Student leaves with concussion, but no tickets

College senior Judy Friedman hasn't missed a home basketball or football game during her four years at the University. All of that may have changed Friday night, when Friedman suffered a concussion while waiting in line for tickets in front of the Palestra. "I don't know if I ever want to go to a game now," she said. With hopes of landing good seats to see the defending Ivy League basketball champions, she and a group of friends positioned themselves in front of the Palestra at 7 a.m. Friday. "Everyone was in a really good mood. We were watching Michael Jordan on Oprah," Friedman said. The tone gradually changed, she said, as more people arrived, many of whom were drinking. "People started getting rowdy at nine o'clock," she added. And after the box office opened at 10 p.m., all semblance of order began to deteriorate. Students began pushing and shoving, trying to jockey for good position. Many of her friends wanted to leave the line, but Friedman said she wanted to stay and get their tickets. She made her way to the front of the line by 11:30, and just as she prepared to enter the Palestra's doors, she said she became engulfed by the crowd. "It was so helpless. My feet weren't on the ground," Friedman said. "We were in the crowd and it was getting bad," she said. "And I'm just five feet tall. I got thrown into the wall and I hit the right side of my head. I was fading in and out." "Everyone was pushing," she added. The next few hours are hard for Friedman to remember, but she does recall being taken to a hospital and her friends trying to keep her awake. The effects of the concussion have not yet gone away, she said. With a midterm approaching, she said she has had trouble studying. "I keep opening my book and staring at it," she said. The experience has definitely drained Friedman physically. But more importantly, she said, she has lost faith in the University. "It would have been so easy to prevent," she said. "There were no administrative people [there] at all." Friedman was unsure last night if she was going to sue. If she does, however, she wants the University to change its policy not because "they're afraid of being sued." "I want them to change a policy because its wrong," she said. If there is anything she wants from them right now, it might be basketball season tickets. After 17 hours in line, she never made it to the box office. That is, of course, if she ever feels comfortable about attending the games. "I just hope that I can go to another sporting event," she said.

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