplish before and after graduation, but they also were able to network with some of the biggest names in the nonprofit community who are also graduates of the College.
Given how great of an opportunity this conference presented to the entire student body, we are left wondering: Why didn’t we hear more about this? In general, students on campus did not know that the conference was even taking place this weekend. Not everyone receives emails from the Office of Community Engagement and Scholarship, so only students who are already actively involved with service on campus were informed of the event. Little advertisement reached the general student body, which prevented many students from taking advantage of the resources and information the conference provided.
We hope that next year the College makes students more aware of the opportunities this conference provides. The College is dedicated to service; the conference highlights that. The more students who learn about service and the nonprofit opportunities available through the College and its alumni, the stronger this reputation will become.
Editor’s Note: Ellie Kaufman recused herself from this issue’s staff editorial due to a conflict of interest.
The staff editorial represents the opinion of The Flat Hat. The editorial board, which is elected by The Flat Hat’s section editors and executive staff, consists of Mike Barnes, Jill Found, Ellie Kaufman, Elizabeth DeBusk and Alex Cooper. The Flat Hat welcomes submissions to the Opinions section. Limit letters to 250 words and columns to 650 words. Letters, columns, graphics and cartoons reflect the view of the author only. Email submissions to [email protected].
Graphic by rachEl pullEy /the Flat hat
Members of the Tribe must form a strong community of mutual support
opinionsThe F lat Hat
opinions Editor elizabeth DeBuskassoc. opinions Editor ellen Wexler
| tuesday, February 21, 2012 | page 4
Editorial cartoon
“The homecoming step show and after party that the Black Student Organization puts on.”
cheryl Williams ’13Shawn burley ‘13
“Friday’s events — the parade, the pep rally, and the block party — seems like a legit day, a day of fun.”
lemondre Watson ’13
“The football game. Go Tribe!”
Sam Meadows ’12
Ken LinFlat hat assoc. NeWs eDitor
by alliSon hickS, flat hat cartooniSt
The Hunger Games: Starved for options
Flat hat staFF columNist
“I find it impressive and exciting that a student at William and Mary can have an impact on the Williamsburg community.”
fresia Jackson ’14
StrEEt bEat
“It is good to see students from the College get involved in the local community and working to better the area.”
thomas rice ’15
“How much can a freshman be aware of the relevant issues facing Williamsburg?”
august anderson ’12
“I think it is freaking awesome. To have the initiative and drive to participate in politics is impressive.”
arrianne daniels ’14 — photoS and intErviEWS by anita JianG
coMMEntS @thEflathat
Carter Lockwood
“All that would happen if they required all interns to be paid is the unpaid internships would go away (they wouldn’t become paid) and those paid jobs that don’t provide experience would be harder to get.
—Anonymous on “All work, no pay[...]”
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“
They’ll still be able to meet and drink beer so all is well.” —Onion_Pepper on “Fraternity suspended on hazing charges”“
What do you think about another student running for City Council?
varietyThe F lat Hat
Variety Editor Katie [email protected]
| Tuesday, February 21, 2012 | Page 5
When Harry Potter went to the Yule Ball, the Great Hall’s magical ceiling was covered in stars.
At the College of William and Mary’s Yule Ball, the Williamsburg night sky was projected onto a wall.
The lack of real stars on the ceiling, however, did not deter students from enjoying the evening. Nor did the fact that the dance took place on a Wednesday night. For them, it replaced an ordinary meeting of the Wizards and Muggles club, substituting discussions of J.K. Rowling’s novels for dancing and, for some, acting as an excuse to wear old homecoming dresses.
“We don’t actually have a dance, so
we wanted to do something special,” Jessica Wang ’12, historian and member of Hufflepuff House, said. “A Yule Ball in February seemed to work.”
The event was held Feb. 15 in Tidewater B in the Sadler Center, and the proceeds made by the $1 entrance fee will go to an as-yet-to-be-determined children’s literacy program. This was the first time Wizards and Muggles held the event, but they hope it will not be the last.
Like the club, the ball may not have been what outsiders would expect from a Harry Potter dance.
Apart from the projection of stars in the middle of the room, little suggested that it was hosted by a group of people brought together by a love of the fantasy series. Like the club itself, the event turned into a gathering of friends.
“Harry Potter’s always been part of my life,” Sam Meadows ’12, treasurer and member of Gryffindor House said. “And this club is a great way to escape. I get to hang around people who feel the same way that I do. We have the same mind.”
Since 2008, Wizards and Muggles has grown from 12 to around 40 members. The club has grown due to advertising and the different activities its members undertake, but the Quidditch team has garnered the most attention for the club.
Many members of the Quidditch team are also part of Wizards and Muggles, like Meadows, who plays keeper for the College, but there are some who are only interested in the sport played on broomsticks, rather than the book series from which it comes.
“Some people join because they aren’t
interested in conventional sports, and it’s not the type of game you usually get to play,” Meadows said. “But they’re not as interested in discussing the books.”
Of course, the Wizards and Muggles club spends a great deal of time discussing the books, even if not directly. They play games like “Pin the Tail on Dobby” and have “Spell-Offs,” spelling bees that are focused on the names of spells used in the books.
Book discussions usually come into play during these games. Recently, the club sorted characters from other fandoms into Hogwarts houses and decided which houses.
“We had a problem where the protagonist would end up in Gryffindor and the antagonist would be in Slytherin,” Tyler Overfelt ’13, president — or
headmaster — and member of Hufflepuff House, said. “We had a big discussion about whether or not we were putting them there because the heroes in the books were in Gryffindor.”
The different houses in Harry Potter are a large part of the club. All new members must fill out a questionnaire, answering questions like, “Write a six word memoir,” and “What would you see in the Mirror of Erised?”
The Wizards and Muggles executive staff, which also includes the heads of house, then decides into which house each individual should be sorted, with the heads of house making the final decisions.
“We always ask what house they don’t want to be in,” Overfelt said. “And no
College’s Muggles and Wizards club celebrates the magic of Harry Potter
Last November, Vernon Hurte, head of the Center of Student Diversity at the College of William and Mary, talked to Dr. Royzell Dillard, the head of the Gospel Choir at Hampton University, via email. Hurte and Dillard were longtime friends and had worked on organizing the Tidewater Gospel Festival at the College for a number of years. This was their customary, annual discussion of the initial plans for the upcoming event.
The call Hurte received the following morning weighed heavily on his heart.
“I believe [Dillard] succumbed to a heart attack, just a huge loss to the community,” Hurte said.
Since the creation of the event 13 years ago, Dillard played a key role in its success, including serving as master of ceremonies for the event in recent years after the passing of Tidewater Gospel Festival founder, Dr. Horace Boyer from the University of Massachusetts-Amherst.
“[Dillard] impacted a number of choir programs all over the country. … It’s great for us to have had a long-term relationship [with him],” Hurte said. “We are doing the concert this year in honor of him.”
The 14th annual Tidewater Gospel Festival, which took place last Saturday in the Sadler Center, still follows some of Boyer’s original plans. In founding the festival, Boyer wanted to create an opportunity to highlight some of the great local universities’s gospel choirs, like those from Hampton and Virginia State University, traditionally considered African-American colleges. He wanted to display the works of great gospel composers and directors at colleges that were predominantly white.
“This was kind of his brainchild,” Hurte said.
Both gospel music and the Tidewater Gospel Festival have flourished beyond what Boyer had initially imagined.
“Historically, [Gospel is rooted] in the African-American community, but now gospel music has connected far beyond [that],” Hurte said. “When you look at those who come to the event, you can track the growth of gospel music over the years, because the crowd is so diverse. You have every age generation, all different kinds of cultural, racial, and ethnic backgrounds, because the genre of gospel music has gone so far beyond just the African-American
Praise for gospel festivalVoices carry the human experience
BY KATIE DEMERIAFLAT HAT VARIETY EDITOR
BY BRIAN CAMPBELLTHE FLAT HAT
Let’s start with a confession: I have never kissed another female.
I know, it’s shocking. I feel like every one of my female friends has some kind of story about the time she kissed another woman. A lot of girls’ first kisses are with their best friends, just to try it. I didn’t even consider the fact that I had never kissed a girl until I came to college. In fact, I was kind of proud of the fact that I never got drunk and kissed a girl at a party, thinking that it was some kind of attention seeking action of which I never wanted to take part.
Since coming to college, I have kept company with women in heterosexual relationships who kiss other women in heterosexual relationships on wild weekend nights. They laugh and joke about it around other people, including their boyfriends. I never considered it a big deal, until my boyfriend heard me joking with my roommate about getting drunk and making out with her at a party that upcoming weekend. I think I made some passing comment to him like, “Wasn’t that every straight
guy’s fantasy? Two girls making out?” and he just shook his head. I probed further and he confessed that it would make him very uncomfortable if I kissed someone else, even if, in my own
words, “It didn’t count.”I can’t fault him for that. Our
relationship is definitely between only
I didn’t kiss a girl — and I liked it
Krystyna HollandBEHInD cLOsED DOORs cOLumnIsT
BEHIND CLOSED DOORS
See KISS page 6
See TIDEWATER page 6
See POTTER page 6
GRAPHIC BY MOLLY ADAIR / THE FLAT HAT
GRAPHIC BY KATIE DEMERIA / THE FLAT HAT, COURTESY PHOTO / AusTInPOsT.ORG
Tuesday, February 21, 2012 Page 6The F lat Hat
two people and that’s how we both prefer it. I would hate it if he made out with one of his female friends, and I can’t even imagine considering making out with one of my male friends. Someone else, even with different hardware from him, is not my boyfriend, and such an intimate act makes him uncomfortable. And so I understand even if I think it makes me more curious.
This summer I worked with a woman named Belinda. She very quickly came out to me as gay, flirted with me, and told me that she never slept with gay women — only straight ones who usually had boyfriends. She told me she “Showed them what they were missing.” As our time working together went on, she told me about her first girlfriend, and how she eventually became as good in bed as she is; she always joked that if I ever got tired of my boyfriend, I’d know where to find her. “You’ll think about a night with me long after
you’re married,” she said. “When you’re bored at home, you’ll dream about the things I did to you.” Yeah, she was kidding, but yeah, maybe it made me a little uncomfortable. Let me be honest here: Until about a year ago, I was at least moderately repulsed by my own vagina, let alone somebody else’s. But let’s also consider the fact that when someone tells you that they can quadruple your orgasms in half the time, it piques your curiosity, regardless of whether you think it’s true.
So maybe I had a dream that had Belinda in it. And maybe we kissed. And I probably woke up feeling kind of embarrassed at my own unconscious curiosity. Had I been a little younger, a little less experienced, a little more unsure, I may have even been ashamed of having a dream where I was intimate with someone of the same gender. Luckily, I know a little bit better. In the same way that having a dream about winning the lottery doesn’t make you a millionaire, having a dream about kissing
a girl doesn’t make you a lesbian. In fact, even kissing a girl doesn’t make you a lesbian. It’s important that people get to decide how they identify with their sexual orientation, regardless of past experience. I also think it’s important that people have all the experiences they want to have to be able to make an educated decision about how they identify.
It might sound like I think my boyfriend is keeping me away from valuable experience that I should have, but I don’t believe that at all. I choose to kiss him and only him, not because he’s a man — not because he told me I shouldn’t kiss women, but because I love him, and I want our relationship to just be between us. In the same way I won’t go kissing guys willy-nilly to get experience, I choose not to kiss gals either, because that’s how I want my relationship to be defined. The important thing is that it is my choice.
Krystyna Holland is a Behind Closed Doors columnist and she firmly disagrees with Katy Perry.
Appreciating monogamyKISS from page 5
community. [It] has developed, and it speaks so generally to the human experience. It’s a form of music I enjoy so much, because it doesn’t just speak to me, but [to everyone]. [Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.] talked about this concept of human solidarity, and what I love so much about gospel is that the message of the music highlights that.”
Solidarity is a power that Talita Sueldo ’12, the president of Ebony Expressions, the gospel choir at the College, firmly believes gospel music bears. Sueldo joined the gospel choir her freshman year, and for her, Ebony Expressions has been much more than just a singing group.
“When we were in rehearsal, it was a family
environment,” Sueldo said. The unity and the openness of the choir play an
important role in the choir for Sueldo.“I like how accepting the choir is,” Sueldo said.
“You don’t have to be a Christian to come. The basis of Ebony Expressions is that we sing gospel music. We do want a fellowship, and we do want to praise the Lord … but [most importantly] it’s a reflection of how hard we worked and how great everyone sounds and looks.”
It is this sense of unity that, according to Hurte and Sueldo, makes gospel and the festival at the College both unique and moving. It is this intense sense of unity that Dillard helped create that explains why Hurte mourns the loss of his close colleague and friend.
TIDEWATER from page 5
Event honors lost supporterDillard’s legacy continues to unite festival
Enjoying the Yule BallStudents escape daily stressesmatter whether or not we think they should be in there, we don’t put them in [that house].”
This practice allows some of the prejudices attached to the different houses in the books to be applied to the Wizards and Muggles houses, as well, since, according to Overfelt, most people ask not to be put in Slytherin, which is also the club’s smallest house.
“But I like to think of the houses as being morally neutral,” he said. “In the books, Slytherin tends to attract bad people, but that
doesn’t make it a bad house.” Few of the rivalries present
in the books are reflected in the club. Many members use it as a way to escape everyday stress.
“Most people [at the College] like to take things very seriously, even if it’s supposed to be fun,” Overfelt said. “And people [in the club] don’t seem to do that so much. They take it seriously, but if something goes wrong they don’t stay up all night and worry. It’s a very low-key thing. It’s about having fun and enjoying something that should be enjoyed.”
And many members of
the Wizards and Muggles club enjoy being around like-minded individuals.
“You can make a reference to Felix Felicis and other people will know what you mean,” Wang said. “It’s a place where you can feel like you can be yourself.”
It was with that feeling of like-mindedness that the Yule Ball became an event during which members could enjoy the company of those like themselves, while partaking in some lighthearted fun.
Or, as Professor McGonagall called it, “well-mannered frivolity.”
POTTER from page 5
Wednesday Feb. 15 marked the Wizards and Muggles club’s first ever Yule Ball. The Harry Potter fanclub charged a $1 admission fee, with profits going to a children’s literacy charity.
ALEX PHILLIPS / THE FLAT HAT
sportsinsideThe F lat Hat | Tuesday, February 21, 2012 | Page 7
Tribe dealt setback on road at VMI
As the clock approached zero in the first half, UNC-Wilmington forward Karneshia Garrett re-ceived a pass from guard Alisha Andrews at the top of the three-point arc, drained the shot, and gave the Seahawks a three-point advantage over William and Mary at the half.
Although the two squads would return to the floor for 20 more minutes of basketball, Garrett’s shot was indicative of the game as UNC-W nailed 11 three-pointers to sink the College in Williamsburg Sunday, 78-71.
“We made too many mistakes, we had too many lapses, and we let them make too many threes on our home floor — that’s really what hurt us today,” senior guard Taysha Pye said. “They had over 30 points in transition, and it was all off of our mistakes.”
The loss, which drops the Tribe to 10-16 overall and 3-12 in league play, fit the mold of the College’s other recent conference losses. With the exception of last Thursday’s 66-63 victory over Virginia Common-wealth, the College has been competitive in the CAA, but defensive lapses have prevented the squad from a number of victories.
“I just think defensively we can’t let people score 78 points — they shot 47 percent from the floor, and we are putting points on the board, which we have done all year, but they made 11 threes,” head coach Debbie Taylor said. “This team can shoot the ball really well, but we made a lot of defensive mistakes, and in an important stretch in the first second half, around the eight minute mark, when there was a tie game, we turned the ball over. They got some easy transition looks on us tonight. … You just can’t do that and expect to win.”
The game began with both offenses firing on all cylinders, and it appeared to have all the makings of a close contest. The first half, which was carried out in breakneck speed, featured 13 lead changes and seven ties. Neither team led by more than six, and Garrett’s three gave UNC-W a slim but unconvincing 38-35 advantage.
After play resumed, the two squads continued to trade baskets until midway through the second pe-riod, when a series of Tribe turnovers coupled with
UNC-W baskets gave the visitors a lead they would never relinquish.
“At the eight minute media timeout, it was neck-and-neck at that point, and we just gave up three shots in a row, and we turned the ball over, gave them two layups, and that gave them a seven-point cushion that they maintained the rest of the way,” Taylor said. “We fought back, and we cut it some, but we just had silly turnovers — they were unnec-essary. They weren’t forcing us into turnovers; we were doing it ourselves.”
Turnovers were only a part of the College’s less-than-inspiring offensive performance. While the Tribe watched the Seahawks hit 11 three-pointers, UNC-W managed to silence the College’s leading scorer, junior forward Janine Aldridge, who managed
seven points on just five attempts from the floor.“Janine is the kid that no one is going to let shoot
or touch the ball,” Taylor said. “We have to set more screens for Janine and get her open. But to Janine’s credit, she is starting to create shots off the dribble, which is really nice to see.”
Without Aldridge’s steady hand, the College man-aged just four three-pointers. Overall, the Tribe shot 39.4 percent from the field and was led by junior cen-ter Jaclyn McKenna’s 18 points and Pye’s 15. Despite McKenna and Pye’s contributions, the College was also aided by junior forward Taylor Hilton’s 12 points and five rebounds.
Hilton, who has been hobbled by a knee injury, provided a spark off the bench, converting 6 of her 7 shots in 20 minutes of action.
“Taylor’s feeling a lot better. She’s been struggling all year with her knee, but she just got her final cor-tisone shot. I think in the last two games you have seen vintage Taylor Hilton. She’s exciting right now because she is a little extra punch for us.”
Overall, the College must rebound quickly be-fore its final three conference games prior to the CAA Tournament. In order for the Tribe to amass momentum heading into the tournament, the squad must begin to pair its offensive efficiency with defensive effort.
“I thought we worked hard, and Coach [Taylor] mentioned that she thought we played with a lot of energy today, and I think that’s true, but we definitely need to finish and that has been the story all season long for us,” Hilton said.
M. basketball from page 8
Senior guard Katherine DeHenzel finished with seven points on 3 of 8 shooting, eight points and four rebounds in the College’s 78-71 loss to UNC-Wilmington.CHRISTINA GLASS / THE FLAT HAT
College bested at home by UNC-Wilmington
“We talked a lot before this game that this would be a game of runs,” Shaver said. “When you score the ball the way they do, a 10-point lead doesn’t mean anything. … When they made that run we looked a bit like deer in the headlights, not keeping our composure and that allowed their 10-point run to become a 20-point run.”
VMI took a 39-30 lead into halftime, but the College fought back. A layup from junior guard Matt Rum cut the deficit to one with 14:11 remaining, and a few minutes later McDowell put the Tribe up one with a layup of his own. But it wouldn’t last, and a 5-0 run from the Keydets put the College in a hole from which it wouldn’t escape.
Neither team shot the ball particularly well, as the Tribe connected on just 37.9 percent of its field goal attempts and VMI shot just 39.3 percent. But the College was plagued by miserable three-point shooting in the second half, going 0 for 10 from beyond the arc in the final 20 minutes, 4 of 22 on the day.
“I thought we had great looks in the second half and — myself included — we weren’t knocking them down,” McDowell said.
Another key factor was VMI’s ability to
consistently alter Tribe shots. The Keydets finished with 10 blocked shots.
“They’re very athletic,” Shaver said. “They’re not big, but they’re athletic and I was surprised at the number of blocked shots, I really was.”
Sophomore forward Tim Rusthoven was a bright spot, logging a double-double with 14 points on 5 of 8 shooting and pulling down 10 rebounds. But freshman guard Marcus Thornton — typically one of the College’s offensive sparkplugs — turned in perhaps his worst performance in the green and gold, going 0 for 6 from the floor and turning the ball over three times in a scoreless game.
The Tribe faced a scary moment late in the game when trying to mount a comeback. After a jumper from Britt cut VMI’s lead to four with 1:15 to go, the sophomore came up with a steal on the ensuing VMI inbound, drove to the basket and got his shot blocked by VMI’s Quinton Upshur. There was contact on the play and Britt went to the floor underneath the VMI basket writhing in pain and grabbing his left knee. After a few minutes he was helped to the bench and replaced by Thornton. Britt left with 14 points on 5 of 18 shooting. Shaver said he didn’t know how serious the injury was.
The College will be back in action when it hosts Hofstra Wednesday.
eighth for the second night in a row, junior reliever John Farrell came on to close the ninth. But the Rams wouldn’t take the loss lying down.
Two consecutive singles from Mike LeBel and Greg Annarummo kicked off the inning and put men on first and second with nobody out. A sac bunt then moved the runners over before Farrell got pinch hit-ter Kevin Steinhouse swinging. With two on and two out, LeBel tried to score on a passed ball, but Farrell covered home in time and tagged him out, ending the game in dramatic fashion.
Freshman starting pitcher Jason Inghram then made his first college start in the second game.
Inghram’s introduction to the college game was not the most welcoming. His control eluded him as he gave up two singles, a walk and a wild pitch that culminated in a two-run first inning for the Rams. Inghram would go just four innings on the evening, leaving with four earned on six hits and two walks and picking up his first collegiate loss.
The College wouldn’t allow another run, but the damage was done and the deficit proved insur-mountable despite an improved — albeit less oppor-tunistic — Tribe offense.
The College scored two runs in the fifth on hits by sophomore third baseman Ryan Lindemuth and Katz, making it a 3-2 game.
The Tribe nearly tied it in the seventh when Lin-demuth touched home after Rhode Island catcher Milan Adams committed an apparent error. But the umpire waved off the run, calling interference on the batter, sophomore designated hitter Devin White.
“I guess he swung and his bat hit the catcher. It’s a crazy rule, but it’s something you gotta let the um-pires make a decision on,” Lindemuth said.
Rhode Island closer Mike Bradstreet later retired the side in the ninth to close out the game. Still, Lin-demuth was happy with the series.
“It’s satisfying anytime you win a series,” Linde-muth said. “We definitely thought we could have had the sweep there, but winning two out of three against a good team like Rhode Island is not a bad start.”
MIKE BARNESFLAT HAT EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
Seahawks’ hot shooting dooms Tribe in 78-71 loss
Tribe opens winning two of threebaseball from page 8
The Tribe opened the season Friday, winning 2-1, before splitting the Saturday double-header against the Rams.MATT RILEY / THE FLAT HAT
sports The F lat Hat | Tuesday, February 21, 2012 | Page 8
Sports Editor Jared ForetekAssoc. Sports Editor Chris Weber
Tribe suffers road setbackMEN’S BASKETBALL
After taking early lead, College falls to VMI, 73-65BY JARED FORETEKFLAT HAT SPORTS EDITOR
After perhaps the best week of its season William and Mary had its momentum abruptly cut off in a 73-65 loss at Virginia Military Institute Saturday.
Despite outscoring the Keydets 20-8 through the first nine minutes and nine seconds of the game, and four Tribe players scoring in double-figures, a VMI run late in the first half was too much for the College (5-24) to recover from.
Coming off a resounding win over Northeastern and a two-point loss to CAA-leading Drexel, senior forward Quinn McDowell — who finished with a team-high 15 points, five rebounds and five assists — was disappointed in the team’s lack of focus.
“It’s pretty disappointing,” he said. “For the last two games [coach Tony Shaver] had been pretty excited about the way we were playing and for the first time all year it felt like we really had something going. We were playing really well together as a team and figuring out what it means to play hard all the time, and we didn’t do that. We didn’t have the focus that we needed today.”
A three from senior forward Quinn McDowell gave
the College its biggest lead, 20-8, with 10:51 left in the half, and the Tribe looked poised to roll through the Big South opponent.
But things started to turn when the Keydets began to exhibit their athleticism in the paint. With the College up 24-13, freshman guard Marcus Thornton had his layup blocked by VMI guard Jarid Watson, turning into an easy fast-break bucket by guard Keith Gabriel. Sophomore guard Brandon Britt tried to respond with a baseline floater but missed everything, and VMI guard Michael Sparks knocked down a three-ball on the ensuing possession. Suddenly, the Tribe’s lead was down to six with 8:18 to play in the first.
Rather than keeping composed and weathering the Keydets’ run, the College grew sloppy, and on the next possession senior guard Kendrix Brown had the ball ripped away from him at the top of the key by VMI forward Ron Burks, who took it the other way, drew the foul from Brown, hit the layup and sunk the free throw for a three-point play.
All told, the Keydets outscored the Tribe 31-10 in the last 10:33 of the half.
Freshman guard Marcus Thornton struggled mightily Saturday, going 0 for 6 from the floor and finishing with three turnovers.HAYLEY TYMESON / THE FLAT HAT
Junior starting pitcher Brett Koehler took the win Friday, tossing seven shutout innings and allowing just one hit on two walks while striking out five in the College’s 2-1 win over Rhode Island. The Tribe went on to split Saturday’s double-header with the Rams.JARED FORETEK / THE FLAT HAT
BASEBALL
See M. BASKETBALL page 7
William and Mary kicked off its season in winning fashion over the weekend, taking two of three from Rhode Island on the strength of two dominant pitching performances. The Tribe opened with a 2-1 win Friday, then traded victories with the Rams, taking the first game of the Saturday doubleheader 2-1 on a play at the plate before losing the second 4-3.
Junior starting pitcher Brett Koehler set the tone on opening day, throwing seven innings of shutout ball and allowing just one hit and two walks while striking out five. After freshman designated hitter Michael Katz split the center-right gap for an RBI double in the fourth and senior catcher Chris Forsten put the Tribe up 2-0 in the sixth with a sac fly, the College survived a bases-loaded, one-out scare in the ninth to hold on for the 2-1 win.
“Brett’s been awfully good for us — that’s why we put him in that role as the Friday guy,” head coach Frank Le-oni said. “We knew he’s the kind of guy that can give us quality starts like that. He did a great job locating. He was up at times early but maybe that was first game jitters. He did a nice job commanding.”
Katz made his college debut going 1-2 with two walks and an RBI while senior first baseman Tadd Bower also had a big day, going 2-4 with a run.
“We have a lot of confidence in Mike,” Leonie said of Katz. “He was a big recruit for us. He’s a born middle-of-
the-order guy ... he’s a good, pure hitter.”Junior starting pitcher Matt Wainman earned a tight
win in the first game Saturday, narrowly besting his Rhode Island counterpart, Kevin Lee. Wainman went six innings, allowing just one earned on four hits and one walk, while striking out three.
“It was a pleasure,” Wainman said, “just to go out there and give my team a chance to win.”
The Rams got on the board first when they tagged Wainman for a run on two hits.
But the Tribe responded quickly, scoring two in the bottom half of the inning. Leading off, junior center fielder Ryan Brown beat out a bunt single down the third base line. Bower — playing left fielder — followed with a walk and advanced to second on an error before Katz — playing first base — singled to left, driving in Brown. Senior catcher Chris Forsten then lofted a fly ball deep enough for Bower to tag up and score, giving the College a 2-1 lead.
Other than the fourth, the College struggled might-ily at the plate, earning just three hits and one walk. But Weinman wasn’t disturbed by the sparse help he got from the hitters.
“Our team’s always fighting … just to go out there and attack. Our offense usually likes to pull it out in the end,” he said.
After senior reliever Matt Davenport tossed a flawless
Setting the toneKoehler and Wainman dominate as Tribe opens taking two of three
BY JACK POWERS AND JARED FORETEKTHE FLAT HAT AND FLAT HAT SPORTS EDITOR
See BASEBALL page 7