The Merciad, April 21, 2010

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Page 4

A school year of

domination in

GU-’Hurst rivalry

News

Page 3

College

commemorates

40th Earth Day

Sports

Police and Safety

chief retires after

14-year career

Page 7

Online Poll ResultsWhat do you think of the

Lewis Avenue tree-cutting?

Current poll: What do you think about the$500,000 Highland Square renovations?

Features

They should plant moretrees to replace them. 44%

We need power,but now the treeslook awful. 19%

I like electricity. Cutem’ down. 18%

There are trees on LewisAvenue? 12%

Save the trees, nomatter what! 10%

Vol.83,No.20/4/21/10/Free

Serbs pull for LakersRead about the crew team’s success on page 8



NEWS April 21, 2010

With Earth Week well under way,the students of Mercyhurst Col-lege have plenty of opportunitiesto celebrate the 40th anniversary of Earth Day.

“Chaired by Analida Braeger,the Earth Day Committee of theGreen Team has worked hard to puttogether a fun and dynamic series

of events that address a number of the environmental challenges thatnow confront us,” History Depart-ment chair and Green Team adviserDr. Chris Magoc said.

Among other things, the Green Team will celebrate the Class of 2010’s gift of the Green Roof.

The Green Team is also announc-ing that beginning this summer, 100

percent of the college’s electricity will be derived from wind energy,making Mercyhurst one of just fivecolleges in Pennsylvania to go 100percent wind.

Freshman Sacha Chadwick spokeabout her plans to celebrate Earth

Week.“I plan to go to a program that

will allow us to plant flowers andgrow them,” Chadwick said. “I’malso gardening at a local gardennear North East with my labclasses.”

Though, like many other stu-dents, Chadwick didn’t know thatany other Earth Week events aregoing on.

Actually, there are plenty of events on campus to celebrateEarth Week.

At 4:45 p.m., Wednesday, stu-dents can attend a jewelry and T-shirt recycling workshop as well as

make homemade laundry detergentin the Mercyhurst Student Govern-ment Chambers.

Also, key speaker Denis Hayes will visit Mercyhurst on Wednes-day.

Hayes, who organized the firstEarth Day and whom Time Mag-azine has called a “Hero of thePlanet,” will hold a discussion titled“Earth Day Legacies” at 3:30 p.m.in the Mercy Heritage Room.

Then, at 7:30 p.m. in Taylor Little Theatre, Hayes will present thecollege’s 2010 Sister Maura SmithEarth Day Lecture.

“Denis Hayes will address someof the lessons that can be learnedfrom the historic achievements of the environmental movement of the 1960s and ’70s, as well as offeran assessment of some of thegreat challenges facing the nationand world today, particularly with

respect to renewable energy and cli-mate change,” Magoc said.

On Thursday the Green Team will celebrate Earth Day’s 40thBirthday with a college commu-nity party in the Herrmann StudentUnion from 8-11 p.m.

A Local Products Fair, wherelocal vendors will showcase every-thing from buffalo burgers to farmgoods, will take place at Garvey Park on Friday, April 23. The event,

which will last from 11 a.m. to 4p.m., demonstrates the importanceof re-localizing the food industry for a more sustainable future.

There will be a Hike for Haiku in Wintergreen Gorge at 10 a.m. Sat-urday. Participants should bring apacked lunch and meet outside theMary D’Angelo Performing ArtsCenter for transportation to theGorge. The guided hike will teachabout wildflowers, edible plants and

haiku poetry. The Earth Week events end with

the film “Earth Days” on Monday at 3:30 p.m. in Zurn Hall Room314. The documentary follows thehistory of the modern environmen-tal movement from its beginningson April 22, 1970.

All of the Ear th Week events arefree and open to the public.

“I can’t think of another time of year when core values and the mis-sion of the college are more clearly expressed,” Magoc said.

“Earth Week activities will chal-lenge us to think about the inter-connections of our respectiveacademic disciplines toward thenatural world (and) to ponder ourshared responsibility with the sixand one-half billion people with

whom we share this planet to passon a more secure future to our chil-dren,” Magoc said.

By Jennifer McCurdyStaff writer

College celebrates 40th anniversary of Earth Day

Dawid captures crowd, opens 2010 Literary Festival

Last Thursday Annie Dawid opened the 2010 Mer-cyhurst College Literary Festival with readings from herrecently published book, “And Darkness Was UnderHis Feet.”

Her readings, which are stories based on a looseinterpretation of her family history, captured the audi-

ence with their emotional representation of her family’spast.

Dawid began her reading with a story titled “TheSolemn Brothers,” which centered on the troubles herfamily faced in France during World War II.

While her first story captured the nervous emotionsfelt by her Jewish family during the intense time of war,students seemed to enjoy Dawid’s second reading themost.

Her second story was based on Dawid’s parents andtheir first time meeting in America.

Junior Leah Hubbard said, “I really enjoyed hersecond story the best because I feel that Dawid was

able to capture the scene and personality of the char-acters well. The whole story was portrayed realistically and it was really effective.”

Dawid finished her reading with a message to theaudience about ancestry and keeping a record of family stories.

“Ask your family members about their history whileyou can,” she said. “Get as much information fromyour relatives about your family history while you havethe chance and if you can, write it all down.”

Director of the Literary Festival Dr. Kenneth Schiff said that he enjoyed the reading immensely.

“It is always a great experience to have the opportu-nity to hear the voice of the writer and get an under-standing of the way in which the author wishes thestories to come across,” he said.

The next morning, students from Dr. Greg Brown’s

Intro to Creative Writing class had the opportunity of having Dawid teach a session on writing and the pro-cess of creating a fictional character.

While lecturing the class on character developmentin fiction writing, Dawid kept the class entertained by incorporating her own life stories and writing experi-ences into the lesson.

Andrew Hudgins will continue the festival with hispoetry reading on Thursday in Taylor Little Theatre at8:15 p.m.

Hudgins, who has had many volumes of poetry pub-lished, including “Ecstatic in the Poison” and “After theLost War,” will be reading selections from his worksand will be holding a book signing after the event.

The festival will close Thursday, April 29, at 8:15 inthe Taylor Little Theatre with the unveiling of the 2010edition of the Lumen, Mercyhurst College’s literary artsmagazine. Both events are free and open to the public.

By Chrissy MihalicContributing writer

O n l i n e

Merciad.Mercyhurst.edu/News

Green Team wants yourelectronic trash

Annie Dawid opened the Mercyhurst College Literary Festival

on Thursday, April 15.

Tyler Stauffer photo

Students see InvisibleChildren documentary



NEWS April 21, 2010

News Briefs

The Board of Trustees authorized the college to spend half

a million dollars on the Highland Square Apartments, the four

buildings at the top of Briggs and Lewis Avenue. The money

will be spent on replacing windows, replastering and painting

walls and recarpeting. Items such as doors, kitchen cabinets,

showers, furniture and appliances will be replaced as well.

Spending the money to improve the apartments is a temporary

solution which will allow the board to decide on a long-term

solution over the next few years. The money will come from

Mercyhurst’s capital project budget or the college’s margin, or

profit.

Trustees decide on apartments

Director of Wellness chosen

Fate of ‘Drunk Bus’ not yet decided

The Thursday, Friday and Saturday EMTA shuttle routes

from Mercyhurst to downtown Erie ran this past weekend and

will be canceled starting April 22-24. If student behavior dras-

tically improved last weekend, MSG promised to work with the

administration to bring the bus back for a trial period. There

has not been an update on whether student behavior improved

enough to bring the “drunk bus” back.

’Hurst Cadet attends

ROTC Award Seminar

Cadet Kirk Shoemaker earned theopportunity to attend the GeorgeC. Marshall ROTC Award Seminarfrom April 13-16 at the VirginiaMilitary Institute by being selected

as the top senior Cadet in the “Prideof Pennsylvania Battalion.”

The “Pride of Pennsylvania Bat-talion” is a partnership betweenMercyhurst College, Gannon Uni-

versity and Penn State Erie.Shoemaker joined the ranks of

other top cadets from across thenation to participate in the seminar,

which focused on National Security.Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army

George W. Casey Jr. and other high-ranking Army officers attended the

seminar as keynote speakers.“I am very excited and honored

to be able to represent the ‘Pride of Pennsylvania Battalion’ and Mercy-hurst College,” Shoemaker said.

He will be branching as an infan-try officer upon his commissioning in May.

Shoemaker, a senior IntelligenceStudies major at Mercyhurst, is theCadet Battalion Commander. Thisis the highest obtainable rank as acadet.

He is involved with both theMercyhurst Honors and Ambassa-dor programs.

The Marshall ROTC Seminar, inits 33rd year of existence, is named

in honor of George C. Marshall, who served as Army Chief of Staff during World War II and served assecretary of state.

Marshall served as Secretary of State and later as Secretary of Defense during President Truman’s

administration. His efforts to helpthe economies of Europe recoverfrom World War II earned him theNobel Peace Prize in 1953.

The Marshall Award is given

annually to the top Cadet fromeach of the 273 Army ROTC unitsaround the nation.

The event comprises the largestannual gathering of those aboutto be commissioned through the

Army ROTC program.

Within weeks of participating inthis seminar, most of these young men and women will begin theirduties as junior officers in the U.S.

Army.

By Daniel Piechocki

Contributing writer

Cadet Kirk Shoemaker was chosen to attend the George C.

Marshall ROTC Award Seminar.

Contributed photo

After conducting a national search for the Executive Direc-

tor of Wellness position at Mercyhurst College, Mercyhurst

officials chose Dr. Judy Smith. She is the director of the

Counseling Center at Mercyhurst. The Executive Director of Wellness is responsible for overseeing the Counseling Center

and the Cohen Health Center.

The Board of Trustees accepted the preliminary landscape

design for Phase 1 of the enhanced entranceway to the col-

lege on Thursday, April 15. The new design will enhance the

appearance of the entrance and address safety issues. Land-scaping will be added to the entranceway. The project will be

completed in fall 2010.

Entranceway plans approved

Tom Ridge to speak at ’Hurst Tom Ridge, the former governor of Pennsylvania and first

Secretary of Homeland Security, will speak at Mercyhurst on

Friday, April 30. His speech will take place from 10 to 11 a.m.

in Taylor Little Theatre. This event is free and open to the

public.

Specials at the Laker Inn

Wednesday

Cantina De Laker East Street Deli Sequoia Grill

Thursday

Friday

ChickenBurrito

VegetableQuesadilla

2 for 1Beef Tacos

ChickenCaesar Wrap

CubanSandwich

BuffaloChicken Wrap

Macaroniand Cheese

SouthwestChickenSandwich

Cajun FishSandwich



FEATURES April 21, 2010

O

n l i n e Video Game

of the Week:Marble Lines

An Erieite Appetite:Under the

Clock

Merciad.Mercyhurst.

edu/Features

Your weekly reportfrom Dungarvan,

Ireland: Ashes in the sky

If you have an internship or a job waiting for you this summer, send us your photo to

[email protected]

Senior Denise Wheelock will...

be interning at the European Delegationin Washington D.C.

Senior Jon Tirk will be...

doing an intern program with Erie

Congreswoman Kathy Dalhkemper.

Junior Ryan Perkins will...

work for American Eagle Outfitters as anintern of web/graphics in Pittsburgh.

Senior Liz Maier will be an...

intern writer at The Corry Journal.

Junior Felicia Guerra is going to...

be an assistant for International Affairs atthe US Department of Agriculture.

“This internship will give me a step in the

door of prestigious organizations that I would love to work for in the future.”

“I am really exited that I got thisinternship because hopefully it can opendoors to further my political career.”

“I’m exited about being able to learnmore in the graphic design and retailbusiness.”

“I’m looking forward to it. It should be

a good experience. I’m going to save themoney I make for a trip to Europe.”

“I feel very fortunate to have theopportunity to learn about the interac-tions between U.S. and Central

America.”

One glance at Chief of Policeand Safety Kenneth Sidun’s officeand history unfolds. Police badgesand black-and-white photographsof the first Erie Police Departmenthang proudly on his walls.

“It is one of my hobbies,” saidSidun, who worked in the EriePolice Department for 30 yearsbefore accepting his current posi-tion at Mercyhurst College in 1996.

“A friend and I researched thehistory of the Erie Police Depart-ment from 1851 to 1953,” Sidunsaid. “It is something that hasnever been done before.”

In June 2010, Sidun will leavea piece of his own history as heretires from Mercyhurst after 14

years of dedication.“I will be saying goodbye along with the last senior class,” Sidunsaid with a smile.

Originally from McKeesport,Pa., Sidun moved to Erie when he

was five years old.“I guess you can call me an

Erieite,” Sidun said.Sidun did not always live in Erie,

though. He volunteered three yearsin the U.S. military and spent twoand a half years in Puerto Rico

working as a military police officerin the U.S. Army.“I was able to get out before the

Vietnam War got hot,” Sidun said. When he returned to Erie,

Sidun worked for General Electric Transportation but was unhappy with his job.

“Since I did not like shop work, my friend suggested I takea police test,” Sidun said. He took his friend’s advice and in 1966began working for the Erie Police

Department.Sidun’s passion for the law enforcement field led him toreceive a degree in Criminal Justicefrom Mercyhurst College in 1974.

Even though Sidun dedicated 30years of service to the Erie PoliceDepartment, he stayed connectedto the Mercyhurst community by

working Mercyhurst’s Fourth of July Firework Show, GraduationDay Ceremony and other specialevents.

“There were many good times,bad times and scary times when I

worked for the Erie Police Depart-

ment,” Sidun said. After leaving the Erie PoliceDepartment in 1996, Bud Deaver,director of security services atMercyhurst, recommended Siduntake his position.

“At the time, we were just Secu-rity Services; we were not a depart-ment,” Sidun said. Under Sidun’sleadership, Mercyhurst’s Security Services grew into the Police andSafety Department it is today.

“The biggest challenge I

experienced when I first came toMercyhurst was the adjustment of coming from a city to a college,”Sidun said. “You have to be mind-ful that the students are young,still growing up and need somedirection.”

While at Mercyhurst, Sidundealt with a variety of students andchallenging situations. For Sidun,the most difficult circumstanceinvolved former student TeriRhodes. In 2007, Rhodes suf-

focated her newborn baby shortly after giving birth in her on-campusapartment.

“It was very sad,” Sidun, who was on duty the day of the inci-dent, said.

Sidun also remembers whenstudent Matthew Milgate wasstruck and killed by two cars whilecrossing 38th Street on SaintPatrick’s Day in 2005, in additionto an anthrax scare in 2001.

“A white powder substance

was sent in a letter to Mercyhurstfrom Egypt. The FBI investigatedthe case and discovered it was notanthrax, but the case was neversolved,” Sidun said.

Despite these incidents, Sidunsaid he enjoyed his time at Mer-cyhurst and will miss his job, thestudents, administration and staff.

“Seeing the college grow andchange has been very memorable,”

Sidun said.“It’s been a pleasure working

with Ken,” Police and Safety clerk Christine Dedionisio said. “He issomeone who always looked outfor the people in his office.”

Sidun plans to spend his retire-ment driving his 1934 replicaMercedes Convertible, golfing,researching the history of the EriePolice Department and relaxing inhis winter home in Bellview, Fla.

“It was a great 14-year experi-

ence. An experience I wouldn’ttrade. I am glad I did it,” Sidunsaid.

By Liz Maier

Staff writer

Chief of Police and safety:

‘An experience I wouldn’t trade’

TeacherFeatures:

Dr. Hosey &Dr. Meier

Chief of Police and Safety

Kenneth Sidun will retire

after 14 years of duty.

Contributed photo



ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT April 21, 2010

O

n l i n e

A

& E

Civil Twilight

presents

South

African sound

Merciad.Mercyhurst.

edu

Classical guitarist Vidovic strums at ’Hurst

Walker Recital Hall opens itsdoors to international sound thisFriday as it welcomes classical gui-tarist and woldwide music phenom

Ana Vidovic. The performance of soothing guitar music is sure toleave the audience breathless.

The artist herself has such a varied and impressive background

that there is little doubt she is oneof the elite musicians of the worldtoday. Vidovic hails from Karlo-

vac, Croatia, and began her musicaltraining at the age of five.

By the age of 11, she was giving public concerts around Europe. Atage 13, she became the youngest stu-dent to attend the National Musical

Academy in Zagreb, Croatia, under

the tutelage of Istvan Romer.Soon her outstanding reputation

as an international artist in Europeled to an invitation to study at thePeabody Conservatory in Baltimore

with Manuel Barrueco. Having graduated from this prestigiousinstitution, Vidovic continues tobe an international sensation, pos-sessing an impressive number of musical prizes from competitions

worldwide, among them the Albert Augustine International Competi-tion in Bath, England, and the Fer-nando Sor competition in Rome,Italy.

More than these honors, Vidovichas also appeared with the ZagrebPhilharmonic Orchestra, as well asin Croatian films and television, andhas recorded multiple CDs. Sincetaking the stage in 1988, Vidovic

has received stunning reviews for

her performances, of which thereare over 1,000 in places ranging from Paris, London, Rome, Tel Aviv,

Warsaw, Budapest, Vienna, Salzburg, Toronto and all over the UnitedStates.

With her extensive training andrevered public image, Vidovic’srepertoire is sure to include uniquearrangements not only of greatclassical pieces but of more con-temporary compositions as well.Her work features intricate andcomplex guitar techniques as wellas beautiful melodic surprises.

The performance is certain toleave a lasting impression on allthose who attend. Vidovic willperform in Walker Recital Hallthis Friday at 8 p.m. Tickets can bepurchased by calling the PAC boxoffice at (814) 824-3000.

By Claire HindeStaff writer

Tickets for Ana Vidovic are $10 for Mercyhurst students with

a valid I.D.

Contributed photo

‘Fresh’ depicts healthy ways to grow foodBy Kathleen VogtleStaff writer

At one point or another, youhave been introduced to a descrip-tion of the Millennial generation:

We are labeled as diverse, indepen-dent, comfortable-with-technology activists.

Innumerable causes and studieshave utilized this last trait, knowing that if they can garner our support,

we will be invaluable allies. Thisis particularly evident in the foodindustry.

First, there was “Super Size Me”in 2004, a radical experiment whichshot down an American view thatpeople could eat as much highly processed, fatty fast foods as they wanted without consequence.

Then “Food, Inc.” came out

in 2008, bringing to light the less visible but highly controversial world of meat and vegetable pro-duction.

This week’s edition to the

Guelcher Film Series, “Fresh,”exists in this same general vein, butpresents its own unique spin; those who have seen “Food, Inc.” willnotice the differences.

“Fresh” takes on a distinctly more humanitarian spin, and lacksmuch of the “holier-than-thou”rhetoric which might exist in otherexposé-type, call-to-action films.

While the film does make jabs

at industrial farming, calling atten-tion to its toll on our soil, healthand livestock, its primary focus ison farmers under contract to giantagribusinesses and on the work of ordinary men and women who aremaking different choices for thesustenance of our earth despiteoutside pressures.

“Fresh” highlights upon vari-ous areas of the country wheresmaller-sized farms and the farmers

who work them are trying different

approaches other than contracting with huge agribusinesses.

The first is the Growing Powerurban farm in Milwaukee, where

Will Allen is turning three acres of

industrial wasteland into a nutri-tional utopia for his neighbor-hood.

In Kansas City, David Ball strivesto revitalize his community, provid-ing his Good Natured Family Farmstores with produce grown by localfarmers.

In Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley, Joel Salatin is setting anexample by allowing cows, chick-

ens, pigs and natural grasses toflourish and produce without any chemical fertilizer or industrialanimal feed.

Throughout the film, onecommon message exists: Eachperson, in his or her own way, has aresponsibility to care for this world,and that there are viable ways of doing so. It just takes a little initia-tive.

“Fresh” shows in the D’AngeloPerforming Arts Center at 2:15 and

7:15 p.m. today. The Brew and View will begin in the art gallery at 6:30. Tickets are free for Mercyhurst stu-dents with their ID.

‘Fresh’ is showing today at the PAC at 2:15 and 7:15 p.m.

pac.mercyhurst.edu photo

Panel discussion

on Asperger’s

reveals valuable

insight

‘Sweeney Todd’a slicingsuccess



September 3, 2008OPINION April 21, 2010

@mercyhurst.edu

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The Merciad is the official student-produced newspaper of MercyhurstCollege. It is published throughout the school year, with the exception of

finals weeks. Our office is in Hirt, Room 120B. Our telephone number is(814) 824-2376.

The Merciad welcomes letters to the editor. All letters must be signedand names will be included with the letters. Although we will not edit the

letters for content, we reserve the right to trim letters to fit. Lettersare due Mondays. by noon and may not be more than 300 words. Submit

letters to box PH 485 or via e-mail at [email protected].

If you don’t want it printed . . . don’t let it happen.Editors

JoEllen Marsh

Kelly Luoma

Javi Cubillos

Jordan Zangaro

Nick Glasier Alaina Rydzewski

Sam Williams

Tyler Stauffer

Ethan Magoc

Ethan Johns

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Bill Welch

Brian Sheridan

Positions

Editor-in-Chief

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Graphics

Photographer

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Adviser

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The views expressed in the opinion section of The Merciad do not necessarily reflect the v iews of Mercyhurst College, the staff of The Merciador the Catholic Church. Responses on any subject are always welcomed and can be e-mailed to [email protected].

Online Opinion Section...

merciad.mercyhurst.edu

After the girl at the desk swipedmy card, I walked into the chang-ing room and set my stuff down

on one of the several benches. Then, I took off my Converse andsweatpants, placed them in a lockerand put my running shoes on. Andonce my hair was in a ponytail andmy iPod was strapped on my arm, it

was time to work out. As soon as I got to the cardio

area, I realized how busy it was. Atfirst, I thought all of the machines

were taken. After looking around alittle more, though, I saw that there

were a few open ones.

I went toward one of the tread-mills, but I stopped when I noticedthe paper with “Out of Order”

written on it. Thankfully, there was another treadmill nearby, and Ididn’t see any signs on this one. Ihopped on and pressed quickstart,and guess what happened…noth-ing – this one was broken, too.

Because I was having no luck,I decided to work on my legs firstand then finish with a 20-minuterun. Happy that I was finally aboutto start my workout, I practically skipped to the leg press. My goodspirits were crushed, however,

when I saw yet another piece of paper telling me that I couldn’t usethe machine.

Okay, is it just me, or does theRec. Center really need upgraded? I

mean, come on.

It seems like stuff breaks easily and doesn’t get fixed for a while,and that’s not cool.A lot of money is going to be put into new chang-ing areas, but what about the actualequipment? In all honesty, I think that should be the number one pri-ority, because students don’t wantto use faulty machines. Trust me.

Recently, my friend has been let-ting me use his guest passes at the

Y down the road, because I havegotten tired of all the problems atour gym. And let me tell you how much I love it there. Everything isbrand new, there is a greater assort-ment of machines and there areenough so that people rarely haveto wait.

So can something please bedone? I know I’m not the only one

who would appreciate it.

Do you know what abseiling is?I did not either, until the ReserveOfficer Training Corps (ROTC)of Mercyhurst College asked me tojoin them for their Field Training Exercise (FTX) on April 10. As it

turns out, abseiling is the same thing as rappelling in American English.

Now, as a civilian, it is highly unlikely I will have to rappel downthe side of a building or out of ahelicopter – but it is significantly more likely that our men and

women in uniform on the battlefield will have to, for a host of military/tactical reasons.

It is very encouraging to know that our classmates at Mercyhurst

College and at Gannon University who have dedicated themselves toserving in the U.S. military are being taught these skills now, so that they

will be better prepared for whenthey leave us and join the fightoverseas in the War on Terror.

In addition to rappelling, thestudent members of the “Prideof PA” Battalion learn strategiesregarding proper assault and

defensive situations in firefights. The abilities to think clearly, reactquickly and efficiently work as teamsare key points for the officers-in-training to understand and acquirein order to survive and protect theircomrades on the battlefield. Themen and women of the “Pride of PA” Battalion went about learning these strategies using Paintballmarkers – keeping the freneticnature of battle while eliminating

the likelihood of injury, obviously aplus for training.

I have already admitted to being a civilian. More than that, I happento be a mildly lazy civilian, and I amimmensely grateful that there aremen and women willing and able tofight on behalf of me and my fellow countrymen, many of whom areprobably like me – unable to wakeup at 0-Dark-Thirty to actually jointhe ROTC battalion on their FTX.

However, there was a civilian atthe FTX who was very differentfrom me, and not just because thisindividual had the wherewithal to

wake up and make it to the FTX. This individual distinguishes

himself from me because heis Dr. Tim Downs, the Deanof Humanities from GannonUniversity. This demonstrates thedepth of support our men and

women in uniform receive frommembers of the administrativestaff of Gannon University.

Gannon is our rival in almostevery regard. But they ought notto be our rival while we supportour troops, officers in training orotherwise. It is for this reason thatI am thoroughly discouraged by the administration of MercyhurstCollege’s seeming indifference tothe Pride of PA Battalion, as at

this point it is questionable as to whether anyone from our ownadministration (that means you,Dr. Gamble and Dr. Tobin) willeven attend the formal dining outceremony put on by the ROTCbattalion, much less participate inan FTX.

I cannot thank enough themembers of the “Pride of PA”Battalion not only for their service,but also for the opportunity to join

them on their FTX, despite my inability to wake up in time.

No matter what else, it isencouraging to see that the Deanof Humanities from GannonUniversity, dressed head-to-toe inhis own personalized ACUs, wasable to get out into the field withour ROTC students and participatein the Paintball and rappelling training, unlike some.

By Devin Ruic

Staff writer

Administrative zeal for ROTC questioned

Extreme upgrade needed at the REC

Go to merciad.mercyhurst.edu/opinionto check out more opinion articles and

the weekly Good, Bad and Ugly!

Have an opinion you want to express?

Become a staff writer for the opinionsection. If interested, send an e-mail to

[email protected]

By Victoria

Gricks

Staff writer



Sports April 21, 2010

Cleveland-area trio leads softball to playoffs

For the first time since 1991, the

women’s softball team has posted a

regular season record over .500.

The Lakers swept Edinboro

University in a two-game series over

the weekend and earned the second

seed in the Pennsylvania State Ath-

letic Conference West Division

Tournament. The Lakers look to bring success

to a program that has been relegated

to years of pushing through season

after season of disappointment.

A major reason for the recent

success comes from the surge in

offense from the Lakers.

Last year the Lakers were rather

anemic on offense, struggling to

produce runs in key situations.

There are three big reasons

for this resurgence in the Lakersoffense and they are junior Michelle

Schmitz, sophomore Jen Bower and

sophomore Emily Redig.

The three offensive dynamos

have one thing in common, as they

are all from the Cleveland area.Redig went to Norte Dame Cathe-

dral Latin in Chardon, Schmitz

attended Westlake High School and

Jen Bower attended Elyria High

School and twice played in the state

championship game. The region’s competitive nature

has made these players more pre-

pared than most.

“Being in such a competitive area

playing high school softball really

prepared us for college softball and

made the transition easier,” Redig

said.

“There were definitely players in

the area, and there were a good deal

of Division I players that were in

the area, and playing against them

made us better,” Schmitz said.

The level of competition appar-

ently prepared them well.

Schmitz and Bower have com-

bined for 20 home runs, four less

than the team total last season.

Redig has five home runs as well

through the regular season.

Schmitz, Bower and Redig’s 84

RBIs account for close to half the

Lakers’ RBIs this season and have

a combined .335 batting average for

the season.

Despite the high production,

these Lakers just try to keep a

simple mindset at the plate.

“I just try and go out there and

put the ball in play and make the

other team make mistakes,” said

Bower, who leads the team with 11

home runs.

All three worked hard in the off-

season, playing on strong summer

league teams and working on indi-

vidual weaknesses.

“Over the summer, I worked

very hard on trying to improve how

I hit the outside pitch, and now I

can really focus on just hitting the

ball where it is pitched to me,”

Schmitz said.

The hard work has shown, as

Schmitz is leading the team in bat-

ting average with a .352 average

with nine home runs and a team-

leading 36 RBIs.

Schmitz, Redig and Bower are

all very excited about the success

of the team this season but are

convinced there is still room for

improvement.

“I think that we have a lot of

potential and talent on this team.

We have been really performing

well, and we hope we can continue

to carry it over into the playoffs,”

Redig said.

If the Lakers look to advance

deep into the playoffs, they will

need them to come up big.

By Nick GlasierSports Editor

’Hurst dominates Gannon

There are some games that just

mean a little bit more.

You don’t get more points for

winning them, but you do get the

bragging rights.

Nobody ever wants to lose, but

some games you are desperate not

to lose.

Rivalries add an extra dimension

to a game. Tackles are stronger,hits are harder and goals mean a

little bit more.

One of the first things anyone

learns at Mercyhurst is about the

intense rivalry with Gannon.

There are always more fans

attending these games, more noise

at these games and more excite-

ment leading up to them.

This past year, Mercyhurst’s

sports teams have dominated

Gannon.

Mercyhurst recorded a total of

17 wins over Gannon, and lost 10

times.

Football, men’s soccer, women’s

lacrosse, and women’s water polo

all swept the Golden Knights.

The football team retained the

Niagara Cup for the fourth con-secutive year, winning 27-17 in

front of more than 1,000 fans.

The men’s soccer team embar-

rassed Gannon on its senior day

and homecoming by winning 5-1

to complete a season sweep.

Women’s lacrosse edged two

close encounters, winning by a

single goal in both games.

That was similar to women’s

water polo, which also beat Gannon

by one goal, winning 7-6.

Men’s water polo and women’s

softball both won three out of four games against their rivals.

The men’s water polo team

had beaten Gannon eight straight

times, but Gannon would finally

get revenge this year.

Baseball, men’s basketball, wom-

en’s soccer and volleyball all split

their respective series.

The women’s soccer team had

never lost to Gannon, going 26

games without a defeat. Twenty-

two of the meetings were victories. That incredible record was broken

this year.

Gannon would only win

two series against Mercyhurst.

The Knights beat the women’s

basketball team twice, and won the

wrestling contest between the two

schools.

Mercyhurst will look to con-

tinue to add to this impressive

record next year, when the rivalry

resumes.

By Billy Colton

Staff writer

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Mercyhurst College junior Michelle Schmitz is leading the

Lakers with her .356 batting average.

Tyler Stauffer photo



Sports April 21, 2010

Serbians pull for Lakers

Freshman Ivan Palikuca (left) and junior captain Jovan Jovanovic (right) are key to the success

of the Mercyhurst College rowing team.

Holly Ansaldi photo

Mercyhurst’s men’s rowing team

is doing well this season with the

help of three outstanding athletes

from Serbia.

Stroking the boat is freshman

sensation Ivan Palikuca, and right

behind him in the number four

seat is captain Jovan Jovanovic.

Additionally, senior Stanislav Kostic has been recovering from

a foot injury.

The impact of the Serbians is

impressive.

“Jovan is a really well-rounded

individual. He is one of our stron-

gest rowers and will be our captain

next year,” head coach Adrian

Spracklen said.

“Ivan is the lead stroker in our

men’s boat and has broken all our

rowing records as a freshman,”Spracklen said.

Jovan and Stanislov have also

been key members on the Lakers’

most successful boats in the

Henley Royal Regatta, Dad Veil

Regatta and the IRA National

Championships.

Jovan and Ivan are from the

capital city of Belgrade, while Stan

is from Smederevo.

Growing up, they participated

in many different sports, including

basketball and soccer. Ivan said he

even took Taekwondo classes.

They did not, however, develop

a passion for rowing until the sixth

grade.

But when they did pick it up,

they took off.

The Serbians’ trip to Mercy-

hurst would be one that was chal-

lenging for both the athletes and

Mercyhurst.

Serbia has no college placement

tests so they had to take the SAT

to qualify to attend a school in the

United States.

The foreign players also have to

take a test to determine their com-

mand of the English language.

Speaking little English, they

found the test difficult, but they

achieved high enough scores to be

accepted by Mercyhurst.

They also considered a few Ivy

League colleges.

Jovan’s interest in Mercyhurst

was sparked by the possibility of

rowing for Spracklen.

“I found Mercyhurst online and

when I learned that the head coach

(Adrian Spracklen) was the son

of Mike Spracklen, I immediately

liked Mercyhurst,” Jovan said.

Mike Spracklen is a successful

rowing coach and has earned three

Olympic medals.

Jovan was essential in the

recruitment of Ivan last year.

“I remember Jovan would be

talking to Ivan in Serbian on the

phone all the time about Mer-

cyhurst before Ivan came here,”

Spracklen said.

“It was a little harder for Ivan

to get to Mercyhurst because of

the language barrier for one, but

also because there was some issue

with his national team in terms of

eligibility for the NCAA,” Sprack-

len said.

Jovan and Ivan have been happy

with their decision in terms of

academics too.

“As far as the college is con-

cerned, I like the teacher-to-stu-

dent ratio. I like the small school

setting,” Jovan said.

However, both Ivan and Jovan

miss their fast-paced lives in Bel-

grade.

“Yes, I like the college, but Erie

is a dead place. We come from a

fast-pace city, and there is just

more to do there,” Ivan said.

Overall, Spracklen has been

very impressed with the Serbians’

adjustment due to the support

system they have built.

“It’s a big culture shock for

the guys when they first get here,

but it has been quite different for

them than others since they had

each other to kind of guide their

way through it,” Spracklen said.

By Matthew CirellContributing writer

Raise your hand if you thought every series in the NHL Conference

Quarterfinals would be split after two games. Me neither.

I’ve got two points to make on this oddest of scenarios: I thought the

matchups weren’t the best they could have been, and I didn’t think a few

series would be close. With a week of the best postseason hockey I’ve

ever seen under the NHL’s collective belt, I can definitively tell you I was

dead wrong on both counts.

Near the end of the regular season, only four teams’ seeds were

decided in each conference, setting up many possible match-ups for the

playoffs.In the East, the possible matchups worked out relatively well,

with Buffalo-Boston and New Jersey-Philadelphia pitting division rivals

against each other and Pittsburgh-Ottawa marking the third time in four

years the two teams would meet in the first round of the postseason.

Caps-Rangers would have been better than Caps-Montreal, but the Flyers

wouldn’t be able to play the Devils if the Rangers made the second

season. Out west, the playoff pairings could have been much better, if

only as far as rivalries and geography were concerned. San Jose could have

played Los Angeles, which put divisional hatred and distance into a big-

time matchup. Phoenix-Nashville could have happened, which really just

allowed for better pairings elsewhere, like Detroit-Chicago and Vancou-

ver-Calgary.

That being said, the matchups that have come out of the regular season

are absurdly competitive right now. All eight conference quarterfinals split

the first two games of their respective seven-game series. Last year, only

one series (Jersey-Carolina) split in the first two games. Not only were they

split, but they were all extremely close. Empty net goals aside, every game

has been decided by one or two goals, and many have gone into overtime.

Matchups that weren’t even supposed to be close (Washington-Mon-

treal and San Jose-Colorado as the two most blatant examples) have been

immediately converted to tight series that could easily go the distance.

With the series switching to the lower seeds’ rinks for two games, the

tables have been turned for the higher seeds and home-ice advantage has

been eliminated. Looks can be deceiving, and this postseason so far has

been no exception. Last Friday was perhaps the best night of hockey I’ve

ever seen, with five games decided with less than five minutes in the 3rd

period or overtime. If you don’t have Versus (which you probably don’t

considering it isn’t available on Mercyhurst cable), get your homework

done early and get out to a restaurant or watering hole.

By Devon Swanson

Columnist

NHL playoff pairingsa pleasant surprise

The Merciad, April 21, 2010

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Transcript of The Merciad, April 21, 2010