MC Goes Mad at Midnight - Merrimack College Dining Services

Friday, October 25, 2013
Vol. XII Number 3
www.merrimacknewspaper.com
MC Goes Mad at Midnight
Molly Canyes ’15
Staff Writer
On Friday, Merrimack College
hosted its second annual Midnight
Madness, a pep rally held to rev up
the Warrior community for the upcoming sports season.
All winter sports teams were recognized at this event; however, the
men and women’s basketball teams
collectively stole the attention from
the crowd. The women’s basketball
team made it clear they are not just
your average ballplayers by showing their dance skills in a performance choreographed by junior Tayla
Fernandez.
Various contests took place such
as a three-point shoot out competition, Junkyard relay race, and slam
dunk contest. Mary-Kate Greene
’16 commented on how obvious the
men’s and women’s basketball
teams bond was displayed through
the night’s activities.
The crowd was influenced to
show their school sprit with an
iTunes gift card given as a prize to
the student who came best dressed
as Merrimack’s super fan. The Merrimack community was treated to
free T-shirts, rally towels and pizza
while they enjoyed the late night
festivities in the Volpe Athletic
Complex.
The dunk competition was a big
hit at midnight madness. Every
student who went to the event received a scorecard and it was up to
the students to decide who he or
she thought was the winner. Anthony Barry ’16, Tawayne, Anderson Jr. ’17, and Gelvis Solano ’16
competed in basketball dunking.
Nominees got creative with their
strategy to dunk in the contest,
since most couldn’t actually get the
ball in the hoop. Their dunks were
so creative that they could be something one would see at an upper
level dunk competition. The crowd
really interacted with the players
and got the students moving with
excitement.
While the women’s basketball
team did their best to get down and
jiggy with it, the Dance Team stole
everyone’s eyes and hearts as they
moved swiftly and beautifully during their latest routine.
As Merrimack students, we are
fortunate to have an event such as
Midnight Madness offered to us.
Blue and gold confetti showers MC hoops players in Volpe.
Photo by Kelli Readey
It’s a way to showcase our school dition must live on for future Merspirit while bonding with our peers rimack students and athletes to exand professors. Hopefully Midnight perience what it truly is like to be a
Madness doesn’t stop here; the tra- Warrior.
Commuters Miss, Mesh With MC Community
Tia Roy ’15
Staff Writer
Twenty-five percent of the Merrimack student
body is made up of commuter students. They
choose to commute for a variety of reasons, in-
Commuter Priscilla Khaknejad ’15
Photo by Tia Roy
cluding the cost of living on campus, a preference
for living at home with family or in an off-campus apartment with friends, and health concerns.
Many commuters are engaged with on-campus
events and activities, and other aspects of student life, but there are also a great number who
simply drive to campus to attend class and then
get back in their car to head home. “I think that
I made myself a part of the community. Merrimack doesn’t really do a lot for their commuter
population in terms of making them feel comfortable,” said commuter Samantha Bruno ’14.
According to many members of the commuter
student population, it is the job of the growing
Merrimack community to make commuters feel
just as home as they would feel at their own
house, wherever that may be.
John Garland, coordinator of the National
Clearinghouse for Commuter Programs, explained that to commuter students, “home and
campus are not synonyms.”
One of the most beneficial aspects of college is
the opportunity to live away from home and to
spend mornings, weeknights and weekends with
your classmates. Kim Martin ’15 addressed the
hardest part about commuting: “I’m not on campus other than when I have class, so I feel like I
miss a lot of the activities that go on and do not
know as many people as someone who lives on
campus.”
Some commuters feel as though they are getting the full Merrimack experience, including
Thomas Shanahan ’15. “I know a lot of commuters don’t feel like they are part of this community, but that’s because most don’t stay
around and rather leave right after class,” explained Shanahan. “If they do stick around and
go meet people I assure you they will feel like
they are part of this Merrimack community.”
Some commuters point out the advantages of living off-campus.
Casey Duggan ’15 was once a residential student and now lives in an apartment with her
boyfriend, “Now I have a separate kitchen with a
dining room table, my own living room with a
couch and TV, as well as a bedroom with a huge
bed and TV along with my own bathroom,” she
said.
There is no single area dedicated to commuters on campus that would serve as an area
for them to stash their belongings or just spend
time between classes. Many colleges in Massachusetts have a commuter lounge, including
Mount Holyoke College, Wheelock College, Regis
College and Simmons College. Due to renovations and changes in the location of offices and
departments, commuters can utilize a locker free
of charge located in the fitness center on the second floor of the Sak.
This semester, various Resident Advisors are
offering their floor programs to not only the students on their floor but to commuter students as
well. This will allow commuter students to become engaged in typical residential life activities. According to George Kuh, Robert Gonyea,
and Megan Palmer, authors of “The Disengaged
Commuter Student,” much work must be done
in higher education to allow the involvement of
learning for commuter students to be a tangible
experience.
Page 2
The Beacon
Editorial Board
Editor in Chief
Karamarie Joyce ’15
October 25, 2013
Questions on the Quad
By Alex Maas ’14
What are you going to be for Halloween?
Associate
Editor in Chief
Schuyler Watkins ’14
Creative Director &
Design Editor
Jessica Raver ’15
Sports Editor
Patrick Bradley ’14
Copy Editor
Ashley Yenick ’14
Media Editor
Alexandra Maas’14
Finance Editor
Vince Bellino ’14
THE BEACON
Staff
Jimmy Callen
Molly Canyes
Tia Fan Chen
Brendan Doherty
CJ Flannery
Andrew Fournier
Mathew Galvao
Bridget Gilroy
Lance Hill
ChoiWong Kong
Thomas McCarthy
Roger McCormack
Teresa Polli
Colleen Quinlan
Alessia Rosati
Tia Roy
Justin Ruano
James Sardella
Sean Talbot
Kali Tudisco
Mary Unis
Jackie Vlahos
Ozzie Watkins
Advisor
Jim Chiavelli
Adjunct Professor
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www.merrimacknewspaper.com
Ryan Villett ’16
“A Mime”
Maria Gill ’17 and Olivia Martin ’17
“80’s workout instructor”
“Angels”
Student Actor Charged
With Murder Attempt
Alexandra Maas ’14
Media Editor
Merrimack student Matthew McCormick was arrested
by campus police Saturday evening and charged with assault and battery and assault with intent to murder.
The arrest interrupted a campus
performance of “True West,” in which
he was a lead character.
McCormick, 30, of Arlington, was
delivered to Arlington police, who had
requested Merrimack police serve the
arrest warrant, and appeared Monday in Cambridge District Court.
Arlington police were called to McMcCormick, in Cormick’s home on Madison Avenue
a publicity shot at 3 a.m. Saturday. There his girlfriend was found crying, with bruises
from ‘True
on her chin and neck, according to a
West.’
police report. She told officers that
McCormick began to assault and strangle her in the bedroom, after arguing about text messages he had received
from another woman. She was able to escape to the living
room, where he knocked her to the floor and continued to
strangle her, she alleged. She told police she got away from
him and he left in his car. Police said they found signs of
damage on the bedroom floor, office and hallway walls.
According to McCormick’s Facebook page, he is a physical trainer and teaches the martial-arts-based workout
“BodyCombat” to women.
Arlington police declined to say if McCormick was released on bail. Merrimack police would not say whether
he is permitted to return to campus.
Brady Dyer ’17
Mack Tweets
Sami Brady
@samibrady_3
Lady at dunks just
put extra whipped cream
on my hot chocolate
#mademynight
Steph Eaton
@Le_Stino
The amount of people
in Sparky`s right now is
approx. the population of
New Zealand
Brendan Cody
@Da_Viinci_CODES
To whoever folded my
laundry, thank you
#YouDawoMAN
Mar
@Hey_MARcarena
Ballers really are
ballers
Joke of The Week
Colin Flannery `14
Staff Writer
The owner of a drugstore arrives at work to
find a man leaning heavily against a wall.
The owner goes inside and asks the cashier
working what’s up.
“He wanted something for his cough, but I
couldn’t find the cough syrup,” the clerk
explains. “So I gave him a laxative and told
him to take it all at once.”
“Laxatives won’t cure a cough, you idiot!”
the owner shouts angrily.
“Sure it will,” the clerk says, pointing at the
man leaning on the wall. “Look at him! He’s
afraid to cough! He’ll be cured in no time!”
Police Log
Oct. 14, 1:18 a.m.
Sex assault (non rape)
Inappropriate advance by a male
towards a female reported. Male
placed in custody. Reports taken.
Oct. 16, 6:45pm
Concern/Safety Issue
Student found shotgun shell outside his living area, which he threw
into the woods then reported to Merrimack police. Situation under investigation.
Oct. 18, 7:52 p.m.
Arrest
Non-student trespasser arrested
and taken to North Andover police
station.
10:33 p.m.
Stolen property
Computer possibly stolen from
the library. Computer has been put
out of service by IT. Under investigation
found in room. Report taken.
8:35 p.m.
Commuter student arrested at
Rogers Center.
Oct 19 , 1:28am
Suspicious activity
Female observed removing a window screen from a residence. Female
stated it was her room; she was
locked out. Unregistered guest
3:01 a.m.
Church Lot disturbance
Altercation between a student
and a registered guest resulted in
the guest calling for a ride and leaving campus
Oct. 20, 1:42am
Suspicious activity
Non-student arrested for trespassing and disorderly conduct.
October 25, 2013
The Beacon
Page 3
Mary Unis ’14
Staff Writer
The Den is offering more variety this year.
Photo by Andrew Fournier
Den Offers More Choice
Andrew Fournier ’14
Staff Writer
This year has seen an evolution of The
Warrior Den and what it has to offer to students on campus. It includes new additions
such as the Tapingo mobile application,
and more meal options, which range from
Mexican to Japanese food.
More on campus residents are utilizing
the new smartphone application, Tapingo,
to order food ahead of time and pick it up
without having to wait in line for it. Simply downloading this to your smartphone
allows you to create and customize the
meal you want to be prepared. Then, just
by inputting your MackCard or credit card,
you can submit your order for pickup. This
application’s easy-to-use interface is making it more popular on campus.
Senior Thomas Casanova is very pleased
with the implementation of Tapingo. “It is
extremely convenient to be able to get a
sufficient meal quickly during our hectic
schedules, seeing as there is little to no
time to sit down and enjoy a meal between
classes and work,” he said.
Also, food choices in The Den have expanded since last year. Quesaritos is an alternative to what the The Den typically
offers for food, with Mexican cuisine such
as burritos, quesadillas, and taco salads
made to order.
Sparky’s To Go is another option for
lunch or dinner if you’re in a rush between
class and practice. By swiping your MackCard, you can pick up a complete meal if
you aren’t able to make it to the cafeteria.
Choices include sandwiches and salads
with chips, fruit, or cookies for a side.
Within The Den itself, premade meals
are available to buy as well. Anything from
microwaveable dinners to F’Real milkshakes can be purchased at the leisure of the
students. Also, there is a station that serves
different types of sushi, made fresh daily.
In all, these along with the new features
that are offered are becoming popular with
students who seek a change to their dining
experience at Merrimack.
Successful Grad Behind Girard
Teresa Polli ’16
Staff Writer
The School of Business
has been a significant part
of Merrimack history. The
primarily undergraduate
business program offers
students small classrooms,
creating more interaction
with peers and teachers,
and real-world opportunities including internships
and co-ops, along with a
forward-looking curriculum.
The school covers the
areas of accounting, finance, marketing, management and international
business. It offers a number of minors, including
business, accounting, finance, marketing, management, human resource
management and operations management.
However, the business
school at Merrimack would
not be where it is today
without the generosity of
Frank E. Girard.
When Girard first enrolled at Merrimack, he
was a night student in
hope of earning his associate’s degree. He worked
full-time as an industrial
photographer for Craig
Systems Inc., but got a
push from the company
president, Erick Kaunders,
to become a full-time student. With the chance to
prove himself, Girard became a member of the student council and news
editor of the school newspaper, and earned the second best grades in the
school of business in his
first semester.
After graduating from
Merrimack in 1962 with a
degree in business administration Girard entered
military service, then became president and CEO
of Boston Technology, later
becoming CEO of Comverse Network Systems.
After reaching success,
Frank E. Girard was more
than happy to share his
prosperity with Merrimack. He donated $2.5
million to the school that
pushed him and shaped
him into the successful
man he is today. Because
of Frank Girard’s gift,
many students are going to
be given the opportunity to
be part of the Girard
School of Business. Priests and orientation leaders
came together to pirouette, tango, and
disco their way to the top, as the Merrimack College Dance Team hosted its
fifth annual “Dancing with the Stars”
competition on Tuesday.
The “stars” of the show were selected and partnered with members of
the M.C. Dance Team to perform a
short dance routine. Each dancing
duo was offered verbal feedback (both
positive and negative) and a numerical score from judges Bev Lavalee,
Kevin Welch and Domenic DiVincenzo.
Merrimack
senior
Schuyler
Watkins hosted the competition, offering comedic introductions concurrent with the dancing acts. The
consistent laughter from the crowd
showed the competition to be equally
humorous as it was entertaining.
“This is going to turn into Dancing
With the Scars,” were the first words
out of faculty member Kevin
Salemme’s mouth before the start of
the show in which he performed a riveting jazz number to Lady Gaga’s
“Bad Romance.”
The audience waited in high anticipation for other members of the faculty and staff such as Father
Raymond Dlugos. Father Ray and his
partner, Kelsey Harrold, scored rather
low by the judges for the night, but offered a great ballet rendition for the
paying customers.
The most exciting aspect of the
competition came toward the end of
the evening: The three “stars” who
had the highest numerical score were
put to a free-for-all dance battle to determine the winner. After their successful performances guided by the
women of the MC dance team, they
were forced to perform on their own.
See STARS
Continued on Page 7
Michaela McIver and P.C. Wan.
Photo by Mary Unis
School News
MC Dances
With
the Stars
Page 4
The Beacon
October 25, 2013
Logan Brings Tales From the Front Lines
Colleen Quinlan ’15
Staff Writer
On Oct. 28, Merrimack College
will be welcoming Lara Logan to
speak at the Rogers Center for the
Arts.
Logan began her career in South
Africa as a television and radio journalist and is currently a “60 Minutes” correspondent and CBS News
chief foreign affairs correspondent.
Logan was born in Durban and
attended University of Natal graduating with a degree in commerce.
During her career Logan worked for
the Sunday Tribune in Durban, the
Daily News, then proceeded to join
television networks such as CBS,
ABC, NBC and the European
Broadcast Union. Logan also
worked with CNN on reporting on
the 1998 U.S. embassy bombing in
Nairobi and Tanzania and the conflict in Northern Ireland.
Logan received and has been
honored with awards throughout
her career such as John F. Hogan
Distinguished Service Award from
Radio Television Digital News Association (RTDNA), followed by a
second Emmy, and was a five-time
American Women in Radio and Television winner. She has won an
Overseas Press Club Award has
twice received the RTDNA/Edward
R. Murrow Award for her reporting
in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Professor Kerry Johnson, who is
on the committee that chooses
speakers, finds Logan not only to be
an excellent journalist, but a strong
woman as well. “Lara has accomplished so much throughout her career,” Johnson said. “She has been
in many difficult situations, but has
always shown courage throughout
them.”
When students come to the talk
on Monday, Johnson wants them to
understand that being a journalist
is not as easy as it looks. “I want
students to see and understand that
it takes a lot of intelligence and
courage to become a real journalist
and engaged in world affairs,” she
said.
Johnson feels that Logan can
open up students’ eyes to make
them understand what is happening overseas and how it impacts us
now and in the future.
“Lara Logan has encountered difficult situations during her career,
but she is tough. She has been
strong and fearless with the situations that she has faced in order to
get her stories,” said Johnson. “She
is a great role model, especially for
young women due to her passion for
her profession. Her courage is a
great inspiration to young women.”
Coke Will Add Life
to Developing Nations
James Callens ’14
Staff Writer
Love among the leaves: An autumn smooch on campus.
Photo by Kelli Readey
Recently, Coca-Cola joined
forces with engineering firm
Deka R&D in an attempt to
transform 2,000 shipping containers into water purifying stations. Dubbing the container the
Ekocenter. They hope to provide
isolated and developing communities with the Ekocenter to produce safe drinking water.
The first prototype is currently
being tested in Heidelberg, South
Africa. It is 20 feet long, and has
solar panels on the roof; in addition to the clean water system.
The Slingshot [made by Deka
R&D], uses vapor compression
distillation to produce clean
drinking water. The device delivers 850 liters of safe drinking
water per day, using less electricity than a hair dryer (1 KWh).
Coca-Cola plans to offer (in addition to Ekocenter) solar charging services, internet access, and
refrigerated storage for medications and vaccines. The Ekocenters
will
be
distributed
throughout Africa, Asia, Latin
America, and North America. By
2015, it is estimated that at least
500 million liters of clean water
from the Ekocenters will be produced per year. And, Coca-Cola
states that they will hire maintenance for the facilities and make
sure that each center meets international health standards.
Coke’s Ekocenter
Spring Concert Survey Says ...
Schuyler Watkins ’14
Associate Editor-in-Chief
Merrimack’s annual Spring Weekend is a
when students are able to enjoy the last few
weeks of school while participating in some of
Merrimack’s approved, and perhaps not so approved activities.
Among the on-campus entertainments that
Merrimack provides for us is the event of the
weekend: The Spring Concert.
Each year, Merrimack students eagerly
wait for that crucial announcement introducing the musical act of the weekend. In the
past, we have encountered talent such as Ludacris, Girl Talk, and most recently, The Band
Perry. After the success of last year’s show,
students turn to the MPB, Merrimack Programming Board, for a performance that is
even more colossal and euphonious then the
previous.
The Merrimack Programming Board is responsible for many of the activities on campus. This board, which is made up of five
committees, strives to accommodate the stu-
dents of Merrimack when it comes to any program, especially the concert. Every year, a
survey is sent to students including different
questions relating to preferred genre of music
we wish to hear, as well as how much we are
willing to spend on a ticket.
Well, the results are in: This year, 36.9 percent of students who took the survey voted for
Country, while 25 percent voted for R&B/Rap,
17.7 percent voted DJ/Electronic, and Pop
came in last with only 15.5 percent of student
votes.
Matt O’Neill and Lauren Foster, co-chairs
of the concert committee, broke down the
steps taken after the results are in. Foster explained, “First we create the genre survey and
await the results. From there, we see who is in
our budget and who would appeal to most students.”
O’Neill added, “We have an agent who we
consult with, so once we get our surveys back,
we send them to him and he sends us a master list of potential artists. From there, Lauren, myself, the assistant director of student
involvement, Rose Dolan, and our graduate
fellow, sit down and decide who will be performing.”
Although this process is not an easy one,
Foster admitted, “We take into account what
students want (and) what will sell tickets on
as well as off campus.”
In order to have students and non-students
fit comfortably inside of Volpe, there is a
3,500-ticket limit. These tickets are open to
the public once Merrimack students have
taken advantage of their “first come, first
served” benefit.
“We aim to keep ticket prices low. $20 is average,” O’Neill confirmed.
“When can you get a $20 ticket to see a big
name band in the front row?” Foster then
added.
Spring weekend this year is April 11 and 12
(April 10-13 for those who like to expand the
weekend) with the concert date not yet confirmed. Regardless of the artist, the Spring
Concert continues to bring the Merrimack
community together in a time of celebration
and festivities.
October 25, 2013
Page 5
The Beacon
This Weekend: Coming Home
Tianfan Chen ’16
Staff Writer
As we are reaching the end of October, Merrimack alumni, students,
faculty and staff prepare to mark
Homecoming Weekend, which opens
tonight (Oct. 25).
First on the agenda for Homecoming Weekend are the men’s soccer
game vs. American International College on the Marton-Mejail Field, and
women’s volleyball vs. LeMoyne at
the Hamel Court at Merrimack Athletics Complex. Both start at 7 p.m.
At 8 p.m., the Mr. Merrimack competition will be held in Rogers Center
for the Arts. Contestants will vie for
the coveted title and crown. Afterward, you can cap off your night with
a visit to Augie’s Pub in the Sakowich
Campus Center.
Major events fill the day Saturday.
Starting at 8 a.m., the annual Homecoming 5k Run: Hope for Haiti will
start from Austin Hall. This event will
race through campus, and benefits
the Merrimack College Haiti Service
Learning Initiative. The Haiti Service
Learning Initiative funds students’
expenses to travel to Haiti, allowing
them to provide health care, education and access to clean water.
At 9:30 a.m., alumni, staff, faculty
and current students will gather together on third floor of the Sak for a
Merrimack Reunion. The Math Cen-
ter will celebrate its 25th Anniversary
at 10 a.m. at the Merrimack Club,
also in the Sak; there will be a reunion for peer and professional tutors
Homecoming Tailgate and Carnival Fun Zone will be held in the Sak
parking lot at 11 a.m.. A Homecoming
Cookout with a 21+ Beer Tent (ID re-
Tailgaters last year. The pre-football Tailgate and Carnival is
one of Homecoming’s highlights.
from the Math Center.
quired) at the Martone-Mejail Field
Also at 10 a.m., the Annual Greek will begin at 11:30. DJ Wyatt will also
Life Meeting will take place in the be joining the Tailgate before the footBlue Line Club, at the Athletic Com- ball game. There will be contests for
plex. Fraternity and sorority alumni the best menu, the largest class parwill have a complimentary continen- ticipation and most Merrimack spirit.
tal breakfast.
The football team will play Bentley
University at Martone-Mejail Field 1
p.m. For special ticket pricing and
packages,
go
to
www.merrimack.edu/homecoming.
There are three major events after
the football game at 5 p.m.: a celebration of Mass in Cascia Hall;
women’s volleyball vs. St. Rose at
Hamel Court; and dinner will be held
in Sparky’s Place in the Sake. Adult
will pay $10.90 and children $8 for
dinner.
In the Warrior Village Courtyard
adjacent to Buildings 3 and 5, the gift
dedication for the Class of 2013 will
begin at 5:30 right before the hockey
game.
Hockey kicks off at 7, against
Army. The game will be played in J.
Thom Lawler Arena. For tickets, go to
www.merrimack.edu/homecoming..
Dueling Pianos at Augie’s Pub in
the Sak, starting at 9:30, will wrap up
the eventful day; 88 Keys and the
Truth will be performing at the event
as well.
A new feature of Homecoming will
be Saturday’s “Distinction in Action”
tours of the newly renovated Merrimack Athletic Complex, the expanded
Health Science Center and the Volpe
Innovation Center, including the
Markets Business Lab and the Writers House. Tours depart from the Dicorce Family Lobby, inside the
Athletic Complex, at 10:30, 10:45, 11,
11:15 and 11:45 a.m.
For MC Senior, Danger Strikes Abroad
Karamarie Joyce ’15
Editor in Chief
Senior Kevin Sullivan’s semester abroad was
cut short after a bar fight caused him to lose vision in one eye.
Kevin Sullivan is a senior at Merrimack from
Burlington, Mass. He goes by “Sully” for short
and is known to his peers to be a laid-back,
easygoing guy. Kevin is working toward a degree in business and is specifically focusing on
accounting. Studying abroad is something he
has always wanted to do but didn’t think his
rigorous class schedule would ever allow room
for him to leave campus for a semester to travel
and explore another country.
When the end of Kevin’s junior year came
and his hard work had paid off, he realized he
only had one year of college left and he wanted
to make the most of it. While it is uncommon to
go abroad your senior year, Kevin knew it was
his last opportunity and began looking into
abroad programs for fall semester 2013. He decided he wanted to travel to Australia since it
was extremely far away from any other place in
the world he found that interesting and wondered what life was like there. “Not many people get the chance to travel there, so I saw it as
the chance of a lifetime.”
Plans were finalized and at the end of the
summer Kevin began his journey by boarding a
plane and flying 25 hours to reach his new
home for the next four months. He took classes
at Swinburne University in Melbourne, Australia and spent his free time traveling. Two
months into his time abroad the students were
given a short recess from classes for their spring
break. Kevin and five of his friends made plans
to visit Cairns and explore the Great Barrier
Reef. In their time in Cairns, they took a boat
tour along the ocean then went scuba diving
through the Great Barrier Reef. With a short
break they tried to fit as much in as possible
and make the most out of their time off. They
stayed at a local hostel that was right across
from a bar where they would spend their nights
socializing and meeting new people from all
over. They fell into a routine of visiting this
same bar each night after a day full of adventures, and on their third night they decided to
switch things up; A decision Kevin wishes he
never made.
The third night of spring break, Kevin and
his friends started off in the same bar they had
been to nights prior. Later that night they went
to a night club close to where they were staying
with a group of locals they had met on their stay
in Cairns. The group Kevin was traveling with
had all become very close, and the boys looked
after the girls as if they were their own sisters.
According to Kevin, that night one of the girls
who he was traveling with was being harassed
by a local at the club and felt uncomfortable and
looked to Kevin for help. Kevin’s protective instincts kicked in and he headed over to approach the man who was giving her trouble.
The man saw him walking over and before
Kevin could even say a word he was struck over
the head with a glass bottle.
“It was so sudden that I had no idea what
had happened for a few seconds until my hands
were filled with blood and it was dripping all
over the floor.” Kevin’s friends rushed to get
help and found the bouncer of the club and
called for help. Kevin sat waiting for the paramedics in shock believing he had just a few
scratches around his eye from the shards of
glass that the broken bottle produced.
Once he finally reached the hospital he was
shocked to find that a significantly large piece
of glass wedged completely through his left eye.
“At this time I was told that it was unlikely I
would ever see out of this eye again and there
was a high chance that I would lose it completely. I was unable to be operated on for over
12 hours, so I sat there for that long with the
piece of glass just in my eye ball.” After the 12
hours passed, the glass was removed through
surgery, but this was only the first of many surgeries Kevin must have on his road to recovery.
In an odd form of luck, Kevin’s parents had
already planned on visiting him and were to arrive in Australia that very next day. They
pushed their week trip into a two week trip and
stayed with Kevin as he traveled to the best eye
doctors Australia had to offer. He stayed in two
different hospitals the first for a week and the
other for two days. All students who participate
in Merrimack’s study abroad programs are automatically enrolled in an international insurance plan through HTH Worldwide. This
insurance covers medical expenses as well as
political and natural disaster evacuations.
After seeing an eye specialist in Australia,
the Sullivan Family made a decision together
that Kevin should return home to America to
continue treatment on his left eye. Although his
right eye received no damage from the glass
there is a chance overtime he could lose vision
to his right eye from the trauma. “The main
scare is a disease that people who suffer trauma
to the eye can get which causes blindness in the
other eye, so my main concern is preventing
that.”
Since traveling home Kevin has had a third
surgery on his left eye at the Massachusetts
Eye and Ear Medical Center in Boston. “I’m
waiting for my eye to heal but basically the last
surgery made it so I can keep my eye for a lot
longer”. This was not the last surgery he will
See SULLIVAN
Continued on Page 6
Page 6
The Beacon
October 25, 2013
Statues Enhance Campus Danger Strikes
Choiwing Kong ’15
Staff Writer
One of the named humanoid statues at Merrimack is Robert Frost. The statue is located on the
left side of the fountain between the McQuade Library and O’Reilly Hall. Frost is face forward,
with a smile plastered on his face wearing a suit.
Frost looks decorous and kindly in his statue.
This simple statue that Robert Frost stands at
the top of has engraved, “Robert Frost, 18741963,” on the bottom of the stone.
“In 1989, the statue of Robert Frost was unveiled on Merrimack’s campus in its current location. The statue was created by Jose Buscaglia
and donated to the college by Mr.& Mrs. Richard
McCoy,” says Marie DeMarco, a professor in the
English Department. According to Robert Frost’s
Wikipedia page, Frost was born in San Francisco, California, and he is one of the most popular and critically respected American poets of the
twentieth century. On May 5th, 1885, Roberts’s
family moved across the country from San Francisco to Lawrence, Massachusetts and was educated there. He spent a lot of time in Lawrence
and New Hampshire—he preferred to stay in a
rural area. He had attended a few different
schools in New England, such as Lawrence High
School, Dartmouth University, and Harvard
University. He had visited Merrimack College
later in life. A number of his works used rural life
to examine complex social and philosophical
themes and many pieces were honored with different awards.
There are two more statues on Merrimack’s
Campus. One statue is a Jesus image statue
which is located in a path next to the church, and
the other one is a woman holding a book image
without a specific name for the person that located in front of the Austin Hall. In the front of
the woman that holds the book statue, it’s engraved, “Augustine the Learner: To understand
all these things, we do not consult the speaker
who gives outward expression. Rather, we consult the truth that governs the mind. Perhaps the
speaker’s words reminded us to consult it. The
one who is consulted is the one who teaches. He
is Christ, who is said to dwell in the inner person. He is the unchangeable power of God and
eternal wisdom (Eph 3:16-17)”. These last two
statues on campus represent the Catholic tradition of Merrimack. Next time you’ve got time inbetween classes, make sure to check out the cool
statues with interesting stories that tie into Merrimack’s mission: enlighten minds, engage
hearts, and empower lives.
On Trip Abroad
SULLIVAN
Continued from Page 5
have on his eye. Kevin expects in the upcoming
months and even years this eye will undergo several more operations.
For now, Kevin has no vision out of his left eye.
He can tell the when light changes and can detect
some motion, however he expects that is as much as
he will ever see out of this eye again. To protect both
eyes Kevin was instructed by his doctors to wear
glasses or sunglasses as much as possible.
“I’ve been able to stay strong and confident
throughout this whole thing and it has just made
me appreciate life and the people around me who
really care. If I lose it there is nothing I can do about
it, but I’m still hoping for the best”
Kevin’s plans to finish the classes he began at
Swinburne University from his home. His professors have worked with him in his tough situation;
they have given him alternate assignments and extended the deadlines of his work. Kevin plans to return to Merrimack for the spring semester and
continue working toward his degree in business. As
for the man that did this to him, the last Kevin
heard he was in jail awaiting his trail.
Campus Ghost Stories
Patrick Bradley ‘14
Sports Editor
Schuyler Watkins ‘14
Associate Editor-in-Chief
Nichole Raver ‘16
Staff Writer
Have a ghost story? Is it Merrimack
related? SHARE IT WITH US! We
may put your #spookyexperience in
this weeks paper! email: [email protected]
For those of us who grew up
watching Nickelodeon’s “Are You
Afraid of the Dark?” ghost stories are
taken a bit more seriously. As Halloween draws closer, the superstitions grow more and more anxious
and the idea of ghosts becomes much
more believable. The general popula-
tion is split on this topic, though: people who believe in ghosts and people
who don’t.
I was never a believer in ghosts.
I’m the type of person that enjoys
finding faults in people’s stories, disproving the seemingly indisputable.
So when I heard the story of the Ash
Ghost three years ago, I was skeptical. For those of you unfamiliar with
the story, here’s a synopsis via
StrangeUSA:
There is a mysterious fire ghost
who roams Ash Centre. He wears a
charred and blackened fireman outfit, and often wields an axe. A fire
alarm sounds during the night on
many occasions sending students
outside into the dark night. Here they
may catch a glimpse of his darkened
figure in various dorms windows,
while they listen to the sound of the
sirens rushing to the scene to secure
the false alarm. Students return to a
scent that is often described as being
similar to that of a smoldered burnt
out campfire and fire traces of ash
and soot on doorknobs and handrails,
though a single flame is never found.
Over the years, many residents
have been able to attest to the
screeches and whispers that fill the
hallways late at night. Sophomore,
Nichole Raver, has opened up to explain her personal Ash ghost experience.
“Being a transfer student, I was
unaware of the ghost stories already
told in my wing, and was in for a surprise. On a Thursday night around
4am, I woke up to a figure standing
in the middle of my room that seemed
to be staring at my roommate’s bed. I
assumed it was my roommate until I
heard her snore and realized she was
fast asleep. The figure floated over to
my desk and before I could flash my
phone’s light on it, the figure was
gone. I was not a believer in ghost stories until I was able to witness it first
hand at this special spot on campus.”
At a glimpse, Ash Centre appears
to be like any other college dorm
building. However, beneath the antique exterior are the ghosts that lurk
the damp halls, looking for a way out.
Sure, Ash is filled with freshmen,
typically immature, who may find it
funny to pull fire alarms, but with the
frequency that this stupid crime
takes place it raises questions as to
the legitimacy of the legends.
October 25, 2013
The Beacon
Page 7
MERRIMACK’S MOST INTERESTING PERSON
Anthony Brunco
Bridget Gilroy 14
Staff Writer
When you see him walking around
campus, you won’t hear “Hail to the
Chief” playing although he is the
President of SGA. This former winner of the “Unsung Hero” award is a
humble student of many accomplishments and many more to come. Anthony Brunco, more popularly known
as Tony Brunco is a senior majoring
in History with a minor in Spanish
and a minor in Pre-law.
Born and raised in Saugus, Massachusetts Brunco is the oldest of
three with younger brother Joe in his
first year at Stonehill College and his
younger sister Jennifer a sophomore
in high school. Brunco attended
Malden Catholic High School where
he ran twelve seasons of track and
was inspired to apply to Merrimack
College. The tight-knit community
that Merrimack offers was an obvious choice for Brunco, but it also
came with other perks, “I went from
MC [Malden Catholic] to MC [Merrimack College], and since we were
also blue and gold I didn’t even have
to get rid of my high school sweatshirts!”
So how did his college career lead
to being SGA President? Brunco was
approached at the Student Involvement Fair his freshman year and
was convinced to join SGA on the
principles of public service and commitment to his school. After retiring
his competitive track career his sophomore year, Brunco became more involved in the organization and in the
spring of 2012 ran for the position of
President. Although he did not win
that election, Brunco was not discouraged. “I lost that election, and it
President instead, and I got some
much needed experience in interpersonal communications and in organizing my members.” That following
year he ran for President again and
won the election. This is now the second year in a row that the SGA Pres-
Anthony Brunco
Photo by Bridget Gilroy
was the best thing that could have
happened to me. I was elected Vice-
ident is not only a Malden Catholic
graduate who is a history major, but
MC Shows It CAREs
Brendan Doherty ‘15
Staff Writer
New students at Merrimack beware:
Those of us who have been at Merrimack
for a time will be able to attest to the fact
that there are faculty and staff out there
who truly care about the well-being of students.
Those out there who might not feel this
way are in luck. An off the radar committee called CARE was formed two years ago
with the intent of retaining students who
are thinking of leaving the college because
of academic, emotional, or any other issues
related to their experience here.
The committee of faculty and staff members includes professor Matt Isbell and
representatives from campus life, athletics, residence life, Hamel Health, academic
enrichment and police services. Seemingly
all departments are covered in this committee, so when a trouble student does
arise they can determine exactly which department is appropriate to best help that
person.
Committees like this have been formed
at many institutions since the Virginia
Tech shootings in 2007 in order to identify
students who might need a bit of help to
get adjusted to campus life. This committee deals with the lower-level problems
students might have — not quite counseling, but a chance for students to talk to
someone on a confidential basis.
The head of the committee, and Dean of
First Year Students Allison Gill, can be located on the third floor of the Sakowich
Center in the study abroad department.
is also named Anthony (former President Anthony Andreucci).
Besides being President, Brunco
also is a member of Live 2 Give
(Relay For Life Planning Committee), the Augie’s Advisory Committee
and has worked at the McQuade Library since his freshmen year. The
McQuade is his favorite place on
campus which makes sense since he
is an avid reader. He has read every
Harry Potter book several times, his
favorite being the sixth book, “Harry
Potter and the Half-Blood Prince”. If
he isn’t enjoying a good book, you can
probably find him running. This lifelong runner was born to run, competitively running since 7th grade
and even works at Granite State
Running Camps as a counselor during the summers.
Brunco is a man of the people, for
the people. He is always welcoming
students to speak to him about ideas,
problems or just casual conversation.
President Brunco loves Merrimack
and is a proud member of the strong
and special community Merrimack
provides for everyone. “Every day I
see students, faculty, and staff alike
working their tails off to make our
school a better place. It doesn’t matter whether you’re overly involved,
an athlete, a work study student, or
more
focused
on
your
schoolwork. Everyone who has ever
been a part of life on campus has one
thing in common: we are all Merrimack College Warriors.”
MC Dances
With the Stars
STARS
Continued from Page 3
Professor Matt Isbell serves
on the CARE committee
Students Tyler McCarthy, Chris Mason, and
Mr. Merrimack John Pellerin were given the
opportunity to showcase their promising dance
moves in hopes of being deemed the winner. All
three participants back-flipped, break-danced
and cartwheeled on stage to Shakira’s “Hips
Don’t Lie”.
The audience was encouraged to choose the
winner by applauding whom they thought was
deserving. Sophomore Mason gained the most
praise and in turn earned the 2013 Dancing
With the Stars title.
Mason shared his winnings with his dance
partner and MC Dance team member, Casey
Mucci, who said she “owes it all to her partner.
He really knows how to shake it and shimmy”.
Dance team captain Megan Folino was
pleased with the turnout for Dancing with the
Stars. “Everything went smoothly and we appreciate all the support from the students and
faculty of Merrimack. This is always such a fun
event,” she said.
She and her partner, Timothy O’Leary,
danced to “You’re The One That I Want” from
the film “Grease” — although, O’Leary suggested “’Wrecking Ball’ by Miley Cyrus would
be a more appropriate song, because I’m going
to come in like one.”
The event proved to be a success for not only
the dance team, but also all who attended. The
$5 admission, paid at the door, was worth the
return the audience received from the performers on stage. The MC Dance Team will put
all proceeds toward their trip to Nationals in
Daytona Beach, Fla., this spring.
Page 8
The Beacon
October 25, 2013
NSA Not Credible After
Allegations of Spying Leak
The sheer scale of
the intelligence
gathering is
momentous
and disquieting
for the ostensible
custodians of
the nation’s security.
clients, the evidence that would be
doubtlessly produced by a lawsuit remains obscured, eluding justice and a
forthright debate on the issue.
President Obama has emphatically
advocated for a less opaque and reformed surveillance policy, declaring:
“I’m tasking this independent group to
step back and review our capabilities,
particularly our surveillance technologies, and they’ll consider how we can
maintain the trust of the people.”
The president selected Director of National intelligence James Clapper to
steward an increased emphasis on transparency, an individual who possesses inordinate power and knowledge of the
spying program. Nonetheless, in the following interrogative posed by Sen. Ron
Wyden of Oregon, “Does the NSA collect
any type of data at all on millions or
hundreds of millions of Americans?”
Clapper responded with “”No sir … not
wittingly.” The Clintonian art of subterfuge on parade here does justice to the
criticism of an agency intoxicated on the
power it holds, and the dangers of failing to check this power.
Obama also stated that the reform
would be facilitated by an “independent”
auditor, and not an individual enmeshed in the NSA’s machinations —
claims patently false. This is further sullied by the penchant of the NSA to misuse and err in supervising information.
A recent release of documents shows
that a 2009 judge on the Federal Intelligence Court harshly reproached the
agency for “violating its own procedures
for gathering and analyzing phone
records, and then misrepresented those
violations to the court.”
The Bill of Rights, wherein the
Fourth Amendment explicitly provides
for protection against “unreasonable
search and seizures without due process
of law,” owes its provenance to the Antifederalist opposition to the constitution. Turning to a champion of the
Antifederalist cause is helpful in illuminating the dangers of entrusting substantial power in the hands of a few,
irrespective of supposed benevolence.
Patrick Henry remains remarkably
prescient in his explanation of secrecy’s
effects on a country’s citizens: “They
may carry on the most wicked and pernicious schemes, under the dark veil of
secrecy. The liberties of a people never
were no ever will be secure, when the
transactions of their rulers may be concealed from them. The most iniquitous
plots may be carried out against their
liberty and happiness.”
In contrast, Snowden said “The
Fourth and Fifth Amendments to the
Constitution of my country, Article 12 of
the Universal Declaration of Human
Rights, and numerous statutes and
treaties forbid such systems of massive,
pervasive surveillance. While the U.S.
Constitution marks these programs as
illegal, my government argues that secret court rulings, which the world is not
permitted to see, somehow legitimize an
illegal affair.”
How invigorating to know these problems remain perennial, and that, regardless of epoch, an essential defense of
fundamental liberties should so persistently come to the fore.
Opinion
Edward Snowden’s revefederal bureaucracy is devoid
latory and courageous unof self-aggrandizing officials
veiling
of
the
U.S.
and bereft of corrupt is to
surveillance apparatus syscommit to a view of statecraft
tematically documents the
both ahistorical and foolish.
capacious and unconstituThe dishonesty of the protional powers granted to the
gram’s minders offers a clear
National Security Agency to
harbinger of these trends,
scrutinize the internet and
and exhibits what entrusting
telephone records of Ameri‘benign’ leaders with significan citizens.
power entails.
cant
RogeR ThaT
The New York Times docGen.
Keith Alexander, the
Roger McCormack
uments what was originally
director of the NSA, apropos
proclaimed a necessary precaution of the debate the leak ignited, said “we
against terrorist attacks, has trans- can audit the actions of our people 100
formed into an abrogation of rights ex- percent, and we do that,” though the
plicitly provided in the Fourth complexities of the NSA bureaucracy
Amendment of the U.S. Constitution: raise relevant questions regarding the
“Since 2010, the National Security capacity for a comprehensive audit.
Agency has been exploiting its huge col- Consider the claims of Snowden’s ease
lections of data to create sophisticated at accessing the NSA’s records: He had a
graphs of some Americans’ social con- top secret security clearance and his acnections that can identify their associ- tions were largely unaudited. “At cerates, their locations at certain times, tain levels, you are the audit,” an
their traveling companions and other intelligence official told NBC News.
personal information, according to
The New Yorker reported that
newly disclosed documents and inter- Alexander also lied audaciously about
views with officials.”
the spying program, denying “14 times
This policy is predicated upon the ca- that the agency had the technical capapabilities of intelligence officials to “dis- bility to intercept e-mails and other oncover and track” overseas targets, line communications in the United
linking disparate elements within the States.”
broad web of email, internet, and phone
The secrecy of the program is derived
records the NSA has woven. The NSA from the supposed rectitude secrecy prooperates with minimal scrutiny, as the vides, as transparency is often derided
Times reports: “Almost everything for impairing efficiency and security.
about the agency’s operations is hidden, The malfeasance at the highest level of
and the decision to revise the limits con- the program discounts this critique howcerning Americans was made in secret, ever — a critique often fuelled by fearwithout review by the nation’s intelli- mongering and authoritarian zeal
gence court or any public debate.”
rather than genuine concern for the proThe sheer scale of the intelligence gram’s constitutionality.
gathering — estimated to be as much as
700 million phone records per day in
2011 (not to mention email and internet
records) — is momentous and disquieting for the ostensible custodians of the
nation’s security. Suppose, for instance,
that an Iranian or Chinese hacker
breaks into this system. Both countries
have proven their prowess in this domain numerous times, and the minute
documentation the program tabulates
could prove to be invaluable for foreign
governments.
The threat is also inherent to the unbridled power of the NSA. Even regarding the Obama administration in a
favorable light does not remove the fears
For example, an unclassified report
of flagrant abuse, as a future president published by five federal agencies found
far less charitable could easily be elected that the program “had difficulty citing
with the same immense power at his specific instances when the National Sedisposal. This provides a significant curity Agency’s wiretapping program
caveat against centralized and unac- contributed to successes against terrorcountable forms of power by elites; ists,” and “found that other intelligence
whose philosopher king spirit is re- tools used in assessing security threats
flected in the indifference and contempt posed by terrorists provided more timely
with which they regard the U.S. popu- and detailed information.”
lace.
Congress has passed a slew of laws
Glenn Greenwald, the Guardian jour- providing immunity from legal accountnalist who broke the story, said the NSA ability for groups engaged in warranthas the power and “the technological ca- less wiretapping, most notably in the
pability, if not the legal authority, to tar- 2008 Foreign Intelligence Surveillance
get even U.S. persons for extensive Amendments Act, which provided
electronic surveillance without a war- retroactive immunity for institutions enrant.”
gaged in 4th amendment violations. The
The NSA countered the claim that the ACLU’s attempt to challenge the constiprogram would be suspect to abuse, say- tutionality of this act was struck down
ing “Our tools have stringent oversight by the Supreme Court, which ruled that
and compliance mechanisms built in at because the ACLU cannot actually
several levels.” But to imagine that a prove that the NSA is spying on its
October 25, 2013
The Beacon
Page 9
Bangerz: She’s Just Being Miley
Ashley Yenick ’14
Copy Editor
Teddy bears, wrecking balls and twerking have
made Miley Cyrus consistently in the media in the
last couple of months. From her performance at the
2013 MTV’s VMA’s to her newest music video
“Wrecking Ball,” everyone has buzzing about the
20-year-old Nashville native. So when Miley’s new
album came out on Oct. 4, the critics were ready to
weigh in on her newest album, Bangerz, and so
were we. Here’s what we found:
1. “Adore You”: A slow, hip-hop ballad with minimal lyrics, Cyrus sings about her love (who we assume is Liam Hemsworth): “I could do this for
eternity you and me.” Unfortunately, Cyrus ended
her engagement with Hemsworth this past September, and it’s believed that most of the romantic
songs on Bangerz are about him. This track resembles Rhianna’s ballad “Stay.”
2. “We Can’t Stop”-The first single proved to be
a comeback song for Cyrus. With its catchy lyrics
and dance-y beat, it was evident that it was one of
the summer’s top pop hits of 2013. This song’s lyrics
describe a real-life house party that Cyrus and her
friends went to and “We Can’t Stop” was the result.
3. “SMS (Bangerz)” ft. Britney Spears (Explicit)The title track on Cyrus’ album, this song shows
that Cyrus is adopting a new hip hop sound. Performing the track with Britney Spears, this duo
raps about “Bangerz.” We still haven’t figured out
what “Bangerz” is about, but it makes a catchy
tune on the album.
4. “4X4” ft. Nelly-This song in particular on her
album has a county, pop, and hip hop feel with
Nelly rapping on the track produced by artist Pharrell. In this song, Cyrus sings about being a “female
rebel,” which becomes a recurring theme on
Bangerz.
5. “My Darling” ft. The Future-A hip hop twist
to “Stand by Me”, Cyrus performs this track with
The Future. From the lyrics, “What happened to
the feeling? / I wish it wouldn’t stop / we were about
to be together” sends us signals that maybe
Hemsworth and Cyrus’ relationship ended before
the album released, or it could be about someone
else.
6. “Wrecking Ball”-By now, you’ve either heard
the power pop ballad or seen the video where Cyrus
is sitting naked on a wrecking ball. We hear the
emotion in her voice as she sings about how a lover
‘wrecked’ her and how she should have “let them
in.” This song is easily one of the most popular on
her album and one of our favorites.
7. “Love Money Party” ft. Big Sean-This song
with Big Sean and Cyrus’ line “Love Money Party”
reminds us of Jay-Z’s “$100 Bill” and Beyoncé featuring Andre 300’s “Back to Black” from The Great
Gatsby Soundtrack. This song has an old school hip
hop feel to it. We definitely think that this song
could have fit into the “Gatsby” category with the
subjects like “love money party” being Jay Gatsby’s
theme.
8. “#GETITRIGHT”-Cyrus’ repetitive line, “but
we gotta get it right, we can’t get it wrong” is the
basis of this song. Singing about a potential significant other and how she wants to be with that person. Again, this romantic song can be referred back
to Hemsworth.
9. “Drive”-This song is reminiscent of her older
music, the more pop-y, electric sound that she’s had
for her past albums. Like the other songs on this
album, this is also a romantic song, talking about
how an ending of a relationship and how she feels
cheated and lied to, singing the lyrics, “But all the
broken promises I won't miss I'm finished/All I
know are the facts/That when I look you in the
eyes/ All I see are the lies.” This song has a deeper
meaning than the other songs on the album, like
“We Can’t Stop” and “4X4.”
10. “FU” ft. French Montana-This song’s title is
kind of um…self explanatory. Cyrus sings about
how she was blind to the fact that she was being
mistreated by someone, including the lyrics, “then
I accidentally saw few things in your cell / I even
LOL’ed/ Man I should’ve known.” The song starts
off with a fast beat and then slows down, making it
an interesting combo of songs, including a rap by
French Montana.
11. “Do My Thang” (Explicit)-This song reminds
us of a Nicki Minaj song, filled with fast rap lyrics,
catchy beats and repetitive one liners. Cyrus’ repetitive lines in this song happen to be “Imma do my
thang” and “I’m a southern belle, crazier than hell.”
One of our favorites on the album, it’s definitely
worth listening to twice.
12. “Maybe You’re Right”-Another romantic
song on the album, this relates to “FU”, talking
about how a chapter in her life has closed: “You
might think I’m crazy/ that I’m lost and foolish
leaving you behind/ Maybe you’re right.” Other
than the theme being partying, the theme of this
album tends to be more romantic than partying.
13. “Someone Else”-Like the title suggests, the
overall message of this song is about becoming a
different person after a hard breakup and ‘loosing
your heart.’ Cyrus states: “I’m hurting myself/ I’ve
turned into someone else.” This song is the final
song to Bangerz. It’s definitely a different way to
end an album, while most artists end on a positive
note rather than a glum one.
Our overall rating: 3.5/5
Since this was Cyrus’ first album since 2010, she
considered Bangerz to be her first album, although
she has had multiple albums in the past. We loved
Miley’s Can’t Be Tamed album, and this album is
vastly different from Bangerz. However, this album
does have some dance-y songs that we love, including some ballads like “Wrecking Ball.” Miley recalled this album being “Miley 2.0,” and we
definitely agree. Her new ‘southern hip hop’ sound
is different than her dance-y pop songs she’s had in
the past.
We admit—this album’s growin’ on us Milers,
nice work.
New Lab Tracks Markets
Vince Bellino ’14
Financial Editor
Shane Simbeck ’15
Staff Writer
A Bloomberg Terminal is essentially
a computer system provided by
Bloomberg L.P. that provides access to
real time financial market data or any
desired news across the world. The
Bloomberg Markets Lab is located in
the back of the Volpe expansionary
area. In the lab, there are over 10 terminals, equipped with dual monitors,
and specialized keyboards.
The enhanced keyboards provide
color- coded keys that allow easy accessibility to common keystrokes combinations. The world of finance is a
dynamic marketplace that requires a
continuous level of high operational efficiency. With access to the Bloomberg
Terminals, students will enhance their
financial knowledge and resourcefulness within the competitive industry.
Students will have the opportunity
to complete Bloomberg’s core requirement exam that simply highlights
their key functions and resources offered for dynamic accessibility. Upon
completion, students may choose to become certified within four market sec-
tors: Equities, Fixed Income, Commodities, and Foreign Exchange. Equities can be classified as an asset
class that consists of investment vehicles such as common stock or a mutual
fund.
A mutual fund is, but not limited to
a compilation of various stocks. Fixed
Income may refer to debt instruments
like Treasury Securities (government
issued debt) or Municipal Bonds
(which are state issued securities to finance state capital expenditures I.e.
Bridge). Commodities are physical
goods that may be exchanged in commerce such as oil or coffee. Lastly, Foreign Exchange provides market data
on exchange rates that may determine
the strength of our global currencies.
The examples listed above within
each sector are only a brief glimpse of
the myriad of alternative investment
vehicles that trade on a daily basis.
Through the accessibility of the
Bloomberg Terminals, Merrimack College students will have the ability to
develop a broader understanding of
the capital markets.
All students are welcome to learn
about the opportunities provided by
the Bloomberg Markets Lab and expand upon their financial knowledge.
Leaving summer behind -- embracing fall on campus.
Photo by Kelli Readey
Page 10
The Beacon
October 25, 2013,
Women’s Soccer Peaking on the Pitch
Pat Bradley ’16
Sports Editor
Women’s soccer captains Marissa DePoalo and Danielle Dion open up
about the intricacies of this year’s squad, as well as why this may be the
program’s best team ever
Pat Bradley: You guys are pretty good, but have had your ups and
downs. How do you feel about the team?
Marissa DePoalo (MD): There’s definitely key contributors from every
class, it’s a team effort. We say it all the time – there’s 31 girls on our team
and it takes 31 girls to win. It’s definitely the theme this year.
Danielle Dion (DD): There are so many new girls so they’re kind of getting into the swing of things. But with the upperclassmen helping the
younger kids out it’s easier to get the groove going and get into the swing
of things. With being so young, I think we have some gaps but also as a
team we do too.
We haven’t been consistent – there’s always been one game we win and
one we lose – but we have the talent. This is one of the best teams [head
coach] Gabe [Mejail] has seen in a while and he’s been coaching for so long
so it’s crazy for him to say that. There’s still enough time for us to get the
momentum going.
You talk about all the talent, but what’s it like as captains for you seeing all the inconsistency? Is it frustrating?
MD: It’s definitely frustrating because we see our potential and how
good we can be. We just beat AIC – the No. 6 team in the country – they
were undefeated in our conference, it was a huge game and we came out
guns blazing and we won. But then we just lost to St. Rose who is a similar team to AIC, so it’s definitely frustrating because we see how good we
can be.
Is there one specific thing that stands out that you’re waiting to click so
everything comes together?
DD: We have so many upperclassmen so we’re waiting for juniors and
sophomores to step and realize they have a voice as well and to teach the
younger girls that they do. We want everyone to have a voice, even the
freshman. If we’re [Dion and DePaulo] wrong, they can yell at us. We’re
seniors but we don’t care if someone tells us what to do because it’s only
going to make us better.
We’re slowly getting there, and it is a slow progression, but it doesn’t
take anything away from what we’ve already done. Losing to some of the
teams we have lost to, it’s tough to take those losses, it beats us down. But
when we take those losses, it’s only building us stronger to show us what
we can actually do.
Coach says it all the time – he sees it in us. We do have the power for
us to go far. Our goalie [Nicole Curtis just had two NE-10 Keeper of the
Week honors. She’s doing great. So us building off that, the AIC game and
everything else we have the pieces but it’s just a matter of putting it all together.
MD: And we do get up for big games, we beat big teams like SNHU –
last year’s conference champions – and we get up for all those games and
Golf Ends
Season in Top 10
Coach Mejail says this year’s squad is one of the best he’s
seen in a long time.
Warriors Earning
Top Honors
By Sean Talbot ’15
Staff Writer
Despite having only eight members of the
team - two seniors, three juniors, two sophomores and one freshman - Merrimack women’s
golf team enjoyed a terrific season. The ladies
just finished up their fall campaign with a final
tournament in Puerto Rico, far away from the
comforts of their home course - Black Swan
Country Club - in Georgetown, Mass.
Warriors junior golfer Ali Reed, who has been
golfing for over 10 years, had many good things
to say about the season. She, along with several
other teammates, had a very successful season.
With their efforts they are currently ranked No.
9 in the region. Reed shot her personal best
round at the Wellesley Invitational this season
in October.
A lot of the success can be attributed to coach
Nick Crovetti. According to Reed, Crovetti is “a
fantastic coach who knows so much about the
game and has all of us improve our scores and
swing. He works so hard to get us in the best
tournaments and recruit the top players every
year.”
The team has a lot to look forward to in upcoming years with most of their team returning.
its something we can take and run with. And in addition, all of our girls
are so talented. All 11 girls on the field at any given time could be all-stars
in any other conference. So because our team is so well rounded, other
teams aren’t going to be able to push us any further.
You’re seniors, you clearly don’t have any trouble getting up for big
games. The younger girls struggle with that a bit – do you think it’s something that will start to hit home for them?
MD: It’s definitely a learning experience – I said this to our team at the
beginning of the season: you think as a freshman ‘Oh, I have three more
years. We lost this playoff game, we’re done.’ You say it again sophomore
year: ‘oh, I have two more years.’ You say it again junior year, ‘oh I still
have senior year.’ Well here it is – senior year. There’s no more years to go,
this is it. We’ve really tried to clue that in for them. They may think they
have time, but they’re never going to have a team like this and this opportunity again.
Catch the rest of this exclusive interview on www.merrimacknewspaper.com
Pat Bradley ’14
Sports Editor
Several Merrimack Warriors have been in
the news lately, garnering regional and even
national honors.
In women’s field hockey, freshman Nicole
Bradley had a breakout seven-point game
against St. Michael’s College, scoring three
goals, including her first collegiate goal, and
adding an assist in a 4-0 victory over the Purple Knights.
Bradley’s classmate Maura Doyle took home
the NE-10 Rookie of the Week award, while
sophomore goaltender Madison Davis has
taken home the conference’s Goaltender of the
Week award two straight weeks.
On the soccer pitch, senior Nicole Curtis
sports a 1.04 goals-against average, and was
featured in The Boston Globe following her
NE-10 Goaltender of the Week award at the
end of last month.
Both the men’s and women’s cross-country
teams received a favorable ranking in the PreNortheast 10 Championships Coaches Poll,
coming in at fourth and third place, respectively.
Over in Lawler Arena, junior defenseman
Dan Kolomatis earned the Hockey East Player
of the Week award following a five-point weekend (1-4-5) that saw Merrimack earn its first
win of the young season against Mercyhurst
University.
On the football field, seniors Joe Clancy
earned his third conference Player of the Week
award while his teammate Quinn McDonough
took his third Special Teams Player of the
Week nod.
The recognitions came after Clancy completed a school and conference record 51
passes, breaking his own record. McDonough
returned his second kickoff for a touchdown
this season.
Finally, the volleyball team is racking up
awards. Freshman Tara Stuhr took home her
third conference Freshman of the Week award,
as well as her third Setter of the Week award.
Stephanie Sheehan, her junior teammate, received her third conference Player of the Week
award just two weeks after earning the Sports
Imports/AVCA Division II National Player of
the Week award after averaging 5.17 kills and
2.83 digs per set while sporting a .390 hitting
percentage.
October 25, 2013
The Beacon
Page 11
WARRIOR SPOTLIGHT
Jocelyn McLain
letes something to aspire to. I like that you can
continue going with it and it only gets better
when you get older.
Lance Hill ’15
Staff Writer
The Merrimack women’s volleyball team is on
the road to success. With an 8-11 record, however,
the ladies are still pushing for that No. 1 spot in
the NE-10 conference. New players have been
added to the team who have had such a positive
impact to the program, and one of those is freshman outside hitter Jocelyn McLain. Check out
why you should be at the volleyball games this
season and who Jocelyn is as a student athlete at
Merrimack in this week’s Warrior Spotlight.
Q. Do you have any superstitions or rituals
that you perform before a game?
A. I’m not that superstitious, but I always
have to have all my clothes folded. I stack my
pants, jacket, my warm ups then my jerseys. I
have to fold them a certain way and I only wear
one specific type of underwear. And I do my hair
the same way every time.
Q. Out of all the sports in the world, why did
you choose volleyball?
Q. What is your most memorable moment on
the volleyball court?
A. When I was little, I used to watch my sister
(Chazity Gonzalez) play volleyball. I really
wanted to play and I kept playing because I really like it! The team aspect of it is great and it
is very fast paced.
A. During a high school game, my senior year
we were playing Rocky High School, and they
are a really good team. They hadn’t lost one set
to anybody. They still beat us overall but me and
this other girl were yelling back and forth on the
court and it got really intense. It was just a really heated game, probably the best game of the
season. Everyone played the best they could
have ever played, it was really awesome.
Q. You said you like the team aspect of the
sport, what specifically do you like about it?
A. It’s different from other sports where you
can have one superstar run the ball up and down
the court or field. But with volleyball you cant.
You can only touch the ball once. You can’t have
just one really good player, you have to count on
everyone or else no one stands out. You really
have to count on your team and trust each other.
Q. How old you were when you started playing?
A. I started playing when I was 8 and picked
up club volleyball when I was 12. I’ve been playing ever since.
Q. Is there anyone you model your skill set or
gameplay after?
A. Angela Knopf. She played in the Olympics
and I train with her a lot when I’m back home in
Colorado. She taught me a lot about effort and
always giving it your all and how to be a team
Jocelyn McLain ’17
player because not everyone works the way you
do, so you have to find different ways to motivate
each person and to get the most out of them.
She’s really awesome!
Q. Is volleyball harder than any other sport?
A. No, I think golf is the hardest thing in the
world! I can’t hit the ball; I get angry and I just
wanna break the club. But I feel like every sport
is a mental game. So you have to be able to harness your mind differently for it.
Q. Is it rewarding to you that volleyball is an
Olympic sport and is something that is recognized on a global scale?
A. Yeah, I feel like it gives people a different
set of eyes to look at the sport with when they
see these amazing athletes playing it and they
see what the sport can be compared to what they
might actually watch. And I think it gives ath-
Q. If you could play any other sport, what
would it be?
A. I am going to give you two sports: I would
live to wrestle. It would be so cool to be a
wrestler! And, I would play basketball because I
would dunk! You can’t dunk in volleyball!
Q. Why should fans go watch you volleyball
games and what is cool about volleyball that
most people don’t know?
A. Most people don’t realize how many rules
there actually are in volleyball and how certain
people can’t pass certain lines on the court.
There’s a lot more technique involved than you
realize. And people should come because I think
it is so fun to watch because it is so fast paced.
The games are kind of quick and there’s always
something happening.
MC Woman Harriers on the Rise
Justin Ruano ’15
Staff Writer
If you haven’t paid much attention to Merrimack’s women’s cross country, it is time to tune in. The team checks in ranked No. 2 in the East region, and ranked No.31 in the country.
The women’s team has been generating wins and strong finished early
and often this season. Coach Christopher Cameron had this to say about
how the team has been able to continually find success.
“The women's cross country team has had great success so far this season. Our team victory back in September on a very tough course at the
Bruce Kirsh Cross Country Invitational held at Franklin Pierce University
helped propel us to a No. 31 national ranking and a No. 2 ranking in the
East region. The women have worked hard since preseason and it definitely shows. I've told the team that we want hungry runners, not complacent ones, so hopefully we'll continue with this in mind and build on
our early success. Three teams will go to the National Championships this
year from our region and the women know that if we are going to be one
of them, we'll need to have an extremely tight pack for our 1-7 [first
through seventh place-finishing] runners. We have been practicing with
this in mind and I'm eager to see how we respond to the challenge in the
upcoming championship races."
Rising from the No. 6 spot in the region, the Lady Warriors have seen
a lot of success early in the season with three top-3 finishes, including a
third place finish in the season opener at the Shacklette Invitational at
Saint Anselm College, first place finish at the Kirsh Cross Country Cup at
Franklin Pierce, and a second place finish at the Cod Fish Bowl Invitational in Franklin Park.
Senior Fiona Coleman likes what she’s seen from her team through the
first six weeks.
“We've had a strong and optimistic start to our season. During every
race and workout, we've ran an incredibly tight pack and our team vibe
has been so motivating. I'm beyond excited to see what we can do in our
big races to come!”
Page 12
The Beacon
Mathew Galvao ’17
Staff Writer
This past weekend, the Merrimack hockey team opened up
its home schedule against an unfamiliar Mercyhurst team. This
is the first time these two teams have met in their schools’ histories. After two hard-fought contests, the series would end in a
split with each team capturing its first win of the season. On Friday, Merrimack skated onto home ice for the first time this season. The Warriors looked a little out of sync in the first few
minutes of the game. Tom McCarthy would get called 8:27 into
the game to give the Lakers the early power play.
Just like that, Mercyhurst’s Ryan Misiak would score on the
PP to give the Lakers the early 1-0 lead. Just five minutes later
Merrimack got on the board with a goal by Justin Hussar to tie
the game at 1-1 for the Warriors. The goal was assisted by junior Dan Kolomatis and senior Rhett Bly. The period ended with
the score tied at 1-1.
The middle frame saw both teams notch a goal. 7:30 into the
frame the Lakers’ Daniel O’Donoghue slid the puck past Warrriors goaltender Sam Marotta to give the Lakers a 2-1 lead. The
Warriors answered back when junior forward Josh Myers shot
the puck past Lakers goalie Jimmy Sarjeant to even the score at
2-2. Clayton Jardine and Kolomatis had the assists. The score
was tied 2-2 heading into the final period.
The third period remained scoreless until the very end of the
game, when Mercyhurst’s Nick Jones scored with 34 seconds remaining, breaking the hearts of the Merrimack faithful and giving the Lakers their first win of the season.
Lakers goalie Jimmy Sarjeant made 33 saves for the win and
Warriors goalie Sam Marotta made 18 saves on 21 shots. Kolomatis had two assists for the Warriors and Vinny Scotti and
Rhett Bly lead the team with 12 faceoff wins.
Warriors Coach Mark Dennehy said that Merrimack played
well, though his players tried to do too much.
“It’s a bounce of the puck. I thought we played really well at
times. I think the biggest area of concern for me is our breakout
at times. We get a little too deliberate and try to hit home runs
instead of singles,” said Dennehy “The majority of the opportunities they got were because they were patient and we tried to
force things, and they capitalized on it.”
On Saturday the Warriors brought a totally different style of
play, along with the goals, in their 5-2 win over the Lakers. In
this game the Warriors’ power play came out with a bang, scoring three out of the five goals. Kolomatis had a big game with
one goal and two assists.
The first period saw both teams come out flying in a high pace
and some chippy play. It would, however, remain scoreless.
The Lakers opened up the scoring just 38 seconds into the second period. But just three minutes later the Warriors tied the
game at 1-1 on a goal from junior Quinn Gould. The goal was assisted by Mike Collins. Just a couple of minutes later Merrimack’s Kolomatis added the go-ahead goal for the Warriors
Goalie Sam Marotta, at top, stops a Mercyhurst
shot; above, the Warriors await the start of
an earlier game in Denver.
assisted by Hampus Gustafsson and Collins. The middle frame
would end with the score tied 2-2.
Merrimack wasted no time extending the lead in the third
with Hussar notching his second goal of the weekend to give the
Warriors a 3-1 advantage. John Gustafsson scored to bring the
lead to 4-1. The Lakers cut the lead to 4-2 minutes later. The
Warriors killed a five-minute major penalty to senior Shawn
Bates (game misconduct) with a late goal by Vinny Scotti. Merrimack took a 5-2 win, their first of the season.
Merrimack goaltender Rasmus Tirronen made 20 saves for
the win. Collins had four helpers while Kolomatis had a goal and
two assists.
“We have a lot of icebags in that room, but that how you have
to play to win a college hockey game. It’s hard,’’ said Dennehy.
“They get the five-minute power play and I think that stretch is
the best Merrimack has played all year.’’
Kolomatis had five points this weekend and seemed to really
lead the way for this Warriors team. Dennehy feels he has really
stepped up his game and has now become a man and a leader.
“He’s taken steps. He’s a man now. He wants to be a leader,
and I think he’s played as well as any defenseman so far this
year,’’ said the coach.
The snake-bitten power play scored three goals to night and
Dennehy feels it was because his team was tenacious around the
net.
“They look pretty when they go in but they don’t have to be
pretty. At the end of the day it’s about getting the puck to the net
and banging it home, and that’s what we did tonight. We were
very tenacious around the net,’’ Dennehy said.
With the win the Warriors improved to 1-3 on the year and
will face Army at 7 p.m. Saturday at Lawler Arena.
Sports
Warriors Split Weekend Series
October 25, 2013