October 9, 2012

Viewfinder: The President’s Cup

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Rock the Vote: No ID RequiredBy Shawn Kellmer, Web Editor

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Voters in Pennsylvania don’t need to show identification to vote on election day. A court ruled that because the state cannot guarantee that all eli-gible voters can easily get IDs, the controversial law will not go into effect for the election on Nov. 6. The six month old law, which is among the nation’s toughest, caused heated controversy about voting rights ahead of the presi-dential election. The law required voters to show PA identification prior to voting. While the court halted the law un-til after the election, it is possible that it could issue a permanent injunction. Senator John Yudichak, 14th

Senate District, feels the latest ruling was the right decision be-cause everyone who is registered will be able to vote. “This ruling rightly ensures that not a single, eligible voter will be disenfranchised or turned away at the polls come election day,” said Yudichak. “Voting is one of our most fundamental rights and there was simply not enough time to enable voters to obtain neces-sary photo identification prior to this November’s election.” State Senator Jay Costa, 43rd Senate District, said he suspects voters unaware of the latest ruling may still be disenfranchised. “In my view, the court’s decision is the correct one in blocking the

voter ID law from taking effect this November. The court is trying to deal with an ill-conceived and short-sighted law,” said Costa. “There has been so much contro-versy about this law, I still believe that some voters will not come out to vote fearing that they do not have the proper ID and therefore be disenfranchised.” State Senator Daylin Leach, 17th Senate District, argues that the law unfairly targets certain groups. “While I am elated that hun-dreds of thousands of poor people, racial minorities, students and elderly people who were going to be disenfranchised under this law will now be able to vote without

jumping through costly, difficult, and even impossible hoops, there is still much work to be done,” said Leach. The law was sparked by law-makers who say it will prevent voter fraud. Yudichak said voters should still work to get official identification. “I encourage every-one without a form of identifica-tion acceptable under the voter ID law to continue taking steps to obtain a state issued identification card so that they are prepared in the event the law is fully imple-mented in the next election,” he said. Anyone wishing to vote during this year’s election still needs to be registered. The deadline for

registration was Oct. 9. A 1979 Supreme Court ruling gave college students the ability to register to vote at school or at home. Pennsylvania is a swing state in this year’s Presidential Election and accounts for 20 electoral votes. Students who decide to vote in Pennsylvania can have a significant impact on the presidential election. Pending more efforts to provide ID to registered voters in the state, the injunction for the imple-mentation of the voter ID law will end and id will be necessary to vote in future elections. kellmers@misericordia.edu

Freshmen Alyssa Auer and Erica Moore perform a shoulder sit while cheering on the Cougars during the homecoming football against Stevenson on September 29 at Manglesdorf Field. Look for more cheerlead-ing photos on page 4.

MARY BOVE /THE HIGHLANDER

SPECIALINTERESTHOUSING

By Mary Bove, Multimedia Editor

Booming BusinessesBy Gia Mazur, Reporter

Change is roaring through campus with the new R.E.A.C.H. program, which provides sub-stance-free living on campus. The R.E.A.C.H. program, Residents Excelling in Academics, Community and Health, is “an environment for students that share common interest. They want to shy away from the typical college life type of stuff,” according to AJ Nudo, Assistant Director of Residence Life. Alumnae/McGowan Residence Hall Director Alissa Perez raised the idea for R.E.A.C.H. last fall. “I saw when I came to Miseri-cordia that they didn’t have any type of special interest housing at all and I thought that it could be something that students could re-ally benefit from, especially since there were none here,” said Perez. “Then I talked to AJ about it and he thought it was a good idea. He actually oversaw a program like this at Kutztown when he was a graduate student there.” The month-old program has been well-received by participat-ing residents. “I think it’s a really great way to put like-minded peo-ple together so that we all respect each other and our wishes to keep the floor quiet and have a place that’s conducive to studying,” said sophomore DeAnna Darling. Quite a few of the occupants feel that this positive environment is essential to college life. R.E.A.C.H. Resident Advisor Jer-emy Osko said there have been no blips so far. “I haven’t had anyone complain about anything yet,” said “Nothing is breaking, other than the doors and the [numerous] fire alarms that people complained about.” Osko said the program’s stu-dents have reported these issues optimistically. “I think students have brought their concerns to us respectfully. We will see what we can do to correct those issues. I think the students overall enjoy it, they are glad to be there and I think that the overall experience for them is a positive one,” said Nudo. Perez expects a positive response from future first years. “I think that it’s most important for in-coming freshman because they are making life decisions for the first time away from home and they’re away from their parents and being in an environment like this really encourages them to make good decisions and study, and they are around people who are thinking similarly to themselves,” said Perez. Bovem@misericordia.edu

Local businesses can reap the benefits of a college town location - as long as they cater to college students. Earth and Wears accessories boutique in Dallas sells handmade items, like jewelry, purses and picture frames, and according to the shop’s owner Lyn Carey, she relies on the patronage of the MU community. “Misericordia teachers and students are the backbone of this business,” said Carey, noting that during the summer, a group of women who were taking a week-long course came into her Main Street shop to buy presents for their teacher. “Then the teacher came and bought all of these presents. It was wonderful,” she said. Carey has brought her merchan-dise to the Banks Student Life Center to sell to students during lunchtime, when the center is busiest. Facebook is Earth and Wears’ primary marketing tool and, ac-cording to Carey, a social network-ing presence makes it easier to stay in contact with alumni who may move out of the area after graduating. She also uses Etsy.com to sell her products online and ship them to wherever her costumers may be. “The costumers that I have are so loyal, and everything they have to buy is handmade,” said Carey. “Once they’re here, they’re here.” Earth and Wears experiences a boost in sales around the holidays, specifically Christmas and Moth-er’s Day, said Carey, from students buying one-of-a-kind handmade items she stocks in the store. “And whose going to hand paint

the box themselves?” she says, with a laugh, holding out one of the gift boxes she painted. Lake Street restaurant Pizza Bella is in a nice walking distance from MU, according to owner Pat-rick Cunningham--and that led to his decision to open his shop. Customers from the Back Mountain, including college students from MU and Penn State Wilkes-Barre, were frequenting Pizza Bella’s Forty-Fort location. He notices a difference in busi-ness when college is in session and when it is not, and said that during the school year the dining room will sometimes be filled to its 80-person capacity. Pizza Bella offers a 15% off discount for students with their MU I.D. and hosts “Misericordia Monday,” when, every Monday night, 15% of a customer’s bill is donated the MU class of 2014.

Cunningham said being on the same street as MU brings in more than just the students. “Moms and Dads enjoy com-ing to the restaurant to eat while dropping off their kids at college,” he said. Local contemporary women’s boutique Buka, in Shavertown, doesn’t always bring in the busi-ness that owner Joanna Grover would like to, unless Mom or Dad foot the bill. “I know college students don’t tend to have a lot of money,” she said, noting that Buka’s items may not fit a student’s budget, and during weekends when parents come to visit she will see more col-lege students in the store. Grover would like to attract more business from students,

Metz Menu MakeoverBy Alexandria Smith, Content Manager

Metz Culinary Management now offers selections for students with special dietary needs. The new menu consists of sev-eral gluten free options, including an entree choice with two sides. The selections are available every day before lunch and dinner. Resident Dining Manager Heidi Franssen connects the addition of gluten free foods to an increased awareness of gluten intolerance. “We had a number of students, and it’s a growing intolerance. Some people have allergies, but it’s really intolerance – they can’t handle it,” said Franssen. “We had a growing number of students asking about it and a growing population of adults and this is the age that it can manifest itself,

in teenagers and people in their early twenties. So the more we got asked, the more we developed through Metz and developed a gluten free menu that we’re using on all the accounts.” Franssen considers it an attempt by Metz to provide a more inclu-sive menu to staff and students with specific dietary needs, includ-ing those who may have just found out that they have intolerance to gluten or other foods. Junior Speech Language Pathology major Dinamichele Boyer said she is thankful for the menu additions. “It’s a fantastic change. I like being able to just go up and get my food instead of having to wait 12 to 15 for them to actually whip me up something quick, which

is usually stir fry because that’s quick, especially if I have a time constraint,” said Boyer, whose four food allergies developed later in life. “If I’m coming to the cafeteria with 15 minutes in between classes and I just need food because I missed breakfast already, it’s nice to be able to run in, grab something, and leave like everybody else.” Boyer’s allergies to products that contain dairy, soy, food coloring, and shellfish leave her with very few items to choose from in typi-cal dining settings. “When it comes to large scale cooking operations, gluten free is my best choice,” said Boyer, though her dietary restrictions don’t include an intolerance to

Pictured above is the gluten free area of the John and Mary Metz Dining Hall during a weeknight dinner service.

DEVAUGHN PATTERSON/THE HIGHLANDER

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Voter ID Bill Timeline

Mar. 14: Voter ID signed into law by Governor Tom CorbetMay 1: Voting rights groups file a legal challengeAug. 15: Judge Robert Simp-son upholds the law, denies injunction to set it aside for Nov. election.Sept. 18: PA Supreme Court orders Simpson to reconsider his decisionOct. 2: Simpson issues injunc-tion for the implementation of the voter ID law for November election.

October 9, 2012highlandernews.net2

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oughly, corrections and information will appear in this area. Opinions and views expressed in The Highlander in no way reflect those of Misericordia University or the Sisters of Mercy. The Highlander Staff welcomes students, faculty and reader response.

The Highlander reserves the right to edit submissions for grammatical errors and length. All submissions must be signed. Letters to the Editor and/or materials for publication may be submitted by any reader. Items can be sent via e-mail.

Ellen Hoffman - Editor-in-ChiefMorgan Harding - Print EditorShawn Kellmer - Web EditorMary Bove - Multimedia Editor

Alexa Cholewa - Business Manager

Arthur Dowell - Web Master

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CONTRIBUTORS

News

Deanna DarlingPeter FalveyJames FisherJosh HortonGia MazurDevaughn PattersonAllen Sabatino

Alexandria Smith - Content Manager

Gabriella Lengyel - Social Media Manager

highland@misericordia.edu

New NeighborsBy Peter Falvey, Reporter

The campus community wel-comes new staff members Maria Cabrera as the Multicultural Stu-dent Outreach Coordinator and Gary Samuels as the Coordinator of Student Affairs/Community Standards. Cabrera is in charge of creat-ing and organizing multicultural programming for students and staff. She’s already held several events, including a barbecue and Latin cafe. Cabrera is also responsible for a number of ongoing series confer-ences dealing with cultural issues. Truth Talks tackled modern issues in America, including domestic terrorism and racial diversity in comic books. She also created a Taste of the Town event series in which she takes students to dif-ferent restaurants to experience foods from many cultures. “The Truth Talks were great because I got to hear the students’ perspective. I like to hear what they are thinking about and their perspective on what is going on in the United States,” said Cabrera. Cabrera looks to Dan Kim-brough, assistant professor of communication, for input on Multicultural events. Kimbrough ran the program in the past and Cabrera thanks him for continuing to help. “He is great at talking about what we can do to enhance the ex-perience of the students,” Cabrera said of Kimbrough. Cabrera’s calendar of events in-clude the 3rd annual International Days from October 22-24. The theme for this year’s event is “One World One Beat.” A Truth Talks event on October 22 will cover Hip Hop, from the use of the “N Word” in lyrics to how women are portrayed both in video and song. Cabrera’s friend, Cesar Reyes, will provide salsa dancing instruc-tion on October 23. Sujata Nair-Mulloth will teach students about the customs and dance of Indian music on October 24. This year’s Cultural Lens Film

Festival on October 25 to 27 will take place at Wilkes University and Misericordia University. The theme is Music Without Borders. The films cover topics from inter-national opera to punk Islam. Samuels is also sharing his ideas in creativity for the benefit of the MU community. Samuels is in charge of the com-muter council, transfer student orientation and he oversees the university discipline system for all non-academic infractions. Samuels has assumed some of the work load of Dean of Students Kit Foley. He trains resident advi-sors and directors, serves as the face of discipline, particularly for more serious issues and alcohol incidents. Samuels estimates that there were about 12 incidents so far this academic year. Samuels also attends commuter council meetings each month and meets with the council president at least once per month. He said commuters have expressed park-ing concerns this semester. “I’m always available to hear any concerns that the commuters have, which is part of the reason my office is in this building,” said Samuels whose office is located near Cabrera’s in the Cougar Lounge. Cabrera is also happy with her office placement. She enjoys her interactions with the students and using the remodeled lounge to her advantage. “There is a lot of student traffic, so I get to interact with the com-muter students. We also get to use the kitchen for activities. Its not so office-y. I learned how to block out whenever I need to do work. Before when I came in here during the summer it was empty. Its nice to have interactions and hear their conversations, it’s interesting,” said Cabrera. Both Cabrera and Samuels have an open door policy and encour-age students to approach them at any time with concerns or ideas for events. Falveyp@misericordia.edu

Business Boom Continued

Viewfinder: President’s Cup Volleyball Tournament

DEANNA DARLING /THE HIGHLANDER

and she has advertised the store on campus. She said that the store does tend to cater toward women with a more mature taste in clothing, but Buka does bring in “younger” lines, like Quicksilver and other surf brands. The prices on these items may be more af-fordable for college students, said Grover. She believes that part of the problem could be that students, especially those without cars on campus, don’t know that Buka exists. “I do wish I was working on a little main street,” said Grover, who used to work in a boutique in Cape May, NJ, a notorious walking town. “Here is more of a destina-tion. People have to come specifi-cally and find us.”

Grover said it is difficult to ad-vertise, considering she runs the shop by herself, but she would like to target college students by offer-ing a student discount or placing fliers in students’ mailboxes on campus. “There’s an audience there for it. It’s just about hitting the right people and getting the right people to know you’re here,” Grover said. And some of the “right” people may not be buyers. They are sometimes sellers, too. MU Senior Deanna Davis said her job at a local business in Dallas helped her save more money than she could when she had to drive back and forth to her hometown of Scranton for work at The Mall at Steamtown. She began working

at Connor’s Grillroom on Memo-rial Highway in January, which is just a short drive from her apart-ment. She said this arrangement is easier on her gas tank. “I used to spend $60 in gas a week. Now, it’s $30 every two weeks,” she said. “I can work more and make more money since I’m closer [to school].” Davis said her grades have improved significantly after taking the job. “The hours are better. I don’t have to waste time driving instead of studying and it’s not a big chain restaurant,” she said. “It’s a small enough where I feel like my school schedule matters and my hours can be more flexible.” Mazurg@misericordia.edu

Clockwise, teams compete for the chance to dine with the President at T.G.I. Fridays. Junior Dayna Richter bumps the ball before it can reach the sand. Sophomore Cael Evans, part of the winning volleyball cup team, serves the ball over the net during the afternoon volleyball games. President Michael MacDowell overhands the ball during his annual tournament hosted by SGA.

First year Dana Jolley and coworker Kaitlin Kean team up to tackle multiple orders at Pizza Bella.ELLEN HOFFMAN /THE HIGHLANDER

Continued from page 1

October 9, 2012highlandernews.net 3News

CAPSCORNER

Study abroad: No tango in Paris?By Ellen Hoffman, Editor-in-Chief Study abroad programs are on the rise throughout the coun-try, according to the Institute of International Education. But during the 2012 spring semester at Misericordia University, only three students studied for a full semester abroad. Kings College and Wilkes Uni-versity each send between 50 to 60 students abroad per semester. Mollie Farmer, Director of Study Abroad at Kings College, noticed a small but steady increase in stu-dents from her school who choose to study abroad for a full semes-ter, rather than a shorter trip. Carolyn Yencharis Corcoran, Assistant Director in the Insalaco Center for Career Development, can only guess why students at Misericordia do not seem inter-ested in studying abroad for full semesters. “Since most students don’t come back to tell me if and why they are not choosing to go abroad, I can only guess as to some of the reasons why,” she said. Corcoran named cost as the main reason students may shy away from abroad programs. Studying abroad is more expensive than staying on campus, accord-ing to Corcoran. Additional costs are taken into account as well, including plane tickets and travel expenses while abroad. “The dollar is weak against many currencies, and many study abroad opportunities occur in a city environment which is way more expensive than Dallas, PA,” she said. Another roadblock could be that institutional aid and institutional scholarships, such as the McAuley Award, do not travel abroad with students, according to Corcoran. Corcoran said she has seen students travel abroad despite the expenses. She provides interested students with a worksheet, help-ing them to plan their expenses. “If a student knows she/he wants to go abroad and she/he estimates how much money is needed and plans well in advance by working and saving money over a couple of breaks, holidays and summers, it can be done,” Corco-ran said. “I guess in that case, it would just depend on the level of desire and ambition to study abroad the students possesses.” Students’ specific majors may be

another reason students shy away from studying abroad, Corcoran said. She said that health science majors like nursing and medical imaging have a very tight cur-ricular structure, which may not translate well into a semester abroad. Thirty-nine percent of U.S. students spent an entire semes-ter studying abroad in 2010, and 270,604 students studied abroad for credit during the academic year 2009/10. That’s compared to 260,327 the previous year, accord-ing to the Institute for Interna-tional Education. Students major-ing in social sciences, business management or humanities were at the top of the charts for the number of students who studied abroad in the past few years. Lauren Carey, a junior psychol-ogy/doctorate of physical therapy major studied abroad in Ireland during the spring semester of her sophomore year. Carey noticed that only a small number of students seem interested, and she encourages more students to research abroad programs, regard-less of major. “I was prepared, but I was sur-prised,” Carey said of her expenses abroad. Overall she ended up spending more than she expected. What surprised her the most was the cost to wash clothes in her village. The house she stayed in for five months did not have a laun-dry room. There was a laundromat nearby, but washing clothes came at a high price. Carey said she expanded her cultural knowledge and “grew so much as an individual” after spending five months traveling through Ireland and its surround-ing countries. “Studying abroad is important because it really helps you find yourself and become very inde-pendent. It’s important to experi-ence as many new and uncomfort-able situations as you can so that you don’t graduate and wonder what else is out there.” The Institute for International Education noted that large insti-tutions sent the highest number of students abroad throughout the U.S, but many smaller collegiate schools send a higher amount of their students abroad. Those smaller schools reported in 2011 they sent more than 70 percent of

their students at some point dur-ing their undergraduate careers. Arcadia University is one of the smaller schools mentioned by the Institute. Misericordia works with Arcadia to give students more traveling options. Arcadia and Webster University, both nationally recognized study abroad programs, have a coop-erative relationship that helps to provide MU students with more study abroad options. Corcoran works with students to find the right abroad trip for each individual. “I tend to get a lot of students in my office inquiring about studying abroad and I try to connect them with students that have studied abroad in the past,” she said. “If students are looking for a specific language or area we would work with them to make sure it happens.” Although numbers are low, more students seem interested in service or summer trips abroad. Campus Ministry offers a number of popular service trips abroad throughout the academic year and English professor Dr. Scott Blanchard teaches a course that allows students to spend four weeks in Italy during the summer. Blanchard’s course, Italy in Literature in Film, allows students to have a shorter experience, and students do not miss any of their spring or fall semester classes. Corcoran said this is the first program like this at MU, and she thinks it is a great way for students interested in traveling abroad to get a taste of that ex-perience, and at a lower cost than that of a full semester. “Dr. Blanchard’s program as well as those run through campus min-istry are less expensive because Dr. Blanchard and our campus ministry department work very hard to try and keep the costs as low as possible for our students. They know that students are not rich,” Corcoran said. No matter which abroad experi-ence students choose, Corco-ran said study abroad programs change students and build character. “When you’re abroad, you’re constantly analyzing things and you’re constantly comparing and contrasting things and expanding your mind and your way of think-ing,” Corcoran said. “We live in a

global society and students should have some exposure to that.” Corcoran said students need to feel comfortable with themselves before they find themselves in a completely different environment, sometimes where no one speaks the same language. She gave the example of needing to grocery shop alone, in foreign territory. “Students gain skills in leader-ship, self assertiveness, when you’re in a foreign country you have to do things like find out where the supermarket is, and it could be your first solo trip and so you learn how to be a little more assertive.” Corcoran believes studying abroad is something students would never forget, and she feels it can work for any student, of any background, in any major. “I always say you would never regret going abroad but you might regret not going abroad because it is truly a life changing experi-ence and I think a lot of times for students it ends up being a line of demarcation, who I was before going abroad and who I am after.” Hoffmae3@misericordia.edu

Menu Continued

Man On The Street

The Photography Club will be holding its first meeting!

Snap!

Snap!

Snap!

Where: McGowan Room, Mary Kints Bevivino LibraryWhen: October 17 at 6 p.m.

Why: To learn about photography and how to use a professional grade digital camera

Contact Mary Bove (Bovem@misericordia.edu) with questions

Snap!

Snap!

Snap!

A visual breakdown of the average number of stu-dents who travel abroad per year by major.

Social Sciences: 21.5Humanities: 13.3Business & Management: 20.2Applied Arts: 8.4Physical & Life Sciences: 7.2Loreign Languages: 6.2Health Sciences: 4.5Education: 4.1Engineering: 3.1Math & Computer Sciences: 1.6Agriculture: 1.2 Other: 5.4Undeclared: 3.3

This study was conducted 2007-2008 by the Institute of Education Sciences and the National Center of Educa-tion Statistics.

Majors That Travel Students in the Banks Student Life Center have strong opinions about the October 3 Presidential debate held at the University of Denver from 9 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. The candidates sparred about domestic affairs.

“I thought there weren’t enough facts and that they wasted the debate fight-ing. Both stayed on topic and didn’t get into much mudslinging,” said Caitlin Vitale, sophomore.

“I felt I became a more informed citizen and more capable in my voting decision,” said Heather Marsico, sophomore.

“I thought Romney held his own as the new guy and that Obama was not as prepared for Romney’s points and did not answer questions directly,” said Sam Corey, alumni.

“I saw parts and thought that Romney made some good points and called out Obama on his statements about taxes. Obama made good points as well,” Jackie Paluzeck, junior.

“I think Romney kept Obama on the ropes, he seemed better prepared. I only saw pieces of the de-bate though,” said Patrick Johnson, sophomore.

gluten. “Gluten free just comes with the territory most of the time because if you’re going to cater to one allergy, why not cater to five?” Metz has also added a variety of other gluten free products includ-ing wraps, breads, pastas, soup stocks and gravy bases. “There’s gluten in things that you don’t even realize – stuff like sauces and gravies, where gluten is used as a binder - so unless you read the labels, you don’t know,” said Franssen. “But now, we have a company that sells natural foods and they came out with a whole line of gluten free bases.” Because food labels are impor-tant to help diners identify po-tentially harmful foods--such as in Boyer’s case--Metz has placed carefully labeled signs by certain foods, including soups, to help staff and students determine if the items fit into their diets. “There are a lot of items that are ‘normal’ that people with a gluten intolerance can eat, which is why we started to label things with the ‘gluten free’ part or ‘vegan’ and

‘soy’,” said Franssen. The menu makeover exists because of open communication between Metz Culinary manage-ment staff and students, said Franssen. Students can address their concerns via Facebook or at the early semester meeting that Metz holds for students with special dietary concerns. “This is your home. This is where you’re eating, and we want to make sure that you’re taken care of,” said Franssen. Franssen said student feedback could lead Metz to develop more meals for individuals with specific diets such as vegan and vegetar-ian. Franssen said the entire menu includes many new options, including hummus, a vegan soup and more options in the salad bar--such as black beans. “The menu is always a work in progress,” she said. Smitha10@misericorida.edu

MIRRORLESS MONDAY - October 22nd(Sponsored by Healthy Options Peer Educators)

This is the day each year that mirrors across the country are covered to remind us all that who we are is not defined by outward appearance. On Monday, October 22nd, our cam-pus mirrors in public restrooms will be covered and positive statements for self-affirmation and confidence will be posted on the coverings. So instead of looking at yourself and criti-cizing yourself and/or your outward appearance, take a mo-ment to read a positive statement and look within and know

your own particular beauty lies within you.

The CAPS Center exists to assist university students address personal and developmental issues which hinder their abil-ity to achieve their educational and career goals. The CAPS Center staff recognizes and exercises the values and attitudes of mercy, service, justice, and hospitality put forth by the founding Sisters of Mercy and works with students from a

holistic perspective - attending to mind, body, and spirit.

Continued from page 1

October 9, 2012highlandernews.net4 Sports

Swim to successBy Josh Horton, Reporter Athletic Director Dave Martin wanted to wait until he found the perfect fit before hiring a new swimming coach. He believes he found that in Matt VanDerMeid. “You know we weren’t just look-ing for a swim coach,” Martin said. “There is much more to the job than coaching. We needed some-one who could coach and be our director of aquatics and Matt was the perfect fit for the job.” This will be VanDerMeid’s first stint as a head coach after spending the past three years as an assistant swimming coach at SUNY-Geneseo. He comes from a solid program as the Knights have won three consecutive SUNYAC titles. Martin has no doubt VanDer-Meid’s success, as an assistant will translate well to the head coaching position. “He was a 10-time All-American in swimming as a sprinter,” Martin said. “The last three years he has been a full time assistant coach at Geneseo where he ran all of their aquatics programs. He’s got the division-3 background, which is important.” VanDerMeid won’t have any problem adjusting to the divi-sion-3 lifestyle as he enjoyed an abundance of success at Geneseo as a student athlete. “He’s a 10-time All-American, obviously he knows what it takes to be successful in the pool,” Martin said. “Both of our men and women have been outstanding and he knows what we need to do to get to that next level.” Martin feels VanDerMeid’s experience as a swimmer and as a coach will only help build an already prestigious Misericordia swimming program. “I feel like we already have a fantastic program in place and we really are one of the top swim pro-grams in the MAC,” Martin said. “With that being said, bringing in a guy like Matt will only make us even more of a presence in the

conference. I am very excited for our swimmers.” Junior swimmer Doug Ranson agrees with Martin about the state of the program and says the team as a whole is beginning to adjust to VanDerMeid’s philoso-phy. “As a whole, our team was obviously anxious and hesitate at first with bringing in a new coach,” Ranson said. “But, not after a few weeks of practice, I’m pretty happy with the workouts. I definitely think that we are going to get faster and set ourselves up pretty nicely when MAC’s roll around in February.” VanDerMeid comes from one of the toughest conferences in all of division-3 swimming and also one of the premier teams in the conference in Geneseo. “Geneseo is the top program in the SUNY Conference,” Martin said. “So like I said before we are really getting a top guy here. He understands the division-3 philosophy, it’s rules in relations to recruiting and he knows how to train great swimmers and we couldn’t be happier with the pick.” VanDerMeid replaces Jason Morini who left Misericordia following last season. Morini left the Cougars to become head swimming and diving coach of the SUNY-Brockport Golden Eagles. VanDerMeid has big shoes to fill as Morini led the Cougars to a winning season in each of the last four years, as well as breaking 32 school records. After his eight year tenure Morini posted a record of 105-63. The men’s team finished second in the MAC Tournament last season, while the women finished third. The men and women open up the 2012-2013 season on October 20th at home against the Stevens Institute of Technology Ducks. Hortonj@misericordia.edu

Cheerleaders get crowd roaring for footballBy Gia Mazur, Reporter Senior Amber Schmidt has been an MU cheerleader since her freshman year. Schmidt has attended practices, tumbling classes and cheerleading camps in addition to cheering at every basketball game and competing in every team competition. This year Schmidt is a captain, along with senior Alyssa McEntee and junior Sarah Richard. Unlike her fellow captains, Schmidt had never before cheered at a football game. “Unless you want to count my peewee football cheerleading days,” Schmidt said, laughing. Schmidt chose to be a basketball cheerleader at Scranton High School and dedicated herself to cheering for that sport even when football cheering was an option.

Schmidt said MU cheerleading consists of one team for both sports and that football games are “a different atmosphere.” “Being outside, our bodies have to get used to the cold while cheering instead of in a warm gym,” she said. Schmidt said that the team had to learn new material. The team learned a fight song dance and four different band dances for football games during their time at the Universal Cheerleading Association’s cheerleading camp at the University of Scranton this summer. The team also is allowed to perform stunts during football games that they cannot perform during basketball season due to NCAA rules. For example, basket tosses are prohibited in a gym, but

the team can perform them on the track. The crowd is enthusiastic about these more daring stunts and the cheerleaders in general, said Schmidt. “We are directly in front of the crowd the whole game, so when we start our callback cheers, the crowd joins in,” she said. “The fans are really supportive.” Freshman Brittany Delancey, who likewise never cheered for football, also enjoys the crowd participation. Delancey was a wrestling cheerleader for four years at Elk Lake Junior Senior High School and likes that she gets to move around to pump up the crowd. “We just sat there for wrestling. Football cheerleading is a lot more crowd-friendly,” said Delancey.

“It’s more fun and [because foot-ball began earlier] we’ve had more time to bond and get to know each other.” Schmidt agrees that an early season benefits both her physical strength and the team’s dynamic. The cheerleaders worked to-gether during their time at UCA cheerleading camp in early August and returned to school a week later for preseason practice. By the first football game, they were already in shape for the season and in sync with each other. “By starting the season early, we are hitting skills as a team for our routine now, rather than in late October or early November,” said Schmidt. The team practices four times a week during the regular season.

Monday nights are tumbling class when the team works with an instructor and regular coaching staff to increase tumbling skills. Outside of practice, the team has conditioning sessions throughout the week. Schmidt said that the new training was added to the program to give the cheerleaders in shape. “Being stronger, you are more confident with yourself and your teammates because you know their bodies are able to handle the wear and tear,” said Schmidt. “We work out as a team so each girl sees the hard work.” Team bonding is crucial, said Schmidt, and she hopes it will lead to greater success. The team is ranked fifth in the nation, the highest ever. The team will attend

UCA Nationals in Walt Disney World during winter break. “It’s an indescribable feeling to know you just went out there and gave it your all with the girls you consider your sisters,” Schmidt said. Schmidt said that cheerleaders are recognized as athletes at MU and she, along with her fellow captains, say they are grateful for their dedicated coaching staff. , Schmidt believes changes to the program were for the best. “I have seen with my own eyes the growth of the program in the four years I have been here,” she said. “We saw how much heart, motivation, and determination each one of us had. We became a cheer family.” Mazurg@misericordia.edu

Active student bodies look to rugbyBy James Fisher, Reporter A new club promises to help students shape up this semester. Patrick McKamy, Coordinator of Student Activities, started a rugby team in the hope of help-ing students get more active on campus and have something to do. McKamy has a background with rugby, having played three years in college. “We’re looking at different types of programming to get students active on campus,” McKamy said. “We’re trying to get them more physically active as well, not just sit in and do something. Rugby is a really great game to build com-munity and to get participants ac-tive but not in an organized sport. It’s a really good way to promote that collegiate community here on campus.” Rugby is an aggressive contact sport, something that sophomore Holly Reese said is exactly what she signed up for when she joined the team. “I needed a good contact sport at the school,” said Reese. “Rugby is kind of rough.” Unfortunately for Reese, the contact part of rugby part of the game quite yet. Reese said it’s too early to think about getting roughed up and that right now the team is focusing on the basics, such as passing, catching and kicking.

“Right now we’re just doing touch,” Reese said. “Right now we’re not into [the sport] yet but once we learn the basics we will be doing tackles.” Rugby requires 16 people on a team, with eight people playing in the front and eight in the back. The way to score is moving the ball forward by passing it backwards, meaning there are no forward passes. It is very fast-paced with no time outs and no huddles. The point is to score a “try,” which is the technical term for a score in rugby. The team does not have any fu-ture competition lined up to test their continuity as a group, but McKamy said that although they are not at that point yet, he will hopefully coordinate games with other regional schools. “This is just our tentative now. We’re not to that point yet,” said McKamy. “Right now we’re just really looking on basics and skills and trying to get together a team.” Even though rugby is a rare sport on campus, one team mem-ber is very familiar with the sport. Sophomore Bridgette Guarnieri knows the game of rugby through her dad who played for his chiro-practic school, and she considers it kind of a family thing. Guarnieri is no stranger to athletics, having played soccer all

four years in high school in the goalie position, and she said rugby is a good way to keep active and get back in the game that her dad helped her to know and love. “I like to be athletic,” said Guarnieri. “I like to get involved in sports and learn new things.” But rugby’s soccer-like fast pace, does give Guarnieri an advantage over other players. She believes that involvement any sport would give a player a bit of a boost “Just being involved in a sport I think gives you an advantage in anything,” said Guarnieri. “Rug-by’s pretty different, actually.” McKamy said recruiting efforts include posting flyers, playing vis-ibly on campus in front of McHale Hall and holding organizational meetings. McKamy said the team’s goal is fun and interested students don’t need any experience to join. The rugby team meets three times a week from 3 to 4 p.m. ev-ery Monday and Wednesday, and 3 to 5 p.m. every Friday. Fridays are considered “bring a friend to rugby day” to attract newbies to the sport. Although the semester is half way over, McKamy said it is never too late to join. He said hopes this team will become a part of the rich history of Misericordia. FisherJ@misericordia.edu

Top left, attendees of the homecoming football game watch the field and the sidelines as the Cougar cheerleaders participate in several builds to pump up the crowd and raise the morale of the men on the field.

Above, first year Erica Moore gets ready to do a punch for a sideline set. Cheerleaders added Cougar football jerseys to their uniforms this week for an extra dose of spirit.

Far left, first year Danica Kuti sits on the shoulders of sophomore Kelsey Wolsieffer while she finishes a cheer during the spiriting sec-tion of their performance.

Left, first year Caitlynn Roper participates in a d-d-defense sideline set during the homecoming football game on September 29, 2012.

MARY BOVE /THE HIGHLANDER

Blind Side: The side nearest to the touch line.Dummy: A technique where one pretends to pass the ball.Knock On: Where a player drops the ball forward (toward the op-ponent’s goal line)Maul: A loose formation brought around a player who is still in posses-sion of the ball and has not been brought to the ground.Ruck: A loose formation created around a free ball or a player who has been brought to the ground with the ball.Scrum: A tight formation between the two opposing teams in readiness for the ball to be put in the tunnel between the two front rows and brought out into play.

RugbyTerminology

October 9, 2012highlandernews.net 5Sports

Setting pace for lifeBy Devaughn Patterson, Reporter The men’s and women’s cross country teams continue to train and grow as a unit even though the season is underway. Coach Chris Wadas feels the training makes the runners com-petitive. “We’re in the fourth meet. In the first meet the girls got first and the guys got second. The next meet we went to, the girls got fourth and the guys won it, and with our upcoming meets the team members are using it as a type of strategy as a workout race,” said Wadas. Wadas’ goal for the team is to become more unified. “I feel if that happened they would become more trusting of each other and find more success. It’s pretty much the key to a lot of teams.” Cross country serves as both a team and individual sport. Mem-bers are looking to build trust in one another and meet their personal goals as well. Sophomore Rebecca Santoleri said she is working to improve her times from last year. “This year I’m trying to work on my race strategy where I can either start out at more comfortable pace and then work myself to go a little faster towards the end of the race.” Santoleri thinks the training regimen helps her personal times and thinks her teammates would agree. “We’ve been doing a lot of miles lately so that certainly helps us with our speed because once you get the miles up you should be able to run faster,” said Santoleri. “Personally I’m trying to run a faster 6 K than last year and I’m hoping that this will make me faster for track season,” said Santoleri. Wadas said runners can get to the top if they make running a part of their lifestyle. “They accept the fact that their sport is running so they have to train hard and go out and run

eight miles a day. It stinks some-times, but it’s what they have to do to get where they want to be as a runner,” said Wadas. Although the training can be intense, especially with early morning practices and a full class load, the runners agree it is worth all the time in the end. “We complain about it some-times because in the morning it’s very cold, but once you get out there you feel good about it and it’s kind of like a self-accomplish-ment,” said Santoleri. Training schedules differs depending on the skill-building practice runners need, whether it is endurance or speed. Rest is part of the training, too. “If we had a 10 mile run we run at 5:00 in the morning and 5:00 at night and that makes it easier on our legs. So it’s worth it in the long run, but short runs are a dif-ferent story,” said Higley. The teams also complete weight training exercises throughout the week to keep their muscles loose and strong. But no matter what sort of training they have sched-uled for the day, the team agrees they need to work to encourage each other to get the outcomes they want. “We’re trying to work on work-ing together during the races. Before it was always about com-petitiveness amongst ourselves in-stead of focusing on the competi-tion, but now we’re trying to work together,” Higley said. “It’s not going to happen right away, but we’re trying.” Pattersd@misericordia.edu

MARY BOVE /THE HIGHLANDER

MU Exposure: Cougars v. Wild Stangs for First Homecoming Football Game

Top left, junior Sara Sabatino holds onto a lead over a Delaware Valley College runner.

Top right, junior Josh Krall wears a sporty pair of sunnies while racing against Kings and Lackawanna.

Middle left, sophomore AJ Limongelli and first year Mikael Hause sets their paces during a race.

Middle right, junior Julia Blaskiewicz breaks from the pack upon hitting her stride, demonstrating the importance of pacing before a runner kicks.

Left, senior Marina Orrson leads the pack during an early in the season meet.

ALLEN SABATINO FOR THE HIGHLANDER

Above, photographs captured by sophomore Mary Bove of the first homecoming football game in the school’s history. The team scored their first touchdown on Manglesdorf Field during the match-up that ended in a 35-7 loss to the Stevenson Wild Stangs.

Pre-game attendees tailgated and enjoyed the homecoming atmo-sphere that included games, face painting, barbecue and other tradi-tional tailgating festivities.

Cross Country Meet Schedule (Men’s and women’s)

10/13 Gettysburg 10:30 a.m10/27 MAC Championship 12 p.m.11/10 NCAA East Regional TBA

For more information visit Misericorida Athletics

October 9, 2012highlandernews.net6

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