The climate strike that took place on Colorado State University’s campus Oct. 8 brought a variety of different causes together under a collective call for systemic change and radical action.

A season low: Bears suffer defeat against Huskies, Cougars

Lisi Ludwig/Senior Staff

Throughout the course of the season, the Bears have enjoyed occasional outbursts of complete, well-rounded play. As evidence of this, Cal women’s soccer posted four shutouts coming into the weekend, which was good enough to tie with USC for the top-four spot in the conference.

However, based on this past weekend, it now knows what it feels like to face disheartening and consecutive losses in the same state.

The blue and gold suffered perhaps their worst defeats of the season, falling to Washington and Washington State 1-0 and 2-0, respectively. These defeats marked just the third and fourth times that the Bears’ offense failed to put up points in a game (their last time came against Oregon just two games ago). As a result, Cal dropped to No. 8 in the conference standings after sitting in 6th place only one week prior.

Efficiency was the Bears’ undoing during their trip to the Husky Soccer Stadium. Only three of their 14 shots were on target, with two of them coming in the second half. Three different Cal players had shots go over the net, while several offensive players struggled to get going — to which senior defender Sydney Collins attributes to UW’s ability to effectively throw Cal off its game.

“We struggled at times to play, like, really tough, big, strong soccer,” Collins said. “We were forced to play outside of our styles and with that brought some new challenges.”

Making matters even worse was an issue that has plagued the Bears over the course of the year — for the third time this season, they allowed a goal in the opening 15 minutes. Washington’s goal came courtesy of fourth-year forward Summer Yates, who headed in a long kick from the near sideline by redshirt sophomore Helena Reischling.

The Huskies’ bend-but-don’t-break defense was able to hold off Cal’s rally via key stops in the final minutes, emphasizing the blue and gold’s ultimate demise. Washington goalkeeper Olivia Sekany saved a shot by Cal’s freshman defender Courtney Boone and the defense held on after a missed shot by sophomore hybrid defender and midfielder Skylar Briggs.

Although both games featured chippy play from the Bears, the effect of Cal’s fouls on both teams was no more apparent than in its loss to Washington State. Collins’ foul in the 34th minute set up Washington State midfielder Sydney Pulver’s penalty kick, which was rifled into the back right end of the net. In total, Cal committed 14 fouls, giving the team 26 through the two games.

“That’s something we’ve struggled with this year,” Collins said. “Part of that comes from being really aggressive and eager to win the ball back. We do have a really high pressing team that works really hard and so that translates to some fouls we don’t really need to commit.”

Before welcoming the Grand Canyon State to Berkeley for games against Arizona and Arizona State, Cal will conclude its three-game road trip with a visit to Salt Lake City for a battle against Utah. The Utes are coming off of a 7-0 drubbing at the hands of the Trojans, so both offenses are itching to get back in the scoring column. While the Bears failed to exorcise demons against the Huskies and Cougars, they should have an easier time against the Utes, whom they beat 1-0 back in March.

Despite an undefeated start, Cal has fallen back into the middle of the pack in the Pac-12. If it hopes to end a freefall in the standings, a victory in Utah is a necessity.

Ali Fazal covers women’s soccer. Contact him at afazaldailycal.org.

The Daily Californian

Women’s volleyball defeated No. 24 Colorado 3-1 Sunday at the Galen Center. This was USC’s first win against a ranked opponent this season. The final score was 25-19, 27-25, 20-25, 25-23 in favor of the Trojans. Before the victory Sunday, the Trojans suffered back-to-back losses against No. 15 Washington and No. 13 Utah last week. USC now sits at 7-8 overall and 3-3 in conference matchups. Here’s a rundown of the team’s status as it continues Pac-12 play. 

Impact Players

Graduate students middle blocker Candice Denny and outside hitter Shannon Scully were the game’s two heroes against Colorado. The two tallied 15 kills and 2 aces on Sunday. Denny also had three blocks and Scully had one. Graduate student outside hitter Brooke Botkin and junior opposite hitter Emilia Weske also contributed with 11 kills and 2 aces each.

Stat Leaders

So far this season, senior setter and team captain Raquel Lazaro leads the team with 440 assists and 21 service aces. Denny has the most blocks on the team with 41, followed by Weske who has 35. Scully has tallied the most digs with 192. Botkin leads with 231 kills, which is 101 more than Emilia Weske’s second-place total of 130.

In Comparison to Last Season

Right now, USC’s record is exactly what it was at the end of the 2020 season. The team already tied the amount of games that it won last year, but that is because of a shortened schedule due to the coronavirus pandemic. The Trojans also beat Colorado last season, doing so twice in a row to finish the 2020 season.

Next Up — Arizona State

The Trojans will travel to the state of Arizona for back-to-back away games against Arizona State and Arizona. The Sun Devils have had a similar season to the Trojans, sitting at 8-9 overall. However, their conference record is only 1-5, and they have lost six of their last seven games. The only Pac-12 opponent Arizona State has defeated is UC Berkeley.

Junior outside hitter Iman Isanovic has shined for the Sun Devils so far this season and leads the team in kills with 261. Last season, Isanovic was an All Pac-12 Honorable Mention. Both of USC’s games against Arizona State last year were canceled, so the Trojans haven’t played the Sun Devils since 2019, when they won 3-2 in Tempe. 

Next Up — Arizona

Arizona is a solid team that boasts an 11-6 record, but it is in the midst of a three-game losing streak. The Wildcats currently sit at 3-3 in conference play. Outside hitter Jaelyn Hodge is having a breakout season and leads Arizona with 206 kills, passing her total of 176 last season. Last season, USC defeated the Wildcats 3-2.

The post Women’s volleyball season continues with Pac-12 play appeared first on Daily Trojan.

The 125th Boston Marathon commenced in-person Monday for the first time in 910 days.

The Utah football team was not the only one to face the Trojans this weekend as women’s soccer took on the No. 11 ranked USC women’s soccer team Sunday afternoon.

The Utes entered the match with an overall record of 5-5-3, winless in conference play at 0-2-3. The Trojans touted an impressive record of 9-2-0 while also being undefeated in PAC-12 play at 5-0-0, sitting atop the conference.

Meanwhile, Utah was coming off an impressive tie with No. 3 UCLA just a few days prior.

USC controlled the game early and often as the Utes struggled on the attack. Just a few minutes in, Utah’s defense held their own not allowing USC to get a shot on goal for much of the first half. The match remained scoreless up until the 37th minute when USC’s Zoe Burns finished to the far post to give the Trojans an early lead.

The Utes went into the half only down 2-0, as they played fairly well defensively for most of the first half to keep themselves in the game. The Trojans would go on to score five more unanswered goals. The Utes’ first attempted shot did not come until the 51st minute.

Overall, the Utes only attempted three shots on the day, one of which was on goal. The Trojans’ attack was too much for the Utes as it was a pretty lopsided showing for USC who attempted a total of 22 shots, nine of which were on goal. This was USC’s 10th straight win which ties their program record.

As far as the individual performances in this match go, three Utes attempted shots. Baylie Jackson had the only shot on goal, with Avery Brady and Kylee Geis attempting the other two. Chelsie Peterson had three total saves on the day, and dealt with an all-out offensive barrage the entire match.

“Today was not our day, and all credit to USC for capitalizing on all of their chances and our mistakes,” head coach Hideki Nakada told Utah Athletics. “I liked how we started the game, and I thought if we could keep the game even going into the half, we could give ourselves a chance, and it was really unfortunate to give up those two goals in the last five or so minutes as we had no choice but to open things up in the second half. We didn’t have enough energy left after the double OT game on Thursday, and again all credit goes to USC today. We are looking forward to be playing at home and hosting Cal on Friday.”

This is Hideki Nakada’s first season as head coach of the Utes as he was brought on in May after being an assistant coach at powerhouse Stanford for the last few years. The team has flashed serious potential at certain points during the season with impressive ties against ranked opponents UCLA and BYU earlier in the year.

Looking ahead, Utah will be returning home to begin a three-match home-stand against Cal, Oregon State and Oregon. Utah will face Cal this upcoming Friday. Cal is tied for No. 8 in conference play at 1-3-1, while Utah sits at No. 9. Utah’s overall record is now 5-6-3 and 0-3-2 in conference play. The upcoming match will air on the PAC-12 network at 7 p.m. MDT.  After playing in LA back-to-back weeks, hopefully, Utah can regroup on their own home front as they close out their season.

b.wittwer@dailyutahchronicle.com

@WittwerBlake

The post Utah Women’s Soccer Comes Up Short Against No. 11 USC appeared first on The Daily Utah Chronicle.

Union negotiators returned to the table last month to continue bargaining with the University in hopes of negotiating a new contract that considers the various impacts of COVID-19 on employees and creates a more equitable workplace.

The two parties have been meeting frequently for day-long sessions to negotiate the demands.The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) represents clerical and some healthcare workers at the University as they negotiate a new two-year contract.

In an effort to encourage negotiations to continue at a faster pace, union leaders protested at the Oct. 7 Board of Regents meeting. They also held a rally in front of Coffman Memorial Union on Sept. 22.

“The University has been, I would say, a bit slow this time around and not as prepared in each session for meetings,” said Cherrene Horazuk, president of AFSCME 3800. “But it’s not uncommon for us to be bargaining into the fall.”

Work modality flexibility

One demand union workers are pushing for is increased flexibility to work remotely and in-person. AFSCME is pushing the University to create objective guidelines for work modality based on job descriptions and duties, Horazuk said.

“The decision was made back in June of this year by my manager to mandate all of us to be back on site 100% full-time regardless of what we were doing, particularly on the basis of us being clerical workers rather … than on [the] basis of what work we are doing,” said Jack Smith, a clerical worker with Research Animal Resources.

Smith said while he and his coworkers had to return to the office, his manager was able to continue working at home. He said he knows workers in other departments with similar situations.

Some workers who must return to the office are concerned about the effect it could have on their health, and the health of others around them.

Rachel Katkar, an administrative assistant in the School of Dentistry who works in the office three days a week, said her child cannot get vaccinated yet and has other health concerns.

“What we do in our private lives is really coming to the forefront … so there really is a lot more risk for certain individuals,” Katkar said. “It’s something that’s on my mind all the time, being as careful as I possibly can be, but there’s always a risk certainly in coming in.

Ultimately, individual departments and supervisors have a high degree of authority to make decisions and determine work modalities, which results in some departments providing more flexibility than others, Horazuk said.

Essential worker pay and pandemic response

Another demand union workers are pushing for throughout negotiations revolves around the University’s essential health workers, their working conditions and pay throughout the pandemic.

Deb Pavlica, president of AFSCME Healthcare 3260, said she does not think the University vaccine attestation policy is an effective measure to guard against increasing COVID-19 variants among faculty and students, nor is there sufficient mitigation of students going to gatherings and bringing the virus back to campus. As students continue to get sick, this creates more work and possible dangers for University healthcare workers.

AFSCME has a proposal for the University to create more comprehensive vaccine and testing requirements, Horazuk said. They asked the University to send testing reminders to staff and faculty who declined to answer if they’re vaccinated on the attestation form. The University denied this request saying some people who declined could be vaccinated.

“We think they’re more interested in protecting themselves from legal liability than they are in actually providing a safe and healthy environment,” Horazuk said.

Additionally, essential workers want a pay raise that equates to the extra work they have done and continue to do throughout the pandemic, Pavlica said. At the start of the pandemic, workers received an additional $2 each hour, but that ended in June 2020.

“You just keep pushing us further and further to the point where people have quit … and we can’t find people to come,” Pavlica said. “We’re tired. The front line is so tired.”

The University is currently offering a 1.5% pay increase as part of the contract in negotiations. This increase isn’t enough to keep up with inflation and increased energy costs, Sande said.

“For some of our workers who are some of the lowest paid employees at the University of Minnesota, that’s less than 25 or 20 cents an hour,” said Andrea Sande, president of AFSCME 3801 at the University of Minnesota Duluth.

Now, union workers are asking for an across-the-board increase of 75 cents an hour.

Meaningful raises would recognize the work of clerical employees throughout the pandemic, many of whom are typically women and people of color, Sande said.

Improving workplace equity

Another topic union workers are currently negotiating encompasses improving workplace social and racial equity, said Sarah Vast, a clerical worker in the College of Education and Human Development and secretary of AFSCME 3800.

Some of these demands concern accessibility for transgender and gender-nonconforming workers. For example, Vast, who is gender-nonconforming, said they must travel across three buildings on campus to access a restroom that is safe and comfortable for them.

AFSCME also has proposals around hiring practices. While many University jobs don’t require a four-year degree, oftentimes only degree-holding candidates are hired.

It is important to think about what jobs are truly entry level and keep in mind the historically marginalized groups surrounding the University community that may be applying for jobs, Vast said.

“[It’s important] getting the University to think about how they recruit and also train and support and develop and retain a truly diverse workforce,” Vast said.

AFSCME and the University began negotiating these contract demands, which consist of about 70 proposals, in June. The next bargaining session is set for Oct. 12. The University so far has not moved on many of the union’s top priorities, spurring members to mobilize more workers to push negotiations, Horazuk said.

“We know that when the University hears that buzz, that’s what moves them,” Horazuk said. “We’re bargaining not just for ourselves, but for the thousands of frontline workers at the University who deserve raises and respect.”

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Jessica Stalter

The door to the practice room opens, and music mixes with voices. Kendall Uslan can be heard giving blocking information while Kai Anderson runs one of the lead actresses through her solo. Even to the closest follower of broadway, however, these scenes and songs are not familiar.

Many people dream of writing and publishing their own content but for Christine Sells, Anderson and Uslan their dream is becoming a reality. The three have  such a strong passion for musicals, that they wrote one themselves. 

“The Icarus Project” is what they call “steampunk rock,” loosely based on the myth of Icarus. It follows inventor Ariadne, who is hoping to save her city which is falling from the sky. The musical also follows other inventors at an inventors fair in the city sponsored by a powerful corporation Helios. 

Although enjoyable and rewarding, writing an original musical has not been an easy task for the trio. The concept for the musical originated in January, then scratched and entirely reworked in July and August.

“It was a crazy idea but we decided to start over. We started with a project that I’d been sort of brewing in the background a little bit for a concept album about the Myth of Icarus and we just talked about it and we had great ideas,” composer, lyricist and music director Anderson said.  “It flowed more naturally and so we just dove into it and started working on it and it progressed further than the previous show had in six months in one month.”

They were then given the opportunity to turn their concept into a real product through Florida Southern’s Theater After Dark (TAD). The program gives students both inside and outside the theatre department a chance to perform their own creative works. 

Both majors and non-majors can participate in themed cabarets, which are nights where students can perform original songs that they or someone else wrote, and more recently, it opened the door for this student show.

“I think that having new productions especially at FSC is definitely a big step forward when it comes to theater and future productions, because I think one of the big things that not only ‘Icarus’ but also TAD and vagabonds, which are our clubs on campus, are working to do is to create more opportunities for students and also to give opportunities that haven’t been available before,” book writer and director Uslan said.

Because of its focus on student involvement, “The Icarus Project” is being written and produced very differently from what is commonly seen in the world of theatre. The directors are creating much of the blocking, how the actors move on the stage, and even dialog in collaboration with their actors rather than handing them a completed script. 

Typically when a show is put on, the director will purchase the full script and musical score and will hand the completed package to their actors. Although there are still creative liberties with this method, the focus is on performing what the actors have in front of them, rather than creating the characters and scenes around them.

“Rather than trying to write the whole show and then throw it on actors, what we’re really doing is developing the show with the actors as we rehearse… ‘here are our ideas, here are some scenes we have written, let’s work together to develop the characters, develop the scene, develop the structure,” Anderson said. “I think I speak for all of us when I say this show is very early in development and so with that comes some growing pains.”

This unique approach allows the actors and actresses to really connect to their characters and let them develop naturally. They are not building off of a version of the show they have been watching for years, or even that they have seen once. They are truly making their characters come to life for the first time.

“I think it’s like every theater kid’s dream to do something like this— to originate a role. Basically everyone in there is creating the characters,” said Sarah Conte, who plays the character Ariande in the musical. “Book writers are giving us baselines, but kind of just making a character your own and not having anyone else’s performance to base it off of is a really cool experience that not a lot of people get.” 

It is to be expected that the process of producing an original show comes with both its upsides and its downsides, and that has proven true for Anderson, Uslan and Sells. There have been parts of the process that have gone very smoothly, while challenges inevitably arose as well. One large challenge they faced was the time it takes to write a musical. 

Sells explained that the process of creating a show is exhausting, especially when people are going on vacation or working over the summer and dealing with the demanding academic and social expectations of the school year alongside writing and rehearsals. Uslan added that working as a team on a creative project, though worthwhile, was a challenge.

“A lot of the songwriting is just songwriting. It’s just what does this melody sound like, okay what does it look like on the page, lets get it for actors,” Anderson said.

The process of creating The Icarus Project has been both a challenging and rewarding process for everyone involved.

“I love being a part of theatre. I’m a theatre arts major right now, but like this is my passion. I love seeing people follow what they want to do, so it’s very cool seeing this whole show come together,” ensemble member Jadyn Koneski said.

The show will have a likely online stage in the near future, according to Sells. Because the show is still early in development, the stage reading will not include sets or costumes, but it will be an opportunity for students to see the work that Anderson, Uslan, Sells and their entire cast put forward.

“Something that came from your brain exists outside of your brain and outside of the theoretical but into the practical. It almost gives you chills,” Uslan said.

The post Students create original musical production appeared first on The Southern Newspaper.

Unless you’re living under a rock, you may have noticed that self-care is all the rage right now. I’m not sure why it takes a social media trend for you to brush your teeth and practice basic personal hygiene, but as long as I don’t have to smell your rank body odor, I’m not complaining.

Quiz: Would you survive Squid Game?

Siren Pictures/Courtesy

You’ve probably heard of Squid Game, a Korean Netflix show that is blowing up on the Internet. It’s about cash-strapped players that compete in various children’s games with deadly consequences, but the prize is a life-changing amount of money. You cannot escape the memes, reactions and posts based on the show. However, many are claiming that they would personally win all the games and get the jackpot. This quiz will determine if you’re really going to come out on top and survive Squid Game.

Contact Nicholas Clark at nclark@dailycal.org.

The Daily Californian