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The Charles Village Civic Association held a meeting on Thursday, March 15 at Barnes & Noble to discuss the upcoming N. Charles St. construction and what it means for community members, including Hopkins students. The actual construction will begin this spring and will be completed during Spring 2014.
The Foreign Affairs Symposium (FAS) hosted journalist David Frum, CNN contributer and a former special assistant to President George W. Bush, on Thursday, Mar. 15. Frum addressed the audience in Shriver Hall about the changing political climate and discourse in the United States.
Pre-med students have a lot of things on their minds: taking an organic chemistry exam and studying the MCATs. Then, there's medical school: what schools will they apply to? Which one will they choose? What factor shape this decision?
By now, it's common knowledge that kids these days are way more grown than we all were a decade ago. The evidence lies in Facebook relationship updates, risqu?? attire, potty mouths, references to sex and drugs, etc. But that still didn't prepare me for my niece, Ahava, and her scolding me this past weekend.
It is well-known that birds engage in a vocal arms race with humans. To avoid being drowned out by the constant drone of traffic and industrial noise, songbirds have been increasingly pressured to make themselves heard in the urban jungle. Some birds, such as the great tit, can easily rise to the challenge ?- this adaptable species has been shown to sing faster and at higher pitches in urban environments. However, not all birds are flexible enough to succeed on man's turf: a cruel reality that is reflected in the decrease in biodiversity near man-made roads and cities. In the densely-packed woodlands, birds tend to sing slower and at lower pitches to prevent their songs from being blocked out by the foliage. On the other hand, the urban environment presents a novel set of challenges for chorusing birds ?- it is open, meaning that there are fewer surfaces to block sound transmission, and packed with low-pitched sounds. While males with deep voices are more successful in the woods, the opposite is true in the city. There are several theories for why birds become city-smart. One hypothesis proposes that young birds drop low songs from their repertoires due to their inability to hear them above the city noise. Another proposes that urban birds are forced to use higher-pitched songs because the low-pitched ones do not prompt the mating response. Either way, it is clear that birds face a number of challenges from living near an urban environment. Studies have shown that birds from noisy areas respond less strongly to birdsongs from quieter areas, implying that breeding opportunities, and even mate recognition, are impeded by noisy environments. To make things worse, many birds cannot significantly change their songs after the first year of life, limiting their ability to adapt to different environments. Each species of bird has their own way of overcoming man-made noise barriers. Nightingales cope by raising the intensity of their songs, blasting German cities with their 95-decibel ballads. Robins, on the other hand, reserve their singing for the night. To add to this wealth of information, a recent study at the University of Copenhagen and the University of Aberystwyth identified an additional factor influencing urban birdsong - the physical structure of cities. Co-author Torben Dabelsteen of the Section for Ecology and Evolution at the University of Copenhagen's Department of Biology argues that the need for birds to drown out competitors does not sufficiently explain why birds sing at lower pitches in the city. According to the researchers, birds cope with urban noise in one of two ways: directly, by raising their tones and staying away from noisy environments, or indirectly, by attempting to drown out anthropogenic noise. Through the use of controlled sound recordings, the team showed that higher frequency notes are transmitted across cities in the absence of noise from traffic. From this, Dabelsteen concludes that the physical structure of cities must contribute to the heightened song frequencies. Cities are complicated and birds must take into account how different structures will transmit or reflect their notes. While birds can easily spot each other in the urban jungle, they must also learn how to communicate effectively by reducing echoes from buildings and narrow streets. City life is hard work for these birds. Their country-dwelling cousins can attract females without having to sing at full force. In the woodlands, abundant trees and foliage distorts sounds and obscures birds from each other. Thus, country birds have learned to use these distortions to judge the distance to the nearest friend or potential mate. Unfortunately, human activity does not only affect bird communication. Humans are a powerful selective agent that can affect animal communication, predator-prey relationships, and even the survival of an entire species. Whales and dolphins fight to hear each other above the sound of ships, insects attracted to artificial light become easy pickings for bats, and pests such as cockroaches and rats find comfortable hiding places in human dwellings. In this time and age, survival of the fittest means, for many animals, adapting to humans.
Baltimore's night sky makes it quite challenging to see the stars at night. Many more would light up the night sky were it not for the light pollution of the cityscape. However, stargazers in the Hopkins and Baltimore community do have a very convenient option to see the stars and the planets in greater detail, as the Morris W. Offit Telescope sits atop the roof of Bloomberg Hall in the Maryland Space Grant Observatory. On Friday nights, visitors to the observatory have a chance to see through the instrument of professional astronomers, gazing into a night sky enhanced by the telescope's 20-inch parabolic mirror. Chris Martin, a physics graduate student, curates the night sky for curious stargazers, Hopkins students, staff and the general public. When asked by the visitor about the cost of the telescope, Martin explained that he hasn't been told a specific figure beyond it being an astronomically expensive piece of equipment. "They just tell me not to break it," he said. Martin's tour last weekend featured planets that were up in the night sky, including Venus, Mars and Jupiter, as well as a detailed look at the surface of the moon. The telescope's power was able to bring some of the faintest stars in the night sky into view, and separate a binary star system into two visible stars from the single dot we see with our naked eye. Part of Martin's show included two star clusters that were surrounded by blue cosmic dust which was helping to reflect some of the light. Ordinarily, this dust is not visible with our own eyes, but aided with the power of the observatory's telescope, one can make out these clouds of cosmic dust. "In astronomy, that's how you measure how powerful your telescope is, how dim an object you can see," Martin said. Other stars included in his tour of the winter constellations were the red giant Betelgeuse, the bright star Rigel in the constellation Orion, as well as several clusters and groups of stars such as the beehive cluster. While most of these clusters are too faint for the naked eye to see in the night sky, the Offit Telescope can separate these point sources of light, revealing the many stars that form each cluster, even with the limitations presented by urban light pollution. "It does a very good job compared to the naked eye, and it does a good job compared to other telescopes in the city," Martin said. While the full potential of the telescope is still hindered by the lights emanating from the city, Martin explained that there's still a stronger element of convenience in reaching the general public. "It's convenient in terms of people getting here, but it's not very convenient in terms of the actual observing." From 8:30pm to midnight, Martin is usually in the observatory as visitors come and go throughout the night, weather permitting. If it's a clear night out, be sure to check out the observatory for a wonderful time among the stars.
With resounding victories this week over Ursinus and Franklin & Marshall, the Lady Blue Jays basketball team clinched the top spot in the Centennial Conference for the regular season. Hopkins defeated the Ursinus Bears 67-46 on Saturday and stormed past Franklin and Marshall 68- 40 on Tuesday. As the conference's regular season champion, Hopkins (21-3, 16-3 CC) will host the Centennial Conference post-season tournament as the number one seed. "I'm so excited they're hosting," said Athletic Communications Intern Mary Raskob, the team's statitician. "They worked really hard this season and played well. They deserved it." The Lady Blue Jays honored their seniors before the Ursinus game. Prior to tip-off, a small ceremony was held for Chantel Mattiola, Kathryn Fox and Stephanie Fong in honor of their commitment and dedication to the Blue Jays' basketball community. The Lady Bears (13- 10, 12-6 CC) held tight for the first half and were even able to gain the lead twice in the first five minutes of the game. However, a jumper by junior Kara- Lea Follmer with 13:42 left in the first half pulled Hopkins ahead 11-9, and the Lady Blue Jays never looked back. When sophomore Katie Brooks hit a jumper to close out the first half of the game, Hopkins had a solid 31-26 lead. However, Ursinus came out fighting in the second half and jumped out with a 4-1 run to bring the teams close at 32-30. Hopkins responded with a dominating run of their own, pulling ahead 41-31 on the next drives and widening their lead to 10 points. The Lady Bears and Lady Blue Jays battled back and forth for some time, but in the final 2:54 Hopkins went on an 11-0 spree to bring the final score to 67-46. Sophomore Fatu Conteh closed out all scoring for the evening when she swiped the ball from an Ursinus player and scored a layup off the resulting fastbreak. Junior Alex Vassila led the Blue Jays in scoring with 16 points and boasted a career-high 16 rebounds, making this her eighth double-double of the season. In addition, Vassila also had five blocks. Mattiola and Fong had 11 and 8 points, respectively, to round out the Lady Blue Jays' leading scorers. Hopkins shot 45.3 percent from the field and outrebounded the Lady Bears, 47-28. "It was a great win on senior night," said Fox. "It meant a lot." Hopkins had equally as impressive numbers versus Franklin and Marshall. The match-up was highly anticipated. It was a battle for first place in the conference as well as the right to host the post-season tournament. But Hopkins shut down the second place team in the conference with force. The Lady Blue Jays shot 45.6 percent from the field and out-rebounded the Lady Diplomats 48-37. In addition, Hopkins' bench contributed 27 points in the win. It took just over two minutes for either team to score, but once Fox hit a free throw for the first basket of the night the Lady Blue Jays went on a 12-4 run to start off the game. At halftime, Hopkins was leading at 33-17, and, with 6:29 remaining, Hopkins had gained a menacing 60-33 lead. The Lady Blue Jays went 4-for-4 from the field to close out the night. The Hopkins defense dominated the game, holding Franklin & Marshall to a season-low 40 points and 20 percent shooting from the field. Franklin and Marshall also went 0-for-8 on three pointers. It was the first time the Lady Diplomats had not made a three-pointer in a game all season. Mattiola lead all scoring with 16 points and Vassila and Fong scored 12 and 10, respectively. "We played great tonight," said Vassila, "we were all proud and really excited." The Lady Blue Jays host the Bryn Mawr Owls to close out their regular season. The game will be at home at Goldfarb gymnasium, with tip-off at 7p.m.
After two consecutive wins against Centennial Conference opponents Washington & Lee and Gettysburg and a close loss to nationally ranked Messiah, the Hopkins men's wrestling team was confident. This past Sunday, they were put to the test with a pair of matches against conference rivals Merchant Marine and Stevens Tech. The opening match with Merchant Marine was a back and forth affair, as the Mariners and Blue Jays exchanged wins over the first five weight classes. However, the Mariners took the next three bouts, after a pin in the 165 lb match and two decisions in the 174-pound and 184-pound matches, which stretched their lead to 21-12 with just two bouts remaining. The Blue Jays rose to the occasion, as junior Reid Mosquera won a decision at 197-pound against Merchant Marine's Tyler Russell. It all came down to the heavyweight bout (285 lb) and freshman wrestler Evan Johnson. Hopkins needed a lastsecond pin in order to claim the victory, but Merchant Marine's Dan Wilke proved elusive enough to merely lose 4-2 by decision and secure a narrow win for his team at 21-18. The match with Stevens Tech began just as the Blue Jays would have liked, as they jumped out to a 9-3 team lead, after Matt Fusaro won his second bout of the afternoon. However, Stevens Tech retaliated with three straight wins, including a dominant 21-9 win by Stevens Tech's eighth ranked 165-pound wrestler Joey Favia over Blue Jay freshman Christian Salera. Once again, Mosquera stepped up with a crucial 5-2 decision over Alex Moreno and brought the score to within a point at 13-12. As frequently occurs in such close matches, the end result would be decided in a winner-take-all heavyweight bout. The bout was decided in the final seconds, as Stevens Tech 285-pound wrestler Tyler Maher scored two points on a headlock takedown with only two seconds remaining, sneaking out a narrow 5-4 win and securing victory for the Ducks. Despite these two losses, there were several bright spots for the Blue Jays this past Sunday afternoon. Freshman Paul Bewak went 2-0 on the day, including winning his first bout at 133 pounds against Stevens Tech. Fusaro and Mosquera also went 2-0 on the day, winning in the 157 and 197-pound weight classes, respectively. Junior 141-pounder and fan favorite Paul Marcello continued his dominant form as of late, increasing his record on the season to 18-3, one loss from an NCAA Division I opponent from the University of Maryland. He, along with teammates Bewak, Fusaro and Mosquera, have been Hopkins' steadiest competitors, combining for a 67-19 record. The Blue Jays hope to benefit in the long run. The young team has seen 13 different wrestlers compete throughout the course of this season. While this is no doubt a reloading and learning year for the young Jays, they certainly hope to become better as they gain experience over the next few years. The Blue Jays will finish out the regular season traveling north to a University of Scranton tournament in Scranton, PA, to take on NYU, Muhlenberg and host University of Scranton this Sunday afternoon. A week later, they will compete in the Centennial Conference Championships that will take place at Gettysburg, PA. Several members of the team have hopes of winning and moving onward towards the NCAA Wrestling Championships. Don't take your eyes of this Blue Jay wrestling team as Head Coach Keith Norris works his magic on a talented group of young athletes towards the end of this season and beyond. Keep yourself informed and continue to follow The News-Letter's coverage of our wrestlin' Jays!
Linsanity. Over the past 11 days a superstar has exploded onto the sports scene. Harvard educated, Asian-American, humble yet flashy, Jeremy Lin is a true Cinderella, or "Linderella", story. In a year where the NBA season was shortened due to a lockout, we are constantly reminded that professional sports is a money driven business, but it only takes one player to show that pure love of the game can lift and inspire the largest market in sports. In this circumstance, the one is followed by a seven, as an orange number 17 sewn into the front of a bright blue New York Knicks jersey hangs on the chest of the six-foot-three, 200-pound Jeremy Lin. Smiling and backpedaling on defense after making a shot with his tongue half out of his mouth, Lin is soaking it all in. He is the center of attention, the beneficiary of playing under the lights of New York and excelling at a time when the Super Bowl has just concluded and NCAA March Madness has not yet begun, a small window of time where a spark such as the one provided by the 23-year old can captivate the sports and media universe. In the past six games, Lin has gone from the last player on the Knicks bench to starting point guard, compiling more points than any player in NBA history in his first five starts. At one point a noname player with a Harvard degree in the NBA Developmental League, also known as the D-League, Lin is now a household name not just in New York but also across the country. Lin's story is one of perseverance, an uncanny combination of hard work, passion and a love for the sport that have enabled Lin to succeed at such a high level, proving that dreams can become a reality. A pass-first point guard who can score and push the ball while making educated decisions in the open court is exactly what is needed for Knicks' head coach Mike D'Antoni's offensive system to work effectively. Lin brings the necessary qualities to the table. He has scored at least 20 points in each of the last six games, adding at least seven assists in each game as well. Lin's exceptional play is a blend of unbelievable basketball IQ and unparalleled effort and energy, a unique combination that has allowed a player who is just athletic enough to compete at the professional level to become a prolific point guard and the center of stardom in just over a week's time. We have all heard the underdog story over and over again, yet Lin's is still compelling. Undrafted out of college, Lin signed with the Golden State Warriors, who took a chance in signing him but never really gave him a shot on the basketball court. Lin averaged 10 minutes a game with the Warriors last year, but he was cut and passed over by all teams except the Houston Rockets, who demoted Lin to the D-League before cutting him as well. Finally, when the Knicks' rookie point guard Iman Shumpert hurt his knee in the first week of the season, they needed to add a point guard to the roster and turned to Lin. Moving to New York and sharing time living on the pull-out couch of his brother's apartment - Lin's brother is a dental student at New York University - and spending nights on the couch of teammate Landry Fields, Lin maintained focus and knew he would be ready if an opportunity came his way.After weeks of garbage minutes at the end of games, Lin's time to shine finally came against the New Jersey Nets, on the night of Feb. 4, 2012. Going off for 25 points, seven assists and five rebounds, Lin led the Knicks to a victory in a must-win game, igniting a streak that would soon be coined as "Linsanity", without even knowing it. Over the ensuing five games, Lin has put up unequivocal scoring numbers and led the Knicks to six straight victories. With the media drooling over Lin's battle against adversity, the starting point guard of the New York Knickerbockers combines an 'I can't believe this is happening to me,' happy-go-lucky attitude with a specific swagger and demeanor on the court, making way for a superstar to be embraced by the sports universe. Tallying scoring numbers that have been compared to all-time greats in their first five starts, we will have to wait and see if Lin will be able to keep up the level of play he has been competing at. There are many questions that have yet to be answered, such as if a player from a school that has produced twice as many United States presidents as NBA players, can emerge as a perennial star. For now, Lin is enjoying the hype and looking forward to each game, not taking anything for granted. He has handled all the pressure thrown his way so far and doesn't seem to be rattled easily by media attention. He has captivated America by showing that dreams can become a reality. Lin's play on the court has been so exceptional it is difficult to compare him to anybody right now, but more than anything, watching Lin constantly reminds us that nothing is Linpossible.
Last Friday, Feb. 10th, the men's and women's track and field teams headed to Boston, Massachusetts to compete in the Valentine Invitational at Boston University. This indoor event, which annually hosts a large number of competitive athletes, including many Division I teams, provided the perfect opportunity for the Blue Jays to strut their stuff. Although neither the men nor the women recorded a team score, several individuals set new personal bests and brokeJHU records. Senior and captain Alison Smith had a very successful meet, securing the best performances so far this year in the Centennial Conference in both the 200-meter dash and 400-meter dash with times of 26.25 and 59.00, respectively. Her times also put her in second place just behind Paula Osborn, who holds the Blue Jay school records. Freshman Hannah Eckstein, who had been spotlighted as The News-Letter's Athlete of the Week earlier this year, also made an excellent achievement at the Valentine Invitational. With a time of 16:59.88 in the 5000-meter race, Eckstein achieved the best time in the Centennial and now ranks second nationally in Division III track and field. Lara Shegoski, another freshman, ran the 5000-meter in 18:16.68,moving her to fourth place in the Centennial Conference rankings. Along with the women's team, the men's team had an equally impressive meet in Boston. Freshman Max Robinson, from Rye, New York, who ran the 5000-meter race, placed second in his event and also shaved seven seconds off the Hopkins school record with a time of 14:52.66. Freshmen Austin Stecklair and Julian Saliani both had very impressive runs in the 3000-meter event. With a time of 8:54.91, Stecklair broke the JHU freshman record and Saliani, who set a new personal best at the Invitational, finished the 3000-meter less than ten seconds later. Sophomore Wes Butler, a graduate of the Collegiate school in Richmond, Virginia, also took over the third place spot for the fastest indoor mile run in Hopkins history with a time of 4:24.93. The mile race was won by sophomore Rich Peters of Boston University. Peters finished the mile with a time of 3:57.83. Expect to see both teams back in action when they head to New York City to participate in the NYU team challenge. The race will take place in a little over a week on Saturday, Feb. 25th.
Senior forward Tim Mc-Carty led Hopkins to a 65- 60 win over the Ursinus- Bears with an outstanding shooting performance this weekend. He went six-ofseven from the floor, including three of four from outside the arc, to net a career high of 25 points. As a result, McCarty was named The News-Letter's Athlete of the Week. The Blue Jays then played the 14th-ranked Diplomats of Franklin and Marshall Wednesday night in Goldfarb Gym, falling to the conference rivals, 71- 63. The split improved the Jays to 14-10, and clinched the Jays a Centennial Conference playoff bid for the first time since the 2007- 2008 season. Hopkins started the game strong, gaining an early 12-0 lead in just four minutes - the result of strong shooting from both McCarty and sophomore guard Daniel Corbett. The two teams stayed equal for the next four minutes, and Hopkins was able to maintain a 21-9 lead with just over 12 minutes remaining in the half. A shot from sophomore center Aleksander Nikolic gave Hopkins its largest lead of the game, leaving them with a 14-point margin over Ursinus with just 11:52 left. Over the next eight minutes the Bears, led by Ursinus junior Matt Donahue, scored 16 points to Hopkins' four, reducing the Hopkins lead to just two points. With just four minutes remaining in the game, Corbett and McCarty once again extended the Hopkins advantage, this time by six points. Hopkins led 33-27 at halftime. Corbett boasted 18 points, nine boards and four assists. The Jays increased their score in the second half, gaining a 10-point advantage with just 13:37 left in the game. McCarty had completed two consecutive three-point plays: one from the free throw line and the other from a distance. Freshman guard Jimmy Hammer followed with a three of his own. Hopkins maintained their lead comfortably until the eight-minute mark, when Ursinus junior Jon Ward jump-started a second run for the Bears, who scored 15 points to Hopkins' five. The game was close in the final minutes - Hopkins led by only one point with just over a minute and a half remaining in the contest. With the game on the line, McCarty responded by hitting his third and final three-pointer to extend the lead to four. The two teams traded free throws several times, but Hopkins maintained an eight-point edge with just 19 seconds remaining. A final three-pointer at the buzzer by Donahue cut the lead to five to end the game. This was the Jays' first win over the Bears since 2009. McCarty, in addition to his six-of-seven shooting performance went 10-12 from the free throw line. He had eight rebounds and two assists, for good measure. The Jays held the Bears to just 39.6 percent shooting from the field, and just 35.5 percent when shooting triples. On Wednesday night, the Jays looked to continue their winning ways against Franklin and Marshall, but the nationally ranked Diplomats proved to be too powerful. The loss ended Hopkins' four-game win streak. The Blue Jays were led by McCarty once again, who posted 11 points and seven rebounds. Other notable performances included Nikolic and freshman forward George Bugarinovic, who led the Jays with 13 points and 11 rebounds, respectively. Franklin and Marshall controlled most of the game, never trailing in the first half. Hopkins entered the locker room at half time down 41-33 in large part because of eight turnovers, compared to just two from the Diplomats. The second half was a different game, however, as the Jays dominated in second-chance opportunities, 14-3. With 11:47 remaining in the game, Hopkins took their first lead of the game, 48-47, on a jump shot from sophomore forward Connor McIntyre. The six-foot-six big man finished the contest with five points. The game remained a two possession affair until two minutes to play when Franklin and Marshall marched ahead to improve their overall record to 22-2. Despite the loss, Hopkins should take pride in the fact that they stayed with the Diplomats, a confidence builder heading into tournament time. The game could serve as a prequel to the Centennial Conference championship next weekend. Hopkins wraps up its regular season at Washington College this weekend. The Blue Jays are fighting for the second-seed in the conference tournament, trailing second-place Dickinson by just one game with one to play.
Hopkins' women's fencing team took its third straight Eastern Women's Fencing Conference (EWFC) C h a m p i o n - ship this past weekend in M a d i s o n , New Jersey. The EWFC is currently in its 12th year. The league was established in the 2 0 0 0 - 2 0 0 1 season and has been a round-robin style single day Dual Meet Championship format. The league consists of seven schools that eventually compete for the championship title: Hopkins, Drew University, Hunter College, Haverford College, Yeshiva University, City College of New York and Stevens Institute of Technology. The Lady Jays have dominated this event for the past three years and have moved into second place on the all-time EWFC Championship list, following the six-time champions, Drew University. Hopkins won this year's prestigious event with a dominant 6-0 record. The black and blue posted decisive victories against each opponent, taking down CCNY, 25-2; Haverford, 18-9; Yeshiva, 24-3; Hunter, 23-4; Stevens Tech, 14-13; and Drew, 25-2. Stevens Tech was the runner-up for the event, but the Blue Jays were too much for the Ducks to handle. The event's host, Drew, was the first match of the day for Hopkins. Freshmen Rachel Kalina and Sarah Hewes each won two bouts in the Sabre. In the Foil, sophomore Jackie Heath and senior Colleen Stone each went 3-0. In the Epee, junior Komal Kumar and freshman Gianna Puzzo combined victories to give the Blue Jays the upper hand. Following the rout over the Rangers, Hopkins squared off against CCNY and won in dominant fashion to put the Blue Jays ahead with a 2-0 record. The Jays then took their early success and faced Haverford in the third round. The outcome was no different than the first two rounds for the Blue Jays. Sophomore Kathleen Rand and Kalina combined to gain a 6-0 advantage in the Sabre. Senior Lauren Chinn won all three of her bouts in the Epee to seal the victory against the Fords. Hopkins then faced their toughest opponent of the day, Stevens Tech. Stevens gave Hopkins all they could handle but ultimately did not take charge and handed the Blue Jays their first loss of the day despite taking the Epee, 7-2. The Blue Jays rounded off the day with dominant victories over Hunter and Yeshiva. The Blue Jays called on their senior leaders to anchor the victories needed to take the championship title. Seniors Jen Hession, Chinn and Marion Tr u m ba l l r e c o r d e d important v i c t o r i e s in their respective m a t c h e s to give the rest of the Blue Jays a prime e x a m p l e to follow. These v i c t o r i e s came as no s u r p r i s e; these three s e n i o r s have had outstanding careers at Hopkins and their collective performance this past weekend followed suit. With the wins, Chinn and Trumball reached career milestones. Chinn reached her 250th victory while Trumball reached her 200th. There were milestones reached by younger members of the team to accompany these accomplishments. Sophomore Katherine Simeon and Kumar each reached their 150th career victory. These individual accomplishments made up a collective team effort that resulted in the Blue Jays' third straight Eastern Women's Fencing Conference Championship. The Blue Jays will face these same teams next weekend, but, this time, it will be solely individual competition for the Eastern Women's Fencing Conference Championship. If the Blue Jays perform in the same manner as this past weekend, expect to see many more accolades coming their way.
On Saturday night, the Blue Jay men's hoops team added more hardware to an already successful season with a playoff-clinching win over Ursinis, 65- 60. However, it was senior forward Tim McCarty who nearly stole the show on Senior Day. The Economics major from Warrington, PA is the type of player who would be the last one to take any sort of credit in the win - he would mention the entire lineup's box scores before mentioning his own. Still, one must give credit where credit is due. McCarty rose to the occasion of the big night, going six-of-seven from the field, three-of-four from three-point range and seven-of-10 from the line, totaling 25 points for a career high. Looking past his career night on Saturday, McCarty has excelled in his four years as a Blue Jay on the court, in the classroom and around campus. First, he has been an integral player since his freshman year for the basketball team. Second, with Academic all-American honors, Mc-Carty is the ideal student with an unparalleled work ethic. Lastly, coaches, teammates and friends alike will agree, McCarty is just an all-around great guy to be around. The News-Letter (N-L): Going into this weekend's game, what did you feel like the team needed to do to make the playoffs? Tim McCarty (TM): We knew this was a big game heading into it. We knew if we could beat Ursinus, we would punch our ticket to the playoffs. This was a large task at hand becauseUrsinus had beaten us the past six times we met. We believed we could beat them and got the job done on Saturday. We did not want to leave it to the last week of the season to see if we were playoff bound or not. N-L: What do you think the team needs to improve on to make a deep playoff push? TM: Our goal is to get better everyday. We need to improve on our reb o u n d - ing as a team. Our d e f e n s e has been superb so far, but s o m e - times we forfeit 30 s e c o n d s of excellent defense by s u r r e n - dering an offensive rebound. If we can make a c o l l e c - tive team effort to focus on rebounding the ball on both ends of the court, we can make ourselves a tough out come playoff time. N-L: How have you been able to balance basketball with academics and really excel in both? TM: Hard work. No matter what I am doing, I try to give 100 percent. That way, when I look myself in the mirror at night, I knew I gave it my best shot. Also, time management is a huge component for a student-athlete to be successful at Hopkins because we are always so busy and constantly having to multitask. I like being busy and would much rather have my schedule now compared to a scenario in which I would have too much time on my hands. N-L: What are your plans for after you graduate? TM: After I graduate, I have a full time job as an investment banking analyst with Stifel Nicolaus Weisel out of their Baltimore office. N-L: What do you do in your free time? TM: I love to play golf. After my basketball career ends, I anticipate devoting a lot of my free time to playing golf. Golf is a great game to have fun with your f r i e n d s and you can play it your w h o l e life. I am also a huge P h i l a - d e l p h i a s p o r t s fan: Eagles Phillies, Flyers or Sixers. It's too bad they are not producing a lot of championships. N-L: How far do you think the Philadelphia 76ers will go this season? And what do you make of the New York Knicks' Jeremy Lin, also known as "Lin-sanity"? TM: The Sixers are a huge surprise. For the talent they have, I am shocked at their record. With the team playing the way it is now, the sky is the limit for this team. Realistically, I think they can get to the Eastern Conference finals but can't beat the Heat in a seven game series. And Jeremy Lin is an incredible story. He is an inspiration to everyone to always believe in yourself when no one else does. A week ago people thought he was a team manager, and now he has blossomed into a star. He is also someone who is easy to root for because he comes off as a good person who worked incredibly hard to get to where he is today.
The Hopkins women's basketball team has quickly put together a wonderful season thus far, posting an 19-3 record overall and a 14-3 Centennial Conference record. Looking to take advantage of an opportunity to clinch a playoff berth in the conference playoffs, the Lady Jays traveled to Swarthmore on Saturday. The 23rd-ranked Blue Jays pummeled rival Swarthmore, relentlessly scoring 71 points to win by a margin of 29 points, 71-42. The win extended the Jays' current win streak to seven games. Led by senior guard Chantel Mattiola and junior forward Alex Vassila, Hopkins was able to open up the scoring attack in the first half. With a slow offensive start, Hopkins had to rely on the defense to keep them in the game, and the girls stepped up. The first lead of the game came on a Vassila bucket to put the Lady Jays on top 5-4 with 15 minutes remaining in the first half. At that point, the offensive scoring explosion was ignited. Hopkins pulled out to a 22-8 lead, not allowing Swarthmore to score double digits until six minutes were remaining in the first period. Shooting a remarkable 52 percent as a team in opening half, the Blue Jays went into the locker room at half time leading, 32-16. Vassila once again established her dominance, posting her sixth doubledouble of the year with 17 points and 12 rebounds. Mattiola added 16 points of her own, complemented by 10 points from sophomore guard Fatu Conteh and eight points from junior forward Sarah Higbee. As a team the defensive effort was astounding, Hopkins held Swarthmore to 16 first half points and only allowed five of 32 attempts from the field to reach the bottom of the net, a 15.6 percent shooting percentage. In the second half, Swarthmore ramped it up to 25 percent, but still only totaled 42 points on the game. The second half opened similarly to the first, with a slow offensive performance from the veteran Hopkins team. Swarthmore was able to cut the lead to 12 points early in the half before the Lady Jays stepped on the accelerator, piecing together a 17-6 run and extending their already large lead. Once again Swarthmore attempted to crawl back into the game, but Hopkins went on yet another powerful scoring run to put the game out of reach. The largest lead of the game came with just 44 seconds remaining, as Hopkins led by 31 points, 71-40, before the final buzzer sounded with a 71-42 Blue Jay advantage. The Lady Jays shot 50 percent on the day, spreading the ball around and allowing ten players to compile positive numbers in the points category. Three players added double figure points and the team tallied 11 blocks on the game, six coming from leading scorer Alex Vassila. Overall, the game was a summary of the season as a whole, a dominant performance that expressed just how powerful and successful this women's team can be. On Wednesday night at McDaniel, however, Hopkins was upset by the Green Terror at the buzzer, 76-74. The loss was one of the bigger shocks of the Centennial season, as the game pitted the first-place Jays against eighth-place McDaniel. The team is excited looking forward and has just three games remaining on the season before they attempt to increase the intensity level and make a run deep into the playoffs.
After back-to-back victories against Washington and Lee and Gettysburg, the Hopkins wrestling team fell short of nationally ranked Messiah last Friday night in Grantham, PA, 22-16. Coming off of the two previous victories, the Blue Jays looked to continue their momentum and take down the Falcons and make a statement. Despite the loss, the Blue Jays hung with the Falcons until the last match and had the victory within reach. This performance against the nation's 24th best squad should give Hopkins the confidence needed to finish out the rest of the season strong. On Friday, the Jays took an early lead, wining the first four out of five matches. This resulted in an early 13-6 advantage over the Falcons. Leading the initial charge were Hopkins co-captain and junior Paul Marcello, sophomore Henry Stauber and freshman Paul Bewak, with decisions at 141, 149 and 125, respectively. Stauber's 10-2 major gave the Blue Jays and early 10-6 lead. However, despite their early dominance, Hopkins could not sustain the advantage. The Blue Jays fell behind after the midway point, but made another push, led by co-captain and junior Reid Mosquera in 197-pound weight class. The captain stepped up with a hard fought win for the Jays to hold the deficit to 19-16. This put the Blue Jays in a good spot going into the final match. With everything riding on the final matches, the Falcons ultimately proved victorious. Messiah's Russell Jones secured the victory with a decisive win at 285. Although the Blue Jays lost the match, the residual effects could prove far more important and beneficial for the squad. The Blue Jays proved that they could wrestle with anyone and perform to a high level. Freshman standout Paul Bewak has been outstanding all season with an overall record of 20-7 and a Centennial Conference record of 4-0, and his performance against a nationally ranked opponent only bolstered his confidence. Bewak has learned quickly what it takes to be a collegiate wrestler. "The biggest adjustment for me was that in college there are no easy points," the Greensberg, PA native said. "You have to be ready to give 100 percent every time in every position to even have a chance at scoring." Coming up against his biggest challenge so far at JHU, a nationally ranked opponent in Messiah, Bewak was forced to hone the mentality he has taken in the past matches and go beyond. "It felt really good beating a nationally ranked team because it shows me that I'm ready and able to compete at the higher levels of my sport," he said. The Blue Jays' light weights (125, 141, 149, 157) all stepped up during the match and provided the driving spark needed to hang with the 24th-ranked Falcons. This confidence has echoed throughout the team and with Centennial Conference Championships just two weeks away, the timing could not be better. Marcello, a veteran on the young Jays who advanced to the NCAA Tournament in 2010-2011, has high hopes for the team with the Centennial Conference Championships just a few weeks away. "This is the year to win conferences, and this is the team to do it," Marcello said. The Blue Jays have yet to win a Centennial Conference Championship, but the team has shown their resilience and toughness in their recent matches and is looking to make history. To finish out the regular season, the Blue Jays will face the Merchant Marine Academy and Stevens Tech on Sunday, February 12th and will then face New York University the following week. If the Blue Jays can build off of their momentum gained from the battle with Messiah, then Hopkins should storm into Conferences ready to take the title.
The men and women's swim teams created waves this past weekend, as they wrapped up incredible dual meet seasons at Navy and Washington and Lee. The men's team traveled to Annapolis, MD on Friday, Feb. 3 to finish their season with their toughest competition yet against the Navy Midshipmen. After beating their only other D-I competition, Towson, the men lost to Navy by a narrow margin of 135.5- 124.5. This close score was reflected by the even closer races, in which only fractions of seconds separated first from fourth place. "Going in, we knew it was going to be some tough competition," said head coach George Kennedy. "Navy has an incredible D-I program, with respectable top level competitors." Despite going up against such competition and missing two of their top swimmers, senior Tim Nam and sophomore Anthony Lordi, the men's team dove right in and gave their all. Navy opened the meet by clinching the first five races. However, the 200 medley relay - made up of freshman Dylan Davis, sophomore Joe Acquaviva, junior Carter Gisriel and senior Eddy Zandee - finished second, just five-hundredths of a second behind the Midshipmen. After a five race winning streak from Navy, Hopkins began to churn up the water in hopes of making a comeback. They won the next four events, including the 200-meter fly, won by junior Nick Schmidt. The Blue jays then showed their strength in freestyle, winning both the 50 and 100-meter races. Davis had an impressive race in the 200 back, posting a time of 2:06.97, followed by freshman Ryan Cunningham and sophomore David Woodford who placed second and third, respectively. After a loss to Navy in the 200-yard breaststroke, Hopkins rallied to win the last four events of the day, including the 400-meter free, the 100 fly, the 200 I.M. and the 400 free relay. The 400 free relay team made up of junior Tyler Woods, sophomore Ben Tillar, junior Dylan Coggin and junior Nick Schmidt touched in with a time of 3:30:09. With the dual meet season behind them, the men have begun to taper, drastically decreasing their time in the pool after a long season of hard work to prepare for the Bluegrass Mountain Conference Championships. This Conference-wide meet will take place on Feb. 15th, in Charlotte, N.C. Here they will face some of the best competition from the conference and hope to touch in some fast times to qualify for the National Championships in Indianapolis. With nine swimmers already qualifying for Nationals, Coach Kennedy expects anywhere from 4-10 swimmers to qualify, earning their spot on the long trip to Indianapolis. On the women's side, the Lady Jays traveled to Washington and Lee on Saturday, Jan. 28th and captured their final dual meet of the season. "We knew we were a better team on paper," Coach Kennedy said, "So this gave us the opportunity to mix up the events and give more girls the opportunity to race." Even mixing up the lineup, the women still swam fast times, breaking two pool records and proving that talent runs deep within the Lady Jays. The 200-medley relay team of freshman Melinda Yau, sophomore Cristina Cusumano, freshmanKivilcim Gunay and freshman Jill Liwacz; and the 200-freestyle relay ofLiwacz, junior Eleanor Gardner, sophomore EvaSchulteis and Yau, posted new records at the Generals' home pool. The women then showed their strength in the distance events. Freshman Selena Guerrero- Martin, freshman BerilPolat and senior KhristineGhemigian swept the 1000-meter freestyle going 1-2-3. Senior Heidi Culver won the 500 free with a time of 5:21.43. In addition, junior KristenFerriero had a great race in the 200-freestyle, cruising in to the wall with a time of 1:59.38 to oust the competition by half a second. Freshman Hannah Benn won the 200 back with a time of 2:10.60, and the Blue Jay's finished the meet with second and fourth place finishes in the 100 fly from Gunay and freshman Allison Henry. "I was really pleased with the overall performance at the meet," commented Coach Kennedy. "It was a great way to close a great season, and now we can look forward to Conferences." Like the men, the women are now preparing for their Conference Championships in Charlotte, N.C. and have begun tapering in order to ensure fast times. The women have a lot at stake this year, as they look to prove themselves in defending their Conference title from last year. After Conferences, the women will make the long trek out to chilly Indianapolis for fierce competition and fast times at the National Championships.
The Hopkins men's and women's fencing teams headed up to Waltham, MA for their first competition of the spring semester last Saturday, Feb. 4th. The Eric Sollee Invitational, hosted by Brandeis University, featured a plethora of schools including Penn, currently ranked seventh nationally, Brown, MIT and Brandeis. While the men's fencing team ended the day with a 1-4 record, all were close matches, with losses to Boston College, Brandeis and Brown by no more than three points. The highlight of the Invitational for the men's team was their 14-13 victory against MIT. While Hopkins only won one of the three weapons, their outscoring of MIT, 7-2, with the Sabre helped them to secure the overall win. Junior Nicolas Barbera won all three of his bouts against the MIT Engineers with a total of four wins in the Invitational. Freshman Robert Goldhirsch also helped to secure the Jays' win against the engineers winning two out of three bouts. Goldhirsch also had seven wins overall in the Foil, improving his season record to 21-9. The tournament comes on the heels of an impressive showing at the Stevens Invitational a week prior, where Hopkins bested Army, Stevens, NJIT, Yeshiva and Hunter. Without question the top performer for the Blue Jays was sophomore Evan Stafford, The News-Letter's Athlete of the Week, who finished 13-0 on the weekend. Other key contributors included freshman Aravind Menon, who went 13-2, freshman Alex Szigeti, who went 11-1, junior Ben Wasser, sophomore Jay DeYoung and freshman Zach Goodman and Paul Vitale. The JHU women's team took the Invitational by storm, losing by one point only to Brown University and winning all other matches to produce a 4-1 record. Hopkins swept Brandeis and Tufts and also beat Boston College, claiming both the Sabre and the Epee and losing the Foil by just a single point. The Black and Blue also beat MIT with overall wins in the Foil and Epee bouts and a loss in the Sabre by another one-point margin. Along with an overall winning record, several Lady Jays also reached personal goals. Sophomore Jackie Heath ended the day having won her 150th career bout while fellow sophomore Kathleen Rand achieved her 100th career victory. The week prior at the Philadelphia Invitational, Hopkins downed the Fords of Haverford, the high-note in a weekend that also included losses to four Division I schools. Senior Lauren Chinn, Epee, and freshman Rachel Kalina, Sabre, paced the Lady Jays with nine wins apiece. Stay tuned for more news on the JHU men's and women's fencing team next week as the men's team heads to Durham, N.C. on Feb. 11 for the Duke Invitational and the women's team heads to the Eastern Women's Fencing Championship on Feb. 12 in Madison, N.J. The women's team will be defending their two-time champion title against the tournament's host, Drew University.
Fencing is a lot like chess. Granted, there are some subtle differences - namely, the use of a threeand- a-half foot long sword. Kidding aside, the two games are actually strikingly similar. They both involve a comparable brand of 'strategizing'- a surprisingly mental aspect given the historically brutish nature of swordfights. When one begins to understand the subtleties of fencing, it becomes clear that the only difference it has from chess may very well be the three-and-ahalf foot long sword. Fencing incorporates a series parries (blocks) and ripostes (counters) that require anticipation and improvisation, but most of all an intense focus on the bout (match) at hand. It's no surprise, then, that sophomore Evan Stafford of Montana, who is studying physics and math, is finding such success on the mat. "It's referred to as physical chess," said Stafford, "in that you have to outwit your opponent." The formality of his responses gave a hint of the kind of academic intensity one can only find in the Hopkins science department. This intensity has clearly paid off, manifesting itself in the form of a 13-0 win at the Stevens Institute of Technology Invitational on Jan. 29. Put simply, fencing tournaments work as follows: each school brings their squad to the meet, a squad being made up of three fencers, plus one alternate. There is a different squad for each weapon - a Sabre, a Foil and an Epee - and each member of the squad participates in three rounds of fencing with three bouts within each round. Essentially, as Stafford puts it, "everyone fences everyone." Stafford's record of 13-0 at this tournament means that he fenced 13 people and won 13 times. What makes this accomplishment more notable, though, is Stafford's "unorthodox style" of joining the team, as Head coach Austin Young noted. Many notable collegiate athletes have grown up on their sport with a pacifier in one hand and a lacrosse stick or baseball in the other. Some may have even swam before they could walk although one would hope not. Stafford, however, began fencing "winter of my freshman year of high school," he said. He went on to explain that it was not for his high school team. "I did it only at the local fencing club, three nights a week for a couple of hours," he explained. To many athletes, three nights a week for a couple of hours is almost nothing. Many spend hours daily perfecting their game and still don't see similar success. As a serious student, though, Stafford simply does not have time to spend the extra hours each day. "Homework keeps me occupied a lot of the time," Stafford said. He paused for a moment and corrected himself, "Fencing and homework keeps me occupied a lot of the time." Coach Young reiterated this point. "He's a serious student ... He spends most of his time coding. That's the impression I've gotten." So, between coding, physics, mathematics and his membership in the Society of Physics Students, there's not much time for additional hours of individual practice. Clearly, though, Stafford has had his share of experience; at least enough to have competed with all three weapons and attend several national tournaments, both of which he had done before enrolling at Hopkins. But, of all the weapons he's tried, his current one, the Foil, remains his favorite. "I enjoy the kind of problem solving it involves," Stafford said. This brand of problem solving, he explained, was different than with the Sabre or the Epee. "You have to work under the 'right of way' rules to get the points. . .[which] basically means you have to stay in control of your actions." If you hit the wrong spot - an 'undesignated area' - the match is stopped and reset. Foil fights differ from Epee fights, in that the Foil rules require that one must hit their opponent with the tip of the sword, and in a designated area. A button on the sword's end will complete an electrical circuit and set off a buzzer signaling a hit. This is the 'right of way' Stafford was referring to - hitting an undesignated area signals a loss of control and a breach of the 'right of way' rules. The Epee fights, though, do not require a hit in a designated area - the entire body is fair game. They simply require that the hit be made through contact with the blade's tip. Anything else won't count but neither will it stop the match. Thus, there is no 'right of way' in Epee fights. Finally, the Sabre counts a point for any hit above the waist by any part of the blade. It also does not have 'right of way.' Whereas one "only has to worry about hitting the opponent" with the Sabre and Epee, Stafford said, the foil involves "outwit[ting] your opponent in a different way." In addition to trying different weapons, Stafford has also played a few other sports. Stafford recalled that he played baseball "for a number of years," and hockey until "everyone else got a lot bigger." He never had serious aspirations for either sport. It didn't seem to concern him very much, though. Between fencing, a rigorous course-load and coding on the side, there's not time for much else; except, maybe, the occasional game of chess.
Men's wrestling ended their regular season on a high note, after many members would consider the early part of the year to be a disappointment. Several key wrestlers suffered injuries early in the season, which played a significant part in the team's struggle to a 6-15 overall record. "It all really comes down to the conference tournament this weekend," sophomore Matt Fusaro said. "We have most of those guys back from injury, so I'm excited to see how things turn out on Saturday. "Our goal since the beginning of the season has been to win the Centennial Conference Tournament," Fusaro continued. "I am very confident that we will achieve that goal." This past weekend, on the 28th, Hopkins Men's wrestling went 2-1, with two convincing defeats over Scranton and Muhlenberg and a loss to NYU. The Jays pinned the Royals, 45-0, and the Mules, 42- 18. NYU, however, got the best of the Jays, 24-15. The team hopes that these results will be indicative of upcoming matches, that it can find its feet over these last few weeks. Men's wrestling very much has its sight set on the future, as this young team moves towards the playoffs and towards building themselves up for next year. "We're looking to be two-time conference champions by the end of next season," Fusaro said.
The men's and women's swimming teams had a prolific four days at the Bluegrass Mountain Conference (BMC) Championships held last weekend at Wingate College in Charlotte, N.C. The men's team placed third overall with 520.5 points. The team was behind host Wingate (714 points) and Queen's University-Charlotte (565 points). On the women's side, the team claimed the top spot and their second consecutive BMC Championship with 818 points. It is the women's fifth firstplace finish in the BMC Championships. Sophomore Taylor Kitayama was named BMC Swimmer of the Year, as well as The News-Letter's Athlete of the Week, and Head coach George Kennedy was named Coach of the Year. In addition, the women's team collectively earned 10 conference titles and broke eight school records. The men's team finished day one of the Championships in sixth-place after a third-place, 6:46.97 finish in the 800 Free Relay by junior Nick Schmidt, sophomore Will Kimball, freshman Ryan Cunningham and junior Dylan Coggin. On day two, though, the men's team moved into third-place and stayed there, finishing up days three and four in third place as well to earn the bronze. On day two juniors Carter Grisriel, Tyler Woods and Coggin, along with sophomore Anthony Lordi, swam the 200 Free Relay in 1:21.75, a school record and NCAA B qualifying time. The men had continued success in Championship relays the following day, when sophomore Joe Acquavia, senior Tim Nam, Grisriel and Woods finished second in the 200 Medley Relay. Woods and Schmidt also clocked in NCAA Provisional times in the 100 Fly. The men's team followed this accomplishment up with more NCAA Provisional times from freshman Dylan Davis in the 100 Back (50.83) and Cunningham in the 400 individual medley (4:06.23). Cunningham took home the bronze medal in his event. Sophomore Alex Polyak placed second in the 200 Breast with an NCAA Provisional time of 2:04.81. He was closely followed by his teammate Nam, who finished third with an NCAA Provisional time of 2:06.54 The men's team closed out its Championship meet with one last NCAA Provisional time, a 3:02.6 in the 400 Free Relay set by Woods, Kimball, senior Eddy Zandee and Grisriel. It is the fifth fastest 400 Free Relay time in school history. The women's team had similar success to the men's, especially in the relays where the team swept all five relay titles. The women opened up their Championships by breaking two school records, one in the 1000 Free and another in the 800 Free Relay. Junior Cathy Howard finished third in the 1000 Free with a time of 10:25.73 to set a new school record, while senior Elizabeth Rogers, sophomore Alex Ladd, sophomore Sarah Rinsma and freshman Ana Bogdanovski claimed first in the 800 Free Relay to set theirs. Sophomore Kylie Ternes, Bogdanovski, Kitayama and Rogers swam the 200 Free Relay in 1:34.97, a school and meet record time. Rinsma swam the 500 Free in 4:56.81 and took first place. Rogers set another school record in the 50 Free, placing third with a time of 23.07. The 400 Medley Relay team of Kitayama, freshman Sammi Fox, freshman Kylie Holden and Rinsma then swam for the second fastest time in school history with a meet record of 3:49.68. Soon after, Kitayama paired up with sophomore Cristina Cusumano, Holden and Rogers to defend the 200 Medley Relay title, swimming a school-record time of 1:43.93. Kitayama also won the 100 Fly with a time of 56.03 and the 100 Back with a time of 55.09. Her 100 Back time is an NCAA automatic qualifier time. School records continued to fall, as Rinsma swam the 200 Free in 1:50.60, finishing second. Bogdanovski and Ladd finished third and fourth, respectively, in the same event. Freshman Maggie Storm took home her first individual title with a 1:04.67 first place finish in the 100 Breast. It is the second fastest time in school history. Bogdanovski swam an NCAA Provisional time of 51.24 in the 100 Free and finished second. She was followed by Rogers, who finished third. Storm finished fourth in the 200 Breast with another NCAA Provisional time of 2:23.07. The women's team concluded their Championships with a first place finish in the 400 Free. Ternes, Rogers, Rinsma and Bogdanovski swam a 3:27.50 race, an NCAA Provisional time and the third fastest time in school history. Junior Casey Navin was very impressed with the way the team performed and the amount of girls who contributed. "I think the girls showed how versatile, talented and deep our team is by winning the meet by more than 200 points," Navin said. "Everyone worked so hard this past year and winning the conference title was definitely the cherry on top of a great season." Both teams will compete in the NCAA Championships, Mar. 21-24 in Indianapolis.