Print Edition of The Observer Thursday, September 22, 2016
Nd r ight to Life hosts discussion
Panelists explore quality of life issues, resources relating to pro-life movement
By KATIE GALIOTO news writer
when it comes to living a life oriented toward pro-life values, it’s important to take a step back and examine your actions, david richter, assistant professor of civil engineering, environmental engineering and earth sciences, said.
“you have to look for inconsistencies,” he said. “if you’re worried about the environment or you’re worried about crisis pregnancy — or whatever that topic might be — use these things as a stepping stone to getting into conversation where you can ask serious questions and blunt questions.”
richter was one of three panelists at the first installment of
SMC, Bethel professors explore Constitution
By STEPHANIE SNYDER news writer
saint mary’s and bethel college history faculty discussed the constitution, populism and republican presidential candidate donald Trump during a panel for constitution week, proclaimed by president barack obama in recognition of the anniversary of the united states constitution.
during the discussion, led by saint mary’s history professor bill svelmoe, saint mary’s political science department chair marc belanger said there are more demands on the constitution as the world grows more complex.
“i’m not saying it’s outdated, but the inefficiencies stand out much more now,” he said.
svelmoe said the inefficiency can lead to populist discontent, which can be seen throughout history as well as in this year’s presidential candidates.
“The first populist movement has regular folk rising up with some degree of discontent, and the second populist movements tends to have big solutions or big questions,” he said. “They don’t want to have incremental change; they want huge change.”
saint mary’s political science professor pat pierce said the writers of the constitution did not want that polarized mindset in the government.
“what they really had in mind was a mixed constitution — it wasn’t straight democracy,” he said. “a pure democracy would inevitably fall apart.”
pierce said the u s. system is unusual in the power ordinary people have.
“instead of relying on folks in the group of elites to make nominations, it is ordinary citizens,” he said. “donald Trump would have never been nominated by the republican party.”
John haas, an associate professor of history at bethel college, pointed out the implications of having an inexperienced politician like Trump in office.
“James madison talked about how there’s a multiplying of factions,” he said. “when you inject an ego like Trump’s into the u s government, it’s a huge game changer. he’s going to rearrange everything.”
pierce said the constitution was based on fear of tyranny.
“They were intensely concerned with tyranny,” pierce said. “it was
why we had a mixed constitution. The way Trump is claiming he can build a wall, it’s as if tyranny doesn’t exist.”
pierce said drastic political statements like Trump’s corrupt citizens.
“There’s a certain corruption of the public when the government works in a particular way,” he said. “Those kinds of statements corrupt [the] public, so we stop understanding the way the political system operates.”
carol halperin, an adjunct professor of history at saint mary’s, said if a president overshoots boundaries, the government can act.
“The constitution provides the ability to impeach a president,” she said. “if he takes advantage, he can be removed.”
pierce said the “corruption of the public” is partially due to the media.
“The kind of emotional manipulation through an outlet like fox news, many of the conditions they believe exist, don’t,” pierce said. “Their perception of reality is just so out of whack from what’s really going on.”
thanks students
By KATIE GALIOTO news editor
sophomore gavin ennis and junior Katie sisk were walking down corby drive on sept. 1 when they saw a student who was injured after falling off his skateboard. The pair called notre dame security police (ndsp), who brought the hurt student in for a medical examination in saint liam hall. ennis had run back to his dorm to grab paper towels. sisk convinced the student to get a medical examination, even when he
gameday crime report released
By KATIE GALIOTO news e ditor
notre dame security police
(ndsp) arrested three individuals saturday before and during notre dame’s home football game against michigan state, police chief Keri Kei shibata said.
“one was inside the stadium; two were outside the stadium,” shibata said. “There were no citations written. Those three arrests were the only major police action that was taken that day.”
Two of the arrests were for charges of trespassing and one was for public intoxication and disorderly conduct, shibata said.
mike seamon, vice president for campus safety and event management, said saturday’s game was one of the biggest in recent history in terms of campus activity.
“night games are usually against big opponents — and it was in september and in driving distance, and the weather cooperated,” he said. “it ended up being a perfect night for football.”
it was estimated that more than 140,000 people were on campus during the day saturday, seamon said.
“That’s really high for us,” he said.
The michigan state game and the home game against michigan in 2014 were the two biggest night games in recent history, seamon added. university parking lots were filled to 100 percent capacity.
“every one was full, from the south side of the stadium to the golf course,” he said. “people seemed to have a very good time.” notre dame gave more than 3,500 golf cart rides to guests friday and saturday, and students from various clubs and organizations gave 281 pedal cab rides across campus, seamon said. shibata said from a campus safety standpoint, the game was a success as well.
“with the night game, there’s more time for things to happen,” she said. “and we never know what’s going to happen. but there were actually less calls than the night game last year.”
officers from state and local police agencies on campus wear the uniform of their own department but technically work for ndsp when dealing with campus crime, shibata said, though when officers conduct traffic around the
KATIE GALIOTO | The Observer
Associate professor of theology Tom Whitmore speaks at Right to Life’s panel, “A Pro-Life vision of the World,” Wednesday evening in Geddes Hall.
Conference: “Fifteen Years After the 9/11 Terrorist Attacks”
Law School
9 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Reception to follow.
Panel: “Is Christianity Bad for Women?”
McKenna Hall
7 p.m. - 9 p.m.
Discussion on gender roles in the Church.
Friday
Men’s Soccer vs. Syracuse Alumni Stadium
7 p.m. - 9 p.m.
The Irish take on the Orange.
ND Volleyball vs. Louisville Purcell Pavilion
7 p.m. - 9 p.m.
The Irish take on the Cardinals.
Saturday
Have a question you want answered? Email
Andrea Mitchell first year regina hall “ord.”
Lauren Bartlett freshman farley hall “e mmy from dragon Tales.”
Alex Miskimon sophomore carroll hall “patrick star.”
Want your event included here? Email news@ndsmcobserver.com
Sunday
ND Band Step-off from the Dome Main Building
2:45 p.m.
The band starts its trek to the stadium.
Football vs. Duke Notre Dame Stadium
3:30 p.m. - 7 p.m.
The Irish take on the Blue Devils at the third home game of the year.
Mass at the Basilica Basilica of the Sacred Heart
11:45 a.m. - 12:45 p.m.
Featuring music by the Notre Dame Folk Choir.
Women’s Soccer vs. Pittsburgh Alumni Stadium
1 p.m. - 3 p.m.
The Irish take on the Panthers.
Monday
Lecture: “Sisterhood, Social Justice, and Scholarship” O’Laughlin Auditorium 7:30 p.m. Event is ticketed.
Presidential Debate Watch
South Quad 9 p.m. - 10:30 p.m.
Location is weatherpermitting.
Group discusses Career Center
By RACHEL O’GRADY a ssociate news e ditor
i n an effort to gauge how students feel about employment opportunities, representatives from the notre dame career c enter held a discussion with the student senate wednesday evening.
Today’s Staff
Corrections
The observer regards itself as a professional publication and strives for the highest standards of journalism at all times. we do, however, recognize that we will make mistakes. i f we have made a mistake, please contact us at (574) 631-4541 so we can correct our error.
l ori a nn e dinborough, career experiential program manager at the c areer c enter, said she wanted to hear what students had to say about the c enter.
“at the start of the school year, we want to get those thoughts on what you guys are thinking about careers,” e dinborough said. “we’re tapping into you guys here. we don’t want to sway any of your thoughts or opinions on the way we’ve set up the c areer c enter, so we really just want to hear from you.”
senate parliamentarian sophomore monica montgomery said she thought the career c enter seems more remote than she would like.
“To me it seems like it’s a far-off land, just because i’m on west Quad, so it’s literally very far away,” montgomery said. “it’s kind of intimidating and far in my mind.”
sophomore a bby w halen, the farley
hall senator, said she felt the career c enter was more tailored to those not in the c ollege of science.
“for a lot of students, they think it’s helpful just for business or engineering or political science students, but i think it’s harder if you’re a student who’s less inclined to go the internship path, like if you want to go to med school,” w halen said.
student body president c orey robinson echoed w halen’s concern.
“it feels like it’s targeted for business majors, which makes it harder for science majors for sure,” robinson said. “so i think it would be good if we matched some people with, maybe, some mentors from the sciences, maybe some that have done med school.”
sophomore mary carroll, the r yan hall senator said she also thought it would be better if the c areer c enter was broader in its goals for students.
“i think it would be helpful if there was some way to focus it less on getting a job or an internship and more on ... the formation of the person,” c arroll said. “i have a lot of friends who still aren’t even sure what their major is and others who already have internships,
so i think it would be good to bridge that gap.”
a number of senators expressed anxiety about the career fair and general employment opportunities. sophomore sammi berley, the senator from pasquerilla e ast hall, said many people felt overwhelmed by the job hunt at notre dame.
“i think there’s a sense of anxiety there on campus,” berley said. “l ike the sense of risk, and what you’re missing out on if you don’t take a job with one of the ‘big four’ [consulting firms].” robinson agreed with berley, saying he felt notre dame students were less inclined to take certain risks on employment opportunities.
“one of the things i’ve seen a lot, career wise, is that students are afraid to take a lot of risks,” robinson said. “They’re far more likely to take the safe option, and no one is trying to go do something radical, or outside the normal. i think if you could encourage people to take risks, that would be really helpful.”
Contact Rachel O’Grady at rogrady@nd.edu
sTudeNT seNaTe
“a pro-life vision of the world,” which took place in geddes hall on wednesday night. The event was part of a three-part series of talks co-sponsored by notre dame right to life and the catholic social Tradition (csT) program. drawing from pope francis’ most recent encyclical, “laudato si,” richter said all humans have a responsibility to care for the earth, their common home.
“you have to start worrying about our effect on the world — because it does affect other people,” he said.
Todd whitmore, associate professor of theology and co-director of the csT minor, said it is important to consider quality of life when looking at right to life issues. as an example, whitmore noted that the life expectancy in the
united states is close to 25 years higher than some of the areas in which he has done fieldwork, such as northern uganda and south sudan.
“my 59th birthday is tomorrow,” whitmore said. “in northern uganda, i’m dead. i’m not up here talking to you. i’m dead. Twentyfive years is a lot of life to take away from someone.”
Thus, poverty issues — such as access to resources like clean water, food and healthcare — should be considered when promoting pro-life causes, whitmore said.
a big part of the pro-life movement is recognizing the human dignity of every person, erin lynch, a counselor at the pro-life women’s care center, said.
“we promise to welcome everyone who walks through our doors as if they’re our own family,” lynch said.
lynch provides support to women with unexpected
pregnancies by explaining and providing the resources the center has to offer. she said the hope and mission of the center is to empower women to choose life and become nurturing parents.
“we recognize that every woman’s in a different place, and every woman has her own situation,” she said. “and we really try to meet each woman where she’s at.”
notre dame has a number of resources for pregnant students, lynch said, offering more than a lot of schools do. ultimately, the best way to share pro-life beliefs and empower others to make pro-life choices is to lead by example, she added.
“we show that love through our actions,” lynch said. “in the business world and in the medical field — we need people everywhere that have that openness to life.”
Contact Katie Galioto at kgalioto@nd.edu
N dsp
thought he didn’t need one. and both of them stayed with him until 4:30 a.m. the next day, after he had gotten stitches and returned to campus.
ndsp recognized ennis and sisk in hammes-mowbray hall on wednesday afternoon for “going above and beyond to comfort a member of the community.”
“we’re always talking about being our brothers’ and sisters’ keepers,” police captain Tracy skibins said. “This was just a fantastic example that was brought to my attention.”
ndsp chief Keri Kei shibata presented ennis and sisk with gift bags in thanks.
“we talk a lot about how important it is to look out for the community and how, if we really want to save the community, it’s up for each member of the community to
take ownership for that,” she said. “and it sounds like that’s exactly what you did.”
The students were models for the university’s greendot program, shibata said.
“The program is all about doing positive things to wipe out acts of violence and things like that,” she said. “it made a difference to one student — and if we keep doing that, we can make a huge difference in our community.”
ennis said he keeps in touch with the student. sisk said he was sweet and fun to talk to.
skibins said this is the kind of story she hopes inspires other members of the campus community.
“we’re such a small department, so we count on the community members to keep each other safe,” she said. “This is just a fantastic example of us all working together.”
Contact Katie Galioto at kgalioto@nd.edu
svelmoe said the media is polarizing the nation.
“with the media, the way we fractured ourselves, our whole universe of facts is just completely different,” he said. “we’re whipping up this animosity for the other side.”
halperin said Trump and hillary clinton are unlikely to reverse the trend of polarization.
“you know it’s bad when you find yourself starting to miss richard nixon,” she said. “he did have a presidential air about him, and the two candidates we have now are almost universally disliked.”
Contact Stephanie Snyder at ssnyder02@stmarys.edu
con T inued from page 1
university, they are working for their own agency.
The indiana state excise police, the law enforcement branch of the state’s alcohol and Tobacco commission, have not been at home football games for the past two years, shibata said.
“They have jurisdiction anywhere in the state of indiana,” she said. “if they wanted to come, they could. They have not been here for the last couple seasons.”
in the past, excise police officers have communicated their plans to come to campus to ndsp, although that would not be required, shibata added.
shibata said she hopes fans and visitors continue to make safety and security a priority during future home games.
“with game day, with so many people and guests on campus, we really appreciate members of the notre dame community — students, faculty and staff — keeping their eyes open and letting us know if they see anything,” she said.
Contact Katie Galioto at kgalioto@nd.edu
By MATTHEW MACKE
s cene writer
hip-hop, perhaps more than any other musical genre, prizes nostalgia. it recalls those days in grade school when the guys would sit around the lunch-table and freestyle … or at least try to freestyle. many common subjects of rap music are clear evolutions of childhood attitudes. notably, the notorious self-aggrandizement that many rappers exhibit is a justifiable attempt to talk big in a world that makes you feel small. That’s why rap has incorporated, almost since its inception, a steady undercurrent of nostalgia. (Though today, it might be wrong to call it an ‘undercurrent’ with artists like chance the rapper and Joey bada$$ appealing directly to youth sentiment.) unsurprisingly, this grownup-childishness comes out aesthetically as well as thematically. The most apparent example of these surviving youthful interests is the enduring relationship between hip-hop and comic books.
it makes sense that a group of young, often socially ill-fitting, adolescents would turn to larger-than-life superheroes to feel some sense of agency in the distinctly un-empowering journey that is childhood. That’s why you have wu-Tang clan members method man and ghostface Killah drawing straight from marvel comics with aliases like Johnny blaze and Tony starks, respectively. a nd why you have british hip-hop legend mf doom wearing a mask inspired by the supervillain doctor doom. underground hip-hop icon el-p even had comic book artist Travis millard design two of his own album covers.
This isn’t just a one-sided relationship, though. eminem, in addition to having an “otherworldly” comic-book collection, starred alongside the punisher in a single-run marvel comic published in 2009. and each of the past two summers, marvel comics has released a series of album covers inspired by classic hip-hop cover-art, but featuring their heroes. similarly, the group run the Jewels, which includes the aforementioned el-p, was ecstatic to see marvel unveil a few variant comic covers that were inspired by the art from their first, self-titled release.
comics, not unlike rap music, have gone from niche fascination to mainstream phenomenon. Kanye west and iron man are both global superstars and larger-than-life personalities. one of the hottest artists of the past few years is a grown man calling himself fetty wap, and americans shelled out more than $300 million to see a movie with a talking raccoon and a mono-clausal tree-man (“guardians of the galaxy”). suffice to say it should hardly be surprising that national book award-winner, recipient of the macarthur “genius grant” and prominent africanamerican thought-leader Ta-nehisi coates decided to take on the position of writer for the marvel’s latest series of “black panther” comics, which started running last year. coates is, seemingly, the impact of both hip-hop music and comic books coming full circle to create a feedback loop of artistic influence. he grew up a fan of both media, and has gone so far as to say that hip hop is “the biggest influence on my aesthetic as a writer,” in an interview with rolling stone. being a fan of hip-hop and coates, as well as someone experimenting with comic books, the “black panther” seemed like a perfect fit for me as a reader; the concept provides a conduit for all these influences coming
into direct contact. on sept. 13, the first “black panther” collection came out and i finally picked it up. put bluntly, the book is incredible. it is easily the best comic book that i’ve read (although i’ve only read three), and has a mind-boggling amount of literary heft for a publication that probably has fewer words than this article. coates and artist brian stelfreeze have done a brilliant job creating the incredibly developed a frican nation of wakanda, a place that, sadly, doesn’t have many real-life examples to use for reference. appropriately, the coates describes his collaboration with stelfreeze in a hip-hop context, claiming that “he’s the dJ. i’m the rapper.” Together, they have matured the youthful struggle that flows through hip-hop. T’challa, the titular black panther, is battling to maintain control over a kingdom which is at separate points falling apart and rebelling. some call for democracy, some want him to protect the villages, some want to maintain wakandan tradition, but all weigh down the crown on his head.
“black panther” embraces the vulnerability that other comics attempt to bury. for that reason it’s hard to tell whether this “black panther” will have the same resonance with young hip-hop heads that other superheroes have had, even with its familiar roots. it is undoubtedly brilliant … but this story may have grown out of the exact qualities that made its predecessors so influential. if it does happen to catch, i’m curious to see what sort of music coates’ “black panther” inspires. a fter all, hip-hop is all about nostalgia — and this “black panther” is something startlingly new.
Contact Matthew Macke at mmacke@nd.edu
By CHRISTIAN BUNKER s cene writer
every so often an album comes out that gets everyone talking — not just because of how good it is, but because it is so radically different from everything else. such albums sound as if they came from another planet, or at least david byrne’s basement. The new local natives album, “sunlit youth,” is not one of these albums. instead, the five young men from los a ngeles known as local natives have given us a record that is a veritable potpourri of alternative fm radio over the last decade. from sleek synths to vocal harmonies to acoustic intros, this lp certainly has all its bases covered. of course, nine out of 10 times the result of this derivative songwriting would be the kind of generic garbage they play at south dining hall, but shockingly, this album works. it’s not a “great record” per se, but it works, combining disparate influences to create what’s undeniably an enjoyable 45 minutes. let’s look more closely at how the band brings together many different threads on this record. one significant feature is a definite trend towards electronics. This is established by the opening song, “villainy,” which feels like it would fit right in on mgmT’s “oracular spectacular.” Two tracks later, “dark days” continues the electronic theme, but on the opposite end of the spectrum. in contrast with villainy’s energetic pop, the song’s somber atmosphere, male-female duet and catchy guitar lick evoke
The xx’s “crystalised.” The result is one of the most engaging tracks on the album. The harmonies in all four of the earliest tracks also hint at fleet foxes, especially “past l ives,” but this influence is finally fully realized in the wordless harmony and acoustic intro of “fountains of youth.”
a nother highlight is “Jellyfish,” which boasts a precisely constructed soundscape that makes me think local natives were jamming to glass a nimals or even massive attack when writing this song. The transition from these very modern sounds to the bluesy intro and tender vocals of “coins” is another great moment of the album that highlights its diversity. i will admit that i was disappointed, however, when the song jumped 35 years of british music history, going from rolling stones to coldplay in far too short of a time. a long the same lines, the no-holds-barred pop of “mother emanuel,” which gives off an atlas genius vibe at times, made me suspect that this was an intentional shot at the billboard charts, but the fact that this track was not released as a single contradicts this.
The last third of the album takes a definite drop in quality — particularly “psycho lover” and “sea of years” — but two tracks hold their own. first, there is the refreshing folksiness of “ellie a lice,” marked by the prominent sound of fingers sliding on guitar strings. Then there is “everything a ll at once,” which in my opinion should have been the closer. This is easily the album’s
hardest track to characterize. its pop leanings made me skeptical, but the use of piano and violin made the tune an impressive standout. still, i have to admit that l ocal native’s songwriting on this release does not measure up to the exceptional “wide eyes” and a few other instances from their previous work. however, their ability to craft an album has improved, and their willingness to use guitars a bit less and explore new sonic territory deserves praise. i wouldn’t go as far as to say that the album is greater than the sum of its parts, but certainly the individual parts are, for the most part, very solid. local natives should be commended for creating a record that gives modern indie rock a good name.
Contact Christian Bunker at cbunker@nd.edu
Youth”
Natives Label: Loma Vista Track: “Dark Days,” “Jellyfish” If you like: The xx, Broken Bells
job than brian Kelly does
“i absolutely hate brian Kelly he has literally no idea what he is doing out there. he’s an idiot, an imbecile and an ignorant person who looks like a potato,” shouted the girl standing behind me saturday after a crushing loss to michigan state.
This angry fan wasn’t alone. a s i contemplated the defeat in the student section and walking out of the stadium, shouts of anger rang from countless notre dame students. These shouts contained many valid comments about game strategy, but they also contained many comments that were not so valid. personal attacks on coaches and players are extremely uncalled for. no matter how poorly you believe they performed during the game, talking about how much you hate these people and how they deserve terrible things to happen to them is inappropriate to say the least.
it’s one thing to discuss how you believe that there were poor play calls or that the defensive strategy isn’t working. it makes sense to say that this player blew his coverage or that it’s crazy how that player didn’t make a play on the ball. w hat doesn’t make sense is when people take what is simply a game to a level beyond that.
calling brian Kelly or brian vang order awful human beings makes you sound like you know nothing about the game of football. not only could you not come up with anything relevant to say, but you are attacking these men for simply trying their best to coach a game.
The number of people who say they could do a better job than brian Kelly astounds me. granted he isn’t perfect every time, but let’s be honest, he’s human. no one is perfect every time they do anything. everyone makes mistakes in all of their occupations. brian Kelly’s occupation just happens to be one of the most public and high pressure ones out there. if these people truly believe they could do a better job than any one of those coaches and players on the field playing their best for us fans, i would love to see them try.
so next time you are frustrated with notre dame football, try to come up with something of substance to say. personal attacks accomplish nothing except making you look like a fool.
Contact Chris Collins at ccolli13@nd.edu
The views expressed in the Inside Column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.
Erin Thomassen
The e xamined l ife
i n my 21 years of life, i have considered dating 21 guys and joining zero religious orders. upon reflection, it seems i never gave religious life a chance. b ut how could i ? i take two pieces of fruit out of the dining hall. i go to the b acker in short skirts. i like babysitting and cooking. i am a younger sister and older stepsister, but surely not a future s ister.
f urthermore, i am studying mechanical engineering, and how many engineering nuns are there? s urely i was made to profess differential equations, not vows of chastity, poverty and obedience. i f i was not destined for academia, then surely i was called to revolutionize business or government. o r maybe i was called to be a kickbutt soccer mom who helps six children with homework while baking the perfect creme brulee. yet a summer in the “real world” made me realize that working and married life was not as sunny as it seemed. a day in the cubicle felt like an eternity — and not a blessed one.
w hen we went out after work, i learned that more than half of my coworkers were divorced, some more than once. o ne woman was upset that her boyfriend broke up with her because she had an argument with his preteen daughter. s he pulled up a picture of him on her phone. “ you’re too good for him anyways,” her friend reassured her. was i conversing with middle-aged professionals or middleschoolers? Their bodies may have aged with time, but their maturity levels and life dilemmas hadn’t. o ne of my best friends from high school played tennis at a sports club this summer full of wealthy adults who were less than satisfied with their lives. “i hate my daughter and my husband,” one woman confided in her. “ s he’s a brat, and my husband spoils her when he gets home because he feels guilty for always being at work.” s he goes out almost every night to escape her unhappy home life, hoping to relive what she remembers as carefree college years.
This taste of secular adult life made me realize that religious sisters may have the most blessed lifestyle in the world. Their lives are dedicated to prayer and service in a special way. e veryone is called to orient their lives towards g od, but sisters start, end and intersperse their study and work with prayer. a s a person guilty of self-absorption and prayer neglect, the sister’s schedule could be both the best and the worst thing for me ever.
i n “The s even s torey mountain,” Trappist monk Thomas merton calls a monastery “a school in which we learn from g od how to be happy.” m y whole life, the few times i have felt truly peaceful were when i felt in communion with g od. yet, the majority of my life has not been spent seeking this peace or communion. m y day is action-packed and contemplation-barren.
b ut isn’t sitting and thinking, or sitting and, gasp, not thinking, a waste of time? e veryone else is busy and important. i should load up my schedule so that i am busy and important, too.
i am susceptible to distraction, the world’s false promises of happiness. i fall into thinking: i will be happy if i am successful, beautiful or in a loving relationship. i will be happy if i have fun friends who host tailgates before football games, or if i get on T v during said football game. none of these things are bad. They can be quite fun. b ut they will never be a source of lasting happiness.
h appiness will be impossible if i am not in communion with g od. That means i can’t be too busy to listen to h is will and then pray for the strength to do it. i can never be truly successful, beautiful or in a loving relationship without h im. for success comes from victory over death and sin through c hrist, beauty comes through suffering with h im for the sake of others and love comes from g od, l ove h imself.
i f i choose a “religious” lifestyle, there is less of a chance that i will be led astray by materialism, the lure of power and prominence and the desire to set up my own kingdom with myself as reigning queen. for when i have doubted the existence of g od, whether consciously or subconsciously, i have not been an atheist, but an egoist — one who worships and serves herself.
yet a vocation should not stem out of the fear of the emptiness of secular adulthood or of losing my way forever. There are plenty of single and married adults who dedicate their lives to serving c hrist. a vocation may, though, appeal through the observation that religious sisters are freer than married couples in the working world to care for those who have no one to care for them. s ince they don’t have a significant other or biological children to take care of, they can dedicate their time and energy to those who are not related to them who are in need. s isters are ministers of grace. They are humble servants. They look a lot more like c hrist than my previous heroes. They look a lot more like c hrist than me.
They are also humans, with plenty of faults and struggles. i am sure there are plenty of nuns who don’t get along, as there are plenty of unhappy families.
Jesus didn’t start a biological, but a spiritual family on earth. o mniscient and perfect, he could have made scientific and mathematic advances. b ut he didn’t come to develop a more precise numerical approximation. he came to wash his disciples feet, pray, preach, be rejected and die. he also conquered death so that we could live eternally. Thanks are in order.
i don’t know whether i am called to religious life. a t least i can look at sisters and see them for more of who they are. r ather than foolish girls who have “thrown their lives away” or s hakespearean characters being punished for lusty sprees, they are wise women who have embarked upon a demanding but joyful path to sainthood.
Ms. Thomassen is a senior studying mechanical engineering. She lives at the Château off campus, with four friends and more crêpes. She can be reached at ethomass@nd.edu
The views expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.
Chris Collins a ssociate photo e ditor
The difficult questions
i f unaware of the arrival of supreme c ourt Justice ruth bader ginsburg on campus a few weeks ago, one might have seen the amount of student excitement and guessed that the campus was hosting a rather successful sub concert in the early evening. Thousands piled into p urcell pavilion, eagerly awaiting to hear from a great legal mind. w hat can we say? notre dame students love a good intellectual event. a nd the event was overflowing with potential. a liberal supreme c ourt justice with a reputation for cutting dissents and controversial interviews had agreed to come to a c atholic campus and answer questions. o ne could almost hear Kevin hart declaring, “it’s about to go down.”
o f course, nobody really expected the university to allow a roast of ginsburg. The moderated portion of the event was largely biographical and rather lighthearted. a s a venerated figure and an important example to aspiring female professionals, it would take away from the event to unleash the wrath of critical students upon her. but from the way that students sat forward in their seats as a student approached the microphone to field the first question of the Q& a , it was clear there were expectations of a quality discussion. a fter all, ginsburg is no stranger to such critical inquiries, having made a living handling them, and the profound effects that her decisions have had on our lives and the shaping of our country give plenty of material for critical inquiry.
i wondered what challenges the students of the university would throw ginsburg’s way. There is no shortage of material: how does she defend living constitutionalism? how would she respond to criticisms that the c ourt has become too powerful? c an she defend her position in a controversial case like Kelo v. new l ondon or obergefell v. hodges? maybe, i thought, the university would even be bold enough
LeTTer To The edITor
notre
dear m s. a golia,
to let a student ask a question about her stance on abortion.
unfortunately, the moderated questions demurred, and the potential for the event to create any kind of discussion or intellectual experience was lost. w ith all due respect to those who submitted the questions, none of them presented any kind of challenge to the justice or facilitated real discussion. i left the event feeling like i attended a rally for the rbg fan club, rather than a lecture on a college campus.
it seems like a shame that when given the pleasure to host one of the most intelligent, most powerful and most interesting women in the united states, notre dame refrained from allowing students to ask any question that might prove controversial or challenge the justice. not only did it leave myself and other students disappointed, it fell short of the mission of the university.
The mission statement of notre dame, which i believe she usually follows closely, claims that “the university is dedicated to the pursuit and sharing of truth” and that one of its objectives is to embrace “free inquiry and open discussion”. w hy, then, was such a pursuit of truth and open discussion stifled at this event?
i n contrast, last week, a rchbishop of philadelphia c harles J. c haput delivered a lecture on campus. The event featured an open Q& a , and more than one student took the opportunity to challenge the archbishop’s statements or the church’s views. students were allowed to criticize c atholic doctrine and engage in discussion with a highly influential church leader. The lecture and lively dialogue during the Q& a sparked more than a few animated debates among students in classes, among friends and even in The observer. w hile the event did not seek to be provocative, it led students to think more deeply about important issues surrounding faith, politics and sexuality, and to share those thoughts with others. many lament the tendency of notre dame students to be non-confrontational and reluctant to challenge
others or share their opinions. s ome even claim that notre dame students are more concerned with making friends or setting up for careers than pursuing an honest education. The lecture by c haput proved that students can be encouraged to speak more freely and that many are, in fact, interested in genuine learning. The ginsburg event, despite its incredible potential and excited audience, failed to have the same effect. perhaps not all speakers are willing or able to engage in an open Q& a , but events at the university should, at the very least, ask the speakers to engage in a meaningful dialogue with students and faculty in some capacity. w hen students encounter people who have spent a good portion of their lives tackling the great questions of politics, philosophy or religion, critical inquiry should be promoted, not discouraged.
i regard it as a shame for fans and dissenters alike that we were told how “notorious rbg” came to earn her nickname, yet robbed of the chance to see her clever legal mind in action. but ginsburg will not be the last influential public figure to speak on this campus in the coming years. it is my hope that the university, and other groups on campus, begin to consider their lecture events not only as entertainment or marks of prestige, but also as a valuable part of the university’s persistent and honest search for truth.
Mimi Teixeira is a junior studying political science and constitutional studies. She can be reached at mteixeir@nd.edu
BridgeND is a bipartisan student organization that brings students from across the political spectrum together in discussions concerning public policy issues. The viewpoints expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect the opinion of BridgeND, but are the individual opinions of the author. Contact BridgeND at bridgend@nd.edu or follow them on Twitter at @bridge_ND
The views expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.
dame’s dysfunctional cheering culture
a s i read through your viewpoint letter today, i felt as if i could see into the future. a future where you attend a game as an alum sitting quietly asking, “c ould you sit down please?” to any fan in the rows in front of you who dare stand up and cheer for notre dame. To be crystal clear, i am not advocating for any incivility, inappropriate language (especially in the presence of children) or slurs that degrade anyone as a human being. however, when you analyze the sport being played, the atmosphere created by game day and the fact that fans have the ability to impact the performance on the field, it is absolutely necessary that the fans show up “to play” on s aturdays. i’ve been privileged to attend many games at notre dame stadium in my seven years as a student and the one word i would use to describe the notre dame fan base is disappointing. i’ve been out of school, and out of the student section, for three seasons now, and each time i return i wish i could go back into the student section where i won’t be chastised for standing and being loud for the entire game. you don’t want to lose the camaraderie of the notre dame experience? Then why are you trying to reduce the camaraderie to a bunch of people who sit and whisper quietly to each
other in the stands? The players play, the fans cheer. That’s how football games work. To use an nfl example, the s eattle s eahawks fan base is called the 12th man for a reason. The s eattle fans know their loud cheering can directly improve their team’s chance of victory. i have never heard anyone say, “boy, that notre dame stadium is a tough place to play for opposing squads.” w hy? because it’s not. we owe the notre dame coaches and, especially, players more than that. i was at f lorida state in 2014 and c lemson last year. i’ve also been to games in the sec . Those fans/schools know how to impact games. Those fans know they have power. Those fans support their players, coaches, ushers, announcers, band members and cheerleaders by helping the team achieve what everyone wants going into the game — a w football, by its nature, is aggressive, emotional and violent. i f the fans want to have a meaningful impact on the game, they also need to be aggressive and emotional (obviously violence has no place in the stands). a gain, this can be done in a civil manner and that is what i’m advocating. i also understand that if i’m going to advocate that fans be aggressive and emotional with their cheering, you’re going to get some who take it too far. i f that’s the trade-off,
i can live with it. i care about the football experience at notre dame being exactly that — a football experience. i f someone uses any kind of degrading slur or constantly uses offensive language, then i’m all for kicking that person out of the game. i f someone is overly intoxicated and his or her intoxication causes them to become offensive, kick that person out too. i cannot, however, let a few bad apples turn me into someone who thinks the stands in notre dame stadium are where the fans aren’t a part of the game. b y the way, did you consider the person yelling in your friend’s ear who “sank behind [you] in a drunken stupor” at halftime did so because we were losing to a less talented m ichigan state team? i wasn’t drunk, but i was in a stupor at that point too.
a s you mentioned, you attend ( i attended) notre dame. The greatest university in the world and greatest football program in history. now let’s act like we care about helping the team win and stop worrying about someone calling out the ref for not seeing a call.
Brian Salvi classes of 2009 and 2013 sept. 21
Mimi Teixeira bridging the g ap
happy birthday: evaluate situations before you let your emotions take over, causing you to make assumptions and act out of character. bide your time and let situations unfold naturally, and you will come out on top. positive changes at home can be made if you use your imagination and do some of the labor yourself instead of hiring a contractor. your numbers are 1, 12, 21, 27, 34, 38. 42.
ARIES (March 21-April 19): Take on a physical challenge that will help build your confidence and encourage you to look and feel great. a commitment can be made that will improve your financial situation. if you love someone, be sure to let him or her know.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Traveling for business or knowledge will pay off. your ability to share your ideas and convince others to support your actions will encourage positive changes that will benefit you and those who have assisted you on your journey.
GEMINI (May 21-June 20): e motions will surface, and arguments will take over if you aren’t careful about how you address sensitive issues. d on’t limit what you can do by saying something you’ll regret. be diplomatic and offer fair solutions. c hoose affection over discord.
CANCER (June 21-July 22): express your thoughts and feelings, and share your ideas and plans for the future. partnerships will make a difference, so take care of any situations that could develop into a problem. avoid taking any impulsive actions.
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): The information you pick up will help you get ahead. a n unexpected turn of events will be to your benefit. a n opportunity will come through someone you have worked with in the past. romance will improve your day.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Keep your emotions hidden to avoid an altercation. if you don’t agree with someone, opt to do your own thing. it’s important not to follow the crowd if you feel it isn’t right for you. problems with elders will require time.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): search for a place or destination that will spark your imagination and encourage you to bring new ideas and vitality to the way you look, the things you do and your personal connection with someone you love.
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): a proposition will turn out to be a disappointment. d on’t believe everything you hear or let your emotions lead to loss. d o things that will help you, not someone who is trying to take advantage of you.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): e motions will intensify if you have been evading issues. if you want to make changes, speak up and get approval from anyone your choices will affect. once the coast is clear, you will feel better and be able to advance.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): hang on to your cash and try not to let anyone guilt you into something that you don’t want to do. uncertainty will set in if you start to question your beliefs or are tempted to change your standards.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): home improvements will pay off, but before you start making changes, set a budget and stick to it. someone will get angry if you put too much onus on helping others instead of helping out at home. a romantic gesture will help.
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): your intuition will guide you in matters pertaining to home and family. you’ll be able to judge situations fairly and offer help that is appreciated. use your wisdom, knowledge and expertise, and you will make a difference.
Birthday Baby: you are creative, detailed and kind. you are dedicated and loyal.
JumbLe | david hoyT and Jeff KnureK
sudoku | The mepham group
JusT add waTer | John roddy & eric carlson
Same old, same old in the NFL
Michael Ivey sports writer
we are now officially two weeks into the 2016 nfl s eason and we’re already getting a good idea of how this season is going to go for some teams.
no matter who is the starting quarterback of the new e ngland patriots, they’re going to have a good season. The denver broncos replaced a legendary quarterback with Trevor siemian and they’re still going to have a good season behind an unbelievable defense. Teams like the green bay packers, a rizona c ardinals, p ittsburgh steelers, c incinnati bengals and s eattle s eahawks seem destined to be consistent title contenders, while teams like the c leveland browns, Jacksonville Jaguars, buffalo bills, oakland r aiders, l os a ngeles r ams and m iami dolphins always seem like teams destined to live in the depth of mediocrity.
a s always, it’s the same old same old.
sure there are those teams whose success fluctuates from year to year, like the houston Texans, baltimore r avens, m innesota v ikings, c arolina panthers and Kansas c ity c hiefs. but for the majority of teams in the nfl , their destiny seems to be already determined even before the season begins.
for a league that wants parity, the nfl sure doesn’t have a lot of it.
dating back to the 2003 season, the team that represents the afc in the super bowl has been quarterbacked by either peyton manning, Tom brady or ben roethlisberger an astonishing 12 out of 13 times (the only exception being back in 2012 when Joe f lacco led the r avens to a super bowl).
The patriots have won the afc e ast division title 13 of the last 15 seasons and have been to the afc c hampionship game every year for the past five seasons. The broncos have won the afc west division title every year the past five seasons. The afc s outh always seems to be a constant battle between the c olts and Texans. The packers always
seem to reign supreme over the nfc north. Trends like these make fans of other teams uninterested in watching their team because deep down they already know what is going to happen.
s ome know this feeling more than others.
l ook no further than the c leveland browns. it takes a special type of person to be a c leveland browns fan. Their history of little success is well documented and could be called an art form by some. not even bill belichick could succeed in c leveland during his tenure there before the franchise moved to baltimore. The franchise was reincarnated in 1999, and has since gone through a total of nine head coaches — four in the past six years — and has produced only one playoff appearance, back in 2002. a fter quarterback Josh mc c own was injured this past week, the browns announced that rookie quarterback c ody Kessler will start this week. This marks the fifth quarterback to start for the browns in their past five games dating back to last season.
The Jacksonville Jaguars are right alongside the browns in the hall of mediocrity. The Jaguars have had a good amount of success in their brief history, making the playoffs in four of their first five seasons in the league, and six times overall. however, since the 2008 season they have consistently been one of the worst teams in the league year in and year out. despite a number of good draft picks in the past three years, the Jaguars can’t quite seem to put it all together. s ome injuries have played a role in that, but most of their draft picks just aren’t panning out.
it seems that no matter what year it is, the football gods are a lot kinder to some teams more than others. fans of consistently mediocre teams are praying for a change soon. The question is, will it ever come?
Contact Michael Ivey at mivey@hcc-nd.edu
The views expressed in this Sports Authority are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.
Belles succeed in first conference competition
By BRENNA MOXLEY sports writer
saint mary’s earned second place in its first miaa tournament of the season monday at The medalist g olf c lub in marshall, m ichigan.
c oming off a recent firstplace finish at the hanover fall c lassic, the belles shot a 35-over-par 323 and bested seven teams at this opening event hosted by a lbion c ollege. l ast year’s conference champion hope earned top spot with a 21-over-par 309, and conference foe olivet received third place after falling 13 strokes behind the belles
mLb | braves 4, meTs 3
with a 49-over-par 336.
senior captain a li mahoney led the team, shooting a 5-over-par 77 with 11 pars and a birdie on the round to tie for fourth place overall. sophomore Taylor Kehoe ended the day two strokes behind mahoney with a similar 11 pars and a single birdie to finish sixth place overall.
mahoney commented on the belles’ performance and how it will translate into their upcoming tournament this saturday, saying it will be a good change of pace to compete at home.
“i think we played well and we aren’t too far behind
hope,” mahoney said. “it will be a great advantage playing at home this weekend, so we’re looking forward to making up a few strokes there.” mahoney also showed confidence in how the rest of the season will pan out.
“There’s a lot of golf still to play this season. we’re just focusing on taking it shot by shot,” mahoney said.
The belles host the second miaa Jamboree of the season saturday at Knollwood c ountry c lub in granger, i ndiana at 1 p.m.
Contact Brenna Moxley at bmoxley@nd.edu
mets lose w ild card lead in 5-1 loss to braves
Associated Press
new yor K — center fielder e nder i nciarte robbed yoenis cespedes of a game-winning homer for the final out, and the new york mets were handed another costly defeat by last-place atlanta when the braves rallied for a 4-3 victory wednesday night.
w ith two runners on in the bottom of the ninth inning, cespedes launched a drive to deep right-center. i nciarte raced a long way to the wall and timed his jump perfectly, catching the ball just above the orange line atop the fence.
he held up his glove in excitement as cespedes turned and walked slowly off the field. some fans in the stunned crowd of 32,187 at c iti field still had their hands on their heads as they filed up the aisles toward the exits.
new york remained tied with st. l ouis in the nl wild-card race, a half-game behind the giants pending san francisco’s late game at dodger stadium. The teams began the day in a three-way tie for the league’s final two playoff spots.
bartolo colon and Jeurys familia failed to protect a three-run lead for the mets in a late-season thriller. a n error
by normally sure-handed first baseman James l oney helped atlanta tie the game with an unearned run in the eighth.
i nciarte had an rbi groundout against familia (3-4) in the top of the ninth, sending the feisty braves to their fifth straight victory. They completed their second consecutive three-game sweep at citi field, including one in June.
ian Krol (2-0) struck out pinch-hitter Kevin plawecki with the bases loaded to end the eighth — moments after cespedes nearly put new york ahead. h is high fly to deep left field was knocked down by a leaping matt Kemp at the top of the fence, with ball glancing off Kemp’s glove and dropping to the ground for a double.
cespedes thought he had a go-ahead homer — he tossed his bat aside and started to trot before digging for second when the ball stayed in play.
Jim Johnson got three outs for his 17th save.
freddie freeman extended his hitting streak to a careerbest 25 games and has reached base safely in 41 straight for atlanta.
a sdrubal cabrera and rene r ivera homered for the mets to help them build a 3-0 lead.
seeking a five-out save from
his a ll-star closer, mets manager Terry collins turned to familia with two runners on. but the braves surprised new york with a double steal on familia’s second pitch, and Kemp made it 3-all with a sacrifice fly.
colon carried a three-hit shutout into the seventh before ex-met a nthony recker started atlanta’s comeback with a two-run homer.
i n a funny scene, a confused recker paused his trot between second and third and held out his hand, unsure why teammate nick markakis had stopped at third. markakis apparently didn’t realize the ball cleared the fence on the fly at first. finally, both players crossed the plate and recker patted markakis on the helmet.
Jose reyes walked and cabrera homered into the second deck in right field, giving the mets a 2-0 lead after eight pitches from braves rookie r yan weber in his second major league start this season. it was cabrera’s 21st home run this season and 20th while playing shortstop, breaking reyes’ club record.
r ivera went deep in the fifth against weber, who lasted five innings.
s wimming
l itzinger said. “ i feel that this could help us a lot in recruiting and toward our goals of being one of top programs in the ncaa we want to be performing as well as possible and take steps forward in moving up in the rankings. it’s a process, but we have a lot of talent and can get it done.”
i n this first full year of a combined team under a relatively new staff, it might be hard to gauge how successful n otre d ame can be, especially early on, but l itzinger knows what he’s looking for in this team from the beginning.
“ e xpectations are simply to train hard and embrace our training program,” l itzinger
m Golf
con T
and John felitto, will look to put that experience to the test this weekend in arizona. felitto impressed in the notre dame Kickoff challenge on sept. 3, taking home a win in his first collegiate event by shooting a 65 in the second round of the day. felitto struggled at the olympic club, finishing 21-overpar. ostrom showed consistency throughout the event, carding three rounds at three-over-par.
The georgia state maui Jim intercollegiate will be the first event of the season for the irish that will take place over a span of three days. at both tournaments in which notre dame has participated, players have played 36 holes in a day, testing both mental and physical stamina. This weekend will provide a different test of golf for the irish, as they will have to prepare to play a different golf course for each round, as tee and pin locations could be changed between each day, and each round could be played in different conditions.
w Golf
to pick and choose your battles; when to be aggressive, and when to be maybe a little bit smarter. i think that’s the biggest challenge of this course, managing the course well and playing to the strengths of your own game. s o it’s good that four of our top five have played the golf course before — i think that’s always a plus — and they’ll certainly help m ia and a lison get a little better feel of how the course is going to play by just the knowledge that other players can share with them.”
The tournament takes place from s aturday through m onday at b elmar g olf c lub in n orman, o klahoma.
Contact Tobias Hoonhout at thoonhou@nd.edu
said. “a ll we can do is control the things that we are capable of controlling such as technique and things like that. we want to be able to develop and learn as we go along as well as implement race strategy and practice how we’re going to race and really become a full team.
“There’s no one superstar in swimming, as you need a whole team in this sport. i t’s a long training season, starting back in a ugust, so we’ll have to learn to pace ourselves. we’ve got a young, fearless team and we’re working hard to grow and get better.”
a side from now being a combined team, there are other changes for the team, as the schedule has been changed from what it usually looks like. f or a program that just joined the acc a
couple of years ago, this can be tough, but l itzinger feels good about how the team will respond.
“ we’re looking to have a great dual-meet season which can put us on the path for reaching our goals of performing well at acc s and ncaa s,” l itzinger said. “The key will come down to developing confidence. we’ve retooled a more competitive schedule and we really want this team to be in the fire every week. l ast year the schedule was more tentative, but with the new schedule i want to see us racing with confidence. i ’m excited to see how we respond to our increased competition, and ultimately i think it will be positive.”
Contact Alex Bender at abender@nd.edu
MICHAEL YU | The Observer
Notre Dame senior Matt Rushton tees off at the Notre Dame Kickoff Challenge on Sept. 3 at Warren Golf Course.
MONICA VILLAGOMEZ MENDEZ | The Observer
Irish senior Katie Miller swims the backstroke in Notre Dame’s 156.5143.5 win over Northwestern at Rolfs Aquatic Center on Jan. 16.
chances. a gainst s yracuse, we had some good chances but again couldn’t convert on all of them. Throughout this stretch we have defended well though, and we’re just looking to grow, especially on offensive conversion. we are creating good opportunities, so we just need to convert.”
p erhaps one of the most overlooked aspects of the recent i rish stretch of performances is the fact that the team has played 120 minutes in each of their last three games as each matchup went into double overtime.
r omagnolo expressed pride in her team and their ability to play strong as these games have gone on.
“ i think especially in the s tanford and s yracuse games we did a great job playing strong at the end of the game,” r omagnolo said. “ we were down in both of these games so i love to see the mentality of our team to be able to come from behind.
“ we’ve had to dig ourselves out of a bit of a hole before, but we fight and scrap. we’ve done a good job of doing the little things that matter and giving ourselves a chance in each of these games.”
d espite being unranked, the wolfpack has had itself a successful season to this point, most notably a recent win against rival n orth c arolina who was ranked n o.
7 at the time. The wolfpack have shown their fair share of firepower offensively with 23 goals in their nine games. r omagnolo realizes this and understands that her team will need a strong game Thursday evening.
“ i think nc s tate has been a really good team this year,” r omagnolo said. “They’re organized, athletic and overall a quality squad. i think what we have to focus on is our play with the ball and shooting the ball well. i f we can do that we’ll have a better chance to dictate this game and create more offensive chances for ourselves.”
n otre d ame began acc play against s yracuse on s unday with a 1-1 tie, and the team has a long stretch of acc games ahead — nine in a row, including n orth c arolina s tate. The team is hitting a crucial point in the year, but r omagnolo wants to keep the emphasis on her team just trying to continue to improve.
“Throughout the season, every game is very important to us, and so right now we just have to be focused on playing as well as we can and growing as a team,” r omagnolo. “ we’re looking to put forth our best performance and continue to develop as a team.”
The game will kickoff at 7 p.m. Thursday evening at d ali s occer f ield in r aleigh.
Contact Alex Bender at abender@nd.edu
Nd womeN’s soCCer
Ranked Notre Dame looks for first ACC victory reorganized nd opens season
By ALEX BENDER sports writer
no. 24 notre dame will look to pick up their first acc victory of the season Thursday in raleigh, north carolina, as they take on north carolina state.
The wolfpack (7-2-0, 1-0 acc) are coming into this game playing strong as they have won six straight games and recorded four consecutive shutouts. on the other side, the irish have tied each of their last three games, those draws coming against santa clara, no. 1 stanford and most recently, syracuse on sunday. The team holds a 5-1-3 record on the season and have only given up 5 goals all season. regarding the recent performances from notre dame, irish head coach Theresa romagnolo has been fairly pleased overall.
“obviously each game is very different,” romagnolo said. “for us, out in california we played well but realized that we could still get more offensive
see w soccer paGe 11
i rish look to build on strong start
Observer Sports Staff
The irish will embark on their first three-day tournament of the season at the georgia state maui Jim intercollegiate, which will begin friday.
after finishing in a tie for fifth in its first full-field event of the season at the university of san francisco olympic club intercollegiate, notre dame will aim for a higher finish amongst the 14-team field this weekend.
while a top-five finish is by no means a poor one, the irish were hoping to top the leaderboard at olympic club after entering the final round in third place. various players struggled throughout the round, however, especially on the back nine, causing the irish to drop two spots into a tie for fifth.
The tournament this week will take place at mirabel golf club in scottsdale, arizona, and is being hosted by georgia state. The field this week includes a wide range of schools and golf programs from all over the country, including lsu, who finished last season ranked seventh nationally. other nationally ranked programs from last year
include california, south carolina, south florida and baylor, who all fell within the top-25 in the country at the end of the spring season.
notre dame head coach Jim Kubinski has made it clear so far this season that it is a goal of his to regain notre dame’s status on the national level, making the georgia state maui Jim intercollegiate an important opportunity for the irish.
irish seniors matt rushton and blake barens have proven their leadership both on and off the course so far this season. rushton was the top individual finisher for the irish in their most recent event, coming in at a tie for fifth. rushton’s two strong opening rounds of 70 put him in prime position for a top10 finish, upon which he was able to follow through. rushton entered the final round in a tie for second place with barens, who struggled in the final round to finish in a tie for 12th.
The freshmen who gained their first collegiate experience away from home in notre dame’s last tournament, hunter ostrom
By ALEX BENDER s ports w riter
s wimming season is fast approaching for the n otre d ame men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams with competition just a little more than a week out, and much excitement surrounds the recently revamped program under i rish head coach m ike l itzinger.
l itzinger is entering just his second season at the u niversity and his first complete season as head coach of both the men’s and women’s programs after taking over the lead role in d ecember of last year.
The team saw a fair amount of success under l itzinger last year, including sending a total of 10 team members to ncaa s and breaking six school records.
l itzinger looked back at his first season as coach, saying he is glad of the opportunity he has been given to revamp the program.
“ i was originally hired as the women’s coach in 2015 as the school’s program was going through a lot of change, and it allowed me to rebuild the team and take them from the ground up,” l itzinger said. “ w e were able to finish sixth at acc s and send four girls to ncaa s.
“ w hen i took over the men’s team as well, i felt the season ended strong. w e finished seventh at acc s, sent six team members to ncaa s and broke six school records. i t was a great first year, but at the same time we still have a lot more to go.”
This is the first time since 1995 that n otre d ame has had a combined swimming program, and l itzinger thinks that will help the program get into the right mindset for this season.
“ n ow that we are a combined team under one coaching staff i think we can really begin to gain some traction,”
see swimming paGe 10
Notre Dame aims to start season strong in opener
By TOBIAS HOONHOUT sports writer
f ollowing a year of ups and downs, the i rish begin their 2016-2017 campaign in a big way this weekend down in o klahoma for the s chooner f all c lassic after finishing 10th in the acc last season.
n otre d ame finds themselves amongst a strong field of teams from around the country, including Texas a & m , i owa s tate, Kent s tate and a labama. The i rish placed fifth in the c lassic last year, as o klahoma s tate won the event. d espite losing top golfer and former captain Talia c ampbell from last year, head coach s usan h olt is relishing the opportunity to get back on the course.
“ we’re excited to get started,” h olt said. “This is the latest we have waited to compete in the fall since i ’ve been here, so yeah we’re excited to get out and start playing in some
tournaments. … i t’s just a really good field. This early in the year i think it’s hard to say who the team to beat is — everybody has had turnover and have freshmen coming into the lineup so i think every tournament we play in we’re trying to win and be competitive and see what we can do.”
l ast year, the i rish performed very well at the s chooner c lassic, shooting a two-day score of 1-underpar 567 — marking only the third time in school history that n otre d ame finished a tournament below par. b ut the i rish have a big hole to fill in their starting five with the departure of c ampbell, and for h olt, that task falls to the whole team.
“ i don’t think its fair to put it on any one person,” h olt said. “ we’ve got a lot of talent and a lot of depth on our team, and i think it’s going to fall on everybody to elevate their game a little bit. i think if across the board we can do that, if everybody
saves one or two shots a round, we’re going to be in a really good spot.”
The starting lineup for this weekend is led by sophomore e mma a lbrecht, who had a noteworthy freshman season, finishing 24th at the ncaa regional championship in m ay. f ollowing her are fellow sophomores i sabella d i l isio and m addie r ose h amilton, and senior Jordan f erreira. r ounding out the group is freshman m ia ayer, who in high school was twice a second-team all-state selection in Texas. Junior a lison s nakard is also participating in the individual competition. w ith an all-around effort, c oach h olt thinks the team will perform well.
“This course is a lot of fun to play, it certainly lends itself to low scoring based on how the course is set up,” h olt said. “There’s a lot of risk–reward with this golf course, and you just have
Nd swImmING & dIvING
EMMET FARNAN | The Observer Irish freshman defender Alexis Martel-Lamothe clears the ball in Notre Dame’s 1-0 win over Missouri on Sept. 4 at Alumni Stadium.
