NEWS 4

POLITICAL ADS
Admin. concerned
with 501 (c) (3);
Merciad contacts
law center
STAFF EDITORIAL 15
Lacrosse upsets
No. 4 in nation How to work, not hate a job
SPORTS 23 FEATURES 9
PAGE 2
Mercyhurst’s Earth Day lasts a week
By Casey Greene
Managing editor
Each year millions of people
across the world dedicate one
day to environmental awareness
and appreciation. They call it
Earth Day.
This year Mercyhurst College is
extending that dedication, taking
an entire week to recognize the
importance of the Earth.
“E a r t h We e k i s M e r c y -
hurst’s way of celebrating Earth
Day, which is held each year on
April 22,” said Dr. James Sny-
der, co-chair of the events and
Mercyhurst Green Team faculty
chair.
“We take something good, such
as the goodness of the Earth,
and try to multiply it seven-fold
so that there is a week’s worth
of celebratory, educational and
inspirational events.”
Senior Torrie Caruso said she
is surprised and excited that the
event has been extended to last
a week.
“I think that a week-
long celebration is
important,”
NEWS
Caruso said. “It was great that
we had a day, and it is pretty cool
that the school decided to make
it a week.”
Sophomore Erik Perrin said he
plans to take part in several of the
events in this year’s celebration
“I didn’t know about it last
year, but this year I’d like to get
more involved,” sophomore Erik
Perrin said.
Earth Week begins Monday,
April 21 and continues through
Monday, April 28 with a theme
that was chosen by the Student
Green Team, said Snyder.
The team chose “Seed, Soil,
Soul.”
Snyder said the theme “ties to-
gether the most basic dimensions
of human reality: we are soil and
soul, body and spirit, co-mingled
as a germinating seed.”
The Earth Week commit-
tee worked to plan events
that appeal to the di-
verse college com-
munity, including
student, faculty
and adminis-
tration, said
Analida
Braeger,
Chair
of Earth Week.
Braeger worked with the Stu-
dent Green Team and multiple
faculty members in preparation
for the Earth Week events.
“The coming together of the
various disciplines of the college
has been a very rewarding experi-
ence,” Braeger said.
“We at Mercyhurst have an
incredible pool of resources and
people who are willing to help. All
you have to do is ask.”
Sophomore Milly Parker said
she thinks the event will be a
success.
“I think it’s a good idea,” Parker
said. “It gives people a good
chance to participate.”
Earth Week participants can
enjoy a wide-range of events
throughout the week including a
tea ceremony and dance perfor-
mance, a paper-making workshop
and a hike through Wintergreen
Gorge.
“Like in previous years, our
celebrations will be crowned by
two events that honor the sacred-
ness of the Earth,” Snyder said.
One such event is the Earth
Day celebration on April 22.
The day consists of an inter-
faith service led by Rev. Lyta
Seddig followed by a clean-up
of the mouth of Millcreek, led
by the College’s Sustainability
Coordinator, Cathy Pedler.
The second event is the Sr.
Maura Smith Earth Day Lecture,
held on April 28 and given by Sr.
Miriam MacGillis.
“Its all about reconnecting
with the earth; learning about,
enjoying and honoring that
which we take for granted and
take advantage of in everything
we do – mother earth,” Snyder
said.
“We hope that students will
realize that Earth Day is not just
one day a year – it should be ev-
ery day of the year. If students
begin to realize this they will be-
gin to lead happier, more grateful
and more sustainable lives.”
April 16, 2008
Earth Week Events
April 21 - April 28
Monday, April 21 - 7 p.m.
Tea Ceremony in the Taylor
Little Theatre including a pre-
sentation by Keiko Miller and
a dance performance presented
by Solveig Santillano and the
Mercyhurst Dancers
Tuesday, April 22 - 4:15 p.m.
An Earth Day interfaith service
led by the Rev. Lyta Seddig at
the Munson Plaza followed by
a clean-up of the mouth of
Millcreek led by Cathy Pedler.
Wednesday, April 23 - 4-6 p.m.
Hunger banquet led by student
Green Team members in the
Mercy Heritage Room.
Thursday, April 24 - 4:30 p.m.
Lecture in the Mercy Heritage
Room titled, “Environmental
Well-Being: Ecological Design for
Wicked Problems,” presented by
Dr. Robert Mugerauer, professor
of urban design, planning and
architecture at the University of
Washington.
Friday, April 25 - 4-6 p.m.
Zurn 121
A papermaking workshop led by
Camille Nischal in Zurn 121. All
supplies will be provided.
Saturday, April 26 - 11 a.m.
Dr. Mike Campbell will lead the
Hike for Haiku event, including a
walk through Wintergreen Gorge
identifying various species of plants
and flowers. Students will later write
a Haiku poem based on their expe-
rience. Bring a bag lunch.
Monday, April 28 - 7:30 p.m.
Mercy Heritage Room
The Sr. Maura Smith Earth Day
Lecture, “Foundations for a
Sustainable Future: Cosmology,
A Sense of Place and the
Sacred,” will be presented by Sr.
Miriam MacGillis.
April 16, 2008 NEWS PAGE 3

’Hurst kicks off Literary Festival
By Julie Hranica
Staff writer
T he Mercyhurst College
English department and mem-
bers of the student publication,
The Lumen, took the time this
week to celebrate what they
love: literature.
The sixth annual Literary Fes-
tival that takes place April 10 to
April 24, included many events
that allowed students to engage
in literary works of both their
own and those of well-known
guests.
Dr. Kenneth Schiff, an Eng-
lish department faculty member
and Lumen advisor, coordinated
the festival.
Terry Bisson, an award-win-
Joy Harjo, a Native American
poet and musician, performed a
reading and played a saxophone
on Tuesday evening.
Harjo has published 10 books
of poetry and written other
books as well.
In addition to writing, she
has recorded CDs of her own
music.
“Being exposed to writers and
literary culture is an important
reason why students are here,”
Schiff staid.
The authors also participated
in a creative writing workshop
that was free and open to stu-
dents to work one-on-one with
the authors.
“It is wonderful that the
school is willing and able to
support this kind of a festival
and faculty in the areas of writ-
ing, photography and graphic
design.
Being introduced this year is
an interactive CD as well, will
include clips from all the artistic
venues on campus, such as clips
from the dance, music and art
departments as well.
Sophomore Nadine Beres
attended the unveiling of the
Lumen last year and looks
forward to attending again this
year.
“I really enjoyed hearing and
reading students’ work. It was
nice to see all the wonderful
talent here at Mercyhurst,”
Beres said.
John Ladd, editor-in-chief of
the Lumen, is helping to coordi-
nate the reception.
Ladd thinks that the Lumen
is a great way to display the
creative talents of Mercyhurst
students.
“The various student art-
ists on campus have come
together to create what I believe
is an incredible showcase of
the wonderful artistic talent
that exists here at Mercyhurst,”
Ladd said.
During the unveiling, student
awards will be announced for
those who included work in the
Lumen. The awards consist of
cash prizes and certificates for
the recipients.
Another award that
will be announced is the P.
Bar r y McAndrew Essay in
Literature Award.
Ladd said the Literary Fes-
tival has always been one of
his favorite events of the year
at Mercyhurst and thinks that
many students here do not real-
ize how unique it is.
“We are very fortunate that
the college brings not one, but
two excellent writers here every
year to share their work with
us. It’s something that doesn’t
happen just anywhere,” Ladd
said.
The reception will include a
chance for students to read their
own works through an open mic
session.
Free copies of the Lumen will
be provided and the interactive
CD will be shown.

ning science fiction author
was the first speaker of the
event.
On April 10, Bisson gave
students insight from his
experience as a published
author.
“It’s fun to be here,” he said.
“It’s a great campus, where
students are alert, attentive and
interesting people.”
Police log
Liquor Law Violation
Mercy 200
April 7
College discipline
Learn More.
and it is great for students to
have the opportunity to meet
such outstanding artists,”Harjo
said.
The final event of the festi-
val on April 24, is the annual
unveiling of the Lumen, which Continue your studies in a graduate
is Mercyhurst’s undergraduate
creative arts magazine.
or post-baccalaureate program.
The magazine is comprised
of submissions from students
t
.PSF
UIBO

BEWBODFE
DFSUJöDBUFT

t
5FBDIFS
DFSUJöDBUJPOT

t
4JY
NBTUFST
EFHSFF
QSPHSBNT

t
&WFOJOH
BOE
XFFLFOE
DPVSTFT
PòFSFE

Harassment t
'JOBODJBM
BJE
BOE
BTTJTUBOUTIJQT
BWBJMBCMF
3907 Lewis
April 9

Criminal Mischeif
College discipline

Larceny/Theft
OPEN HOUSE
8FEOFTEBZ
"QSJM

t

QN
Parking Lot 1 Parking Lot 2

&BTU
UI

4U
&SJF
April 9 April 9
At the corner of 34th and Wallace Streets,
Closed Pending investigation in the former Sts. Peter and Paul School

Driving Under the Influence

East Main Drive Can’t make it to the Open House?
April 12 $BMM



UP
TFU
VQ
BO

College discipline JOEJWJEVBM
BQQPJOUNFOU
 PAGE 4
Web worries: student information exposed
College acts quickly to fix problem, protect student privacy
By Joshua Wilwohl
Editor-in-chief
[Editor’s note: The following story
was first reported on the Merciad Web
site Sunday at 1:30 p.m.]
The prize for seniors who got
nominated for one of Mercy-
hurst College’s four top gradu-
ation awards was to get their
academic information posted
on the Internet.
Any individual looking to see
who was nominated for senior
awards could easily access the
records of 55 nominees that in-
cluded their GPA and the names
of the nominators.
The site, https://secure.mer-
cyhurst.edu/senior_awards/,
listed students by name under
the individual award categories.
The awards include the Carpe
Diem Award, Frank Barry Lead-
ership Award, Sr. Carolyn Her-
rmann Service Award and Cath-
ROTC cadets use paintball as a learning experience
By Jeff Allen
Contributing writer
This past weekend the mem-
bers of the Pride of Pennsylva-
nia ROTC Battalion held their
last laboratory exercise before
the final Field Training Exer-
cise which takes place at Fort
Indiantown Gap in southern
Pennsylvania.
ROTC worked in conjunc-
tion with Pentagon Paintball,
a local paintball company lo-
cated in Fairview, Pa. to organize
the training.
Freshmen, sophomore and
junior cadets ran through
squad tactical exercises or STX
lanes employing the usage of
erine McAuley Adult Student
Award.
The site, which had been up
since March 28, was blocked
to public access on April 13
at 1:24 p.m., Sheila Coon said,
the college’s director of mar-
keting.
The students’ records were
PDF files found on an unse-
cured server on the Mercyhurst
Web site.
The files were discovered
after a student searched “se-
nior awards – Mercyhurst” on
Google.
Mercyhurst College Assistant
Vice President for Academic
Affairs Meredith Schultz said
Google created cached pages
of the site after gathering the
information.
A cached page, according
to Googleguide.com, is when,
“Google takes a snapshot of
each page it examines and cach-
es (stores) that version as a
back-up.”
paintball guns to add an as-
pect of real combat to the
learning experience.
Senior cadets took on the
responsibility of org aniz-
ing, leading and grading the
training exercise.
The goal of the training was
to familiarize the cadets with
the tactical aspects of leader-
ship and to help them cope
with the stress of leading troops
under fire.
The training permitted cadets
to practice emergency medical
procedures on cadets who were
“shot” during the course of the
training.
These procedures included
fashioning splints for broken
bones, application of field dress-
NEWS
In a statement released by
the college, initial reports sug-
gest Google followed links
to the site from the Google
toolbar.
Schultz said the college placed
a request to Google on April
13 to take those pages off their
search engine.
She said the turn around time
is usually 24 to 48 hours.
Senior Marissa Starin, one of
the students nominated for an
award, said she wants her private
information secured and not for
everyone to see.
“I don’t think anyone else
should have access to this, and
only those who are picking this
award need access,” she said.
“I think this is a personal thing
and I don’t think the people who
nominated you were expecting
you to find out.”
Coon said the college launched
the site in an effort to conserve
paper.
“We did this in an effort to go
ings and building stretchers out
of materials on hand for carry-
ing wounded soldiers.
Members of the Pride of Pa
Battalion took on a land navi-
gation course designed by Cdt.
Dean Johnson, a Mercyhurst
senior, which proved challeng-
ing for many of them.
With the advent of GPS sys-
tems many soldiers have come
to rely too heavily on techno-
logical advances to aid them
in combat.
The purpose of the land
navigation course was to fur-
ther instill map reading and
lensatic compass usage-which
have proven to be crucial soldier
skills even in the current operat-
ing environment.
green,” Coon said. “It was so the
committee would not have to go
through and review papers.”
Coon said in the past, the
senior awards committee would
receive a lot of paperwork re-
lated to the nominees, and the
Web site was a way to work on
conservation.
The college issued a state-
ment on April 13 explaining
the error.
“Upon learning early Sunday
afternoon that infor mation
about senior awards nominees
was publicly accessible on the
Web, the Mercyhurst College
Office of Marketing and Public
Relations took immediate action
to have the site removed,” reads
the statement.
“At marketing’s request, the
Web administrator removed the
site on the www.mercyhurst.
edu Web where the Office of
Academic Affairs had request-
ed that nomination forms and
the list of nominated seniors’
The ROTC cadets used paintball to simulate field combat and
to practice emergency medical procedures.
April 16, 2008
PDFs for the different awards be
posted. This site was developed
only for nominating commit-
tee access. It was not intended
that this information be made
public.”
Coon said the college’s infor-
mation technology department is
working to create a password-se-
cured site for the information.
“We had a meeting with IT
and those types of security
measures (password protection)
will be in place on the site,”
she said.
Coon said no financial infor-
mation or personal Web Advisor
information was made available
to the public on the site.
She said letters were sent to all
seniors affected by the privacy
breach.
Schultz apologizes for any
inconvenience.
“We’re doing the best as pos-
sible to undo (this),” she said.
“We want to protect students
as much as we can.”
Contributed photo
 April 16, 2008
’Hurst in Mexico Students learn
By Emily Grabowski
Contributing writer
Mercyhurst College prides its
reputation as an international
college.
Every year, more and more
international students travel
hundreds, sometimes thousands
of miles to study at the small,
private institution.
On top of the large numbers
of international students, Mercy-
hurst offers a number of fantas-
tic study abroad programs.
Now, one more study abroad
opportunity will be added to the
list: the opportunity to spend a
semester at the Universidad del
Mayab in Merida, Mexico.
Dr. Heidi Hosey, director of
international education, along
with associate professor Juan
Argaez in the Walker School of
Business, have been working
together to get the exchange
program with Mayab up and
running.
Hosey said the college had
decided some time ago that it
wanted to form consortium
agreements with international
colleges in order to give our
students more and better oppor-
tunities to study abroad in ways
that would ensure high academic
quality and affordability.
Hosey said consortiums allow
colleges with similar missions
and approaches to education
to work together so that stu-
dent exchanges are less com-
plicated.
“They allow colleges to com-
municate more easily about what
they believe to be important in
things like curriculum, values
and service to the community.”
Hosey said. “And consortiums
can lead to other kinds of coop-
erative arrangements, such as
faculty exchanges or residency
programs in which whole classes
can be taken abroad and taught
by faculty on-site.”
“Consortiums are not just
abroad students studying abroad;
they’re about colleges working
together across borders for
mutual benefit,” she added.
The idea came about due to
Argaez being an alumnus of
Mayab, having lived in Merida
for quite some time.
“He knew that they were inter-
ested in forming a relationship
with a Catholic college in the
United States with a mission like
theirs (strong focus on service,
commitment to making a differ-
ence in the world), so he put us in
touch with them,” Hosey said.
Hoesy and Argazez are hoping
to send two or three students to
Mayab in the fall, and are encour-
aging that Mayab sends a couple
to Mercyhurst.
Students interested in par-
ticipating are required to have at
least an intermediate knowledge
of Spanish, since the classes will
all be taught in Spanish.
Students live in either an apart-
ment close to campus, or with
host families.
They are also expected to be
able to afford the cost of trans-
portation to and from campus,
as well as paying housing costs to
pay for their housing while they
are in Mexico.
“The cost of living in Mexico
is pretty manageable though,
and most students will find that
they will end up paying about
the same as they would if they
were on campus, perhaps less,”
Hosey said.
Sophomore Ian Michalski is
one of the students who have
been chosen to possibly become
one of the first to participate in
the program.
Michalski is a double major
in political science with an inter-
national relations concentration,
and world languages with a Span-
ish concentration.
Michalski is fluent in Spanish,
so making the transition would
be no problem for him.
NEWS
“I think it sounds like a great
program. It is something that
could really make Mercyhurst
standout as an institution, and
really enhance the college as a
whole,” Michalski said.
Junior Marie Skidmore will not
participate but thinks very highly
of the program.
“I think it’s a wonderful pro-
gram,” she said. “I wish there was
one in Spain.”
Skidmore had the privilege of
studying at the Universidad de
Salamenca in Spain.
The program is still in the
planning and organizing phase,
but students and faculty involved
are very enthusiastic about it.
“Students will likely be out
of the country for close to
four months; a terrific study
abroad experience. It’s an amaz-
ing opportunity,” Hosey said.
Michalski is very excited about
the opportunity presented to
him, and thinks that it will not
only benefit him academically,
but will benefit both institutions
as well.
“I really think that as this rela-
tionship between the University
of Mayab and Mercyhurst Col-
lege grows, it will so beneficial
for both institutions,” he said.
“To me what is most appeal-
ing about this opportunity is
that it will not cost more than
a normal term at Mercyhurst
would and there is more assur-
ance that the classes I take in
Mexico will actually count for my
studies at Mercyhurst.”
“And not to mention it is in
a very beautiful setting on the
Yucatan peninsula. If everything
works out and I do go in the fall,
I will be so excited to be the first
Mercyhurst student to study at
Mayab, and I will do everything I
can to best represent Mercyhurst
internationally,” Michalski said.
Any student interested in pos-
sibly participating in the exchange
should contact Dr. Heidi Hosey
to discuss it further.
to lead others,
not follow
By Amanda Valauri
News editor
The Leadership Certification
Program (LCP) gives Mercyhurst
College undergraduate students
the opportunity to develop their
personal and professional lead-
ership potential while learning
specific skills.
Participants will build networks
with other student leaders while
developing a strong leadership
component for their resume.
The bulk of the tri-level, non-
credit training program is the
nationally recognized live broad-
cast speakers.
These lectures are live video
conferences from across the
country where students can ask
questions and interact with the
speaker and other students.
Participating students guide
their own course events. They
break into groups and set goals to
be reached by the next session.
At the follow up meeting, stu-
dents discuss outcomes, successes
and challenges and submit an
online write-up of their experi-
ences.
The LCP is designed to be a
flexible certification program.
The live broadcasts are held
once a month on a Tuesday night
from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. with
make-up sessions available the
following Wednesday at 4:30 p.m.
and Thursday at 8:15 p.m.
After successful completion
of level one, participants receive
dual certification from the Office
of the Student Union and Stu-
dent Activities and the National
Society for Leadership and Suc-
cess and are inducted into Sigma
Alpha Pi Honor Society.
Completion of levels two and
PAGE 5
three receive certification as well
as Sigma Alpha Pi Honor Society
cords to wear at graduation.
Undergraduate students may
apply for level one of the LCP
for fall term. Applications can
be found on LakerNet or may be
picked up from the Office Stu-
dent Activities in the Herrmann
Student Union.
A maximum of 85 students are
chosen for level one of the LCP
and are invited back for levels
two and three if completion is
satisfactory and an application is
submitted.
Informational sessions on level
one of the LCP are offered on
Wednesday, April 23, at 8:15 p.m.
and Thursday, April 24, at 4:30
p.m. in the Herrmann Student
Union Great Room.
Senior Jessica Rudisill has gone
through two years of the training
program and is on the executive
board. She takes advantage of the
speaker’s ideas.
“My favorite part of the LCP
is definitely the speakers we get to
listen to. After watching the them,
I usually leave with such good
quotes dealing with my personal
life,” Rudisill said. “They make
you think about what you want to
do with your life and how to help
yourself become more successful
with your future careers.”
Next year’s president of the
LCP is junior Renee Kiefer. She
would like to see the LCP mem-
bers do even more on campus.
“I think it would be great to
give members more opportuni-
ties to use what they learn in the
program to plan and participate
in some fun and exciting events,”
Kiefer said. “LCP does have a lot
to offer students, and it’s a great
way to get involved and develop
leadership skills.”
PAGE 6
Student government fills positions
Secret ballots to elect SAC chair, PR coordinator, events coordinator
By Liz Maier
Staff writer
New MSG positions are filled
after two series of secret-ballot
elections.
The last portion of Monday’s
Mercyhurst Student Govern-
ment (MSG) meeting was spent
voting on the positions of Stu-
dent Activities Council Chair,
Public Relations Coordinator
and MSG Events Coordinator.
Recommended by the MSG
Executive Board for the job
of SAC Chair was Victoria
Fleisner.
The executive board rec-
ommended former MSG vice
president, junior Mihailo Jova-
novic, to the position of public
relations coordinator.
President of MSG, senior
Christina Coovert, motioned to
approve both candidates for the
job, however, a majority of the
members from the MSG floor
committee motioned to vote
separately on the candidates.
Sophomore MSG representa-
tive, Marissa Petroff, said, “I was
Second Annual business formal to be held
By Casey Greene
Managing editor
Before Mercyhurst College
seniors put on their caps and
gowns and say goodbye to
Mercyhurst, they have one last
opportunity to celebrate with
their classmates.
Seniors have a short time left
to pick up tickets to the Walker
School of Business Senior For-
mal being held on Saturday,
April 26.
“This type of event is so spe-
cial and unique,” junior Katie
surprised that the body did not
agree with the recommenda-
tions.”
MSG Vice President Dinorah
Sanchez approved body mem-
bers’ request that the voting
be done by means of secret
ballots.
Twenty-seven body members,
including Student Activities
Council Chair senior Kelly
Cofrancisco, participated in the
first two elections for Fleisner
and Jovanovic.
Fleisner secured her recom-
mended position as SAC Chair
after receiving an overwhelming
26 votes.
Junior representative Haylie
Starin said she was very pleased
with the outcome.
“I worked with Vicky for two
years on SAC and I know she
will do an amazing job because
she has great organizational
skills and work ethic,” she said.
“She also has some great vi-
sions of SAC for next year.”
Jovanovic was able to clinch
his recommended PR coordina-
tor position with 16 votes.
A majority vote of 14 was
Waldin said. “It is a great way
for seniors to have one last
night with their friends before
graduation to dress up, dance,
enjoy great food and have a
great evening.”
Waldin is in charge of the
event this year and said she
expects a good turn out at the
formal.
“After having such a suc-
cessful first formal last year we
have high expectations for this
year and we want to give the
seniors everything they deserve
after four years of hard work,”
Waldin said.
NEWS
necessary to secure the candi-
dates’ positions in both elec-
tions.
Junior Representative, Erik
Penn, was not surprised at the
closeness of the election.
“People do not always vote
for the best interests of their
constituents and they are not
as informed as they should be,
nor do they take the initiative,”
Penn said.
Even though Jovanovic re-
ceived applause from the ma-
jority of the MSG body, several
body members were displeased
with the outcome.
Members stated at the meeting
that the vote was biased since
Jovanovic already held a position
on the executive board.
In defense of the position, Jo-
vanovic stated he had created a
six-page document of his future
ideas and plans as PR coordina-
tor for anyone with questions or
concerns.
He thanked all those who
voted for him and assured those
who did not that he “…will
prove them wrong.”
The final series of the night’s
A three-course meal, snacks
and cake will all be offered,
Waldin said.
Beef tenderloin, Boursin
chicken and grouper along with
roasted red potatoes, vegetables
and ice cream Florentine will be
available.
Senior Christine Mersch at-
tended the event last year.
“Last year it was so suc-
cessful,” said Mersch. “I had
so much fun with all of my
friends and the people I went
with.”
A DJ will be at the event and
senior HRIM, business and
elections was between junior
representative Zachary Pekor
and for mer MSG secretary
sophomore Jacquelynne Brown
for MSG events coordinator.
Coovert said after a four-hour
board meeting on Sunday eve-
ning, they came to a tie decision
between the two candidates
and agreed to hand over the
final decision to the members
of MSG.
Each candidate was notified
of the board’s decision and asked
to present a short speech at the
MSG meeting stating their previ-
ous accomplishments, positions
and future plans if elected.
Before voting, Sanchez mo-
tioned to discuss the candidates.
Each candidate was allowed four
points or comments given by
body members.
Twenty-six secret ballots were
cast with the absence of Pekor.
While in the process of count-
ing the ballots, the executive
board members left the Student
Union Chamber room for a five-
minute recess.
Only the executive board
members have the capability and
communications awards will
be given out throughout the
night.
“Last year was great getting
to go and help out as a junior,”
senior Matt Ferris said. “I am so
excited to be going with all of
my friends this year before we
graduate.”
Waldin said she recommends
students buy their tickets sooner
rather than later.
Thursday, April 17 is the last
day to purchase tickets to the
event.
Tickets are being sold in the
business school from 11 a.m.
April 16, 2008
privilege to count the ballots,
Penn said.
Brown won the majority vote
of 15 with Pekor receiving 11
votes.
Consequently, a variety of
emotions permeated the room
from candidates and body mem-
bers.
Sophomore representative,
Celeste Shefferly, said she wish-
es those elected would display
themselves in a better light.
“I wish that the people run-
ning for the leadership positions
would have held themselves bet-
ter, shown better integrity and
better character than what they
did,” she said.
Penn expressed concern.
“The lack of organization
of the meeting along with the
tension among members on an
executive and board level are
already beginning to shake the
foundation of the new consti-
tution (and) raising questions
of people’s competences and
motivations,” he said.
“This is turning people against
those that they once might have
called friends.”
– 2 p.m. for $30.
They can also be purchased in
Preston 308 until 4 p.m.
“I am really looking forward
to this year and the new place
that they are having the formal,”
Mersch said.
This year’s event will be held
at the Kahkwa Club in Fairview
from 6:30-11:30 p.m.
Transportation to and from
the event will be provided and
is mandatory.
Seniors can catch the bus
at the gates in front of Old
Main at 5:45 p.m., 5:55 p.m.
and 6 p.m.
 April 16, 2008
’Hurst students help stop hate
By Tim Hucko
Staff writer
This year over 30 students
took their stand against the
hatred that plagues college cam-
puses nationwide.
Wednesday, students and fac-
ulty gathered for the unveiling of
the winners of the third annual
‘Stop the Hate Poster Contest’.
The poster contest is intended
to creatively convey a mes-
sage of tolerance and commu-
nity through an original artistic
medium.
Cash prizes of $500, $200 and
$100, respectively, are awarded
to the top three winners of the
contest.
In front of a large crowd in the
Great Room of the Herrmann
Student Union, Erie Mayor
Joseph Sinnott extended his
gratitude toward students who
were willing to take a stand and
make a difference.
“Work like this gets the
message out to educate young
people,” Sinnott said.
Mercyhurst College President
Dr. Thomas Gamble spoke
words of praise to students who
were involved in the campus-
wide campaign against hostility.
Mercyhurst finalizes blue light system
By Ashley Pastor
Staff writer
Mercyhurst College Student
Government (MSG) has part-
nered with the administration to
pass the proposal for the instal-
lation of an emergency towers
pilot program.
The emergency towers, often
referred to as a “blue light sys-
tem,” consists of poles strategi-
cally located around campus in
order for students or visitors
The eager crowd waited
for the announcement of the
winners.
Almost every seat was filled
with contestants, faculty and
students who rallied behind a
valiant cause.
Even students who had not
entered work in this year’s con-
test gathered to hear the top
three announced.
“I believe the students here
at Mercyhurst are all very sup-
portive and respectful of each
other, but that does not always
mean there will not be anger
and aggression in some circum-
stances,” senior Allison McCaslin
said. “These posters are a great
way to spread the word and at
least reduce hostilities, so I am
just excited to see which ones
win.”
Stop the Hate Contest orga-
nizer and Assistant Director
of Residence Life and Student
Conduct Dara Zirkle said this
was another incredible year for
the Stop the Hate Campaign.
“This has been the best year
yet, because of so many sub-
missions,” she said. “I hope
everybody had the opportunity
to walk around and look at all
the fantastic work.”
First-place winners Brittany
of the campus to use if they
feel they are in danger or need
emergency assistance.
“The recommendation has
been sent to Dr. Billingsley for
final approval,” Mercyhurst Col-
lege Director of Safety Rodger
Gregorich said. “He as indicated
to me that the proposal will likely
be approved for the installation
of wired and wireless towers
over this summer.”
As the plan nears finalization,
many factors have been taken
into account.
NEWS
Jeffords and Megan Rasmussen,
sophomores, said they were very
pleased with the outcome and
check for $500.
“We had originally started
working on this poster as a
competition with some friends
just for the fun of it, but once
we really sat down to think, we
realized the true atrocities and
horrific acts that people must
face every day,” Jeffords said.
“We just kept things simple
because the message needs to be
clear-cut and strong.”
Rasmussen said she agreed.
She said she was equally pleased
with taking first, not because of
the money, but the change they
are helping to make.
Second place winners, junior
Mixa Jovanovic and senior Kelly
Cofrancisco, said they were
pleased with their joint work,
which aimed to pull at the deep-
est emotions of the heart.
“I had approached Kelly for
this project because of her
superior graphic design skills and
artistic touch for things,” Jova-
novic said. “I really support this
program and the message...”
Equally pleased with their
accomplishment, Cofrancisco
said she felt her skill could best
be utilized for good and promot-
The placement of the towers
has remained in debate with
ResLife, Police and Safety and
the administration making sug-
gestions, since the resurrection
of the tower proposal began.
The locations are to be further
assessed and narrowed down
with input from all parties, in
order to be able to install five to
eight towers.
A campus map with the ideal
locations provided by Police and
Safety indicated their suggestions
for eight possible tower locations
Sophomores Brittany Jeffords and Megan Rasmussen
received first place for their poster and check for $500.
ing a better environment.
“Last year’s poster was brighter
and more colorful, but we real-
ized that hate isn’t always pretty
and is sometimes masked with
darkness and fear, which inspired
our design for this years work,”
she said.
Jovanovic said they moved
from “idealistic to realistic.”
Senior Mitchell Phillis took
third place and a $100 prize for his
vivid and powerful submission.
and 46 cameras, ranking by level
of need.
Six of the eight emergency
tower locations are on the east
side of campus, spanning Wayne
Street buildings to Briggs Avenue
buildings. The two other loca-
tions are by the Mercyhurst Ath-
letic Center and Garvey Park.
The wired tower locations will
depend on a ground-source of
electricity which also will remain
a factor.
However, some of the towers
will feature a wireless capability
PAGE 7
Scoot Williams photo
“I was aiming for first place
this year, because last year I had
taken second and wanted to see
if I could outdo myself,” Phillis
said. “Last year’s submission was
more spontaneous and jumbled
together than this one. When-
ever I had a good idea I wrote it
down and worked with it until I
tweaked everything just the way
I wanted it.”
Posters are currently on dis-
play in the Student Union.
,which means they will be pow-
ered via solar panels.
These wireless towers are
green compliant, working with
the school to achieve ener-
gy efficiency to the best of
its abilities.
The maintenance department
has recently been asked to install
the towers.
If maintenance can install the
them, this would cut the overall
cost and allow for the school
to possibly acquire and install
more towers.
PAGE 8
Guitar Hero
hits new level
By Chris Newmarker
Accociated Press
Wave the baton too slowly
and the orchestra arrayed on
the screen plays the “William
Tell Overture” at a crawl. Wave
it too fast and the music gal-
lops away.
But would-be Leonard Ber-
nsteins who wave the remote
control correctly as they try
out “UBS Virtual Maestro” can
experience a small part of what
it’s like to be a conductor.
“There’s an educational com-
ponent to it. But it’s also a lot
of fun. We think it’s sort of
like the orchestra version of
‘Guitar Hero,’ the video game,”
said Peter Dillon, who handles
corporate sponsorships in the
United States for Swiss banking
giant UBS.
Two “UBS Virtual Maestro”
exhibits have been appearing
in concert-hall lobbies across
the country since November
Need to boost your
resume?
The Merciad is looking for a
Features editor for
2008-2009.
If interested, e-mail
mgeditormerciad@
mercyhurst.edu
as part of a project created by
UBS, which often sponsors
classical music events and or-
ganizations, to increase interest
in classical music.
A similar game called “You’re
the Conductor,” also created by
Nakra, opened in a permanent
exhibit at the Children’s Mu-
seum of Boston in 2003.
The games are intended to
mimic the feel of conducting a
real orchestra, Nakra said.
“That’s the way classical mu-
sic creates a sense of emotion.
In the ebb and flow of the beat
there’s a real flow of emotion,”
she said.
The experience the conduc-
tor games offer is less complex
than that of “Guitar Hero” and
“Rock Band,” in which players
using simplified versions of dif-
ferent instruments earn points
by correctly playing popular
songs.
For now, the game can be
played only at concert halls on
its tour itinerary.
FEATURES
With gas prices rising, traveling students must decide the most affordable way to get home.
Rising travel prices
burden students
By Stacey Minchin
Staff writer
Living out of state can pose
problems for students who are
not from the Erie area.
Not only is it a pain for them to
move all of their belongings in to
campus housing at the beginning
of every fall term, but leaving
campus at the end of the year
creates a challenge, as well.
For those of us who live a nice
car ride away, we may underesti-
mate the simplicity of packing up
our lives every year and driving
away in May.
But what would you do if you
had to fly home?
Obviously for those students
living out of the country, they
have to pick and choose the most
important belongings to take
with them when they come and
leave school.
When flying home, you can
only pack so much into one suit-
case before you have reached the
maximum capacity.
It is easy to take a few cars or
even a couple of trips back and
forth if you are not traveling
that far.
Junior Dinorah Sanchez is
from Baytown, Texas, and sees
the difficulty in trying to fly home
for the summer.
“Due to my lack of a vehicle,
my only option is to fly home,
and I would consider driving
to be cheaper, but as a result of
the rising gas prices, flying is be-
coming a better venue,” Sanchez
said. “I would assume students
would be affected by the closure
of airlines’ planes, especially
more economic options such as
April 16, 2008
asapblogs.typepad.com
Southwest.”
With the costs of taking a
flight to and from hometowns,
and with the rising gas prices,
will students be more likely to
fly or drive?
“On average for me to fly
home, a roundtrip ticket costs me
$300 to $350,” Sanchez said.
Obviously for trips such as
traveling to California, the choice
is clear, unless you want to spend
your entire summer driving
across the country.
And for those who are for-
tunate enough to live in the
Cleveland or Pittsburgh areas, I
think we all know for what they
will opt for.
But, for the rest of us, I guess
we will simply have to watch the
gas prices and hope that if it be-
comes too expensive, airlines will
have something better to offer.
 April 16, 2008 FEATURES PAGE 9

How to work and not hate your job

By Jen Gildea
Features editor
The alarm goes off and you
instantly feel the dread of the
workday coming over you.
As people long in the work-
force tend to say, there’s nothing
worse than hating your job.
Forty or more years of lousy
work is surely one way to bring
down a person’s joy.
More and more studies are
showing that many people, in
fact, hate their jobs.
So for those of us preparing
to graduate college and enter the
real world, it is important to find
a job that you really enjoy.
While the necessity of working
to support oneself is critical, the
other element of actually liking
and taking pride in one’s work
is equally important for both
longevity and mental health
reasons.
Experts say that stress is one
major cause of many health-
related problems for both men
and women.
Frustration and boredom in a
career can also pose a problem
for an employee.
A new book titled “How to Be
Useful” is geared toward provid-
ing advice on getting out of a
work rut and boosting moods
of workers everywhere.
Some tips offered in the book
include the following:
C o n s i d e r yo u r s e l f s e l f -
employed.
Although most people report
to a higher authority, it is empow-
ering to remember that you
essentially work for yourself.
The work you do is what keeps
you afloat. Work toward your
goals and try not to fret about
unnecessary workroom drama.
Play dress up. Dress for the
job that you want, not the job
that you have.
Ta k i n g p r i d e i n t h e i r
appearances actually makes
people work more efficiently,
reduces procrastination and
gives a mental “boost” to the
self-esteem.
Although there are no doubt
plenty of jobs in the world
that no one would care to take,
having a positive attitude about salesandmarketing.com
whatever you do is far better than
NBC’s “The Office” is a good example of employee strife.
falling into a slump.

a text book Toyota FJ Cr

uiser

You do n’t need

t i t u t e
to tell you su b s
i s N O
e
ther quality.
for llege grad
, Toyota Yaris
a re c e n t co
As le for Toyota Camry
g ib

OFF
b e e li
you may

$
4 0 0 any n e w To y o t
addition to
a of your
o t h e r
c
in
h
c
o
e

Se e your
ic e* in

ntives.
ealer for
Toyota d
details.

*NOT ALL CUSTOMERS WILL QUALIFY. CUSTOMERS RECEIVE $400 FROM TOYOTA TOWARDS LEASING OR FINANCING THE PURCHASE OF NEW UNTITLED TOYOTA MODELS THROUGH PARTICIPATING TOYOTA
DEALERS AND TOYOTA FINANCIAL SERVICES. SEE DEALER OR VISIT WWW.TOYOTAFINANCIAL.COM/FINANCE FOR DETAILS. COLLEGE GRADUATE PROGRAM IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE OR TERMINATION AT ANY TIME.
PAGE 10 FEATURES April 16, 2008

THE LAKER
Spring Term
Dinner:
S-Laker Burger
Galley Grill M- Steak Salad
T- Open Face Turkey Sandwich
Lunch: W-Slice Of Pizza, 5 Wings
M-Ham and Cheese on Th- Swedish Meatballs w/ Noodles
Croissant F- Chicken and Biscuits
T- Soft Tacos S - Cup of Chili w/ Cheese, Side of dialaphone.co.uk
W- Potato Bowl Nacho Chips Amazon.com now allows users to make purchases via text.
Th- Turkey Reuben
F- Sizzle Salad
S- Southwest Burger Hours of Operation:
Monday-Friday 8:00 a.m.-1:00 a.m.
Going shopping?
Board Specials
Lunch $4.75
Dinner $5.50
Saturday
Sunday
1:00 p.m.-1:00 a.m.
5:00 p.m.-1:00 a.m.
Try text messaging
through the checkout procedure
By Shannon Kelley
and payment methods.
Staff writer
The entire process ends with
Look for New Menu Items! a confirmation which is sent
Mac & Cheese Bites Black Bean Burger A new ser vice offered by through text message.
New Salads: Amazon.com lets shoppers pur- One important aspect of this
Chicken BLT-Veggie(no cheese)-Spinach-Asian Chicken- chase items by text messages on service is that users already have
Greek-Caesar cell phones. to be a member to Amazon.
The phone phenomenon that com, and possess a login ID and
is text messaging has become password.

Subconnection Special Features

cross-generational as well as a
common way of communicat-
This service has many stu-
dents thinking that this may be
Wrap combo-Veggie $5.59 ing, so big business saw an the beginning of a new way of
6” Sub $3.75 Combo $4.75 opportunity. shopping.
other wraps $5.79
12”Sub $5.75 Combo $6.75 Senior Cassandra Meier says Senior Ashley Flores believes
‘Wrap It Yourself’- Veggie $3.99 that texting has become a major it is exciting.
other wraps $ 4.19 part of communication with “Texting is something so many
Baja and Buffalo Chicken Subs: people. people do now,” she said. “It
6” Sub $4.00 Combo $5.25 “I probably text a lot more seems like this could be a really
12” Sub $6.00 Combo $ 7.00
Hours of Operation: than I talk on my phone,” Meier cool thing.”
Monday-Friday 11:30 a.m.-9:00 p.m. said. “It’s easier, quicker and to One may wonder if this new
the point.” service will catch on with other
Saturday 1:00 p.m.-9:00 p.m. According to the article, Ama- businesses.
Sunday 5:00 p.m.-9:00 p.m. zon’s new program, TextBuyIt, Although Amazon.com is
launched last week. paving the form, if this new way
It allows people to text the of shopping catches on then the
Laker Express Look for Laker Express
name of a product, its descrip-
tion or its ISBN to a specific
old may be forgotten.
If they want a product, they
Board Equivalency Available: number. may only have to text in order
Minute Meals! If Amazon can match the to get it.
11:30 a.m.-8:00 p.m. items, you receive a text back “It would be cool if other
Hours of Operation: and can select the product by stores started having it too,”
Board Specials responding in yet another text senior Kristin Drake said.
Mon.-Thurs. 11:30 a.m.-8:00 p.m.
Lunch $4.75 message. There are sure to be a lot of
Friday 11:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. The service asks users to enter nuts and bolts to work out, but
Dinner $5.50 Saturday & Sunday Closed their e-mail address and zip code, the innovative idea has consum-
then calls users and walks them ers excited for the new service.
April 16, 2008
Student models show fashion inspirations from the Spice Girls.
Music icons ‘Rock the Catwalk’
By Sandy Watro
Staff writer
Lights, camera, action.
Last week, the Mercyhurst Col-
lege fashion merchandising club
put on its fashion show, Rock the
Catwalk, which proved to be an
entertaining delight for viewers
of all ages.
The show featured musical
icons that inspired fashion over
the past 50 years.
The styles of clothing selected
Assist students at Helpdesk or in Student Residence halls with PC/Network problems
Apply by printing, completing and returning the form located at
http://lakernet.mercyhurst.edu/attach/restechapplication.pdf
FEATURES PAGE 11
Contributed photo Contributed photo
Freshman Justin Bukowski rocks out to Aerosmith.
for the show were mostly vintage, Gwen Stefani to tie together pant ensemble. were modeled, one including a
although there were modern clas- the theme of the show, saying, Judging by the crowd’s roaring bright yellow feather boa and
sics peppered throughout the “music and fashion all come applause, the Spice Girls were spotted white fur coat.
attire. from the same place of creativ- a popular iconic group in the Reggae artist Marley elicited
Juniors Caroline Boyce, Carly ity. show. the spirit and clothing trends of
Emery and Francesca Stubber The show started off with a Inspiration was drawn from the ’60s, complete with lots of
teamed up to run the show. few Madonna inspired looks. all five members of the noted tie-dye attire.
In the opening commentary, One of her past ’80s-inspired British pop group. Student models also channeled
Emery and Boyce delivered a looks that was featured in the Male models sported equally one noted teen heartthrob boy
speech informing the audience show included her notorious entertaining looks that ranged band of the past: the Backstreet
of the purpose of the show, pink tulle skirt paired with long from Elton John to Bob Marley Boys.
which benefited the Erie Wom- black gloves. to Snoop Dogg. A few select models wore
en’s Shelter. Another model demonstrated Elton John’s looks were another pristine, all-white garments and
Emery eloquently quoted a more modern version of the crowd pleaser. even performed to audience
anoted fashion and music icon icon by donning a white suit and Two of his signature styles members.
Emery made a final comment
on the production at the end of
the show.
Mercyhurst IT Department “The overall outcome of the
Resident Technician (ResTech) position show was awesome,” she said.
“The models did an excellent
Start Fall 2008 job by projecting enthusiasm
and excitement. It seemed like
$2000 stipend the audience picked up on this
energy and really enjoyed the
performance.”
Overall, the venture raised
over $350 for the Erie Women’s
Shelter.
Boyce agreed on the success
of the show.
Or call x3301 for more information “We raised quite a bit of money
for a great organization,” she
Return the form to: Helpdesk, PRESTON 15 said. “We are so happy that we
could have such a great time
putting together a fundraiser for
Application deadline: April 25, 2008 such a good cause.”
PAGE 12
I Food Fix
ERI
Blast from the past
By Shelley Turk
Staff writer
A tradition of Erie summers
are the warm beaches and park
trails of Presque Isle.
Now that the weather is warm-
ing up students, teachers, fellow
Erie natives and their families are
flooding the picturesque site.
The entrance of the park is
home to Sara’s and Sally’s Res-
taurants.
Opened since 1980, Sara’s and
has been serving up seasonal
favorites in a retro, 1950s diner
setting.
Owner and operator Sean
Candela said Sara’s prides itself
on “good food, reasonable prices
and a fun atmosphere.”
Get to know...
Erin Manganello
Sara’s is located at the entrance to Presque Isle State Park.
Favorites at the diner include
homemade onion rings starting
at $2.49, Smiths hotdogs, and
orange vanilla twist sherbet.
Sara’s offers cones, milkshakes
and sundaes to cool you down
after a hot day in Erie.
If you’re looking to energize
yourself with a quick meal before
hitting the beach, stop in and
dress your hotdog or burger with
the great fixings like homemade
chili plus a side of fries.
Sally’s Diner, adjacent to Sara’s,
is only open for overflow seating,
but has the same ambience and
charm.
Mercyhurst juniors Haylie Sta-
rin and Heather Schwager enjoy
dining at Sara’s.
“Sara’s is a great place to go
after playing sand volleyball at
Name: Erin Manganello
Year: Senior
Major: Graphic Design
Hometown: Buffalo, N.Y.
Favorite thing about Mercyhurst:
Springfest and Calamari’s Squid Row
Least favorite thing: When they send
a minivan instead of a bus at 2 a.m. on a
Saturday morning
FEATURES
Contributed photo
the beach,” Starin said. “I love
the food and the milkshakes are
amazing.”
Schwager agreed.
“Sara’s is one of my favorite
restaurants in Erie,” she said.
“It’s a nice place to eat while
relaxing outside with my friends
after spending the day at Presque
Isle.”
Be sure to look forward to
the new outdoor ordering sec-
tion with screened-in pop and
condiments.
This will give patrons four dif-
ferent ways of ordering: inside,
outside, at the ice cream screen
and the drive-thru window.
Sara’s is open seven days a week
from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. and after
Memorial Day from 10:30 a.m.
to 10 p.m.
April 16, 2008
With Meg
The weather is changing and
that means the season for picnics
with friends is right around the
Here is a recipe for a crowd
pleaser that is easy to make, as
well as very tasty.
corner. There are many versions of
There are many opportunities macaroni salad that can be made,
for friends to get together and but this one is outstanding.
share a fun time, whether it is It feeds a lot of people and
at Presque Isle or at the pavil- goes great with all those other
ions located between Lewis and favorite picnic foods, including
Briggs Avenues. hamburgers, hot dogs, grilled
The best way to hold a picnic chicken, potato salad and fruit
is to have potluck-style eating salad.
where everyone brings some-
thing to share with the group. -Meghan Dolney
Macaroni Salad
Ingredients
1 package macaroni, uncooked
8 hard-boiled eggs, sliced
1 medium onion, chopped
10 oz. relish
1 tablespoon yellow mustard
1 cup mayonnaise
Salt & pepper, to taste
Paprika, to taste
Directions
1.) Cook the macaroni according to the
directions on the package and drain.
2.) In a large bowl mix the cooled
pasta, eggs, onion and the relish together
until they are distributed evenly.
3.) Then mix in the mustard and may-
onnaise until everything is evenly coated.
Finally, season with salt, pepper and pa-
prika depending on your tastes.
 April 16, 2008
tHe Neva Dinova: ‘You May Already Be Dreaming’
BuZz
APRIL 18. Musical.
“Spring Awakening.”
Center for the Arts, Uni-
versity of Buffalo, Buf-
falo.
APRIL 18. Billy Joel. Mel-
lon Arena, Pittsburgh.
APRIL 19. Joe Jackson.
Carnegie Library Mu-
sic Hall of Homestead,
Munhall, Pa.
APRIL 19. Bamboozle
Roadshow with Saves the
Day, Armor for Sleep,
more. House of Blues,
Cleveland.
Courtesy of Goerie.com
Nun transforms to brave martyr in ‘Dialogues of the Carmelites’
By Sarah Mastrocola
Staff writer
Students will perform Fran-
cis Poulenc’s opera “Dialogues
of the Carmelites” at the Mary
D’Angelo Performing Arts
Center.
Poulenc’s opera is based on
the true story of Carmelite
nuns who were sentenced to
die by the guillotine for refus-
ing to stop wearing their habits
and meeting in groups during
the anti-Catholic movement
of the French Revolution. The
only surviving Carmelite nun,
who was away in Paris while the
others were martyred, narrates
the events within a memoir.
“Dialogue of the Carmelites”
specifically follows the develop-
ment of one nun, Blanche de la
Force, as she makes a spiritual
journey and transforms from
a frightened woman to a brave
martyr.
Lucille Jonason, chair of the
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Already Be Dreaming.”
By Greg Summy
The third studio album from
Staff writer
the band is their best work yet.
The album has something for
“Juno,” the Academy Award everyone, without being a radio-
nominated film, is best known friendly, let’s-just-get-paid type
for being full of witty, sarcastic album.
one-liners to bring a brighter side Do you like Johnny Cash’s
to teenage pregnancy. deep voice and somber melo-
The movie is also known in dies? If so, then the first track
the music community for hav- of “Dreaming” is sure to be in
ing a very eclectic mix of indie your favorite songs play-list on
and punk rock artists gracing its iTunes.
soundtrack. “Love From Below” is a
Let us just imagine for a min- stripped-down acoustic track
ute, what soundtrack would with powerful, yet dismal vocals
sound like had “Juno” not been and lyrics.
so humorous and upbeat. As you “Clouds,” the third track of 14
could probably imagine, it would on the album, has a blues-rock
sound rather depressing. feel that fans of anyone from
Neva Dinova, natives of Oma- Pink Floyd to Stevie Ray Vaughn,
ha, Neb., would no doubt have a would enjoy. Thick guitar tones
few tracks on thesoundtrack. and vocals full of reverb are
For proof, just take a listen to reminiscent of mellow rock in
their newest release, “You May the 1970s.
Mercyhurst Music Department not an amateur art form,” Jona-
and director for the opera, son said.
said she had a few reasons for Jonason invited four alumni
choosing this opera. Jonason to mentor the students for the
saw “Dialogues of the Carmel- production of the opera. These
ites” in performance many years students will appear in one of
ago and was struck by its power, the performances.
especially the stunning ending Because Mercyhurst’s opera
in which the nuns sing “Salve program allows the singers to
Regina” as they head to the guil- gain experience in perform-
lotine and the stream of voices ing full-length operas with an
slowly diminishes as the nuns orchestra, many of the Music
are beheaded. Department’s past students
Jonason dedicated the perfor- have had great success at the
mance to Sister Helen Jean Sulli- graduate level and in their pro-
van, who has run the D’Angelo fessional careers.
Conservatory of music for “We’re proud of our program
many years and performed because it has had such good
“Dialogues” while a student at results, and it’s really nice to
the New England Conserva- have alumni here to mentor the
tory. In addition, this opera was current students,” Jonason said.
a good choice because she had One of the great challenges
more female than male voices of putting on an opera with stu-
to work with, and “Dialogues dents was coordinating sched-
of the Carmelites” has a pre- ules for rehearsal.
dominantly female cast with 18 “I have not yet been able
women and eight men. to get all 16 nuns together for
This production required a rehearsal, because between
much work because “opera is night classes, RA duties and
“What You Want” delivers
a similar sound to Led Zep-
pelin, The Who, and other rock
legends.
The new album was released
on April 8, marking its fourth
disc the band has written. Pre-
vious discs include “The Hate
Yourself Change” (SideCho
2005), “S/T” (Crank! 2001), and
a split EP with indie icons Bright
Eyes entitled “One Jug of Wine,
Two Vessels.”
At first listen, the album may
seem like a depressing look into
the soul of a troubled man.
However, further exploration
of the lyrics and music within the
album reveals a message of hope
in a lost world.
Take nothing at face value on
this album; it is not what it seems
on the surface.
Your subconscious will no
doubt fight with itself to unravel
everything else, everyone is just
so busy,” explained Jonason.
“I just hope to have them all
together opening night,” she
said jokingly.
Jonason explained that
because opera incorporates all
the arts, setting such a work can
be a tedious process. The chore-
ography is especially significant
for “Dialogues of the Carmel-
ites” because the nuns often
appear as metaphorical figures
depicting memories or thoughts
and their formations delineate
much of the symbolism.
“I am thankful to be able to
teach in an academic institu-
tion that supports the arts. In so
many cases, artists are forced to
go out into the world in search
of a venue in which to create, so
it is nice to be able to do it here
at home,” Jonason said.
Rachel Myers, who will sing
the role of Blanche in the opera,
said of the experience, “The
inspiring nature of the actual
story of the Carmelite nuns
PAGE 13
the meaning of every line, every
melody and harmony.
Though a simple, no-frills
sound is what Neva Dinova
achieves on this record, the same
is not true for the lyrics.
One listen to this album is not
enough to grasp the complexity
and depth of what can be re-
ferred to as ‘poetry and music.’
The band is currently on tour
supporting the new album with
co-headliners Ladyhawk through
the rest of April, all of May and
into June.
The tour mainly hits the Mid-
west, New England, and the
south, with a few stops on the
west coast. If you are a fan of
relaxing, artistic indie rock, Neva
Dinova will be your new favorite
band. Be sure to head over to
myspace.com/nevadinova to
sample a few tracks off the new
album.
and the challenge of learning a
‘through’ composed score are
what made doing this show so
extraordinarily rewarding. I am
really honored to play a role in
Dialogues.”
“The ‘Dialogues of the Car-
melites’ opera is a beautiful
production of elegance, history,
bravery, and above all, emotion.
It has been an exquisite edu-
cational experience for us all,
with the opportunity to learn
from our professional peers,”
Jacqueline Edford siad. She
will appear as Mother Marie.
“The opera’s form is a bit of a
rarity, which is why I believe it
to be exceedingly powerful. The
performance all together will
pull tremendously on the heart
strings, especially with the stun-
ningly eerie ending.”
Performances will takes place
Friday, April 18 and Saturday,
April 19 at 8 p.m. and Sunday,
April 20 at 2 p.m. Tickets may
be purchased by calling the box
office at (814) 824-3000.
PAGE 14 ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT April 16, 2008

Graphic design students receive awards

Contributed photo

Alumni Andy Lapiska won Best in Show, two gold awards

and one silver award at the 38th annual Addy Awards.

Jamnesty
Stop Violence Against Women
Contributed photo

Juniors Mike Temple, Nick Marcellino and Jenna Matson, along with senior John Wayner,
senior accounting and AdPro treasurer Katherine Juarez, advertising/marketing and AdPro
Secretary Esther Claros and alumna Megan Sauer celebrated at the pre-award cocktail party
with professional artists and other students.

her card ensemble “The Pink
By Nicole Cerilli
Ladies.” It is available for pur-
A&E editor
chase from AdPro. Please see
Jodi Hopper if interested.
his card ensemble “Men are
Pigs,” which is also available
through AdPro.
Michael Temple (’09) won for

The Erie Ad Club and
American Advertising Federa-
tion Design Awards have been
announced.
Graphic design students had
another stellar year in 2007.
They garnered five golds, two
silvers, one bronze and Best
in Show for works created in
2007.
The 38th Annual Erie Ad
Club and American Advertising
Federation Awards were held
Friday, April 4.
Gold winners:
Jenna Matson (’08) won for
Andrew Lapiska (’07) won
for the Vegetative Best Manage-
ment Practices, A manual for
Bluff Management written by
Marlene Cross, Infographics by
Jodi Staniunas Hopper.
Matthew Seifert (’08) won for
the 2007 Lumen Poetry Chap-
book Print Design. Client is the
Mercyhurst English Depart-
ment and includes selections
from music, dance and art. The
Interactive CD won a Bronze
for Andrew Kochirka (’07).
Silver:
Mitchell Phillis(’08) won for
April
his art department promotional
brochure titled “Insert_your- Amnesty International
self.” Benefit Concert
Best of Show: outdoors in the grotto
Andrew Lapiska (’07) won rain location in the recreation center
for the Vegetative Best Manage-
ment Practices, A manual for
18th 7-11pm 19th 1-7:30pm
Pandemic Matty B and the Dirty Pickles
Bluff Management written my
Marlene Cross, Infographics by
Pegasus Unicorn Shake It!
Jodi Staniunas Hopper Gypsy Dave & The Stumpjumpers The Jungle
In addition, the Mercyhurst Kathy Fidorra
College Marketing and Public +more
Relations department swept $4 or more requested donation
multiple awards, including Best
of Show for the Interactive Vir-
tual Tour.
Free Food Saturday myspace.com/jamnesty2008
 April 16, 2008
Editors respond to ad suspension
501 (c) (3) status not compromised by political ads
[Editor’s note: The Merciad in no
way supports any political candidate
and tries to represent all sides in a fair
way. The Merciad has not received
any advertisements from any Repub-
lican candidates or they, too, would be
placed in the newspaper. The Merciad
does not accept free advertisements,
nor does the newspaper solicit for
political advertisements. We attempt,
in every way, to give an unbiased view
of political issues and any other issues
that arise in the Mercyhurst College
community.]
William Randolph Hearst
said of the Spanish-American
War, “You furnish the pictures,
I’ll furnish the war.” Mercyhurst
College administrators certainly
created a battle of advertise-
ments that was a mole hill and
became a mountain.
The Merciad first ran a paid
political advertisement for
this presidential campaign in
its March 19 issue. The ad, an
Obama for America “Change
the World/Register to Vote,”
struck a chord with Erie Dio-
cese’s Bishop Donald Traut-
man.
Unbeknownst to the Merciad
staff, this advertisement was
going against a set of rules pre-
viously set forth by Trautman
in a two-page document about
policies for Catholic publica-
tions.
The Merciad said in its previ-
ous editorial on March 26 that it
did not feel compelled to follow
this policy, explaining that the
college is not under the direct
authority of the bishop.
A week later, Mercyhurst
President Dr. Thomas Gamble
suspended political ads until an
advertising policy was in place
for the Merciad.
The committee regarding the
issue of political advertisements
met twice in the past two weeks.
Editor-in-chief Joshua Wilwohl,
next year’s editor-in-chief Casey
Greene and advisor Lenore
Skomal of the Merciad are on
the committee. Mercyhurst Vice
President for Student life Dr.
Gerry Tobin, Assistant Vice
President for Academic Affairs
Meredith Schultz and Director
of Marketing Sheila Coon also
sit on the committee. College
chaplain Fr. James Piszker and
Vice President for Academic
Affairs Dr. Barbara Behan were
also appointed to committee
but were unable to make the
meetings. English professor Jeff
Roessner and Wilwohl made
only one meeting.
The committee developed a
preliminary policy Monday with
the suggestions of members in
the group.
The Merciad was then
informed by e-mail on Tuesday
that the paid political adver-
tisement suspension was still
enforced. This meant to the
Merciad staff that it would not
be able to run a three-column
“Obama for America” adver-
tisement or a subsequent Erie
Congressional Democratic
candidate advertisement in this
week’s newspaper. Both had
been submitted last week and
were slated to run on April 16.
The newspaper was informed
in the same e-mail by Tobin that
the administration of the col-
lege is concerned about its 501
(c) (3) status.
The 501 (c) (3) status is for
non-profit organizations that are
exempt from federal income tax
of which Mercyhurst falls under.
The e-mail stated, “…501 (c)
(3) (non-profit organization)
status and the premise that if you
accept some ads from some can-
didates, you may have to accept
ads from all candidates.”
Concerned with the fact that
OPINION
this could interfere with the Mer-
ciad’s overall mission of allowing
free speech to extend to politics,
the Merciad contacted the Stu-
dent Press Law Center in Arling-
ton, Va., Tuesday.
The Student Press Law Center
works as an advocate for student
press rights and provides legal
advice to high school and college
students.
First Amendment legal spe-
cialists from that organization
said a college’s 501 (c) (3) status
is in no way affected by running
political ads.
Adam Goldstein, an attorney
advocate for the Student Press
Law Center, wrote in an e-mail
to the Merciad that Mercyhurst’s
501 (c) (3) status would not be
compromised if the newspaper
would run a political ad.
“An institution is no more
responsible for the political con-
tent of a student newspaper than
it is the performance of the foot-
ball team. As long as the team is
playing football, the school has
fulfilled its educational goals,”
states the e-mail. “Similarly, as
long as the newspaper is printed,
there is no threat to the tax-
exempt status of the school.”
Goldstein further explained
the newspaper can choose to run
some ads and choose not to run
others without affecting the 501
(c) (3) status.
The Internal Revenue Service
backs up Goldstein’s statements.
IRS Ruling 72-513 states the
college cannot lose its 501 (c)
(3) status. “The publication and
dissemination of the editorial
statements in question are acts
and expressions of opinion by
students occurring in the course
of bona fide participation in
academic programs and aca-
demic-related functions of the
educational institution,” states
the two-page document.
PAGE 15
“In such circumstances, the
fact that the university furnishes
physical facilities and faculty
advisors in connection with the
operation of the student news-
paper does not make the expres-
sion of political views by the
students in the publishing of the
newspaper the acts of the uni- The Merciad
versity within the intendment of
section 501 (c) (3).” is interested
Tobin said the main concern
of the administration is not in hearing
angering the bishop, but abiding
by the suspension set forth by students,
Gamble.
The Merciad is supposed to be faculty,
an open forum of expression for
students to voice their opinions. professors,
That is a student-run newspa-
per’s mission. It is not supposed community
to take a flaccid, non-opinion-
ated, non-controversial, lie-down and all
approach to the news and views
of interest to the students. That readers’
is not our newspaper’s mission.
The committee convened to opinions on
decide on an advertising policy
has the facts. The excuse of the topic
501 (c) (3) is debunked. Mercy-
hurst will not lose its status, and of ad
it can run some ads and not run
others. suspension.
The facts are legally clear. That
is, unless there’s another agenda.
Joshua Wilwohl, editor-in-
chief
Casey Greene, managing
Please e-mail
editor your thoughts
Merissa Frank, opinion
editor to
Noelle Lelakus, copy editor
Brittany Jackett, sports
opinionmerciad@
editor mercyhurst.edu
Amanda Valauri, news
editor
Jen Gildea, features editor
Scoot Williams, photogra-
pher
Leslie Ruchala, advertising
manager
Chris Davis, sports editor
 PAGE 16
Like-minded people, groups evident on campus The Good,
By Ellen
Koenig
Staff writer
This past week, as I was
people-watching, I made an
observation about students’
changing behavior throughout
college.
In the time spent at college
you become more accustomed
to recognizing situations and
personalities.
You can tell the differences
between the athletic teams just
as you can tell what personalities
may belong to certain majors.
While not always evident on
the surface, there are socially-
conscience people at this school
and not only the kind from the
Looks only go so far, then comes personality
By Michelle
LaSlavic
Staff writer
As I was on the elliptical today,
I was pondering the subject of
superficiality and relationships.
Although I would never deny
that one should be physically
attracted to the person they are
dating, that should never be the
main factor for staying with
someone.
Over the years, I have expe-
Roommates Wanted
Off-campus housing available, 8 blocks
from campus.
Rooms in 4-bedroom house,
All utilities included (Gas, electric,
water, garbage, cable, Internet and
phone.)
$500 all inclusive w\ $300 deposit.
Contact Beth 814-806-3227.
outspoken, and sometimes bla-
tant, conservative or neo-liberal
camps. While these may be the
voices that are most vocal there
is a more subtle and moderate
crowd, who believe that actions
speak louder than words.
We tend to recognize one
another from attendance at ben-
efits, PAC films, ad hoc dinners
and general socializing. One of
the largest characteristics that
have become apparent through
such people are their beliefs in
causes or their goals for aspira-
tion.
Part of the college experience
is growing into consciousness
as an adult. The college years
of your life are the best time to
grow. To the student who may
feel discouraged because they
rienced relationships and have
seen friends be in relationships
that start because of a physical
attraction.
After hanging out a few times,
a number of things can happen;
both people genuinely like each
other, physically and because of
the other’s personality, so they
keep talking, the two stop seeing
each other because their per-
sonalities don’t mesh together
or they keep talking simply
because of the physical attrac-
tion, regardless of whether or
OPINION
are surrounded by what seem
like alcoholics and business
majors, not that the two are syn-
onymous. There is a great pop-
ulation of independent-minded
and socially-aware people.
This population is not always
as loud or as populous. Going
beyond the Mercyhurst commu-
nity, it can be extended to Erie
as well. Erie has a great inde-
pendent art and music scene
that you actually have to dig to
find.
I have been fortunate enough
during my time in Erie to come
in contact with different groups
and find comfort in our similari-
ties as well as our differences.
I must say throughout your
time here at the college, find
something that you enjoy and
not they actually like the other’s
personality.
While at first the attractive-
ness of the other person may
blind one to the reality that the
relationship has no depth or
meaning, eventually the lack of a
genuine connection on a deeper
level will cause one of the two
to stray due to boredom.
I feel that whenever a rela-
tionship has too much emphasis
on looks, the factors that lead to
loyalty and a feeling of commit-
ment to one another never have
the chance to develop.
Although the person may still
make you feel as though you
have a fifth-grade crush, this
relationship is more lustful than
loving.
If you are only with a person
because of how they look, you
might not really care about what
Copy editor needed
for 2008-09
merciad.mercyhurst.edu
put your full energy into that
task. The best days are the ones
where your mind is racing with a
to-do list or the nights you sleep
fully uninterrupted from pure
exhaustion of an excessively full
day. A day wasted is an entire
24 hours that you will never see
again.
While this all sounds incred-
ibly cliché, I realize it is impor-
tant to recognize that seizing the
day speaks true to the character
of a person.
The work within the class-
room is not always as essential as
the work you do outside of the
classrooms and lecture halls.
So while some people may
not advance past the maturity
of a 12-year-old, I have hope
for the general population.
they are doing or how they feel.
Also, I feel that when a person
is too into looks, they are likely
to become obsessive or allow
the other person to get away
with way more than they should
and end up being taken advan-
tage of because the person
knows they can get away with
practically anything.
This situation will result in
an un-fulfilling relationship on
either side; one person is being
walked all over and the other is
dating someone about whom
they don’t genuinely care.
As I mentioned earlier, I
think that it’s important to be
attracted to the person you are
with, but once you realize that
there is nothing more, looks
are only going to get you so far
before you realize it’s time to
move on.
April 16, 2008
the Bad &
the Ugly
The Good
The sun will come out
tomorrow. Perhaps the
flurry this weekend was the
last for Erie.
The Federal Communca-
tions Commission will be
implementing a national
cell phone emergency alert
system by 2010.
The Bad
Spring has sprung and
along with it has come the
aromatic mulch that fills
campus and our tuition
dollars hard at work plant-
ing flowers.
Subway’s $5 footlong
special is winding down,
so get those subs while
they last.
The Ugly
Gas prices are on the
rise again, perhaps soon to
breach $3.50 per gallon.
If you haven’t secured a
housing situation for next
year, it’s crunch time: Find
roommates and a place
to live.
Mariah Carey has sur-
passes Elvis in No.1 singles
and is second only to the
Beatles.
Please e-mail any suggetions to
opinionmerciad@mercyhurst.edu.
The GB&U is a compilation of
student opinions.
April 16, 2008 OPINION PAGE 17

Profit ultimate justification for exploiting Earth, individuals

By Jerrod
Markle
Staff writer
Disheartened and disen-
chanted I began to survey
topics for this article, unin-
spired by lies in the news, wary
of responses to last week and
ambivalent toward reflection, I
have decided to divulge some
personal experience that is me
being and becoming.
Life gets harder to swallow
while operating under the lens
that the very forces of greed,
egotism and nihilism seem to
guide not only our corporate
process, but politics and social
ways as well. As I went through
the tags on my plethora of
clothing articles, I knew my guilt
in serving these, what I would
consider, evil forces was justi-
fied. Clothing ourselves both
past and present has been a
simple task, yet now at the costs
of child labor or exploitation
we all are granted the façade of
choice when shopping for such
apparel.
I refuse to point the finger
at any of the corporations or
these guiding forces because the
blame and responsibility remains
on the individual as per usual.
Sleeping for the majority of my
life, I can only apologize for, or
work against, supporting exploi-
tation in the business world. I
guess wanting more in terms of
material possessions has led me
to the crossroads of awareness
in which I am face to face with
children who sewed my 100th
shirt only so that they could
afford to feed themselves.
Sickness sets in with such a
realization and questions arise
as to why a company would jus-
tify such labor? Apparently in
this day and age, profit seems to
be the ultimate justification for
not only exploiting the earth,
other nation’s resources, but
also individuals’ lives that are no
less divine than mine or yours.
The drama of real life has
officially far exceeded any enter-
tainment provided by Rock of
Love or Keeping up with the
Kardashians. Personal choices
stretching from what we eat to
what we wear cross over to the
lens in which we view the world.
Seeing America as a beacon of
hope and love juxtaposed with
the America that spreads dis-
trust and corruption, makes
me appreciate the choices I can
make support the ways of love
even in the face Babylonian
forces suppressing the truth.
Obviously I am as far from
perfect and just as to blame as
my neighbor since perpetual
seeking for ownership over a
myriad of material wealth has
guided much of progress in life.
However, I do believe the more
consciousness and awareness
expands the clearer choices will
become and responsibility can
be restored to the individual.
Each choice that we make can
lead us toward and guide us in
the ways of love, humility and
respect, away from the fear,
arrogance and impertinence
that I would argue dictates our
current progress.
So until the days when the
choices made in love trump
those made in fear, everywhere
is war with the ground we walk
on as the playing field and the
clothes we wear as our uniforms.
Watch the Canadian Documen-
tary: The Corporation.

5 years later war is Operation Iraqi Freedom not Vietnam

By Bill
Swafford
Staff writer
As the United States passes its
fifth year in combat with Iraq,
the approval ratings of the war
sit at an estimated 39 percent.
It indicates that the American
government’s decision to invade
Iraq was based on several flawed
analyses of the threat posed by
Saddam Hussein.
It was quickly inherent that
a linear battle was not one that
would be fought in the coming
months after the invasion. The
stand-up of several large insur-
gent groups gave way to an
intense asymmetrical fight for
the American forces.
The years to come would
prove to the American forces
that guerilla warfare would again
be their weakness.
The push of education, cul-
tural awareness and the multi-
role of today’s officer corps have
allowed commanders to become
a vital role to the stability in the
region. With time, the coalition
forces realized that it was imper-
ative for members of the com-
munity to be a part of forward
progress.
The projected costs of the war
are near a trillion U.S. dollars, U.S.
deaths at 4,036 precious lives,
large Iraq causalities and long
deployments of our soldiers.
Where, as a country, must we
draw the line between our stabil-
ity and the stability of Iraq? If
we stay, we risk more casualties
and strain on the U.S. economy
and well-being.
War is truly a statement of
failed diplomacy, although an
element that humanity will deal
with for eternity. The truth of
is that we have made a commit-
ment to not only Iraq but to the
world that we will bring stability
and security to the region.
Iraq, like other soil we have
fought on, will become another
nation that will rely on American
soldiers to protect and defend it.
This can bring larger instabil-
ity and a breeding ground for
Islamic terrorist groups.
Although Americans are
swayed by their political affilia-
tions and biases, we must stand
together and united to make this
a success. Citizens must become
informed on the present and the
future of Iraq and not become
bogged down by past mistakes.
Success is attainable, how-
ever it is not possible without
the support of the American
citzens. Hundreds of thousands
of American service members
have made grave sacrifices for
this war and wish not to see their
work fail them. This war is not
Vietnam; it is Operation Iraqi
Freedom. We must win or risk
HELP FOR ALL
MATH NEEDS!
MATH LAB
Located in the
Library
304 A & B
Open
Sunday-Thursday
Call Ext: 207A for
exact hours.
even larger losses. John Stewart is more important than his own
Mill states it best when he said, personal safety, is a miserable
“War is an ugly thing, but not creature and has no chance of
the ugliest of things. The person being free unless made and kept
who has nothing for which he is so by the exertions of better men
willing to fight, nothing which than himself.”
Roommates Wanted
3928 Lake Pleasant
3-bedroom house
2 bedrooms open June 1, for a 12-month
lease
All appliances, including washer, dryer,
dishwasher.
New furnace, windows, central air
Male Intel student in house now
Rent: $350/month plus 1/3 utilities
Call Jon
Days: 899-7602 x 314
Cell: 881-2087
 PAGE 18 OPINION April 16, 2008

This I believe: Teaching is a chance to make a difference Take a Facebook

Mercyhurst’s Ethical Reflection Committee has initiated this series to encourage reflection within the entire college community on the values by which we live. We break.
hope that these will inspire reflective discussion in a variety of venues.
We suggest that faculty introduce appropriate essays into class discussion; we encourage students to bring these thoughts to cl asses; we invite administrators and
staff to explore these in department meetings. Or, if you wish, you may respond directly to our committee chair, Rev. Lyta Seddig: lseddig@mercyhurst.edu. Catch up on
The ERC also requests that you let us know how you have used these thoughts in your life on this campus.
“This I Believe” is now linked to the college website. All essays can be found at http://www.mercyhurst.edu/ne/special-events/believe_essays. news that isn’t
Rob Englert, a 2006 Graduate of Mercyhurst College, has been a history teacher at Harborcreek High School for the past 2 years. He teaches 9th grade
history at Harborcreek and is the Assistant coach for the Varsity and JV Women’s Volleyball team at McDowell High School. While attending Mercyhurst
featured on your
he was the Chair of the Student Activities Council 2005-2006, Programmer for the Student Activities Council 2004 – 2005, Ambassador 2003 – 2006, Mini-Feed.
Writing Center Tutor 2003 – 2006, on the Mercyhurst College NCAA II Wrestling Team 2002-2004 and a member of Kappa Delta Pi 2004 – 2006. He
also participated in Habitat for Humanity 2004 – 2005 and volunteered at the Booker T. Washington Center. He was inducted into the Service Honor Society
during his Senior year. See photos that
times to hold onto the floating fact that a student has just failed is right and not what is easy.
say more than
By Rob Englert
Contributing writer
lane divider, but the crowd of a third test in a row or that Hopefully that makes me a “I’m with stupid.”
campers never stopped cheer- homework has again not been better educator and a better
ing. Steve never stopped tread- handed in. It takes a lot of time person. In my world, doing
Steve was an athlete, but he ing water. Joey finished the race and effort to find out why a pat- what is right instead of what
was more than that, he was a exhausted, but smiling. tern like that occurs and how to is easy can mean the difference
competitor. He loved to win, Everyone crowded around fix it. between a student graduating
merciad.
and he usually did. He talked all him and held him up. No one Sometimes I do just ignore and dropping out of school. mercyhurst.edu
summer of breaking the camp else noticed as Steve slowly the problem, but I hope that Getting the chance to make
record in the 50-meter free- pulled himself from the water. more often than not I do what that difference is why I teach.
style at the annual swim meet. That crowd could have been
I watched him swim everyday cheering for him and his new
during pool time, and I knew record, but Steve had made a
that he would probably accom- decision in the few seconds
plish his goal. before the race began.
He stepped up onto the block This would be Joey’s moment.
with every intention of breaking It would have been easy for
the record, and then I watched Steve to win the race, but it took
as Joey, one of the smallest courage to make such an unself-
campers in camp that summer, ish decision and sacrifice his Joshua Wilwohl Editor-in-Chief editormerciad@mercyhurst.edu
slipped into the pool in the lane personal goal. Casey Greene Managing Editor editormerciad@mercyhurst.edu
next to him. I believe that very often in life Amy Zielinski & Amanda Valauri News Editors newsmerciad@mercyhurst.edu
As the race started, all of the I, like Steve, am faced with the Jen Gildea Features Editor featuremerciad@mercyhurst.edu
swimmers dove into the water, very difficult decision of doing Merissa Frank Opinion Editor opinionmerciad@mercyhurst.edu
all except Joey. Joey was too what is easy or doing what is Chris Davis & Brittany Jackett Sports Editors sportsmerciad@mercyhurst.edu
scared to even jump into the right. Nicole Cerilli A&E entertainmentmerciad@mercyhurst.edu
deep end, so he started in the One summer as I was watch- Scoot Williams Photographer photomerciad@mercyhurst.edu
water and pushed off the wall. ing a camp swim meet, I Tiffany Cook Production Editor prodmerciad@mercyhurst.edu
What happened next turned watched a 12-year-old boy make Leslie Ruchala Advertising Manager admerciad@mercyhurst.edu
a predictable race into the most a decision that most grown men Noelle Lelakus Copy Editor copymerciad@mercyhurst.edu
memorable moment of the would not have the courage to Ashley Pastor General Assignment apasto22@mercyhurst.edu
summer. Steve dove into the make. He gave up something Lenore Skomal Advisor lskomal@mercyhurst.edu
water with the other swimmers, that he desperately wanted and
but instead of speeding to the gave Joey a lifelong memory.
opposite wall, he pulled up and As a high school teacher, I The Merciad is the student-produced newspaper of Mercyhurst College. It is
began treading water alongside am faced with difficult decisions published throughout the school year, with the exception of finals week. Our
Joey. on a daily basis. Sometimes it is office is in Hirt, Room 120B. Our telephone number is (814) 824-2376.
The crowd of cheering camp- easy to get frustrated and give
ers tried to will him to start up. Sometimes the apathy of The Merciad welcomes letters to the editor. All letters must be signed and
swimming, but Steve had made many high school students is names will be included with the letters. Although we will not edit the letters for
his decision. He too was cheer- enough to discourage even the content, we reserve the right to trim letters to fit. Letters are due the Thursday
ing—for Joey. It took Joey a most positive and optimistic before publication and may not be longer than 300 words.
long time to swim that short educator.
Submit letters to box PH 485.
race. He had to stop several Often it is easy to ignore the
April 16, 2008
Immelman keeps Tiger in the woods
By Kyle Craig
Staff writer
One of the greatest arenas in
all of sports, Augusta National,
measures 7,445 feet with a par
72. It has seen the greatest
of golfers tremble away leads
heading into its last few holes.
It looked as though once more,
the Augusta faithful would
slowly take away strokes from
Trevor Immelman giving the
Green Jacket to the nearest
competitor.
In the end however,
Immelman closed out the day
with a (+3) and a three-stroke
win over second-place Tiger
Woods.
Immelman started the
tournament next to long time
idle Gary Player, the only other
Men’s golf ties for ninth
By Kirk Campbell
Staff writer
For the second straight week
the Mercyhurst men’s golf team
found themselves in familiar
territory, as they tied for ninth
at the Outback Steakhouse
Invitational hosted by the
University of Findlay on Friday
and Saturday.
The Lakers top scorer was
senior Steven Barr, who shot
a two-round total of 158. Barr
score was good enough for 40th
place.
Following Barr by a single
stroke was senior Kyle Waddell,
with rounds of 79 and 80.
Mercyhurst’s top scorer from
last week, junior Tyler Bidwell,
finished tied for 54th with rounds
of 80 and 82.
Senior Ben Deets showed
the biggest improvement from
round one to two as he shot
an 88 on day one and 81 on
Trevor Immelman received his green jacket on Sunday.
South African golfer to ever win
the Masters. However it looked
as though Brent Snedeker was
going to steal Immelman’s
thunder. It was Immelman’s
destiny to win the final time
that Player would ever step
onto Augusta National.
day two.
However three other Lakers
competed unattached at the
event.
Junior Derek Fisher shot an 83
on day one and 87 on day two
while senior Ryan McNulty shot
a two-round total of 162. Junior
Matt Mahoney had rounds of 88
and 80.
Mercyhurst totaled 644 strokes,
which tied Northwestern (Ohio)
for ninth place. Wayne State
placed first with a total of 600
strokes.
“I think most of our team
needs to work on confidence
and consistency,” Bidwell said
about how the team can lower
its score.
“We all have the ability to
shoot low scores, but I think
sometimes our mental game may
get in the way on the course,”
he said.
The Lakers return to action
Thursday at the St. Vincent’s
Invitational in Latrobe, Pa.
SPORTS
Contributed photo
Walking through the final
two holes, Immelman was
surrounded with the sound of
boos from the crowd. Once
again golf proved that the
underdog is unwelcome, as
Tiger Woods continue to hear
cheers with every shot taken.
Club hockey looking to future
By Kerry O’Connor
Contributing writer
In the first ever American
Collegiate Hockey Association
(ACHA) Division I All-Star
game, Mercyhurst senior Matt
Warren was honored as the
second star of the game, after
scoring for the Blue team.
His team would end up
falling short to the White team
with a score of 5-4.
Warren was the only player
from the current Mercyhurst
roster asked to participate at the
Penn State University event.
Other players returning to
next year’s line up were honored
at the end of the season with
Eastern Collegiate Hockey
League (ECHL) division
awards.
Returning sophomores
Kenny Hunt and Ben O’Dell
received second team All-Star
awards at the conclusion of the
“I didn’t feel happy with
my game. I felt like I had to
just basically start from zero
again,” Immelman said to the
Associated Press. “I started
chipping away at a few things,
and I was missing cuts but just
trying to stay positive because
I knew I was improving week
after week. Here I am after
missing the cut last week,
Masters Champion. It’s the
craziest thing I’ve ever heard
of.”
Tiger Woods is learning quick
just how fast the media can twist
words after he stated earlier in
the week that a Grand Slam was
“easily within reason.”
“I learned my lesson there
with the press,” Woods said
in a conversation with the
Associated Press.
Woods finished the
2007-2008 season playoffs.
Freshman Steve Stepanian
was named to the All- Rookie
team after completing his first
year with the Division I Club
team.
All players possess great work
ethics, which will be helpful at
the start of next year’s hockey
season.
Looking ahead to next year,
the men’s club team strives
to improve against division
leaders the Robert Morris
University (RMU) Colonials
and the Niagara University
Purple Eagles.
Last season the Lakers
finished just five points behind
RMU’s team in the ECHL
division standings.
To date, Niagara University
has recruited nine players. The
depth added to their roster
means the Lakers will need to
actively sign more players to
their line up.
In addition, Robert Morris
PAGE 19
tournament just five under par
and three shots off the lead
in second place. It looked as
though Woods was going to
finish the day much deeper in
the field, perhaps not even in
the top 10. Consistent putting
and hazard saves allowed Tiger
to sneak into second after
Snedeker, Sink and Flesch all
finished in the positives on
Sunday.
Despite all of the boos
Immelman finished on top
winning the much coveted
Green Jacket. Immelman will
look to add the U.S. Open
Championship to his belt
starting in June.
Woods will look to add to his
13 major championships as the
U.S. Open will take place at the
Hazeltine National Golf Club
in Chaska, Minn.
University has six players inked
for the start of the 2008-2009
season.
These two teams are heavily
involved with recruiting.
Mercyhurst is also active in
bringing in junior-caliber
players that can help the team
achieve playoff success.
Currently coach Tom
McKinnon is looking for players
who can make an immediate
impact on the roster.
Looking ahead to next year,
McKinnon commented on the
upcoming season.
“Signing the eight to 10
pending recruits is vital for the
achievement the Lakers hope
for next season”, McKinnon
said
The Mercyhurst Lakers are a
part of the ECHL, a subset of
the ACHA. Syracuse University,
SUNY Canton, University of
Buffalo and the University
of Rochester are also in the
division.
 PAGE 20
’Hurst rowing off to fast start
By Anne Sobol
Staff writer
The Mercyhurst College men’s
and women’s rowing teams sure
left their mark in Camden, N.J.
during the Knecht Cup Regatta
this past weekend.
Saturday’s races led three
‘Hurst crews to the finals on
Sunday; a solid start to the
season after only two weeks of
water time and a home race that
was foiled by poor conditions.
On Saturday the lightweight
men’s four cruised into first
place with a time of 6:50.1 for
the top spot of 17 boats, beating
second-place Fairfield by nine
seconds in their heat.
The men’s varsity four also
finished strong with a time
of 7:08.3, beaten only by
Philadelphia’s boat that clocked
in at 6:56.9.
The Mercyhurst women’s club
eight fought hard and took the
first place honor in their heat as
well at 7:14.7, just three seconds
ahead of the Philadelphia crew.
Volleyball sees improvement during season
By Samantha Sellinger
Staff writer
With its recent loss to No.
9 Ohio State, the Mercyhurst
College’s men’s volleyball regular
season is over and the men start
play in the MIVA tournament
this weekend.
Mercyhurst finished the
season with a record of 5-
19 overall, and 1-11 in their
conference. The team will enter
the tournament seeded No. 6.
The Lakers have never beaten
the Buckeyes and were defeated
3-0 by the powerful team last
Saturday.
The men’s varsity eight and
women’s club four also competed
on Saturday, earning fifth and
fourth places, respectively. The
top two finishers from each heat
continued to the finals.
Sunday began bright and early
at 7 a.m., but the Laker crews
only improved from the day
before. The lightweight men’s
four kept their favored position
and won the final at 6:53.5,
edging out Fairfield by over five
seconds. Entering the race as an
underdog, the men’s varsity four
dropped nine seconds from the
day before to win Sunday’s final
with a fierce 6:59 flat.
With no preliminary on
Saturday, the men’s lightweight
eight raced a straight final
Sunday and finished with a solid
second place.
As the only women’s crew to
compete on Sunday, the club
eight dropped nearly 10 seconds
to 7:05.0 from their first heat to
take a respectable third-place
finish in the final. The Lakers
biggest competitor, Dowling
College, took only 6:52.7 down
“Ohio State is a hot team
right now and they were able
to get us out-of-system pretty
regularly,” said coach Ryan
Patton.
“Once that happens, it’s going
to be trouble against a physical
team like [OSU].”
Mercyhurst struggled against
the Buckeyes from the beginning
and were never able to gain any
real advantage, losing 30-18, 30-
24 and 30-24.
In game three the Lakers
missed their best chance to pick
up a win when they battled back
from an 18-12 deficit to close
within two points at 22-20.
But as Mercyhurst still trailed
SPORTS
The Mercyhurst College men’s and women’s rowing teams sent three crews to the finals
on Sunday at the Knect Cup Regatta in New Jersey.
the course, but the women hope
to thwart Dowling’s chances
of an NCAA bid in future
competition.
Sophomore Alicia Peterson
considers the women’s team a
“big contender for the eastern
region.”
She continued to say that
“Every girl is willing to do
by three points, 27-24, Ohio
State made three more kills to
win the game and the match.
Juniors Jeff Hartman, Bryan
Ritter and Tim Wagner each
ended the match with five kills
to tie for the team high, while
junior David Hatten added 25
assists. Ritter and junior Jordan
Pierson had four digs each.
Although the team did not
have the number of wins this
season that they would have
liked, the players showed
definite improvement playing
as a team.
“We are beginning to
understand what it takes to win
the matches we should win and
whatever is necessary to get
faster. Philadelphia is another
team we’re up against this year,
and we race them again in two
weeks.
“The women’s eight is already
a threat to Philadelphia, whose
coach expressed concern about
how much faster our women
will be when they face each
what it may take to get a win
against some of the top teams
in the conference,” sophomore
Pete Swauger said.
As the team continues
maturing and learning from each
game, they expect to earn some
of those wins next season.
The Lakers will not lose any
players due to graduation this
year so everything the men
learned can and will be used
utilized next season.
Mercyhurst showed its
improvement in their record as
well, boasting three more wins
than last year.
“We’ve won more than last
year and we had three early
April 16, 2008
Danielle Ohman photo
other again,” Peterson said.
Both teams have their work
cut out for them, but the mood
is as optimistic as ever.
The women will host Eastern
Michigan at home on Findlay
Lake on Saturday, but the men
have off until both teams travel
to Athens, Ohio for the MACRA
Regatta on Saturday, May 3.
losses (Rutgers, NYU and
Medaille) that had we played
them later [in the season] we’d
have tripled or quadrupled
our win total from last year,”
Patton said.
The team feels confident
going into its first round game
this weekend against Lewis and
hopes for a positive outcome.
“There isn’t one player on
the court or one component of
their game that is better than
Ohio State, so I hope that we
can go in real aggressive and,
having essentially warmed
up against Ohio State, good
things can happen [for us],”
Patton said.
 April 16, 2008
Softball sweeps LSS,
falls to Slippery Rock
By Rhonda Marable
Staff writer
As the Mercyhurst women
softball team finished the
seventh week of its season in
style, splitting two games against
Gannon last Wednesday and
sweeping both Lake Superior
State games on Sunday.
The Lakers dropped game
one to Gannon, 5-0, but fired
back in game two to grab a 4-3
win.
Against Lake Superior State,
the women dominated game one
with a strong 9-4 performance,
and kept up the momentum
with another 4-3 victory.
Gannon’s Golden Knights
rendered the Lakers scoreless in
the first game, sealing the Lakers
fate by scoring all five of runs in
the fifth inning.
The Lakers did not wait long
in game two to score their four
runs with a strong first inning.
Sophomore Amber Rapose
singled up the middle to score
senior Erin Ratajczak and
freshman Kara Gorgos.
Junior Danielle Zubek
followed shortly after with a
double to left field, scoring
Rapose and sophomore Megan
Houston.
Although Gannon answered
back at the top of the second
with two runs of their own,
the Lakers held the Knights to
just one more run with a saving
finish by junior pitcher Brittany
Strier.
Sunday the Lakers faced off
against Lake Superior State and
opened with heavy bats.
Lakers senior captain Jessica
McNurlen and sophomore
Houston dominated at bat with
homers good for three runs in
the third to put the Lakers up
4-0.
Both teams traded runs for
the remainder of the game,
but Mercyhurst came out on
top thanks to another homer
from McNurlen and three
RBI’s courtesy of Gorgos and
Houston.
In game two, Lake Superior
State struck first with a run in
the first inning, but the Lakers
came back with three runs in
the fourth, taking the lead and
running with it.
While Lake Superior scored
runs in the fifth and sixth
innings, the Lakers held their
lead and increased it with a run
in the fifth.
Winning the second game
sagainst Gannon ended the
Lakers four game losing
streak and with the successful
completion of the weekend, the
Lakers now enjoy a three-game
high.
Coach Headley and the team
will look to use the momentum
and energy from these victories
to get them through this busy
week.
On Tuesday, the Lakers
hosted Slippery Rock on the
Penn State Behrend softball
field where they were swept in a
doubleheader.
In game one, SRU defeated
the Lakers 6-1 after scoring
three runs in the first three
innings, which carried them to
victory.
Freshman Michelle Schmitz
drove in the only Laker run
during game one.
In game two, SRU scored first
and never relinquish the lead
getting the win 4-1.
The Lakers start off hosting
Notre Dame of Ohio on
Wednesday at 3 and 5 p.m.
Mercyhurst caps off the
weekend with conference
games against Hillsdale
College and Wayne State
University at 1 p.m. and
3 p.m. both days.
SPORTS
Freshman Craig Denman slides safely into home during the tenth inning to score the game-
winning run against Gannon last week.
Baseball wins three games
By Brad Moehringer
Staff writer
The Mercyhurst College
baseball team renewed its cross-
town rivalry with Gannon
this week as they split a two-
game series on Wednesday
March 23.
In game one, the Lakers got
on the board first as junior
Jamie Walczak singled home
senior co-captian Dan Bertolini
to give the Lakers an early 1-0
lead.
Gannon struck right back in
the bottom of the first tying the
score at one.
Mercyhurst scored two in
the top of the fourth and one
in the top of the seventh with
Bertolini, sophomore Adam
Schlessel and junior Joseph
Furner whom picked up the
RBI’s.
After nine innings the score
was tied up at four a piece and
would require extra innings.
In the top of the tenth
Mercyhurst picked up the game-
winning run after a double by
sophomore Greg Turk scored
freshman Craig Denman.
Junior Ryan Schreiber came
in to pick up the save and to seal
the win for the Lakers.
In game two the Lakers did
not do as well and would be
shut out as Greg Radwan went
the distance for the Golden
Knights to pick up the win.
Junior John Mang took the
loss for the Lakers.
Mercyhurst then traveled
to Hillsdale, Michigan to take
on another GLIAC opponent,
Hillsdale College.
Weather would move the
weekend series to Sunday and
Monday.
On Sunday, the Lakers took
game one of the doubleheader
winning 4-2 with senior Wes
Craig picking up his fourth win
of the season.
Senior Joe Luli set the tone
for the Lakers driving in two of
the four runs. In game two on
Sunday, red shirt sophomore
Steve Grife took the hill for
Mercyhurst but was out dueled
by Hillsdale starter Scott
Monterastelli.
Hillsdale picked up the split
of the doubleheader winning
2-0.
On Monday, the Lakers
dropped game one falling 6-2
despite a 3-for-4 effort from
PAGE 21
Scoot Williams photo
Walczak, and two singles and a
run scored for Turk.
Senior Eric Drobotij took the
loss, his third of the season.
Game two would saw a solid
pitching effort from Mang who
threw six scoreless innings
allowing one hit and striking out
one and picking up the win.
Mang commented on the
team’s injuries and its effect on
GLIAC play.
“In sports you have to deal
with adversity, and in order to
reach our goals for the season its
going to take a total team effort
to get wins against the always
challenging GLIAC teams,”
Mang said.
The Laker’s offense found
their rhythm with Bertolini and
Luli each going three for four.
Bertolini had three RBI’s and
two runs scored and Luli had
two doubles and two RBI’s
leading the Lakers to an 8-1
victory.
Mercyhurst now stands with
an overall record of 16-18 and
5-13 in the GLIAC.
The Lakers take on Ashland
University at home in a
crucial GLIAC doubleheader
Wednesday with the first pitch
slated for 1 p.m.
 PAGE 22 SPORTS April 16, 2008

Laker Sports ‘Quick Hits’

Last week’s results...
Women’s lacrosse rolls to 10th win
Baseball........................................................................Apr. 9, W 5-4 (10), Gannon By Samantha Sellinger
Apr. 9, L 1-0, Gannon Staff writer
Apr. 13, W 4-2, Hillsdale
Apr. 13, L 2-0, Hillsdale
Apr. 14, L 6-2, Hillsdale The No. 7 Mercyhurst Col-
Apr. 14, W 8-1, Hillsdale lege women’s lacrosse team
Softball...................................................................................Apr. 9, L 5-0, Gannon
Apr. 9, W 4-3, Gannon
picked up two more wins this
Apr. 13, W 9-4, Lake Superior State past weekend, raising its season
Apr. 13, W 4-3, Lake Superior State record to 10-2.
Apr. 15, L 6-1, Slippery Rock They defeated St. Andrews
Apr. 15, L 4-1, Slippery Rock
Men’s lacrosse...............................................................Apr. 9, W 13-5, Seton Hill
15-7 and Shippensburg 17-5
Apr. 12, W 8-1, C.W. Post at home for seven consecutive
Women’s lacrosse...................................................Apr. 12, W 15-7, St. Andrews wins this season and the school
Apr. 13, W 17-5, Shippensburg record.
Men’s tennis.....................................................Apr. 13, L 8-1, Grand Valley State
Men’s volleyball..............................................................Apr. 12, L 3-0, Ohio State
Scoring got off to a slow
start against St. Andrews but
LaShomb/Horeth athletes of the week with 24:47 minutes left in the
first half a free-position goal
Junior men’s lacrosse goalie Jason LaShomb had a career-high 17 saves in from the Lakers’ junior Kris-
helping the Lakers upset No. 4 C.W. Post 8-1 on Saturday. He also made four
saves in a 13-5 victory over Seton Hill last Wednesday.
ten Toomey put points on the
Junior women’s lacrosse player Jessie Horeth played with a broken finger board.
against Shippensburg 17-5 on Sunday, but still managed to score four goals About four minutes later, the
as No. 7 Mercyhurst rolled to victory. The day before, Horeth had a goal and
assist in helping the Lakers defeat St. Andrews 15-7.
Knights tied up the game but
did not gain any advantage, as
Men’s lacrosse named team of the week Mercyhurst opened up a 6-0
run to raise the score 7-1.
The men’s lacrosse team have won four straight games after defeating Seton
Hill 13-5 on Wednesday and No. 4 C.W. Post 8-1 on Saturday. With both oppo-
In the first half, junior Page Sports Information photo
nents the Lakers had to battle back from early deficits in getting the victo- Christensen made two goals. Junior Beth O’Neil scoops up a ground ball during the
ries. During Saturday’s game junior Matt Spahr and the Mercyhurst defense Senior Courtney Olevnik and Laker’s 15-7 win over St. Andrews on Saturday.
shut down C.W. Post’s top offensive scorer from getting on the scoreboard. freshman Elizabeth Tice and
Spahr was named East Coast Conference (ECC) Co-Player of the Week, while
junior Jason Lashomb was named (ECC) Goalkeeper of the Week.
Maria Rosettie each added one. Horeth opened up the scor- three goals in 20 consecutive
Junior Breanna Haggerty ing just two minutes into the games and has scored at least
Men’s lacrosse moves up to No. 7 after defeating C.W. Post made two goals including one game off of an assist from one goal in 37 straight and 39-
with just one second on the freshman midfielder Kimberly of-41 games for her career.
Rank Team 1st Place Votes Record Points Last Week
1 Le Moyne (9) 9- 0- 0 99 1
clock, which gave the Lakers an Masterton. Haggerty added Besides them, Olevnik
2 NYIT (1) 9- 0- 0 91 2 8-3 lead at the break. her first goal of the day with added two goals to the score
3 Limestone 10- 0- 0 80 3 In the second half the Lakers 18:07 left in the first half. and Masterton added one as
4 Dowling 9- 1- 0 70 5 made seven goals, with five Then the Lakers exploded well. Toomey, Tice and junior
5 C. W. Post 8- 3- 0 51 4
6 Bryant 9- 3- 0 46 6
from Haggerty. Toomey scored into a 7-1 run, making the score Elizabeth Wagner each made
7 Mercyhurst 6- 3- 0 33 10 one of those goals and junior 9-3 at the half. one goal a piece.
8 Adelphi 5- 4- 0 29 7 Jessie Horeth made the other In the second half, Mercy- With just three games left
with five minutes left in the hurst continued to outscore the to be played this season, the
Women’s lacrosse now in two-way tie at No. 7 game. Raiders. Lakers look to make the season
No Team 1st Place Votes Record Points Mercyhurst’s defense played Haggerty and Horeth opened even more successful.
1 C.W. Post 7 9- 0- 0 96 a strong game, keeping the up the scoring in the second 30 “The team is definitely
2 Limestone 3 10- 1- 0 91 Knights’ leading scorer from minutes of play with back-to- excited for the last three games
3 Adelphi 7- 0- 0 79
4 West Chester 7- 1- 0 72
making even one. back goals before the Lakers and we are confident we will
5 Lock Haven 7- 2- 0 54 Against Shippensburg, the shutout Shippensburg in the win out the season,” Olevnik
6 Stonehill 7- 1- 0 44 Lakers dominated early and remaining minutes of play and said.
7 Gannon 6- 2- 0 34 never backed down. put up an additional five goals “We all want to make it to
7 Mercyhurst 8- 2- 0 34
9 New Haven 8- 2- 0 19
“Being our second game for the win. the national tournament, so we
10 S. New Hampshire 6- 5- 0 9 in two days our legs were a Haggerty and Horeth both know how much is riding on
little heavy, so our control of played great games, combining these last few games.”
LaShomb named DII Nike/Inside Lacrosse Player of the Week the game was crucial,” said for nine of Mercyhurst’s goals Their chance to pick up
Olevnik, the team captain. overall and together scored the another win will come this Sat-
Men’s lacrosse junior goalkeeper Jason LaShomb was named Division
II Nike/Inside Lacrosse Player of the Week. LaShomb, a preseason All-
“We kept a quick pace, but first six goals of the game. urday when they play Blooms-
American, was named East Coast Conference Goalkeeper of the Week. also kept it under our control.” Haggerty has scored at least burg at home.
April 16, 2008
Men’s lax knocks off No. 4 Post
By Chris Davis
Sports editor
To ring the Sister Damien Bell
in Garvey Park is a memorable
tradition and honor for any
Mercyhurst College Athletic
Team, which occurs on the Erie
campus only after an impressive
or thrilling win.
The No. 10 Mercyhurst men’s
lacrosse team led by head coach
Chris Ryan rang that bell after
pulling off a spectacular upset
with a near-perfect defensive
effort in defeating No. 4 C.W.
Post 9-1 on Saturday at Tullio
Field in East Coast Conference
(ECC) play. Mercyhurst picked
up a come from behind win on
Wednesday over Seton Hill 13-5,
as the Lakers held the Griffins
scoreless during the entire
second half of the contest.
“Ninety percent of the credit
goes toward the players and the
other 10 percent goes toward
(assistant) Coach (Brenden)
Burke, who came up with a
great defensive scheme to shut
down Post’s offense,” Ryan said
during the Lakers’ tailgate put
on by numerous amounts of the
players’ parents.
Mercyhurst keeps its run alive
for a conference championship
with the win, improving to 6-3
on the season, (3-1 ECC). C.W.
Post dropped to 8-3 on the
season and 1-2 (ECC).
“We tried to keep doing the
same thing (throughout the
game) and shut off (Greg) Cerar
(who came into the contest
ranked third in the nation in
scoring and fourth in points)
and I think we were the first
team to shut him (Cerar) off
with a long pole,” said Burke.
“When he did get the ball
(junior) Matt Spahr did a great
job on him, taking away his
strong left hand...We doubled
hard and held him to only two
shots on the day and (junior net
Senior captain Scott Sullivan looks to score a goal against Seton Hill last Wednesday, April
9. Sullivan scored the game-winning goal on Saturday as the Lakers defeated No. 4 C.W.
Post 8-1.
minder) Jason LaShomb made
some very good saves...Good
players don’t always have the
best of days and luckily Cerar
didn’t show up on us.”
“It started from our goalie
and our leader Jason LaShomb
making big saves, 17 (total),”
Burke said. “Six on six we played
excellent...(the defense) did a
great job taking the body and
being physical for 60 minutes.”
Many of the career-high 17
saves made by LaShomb came
from point blank range.
“The game plan really put
us in a position to succeed and
our defense played hard and
executed the game plan and
thats really what we did,” said
junior Mike Thon, who played
a crucial role in the Lakers’
offensive and face-off success.
SPORTS
“I would give all the credit
to the (defense); they played
well and they locked off when
they had to lock off and Jay was
making saves all day,” senior and
team captain Scott Sullivan said.
“(On offense) we were getting
looks all day, we just needed to
wait for the ball to drop.”
Mercyhurst did have to battle
back from an early deficit, as the
squad trailed 1-0 after the first
period.
The Lakers battled back in the
second as junior Ryan Arnold
scored his first of two goals and
Sullivan found the back of the
net to take a 2-1 lead. Sullivan
scored his fifth goal of the year
with a ripper from seven yards
away with 4:59 remaining in the
second period, which turned
out to be the game winner.
Scoot Williams photo
Lakers’ sophomore Tyler
Burton gave the team cushion
in the third period scoring his
first of two goals with 9:54
remaining on an assist from
sophomore Trevor Rice.
Junior Aaron Manzer and
Arnold would each add a goal
to give Mercyhurst a 5-1 lead
heading into the final period.
“We ran three lines of middies
and everyone played within
themselves, taking what the
defensive gave and thats how
you have to be successful, and we
finished on our opportunities,
so we took advantage on the
opportunities we were given,”
Thon said. “We were able to
run a lot of guys and that kept
us fresh heading into the fourth
quarter. We had a four goal lead
(up 5-1), so we knew we just had
PAGE 23
to out work them to keep the
lead and thats what we did and
it ended up working for us.
“We started off the season
a little rough getting beat by
Le Moyne so badly, but after
that we never gave up we have
been sticking to the basics and
good defense,” said junior
Luke Prattico who helped
anchor the Lakers defense.
“Jason [LaShomb] stood on his
head, he carried our scheme, as
he won us the game. Without
him making those saves we
couldn’t have done what we
did.”
In the fourth period, graduate
student Jordan Witt, junior
captain Mike Bartlett and
Burton sealed the victory by
swirling a goal each to wrap up
the 8-1 victory.
Mercyhurst is now 42-4 at
home in eight seasons under
Ryan and will look to extend its
four game winning streak when
they host Wheeling Jesuit today
at 4 p.m. and Notre Dame De
Namur Saturday at 1 p.m.
“We can take a lot from this
game,” said Thon. “We played 60
minutes and if we can keep that
up we can play with anybody so
we need to keep working hard
and staying focused and keep
executing.”
“We started matching as
a team, we started playing
together, we started clicking,”
Prattico said. “We gotta keep
taking it one game at a time; we
cannot look ahead.”
Sullivan agrees.
“We have a young team,” he
said. “The young guys are really
starting to pick it up towards
the end of the season. The
(defense) is coming together and
Lashomb is leading back there
(in goal) and they’re going to
only get better as the year goes
on. With everyone picking it up
towards the end we are looking
to make a final push; we should
be all right.”
PAGE 24 SPORTS April 16, 2008

Laker sports

Softball sweeps
Lake Superior State
>> Page 21 Scoot Williams photo