Family Weekend

Michelle Reilly

News Editor

Maya Murray plays on the climbing wall on Family Weekend.

Benedictine was a packed house in honor of Family Weekend Friday through Sunday.  Festivities began Friday night with a Wine and Cheese Night held in Goodwin Hall’s lobby starting at 5 p.m. Following that was a showing of Pixar’s “Finding Dory” in the auditorium, also in Goodwin.

To top Friday, Saturday was jam-packed with activities that all ages could enjoy. Starting at 9 a.m. were BenUnion Underground Activities in the Krasa Basement, which included games such as ping pong. Then at 11 a.m., was the Women’s Soccer game where they suffered a tough 1-0 loss to Elmhurst College. During the game, there was also tailgating events going on in both Krasa and Neuzil parking lots. In Krasa, there was food, drinks and inflatables, whereas Neuzil was giving away free pikachu’s, had a rock climbing wall and bingo.

One senior, Aliya Murray, brought her little sister out for all the fun. “I got a glittery unicorn tattoo on my arm and played bingo, which was fun, until some guy won three times. I got a little mad”, says 10 year-old, Maya Murray.

Another senior, Chris Rafacz, was there for the free pikachu’s. “I didn’t have to download the app to catch a Pikachu”, says a laughing Rafacz.

Of course after tailgating, was the day’s main event, the football game. The Benedictine University Eagles faced off against Adrian College and got a hard fought victory. With only minutes to go, the Eagles were losing 28-27 and were able to come out on top, keeping the fans on their feet the entire game.

This was the case for at least one student. “It was a suspenseful game that was worth going to and so much fun”, says Aliya Murray.

Following the football game was dinner at Krasa at 5 p.m. and then also another showing of “Finding Dory” in the auditorium in Goodwin. Sunday was the end of Family Weekend with just a few events left. First up was the Cindy Cebrzynski Memorial 5k Run/Walk beginning at 8 am. Next up, was a mass at the St. Procopius Abbey at 11 a.m., and then finally there was a breakfast held all morning from 8-10 a.m. in Krasa.

If you missed out on Family Weekend, make sure you make it out to Homecoming Weekend October 14-16 where there will be more football and entertainment coming your way!

Women’s Volleyball Victorious in Home Opener

Logan Hanson

Sports Editor

The Women’s Volleyball team at Benedictine University plays Alverno College on Tuesday.

The Benedictine Women’s Volleyball team won their home opening match against Alverno College 3-1 Tuesday night. The match also marked the team’s first NACC conference game giving them a 1-0 record to start conference play.

“We were excited to open up our conference season at home,” said Head Coach Jennifer Wildes, “It took us a little while but after we settled in, we did some really nice things. It was a big team win for us. It was also great to play in front of our fans we really appreciate their support!”

The Eagles struggled early in the first set committing multiple serving errors, but rallied late to win the set 25-21. In the second set, the Eagles started off hot leading 8-4, but a 9-0 run by Alverno was enough to give the Inferno the set 25-23. The Eagles rallied in the third set where they never trailed and notched 10 kills in the 25-15 win. In the fourth and final set, the Eagles went on an early 8-2 run and never looked back winning the set and the match with a 25-11 game.

The Eagles recorded a season high hitting percentage at .280 while also recording 44 kills. Sophomore Defensive Specialist Kristina Billie recorded a match high 14 digs to go along with 3 aces while Junior and fellow Defensive Specialist Vanessa Possidoni recorded 10 digs.

“It was super exciting to finally have our home opener and everyone contributed in our win,” said Possidoni, “It was an awesome way to start off conference at home and I can’t wait until we play at home again next week.”

The Eagles will head to Lake Forest College on Friday for their next set of games against North Central College and Lake Forest College in the annual Red and Black Triangular. The Eagles will play North Central at 4:00 pm followed by Lake Forest at 8:00 pm.

Women’s Soccer Loses Close Match to Elmhurst

Logan Hanson

Sports Editor

The Benedictine Women’s Soccer Team lost a close game against Elmhurst College 1-0 Saturday morning at the Lisle Sports Complex. The Eagles were shut out in a matchup where their defense outshined their offensive output.

““Credit to Elmhurst, they were organized defensively and good on the ball, making them difficult to play against,” said Head Coach Michael Boland, “ I thought we did well defensively, and limited their dangerous scoring chances.  If we defend like that in upcoming NACC play, we will be difficult to beat.”

The Eagles struggled early in the game with communication and attacking on offense. In the eleventh minute of the game, an offensive error in their own zone cost the Eagles as Elmhurst capitalized with a goal, the only one of the game. The Eagles would not be able to break through the Elmhurst rugged defense in the first half and went into the break down 1-0.

The second half did not go much better for the Eagles as they fell behind in time of possession and struggled keeping the Elmhurst offense in front of them. Although Elmhurst took more shots than the Eagles, the defense remained strong and did not surrender another goal.

The Eagles best chance to tie came on a strong shot by Freshman Forward Abbie Graham in the 83^rd, but it was denied by the Elmhust defense. The Eagles did not have enough time to rally as they lost the match by the one goal margin.

“Even though we didn’t get the result we were hoping for it was nice to come out and compete with a team that was regionally ranked,” said Junior Wing Taylor Pokorny, “We definitely have the ability to compete with strong teams and hopefully our next string of games will prove that.”

The Eagles will look to right the ship as the team travels to Concordia University of Chicago for their next game Wednesday afternoon at 3:00 pm.

The New IPhone 7

Jacqueline Gorr

Scene editor

What makes it different from the IPhone 6?

Since I’m not big into technology I didn’t know what the difference was between the IPhone 7 and previous IPhone. The updates to the new phone seem really beneficial for daily use.

There are new jet black matte finishes to the exterior of the phone and there is a new home button. The new home button is an illusion and makes you think you are pressing a button but really it’s just physical contact with your skin. It has mixed reviews because you can’t use your home button if you have gloves on. The iPhone 7 Plus features both an f/1.8, 28mm wide-angle lens and a 56mm telephoto lens on the back. This can minimize blurriness from shaky hands. You can also get a higher quality zoom from farther away.

The screen is 25 percent brighter and has a 3D touch effect. A good quality that the new phone has is longer battery life and faster than the IPhone 6. For all the music lovers out there, there is a new stereo system and is the loudest yet from the IPhone collection. It has faster LTE which is good if you are not around Wi-Fi.

The last feature of the new phone is air pods. You can put them in your ears instantly and they will connect instantly and play music. You can also speak into them and your voice comes out nice and clear. This phone seems to have new features that will be efficient for your everyday lifestyle.

 

NFL Award Predictions

Daniel Dalenberg

Staff Writer

MVP: Aaron Rodgers, QB, GB:  After a rocky 2015 campaign, by Aaron Rodgers’ standards, the Packers QB looks to get back to MVP form during 2016.  Much of Rodgers’ 2015 struggles can be attributed to the preseason loss of star receiver Jordy Nelson.  Without Nelson on the field, Rodgers’ QBR fell from 82.0 to 62.4.  With a healthy receiving core, Rodgers should have a monster year, leading Green Bay to a NFC North title and a deep playoff run.

Defensive Player of the Year: Khalil Mack, OLB/DE, OAK:  After two straight years of Texans DE JJ Watt winning Defensive Player of the Year, look for the award to land in the hands of the Raiders’ 3^rd year man, Khalil Mack.  Mack is coming off a monster 2015 campaign where he finished the season with 15 sacks and 77 tackles.  An improved Raiders secondary, with the additions of Reggie Nelson and Sean Smith, should help Mack add onto his sack total from last season.  Mack will anchor a defense that could lead the Raiders to their first playoff appearance since 2002.

Offensive Rookie of the Year: Ezekiel Elliott, RB, DAL: Coming off a huge year at Ohio State, where Elliott rushed for 1821 yards and 23 touchdowns, the 4^th overall pick of the draft fell into the perfect situation to have an immediate impact in the NFL.  With an offensive line that is widely considered the best in the league, led by All-Pro’s Tyron Smith and Zack Martin, Elliott should rush for at least 1200 yards this season.

Defensive Rookie of the Year:  Jalen Ramsey, CB, JAX: The 4^th overall pick of the draft, and the second defensive player off the board, the rookie out of Florida State looks fit to make an immediate impact on a budding Jaguars defense.  Ramsey did not allow a single completion his way in the Jaguars opener to the Packers, after Ramsey dared Aaron Rodgers to throw his way.  In a postgame tweet Ramsey said, “Lol people quick to want a story so here you go: ZERO completions on me. I back up my talk. I play for the Lord and my teammates! We fought!”  Hopefully Ramsey can continue to back up his talk and win Defensive Rookie of the Year

Sleepers:

            MVP: Eli Manning, NYG.  AJ Green, CIN.

            Defensive Player of the Year: Eric Kendricks, MIN.  Ryan Shazier, PIT.

            Offensive Rookie of the Year: Will Fuller, HOU.  Sterling Shepard, NYG.

            Defensive Rookie of the Year: James Bradbury, CAR.  DeForest Buckner, SF.

Stanford Rape Case: We Paid Attention Then, Why Aren’t We Paying Attention Now?

Dielle Ochotorena

Staff Writer

The Stanford rape scandal took the attention of Americans all over the country this past year, and if you’ve never heard of it, I have just two things to say: One, where have you been? And Two, here’s the rundown. Brock Turner, a 19-year-old college freshman at Stanford University, was seen on top of the unconscious victim behind a dumpster by two international grad students also attending Stanford. He was later arrested and on bail for $150,000. On January 28, 2015 he was charged on five accounts: two for rape, two for felony sexual assault, and one for attempted rape. Turner was sentenced on three felony assault charges, jail time of six months, three years of probation, register as a sex offender and a requirement to participate in a sex offender rehabilitation program. The minimum felony jail period for sexual assault in the state of California is 2 years and a maximum of 14 years in a federal state prison if convicted.

In defending his light ruling, Judge Aaron Persky stated in a speech that, “Obviously, the prison sentence would have a severe impact on him… The defendant is youthful and has no significant record of prior criminal offenses.”. Persky continued to imply that, “There is less moral culpability attached to the defendant who is intoxicated.” He even went as far as to say that the news coverage of the case significantly impacted Turner by saying, “The media attention that has been given to this case has in a way sort of poisoned the lives of the people that have been affected… The question I’ve asked myself is … ‘Is state prison for this defendant an antidote to that poison?’” (Guardian) In a short statement to Persky’s open-ended question: Yes. Because it does not matter whether or not the defendant was negatively impacted. Rape is rape and it should be punished in the highest degree legally possible. If there’s anyone who has suffered more than Turner would be the victim he assaulted. Her open letter is nothing but heart wrenching and full of emotion over the turmoil she suffered in the aftermath and will have to live with for the rest of her life. The reason why people up at arms and aggravated by this case and your ruling is because it indirectly tells rape victims that the law is not on their side. That this is a battle to be won all on their own. That somehow, someway this is all their fault. Which it isn’t. It never is.

It should be proper to tell you, my dearest readers that Mr. Brock Turner, the rapist who was given six months of jail time was released three months early of his sentence on September 2, 2016 amidst a crowd of reporters and protesters waiting outside the Santa Clara County Jail (CNN). An already a sorry excuse of a jail sentence, and of which got cut in half for having “good behavior”. In the eyes of the law, or should I be more clear, in the eyes of the people who hold the power and duty to interpret the law, who should be “impartial decision makers in the pursuit of justice” view sexual assault as nothing but a rigged game for the assailant to win and the victim to perish (CSCJA). Whether or not the media pays attention to a rape case, should not matter, whether or not they only received “20 minutes of action” should not matter, their history with criminal charges or not should not matter, the only thing that should matter is whether or not they attempted to pursue sexual activity with someone who is unable to give consent (Guardian).

Painting Banned in Founders Woods Apartments

Michelle Reilly

News Editor

Over the years at Benedictine University, students who reside in the Founders Woods apartments have been painting the walls in their apartments. Some paint just a wall or two in the living room, and some go as far as painting their bedrooms and bathrooms as well.

According to Monica Miller, Assistant Director of Residence Life, “The painting of apartments has never been permitted in Founders Woods, it may have been tolerated in the past but this is no longer the case”, says Miller. Miller explained why there is a sudden change of heart. “We have a new Facilities Management department on campus and the approach we are taking together is consistency. We want to ensure that there is quality in the way apartments are painted, the materials used and consistency of color and finish.”

The topic was brought up at the annual mandatory Founders Woods residents’ meeting on Tuesday, August 30^th. R.A.’s and campus police went through safety precautions and rules as they do every other year. It wasn’t until the issue of decorating apartments came up that things became contentious.

“It’s ridiculous. We should be able to paint if we are paying for the apartments and buying the paint ourselves”, says senior, Autumn Grady.

A fellow senior, Katie McKay, echoes Grady’s sentiments. “I’ve lived in Founders for three years and never has there been an issue painting apartments before. Res life and the police have been in my previous apartments with paint on the walls and no one said anything.”

“If they do decide to implement the policy this year, they should give immunity to those who were unaware of the policy, said McKay.”

While there is no exact dollar amount that the fine will be, it will be a significant amount. The new policy states that when a room is painted by a resident, a professional painter will be hired to repaint the apartment back to the original shade of white it was before. The residents of the apartment will then be charged the cost the painter charges for his or her work.

In regards to why there cannot be a set cost given to students, Director of Facilities Management on campus, Ryan Merrick said, “Every situation is different. The cost for painting which is passed on to the student is completely dependent on how much paint/drywall/etc is used and how many labor hours are spent to do the repair.”

Not only has painting been restricted, but the use of holiday and/or string lights have been as well. They have become a safety issue with the lights leaving burn marks on the walls where they were hung. Punishment for lights on the wall will result in an RA writing an incident report to assess for damage and then they will need to remove the lights immediately.