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VOL. 62 NO. 10 MERCYHURST COLLEGE, GLENWOOD HILLS, ERIE, PA 16546 THURSDAY, DECEMBER 8,1988Admissionstougher,QPA'shigherBy Margaret CoffeyMerciad staff reporter

The tougher admission's policy coincideswith the higher QPA 's of fall 1988 freshmencompared with freshmen of a year ago.According to director of freshman studiesBobPagni, the tougher admissions standardsare seen in reshmengrades rom he fall term.In a larger class size,fewer reshmenhave aQPA below 2.0 and fewer have below 1.75.Fewer freshmen also droppedout after thefall term. Fifteen didn't return for the winterterm this year as compared to 21 who didn'treturn for last year's winter term, Pagni said.The fifteen 1988 freshmen represent fourpercent of the "traditional" freshmen en-rolled. According to I Pagniv a traditionalfreshman is a full-time student who is not anadult student t Last year's traditional fresh-men represent 6 percent who didn *t return forthe winter term. |

Besides a change in the admissionpolicyfor reshmen, he registration system has alsobeen changed. Registration was held in Sul-livan Hall in November instead of the BlueRoom, which was subdivided into class-rooms making it impossible to register there.According to registrar Bonnie Hall, amaze of tables in Su llivan Hall guided trafficflow. This "ima ge effect deflected the rushofpeople, Hall said, making registration mucheasier and more organized. fMany students commented positively onthe new registration process. Hall also saidregistration turned out well. There were nomajor problems with registration and manyold problems were solved. |Even thenew calendar system o f havingafloatingcourse didn'tpresent any difficulties, according to H all.Registration was also made easier byhaving die entire adult college process takeplace in the adult college office. Hall said.

One last timeA GR OUP OF friends (from right) Sharon Biss.Sean Hennessy\ Beth Savolsfas an d TomStilley enjoy one of the last warm days of fall.Academic Celebration will kick off new yearBy Michelle BushMerciad staff editor

Students get a two-day vacation but theyare still expected to attend seminars on cam-pus. . ,Mercy hurst begins its third annual Aca-demic Celebration on Monday night, Jan. 30and closes classes on Tuesday* Jan. 31 andWednesday, Feb. 1 to hold a variety of pres-entations for the Mercy hurst Community.* "Although there are no classes, we en-courage and expect full participation by asmany students and faculty aspossible," assis-tant to the president David Palmer said.

Hie academic celebration willspeakers, films, demonstrations, debates,workshops, panel discussions and perform-ances, according to Palmer. } -j vThe college's goal for the celebration is tomake learning enjoyable. "The goal hasalways been to make the celebration intellec-tually stimulating, 5 provocative and fun,"Palmer said.Thepresentations for this year's celebra-tion aren't confirmed yet, but Palmer gavesome examples of possible features:-Him on racism ! r--Special showing of Our Town

-Polish film festival |-Presentation o n El Salvador |-Speaker on women's issues-Wine and cheese tasting event-Dance performance 1-Presentation on local, state and nationalenvironmental p roblems-Social science students* forum-Panel discussion on drug abusePalmer explained what preparations are

needed to produce this mixture of seminars."It is a matter of soliciting recommendationssee C e l e b r a t i o n , pg. 2

Snyderreleasesbook

By Maria KellyMerciad staff reporterCollege professors have a great deal ofwork correcting papers, taking classes andmaking up tests, but some still find time towrite and publish bo oks. iDr. Mary Hembrow Snyder of theReli-gious Studies department had her book, TheChristology of Rosemary Radford Ru-ether: A Critical Introduction publishedOctober 1988 . * } |The book is about the christology ofRuether, who is a leading Catholic feministtheologian in,North America. Ruether'schristology, according to Snyder, is a study ofJesus as die Christ and how dieChrist symbolhas been used to justify op pression against theJews, women, thepoor and the environment

At the same time she offers an alternativeview of Jesus as the Christ, which she bases onthe synoptic gosp els, Snyder said.The main argument on the book, accord-ing to Snyder, is that if Christology is funda-mentally ro oted in the historical Jesus ratherthan some philosophical work view , it wouldbe more authentic and more liberating for thesuffering people in our world today. 1"My idea for the book came from twoplaces,'* Snyder said. J'First, it cam from myown struggle with the question of what itmeans to say I believe in Jesus Christ in asuffering w orld as ours is today.""And second, it came from my study ofRuether's Christology," Snyder said.According to Snyder, thebook was very gsuccessful in answering some of her ownpersonal questions about what it means to be |

a Christian in today's world."Writing the book has helped meclearly understand that there is an absoluteconnection between what I say I believe aboutJesus Christ and how I relate to other peoplein light of that belief, especially the poor andsuffering among us," die said.Unlike many authors, Snyder didn't havea hard time getting her book published. Aneditor romConnecticut, whoSnyder went toschool with, showed interest in her book."He said he couldn't prom ise anything, buthe liked it and offered mea contract on Au g.23 ,198 7," Snyder said. IThis book isn't the only one Snyder in-tends to write. "I definitely hop e to writemore and continue my research, which willenable me to be a better teacher," she said."Teaching is my first love."

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PAGE 2 The Mertiad DECEMBER 8,1988

Part 1 of a 6 par t seriesMusic major Frankenburyadmires Edwin Moses

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By Holly Fulmer pMerciad staff reporterr The older I get, I see it doesn'tmatter whether or not you're in thelimelight; it's whether ornot you'vereached those around you,'' sopho-more Robert Frankenbury says., i | . Majoring in piano performanceand minoring in voice, Frank-enbury was interested in takingpiano lessons at age 3, but growingup in St Louis left him withoutaccess to a q ualified piano teacher.He began performing aroundage 11, singing in his church choirand participating in band and ch o-rus. In addition to piano and sing-ing, Frankenbury also p lays saxo-phone and is currently playing bas-soon in the Wind Ensemble^oncampus.In die future, Frankenbury saidhe and several of his friends plan tostart a jazz band,Classical music and jazz are a

few of Frankenbury's favorites. H ealso enjoys groups such as Breatheand Sting. * 'Experimental music isinteresting," he added, explainingthat he enjoys it because of its me-lodic form. vNo matter what type of musicFrankenbury listens to, he appreci-ates it if it's good. "If it's good I likeit, if I like it, it's good ."According to Frankenbury, pi-anist Toscanini is one of his favor-

ites and he admires him for hi*musical expression in opera as wellas piano. |Talented musicians,aren't theonly receivers of Frankenbury'sadmiration. Becau se Frankenburyran cross-country and track in highschool, he respects runner EdwinMoses and says he feels he canrelate to him. IFrom Toscanini and Moses,Frankenbury learned, "No matterhow much it hurts sometimes, itdoesn't mean you give up."Despite the temptation to giveup when frustrated, Frankenburysays he sticks!to his music. "Iwould like a good foundation inpiano," he says.With his foundation in piano,Frankenbury says he wants to enterthe D'Angelo Competition whichis held each summer. Every thirdyear the competition revolvesaround piano and this year he sayshe hopes to win. "All you can dois try,'' he said.Frankenbury's 'future plansinclude conducting and opera. Inorder to"complete these goals hehas to travel/ "A certain magni-tude draws me to do so in Italy," hesays.

The older*i|get, I see itdoesn't matter whetherornot you're in the lime-light; it's whetheryou've reached thosearound you.i Robert Frankenbury

According to Frankenbury, amusic career d oesn't u sually pro-vide excessive wealth Ibut hedoesn't focus tooimuch on thematerialistic aspect of it. Hedoesn't like to hear a musician whodoes either. "I don't care to listento a performance by someone w hod o e s . " J jg ^ ; ^,1 Music isn't a career someonechooses Frankenbury says."Music is a career that choosesyou." i

Academic Celebrationfrom academic departments, manyof which are presentations by ourown faculty and many authoritieswho are experts in agparticularfield,' * he said. IThe good turnout for die previ- jous academic celebrations have'convinced the college to make thisan annual even t; "In the past twoyears this celebration h as turned outtobe very effective and we've beenencouraged to repeat t every year,9 *

Palmer said. iThe head count of those partici-pating in last year's celebration was2,723, according to director of ex-ternal affairs Mary Daly.This head count also includesthe public, whoare invited to attend.According to D aly, promoting thecelebration to the Erie community is"delicately handled,** because aproblem of seating space will occur

Coping with winter term stressPressure brought on by the rig-ors of college life can keep studentsfrom performing at their best andcan cause physical pain- unlessthey know how to overcome it,according to sports psychologist,author and authority on humanperformance and pressure, RobertKriegel, Ph.D., who spoke at theAssociated Collegiate Press annualconvention in Atlanta, October 28,about overcoming the pressures ofcollege. The convention was at-tended by threeMercyhurstand fiveGannon students. IThe severity of pressure andpain among young people aged 18-24 was documented by the land-mark study on pain, the Nuprin PainReport, Kriegel said. The reportconcluded that more young peoplesuffer from pain than people in anyother adult age group.Kriegel said there are practicalways for students to perform, ratherthan buckle, under stress.

xiety over exams, movingto a new area or strained relation-ships leave little opportunity forcollege students to escape stress,which in turn causes pain,'' K riegelsaid. "To be successful in such ademanding environment, studentsmust learn how to cope with pres-sure and make it work for them.''To control pressure and stress,Kriegel suggested that students askthemselves four questions: "Whatis in my control in this situation?"What are my strengths in this situ-ation?" "What do I want to accom-plish?** and "What do I have to doright now?" '/ !He reminded students that theycan not control other people, situ-ations or outcomes, but they cancontrol their own attitude and ac-tions.4 'Knowyour strengths and limi-tations. Identify what you do knowand can do," Kriegel said. He alsotold * students to set specific"stretch*' goals thatare challengingand motivating, but not to set"strain** goals thatcan cause panic."The mind can only concen-trate on one thing at a time. Focusyour attention on the task at handand you w ill finish it faster, easierand with more quality," he said.

i- Some pain can foe avoided bychanges in lifestyle, Kriegel noted.The Nuprin Pain Report docu-mented that heavy drinkers have ahigher prevalence of pain than lightdrinkers, and light drinkers have ahigher prevalence of pain than non-

continued from page 1as the event gains popularity.Despite its expected growth infuture years, the college intends tostay focused on the primary reasonfor beginning the academic celebra-tion. "Mercyhurstlas a collegeought to have a responsibility of notonly showing the excellence of itsown people, but ought to be a placewhere interesting matters of thedaycan be discussed,' * Palmer said.

drinkers, he said.Also, heavy television > view-ers "couch potatoes** are morelikely to experience headaches,backaches and joint pains than non-viewers. ;Kriegel suggested that studentsdo regular stretching exercises, likerolling shoulders, bending andreaching, to relieve tension-relatedpain. "Tension and pain can inter-fere with your ability to thinkclearly,** he said. "When you'renot thinking clearly your perform-ance suffers, you begin to feel de-pressed and you fail.'' Inevitably,this will increase stress even more.Kriegel, author ofTheC-Zone:

Peak Performance UnderPressure, (Doubleday 1984) hasspent the last 16 years exploring,developing and applying the mostadvanced strategies to help peoplereach peak performance. His ap-pearance at the Associated Colle-giate Press Conference is part of anational colleg e tour sponsored byNuprin.To remind you how to performatyour best, Kriegel and the makersof Nuprin have \ developed! a4 'pocketcoach*' of ips or combat-ing pressure and pain. For a freecopy of the j.Nuprin. Pain ReliefGuide, write to Nuprin, P.O. Box14160, Baltimore. MD 21268.

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DECEMBER 8,1988 The Merciad PAGE 3% ; . t

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Copeland's program putsplayers before victories

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By M atthew J. ClarkMerciad Sports EditorThings don't always work out theway you planfthem. The popularphrase is quite appropriate in describ-ing what first-year head basketballcoach Dr. Barry Copeland and theLaker men's basketball team have hadto face in the early going o f the 1988-

J 89 season. % *Less than a month ago, the outlook for the Lakers was promising.While only a few recognizable names returned to the squad, it wasobvious that the amount of talent Copeland had brought in, combinedwith the returning veterans, would be enough for the Lakers to becompetitive with whomever they faced. ! i Then, things seemed to unravel a bit Junior's Phalon Bass andPatrick Odhiambo were declared academically ineligible and shortlythereafter,Senior forward Eric Franos and Freshman guard Tim Timkosuffered injuries which have hampered their play."A number of circumstances put us in a position that we didn't quiteexpect," Copeland explains. ''With the injuries to Timko and Franosand the academic situation with Bass and Odhiambo, we literally had tochange our offensive and defensive strategies overnight" f fCopeland says that the loss of Bass and Odhiambo and the injuriesto Franos and Timko have hurt the Lakers offensively and defensively.On offense, the Lakers lose the outside scoring threat in Bass.According to Copeland, this has forced the Lakers to usea great deal ofpatience and intelligence offensively, instead of attacking the opposi-tion. Copeland mentions, too, that the Lakers have lost some quickness.On defense, with fewer players off the bench, the Lakers can illafford to get into foul trouble. % * J * | 1 i -4This has forced the Laker defense to use' 'controlled aggression asopposed to risk aggression" and to be a containment-type defenseinstead of one that creates opportunities. (Despite all the problems, and a 1-5 start, the players have kept apositive outlook. i S i ^ei"The players* attitudes are exemplary," Copeland says. "They'reworking hard." V. } * \ ; tCopeland says that he's gotten feedback from around campus thatthis team has shown more effort and team spirit and hasa higher moralethan any seen at Mercyhurst in recent years.Of course, the Lakersiwill have to get along without Bass andOdhiambo indefinitely but Copeland says the team will weather thestorm. j * VOf Bass and Odhiambo, Copeland contends that the coaching staffsmain interest is in making sure they graduate and receive a degree andnot their eligibility. ' - "Our interest is in helping them earn an education and if thatincludes playing basketball, fine," he says. j"But they're? here foracademics." 'V- *Copeland says the Lakers are feeling the strain of this policy rightsnow in the won-loss column."In the long run, the people of Mercyhurst will understand that wehave a priority system and we expect our people to live up to thatsystem. |The coaching staff is evaluating theday-to-dayprogress of BassandOdhiambo until they see enough improvement that they'reconfident theplayers' troubles in the classroom have been alleviated.**^As for on the court, Copeland says that the Lakers will have to doa better job of adjusting to the team's "new style'' of play.In light of all that's happened, and the fact that Copeland is a first-year coach in a city that loves its collegebasketball, I think Copeland andhis coaching staff is to be commended for their handling*'of theacademically ineligible players.With the pressures to win in today's college game, an organizationwhich puts the people first in its program should be applauded.Copeland and his staff wants to make sure that their players are preparedfor life after basketball; Unfortunately, too many schools today succumb to those pressuresto win and start breeding basketball players who know little else buthoops and hardwood. It's encouraging to know that Mercyhurst is notone of those "basketball player factories" whose players win on thecourt, but fall short in the classroom and short in life.4 'I hope all coaches are trying to graduate all their student athletes,"Copeland says. "It's an obligation." >

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PAGE 8 The Merciad DECEMBER 8,1988

Lady Lakers take tourneyshow great promise as winstreak reaches 4 games

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By Bill Darling,Merciad sports reporter ^This past Sunday, the LadyLakers accomplished somethingthey had never done before. Theywon a basketball tournament1 "This team has great charactershowing it's ability to win on theroad," head coach Luke Ruppelproudly states ashe displays die firstplace trophy from the Tri-CampusClassic.By upsetting Utica Sunday, 61 -55, the Lakers improved their rec-ord to 4-2 and kept their winningstreak going at four games.Tournament MVP LisaMaxsonexplains that the key to the Laker'ssuccess has been the fact that"Everyone has been playing wellwhich prevents opponents fromkeying on a particular player. Eachgame, a different player has had anoutstanding game which has meantequal scoring distribution through-out the team."*The primary reason for theirsuccess has been a tenacious man toman defense which has createdmany opportunities for a -youngoffense. The Lakershaveno seniorson the team and have relied on theerf Juniors Chris Kinlanand Lisa Maxson.Other players contributing todie team are Nancy Dilallo, Mich-die Tomczak, Becky Schmidt, andKelly Sullivan. i | :"Surprisingly, these girls arescoring in double figures, whileKinlan is leading die team in re-bounding with 11 per game. As ateam, the Lakers are averaging aphenomenal 73 points per gamedue

toa very unselfish attitude concern-ing their shot selection. $MRuppel praises the efforts of hisunderclassmen such as players likeRuth Henderson and Kelly Sullivanwho have made a big contributionsoff the bench. | | Other factors which have helpedthe team are the additions of newassistant coach es Jim Gray and BillPepicello. By having twoassistantsthere s is more time for individualhelp which enables Ruppel to de-vote more to bringing all aspects ofthe team together.

"This team will cut anopponent's heart out towin. - Luke Ruppel4 4T*>

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It's rewarding to have all play-ers working|well as a team andhelping out each other. This teamwill cut an opponent's heart out towin .The only problem this team mayencounter is staying healthy. Cur-rently, Danielle Lipps is out with aninjured back but will return soo n,while Maxson and Kinlan havebeen playing injured on a day todaybasis.The Lakers finally get a chanceto show off at the Campus CenterFriday against Immaculata. |iRuppel feels this team has thepotential to be a winner and the heartto stay a winner.

SCOREBOARDWomen's Basketball (4-2)W - Utica 61155 |W - Hamilton 59-53^ IW - Penn State 88-65 |W - Pitt-Bradford85-72 fL SUNY-Buffalo 85-83 (2 ot)L - California 75-63 1Men's Basketball (1-5)L - Edinboro 59-721L Clarion 61-64 W -^-Bradford 73-59L - WV Wesleyan 64-87L - West Liberty 78-95L - Indiana (PA) 79-6 2

Ice Hockey (5-9) i fL - SUNY-Cortland5-41W - SUNT-Binghamton16-3L - Slddmore 7-3l I | |L - SUNY-Ptattsburg 6-3W - SUNY Binghamton 14-0L - Canisius 4-2l|-KIT 7-5 IW-Navyfl3-2 L - SUNY Cortland 5-2W - Penn State 6-2L - G eneseo 7-SL-- Oswego State 7-2W-Ithaca 16-1L - Niagara (Canada) 5-3

L A K E R CENTER S C O T T Bwfoot (17)facesof fagainsta Rochesterfoe in a Nov.13 clash at the Erie CivicCenter. The Lakers, in theirfirstseason as a varsity hockey team, eventually lost the hard-fought game, 7-5.Lakers currently sport a 5-9 record. I p fr Photo by Kaien Sampson.

Lakers stumble at Edinboro. 72-59X.

By Kevin McHughMerciad sports writerDespite dominating the back-boards, the Lakers men's basketballteam lost to Edinboro 72-59 onMonday, leaving the Lakers with a1-5 overall record. The Lakerspulled down42 rebounds compared

to Edinboro's 27 but the loss of thetop scoring Phalon Bass impairedthe Laker's scoring resources.Bass, who had a scoring averageof 16 points last year, and newrecruit Patrick Odhiambo 6-8 havemissed all six Laker games becauseof "academic difficulties."Freshman, Tim Timko alsomissed the Edinboro game becauseof "a disciplinary measure" takenby coach Copeland. Timko com-mitted an act that "was not condu-cive to the philosophy of the Mer-cyhurst basketballprogram/'according to Copeland.The Lakers madea bright start tpthe season, wetting the appetite ofthe fans with a dunkingcompetitionwon by Bass, followed by an inter-team scrimmage. With the re-nowned new head coach Dr. BarryCopeland and his rigorous trainingsessions, expectations wererunninghigh for a winning season.Such optimism w as justifed by

the Laker's 77-71 exhibition vie-tory over Western Ontario =in the*Campus Center on Nov. 18 .*RichLipscomb, Dave Quin, Eric Franos,Chris Mindach and Phalon Bassmade up the first five. ? \Phalon Bass emerged as the'Hurst's leading scorer with 14points and Patrick Odhiamboshowed his worth with a score of 11.All was set for the season openeragainst the Indiana University ofPennsylvania in front of the Laker'shome crowd. However, it was theIndians wh o were to do the scalping.The game againstf Indiana, inwhich the 'Hurst suffered a 79-62loss, was played onNov. 22 withoutBass, Odhiambo and Timko. Bassand Odhiambo were ineligible toplay because of academic reasons,while Timko was out because of adislocatedfinger. *

ties at the start of the game did notplease theJ'Hurst supporters, thefans were subdued as they watchtdthe weakened Laker's team showsome shaky nerves, evident in themany turn-overs.

4We're trying our bestwith what we've* got...We're giving 100 per-cent.\ I Eric Franos

The sight of the three playerssitting on thebench in their shirt arid

Bass and Odhiambo have beensuspended "indefinitely" and"until they get their priorities intoperspective," according toCopeland. "The kids are workinghard. We have seen improvementbut we want to make sure that it islong term and not quick fix, " saidCopeland on Tuesday. 1 |Timko, however is scheduled toplay in the home game against Slip-pery Rock on Dec. 10. Copelandsaid that Timko's suspension wasnot because o fanything too serious.Despite the many setbacks bothcoach and team have an optimisticoutlook on thebasketball program.Copeland i s happy with die prog-ress o f Freshmen Dave Constantinoand Jeff Fink who have been given

an ear ly! chance to prove them-selves*Vinnie DiMella, who is|theLaker's top scorer with a 17 pointaverage, said' 'we're trying ourbestwith whatwegot" Eric Franos whois playing despite his injured thumbsaid "we're trying, giving 100 per-cent but we miss Phalon."

Lakers excited, Ruppel jpleased,* mpg. 7A couple of traditional fresh-man will also be making their co lle-giate debut at MercyhursL Both are

local prep products. |f AM All-Metro performer at StBenedict's,^ Cheryl Tomczak is awelcomed addition to the 'Hurst Inaddition to being honored locally,she received All-State HonorableMention honors as wdl.A wicked shooter, Tomczak canconnectfrom he three point line aswell. She will be an often-usedguard for Ruppel.Becky Schmidt, a formersport athlete for Cambridge Springs

High School, is another talentednewcomer joining the Laker roster.An All-Conference selection inboth volleyball and basketball forthe Blue Devils, Schmidt is obvi-ously a scoring threat after averag-ing 24 points per game last year.Together, with the rest of the'Hurst hoopsters, Coach Ruppeland Mercy hurst followers have a lotto look forward to this season.According to Ruppel, theteams' strengths win be the postplay, both offensively and defen-sively, as well as the perimeterquickness and shooting ability. In

addition, the third-year mentor isexcited because of the squad's fan-tastic work ethic and reachability."I have never, in my 12 years ofcoaching,had a team work this hard.Not only are they willing to work,but they enjoy working on improv-ing together as a team."The leadershipfrom hese cap-tains and the coaching staff hasresulted in what Ruppel calls "thewillingness of everybody to dowhatever it takes to make this pro-gram successful." |