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(04/24/00 9:00am)
April showers might bring May flowers. But they also wreak havoc on the schedule of the Penn softball team. Originally scheduled to play consecutive doubleheaders against Harvard and Dartmouth on Friday and Saturday, Mother Nature only allowed the Quakers to get in one game -- a 10-5 defeat at the hands of the Crimson in the opening game of Friday's doubleheader. Game two against Harvard was then rescheduled and postponed two more times due to the rainy weather and wet fields. The doubleheader against Dartmouth has also been postponed. "We were all waiting for the fields to dry, but it never happened," sophomore third baseman Jen Moore said. "It was a pain, but we can't help the weather." Penn will now play Harvard at Yale next Saturday before squaring off against Dartmouth next Sunday to round out its Ivy League schedule. The one game that the Quakers were able to squeeze in against the weather was a well-played contest, but in the end, the Crimson proved to be too strong. Harvard (12-17 overall, 5-0 Ivy League) jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first inning when right fielder Sarah Koppel laced a two-run triple just inside the right field line before being driven home by starting pitcher Chelsea Thoke. But the Quakers fought right back, showing some of the come-from-behind ability that they displayed in their victories over Princeton and Cornell last weekend. Penn (13-25-1, 2-7) got on the board in the second with a sacrifice fly from sophomore second baseman Jamie Pallas to cut the lead to 3-1. The Red and Blue then exploded in the fourth inning, scoring four runs to take a 5-3 lead. The rally got started with two outs in the inning. The Quakers loaded the bases after two walks and a single before sophomore left fielder Clarisa Apostol drove home Pallas. Freshman shortstop Crista Farrell then smacked a base-clearing double to deep left, but she was thrown out trying to extend it into a triple to end the rally and the inning. "It was a considerable blast," Penn coach Carol Kashow said bluntly. The fourth-inning barrage sent Thoke to the showers, for, despite being last season's Ivy League pitcher of the year, she could not contain the Quakers offense. "We scored five runs against one of the better pitchers in the Ivies, and we knocked out two quality pitchers against Princeton and Cornell [last weekend]," Kashow said. "It shows that our offense is getting better and continuing to develop." The Red and Blue, however, could not hold their lead against the Crimson, who hold a first-place lead in Ivy play this season. Harvard scored one run apiece in the fourth and fifth innings to tie the game before erupting in the sixth, taking a commanding lead that they would never relinquish. After an RBI single from shortstop Cherry Fu, the Crimson hit back-to-back homers off Penn freshman pitcher Becky Ranta. Catcher Mairead McKendry hit a three-run blast for her seventh home run of the season before Koppel went yard to cap off the rally and give Harvard the 10-5 victory. "They just killed the ball in the sixth inning -- they just got a hold of the ball," Moore said. "That happens sometimes." Ranta gave up nine runs in 5 1/3 innings to take the loss and drop to 9-10 on the season, but Kashow was considerably happy with the freshman's performance. "It was a good job by Becky to keep her composure with adverse conditions," Kashow said. "We had a freshman on the mound against the No. 1 team in the Ivies -- it speaks well to her credit." Kashow was also pleased with Penn's comeback. Even though they could not pick up the win, it marked the third-straight series in which the Quakers came from behind against top Ivy League competitors. "It was a come-from-behind situation for us," Kashow said. "It shows that we can, in fact, come from behind against the tough teams in the conference." "The score was in no way indicative of how close the game really was," Kashow said. Penn will look to avenge its loss when it plays the Crimson next Saturday in a rescheduled game. They just better hope that the Heavens permit it.
(04/24/00 9:00am)
With the Penn Relays now just days away, the Penn men's track team could not be in a better frame of mind. The Quakers did just what they hoped to this past weekend, as they defeated Cornell and Birmingham (U.K.) at Franklin Field on Saturday in exciting fashion. And they couldn't have drawn the meet up any better themselves. The three-team meet not only included a number of standout individual performances by the Red and Blue, but Penn also delivered under pressure by winning a number of events late in the day. This clutch performance finally gave the Quakers some breathing room after being locked in a 111-111 tie with Cornell. The 5,000-meter race proved to be the turning point in the competition as Penn won going away, 159-148, over the Big Red. Birmingham, which strung together three first-place finishes in the running events, was considerably outclassed in the field events, capturing just 92 points. Penn team members finished first and second in the crucial 5,000 meters, but it was who earned those placements that made the race even more thrilling. Sophomore Matt Gioffre established a personal record in finishing first with a time of 14:39.2, while senior captain Scott Clayton took second with a mark of 14:40.9. Neither of these athletes traditionally run this event, but a joint decision between many of the distance runners and coach Charlie Powell resulted in some productive mixing and matching. This will presumably enable each performer to find his niche for Relays and the Heptagonal Championships, which will also be at Franklin Field, on May 13-14. "I'm happy for our team," said sophomore Tuan Wreh, who won the triple jump with a distance of 15.6 meters and placed second in the long jump with a mark of 6.88 meters. "We were able to show some intensity when it counted." One man who certainly showed some intensity on Saturday was senior thrower Matt Pagliasotti, who has made the practice of breaking school records a weekly routine. The Paris, Texas, native again topped his own record in the hammer throw, as he reached a distance of 62.42 meters. He also placed third in the discus, behind winner Brett Coffing of Cornell and Penn freshman Justin King. The Quakers throwers were not just supported by Pagliasotti, however. Senior Brent Stiles took first in the shot put with a mark of 15.52 meters and junior Seth Beaver won the javelin with a distance of 62.90 meters. Even in the absence of freshman phenom Brian Chaput and sophomore Chris Crisman, who were both sidelined with injuries, the Red and Blue managed to grab three of the top four spots in the javelin competition. Overall, there were very few, if any, negatives to find in the Penn victory. Even the predicted rain showers that forecasters warned of never really materialized after a whole day of rain on Friday. "The weather held up; we were in good spirits; and we did well," Wreh said. And the fact that it was rival Cornell is not to be lost in the pre-Penn Relays shuffle. Saturday's meet may have been a solid tune-up for the Quakers, but beating the Big Red and former Penn assistant coach Nathan Taylor made it even sweeter. "It's kind of a cockiness thing," said junior Darryl Olczak, who placed second in the 400. "We can't lose to our [ex]-coach." Olczak also pointed to a number of factors from the Cornell meet that could galvanize the Quakers for a late-season surge. Chief among these was Penn's strong effort in the 4x100, in which the Red and Blue placed second despite sophomore Steve Faulk straining his hamstring mid-race. "It was a good sign of what's to come next week at Penn Relays," Olczak said. Olczak was far from the only jubilant Quaker following the meet, as most enthusiastically applauded their team's performance. "We win when everyone comes to participate, and that's how we're gonna win Heps," junior sprinter Josh Seeherman said.
(04/24/00 9:00am)
Brown's six-goal run in the last 12:25 ended Penn's bid for a second Ivy win. It was the one that got away. Despite taking a two-goal lead deep into the second half against Brown on Saturday, the Penn women's lacrosse team could not hang on for the victory, falling 9-5 to the Bears. Six consecutive Brown goals to close out the contest undid the Quakers (5-7, 1-6 Ivy), who stumbled to their fifth straight defeat. "It's very frustrating right now. We're making the same mistakes over and over again," Penn coach Karin Brower said. "This is like Harvard [an 11-9 loss] again -- a team we can beat, and we don't play well. They were not doing what we were asking them to do. They weren't moving the ball quick enough in the midfield." Behind five scores from five different players, Penn took control of the game after falling behind 3-1 and staked itself to a 5-3 lead in the second half. But led by three second-half goals by senior Cristi Gigon, Brown (5-7, 2-4) roared back for six goals in the final 12:25 to deny the Quakers their second Ivy victory. Penn netminder Christian Stover made 18 saves, but she was unable to fully compensate for a series of defensive breakdowns and a rejuvenated Bears attack late in the second frame. "Today we found the determination to win, regardless of what Penn was doing," Brown coach Theresa Ingram said. "Penn came out there very strong in the second half, and I don't think we matched the intensity initially. But we did in the end." Shortly after the yearly awards had been given out to the Quakers' four seniors in a pre-game ceremony, it looked like Penn would be in for a long afternoon. Brown took advantage of a player left alone behind the net and a free-position shot to ring up two scores just six minutes in. But Brower called a timeout to settle her squad down, and the move worked. Crissy Book scored for the Quakers 60 seconds after the timeout to make it 2-1, and the teams settled in for 10 minutes of scoreless play. The Bears broke the drought on a free-position shot by Elise Roy, but Traci Marabella and Emily Foote -- a Daily Pennsylvanian sports writer -- put home a pair of scores to send the game to the half tied at 3. In the 15 minutes following the break, a stronger Penn team emerged. The Quakers spent a majority of the time in the Brown end as Foote, Marabella, Brooke Jenkins and Jenny Hartman all had strong chances. Hartman was the one to finally beat Bears keeper Niki Caggiano to give Penn its first lead at 4-3. Marabella lobbed a pass from behind the net, which Hartman received above her head and slammed home into the Brown net. After Quakers freshman Whitney Horton hit the post seconds later, Penn extended its lead to 5-3 with 15 minutes left on the first career goal of Bess Lochocki. Normally a defender, Lochocki scored from a free position in front of a crowd that included her high school's team. "I've only played attack a couple of times in a game, but I was bumped up to play both sides because we have some girls that play midfield that are injured," Lochocki said. "The free position was the second one I've had all season, and I was so happy to score on it. I knew my high school would be here, and I was really, really nervous." But for Penn, this first was also a last -- the Quakers did not find the net the rest of the afternoon. Meanwhile, a succession of Penn fouls leading to Brown free-position goals left the home contingent bewildered. "I would say that after we were up by the two goals, there was a wave of enthusiasm that went through the team. And then as soon as they scored again, it was like everyone dropped back down," Lochocki said. Two of Gigon's tallies came from the free position, and the third -- with 8:41 remaining -- was the difference in the game. "I [didn't have] a good first half, so I got a little bit frustrated and upset with myself. And for me, I play better when I get mad," said Gigon, who had a goal waved off late in the first half because she was in the crease. The game stayed at 7-5 in favor of Brown for six tense minutes, as a Jenkins effort went high on a free-position shot, an offensive foul was called in close on Hartman and a diving shot was sent wide right by Book. The Bears added two goals in the final 35 seconds for the final tally. "I think the thing that killed us was we were letting their girls catch it instead of playing up on them from the start," Stover said. "Our defense did really well, but we had a lot of lapses. And I think from the goals I let in, it brought the defense down a little bit." Strong Quakers efforts on defense were turned in again by Christy Bennett and Book. Both Book and Marabella played the full game despite heavily taped sprained ankles. These efforts, however, were overshadowed by a gaggle of Penn miscues, as a game that was eminently winnable slipped away. "We had stupid, stupid fouls. The too many players over the restraining line -- that's not thinking," Brower said. "I don't know what it takes. The next two games are winnable, but not if we play like that."
(04/24/00 9:00am)
More than 60 people gathered in King's Court/English House Saturday for an evening of swing dancing. The Class of 1938 Lounge in King's Court/English House was awake and swinging on Saturday night. Starting at 8 p.m., around 60 students and assorted Philadelphia residents enjoyed swing dancing to jazz tunes by artists ranging from The Nat King Cole Trio to Duke Ellington. Laughing, chatting and dancing away, the swingers partied until about 1 a.m. Wharton junior David Jacoby, the president of Penn's Ballroom Dance Society and the disc jockey for the event, explained that the event correlated well with Philadelphia's thriving swing dance community. "It was cool to have people from all different types of communities come to the dance," Jacoby said. The dance was preceded by a swing dance lesson taught by two current Ballroom Dance Society members, College freshman Bryan Hirsch and College freshman Clare Wang. Hirsch and Wang taught the basics of swing dancing by demonstration. Afterward, the instructors encouraged their students to join them on the dance floor. "I think people had a good time and I think that swing dancing is a lot of fun," Hirsch said after the event. "It's something that's relatively new as far as a Penn swing scene. Swing is just becoming popular on campus. We are definitely seeing that there is a growing demand for a swing-team on campus," he added. The dance was co-hosted by the Ballroom Dance Society and King's Court/English House. The college house provided refreshments. PennPM -- a program implemented by Penn to provide free activities for students during Thursday, Friday and Saturday evenings -- also helped organize the dance. Other events this weekend, each of which were sponsored by different college houses, included a "Charleton Heston Night" in Stouffer College House and a scavenger hunt, sponsored by Spruce College House. The resident advisors and house managers from King's Court/English House were also involved in setting up the dance. "It's free and open to everyone, and it's in a fun, low-key atmosphere," Jacoby said. During the year, the Ballroom Dance Society offered dance lessons in the Class of 1938 Lounge for a set fee every Sunday afternoon. These classes varied by the level of difficulty and by the different dances taught. "On Sundays, you learn different dances. The idea is to come to these events and practice what you have learned. Their events are pretty successful," explained Ballroom Dance Society member Ehmd Coudy, a graduate student who lives in Philadelphia. "They have different styles of lessons. It's a lot of fun," Engineering junior Alex Wong said.
(04/24/00 9:00am)
The Quakers won a tight match with Columbia in New York, then defeated Cornell at home. Going into the last weekend of its Ivy League season, the Penn women's tennis team knew its matches against Columbia and Cornell wouldn't be easy. And despite adverse conditions -- including playing at Columbia in a cold indoor tennis bubble on clay, a surface the Quakers aren't used to -- Penn (13-10, 5-2 Ivy) came away from the weekend with two victories, winning an intense 5-4 battle with the Lions on Friday and ending the season with a 6-3 victory over the Big Red on Saturday. This weekend's wins secured at least a third-place Ivy finish for the Red and Blue, depending on Harvard's result against last-place Dartmouth on Wednesday. Penn's match against Columbia was especially important, since both teams entered the match tied for third with 3-2 Ivy records. "[The Columbia match] was a war," Penn coach Michael Dowd said. "They were a young, scrappy, nothing-to-lose kind of team. They played to win." Though freshmen make up over half of the Lions' lineup, their inexperience in Ivy matches didn't show. At No. 1 singles, Columbia freshman Laila Shetty overcame Penn's Lenka Beranova, 6-3, 6-1. And Penn senior co-captain Anastasia Pozdniakova fell to the Lions' freshman Tina Romic, 6-4, 7-6 at No. 2 singles. Though Penn sophomore Rochelle Raiss gave the Quakers their third singles loss at No. 6 singles, victories from Penn's Shubha Srinivasan, Louani Bascara and Jolene Sloat at Nos. 3, 4 and 5 singles, respectively, deadlocked the match at three-all. The Quakers needed to win two of their three doubles matches to secure the match. At No. 1 doubles, the duo of Beranova and Raiss pulled in an easy 8-3 win. Srinivasan and Penn senior co-captain Elana Gold paired up at No. 2 doubles and battled their way to 8-8, but fell 7-5 in a devastating tiebreaker. On the next court, Pozdniakova and Bascara were in a match similar to their teammates' -- but after being tied at eight, the Quakers won their match in a dramatic 7-5 tiebreaker, clinching the win for Penn. "The whole match came down to our No. 3 doubles," Beranova said. "They rocked them to the end." Then on Saturday, the Quakers faced an equally young Cornell team under a cold drizzle at Penn's Lott Courts. At No. 1 singles, Beranova lost her first set, 6-4, to Cornell freshman Suzanne Wright. Beranova struggled in the second set, hitting unnecessary shots into the net, and ultimately fell, 6-4, 6-2. "She didn't necessarily beat me," Beranova said. "I beat myself. [I could have won] if I was more consistent." Pozdniakova, Srinivasan and Sloat had little trouble with their opponents at Nos. 2, 3 and 5 singles, respectively. Sloat's victory completed an undefeated Ivy season for the sophomore. At No. 6 singles, Raiss lost the first set, 6-3, and brought the second set to five-all, but ultimately fell, 6-3, 7-5. With the match held at three-all, it was Bascara's intense three-set battle at No. 4 singles that gave the Quakers the lead heading into doubles. Bascara took the match, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3. After the singles matches, the match was moved indoors to Levy Pavilion because of the weather. The duo of Raiss and Beranova quickly sealed the match for Penn, taking the No. 1 doubles match, 8-3. "We were right on top of them from the beginning," Beranova said. "They're sleeping with the fishes tonight." At No. 2 doubles, Gold ended her collegiate tennis career with a disappointing 8-5 loss with partner Srinivasan. In her last collegiate match, Pozdniakova teamed up with Bascara at No. 3 doubles. The Quakers had little trouble taking the match, 8-2. Despite her loss, Gold believes she is ending her Penn tennis experience on a positive note. "I don't think we played our best matches [this weekend], but we showed a lot of heart," she said. "Everyone did their job. It's good to leave on a winning note."
(04/24/00 9:00am)
The opening of the Barnes and Noble bookstore hs not hurt smaller area bookstores. In 1996, when the University announced the construction of a new campus bookstore run by one of the biggest names in the business, the campus' longtime independent booksellers -- namely the Penn Book Center and House of Our Own Bookstore -- feared that they would lose business to their larger rival. But four years since the announcement, it seems that the conflict between the book super-store and the independents never fully developed. Today, ask the owners of the independent bookstores how their businesses are doing and they'll say just fine -- Barnes and Noble and all. Then walk inside any of the three and the secrets to their respective successes will immediately become clear. Indeed, because the bookstores receive orders from different departments and often serve students with specified needs and interests, the independent bookstores and Barnes and Noble are engaged in a healthy competition that is based more on their differences than on their similarities. All parties seem to agree that the Penn community has reached an alternative solution to the corporate-versus-neighborhood bookstore conflict that has plagued college campuses across the county. "The three stores have actually coexisted now for almost 30 years," says Deborah Sanford, the owner of House of Our Own. "There is an amicable and cooperative sort of feeling among the three." "The stores are serving some very specific groups within their niche. In a university, you want that diversity to exist," adds Kevin Renshaw, the manager of the Penn Bookstore. A Long History of Service The House of Our Own and the Penn Book Center are long-standing booksellers on campus, having each existed for several decades. Over the years, the two have earned reputations for intimate service, deep knowledge of their stock and, above all else, their historical traditions. In 1962, the Nickles family opened the Penn Book Center on the corner of 34th and Walnut streets. Since then, the establishment has moved two blocks west, and then back. But it remains under the ownership of Achilles and Olga Nickles. The Penn Book Center was forced to move out of the former University Bookstore building at 36th and Walnut streets when it was demolished in 1998 to make room for Huntsman Hall. Surprisingly, despite its proximity to the new Penn Bookstore at Sansom Common, the location gives the store an advantage of sorts over their competitors. The Penn Book Center is located between two of the largest School of Arts and Sciences departments -- History, in the 3401 Walnut complex, and English, across the street in Bennett Hall. "When a professor orders from us, he/she knows exactly who they are speaking to," current Manager Keith Helmuth says. History Professor Bruce Kuklick has been purchasing books at the Penn Book Center since he was in graduate school at Penn in the 1960s. His entire department orders from the two independent bookstores, as does the English Department. "I am a firm believer in tradition, and Barnes and Noble is not my idea of a bookstore. Ultimately, they don't care about selling books, they care about making a profit. [At the Penn Book Center] they are not businessmen, they are book men," Kuklick said. English Professor Dan Traister, the curator of the Annenberg rare book and manuscript library, is a frequent shopper at the store. "The people at Penn Book Center care about you. It is nice to have two to three eyes watching the kind of things you buy and shmoozing with you about books." "Book People Who Care" For an almost entirely different group of people, House of Our Own, like the Penn Book Center, has provided the community with the service of "book people who care." Located in an old row house at 3920 Spruce Street, House of Our Own was started almost 30 years ago, when two Penn graduates decided to open a small bookstore on campus. Beyond stocking an eclectic mix of literary and academic texts, on the second floor of House of Our Own resides the only second-hand book collection in West Philadelphia. Like the Penn Book Center, House of Our Own's loyal clientele -- including many Penn professors in the humanities -- are largely responsible for its survival. "Not only do the faculty members shop consistently at House of Our Own, but professors try to get their students to utilize the resources of the independent bookstore," Sanford explains. Then there are the scenarios that play themselves out in the store each day. This time, it's a Penn student who walks in searching for a book for one of his classes. As he approaches the counter asking for assistance, Sanford immediately recognizes the course and the professor. When the student says the professor is running behind in the course syllabus, Sanford jokes that this book will take even longer to finish than the last one. "We cater to a different clientele," Sanford says. "You can see serious book lovers moving slowly from shelf to shelf." Yet, the owners say their intimate setting -- with cushioned rocking chairs waiting invitingly between the dusty shelves -- is the true selling point. Sanford says, "There is a quiet, reflective atmosphere which is very good especially for people developing ideas for dissertations for papers." But the store's smaller size, which accounts for much of its charm, is often a negative for some students. Indeed, in the beginning of the semester, when shelves and extra tables are crammed with books, students elbow their way into the narrow entrance and wait in lines that often stretch out the door. Still, people shop -- and will continue to shop -- at House of Our Own, Sanford explains, because there's no other bookstore quite like it on campus. "The important thing is that we connect people to books." The Corporate Giant What the Penn Bookstore does, according to its proponents at Penn and in the surrounding community, is provide for both the University and West Philadelphia as well. "The Bookstore is truly an anchor store in the neighborhood," Renshaw says. Figures do not lie: The Bookstore, the largest of all the Barnes and Noble-owned bookstores on college campuses, has approximately 15,000 transactions weekly. Situated in the middle of Sansom Common, and flanked by Xando, Urban Outfitters and the Inn at Penn -- among others -- the Penn Bookstore is part of Penn's attempt to help revamp University City. "The new bookstore certainly redefined the landscape, but at the same time, forces the smaller bookstore to strengthen its quality," explains Vice President for Business Services Leroy Nunery, whose office manages the bookstore. The Penn Bookstore now includes the Computer Connection, a cafe, a foreign language center and a reading section that has 135,000 books. Much to the happiness of the store's management, the sale of books not used for courses has doubled in size over the past two years. It's not to say that everything is perfect with the bookstore, though. Textbooks are often not available early in the semester because the professors have ordered them too late, and the sale of textbooks -- which include all of the sciences and most of the books used for Wharton and foreign language courses -- has been consistent since before the store's expansion. It is the only section of the store that has not seen an increase. "A lack of growth in textbook sales is due to the Internet," Renshaw explains, referring to the increase in online booksellers like Amazon.com.
(04/24/00 9:00am)
Penn is currently in discussions with Blockbuster and Hollywood Video to bring a new bideo store to campus. With initial talks underway, students may soon have a place besides ResNet and Cinemagic to turn to for movie entertainment. University officials are in "preliminary discussions" with Blockbuster and Hollywood Video, according to John Greenwood -- a top official for the University's real estate company -- who explained that the University held introductory meetings with both companies over the past two months. "We would like to have a new store here this year," Greenwood said. University officials said they have had only "some interest" from Blockbuster and Hollywood Video at this early stage. "They are not beating down our door," said Tom Lussenhop, the University's top real estate official. He added that large corporations tend to be more methodical in their dealings, saying the University will learn their intentions in the coming weeks. "[The process is] moving along at a natural course," Greenwood said of the discussions with video retailers. The only video store currently on campus, the Video Library on the 4000 block of Locust Street, closes at 10 p.m. on weeknights and Saturdays. Philadelphia-based TLA Video had been in talks with the University since September about filling the vacant space adjacent to the Eat at Joe's diner on the 3900 block of Walnut Street. But following a boom in the eclectic distributor's online sales and speculation of old-fashioned video rental becoming obsolete, TLA opted not to open at Penn. Students have continuously asked for more video options on campus. A 1998 Undergraduate Assembly 40th Street Development Survey showed that 53 percent of the 470 students polled expressed a desire for a late-night video store. Outgoing UA Chairman Michael Silver, who met with the University to present the UA's recommendations for a video store in late February, called the survey results "eye-opening." "It's quantitative data that the University doesn't have," Silver said, adding that the survey should serve as incentive for video chains. The College senior gave Greenwood a hard copy of the results earlier this month. While UA members did not attend the introductory video store meetings with the two chains, both the University and Silver said students will be involved in future talks. "[The University has] said all along that they want us on board," Silver said yesterday. "It's been a very good partnership." Greenwood said he appreciates the student group's eagerness to participate. UA member Molly Siems, a College freshman, said several UA members have been discussing video store plans within the UA since the initial February meeting with the University, at which Siems was present. "I would really like to get together again to make sure everything is still moving forward," Siems said. The recommendation to bring a late-night video store to campus was also made last spring by Provost Robert Barchi's Working Group on Alcohol Abuse as a way to provide more non-alcoholic activities on campus. The University is primarily looking to fill the space next to Eat at Joe's, according to Lussenhop. Incoming UA Chairman Michael Bassik said he intends to work with the University until administrators secure a video chain. "We intend to meet with Executive Vice President John Fry within the next two weeks to let the University know that bringing a video store to campus is still a top priority for the UA," the College junior said.
(04/21/00 9:00am)
The fate of McGinn Security Services' agreement with the University to provide guard service in residence halls will be announced tomorrow by acting Vice Provost for University Life Valarie Swain-Cade McCoullum. A report released by a committee of University officials, students and staff members earlier this week lists three courses of actions the University can take. One option is to terminate the contract with McGinn within 30 days. Another possibility is for the University to place the security firm on a 90-day probationary period. If there are any performance standard violations during this period, the agreement would be immediately terminated. Finally, the University can terminate the contract on June 30 of this year, four years earlier than when the contract is set to expire. If this is done, McGinn would have to rebid, along with other security firms, in order to receive the contract. Regardless of what McCoullum decides concerning McGinn, problems with residential security have been highlighted during the process and must still be addressed. Simply firing McGinn, if this is what the University decides to do, is not the ultimate solution to residential security problems, University Police Commissioner John Kuprevich has said repeatedly throughout the investigation. It still remains to be seen whether any other guard firm in the area will be able to provide better services for the University if the current residential security policy remains the same. A team of independent security consultants, in a report prepared for the Department of Public Safety, recommended that "the security function be re-organized and that security management, operators, programs and career development responsibilities be transferred to the Department of Public Safety." Residential security issues are currently handled by the Residential Living Department. And it was Residential Living, and not McGinn Security Services, that refused to allow guards to eat or drink at guard posts. Richard Schwab, a sleep expert at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, wrote in a report that this policy is a mistake and actually increases the likelihood that guards will fall asleep. Guards are now allowed to eat and drink at their posts as a result of these findings. Another concern with residential security is the fact that the security guards really only have one function, to check identification cards. Director of Public Safety George Clisby said guards should be given more responsibilities, such as patrolling student floors and the exteriors of buildings. If the University decides to have McGinn and other firms bid for a new contract, it will need to amend the contract to make sure specific guidelines for performance standards and responsibilities for the guards are explicitly stated. "Clearly no contract will be purchased with anyone that has no reference to performance standards," Interim President Claire Fagin said earlier this week. And McCoullum has said in the past month that the University has been looking into the possibility of investing in new technology such as the installation of ID scanners on the outside of buildings. She also said that it is important that the funding necessary for the improvement of residential security is raised. Last year, when Residential Living wanted to hire another roving guard from McGinn to patrol all the residences, it found there was no money in its budget to pay for this. Joseph McGinn Sr., president of McGinn Security Services, wound up paying for the additional guard at his own expense, Residential Living Director Gigi Simeone said. But McCoullum said Monday that regardless of the cost, improving residential security is a priority.
(04/21/00 9:00am)
Penn welcomes the Bears for the final Ivy game of the year - a battle for sixth place. Perhaps it is only fitting that on Easter weekend the Penn women's lacrosse team will try to resurrect its season. In the midst of a four-game skid, the Quakers (5-6, 1-4 Ivy) are hopeful they can right their ship and spring back into the win column when they host Brown (4-7, 1-4) at Franklin Field at 4 p.m. tomorrow. Both teams head into this contest on a downturn. The Bears come in as losers of six of their last seven, while Penn has dropped four consecutive games to Harvard, Rutgers, No. 9 Dartmouth and No. 2 Princeton. But although the Quakers' last two losses have been verifiable blowouts, 18-7 to the Big Green and 19-4 to the Tigers, the home squad still heads in on a high note of sorts. "Going into the stretch with Rutgers, Dartmouth and Princeton, I think we were all kind of intimidated that this was going to be a lot all at once," Penn defender Ella Masson said. "But I think we're going to take all of that sort of seeing-and-learning from them and show Brown what we are. I'm looking forward to it." This kind of attitude has permeated the Quakers locker room of late, as the team looks to win the battle for sixth place in the Ivies against an offensively-challenged Brown squad. "I think these two games didn't hurt us by any means," said Penn coach Karin Brower of the Dartmouth and Princeton losses. "Like I told them, I think we've gotten better since Harvard. We've played the whole game; and we hustled; and we played with heart. "We need to think of Brown as a Princeton and Dartmouth and do whatever it takes to play that hard, and I think we can beat them." A year ago, the Quakers closed out a dismal 1-12 campaign with a disappointing 13-2 loss to the Bears in Providence. Twelve months later, Penn is one win away from amassing its most victories since 1994 and may actually enter this game as a favorite. "We approach a lot of our games the same, but we know that Penn has done a lot better this spring," Brown assistant coach Missy Holmes said. "The way our season has gone this year, we can't take anybody for granted. And we really wouldn't do that for Penn, [after] seeing them play some of their games, and, obviously, with the new coach and some new excitement down there, they're going to be a threat for us on Saturday." Offensively -- at least on paper -- the Quakers seem to have a slight edge on the Bears. As a team, Brown has accumulated only 89 goals through 11 games, compared to 115 for Penn. Sophomore attacker Traci Marabella leads Penn with 27 goals, and is followed by senior tri-captain Brooke Jenkins, who has 22. Four freshmen --Crissy Book, Jayme Munnelly, Kate Murray and Whitney Horton -- have also reached double-digits in points for the Quakers this spring. By contrast, the Bears are led by senior Cristi Gigon's 21 tallies and six assists, as well as by senior Keely McDonald (18 goals in 1999). "Christi is just a really threatening attacker. She has the ability to go left and right, and she's a good feeder. She just has a lot of weapons and is good to have down there," Holmes said. "But we're a fairly young team -- we have seven seniors, but beyond that, a lot of the team is sophomores and freshmen, so we're still in the learning phase." Charged with stopping Gigon and the Brown front-line will be Quakers goalie Christian Stover, and Penn's defensive line of Masson, Lee Ann Sechovicz, Amy Weinstein and Christy Bennett. Stover made 22 saves at Princeton on Wednesday, but also faced an astoundingly high total of 41 shots. The Quakers defense has allowed an average of 16 goals in the last four games, but this has been against competition where Penn's backline had been forced to work serious overtime. Against the Bears -- who fell to Yale, 12-3, and Cornell, 11-6, in its past two appearances -- the Quakers will look to reverse that trend. "And I think if we can build on these last two games, it's a good way for us to go into Brown," said Brower after the Princeton loss. "I was proud of my team, especially defensively and of Christian in the cage." Tomorrow's contest is the Quakers final home match of the 2000 campaign and the final game at Franklin Field for seniors Jenkins, Sechovicz, Melissa Rantz and Bethany Stafford. The usual pre-game ceremonies are already scheduled, but what may be more important to the Quakers is that a postgame -- and post-win -- celebration take place as well. "This will be the end of my eighth season at Franklin Field," said Jenkins, who has also labored in the fall with the Penn field hockey team for the past four years. "I've never had a season off since I was seven -- I don't know what I'll do."
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The Student Activities Council gave funding to 127 organizations. The Student Activities Council will allocate a total of $329,722 next year to the 127 student groups it funds, a nearly 20 percent decrease from this year. SAC attributes the decrease to a smaller number of groups seeking funding. "Allocations went much more smoothly in terms of fairness to groups," SAC Chairman Jay Haverty said. The Wharton and Engineering junior said the SAC executive board ensured that allocations were fair by establishing strict budgeting guidelines and adhering to them. The groups had collectively requested more than $800,000 from SAC. Before allocations were made, SAC had originally intended to allocate just $270,000 because at the time, that was all the money the group had to give. In order to provide enough funding for its constituent groups, SAC had to take $60,000 from their reserve fund, effectively emptying it. "The reserve fund went down because we felt groups deserved legitimate funding" Haverty said. SAC received a total of $494,345 in funding this year from the Undergraduate Assembly, up by approximately $50,000 from last year. But 20 percent of that -- $98,869 -- will go into the group's contingency fund, and another $120,000 will cover administrative costs. An additional $50,000 of SAC's UA funding will go to technology and maintenance expenses. Exactly $30,000 of that is being invested in the groups' online budget tracking system. Scheduled to premiere in the fall, the system is meant to help SAC groups have immediate access to all of their financial records. While there is approximately $10,000 left in the reserve fund, Haverty explained that the money could not be allocated because it serves as a "safety net" for organizations who may go into debt. The fund will be replenished at the end of the school year when SAC groups return the unused portions of their money to the group. The estimated amount to be returned is $60,000, but it will probably all go towards paying off SAC groups' debt. The group voted to tap into its reserve fund in February after their contingency fund emptied out. There was $80,000 in the reserve fund -- which contains money unused by other SAC groups at the end of each school year. In February, $20,000 was allocated in contingency requests after the fund was opened and the remaining $60,000 has gone towards this year's allocations. SAC will hear the 10 budget appeals it has received -- down from last year's 24 -- at next week's meeting, but it cannot offer more than $5,000 total to these requests. If groups feel that the $5,000 limit will not satisfy appeals, SAC members will have to vote to open up its contingency fund. Doing so would jeopardize the amount of money that will be available to student groups in the future. According to Haverty, changes have been made to budgeting guidelines this year to ensure fair and efficient allocations. Advertising standards have been modified and SAC will not grant groups money to advertise in The Daily Pennsylvanian. That will save SAC over $25,000. Performing arts groups also receive a standard allocation of $2,500. In previous years SAC had allocated money by estimating each individual groups' costs. Most group members said this standardized funding was sufficient.
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Transcending Traditions, a two-day conference on African, Afro-American and African diaspora studies, was launched yesterday with a full day of panel discussions and workshops. Sponsored by the African Studies Center and the Afro-American Studies Program, the conference is the first of its kind. Prominent scholars from diverse fields, including literature, anthropology, history, sociology and music, were invited to speak about the interrelationship between African Studies, African-American Studies and the future of the study of the African diaspora. English Department Undergraduate Chair Farah Griffin, who herself has published several books with African-American themes, said the conference is "one of the culminating events? of a broad series of things that have been going on all year." Tukufu Zuberi, director of the African Studies Center, said the conference is "part of an ongoing desire to form a graduate group in African and African diaspora studies." Today, the conference will feature a workshop and panel discussions on Philosophy and Spirituality and Society and Politics. Yesterday's kick-off of the conference included a panel discussion on the history of the African diaspora, led by experts from New York University and Penn, among others. The keynote speaker was Columbia University Anthropology Professor Elliot Skinner. Griffin explained that Skinner was chosen because of his seniority and because he was "one of the earlier people to write about the connection between Africa and the diaspora." "In his own right, he's sort of a historical figure," Griffin said. A panel discussion on black culture followed, led by Harvard University Education Professor Marcyliena Morgan and three other professors. The panelists discussed the evolution of black language and music, African spirituality and diversity within the black community. The discussion was followed by a graduate student workshop focusing on the folklore, linguistics. and history of African peoples. "I think its time has come," said audience member James Davis, a professor at the University of Delaware, of the conference. Davis added that the event is breaking down disciplinary barriers between African-American and African Studies. "The speakers have been vibrant," he added. The idea of forming a graduate group in African, African-American and African diaspora studies was proposed by University President Judith Rodin last year. The proposal is currently being discussed in the School of Arts and Sciences, said Afro-American Studies Director Herman Beavers. Beavers explained that the graduate group "promises to be an opportunity for lots of faculty to collaborate." If approved, the graduate group would be the first of its kind to offer a an interdisciplinary Ph.D. in diaspora studies. "There really is nothing like what we're trying to do," Beavers said.
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Challenger Ron Klink's lack of funds could limit his future campaigning. For Congressman Ron Klink, victory in the Democratic senatorial primary cost a lot. So much, in fact, that Klink had to mortgage his home to finance his television campaign ads. After beating out five other candidates in April's primary, Klink must face off against incumbent Rick Santorum in a run for the conservative senator's seat in the United States Senate. And according to Santorum's spokesman Rob Traynham, the freshman senator has $3.7 million in cash on hand to finance his campaign. But J.J. Balaban, spokesman for Klink's campaign, said Klink currently has less than half a million in campaign funds. And the Philadelphia Inquirer reported on Tuesday that Klink only had $119,162 in funds at the end of March. "That's not unexpected at the end of a heated primary," Balaban explained. Klink may have managed to come out ahead of his toughest challengers, State Senator Allyson Schwartz and former State Secretary of Labor and Agriculture Tom Foley, but Balaban said the primary race cost the campaign around $1.5 million. And with Santorum expecting to raise $12 million, Klink has a lot of catching up to do. "We said that we would have enough money in the primary, and we did," Balaban said, maintaining that Klink will raise enough to run a successful campaign. But Political Science Professor Henry Teune said that Klink is facing an uphill battle in securing the finances necessary to take on Santorum. "The only way he can [fundraise] well is by presenting himself as a candidate that can win," Teune explained. "And how does he do that? By having money -- which he doesn't." "He might be in deep trouble," he added. Balaban said that Klink has already received significant financial offers from several senators and the president, and expressed optimism that unity among the Democratic Party in Pennsylvania would help the congressman's bid. "We have a united party, and that helps," Balaban said. Don Cockler, spokesman for the Democratic State Committee of Pennsylvania, said that while the group remains committed to helping Klink to victory in November's election, it too is limited in terms of funding. "Every chance we get, he'll be one of the spotlighted candidates," Cockler said. "But we have to help all the candidates any way we can. Money's always a limited resource." Balaban said that the congressman and his campaign continues to remain optimistic, noting that the other candidates in April's primary have already endorsed Klink. He also said that much of the money spent in the primary went towards name recognition, which should be helpful in November's general election. Teune, however, said he thinks Klink faces a tough race against Santorum in the next few months, explaining that both candidates share similar stances on a lot of issues, which could work against Klink. Additionally, Teune noted that popular Republican Gov. Tom Ridge -- widely considered to be a top potential running mate for George W. Bush -- could give support to Santorum that could prove to be very helpful. "Ridge can get the big Republicans, and he's going to back Santorum," Teune said. "He can activate the Republican organization and get out the vote."
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Penn plays four games at Princeton this weekend for control of the Ivy League's southern division. Chris Young is used to doing battle with Penn. The All-Ivy basketball player has gone 1-3 against the Quakers on the court in his two years at Old Nassau. But this weekend, he's dancing the old Ivy two-step with the Quakers not on the hardwood, but on the diamond. The Penn baseball team -- second in the Lou Gehrig Division with a 7-5 Ivy League record and an 18-14 overall record -- will travel to Princeton to take on the division-leading Tigers (15-14, 8-4 Ivy) in two games today and two games tomorrow. Both doubleheaders begin at noon. With eight Ivy games to go for each squad -- including the four they have against each other -- and a mere game separating them in the standings, what transpires in the next two days might decide the Quakers' season. "Realistically, you're head-to-head with the team you have to beat," Penn coach Bob Seddon said. "This is really the key weekend? it's up to us." Penn's path is clear -- they must take at least three out of four from the Tigers this weekend in order to regain control of their destiny. If the Quakers should split with Princeton, they would remain a game behind in the standings going into the final weekend of Ivy regular season play -- next weekend -- and, to tie the Tigers and force a playoff, would need to not only sweep Columbia but get help from Cornell, which would need to beat Princeton once. Based on Cornell's performance at Murphy Field and Princeton's thorough demolition of Columbia last weekend, it would be unwise for the Quakers to count on the Big Red to save them next weekend should they need saving. Thus, it is up to Penn to do its own dirty work. In Princeton, the Quakers face not only the defending division champs but a squad that defeated them four times last year by the combined score of 25-11. This year, the Tigers have struggled against a tough non-conference schedule, going 7-10 outside of the Ivies. Princeton lost to Rutgers by 11 runs on March 29. The Scarlet Knights are ranked 16th in the Baseball America NCAA Top 25 poll. At the plate, Princeton has three formidable threats in first baseman Andrew Hanson, outfielder Max Krance, the 1998 Ivy League Rookie of the Year and shortstop Pat Boran. Both Hanson and Krance come into today's games with a .381 batting average and are fighting each other for the league batting title. Hanson was named Ivy League Player of the Week for his production in Princeton's sweep of Columbia last weekend. In one game against the Lions, he had 12 RBI. After these three players, though, Seddon believes that there is a definite fall-off in Princeton's prowess with the bat. "Their catchers are OK, and the rest of them, in my opinion, are very mediocre," said Seddon, who believes that taking three of four from Princeton is a realistic goal. "I've been looking at their roster and their players. I really don't feel that they have any edge on us. If they have any edge at all, [it's that] they're playing at home, and they're playing four times at home? I think the teams are very equal." One area in which Princeton may be more equal than the Quakers is starting pitching. Specifically, Penn will have to face Tigers ace Young, who will most likely take the ball in the first game today, and Jason Quintana, who is the probable starter in the first game tomorrow. Young, whom Seddon and the team call "Wonder Boy," has been one of the league's most dominating hurlers since entering the Ivies last year. The tall lefty led the league last year with a 2.38 ERA and struck out 36 in 34 innings en route to a 4-1 record and the Ivy League Rookie of the Year award. As Baseball America's number one pro prospect in the Ivies, Young has been closely looked at by many professional teams. "They'll have 15 scouts back there with the [radar] gun," Seddon said. "We can't get all caught up in that." As many Penn fans will remember, it was Young who two years ago spurned both the baseball and the men's basketball team to wear the orange and black. Would beating Young today make victory just a little bit sweeter for Penn? "If you're asking me, individually, beyond belief, yes," Seddon said. Quintana led the Tigers last year with 53 strikeouts and only walked 14. Princeton will most likely trot Tom Rowland out to the mound in the second game today, and Ryan Quillian will take the ball in the nightcap tomorrow. In the first game today, the Quakers will counter Princeton's starting set with Mike Mattern, fresh off his one-hit complete game shutout victory over Cornell last weekend. Freshman Ben Otero will start the nightcap. Tomorrow, Mark Lacerenza will start the opener, and Andrew McCreery will pitch in the nightcap.
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Business etiquette expert Mary Mitchell spoke about online and dining manners as part of a two-day etiquette conference. According to syndicated columnist and business etiquette expert Mary Mitchell, the way a person cuts their food can make or break a business lunch. To help prevent students from committing such a faux-pas, Mitchell spoke to a crowd of about 50 students yesterday afternoon in Steinberg-Dietrich Hall on "Interactive Dining and Netiquette." Sponsored by the pledge class of Alpha Kappa Psi, the professional business fraternity, yesterday's workshop was the conclusion of a two-day conference on business etiquette and dress. On Wednesday, Delta Sigma Pi sponsored the first half, with a workshop entitled, "How to Act, How to Dress," featuring Mitchell and Kelly Stuart, east coast event coordinator for Brooks Brothers. Mitchell's Philadelphia-based company, The Mitchell Organization, specializes in providing training in communication and business etiquette skills. The first half of the workshop focused on online etiquette -- the proper use and tone of e-mail. Mitchell cautioned students on the importance of staying formal in all online communications. "Just because you are online doesn't mean the rules of grammar don't apply," said Mitchell. A important consideration when using e-mail, according to Mitchell, is "to remember the human," and that "nothing is as good as a handwritten note and a 33-cent stamp." For the second half of the workshop, Mitchell provided the audience with complete silverware sets in an effort to highlight common dining mistakes. Dining etiquette is such an important part of life, Mitchell pointed out, that Oscar Wilde once said, "the world was my oyster until I used the wrong fork." According to Mitchell, the way food is eaten is even more important than the food itself. "The food is the least important part of the meal because in business situations, you are there to advance your career," Mitchell said. "Business etiquette can help any student in any professional situation," said Wharton freshman Deborah Jang, president of Alpha Kappa Psi's pledge class. "We thought that the workshop would be informative and educational for the Penn community because lessons on etiquette do not exist here," Jang added. Students were generally receptive to Mitchell, asking her a variety of questions on topics including shaking hands and the correct way to eat bread. "I thought that she was excellent. I never thought that such details would matter, but in reality, they do," said Wharton junior Suyash Paliwal. "I love it that students are open-minded to realize that they need people skills as well as technical skills" said Mitchell afterwards, while signing copies of her book, "The Complete Idiot's Guide to Business Etiquette."
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Lorraine Sterritt, an associate dean at Harvard, will help coordinate a new advising system for freshmen. The College of Arts and Sciences announced yesterday that a Harvard University administrator has been appointed as the College's first dean of freshmen, a position created as part of the College's ongoing overhaul of its advising system. Lorraine Sterritt, Harvard's associate dean of freshmen for academic affairs, will take the position on July 1. Sterritt will be responsible for overseeing freshman advising, coordinating academic support services for freshmen and planning a newly expanded New Student Orientation in the College. The College has actively been planning changes to its advising system this semester, the results of which will be seen in a new, more comprehensive advising program for freshmen this fall. College Dean Richard Beeman explained that the dean of freshmen position was designed to have someone organize and implement the new system of advising. "By creating a high-level position? we're going to get advising in the College off to a good, strong start," Beeman said. Sterritt said she is looking forward to the opportunities her new position will provide. "I love freshmen," she said. "I really see the freshman year as a time when it's really important to get good advice." Sterritt, who has been at Harvard for four years and previously worked with freshmen and sophomores at Princeton University, said her new job will offer her the chance to further develop her work on freshman advising. "It builds on what I've already been doing at Harvard," she said. "I think it's going to be a great opportunity." Sterritt noted that she was pleased to find that a large number of faculty members in the College were interested in advising students, saying that she hopes "to be able to build on what already exists." Freshmen need "a real human being that they can sit down and talk with about academic matters," said Sterritt. She also emphasized the importance of supporting advisors and showing them how they can best help students with academic concerns. College Advising Director Diane Frey said Sterritt will serve as "a point person" for freshmen, getting in touch with students who might not otherwise be able to get the undivided attention of an administrator. "I think she'll have more time to do outreach to freshmen," Frey said, adding that "since there's no one person dealing with freshmen [now], we might not have heard all their concerns." Frey noted that while Sterritt will work primarily with freshmen in the College, she will also be involved with the other undergraduate schools. "It will be something of a work in progress," Frey said. "I'm sure good things will come out of it." Sterritt will report directly to Beeman and Deputy Provost Peter Conn. In addition to her administrative work with freshmen, Sterritt, who has a doctorate in French literature from Princeton, said she will teach one course a year in the Romance Languages Department, most likely on Renaissance French literature, which is her specialty.
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After big-time splits at home, Penn heads to Harvard and Dartmouth to end Ivy season. After finally getting a taste of winning in the Ivy League, the Penn softball team will try to prove that last weekend's gutsy, come-from-behind wins were not a fluke. Although the Quakers were only able to split both of their doubleheaders last weekend against Princeton and Cornell, that in itself is quite an accomplishment for the young Penn squad. In fact, for seniors Michelle Zaptin, Suzanne Arbogast and Kari Dennis, it was the first time that they had beaten either team. The Quakers had last topped Princeton in 1991 and Cornell in 1994. Penn, 2-6 in the Ivies and 13-24-1 overall, will look to even its league record this weekend in doubleheaders against Harvard and Dartmouth. It would be quite a feat for the Red and Blue to finish the Ivy season at .500 after a slow start which saw the team start off 0-4 in the Ancient Eight. Neither of the two monumental wins for Penn came easily. Against the Tigers, the Quakers valiantly fought back from a 1-0 deficit to take a 3-1 victory. The key for Penn was a clutch sixth-inning rally in which the Quakers put all three of their runs on the board. "I'm quite proud of my team," Penn coach Carol Kashow said. "Both of our wins were come-from-behind victories. We faced adversity, but that didn't stop us. We're growing up a little and maturing." Penn's victory against Cornell was even more exciting. The Quakers showed a great deal of poise in coming back from a 3-1 deficit in the bottom of the seventh. In its last chance to tie up the game, Penn came through with a string of key hits and a sacrifice fly by Jen Moore that knotted the game at three. The three Penn seniors finally secured their first victory against the Big Red when sophomore stand-out Clarisa Apostol singled home freshman catcher Dani Landolt. If Penn hopes to finish the Ivy season with a bang, the Quakers will need to play their best softball for four straight games. Although Penn notched huge wins over Princeton and Cornell, in both cases the Quakers were embarrassed in the second game -- the Red and Blue were shut out in the nightcaps of both doubleheaders. Not only was Penn shut out by both Princeton and Cornell, but the Quakers fell victim to softball's most humiliating feat-- a perfect game. Last week's Ivy League Player of the Week Brie Galacinao showed off a gaudy array of pitches in stoning the Penn batters. Penn has probably seen about enough of Galacinao to last a lifetime. Not only was the sophomore simply superb from the mound, but she also managed to go a perfect 3-3 from the plate and score two runs. Beating Harvard will definitely not be an easy task for Penn. Although the Crimson sport an unimpressive 11-18 record overall, Harvard has yet to be beaten by a league opponent and sits at 3-0. Harvard has been no less than completely dominant thus far into their trip through the Ancient Eight. The Crimson's biggest test was a 5-3 win over Dartmouth, and coach Jenny Allard's team has outscored its Ivy League competitors by an amazing count of 27-7. Dartmouth appears to be a little less intimidating than Harvard. The ladies from Hanover have split doubleheaders against Brown and Yale and sit at 2-3 in the Ivies. The Big Green are led by sophomore Sarah Damon, who is batting .348 for the year. Penn's pitching will likely be tested early and often by a Dartmouth team that boasts four players with batting averages above .300. By capping off its home schedule with a pair of emotional and poignant victories, Penn has a chance to wrap up its Ivy campaign on a definite high note.
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The Lions are 5-0 in the league and visit the Quakers this afternoon. The Penn men's tennis team has had something to prove all season after a frustrating 1-6 finish in the Ivy League last year. They will have a chance to show just how far they have come when they square off against Ivy League-leading Columbia today at 2 p.m. at the Lott Courts. Tomorrow, the Quakers will close their regular season by traveling to Cornell for a match at the Reis Tennis Center. This weekend marks the end of an already impressive campaign for the Red and Blue, who currently hold an 11-9 overall record (3-2 Ivy). "We're looking forward to this weekend," Penn junior Rob Pringle said. "It could be our chance to go 5-2." The Quakers' turnaround is more impressive given that they are without a senior player in the regular lineup. With wins against Brown, Yale and Dartmouth, the young Quakers have emerged from the Ivy League basement and are challenging for their first winning league record since finishing 5-4 in the EITA in 1997. Penn's biggest test of the year will come today against a Columbia team that owns a 15-5 record. The Lions are currently enjoying a 10-match winning streak that includes their first five Ivy League contests. The Lions feature a fearsome singles order from top to bottom that includes Australian native Akram Zaman at the top spot. Zaman teams with senior Salil Seshadri to form one of the strongest doubles pairs in the Ivy League this year. Junior Steve Millerman was a unanimous first team All-Ivy selection last year and an All-EITA team selection as a freshman in 1998. Seshadri joined him as an All-Ivy first teamer last year and was EITA Player of the Year as a sophomore in 1998. "Columbia is good, but players on our team have beat their players before," Pringle said. Columbia could lock up its first championship since 1994 against Princeton tomorrow but must first face the resurgent Quakers. Cornell, meanwhile, has not enjoyed the success of Columbia and Penn this season. After an 11-2 preseason, the Big Red have stumbled. Cornell mustered its only Ivy victory this season against winless Dartmouth and is unlikely to shed its current funk today against the second-place Tigers, who will be fine-tuning for their match against Columbia tomorrow. "We can't take Cornell lightly," Pringle said. "They can play with anyone in the league." That especially applies to Cornell junior Mike Halperin. A second team All-Ivy singles and doubles player last season, Halperin has defeated every Ivy opponent he has faced this season. His victories include three-set thrillers against Columbia's Zaman and last week against Brown's freshman phenom Justin Natale. The Quakers will need to play a nearly flawless match to down Columbia today. Sophomore Fanda Stejskal is coming off a win over Harvard's John Doran, one of the top players in the league, and will need to at least retain that form against Zaman and Halperin. The Quakers will be without the services of Joey Zupan this weekend. Zupan re-injured his roator cuff last weekend and will be replaced by senior Brett Meringoff. Penn will be attempting to recover steam after a 6-1 loss to Harvard that broke the team's three-match winning streak. No matter the result this weekend, the Quakers have shown great improvement over last year's results. A strong showing this weekend could give them a finish as the third- or fourth-place team in the Ivy League.
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A report prevents new single-sex Greek residences and bans taps and bars in houses. More than a year after Dartmouth College's president recommended a large-scale overhaul of residential and social life on campus, the school's Board of Trustees announced this week several major changes to the Greek system. The report calls for a moratorium on the creation of any new single-sex Greek houses, moving rush from the fall term of sophomore year to the winter term effective in the academic year 2001-2002, banning taps and bars in all Greek houses and abolishing the school's independent Greek judicial system. All of the initiatives are meant to better incorporate the Greek system into the school's overall social community, officials say. To achieve this, for instance, the independent Greek judicial system might be replaced by a similar system that would hear cases of both Greek and non-Greek organizations. "[The report] lays the groundwork for some fundamental changes building on Dartmouth's traditional strengths and making the most of these while moving into the future," Dartmouth spokeswoman Laurel Stavis said. Dartmouth President James Wright's recommendations last February stemmed from a number of problems within the Greek community, including many incidents of alcohol abuse in the houses, and an episode where several students with bullhorns climbed onto the balconies of at least two fraternities and made sexually suggestive remarks to female students walking below. A committee of administrators, faculty, students and alumni was formed last April to examine the Greek system after Wright and the school's trustees announced that they wanted to eliminate single-sex fraternities and sororities. Conversations between administrators and student leaders have continued throughout the year. "The president has said that the outcome was shaped by the process," Stavis said. For the most part, Greek leaders said they were satisfied with the decisions and said the trustees took their opinions into consideration. Dartmouth Panhellenic Council President Alex Kremer, a junior, said the trustees' decisions set forth standards of excellence for the Greek system and that "the sorority system has always held itself to these standards." "On the whole, I don't see this report shaking up the way the sororities operate," she said. However, Kremer said she was displeased with some aspects of the trustees' endorsements, including ending the formation of new single-sex Greek houses, which prevents the formation of a new sorority. According to Kremer, the Greeks had hoped to establish a seventh sorority in order to accommodate all women interested in pledging. Last year the six-sorority Panhel was unable to guarantee bids to all rushees. Dartmouth InterFraternity Council President Mike Johnson, a junior, agreed that the general sentiment among Greeks is one of support of the trustees' decisions. "The reactions are mixed to a certain extent? but students realize that the decisions are made in the best interest of the students," Johnson said. He said that one common concern, though, is that the move of rush to the winter term may negatively affect membership in the fraternities and sororities because many students study abroad during that time. Johnson added, however, that the trustees' initiatives are not as specific as he had anticipated. "That means that there's going to be a lot of communication between the Greek system and the administration," he said. "Ideally the fraternity system would like to take actions not recommended by the trustees but that would benefit the Dartmouth community." In addition, Johnson said he expects the changes to ease tension among administrators, faculty, Greeks and the rest of the student body. "[The initiatives] will bring out a lot of positive aspects of the Greek system," he added.
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The Penn women's crew team is overdue for a winning regatta. After winning the Class of '91 Plate in their first competition of the spring season against Navy and Georgetown, the Quakers have yet to bring home another winning trophy. However, heading into this weekend's races against Cornell and Rutgers on the Schuylkill, the Quakers know they have the physical and mental preparation to win the Class of '89 Plate. "In the past they've been solid crews, but now we're faster and stronger than we've been before," Penn senior Becca Rothman said. History is working against the Red and Blue, with Penn last winning the plate in 1991. In the past two years, the Quakers have placed third, although only by a margin of 16 seconds combined. "It definitely adds an extra incentive to win this weekend," Rothman said. After last weekend against Northeastern and Syracuse, when the margins of victory over the Quakers were literally a matter of a few seconds across the board, the boats now know what they must do come race time. "It taught us to set our sights higher and that we need to be super aggressive from start to finish. We're really expecting to win," senior co-captain Loren Berman said. Penn coach Barb Kirch was happy with the growing adaptability of her boats. "It shows their ability to make changes from race to race. They're just a very coachable team," Kirch said. This may be the Quakers' magic year to win the plate, as the varsity eight will enter the race ranked ninth in the EAWRC polls, three and six spots ahead of Cornell and Rutgers, respectively. However, the second varsity eight, first novice and second novice boats are all ranked behind Cornell and Rutgers. The results of Saturday's regatta will factor into the Quakers' ranking heading into Eastern Sprints, which can be considered the climax of the crew season before the NCAA Championships are held at the tail end of the month. "We need to do well this weekend and next weekend [at Princeton with Dartmouth] to put us in good position for Sprints," Rothman said. As May quickly approaches, the pressure is beginning to intensify with more thoughts of competing well at the Eastern Sprints and earning a bid to the NCAA Championships. "We approach each race with the same intensity, but everything is working towards Sprints and NCAAs," Berman said. Obviously, after essentially an entire school year of training, the Quakers are about as physically fit as they're going to get. What takes priority at this point in the season is fine-tuning their skills, making sure that the Penn boats are as in-synch as they can be. "We're focusing on setting our rhythm from stroke to stroke," Rothman said. On Saturday, racing the home course with ever-growing confidence and experience should be more than enough to lead the Quakers to the bigger and better results they expect from themselves.
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Penn faces No. 2 Syracuse tomorrow. The Quakers haven't beat the Orange since 1919. To say the Penn men's lacrosse team faces an uphill battle when it meets national powerhouse Syracuse on Saturday might just be the understatement of the year. Take into account the following: The Quakers-Orangemen rivalry dates back to 1918 with Syracuse winning 22 of the 24 previous meeting. Penn's last win came during the Wilson Administration and before the Black Sox threw the World Series -- the Red and Blue eked out a 2-1 victory in 1919. Syracuse is 8-1 and ranked No. 2 in the nation. The Quakers are 5-7 and have lost four of their last five. But despite the stacked odds, Penn still believes it has a good shot at beating the Orangemen. "If we limit our number of turnovers and the defense has a really solid game, we have a chance of winning," Penn co-captain Bill Fowler said. "They have an awesome offense, so we can't allow any easy goals." For Penn, however, the season has been marked with uneven play. Perfect examples of this inconsistency are its past two contests against Villanova and Brown. Last Wednesday against Villanova, the Quakers suffered a heartbreaking double-overtime loss, 15-14. In that game, they took an early 6-3 lead, but a 9-2 Wildcats run put the Red and Blue back on the offensive. Junior Todd Minerley scored with 28 seconds left to tie the score at 14, but the Quakers couldn't hold the momentum and lost when Villanova's Eric Dauer put the ball past Penn goalie Ryan Kelly in the second extra-frame. The results weren't any better for the Quakers last Saturday in their final home and Ivy game of the season against Brown. Penn had control for much of the game but trailed by one at the end of the first half and by four at the end of the third quarter. The Quakers managed to tally four goals in the final frame, but they still came up short, losing 9-7. This kind of erratic play will knock the Quakers right out of the game on Saturday when they take on the Orangemen at neutral-site Princeton. Syracuse boasts one of the most powerful offenses in the country and has the statistics to prove it. The team is outshooting its opponents, 370-307, and is outscoring them, 130-76. That means the Orangemen are beating their opponents by six goals per game. As far as faceoffs, another important offensive category, go Syracuse is winning seven more than their opponents per game. Behind their impressive stats are some very talented players. All-American Ryan Powell leads the team in both goals with 27 and assists with 28, which is good for 55 points. Sophomore Michael Springer has tallied 25 goals thus far this season with 10 assists, and sophomore Liam Banks has 18 goals and 25 assists. "On defense, we're not doing anything different," Fowler said. "We're just going to have to play a tough zone." The Orangemen defense is just as talented as their offense. Seniors Marshall Abrams and Joe Ceglia lead the backline and Abrams is known as one of the best stickhandlers in the country. Penn's defense -- and offense -- will not only have to be better than it has been all season in order to beat Syracuse, but also better than when these two teams met up last year. In that contest, held in Syracuse at the Carrier Dome, the Orangemen beat the Quakers soundly, 16-7. Like this season, the Quakers' play was topsy-turvy throughout the game. The two teams ended the first quarter 1-1, but Syracuse went on a 11-1 run in the two middle periods and never looked back from there. Highlights for the Quakers were few, but co-captain Peter Janney did net one goal and record two assists. From the record and the ranking, the Orangemen are arguably even better this year, although they are 1-1 in their last two games. The 'Cuse is coming off a 16-8 win against Rutgers, but coach John Desko's squad lost its undefeated record and its No. 1 ranking on April 11 against Cornell after the upstart Big Red surprised the Orange, 13-12. Syracuse had retained the top-team status since their first game of the season when they beat Virginia. With the loss to the Big Red though, they dropped to No 2. While a Penn win would be huge for a team that has had a disappointing season, the Quakers know that a victory would not change what has happened in 2000. "As far as winning, it would be great as something to look back on, beating the No. 2 team in the country," Fowler said. "But, it's definitely not something that's going to save the season. The Ivies were the most important, and we don't have any more of those games."
