Manhatatnville Men's Soccer Awards Banquet

On Friday the Men's soccer team gathered one last time to recognize the achievements and events of the season of 2008. With players, parents, coaches, and friends there to support the team and its success the night turned out very well. It was a great evening, with dinner and a presentation from the coaches, seniors, and captains. One of the players fathers put a presentation together filled with pictures and memories from the year that had past. It was great to see the seniors, Jerry Tellier, Louis Vilano, and Victor Feliciano one last time together with the team before they graduate. Me, being a Junior, and only one class below them had a special place at this dinner. They had been here since I got to school as a freshman, and its tough to see them leave. It was also great to see some of the other players receive awards and recognition for their season. Freshman Emil Sjolberg received rookie of the year honors for the team, while Freshman Keston George, the reigning league Rookie of the Year received team MVP honors. Unfortunately for me it marked the last year before I am a senior. Sitting in the back I began to realize this will be me next year. It only makes next year that much more important and I really can't wait to start up in the fall again.  Hopefully next years banquet can be as nice as this years was. It was really great to send the seniors out in style, and I can only hope my senior year will turn out the same as it did for them....only better!

Basketball Playoffs heat up

Incase you haven't been watching the NBA playoffs, the Bulls and Celtics series feels more like the championship series, even though its only the first round. Through 6 games there have been 7 overtime periods, and 4 different games had at least one overtime. It's like these guys can never finish in regulation. It certainly makes for an exciting series, having every game come down to the wire. In the latest game in Chicago, the Bulls won in triple overtime, 128-127. It seems in this series more than any other series the big players are really coming up big. Paul Pierce and Ray Allen for the Celtics are running the show, while Derek Rose and Ben Gordon for the Bulls are keeping up stride for stride with them, making these games such a battle. Derek Rose was the Rookie of the Year, but certainly has not been playing like a rookie. Derek Rose has shown what kind of a player he is, which is tough to do on a team like the Bulls with such history like Michael Jordan. The Bulls biggest task comes on Saturday night when they have to travel back to Boston to either win, or go home. Boston is an intimidating place, and a very difficult place at that to win in. It's always said to be an advantage to play at home, especially in a game 7. The only trouble with this series is not within the series, but within the rest of them. This series has made the rest of the playoffs seem less exciting or less important. Granted the excitement has been through the roof, it’s as if it should be the championship series and anything after this is only to disappoint the fans.

Manhattanville Men's Soccer Spring Season Comes to a Close

As the school year winds down, so does the Men's Soccer spring season for 2009. It was a busy spring, with lots of hard training sessions and tough, competitive games. We practiced Monday through Friday for about 4 weeks straight. We finally got a chance to play a few games when we traveled to Stony Brook University. We played three 50 minute games throughout the day while there. It was a decently successful day, beating Briarclife College 3-1, and losing to both Stony Brook and Manhattan Community College by 1-0 scores. It is hard to gauge your success as a team with loses, but its still very possible. Stony Brook is a very good division I soccer team, and as we are a division III team it was a good test for us. We played them extremely well, especially in the second half and besides the score there was not much to complain about. It just sucks because you always want to win, no matter who you play, but I've learned to start seeing the positive things when there are some. Its still a learning experience to play a good team like that and we did what we could. The spring was tough, but good for a lot of the guys on the team. Everyone made improvements and we made improvements as a team as well. Now we just need to see if guys do what what they need to do in the off-season to keep up for the fall. If they can, without a doubt we will be successful next year!

The Things People Will Do

Reading AOL news is a pretty easy way to find a strange news story. Take the woman who tried to sell her son, for example. How on earth could you justify selling your own child.

In the article this woman tries to sell her son for $10,000 to buy a new apartment. A NEW APARTMENT? I hope it was worth it. I'm not really sure how nice of an apartment you can get for 10 g's, but she must have really liked it to sell her kid. What can really be going through someones head to get rid of a child for a new place to live. Its amazing the things people will do.

How about the man who was killed after taking 30 nails from a nail gun to the head. The X-ray shows 30 nails through the skull of an Australian man. I understand that disecting the mind of a murder is hard, but to kill someone with a nail gun is weird, andto shoot someone THIRTY times is straight insanity. And to think that two children found the body wrapped up in a rug in the river bound by wire is a scary thought. Once again its amazing the things people will do.

The last weird news story from AOL comes out of Saudi Arabia. A Court has upheld a divorce via text message. In Saudi Arabia a man can legally divorce his wife by simply saying the words "I divorce you" three times. He was in Iraq at the time the text message was sent to his former spouse. Some marriage they must have had to divorce over a text message. I wonder what kind of phone he was using! Again, the things people will do.

Summer Approaching

Summer seems to be coming so quickly and with it, comes finals week. This is another great time of stress at school. People get all crazy during finals week and everything begins to get hectic. I think its terrible how these colleges make everyone stress to the point of insanity over a test. A test might I add, that can sometimes count for more than half of an entire grade for the semester. There are many factors that usually go into professors grades, and attendance seems to be a big factor, which I seem to disagree with. If I can not go to a class and still pull an A then why should it matter if I go? Sometimes going to class is a waste of time, there are certain professors who waste time talking about something completely unrelated to their subject area. Just another gripe about college, what else is new. That is why summer coming quickly is such a relief. I will certainly miss seeing everyone around campus, but I will not miss the school work or the late hours in the library. Senior year comes next... and then the real world. Looks like its gonna be time to bear down and focus on the future next year. 

Room Selection

It's that time of the year again when returning students have to start thinking about next year. What room will I live in? Who will I live with? These are only a few questions that come up when the room lottery and selection process begins. Personally I think the whole process is bull***t. This school makes up so many random rules just to make things complicated. Of course maybe if I got a better number I wouldn't be so angry about the situation. Anyone who has been at this school for more than a year knows what I'm talking about. They like to make everything so complicated with these little rules when things could just be much more simple. More so for seniors than anyone else is this process frustrating. Because I don't have a good enough number I have no chance of living in a single in founders. Even though my friends have good numbers , below 108 they still can't even bring me in because my number is above 108. Also the process of senior suites vs senior, junior, or even sophomore combinations is frustrating. Because I plan to live with my friends who are younger than me I have to wait almost a whole day to select my room, even though I am a senior with a decent number for a suite. Maybe I'm just bitter, but it seems like the same people always get the good numbers and I get the can. Maybe we'll see how angry I am about this after things work out for me. Who knows...

Quad Jam Approaching

Spring is on the way and it's the best time of the year. The weather starts to get nice and everyone starts to get excited for summer vacation. Spring is definately the best time of the year, especially at school. The weather starts to get warm and people start hangin out on the quad. You'll notice walking around campus during April and May more and more people start hangin out outside. Classroom attendance goes down and quad attendance goes way up. This is also the time for Quad Jam, the most exciting event of the school year. Not only does it mark the end of the semester but it is the one day where everyone gets together outside and just chills out all day. The moon bounces and the games and drinks and food attract everyone out to the quad. There is usually atleast one sporting event on campus on this day as well. This is an all day event that even runs way into the night. At night the performances on the stage on the quad are insane. Its just like a concert outside at our school. This year the rumor is Pitbull is coming, but we'll see. This will be my third Quad Jam as I am a junior, and they keep getting better and better. I have not met one person who does not like Quad Jam and this years is looking to be a good one.

MANHATTANVILLE WINTER SPORTS REVIEW

Four major sports teams finish up their seasons at Manhattanville College

In the upcoming week the winter sports season will come to a close. Amazingly for Manhattanville athletics, two of the four teams remain in the playoff race, women’s basketball and women’s hockey. This is a great achievement for the women’s teams and only enhances their programs.  Both men’s hockey and men’s basketball just recently ended their seasons with playoff losses.

Let’s start with the basketball programs. The Men's Basketball Team had a successful season, but just fell short. They finished with a 17-10 record going 12-4 in Freedom Conference play. The men played extremely consistent and explosive basketball going on three different four-game win streaks. Major wins included a thirty-point (AP) win over Eastern University and a season high scoring game where the team recorded ninety-two (AP) points against Medgar Evers College.  The team began their playoff run by beating Misericordia College at Kennedy Gymnasium by 2 points on February 14th. This started their final four-game win streak of the season and they would go on to become Freedom Conference co-champions. Manhattanville College and DeSales University would share the title with identical 12-4 records in conference play.

The Valiants would cruise through the first two rounds of the playoffs, only to meet their co-champion DeSales University in the championship game. At the last meeting between these two teams DeSales came out victorious with a four-point win. They not only won the game but would later find out they win the right to host the conference championship game. DeSales proved to be too much for Manhattanville’s squad shooting sixty percent from the floor. With the win DeSales received the automatic bid into the NCAA tournament. When asked about the season Manhattanville sophomore Peter Mehmel said:

We had a good run, but of course it wasn’t enough. We all wanted to get to the NCAA tournament, that’s what we play for. Every guy on this team played as hard as they could, and that’s all we can ask for.

            When a team doesn’t make the NCAA tournament but has a good season they are invited by a committee to play in what’s called the ECAC tournament. In a controversial move Head Coach Pat Scanlon denied the invitation and chose not to play. Coach Scanlon wants nothing but the NCAA tournament. The team sets very high standards and the ECAC tournament is not what they wanted.  The men’s team will have to look to next season for their next successful year.

            The Women's Basketball Team is currently enjoying a very successful season and is continuing their ECAC tournament run. At the moment the team is 18-10 and had an identical record as the men did at 12-4 in conference play. Their late-season play propelled them into and through the playoffs, winning their last 8 games before losing to DeSales University in the conference championship. By loosing to DeSales they lost their bid to the NCAA tournament.

            The women, unlike the men accepted their invitation to the ECAC tournament and played their first game on March 4^th. They beat a tough Centenary (N.J.) team 79-71 and advanced to the semi-final round match up. With the win they also won the right to host the final two rounds of the tournament on campus at Kennedy Gym. The semi-final match up will be held on Saturday March 7^th and the finals will be on Sunday March 8^th. The Valiants face Wesley College in the first match of the night, while Alvernia University will face Neumann College in the second match. The winners will then face off in the championship game on Sunday. Valiant freshman Kristina Ciotto said:

We are having a great run in the ECAC tournament. We’ve really come together at the right time in the season and I can only hope our success can continue. It’s great to come in as a freshman and have immediate success.

            Another team that has yet another good season is The Manhattanville Men's Hockey Team. The Valiant hockey team finished their season with a very good 16 wins, 4 losses and 5 ties. Their ECAC West record was 8-3-4 ranking them tied for second in the conference. They finished their season ranked number nine in the nation. They were only 1 of 2 nationally ranked teams from Manhattanville this season. Unfortunately for the Valiants rival Hobart tripped them up in the conference tournament as they lost 3-1. This halted their NCAA tournament dreams, but only for the moment. The Valiants still have the possibility of receiving an at-large bid to the tournament, given to teams deserving of the tournament but not winning their conference championship.

            One of many bright spots on the season was the accolade four Valiants earned at the end of the year. Senior Chris Trafford was named Conference Player of the Year. Trafford was the third Valiant in the past 4 years to receive this award. Junior Dillon Henningson received Co-Defensive Player of the Year, a new award given by the ECAC West conference. Junior defensemen A.J. Mikkelson named to the All-Conference Second team and freshman defensemen Dillon O’Hara received an All-Rookie team selection.

            Maybe the most successful team of the season was The Manhattanville Women's Hockey Team. These women finished their regular season 19-6-0 with a conference record of 17-3-0. They have already advanced to the conference semi-final match with a win over Castleton State. A big 5-2 win fills them with confidence going into their next game. Sophomore Holly Nonis said,

It’s a great way to start the conference tournament. A big win gives us some confidence but we have to keep the momentum going. It’s not going to be easy to win three games in a row, especially in this conference.

By winning their first round conference game, they earned the right to host the final weekend of the conference tournament. The Valiant squad must win their next two games to receive an automatic bid into the NCAA tournament.

            Like the men’s team the women also received numerous conference accolades. Nonis was named conference Player of the Year, giving the men and women’s hockey the league sweep of Player of the Year awards. Senior net minder Karine Turnel received Goaltender of the Year. Other awards included senior co-captain Erin Brawley receiving a First Team All-Conference selection and junior defensemen Sarah Fullerton being named to the All-Conference second team. Alex Blackwell, a senior co-captain also received honorable mention. Manhattanville was the most decorated team in the conference, receiving five awards.

            This winter season may have been one of the most successful in recent years. Having all four teams reach the conference playoffs is a great accomplishment and really boosts the school’s athletic reputation, and drives in more opportunities for better recruits. 

The Joys of Spring Break

As I sit here on the couch watching T.V. I realize how nice it is to be on vacation. The lack of responsibility and the time to relax really helps me gear up for the final stretch of the semester. I find it funny, my parents always tell me it seems like as college kids we go to school less and less every year and get more and more vacation time. Personally I don't mind it but my parents tell me they pay more for me to be on vacation than for me to be in school. This is a really good time to gather your thoughts and compose yourself in preparation for finals. For me, I haven't been home since Christmas time so it's really nice to get back and relax. I'm sure that everyone enjoys spring break, especially from some of the plans some of my friends have told me they have, going to warm places to sit on the beach, or cold places to go skiing and snowboarding. I chose to go snowboarding for the first time in a few years. As much as I love the warm weather I have always been into winter sports. Its so nice to get up on the mountain in the fresh air and away from everything around you. I just put on my iPod and cruise down the mountain. Hopefully this time will allow everyone to clear their heads and come  back to school ready for the end. It's crazy to think that I already have only one year left at school, and this break is one of my last. 

The Stresses of College

It seems that as I get older and older I realize the responsibilities and stresses that college brings. It's funny to think that in only a year I will be in the real world with a real job. I recently spoke to a professor of mine that said that it couldn't be that bad its only school, what else could be so bad. There are so many things that factor into your college life than just class. Yes this does seem to be my hardest semester yet, but other things stress people out as well. Speaking personally sometimes soccer stresses me out the most. I love the game and I love being on the team but dealing with that, school, and a social life can become very difficult. Somebody told me that it seems like as long as the social aspect of your life is going well everything else will seem to go well. I find this to be very true. If your social life is going well then classes will go well and in my case athletics will go well. The social aspect plays such a huge role in college life because, like it or not, that is what college is for, not just class. I'll admit everyone says they are here for classes but everyone knows there are a lot of other things we do here at school. This just seems like the best time to have spring break and allow everyone to unwind just a little. I certainly understand that I can not be the only one getting stressed at this point in the year, especially with midterms and tests this last week. Hopefully spring break can help us all!

Spring Season Begins

The Manhattanville Men's Soccer off-season is in full swing. We are currently training 4 days a week. The team lifts on Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays at 4:30 pm. On the same nights we have practice at 9 pm - 11 pm. The team goes over to Keio high school across the way to play in their gym. This is really the time where we get to just have fun and play soccer. Granted we want to gain from playing and produce good soccer but we can really kick back and enjoy it. We bring a boom box and listen to music as we make teams and play 5v5 .We also go Friday monrings at 7 am. It has proven to be a very demanding schedule and the guys are really pushing their way through it. I think its great that we can be so involved even in our off-season. The team plans to start practicing outside on the turf right after spring break. We will then practice for 3 weeks before we start playing our spring schedule in which we will play a tournament away from school. I love the off-season lifting and playing but the only thing I think about is the upcoming fall season (our real season). We are looking to really train hard and make great improvements this off-season as this is the time to do it. The guys have been really supportive of each other and people are really working hard to improve themselves, and the team. We have recently boosted the morale of the team by getting new practice gear. Guys are getting burned out and really need to have their morale boosted every once in a while. I think its a great thing to really get the guys motivated. Hopefully we can continue to improve.

Style

Style is always something that, in my opinion, makes or breaks a piece of writing. Style is how someone writes a story or new article. By “how” I mean what it looks like, or how it sounds. I would say that a good style captures the audience in any way possible. Of course a “good” style is a matter of opinion. I wouldn’t say however, that any two writers use the same style. Styles may be similar or extremely close, but I can’t say two people use the exact same style. I personally think I have my own style as I’m sure everyone believes they have a unique style. Someone’s writing style can either make a piece exciting or intriguing or can seriously kill an interesting piece of literature. Even the best content can’t survive bad style. Especially in English there are many different styles and so many ways to say the same thing. Its funny how there are so many words in the English language that mean the same thing. Certain words used in certain styles can definitely change how someone perceives the piece of writing. Style, I think, is all perception. I can think my style is extremely exciting and gripping, when someone else can think my style is extremely boring and hard to follow. Perception is everything, and if you can capture as many readers as you can then your style can be effective. You will never write in a style that pleases everyone or grabs everyone as readers, but certain styles match up with certain writing. For example when writing a sports article, an exciting writing style that dramatizes the action really makes for good reading.

NO Modifiers

It was a Monday night and I went to bed early knowing I had an early class the next day. My alarm clock went off the next morning, and I realized I was late. I jumped out of bed and raced to put my clothes on. I struggled to find everything in the dark as my roommate was still sleeping. I ripped my drawers open to snatch my books out of the desk. I found my hat as my hair was a mess and bolted out the door. I sprinted across campus and jumped through the doors to the building. As I was running through the halls I had to dodge other students and faculty in hopes of getting to my class as soon as I could. I glanced at my watch just before I entered the classroom and noticed I was ten minutes late already. I blasted through the doorway only to find the class had been cancelled.

Grammar

Throughout grade school grammar was one of the major topics studied in a class that was called “Language Arts”. Starting the class became very hard and it seemed that every time I handed in a piece of writing it came back to me with even more writing on it, usually in that notorious red pen teachers always use. After a while of learning the basics of grammar I thought I had it down pat, but every time I perfected a rule a new rule came out. This caused me to start hating grammar class; I perceived it as a very tedious process to remember all the rules. I also thought that these little mistakes really didn’t seem like such a big deal. My teachers tended to disagree with me. Punctuation was the worst. Missing one comma here or putting a colon instead of a semi-colon or a period meant the sentence was now grammatically incorrect. Two dots on a page can make a whole sentence wrong, which seemed stupid to me. This also made me start hating the teachers because it seemed like they were over examining my paper trying to find every little thing wrong with it. I thought they weren’t doing that with every student, just me. As the years went on and I finally learned to use grammar correctly (for the most part, or so I think) I have found that it is pretty useful. It also seems to be second nature now and I don’t really even have to think about it. It could be the fact that writing on a computer makes knowing proper grammar almost obsolete because the computer corrects your grammar automatically.

Academics

I grew up in Saratoga Springs, New York and attended Saratoga Springs High school. It’s a large public school of about 2,000 kids. Throughout high school I took mainly math and science courses, ranging from algebra to trigonometry and earth science to physics.





I never really knew what I wanted to be when I was in high school, so I took many different electives, in different fields of study. These classes included photography and architectural drafting. Not until I got to college that I finally realized that I would like to pursue a career in Marketing and Advertising. This is when I decided to become a marketing major and a communications minor in school. I would like to work in a sports marketing firm as I have played sports throughout high school and college. A job in marketing for a ski company or a soccer apparel store or team marketing would be ideal as those are the main sports I have participated in. This class will help me with my writing skills as writing applies to the field in many ways. Press releases and public relations writing will be a very important skill to have to become a well-rounded marketer. Even though I would like to be more on the creative side of marketing these skills can only help me. Marketing encompasses all the different media, broadcast, print, and digital. In the ever advancing technology in digital media I believe marketing will continue to use such forms as the internet, and e-mails to market products.