With the final game against Franklin Pierce over and done with, UMass Lowell women’s basketball regular season comes to a close. However, before the team can move on, they must first take a step back, and reflect on the occurrences of 2009-10.

Ending with a record of 16-10, the River Hawks made large improvements over their eight-win season last year.

“We improved from last year. There’s always more to improve, but we’re happy,” said head coach Kathy O’Neil. “We took positive steps from last season; we doubled our wins.”

Although the team made big steps compared to the previous year, they still see room for improvement.

“We need to do better in the post, both offensively and defensively,” O’Neil said. “Taking better care of the basketball is a priority, as turnovers were a problem this season. We just need to be more consistent.”

Next year, the team will be losing five of their players due to the seniors leaving, and that will more than likely make next season much more of a challenge. These players constantly came through for the team, put up the numbers, and often were attributed to for the team’s wins this year.

“We’ll miss the senior class,” said O’Neil, “It’s going to be hard to make up for them with just one or two players. Everyone needs to step up and improve for next year.”

In no way is it up to just the returning players, though, as O’Neil is confident in what the new season will bring as far as new recruits go.

“We do have a couple of freshman who have signed up for next season, so they should be a big help,” she said.

Not only did the seniors supply UML with assists, points, and rebounds, they gave the team many aspects outside of the box score.

“They gave us confidence,” O’Neil said, “Good leadership from our captains Jen Valente and Krissy Little helped tremendously to make this season happen.”

This year also featured the head coach’s 400th career win, which had the media talking about the milestone, and how big of a personal achievement. However, to O’Neil, it means something a bit different.

“This season as a whole will be memorable because we want put the program back to its past successes,” she said, “The 400 wins just happened to occur in the same year.”

With a season like that, UML basketball can only think of ways to better themselves in preparation for what next season will have in store for them. And with their style of thinking, the program may eventually revert back into its former glory.

In a stretch where every point matters, UMass Lowell (UML) was able to go into the final weekend earning three more. A shutout on Friday and a comeback on Saturday would give the River Hawks crucial points in the push for the playoffs, and home ice advantage.

Through the help of senior Steve Capraro’s first career goal, and senior Carter Hutton’s tenth career shutout, the ’Hawks beat the Friars 4-0 Friday night at the Tsongas Center.

At 3:25 in the first period Capraro was able to get a shot through a crowd, and past Providence goaltender Alex Beaudry to pick up his first career goal in 103 games. The goal would also prove to be the game winner.

“I can’t tell you too much about,” said Capraro. “I just fired it, I found the lane, and the puck had eyes. It’s a good thing for me.”

The ’Hawks were able to open up that lead in the second period with three goals in a stretch of just over six minutes. Scott Campbell, Chris Auger, and Jonathan Maniff were all able to find the back of the net, and give the ’Hawks the 4-0 lead.

“It was a pretty thorough performance from our guys. I thought we played hard,” said Head Coach Blaise MacDonald. “They have some talented players, but we just stuck to our game plan, and it worked out for us.”

That would be more than Carter Hutton needed. Hutton stopped all 30 shots he faced en route to his fourth shutout of the season.

“It is always nice to get the shutout and things like that, but the important thing is we picked up two big points,” said Hutton. “We are in a race to get home ice, and everything is so tight now those points are huge.”

Penalties would not play much of a factor in the game as only four were called the entire game, all in the first period.

“I thought both teams played hard and smart,” said MacDonald. “I thought that both teams played with a good amount of intensity and respect.”

While there were few penalties, there were plenty of shots. The ’Hawks would tally 51 shots on goal Friday night. Their 38 shots through two periods would pass their season average of 19 shots a game. It would still not come close to their all-time record of 69 shots on goal on Nov. 23, 1972.

Saturday the ’Hawks found themselves down 2-0 early in the first period. After a power play goal by Scott Campbell, and a laser shot by Kory Falite in the third period the ’Hawks were able to tie the Friars 2-2 at the Schnieder Arena.

The ’Hawks conclude the regular season this weekend with two games at the Tsongas Center against Vermont. The ’Hawks have had success against the Catamounts in recent matchups, going 3-0-1 in their past four games. They have struggled at home against Vermont, as the ’Hawks have not beaten them at the Tsongas Center since Mar. 4, 2006. Both games are scheduled to start at 7:00 p.m.

Although it may have been the last home game of the year, their season still continues. The River Hawks men’s basketball team defeated Assumption College 91-79 in the first round of the Northeast-10 tournament Saturday afternoon at Costello Gym.

The ’Hawks were able to secure the win with key turnovers, and solid outside shooting. Four players reached double figures in scoring.

Although they have had their struggles in shooting percentage this season, the ’Hawks saw great success with their outside shot. The ’Hawks shot 18-37 (48.6%) from the field, and 9-17 (53%) from three point range in the first half to go into halftime with a 14 point lead.

“That was my prayer,” said Head Coach Greg Herenda. “Last year we were a very good outside shooting team. This year we are 13 out of 16, but if we shoot it which we did today we have a great chance at winning.”

The success in the first half has been something that the ’Hawks have not been used to this season. Minus a quick rally from the Greyhounds towards the end of the half, the ’Hawks had the first half under control. With 4:10 left in the half, the ’Hawks saw themselves with a 20 point lead before Assumption attempted to make a comeback. Assumption would never have the lead in the game.

“We have to put two good halves together, and the first half has been our nemesis,” said Herenda. “This half we just put together a very good offense, minus the very end there.”

Along with the high shooting percentage, turnovers proved to be a key part in the ’Hawks victory. The ’Hawks forced 20 turnovers against Assumption, and were able to score 26 points off those turnovers compared to the 11 points by the Greyhounds.

The bench provided big help for the team as well. Freshman forward Matt Welch would tie a team high 18 points to go along with five rebounds in 19 minutes of play from the bench, shooting 6-9 from the field.

“He {Welch} is getting better everyday at practice, and he deserves the minutes he is getting in,” said Herenda. “His shooting has really opened up our offense.”

Kevin Carr matched Welch in points with 18, shooting 4-8 from long distance in 28 minutes off the bench. He would also add three assists. In total the ’Hawks outscored the Greyhounds 38-20 in bench points.

Senior Ali Kanaan led the team in rebounds with seven (four offensive) to go along with his 17 points as the starting center. Sophomore Kyle Caiola added 16 points, four rebounds, and seven assists including a couple circus shots to help seal the victory in the second half.

Saturday was the last game of the season at Costello, but Coach Herenda and the players hope there will still be several games left this year, as they hope to get a chance to shine in the NCAA tournament.

Becoming a UMass Lowell (UML) student involves experiencing the university’s lifestyle.

Transfer students have a chance at a fresh start.

The orientation process is used to assist the transitioning process to a higher education less stressful. It includes, but is not limited to, information on majors, where to find resources on campus, and involvement with clubs. Orientation is like a GPS. It helps you navigate through campus life.

Sade Jean-Jacques explains how she transitioned from high school to UML.

“Transitioning from high school to college wasn’t at all bad for me. I had many friends here at UML. I also became involved in the LHS Alumni Society and that eased my transition very well.”

The transition from high school to college is, however, different than transitioning from another university.

Unlike Jean-Jacques, I came to UML as a transfer student from Indiana University.

I thought my registration process was wonderful, because all I needed was a transcript and nothing more.

I did find it difficult to navigate around campus.

I got lost many times and I still do.

A transfer student does not know their way around.

“Getting around campus can be [a] little difficult, especially since UML is in the middle of a big a city,” said Joseph Zorokong, a recent transfer from Umass Amherst.

I worked my way into the UMass community. I also worked my way around with ISIS until I became an expert.

Personally I felt the difficulties of being a transfer student, but not everyone feels the same way.

Zorokong is content with his life on campus so far.

‘The first semester as a transfer student feels like your freshman year in a new school. Everything looked and felt really big, but things got a lot easier for me once I got used to the daily routine of going to school here,” said Zorokong. Transfer students often try to be involved with a variety of things on campus.

Jean-Jacques joined the LHS Alumni Society.

“I play intramural sports sometimes and I am involved in a couple of clubs,” said Zorokong.

Zorokong continued to describe his experience at UML, “I would say that my experience is just what I expected. If I had to put a number on it, I would give it a respectable seven. I would say that my transition is as smooth and as seamless as it could possibly be.”

Ask questions if you do not know your way around campus. Students and staff are always willing to help.

Silence spreads through the courtroom. The court is called to order and the trail begins.

No, this is not a scene from “Law & Order” or some other television courtroom; it is the setting of the Regional Competition for Mock Trial.

Preparation for this competition begins in late August when the case for the trial is released. This one case is given to all participating schools and is the only case that is worked on all year. The case is, however, changed every few weeks.

Each team is comprised of eight to ten members, who act out the roles of attorneys and witnesses. Teams have a list of 10 - 12 witnesses they are allowed to choose from.

All of a team’s preparation leads to one major competition, the regionals tournament that takes place every February. This is not, however, the only competition during the year. Before regionals there are a variety of invitational tournaments that teams are allowed to compete in. These tournaments give teams a chance to practice and evaluate the strength of their cases. It is also an opportunity for people to receive an award and have bragging rights.

The main competition, which takes place each February, is made up of three stages: regionals, super regionals and nationals.

In the regional tournament, each team competes in four trials. Each trial is against a different team and all are based on the same case. In two of the trials, a team plays the role of plaintiff/prosecution. In the other two cases the team is the defense.

These trials are a brutal battle of litigation in an attempt to win the ballots. There are two ballots per trial, eight ballots in all. The goal of every team is to win as many ballots as possible. The top eight of 27 teams move on.

Unfortunately, UMass Lowell was not among the advancing teams.

Cailey Watson, Pre-Law Society president, said, “Personally, I feel as though this has been our best team so far, but our record doesn’t show it.”

The majority of the current UMass Lowell Mock Trial team is young, but promising.

“By the time they are juniors and seniors, the score will reflect this,” Watson said.

Watson has many goals for next season. Firstly, she wants to win at least half of the ballots next year. Watson also wants to sharpen the skills of the young and coming members.

Furthermore, Watson believes that one of the reasons the team did not do so well is because of their public speaking abilities. This is one major issue she plans to work on. Watson wants to use video tapings and voice recordings to help the team work on this weakness.

Pre-Law Society and Mock Trial Advisor, Dr. Francis Talty, believes that there are many advantages to joining Mock Trial.

“The skills that you get at Mock Trial are applicable for almost any profession,” said Dr. Talty.

“Being able to analyze facts and apply rules, being able to speak on your feet extemporaneously, being able to deal with adversity in a logical way,” that is Mock Trial.

Dr. Talty’s goal for the future is reaching the National Championship, but he realizes that it will take a few years of hard work.

If you are interested in joining, do not think that you have to be a political science major. There have been students from many disciplines on the team, even a physics major.

For more information on Mock Trial, visit www.collegemocktrial.org.

Lowell’s own Hivesmasher has been, and will be, around for a while.

The band is close to celebrating their five-year anniversary, and after some new music and new members, is bigger and louder than ever.

We spoke to original guitarist Tyler Kingsland and recently-acquired drummer Tim Brault to find out what the buzz is on one of Lowell’s most beloved metal bands.

Hivesmasher is:

Dan Bolton - Nord Electro

Tim Brault - Drums

Tyler Kingsland - Bass

Justin Steele - Guitar

Jason Gibbs - Guitar

Aaron Heinold - Vocals

How long have you been a band? How did you meet?

Kingsland: We’ve been together 4 and a half years. Justin (guitarist) and our original drummer, Matt, met through some musicians exchange thing on the interweb.  They were both looking to play some metal.  Matt asked me to play bass, things started moving and we wrote two songs at the first practice.  One of which, In the Unholy Deserts of Arkansas, we still play.

What genre is Hivesmasher?

Kingsland: When people ask me my band’s genre, I tell them metal.  They usually expect to hear something different and are surprised… or upset.  For better or for worse, I like introducing us as our interpretation of metal.

Describe your sound in three words:

Brault: really f*cking loud

Where did the name Hivesmasher come from?

Kingsland: Basically, our original singer’s brother smashed a beehive for kicks and got stung numerous times.  With that as inspiration, the band’s name became Hive Smasher.

What makes you unique? What separates you from other bands in your genre?

Kingsland: I believe it has something to do with, in our current lineup more so than before, the many musical backgrounds we all come from.  As it turns out, we’ve all been around the block a couple times, and we all seem to be tired of the same musical motifs that rear their heads in so much of today’s [heavy] music. We’ve all seen/heard/played a lot of music and are probably all a little jaded at this point so we try, for the most part, to really carve our own grooves in the face of metal.

Brault: It seems like a lot of bands in the scene are either going for the heaviest mosh riff in the world, or the most technical string of riffs they can throw together. We strive to strike a balance between those two extremes, keeping the music both incredibly intense and primal yet musically intriguing and unique.

What song best describes Hivesmasher?

Brault: I think I speak for everyone in saying that we’re incredibly proud with how our new material is coming together. I think that “And They’d Thought We’d Forget” or “Vomitouch” would be the two songs to keep an ear out for live, but since they’re not recorded yet I’d go with “Sea of Durach” or our cover of “Don’t Stop Believin’.”

What is your biggest success as a band?

Kingsland: I believe that our biggest success is remaining pretty true, for the most part, to the original intentions of the band through all the lineup changes.  We get offered bigger gigs now and I appreciate that because I’ve dreamed about the whole rock star thing since I watched the Ninja Turtle rock band videos when I was 5, but rubbing elbows with people who have their faces in magazines isn’t really what gets me off about playing in a band.  It’s always gonna be more about the music for me.

Has your style changed at all from when you first began as a band?

Kingsland: I guess the biggest difference is that we embrace our individual influences a little more now which has lead to more eclectic and probably a more catchy sound.

Brault: I think that the sound of the band has evolved with the new members without straying too far from the original sound. Any lineup change will create some changes in the music, and that can either be a positive or negative affect. I wouldn’t have joined the band if I didn’t really enjoy their older material, but I think we’re constantly pushing the boundaries of what we can handle, and that is evident in our newer material.

Is there anything in the Lowell area that is unique to you as a band?

Kingsland: Lowell has a very different art scene than most places.  People are much more open to new and different things in Lowell, which has probably helped us find success here.

Brault: There are a good number of metal bands in the Lowell scene, and I feel like they’ve all got something unique.

Where do you see yourselves in 10 years?

Brault: Either running fortune 500 companies or lying face down in a ditch covered in vomit. 50/50 shot at either.

10 years is pretty far away- what about the near future?

The ditch seems more likely.

Check out Hivesmasher at their next show, March 13^th at Mos Eisley Studios in Everett, $10.00

Musical genius Butch Walker recently released his brand new album “I Liked It Better When You Had No Heart,” and it is his best album yet. A musician, singer, songwriter, and producer - Walker seems to do it all, and he does it all well.

Walker has revamped his music along with his bandmates, The Black Widows, to create a classic album of lyrical storytelling and skillful riffs. Walker does not censor his feelings or thoughts when writing songs; he says just what he feels and thinks, and the honesty of it is the beauty of it.

A couple of years ago, Walker dealt with the devastating loss of his home, his possessions, and all of the mastered songs he has ever made due to a wildfire in his California home, yet the musician has never let that set him back. He has taken the devastation from the losses to create something totally new and improved.

In “Ship in a Bottle,” Walker makes references to the wildfire when he sings, “Just wanna walk away from the ashes/ And take the fact that I’ve been burned/ And maybe let you know that I’m still standing.”
His music proves his strength and lets listeners know that nothing will bring him down and that he is still standing strong. The track “Don’t You Think Someone Should Take You Home” tells the story of a troubled girl, and the way Walker describes this girl will make you feel like, well, you should take her home.

Walker plays the acoustic guitar, and his somewhat sad voice sings “Her smile is like a jackolantern/ Trying not to cry/ She’s been living been living pretty hard/ Since her old man up and died a year ago.” This song, like all of the songs on the album, tells a story in a beautiful way.

Songs jump from melodramatic to upbeat, and all the differences in each song make for a great album. “I Liked It Better When You Had No Heart” is Walker’s most impressive album and will absolutely impress listeners. Walker is currently on tour and will be visiting Boston on March 13.

Recently, a team of researchers from UMass Lowell undertook the challenge of investigating teen prostitution. The investigative team consisted of Criminal Justice and Criminology Department Professor Linda Williams as director and Research Associate Mary Frederick, as well as Andrea Powell, executive director of Fair Funds Inc.

The report published last October, titled “Pathways into and out of commercial sexual victimization of children: Understanding and responding to sexually exploited teens,” was funded by the U.S. Department of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. The study thoroughly investigated teen prostitution, and was even able to talk to male and female youths in the Boston and Washington D.C. area about how they became involved with prostitution, giving them a change to tell their personal story.

Many of the youths interviews were homeless or ran away from an unstable family life, and because of this, the teens and the situations they are stuck in often go unnoticed. The interviews, however, also revealed how the teens were able survive and manage, and even grow in their lives with remarkable resiliency.

Through these interviews, the research explained the various pathways in a social and family context, a social service and law enforcement context, as well as a peer context. These are means through teens are enabled to enter the world of prostitution.

“One theme identified from analysis of youth narratives was a profound lack of supportive services provided when they were struggling to survive – as one youth put it- ‘survive life,”’ the report explains.

The report also highlighted various coping strategies that the teens were employing, including finding a romantic partner for support, making a family of like minded youths to look out for one another, and even having their own spirituality.

In the end, it calls for harsher prosecution of the youths’ pimps, as well as the customers, as well as better services and training to help prevent homeless teens from following down that path. Overall, the situation needs to be taken more seriously.

The study begs society to realize that teen prostitution is a form of “sexual victimization and exploitation.”

“To understand why youth stay ‘in the life’ it is also important to understand these youth as survivors,” the report says.

Nursing student Katriina Bibbo believes that if this study gets enough attention, it may raise some much needed awareness.

“Hopefully talking to the teens will raise awareness of teen prostitution and people will want to help prevent it,” Bibbo said. “I think the fact it was published by someone at UML may get students here to notices, and I definitely think it will get students to pay attention and will want to do something.”

In the end, it can only be hoped that by chronicling the stories and words of these teen survivors through this study will help open the eyes of the public and truly raise awareness.

The movie, a 40 second coverage of a student rolling down a set of stairs in a wheeled trash barrel, has a record of over 50, 00 views on Youtube and College Humor.

Former residents Benjamin Nguyen and Christopher Addoretti recorded the amateur film in the basement of freshmen residence hall Bourgeois Hall in 2007. The subjects in the film, which includes five young men believed to be former residents as well, remain unidentified.

Nguyen said, “We were in the basement of Bourgeois and could hear some people in the hallway. We went to see what the noise was, and after we checked it out, got our camera. We never did get their names.”

According to Nguyen, the boys he overheard in the hallway seemed intoxicated and were attempting to perform comical stunts using materials around them. When Ngyuen saw that one of them was going to go off a ramp in a cart, he knew he had to get a video camera.

“It just seemed like something funny or awesome was going to happen,” he said.

Nguyen said that the main subject of the video, the student sitting in the cart, was a little reluctant at first.

“I remember them doing a few test runs just to see what would happen,” he said. “They pushed the cart off the ramp and then said ‘We can do this’.”

The final take of the stunt seen in UML Ouch! features the cart quickly rolling down the ramp catapulting the boy inside up into the ceiling. Initially after the accident, Nguyen says “That went completely wrong!”, the closing line of the video.

The ending of UML Ouch!, though considered comical to many, was not the original intent. Nguyen said physics was to blame.

“The boy was just following the ramp’s trajectory and it just happened.”

Though viewers can see the accident in the video, Nguyen said the aftermath was much more serious than it appeared.

“The boy’s face got caught in the ceiling. He swung off of it with his face, hit his head on the stairs and was knocked out cold for a few seconds. When he got up, his face was bleeding. A chunk of his nose was missing.”

According to Nguyen, the injured boys’ friends took him to the hospital to receive care. Following the incident, all involved in the project agreed not to discuss it for a while in fear of getting in trouble with their Resident Advisors (RAs). Nguyen stayed and helped clean the scene.

“I had to clean up blood off the floor. It was awesome,” he said.

Nguyen said that a few months later, one of the boys came to him requesting the video. After handing over a copy, he saw it online on websites. After further inquiring, Nguyen found out that the boys had sold the video he made for somewhere between $300 and $800 to a website.

“What annoys me most is that some one else is taking credit for it,” he said.

“My quote at the end, ‘that went terribly wrong’, was me, me, me. It’s my voice, it’s so bullshit that some one else is trying to take credit for it.”

Nguyen said that he is more upset over the fact that no one will know the video was the working of himself and Addoretti rather than not having a cut of the money.

“Honestly, it’s just a few hundred extra bucks. I don’t really care about that,” he said.

“I just hope the boy who got hurt gets a large cut of the money.”

Though Nguyen does not speak with the boys in the video, he does not regret the experience.

“I’m still glad we did it. I just hope people find out that the video belongs to me and Chris.”

“There’s parking!? You mean it’s not just a myth?!” exclaimed Daniel Macdonald. While it was apparent sarcasm, there are students who believe that parking in the UMass Lowell (UML) parking lots is nothing but fiction, between the times of 8 a.m. and 3 p.m.

Students want their voices heard and want to find a parking spot. People like Katie Shantler think that when students pay as much money as they do for a parking pass that they should be able to find a parking spot. This is actually one of the most common complaints voiced by students. Students ask why UML is still handing out parking passes when there is no parking.

“Everyone is always fighting for spots,” said Katie Shantler.

By merely walking around campus any student could find someone complaining about being cut off when they were about to pull into a spot. If students do not hear that story, however, it would not be surprising to hear a student recount a tale about cutting someone else off and thus finding a parking spot.

The complaints are all over campus. Parking is an issue; there are no questions about it.

“I do not ever even try to park on North Campus,” said Ashley Ellis.

Ellis continued by explaining that there are so many people who have class on North campus and so little parking that it is a competition to find parking on north and not be forced to park on south.

Kevin Chittick had also mentioned that “the design of the North campus lot makes it hard to park. When you’re driving around, a lot of the time you can’t see if anyone is coming.”

Manesine Rattanasak pointed out that “the first week of classes everyone was late and it was very frustrating.” Rattanasak noted that when students are still getting used to their schedule, not being able to find parking causes a variety of far-reaching problems.

“You have to come at least half an hour before your class to drive around and hopefully find parking,” said Steven Hazel. Essentially, a person’s school day does not start with a quiz or a paper in class, instead it begins with parking. Students truly are frustrated by the difficulties with which they face in regards to this issue.

Still other students are attempting to make the best of the situation and trying to have fun. While sitting in class they will gaze out of the window, completely ignoring the lecture, and search for the sight of a car driving through the parking lot in complete circles on an adventure to attempt to find a parking spot.

In the end of it all, students eventually find parking and head off to class. But, what is worse than being late because of parking? Showing up to class late and dripping wet, from head to feet. The recent downpours and brutal gales have been making some students hope that they do not find parking. It is an excuse not to get soaked.