FEATURES/3 INTERMISSION Today Tomorrow

UP IN SMOKE
Smokers speak out against
JAM SESSION
Lively Arts and SOCA co-host series of
smoke-free initiative successful songwriting workshops Mostly Cloudy Mostly Cloudy
65 47 61 46

CARDINAL TODAY

FRIDAY
The Stanford Daily An Independent Publication
www.stanforddaily.com Volume 235
February 27, 2009 Issue 19
BASEBALL

TITANIC
REMATCH IN
FULLERTON
‘08 Super Regional foes
Card falls late to No. 22 UCLA
face off again
By JACOB JOHNSON
DESK EDITOR By CLAUDIA PRECIADO
CONTRIBUTING WRITER
Those March Madness dreams may be over, but there is life left in the Stan-
ford men’s basketball team. In a thrilling game at Maples Pavilion last night, the Wednesday night proved to be a battle on the mound
Cardinal fell 76-71 to UCLA. Stanford has now lost four straight games. as No. 7 Stanford’s junior Brandt Walker (0-1) duked it
The game saw 13 lead changes and four ties, but Stanford could not rally in out with St. Mary’s Kyle Barraclough (1-0) for four
the final minutes.The Cardinal shot well — 49 percent from the field and 50 per- straight scoreless innings. But the Gaels prevailed in the
cent from three-point range — and fought hard fifth as the Cardinal gave up four runs to give St. Mary’s
for 40 minutes. Just don’t tell the players that they the comfortable lead they needed to take home the 3-5,
should be proud of their losing effort. non-conference victory.
“We played hard,” senior Anthony Goods In the fifth, Walker allowed a bunt single, hit a bats-
said, “[but] it wasn’t good enough. Nobody’s set- man,walked another and finished off with a wild pitch to
tling for moral victories.” bring in the first Gael run. He then struck out the next
Stanford (15-11, 4-11 Pacific-10 Conference) batter to finish his night. Freshman Chris Reed and
was absolutely on fire to start the contest — the sophomore Carey Schwartz each pitched in the fifth, al-
Cardinal hit seven of its first seven and went 3-3 lowing four combined runs.
from beyond the arc. Sophomore center Josh Schwartz held the Gaels during the sixth,Scott Snod-
Owens scored the first points of the game with an
emphatic, two-handed dunk and minutes later
USC grass held them off until the seventh, and freshman
Brian Busick kept St. Mary’s at four in the eighth.
gave the Cardinal a double-digit lead with a
(16-11, 7-8 Pac-10) In the bottom of that inning,Stanford senior Joey Au-
jumper off senior Lawrence Hill’s assist. Goods Maples Pavilion Saturday, 5 P.M. gust stepped up for a double, followed by classmate
hit a three-pointer at 12:43 to stretch the lead to Brent Milleville, who hit a single to bring him home.
14, 24-10. It would prove to be the largest lead of COVERAGE: Down four in the bottom of the ninth, the Cardinal
the game. RADIO: could practically taste a comeback. Sophomore Jack
“We came out hitting a lot of shots,” junior KZSU 90.1 FM, (kzsu.stanford.edu) Schlander singled, and classmates Zach Jones and Colin
Landry Fields said.“We keyed in on defense, our Walsh walked to load the bases for junior Toby Gerhart.
help side [defense] was great [and] we rebound- Gerhart popped up for the sacrifice fly and Schandler
ed the ball very well.” UP NEXT tagged up for the run. August started a two-out rally as
No 22 UCLA (21-7, 10-5 Pac-10) refused to go he singled once more to bring in Jones and Walsh. But
away. Just under the 11-minute mark, the Bruins
went on a 9-0 run, cutting the deficit to five at
ARIZONA STATE the Cardinal comeback ended too early, as Milleville
grounded out to end the game.
3/5 Tempe, Ariz. Stanford ended the night with nine hits, while St.
8:22. Senior Kenny Brown responded with a
three from the left side, excitedly pumping his fist COVERAGE: Mary’s capitalized on their six hits for the win.
after hitting the shot. But the Cardinal couldn’t TV FSN Arizona The Cardinal (2-2) will move on to play No. 17 Cal
stop the Bruins’ onslaught, and senior Josh Shipp RADIO KZSU 90.1 FM State-Fullerton (2-2) at Goodwin Field this weekend.
tied the game at 35 with 1:35 to play in the period. The Titans are 1-2 at home, and 1-0 on the road to start
UCLA took the lead less than a minute later (kzsu.stanford.edu) the season.
and looked to be heading to the half with a lead. NOTES: The Cardinal lost another home Fullerton heads into the game with momentum from
Junior Drew Schiller had other ideas, knocking heartbreaker to UCLA last night, 76-71, Wednesday night’s 8-6 victory against the San Diego
down a three with just seven seconds left to give extending its current losing streak to four State Aztecs, while the Cardinal is recovering from a
the Cardinal a 38-37 lead. Senior Darren Colli- games. Stanford led for much of the first week’s worth of ups and downs. Though the Cardinal
son’s half-court bomb was late and off the mark, half and kept it close in the second, but gave one up on Wednesday,this short season has proven
and Stanford took a slim lead going into the lock- faded down the stretch. Sophomore for- to be one of determination.
er room. ward Josh Owens turned in a strong per-
“We have to keep our intensity up at all times with no
The second half was close at the start, but formance in the losing effort, scoring 14 let downs,” sophomore pitcher Michael Marshall said.
MASARU OKA/The Stanford Daily
points on 7-8 shooting in 25 minutes.
Please see BASKETBALL, page 8 Please see BASEBALL, page 6

No. 5 Stanford tops Gaels, readies for DeMarini Invite INDIANA

By CHRIS FITZGERALD
DAILY SPORTS INTERN
Just four days after senior Cardinal
ace Missy Penna eclipsed the Stanford
record for career shutouts, it was soph-
omore Ashley Chinn’s show at Smith
Family Stadium. The Cardinal hurler
threw seven shutout innings, surren-
dering one lone hit en route to soft-
ball’s 6-0 win over Saint Mary’s on
Tuesday.
Chinn praised her battery-mate,
junior catcher Rosey Neill for her part
in the shutout.
“[Rosey] called a great game,”
Chinn said. “We worked well together
and improved the second time through
the lineup.”
With the help of Neill, the Pacific-10
Conference’s Co-Defensive Player of
the Year last season, Chinn struck out
10 Gaels on the evening, with nine of
those coming in the final four innings.
No. 5 Stanford (13-1) got off to a
slow start, with just two hits in the first
three innings. But the Cardinal bats
erupted in the bottom of the fourth,
MASARU OKA/The Stanford Daily
loading the bases with no outs after
sophomores Melissa Koutz and Brit-
ney Minder each singled and freshman
Jenna Becerra reached on an error to
set up a rally.
At the top of the order, hot-hitting
junior Alissa Haber laced a shot to cen-
ter and advanced to second on the
Gaels’ second error of the inning.
Kayla Aldridge laid out for Haber’s
smack, but came up with only grass
stains as two runners scored on the
play. Becerra then scored on a sacrifice
fly courtesy of freshman Ashley
Hansen, and junior Shannon Koplitz
added a triple — her second of the year
— to score Haber and extend the lead
to 4-0.
On the whole, Stanford’s bats pro-
duced nine hits, two apiece from
Hansen and Koplitz. Four errors also
boosted the Cardinal’s offensive effort
as three of those four resulted in runs.
Still, the effort by Chinn — now 4-0 on
the year — was the highlight of the
evening.
Quietly, Chinn was perfect through
the final five innings. Head coach John
Rittman noted that Chinn displayed
improvement as the game progressed.
“Ashley wasn’t utilizing all her
pitches early, but later she started mix-
ing in the changeup and changing loca-
tions,”he said.“It made [her] that much
more effective.”
Chinn faced eight Gaels over the
first two innings; the lone Saint Mary’s
hit came off the bat of Aldridge.But the
Cardinal starter got the last laugh,
striking out Aldridge in her second and
final at bat.
Solid glove work in the outfield
played a crucial role in Chinn’s one-hit
effort. Haber took a hit away from
Gaels’ cleanup hitter Jenna Smith,
stranding the leadoff hitter Rebecca
Sabatini on first. Freshman Sarah Has-
sman helped out from Haber’s old
home in center field, robbing Gaels hit-
ter Michelle Mounts. Mounts ham-
mered a frozen rope deep to left center
field, the hardest contact of the night
for Saint Mary’s, but Hassman tracked
back in a hurry to pull down the 190-
foot laser shot. Haber started all 64
games in center field last season, but
(1-10)
Fullerton, Calif. 9 A.M.
UP NEXT
MINNESOTA
2/27 Fullerton, Calif.
NOTES: The Cardinal softball team will head
south this weekend to compete in the DeMarini
Invitational against the Hoosiers, Golden Go-
phers, UC-Riverside, Cal Poly and host Cal
State-Fullerton. The No. 5 Cardinal is currently
riding a 12-game winning streak, with the
team’s last loss coming against Oklahoma
State on Feb. 6 at the Kajikawa Classic in
Tempe, Ariz.
Rittman was pleased to witness a fast
adaptation from the junior.
“Alissa’s got great range in left
field,” he said. “She’s done a great job
making the adjustment.”
The Gaels fell to 1-9, still winless on
the road this season. Freshman Brit-
tany Linton covered four complete in-
Please see SOFTBALL, page 6

Index Features/3 • Opinions/5 • Sports/7 • Classifieds/8 Recycle Me

2 N Friday, February 27, 2009 The Stanford Daily

NEWS
‘BRANNER SUCKS’ NO MORE?
Famous all-freshmen dorm to house
upper-classmen next year
By CHRISTINE MCFADDEN
SENIOR STAFF WRITER
When Robert Picazo ‘79 M.A ‘81 first set
foot on the Farm in 1971, he entered a newly
co-ed residence on Escondido Road:
Branner Hall. Over the course of his fresh-
man year, Picazo would fall in love with the
dorm — and the girl down the hall. Picazo
and fellow Branner freshman Carolyn Ellis
‘79 married two years after graduation, with
Picazo’s roommate Mike Cresto ‘79 serving
as best man.
Since its opening 85 years ago, Branner
has hosted a range of students from Jerry
Yang ‘90 to Sandra Day O’Connor ‘50, J.D.
‘52. Many, like Picazo, have had life-shaping
experiences at 655 Escondido Road —
Branner is well known for its strong commu-
nity.
But as part of the new master housing
plan, the beloved dorm, which has housed
exclusively freshmen for four decades, will
become an upper-class dorm.
Branner History
Branner has had a variety of gender con-
figurations in past years, from housing all
men, to all women and finally to its current
state as the largest co-ed, all-freshmen dorm
on campus.
Opening winter quarter of 1924, Branner
began as an all-male, four-class dorm. In
July of 1946, it was announced that Branner
would switch to an all-female, four-class
dorm. It remained females-only until
September of 1968, when the dorm turned
co-ed.
Stern and Wilbur were both made co-ed
that year as part of a one-year experiment
that ended up lasting longer than expected.
Freshmen who experienced living in a co-ed
Branner during the first year called it an
“unqualified success,” and even drafted and
unanimously signed a petition to keep the
dorm co-ed.
The top floor, coined the “Penthouse,”
was kept all-male — but it, too, eventually
followed suit and switched to co-ed when
the dorm underwent renovations 2002-2003.
The dorm changed from four-class to all-
freshmen between 1968 and 1971.
Currently, Branner houses over 170 frosh
and is known for its large, two- and three-
room triples.
Reaction to the Change
Nancy Buffington and Clyde Moneyhun,
Branner’s resident fellows (RFs) for the past
three years, told The Daily that they are
excited about the switch, but acknowledged
that Branner will lose more than just its
freshmen.
“There will be losses and gains,” said
Moneyhun, who is an assistant director for
the Program in Writing and Rhetoric
(PWR). “For three years, we’ve really
enjoyed the liveliness of all its activities:
New Student Orientation, Crossing the
Line, Screw Your Roommate and so on. The
doors to all the rooms are open nearly all
the time; people are coming and going at all
hours, study groups are sprawled in the halls.
It’s fun!
“But we’re looking forward to recreating
Branner as an upper-class house, and we’re
collecting ideas from everybody who will
talk to us about how to engage and support
upper-class students,” he continued. “We
plan on keeping it fun.”
Many of the traditions mentioned by
Moneyhun, along with Branner’s reputa-
tion, will inevitably be replaced.
“We’ll see which traditions will still make
sense to upper-class students and retain
things they will like,” he said. “Maybe we’ll
be lucky enough to create some new activi-
ties that become traditions.”
Moneyhun cited Branner’s reputation as
being a lively, tight-knit community created
by the residents. He speculated that it will
shortly become one of the most desirable
places to live, with many students vying for
its spacious two-room doubles next year.
Both Moneyhun and Buffington plan to
continue as RFs in the next year.
Georgia Wells ‘10 shared similar excite-
ment about the upcoming switch, but didn’t
agree with Moneyhun about Branner’s com-
munity.
“As a frosh, I found Branner to be too big
for me and I was envious of my friends in
smaller dorms who seemed like they had
tighter-knit communities,” Wells said. “It just
didn’t seem that cohesive.”
MASARU OKA/The Stanford Daily
Wells noted that the large number of
freshmen living in Branner had a tendency Branner has always been a center of freshman class pride and spirit as the largest all-freshman dorm on campus. Following the implemen-
to make hallways cliquey and hindered the tation of the new housing plan, however, it will have upper-classmen, changing the face of the famous residence.
dorm from bonding as a whole unit.
“You share their Branner pride with change, Khalfan believes strongly that its “I’m very excited,” said Nathan Barnett quality was an important factor in easing
them, but you don’t really know them,” wild character will subside. ‘12. “I want to live in Branner twice. I feel him into college. Being in the same boat as
Wells said of the relationship among some “Branner is Branner because of the peo- like implementing a seniority system makes everybody else was reassuring, especially
residents. ple who lived there,” he said. “The only it necessary for Branner to be upperclass- when that atmosphere existed in a self-con-
Wells acknowledged that Branner’s ‘good’ that will come out of the switch is that men.” tained house with the most freshmen on
image as being large, young and energetic trash-talking Branner for its community will “The upperclassmen who get the oppor- campus.
has won it a reputation as a party dorm. She decrease. People will no longer be chanting tunity to live in Branner are lucky students,” “I don’t know if it’s this way now, but at
predicted that modifying it to upperclass- ‘Branner sucks’ because they are jealous, added Brian Tolkin ‘12. “To make these least back in 1975, we felt [Branner] was the
men-only next year will make Branner com- but will now be saying it because it actually rooms two-room doubles is like living in a best freshmen dorm,” he added. “We felt,
parable to its quieter, upper-class neighbor, sucks compared to how it used to be.” Hilton hotel.” whether it was or wasn’t, that it was the best
Toyon. Current RA Anisha Patel ‘09 holds simi- dorm on campus.”
Former Resident Assistant (RA) Alif lar views to Khalfan in that she feels fortu- Alumni Reaction However, Picazo understood the logic
Khalfan ‘08, unlike Wells and Moneyhun, is nate to have been an RA while the dorm Some alumni, who hold fond memories that went into making the switch from all-
not enthusiastic about the switch. Khalfan was still all-frosh. Although she said that she of their times in Branner, have expressed frosh to upper-class, acknowledging that
lived in Branner his freshman year but might not have chosen to RA in Branner if disappointment with the change. Branner is similar to an upperclassmen
returned senior year to be an RA. it was upper-class, Patel recognized that the “It’s a little of a shock, and I’m saddened resort given to lucky freshmen.
“I am mainly frustrated that they are situation has its positives. by it,” Picazo said. “It was such a neat expe- “It was the best freshmen facility,” he
actually going through with it,” Khalfan “As sad as it is that this will be Branner’s rience coming in and having that be my first said. “There’s a little bit of a clout that we
said. “When I was a freshman in Branner, last year as a freshmen dorm, I think the encounter with Stanford.” were fortunate to be there. People would
our annual play that we put on was centered switch has its pluses,” she said.“For example, “I’m sure some people wish Branner comment on how tight the people at
around the ‘conspiracy’ that [Vice Provost all of the Branner alums that are still under- could remain the all-frosh house they lived Branner were. There was a certain degree of
for Undergraduate Education John] grads now have the opportunity to draw in,” Moneyhun said. “I hope they see this jealousy and envy at the time.”
Bravman wanted to change Branner to an back into Branner. And how could someone most recent change in the context of Picazo elaborated on the closeness of the
upper-class dorm. We laughed it off as an ever pass an opportunity to live in beautiful, Branner’s history of change.” dorm, and how his friendships that were cre-
impossible theory at the time, but as the beautiful Branner? I’m curious as to what “I can’t speak for all of the Branner ated then have been maintained throughout
years passed, it came closer to being an freshmen dorm is now going to be picked on alumni, but I feel that the most common the years since graduation. Branner alumni
uncomfortable reality.” the most at New Student Orientation and emotion will be that of disappointment,” frequently hold reunions amongst them-
“On the other hand, knowing that we can other freshmen events in future years!” Khalfan added.“Branner was a unique place selves, and Picazo noted that he met some of
no longer fight Stanford on the issue, I also Current freshmen in Branner held differ- to live in, and knowing that none of the his closest friends to date during his fresh-
feel very fortunate to have been able to ent opinions, mostly agreeing with Patel and incoming frosh will be able to get the man year in Branner.
serve as an RA there while the true Branner expressing excitement about the potential of Branner experience is what bothers me Picazo’s advice to all matriculating fresh-
atmosphere still existed,” he added. living in Branner again during their most.”
In terms of how Branner’s reputation will Stanford careers. Picazo stressed that Branner’s all-frosh Please see BRANNER, page 4

JERRY LEE/The Stanford Daily

Wellness Room Coordinators Mary Liz McCurdy ‘09 and Annie Alpers ‘09 show off the Wellness Room. The room’s
opening featured a talk by the ASSU Executives and performances by Talisman and Spoken Word.

RESIDENTIAL LIFE

Wellness Room opens in Old Union

Executives “fired up”
over new health resource
By CALLA HUAN SHENG
CONTRIBUTING WRITER
After months of preparation and
much debate surrounding its fund-
ing, the Wellness Room opened its
doors for the first time last night.
Located in room 120 of Old
Union, the room will be home to
ongoing events that promote
healthier, happier and more bal-
anced living on campus. Above all, it
is intended to be a space for relax-
ation open to the Stanford commu-
nity.
Students filled the first floor of
Old Union last night as ASSU
Executives Jonny Dorsey ‘09 and
Fagan Harris ‘09 took the stage.
“We’re really, really excited and
fired up,” Harris said.
The audience burst into applause
as the Executives thanked the many
students and administrators who
made the Wellness Room possible,
among them Associate Provost for
Please see WELLNESS, page 4
The Stanford Daily
FEATURES
SMOKE
OUT
Stanford smokers fume about
smoke-free initiative
By MATT SERNA
CONTRIBUTING WRITER
D
espite a heavy presence in most
parts of the world, cigarette
smoking is rare at Stanford.
Most non-smokers see the habit
as repulsive, indecent and self-
destructive, but for the few students who
choose to smoke, lighting up is a way of life.
However, the recent Stanford Colleges
Against Cancer (SCAC) smoke-free initia-
tive attempts to make the campus smoke-
free, threatening a cherished pastime forr
smokers.
Fighting for the Right to Smoke
The Stanford Colleges Against Cancer
(SCAC) petition endorses the creation of
smoking zones on remote parts of campus
and banning smoking outside these zones.
Furthermore, the initiative prohibits the sale
of tobacco products on campus and pro-
motes services for those wishing to quit
smoking.
“We do not seek to take any rights away
from smokers,” said Viral Shah ‘11, logistics
chair for SCAC. “We simply want to create
larger smoke-free zones.”
But many smokers see the initiative as a
rights issue.
Harley Adams ‘11 vehemently disagrees
with the smoke-free initiative. According to
Adams, the proposal “disenfranchises a
major group on campus.”
He recognizes that smoking is unhealthy,
but thinks the University shouldn’t regulate
his personal health.
“If I want to not smoke, I do it because of
me, not because my school isn’t allowing it,”
Adams said. “If they’re going to stop selling
cigarettes at Tres-Ex [Tresidder Express],
they better stop selling Twinkies, too.”
Like Adams, Benjamin Otto ‘11, a cur-
rent smoker, opposes the smoke-free ini-
tiative.
“There are so few smokers on campus as
it is that people should just be fine with how
lucky they have it,” he said.
Ziyad Abdel Khaleq ‘11, an international
student from Amman, Jordan, had to adapt
to vastly different smoking laws when he
came to the U.S., and before the initiative he
thought the Stanford restrictions were
already strict.
“I [could smoke anywhere] in Jordan,
and did — even by gas pumps,” Abdel
Khaleq remembered. He called Stanford’s
smoke-free petition “ridiculous,” arguing
that the small number of smokers on cam-
Benjamin Otto ‘11 began smoking for social reasons and shows no signs of quitting, despite Stanford’s smoke-free petition.
pus doesn’t pose any significant health risk
to Stanford’s non-smokers.
Soothing Cigarette or Cancer Stick?
Adams picked up smoking while working
as an actor in New York. For Adams, smoking
was a rite of passage — it marked a transition
from childhood to adulthood.
“I remember making a conscious decision
to start smoking,” Adams said. “It wasn’t a
matter of whether or not I should try a ciga-
rette; it was whether or not I wanted to be a
smoker. It’s like when people decide whether
or not to be a vegetarian, they look at the
people who are already vegetarians, what
they do, what they look like, how they are
perceived, et cetera. I took the same
approach.”
Otto initially began smoking for social
reasons, but soon found that cigarettes had a
calming effect.
Friday, February 27, 2009 N 3
“When I was out of the house, I didn’t
need to worry about the things I did when I
was home,” Otto said of lighting up. “Plus, I
enjoyed it.”
Abdel Khaleq smoked consistently until
he was forced to quit after having a lung
punctured in a serious car accident over the
summer.
“Now I appreciate every cigarette I ever
smoked, because it gave me so much joy that
I can’t get right now,” he said.
However, he doesn’t plan to revisit the
habit once his lung heals.
“I’m going to try not to go back to smok-
ing, because of health issues,” Abdel Khaleq
said. “God gave me a sign — He wanted me
to quit, so I’m going to quit.”
For all Adam’s concerns against the issue
of a smoke-free Stanford, he has quit smok-
ing, but admits he’ll “probably pick it up
again.” Adams tried and failed to quit in the
QUYNH PHAN/The Stanford Daily
past, but has gone around four months with-
out a cigarette. He feels that no amount of
regulation, including the measures pro-
posed by the smoke-free campus initiative,
will ultimately help people stop smoking,
and that the decision has to come from
within.
“I personally don’t care about cancer or
getting a disease,” he said.
Otto has plans to quit, but not in the
immediate future.
“I have plans to quit smoking, but I feel
like I maintain a pretty healthy lifestyle in
other aspects of life. Eventually, I will cut it
off, but I haven’t really thought about quit-
ting in the near future. It’s not something I
want to be doing my whole life.”
“I have not tried to quit at Stanford,” Otto
added. “There would be nothing to do here.”
Contact Matt Serna at mserna@stanford.edu.
4 N Friday, February 27, 2009
NEW TREE ANNOUNCED
announced that Jonathan ”Shu-Fry” Strange ‘11 will be the new Stanford
Tree. After a week of competition, Strange rose above his competitors Kyle
Owen ‘10 and Jack Cackler ‘09 in a series of stunts to demonstrate spirit.
WELLNESS
Continued from page 2
Student Affairs Christine Griffith,
who “bankrolled” the project;
ASSU Health co-Chair Angelina
Cardona ‘11, who initiated work on
the room; and the two Wellness
Room Coordinators Annie Alpers
‘09 and Mary Liz McCurdy ‘09.
“This room is so invaluable in
attacking the culture surrounding
the mental health stigma,” Harris
said. “This is an incredibly amazing,
exciting first step that has the
potential to solve this problem once
and for all.”
“[The message of the Wellness
Room] will span out of this space
and be part of the culture around
wellness,” Dorsey added. “It will
have an impact not just on suicide
rates, but also on how happy we are
in our daily lives.”
Singers from Talisman and poets
from the Spoken Word Collective
shared their visions of happiness
with pieces themed on wellness.
“We came to sing and spread
cheer at the Wellness Room opening
to uplift people with our songs,” said
Anna Doty ‘12 from Talisman.
“It is a song of solidarity, of over-
coming adversity, of coming togeth-
er, depending on each other and
helping each other out,” said
Nathaniel Olin ‘09. “The idea is that
something that hurts one of us hurts
everybody.”
Still a blank slate a week ago, the
Wellness Room is now decorated
with colorful beanbag chairs, plants,
posters, bright post-it notes and art-
work — of flowers and various
scenery — by the ASSU Executive
fellows themselves. The very first
student visitors to the room loved
the relaxing atmosphere.
“It is just what we need,” said
Joyce Ho ‘09. “I like the decorations,
the lighting; they just make me feel
so relaxed.”
“I heard there are massages, so I
will definitely [use the room],” said
Amaya Cotton-Caballero ‘12.
The room is designed to be a
social gathering space where stu-
NEWS BRIEFS
PARENTS SWEEP
THROUGH CAMPUS
FOR WEEKEND
By THE DAILY NEWS STAFF
Beginning today, parents will
arrive on campus for the University’s
annual Parents’ Weekend.
The weekend begins with a wel-
come by Provost John Etchemendy
and will feature campus and facilities
tours, “back-to-school” classes for
parents and open houses at various
centers on campus.
MASARU OKA/The Stanford Daily
Last night, the Stanford Band
dents can walk in and discuss well-
being, meditate in groups or indulge
in creative arts. There will also be a
guitar available for anyone to strum.
The coordinators are planning a
chocolate tasting seminar and a dis-
cussion session with the Center for
Inter-Religious Community,
Learning, and Experience (CIR-
CLE).
“We don’t even know which
direction this is going to go,” Alpers
said. “We have dozens, hundreds of
ideas of our own, but obviously we
don’t want to be doing just what we
think. We’re not coming into this
thinking that we’re experts, and
we’re providing a service to people
who walk in.”
Rather, the coordinators envision
the room to be a portal that brings
people together, that recognizes the
diverse views concerning wellness
on campus and that unites them into
building a stronger community
around wellness.
According to Cardona, the
Wellness Room Web site will list the
“literally hundreds of things” that
the coordinators have brainstormed.
They expect these programming
ideas to strike a chord with many
student groups’ agendas and create
plenty of opportunities for inter-
group collaboration. Interested stu-
dent groups can simply fill out a
form through the Wellness Room
Web site to get involved with pro-
gramming.
“We want to be so transparent,”
Alpers said. “We see no reason to
have any other walls than the physi-
cal ones we need to hold the room.”
The coordinators are also work-
ing hard to establish an efficient
mechanism for assessment and feed-
back.
“If we’re not helping [with some-
thing], we don’t want to continue
doing that,” Alpers said.
The room will be open 12 p.m. to
2 p.m. and 8 p.m. to midnight,
Monday through Thursday; noon to
2 p.m. on Friday; and 8 p.m. to mid-
night, Saturday and Sunday. For
more information, visit http://assu.
stanford.edu/wellnessroom/.
Contact Calla Huan Sheng at hsheng
@stanford.edu.
The classes for parents are semi-
nar-style and range in topic from
physics, to film to international rela-
tions.
On Saturday, a main event will be
the “Entertainment Extravaganza”
hosted by the Stanford Parents’
Club, which features performances
from various student groups on cam-
pus.
Dorms will also host receptions
and dinners for parents on Friday
night. Programming ends on
Saturday evening, though many par-
ents stay through Sunday.
Look for further coverage of
Parents’ Weekend in the Monday
issue of The Daily.
The Stanford Daily
BRANNER POLICE BLOTTER
Continued from page 2
By ELLEN HUET taken from outside the Geology 2/22 SUNDAY
corner.
men is to rank the “All-Freshmen” 2/15 SUNDAY I At 2 a.m., a student was cited
preference first on their housing 2/19 THUSRDAY and released for creating a pub-
information, regardless of Branner I At 7:45 a.m., a male arrestee was lic nuisance by urinating in pub-
being available or not. He noted cited and released for being in I An unknown suspect took a vic- lic at Theta Delta Chi.
that one of the most crucial ele- possession of less than an ounce tim’s locked bike from a bike
ments of freshman year is being sur- of marijuana in a women’s rest- rack outside Cantor Arts Center 2/23 MONDAY
rounded by a community of other room in the Quad. between 6:15 and 7:45 p.m.
freshmen — and living in Branner I Between 2 a.m. and 2:30 a.m. at
is an added bonus. I Between midnight and 10:45 2/20 FRIDAY 51 Dudley Lane, a verbal alter-
“The benefits that the freshmen a.m., a victim’s locked bike was cation took place between two
got out of [Branner] compared to taken from outside Branner I At 2:15 a.m., an arrestee was residents because one had
the upperclassmen were nice; it’s a Hall. cited and released near Palm removed the other’s clothing
shame that it just won’t be there for and Arboretum on an out- from a washing machine in the
the next generation,” Picazo said. 2/16 MONDAY standing Stanford laundry room after the wash
Dean of Freshmen Julie Department of Public Safety load ended.
Lythcott-Haims ‘89 lived in I Between 9 p.m. on 2/15 and10:30 warrant for vandalism and
Branner for one year as a freshman, a.m. on 2/16, an unknown sus- public intoxication. IA victim’s locked bike was
two years as an RA and two quar- pect entered a victim’s locked taken from outside Rains build-
ters as an RF. An experienced car near ZAP by unknown 2/21 SATURDAY ing #1 between midnight and
“Brannerite,” Lythcott-Haims rec- means and took a GPS unit. 9:30 a.m.
ognized both the practicality and I At 12:50 a.m., six suspects were
the emotional effect of the switch. I Sometime during the past three cited and released for trespass- I At 9:10 a.m., an unknown sus-
“I think it’s great that Stanford and a half months, an unknown ing in the Old Chemistry pect stole an unlocked electric
will be able to offer ‘premier’ hous- suspect took the SIM card out of Building, reminding us that cart from outside the Stanford
ing spaces for upperclassmen,” she the reporting party’s University- safety doesn’t always lie in dining services. An abandoned
wrote in an email to The Daily. “It issued cell phone in the numbers. bike was found at the scene.
makes perfect sense that as the Environment and Energy
University down-rates Branner to Building, which is why it helps to I An arrestee was caught at 11:40 2/24 TUESDAY
its original (smaller) capacity, it will check your phone every once in p.m. in lot 40 at Lomita Dr.,
be full of ‘premier’ spaces, and by a while. intoxicated and in possession I Between 7:30 a.m. and 5:30 p.m.,
extension, freshmen will no longer of stolen property. The arrestee an unknown suspect took the
be the right population for the 2/17 TUESDAY also delayed the duties of a bike seat from a victim’s locked
dorm.” peace officer and was taken to bike outside of Sweet Hall.
Lythcott-Haims added that she I At 1:30 p.m. on Searsville Road, the main jail and booked.
felt the imbedded freshmen tradi- a bicyclist struck a construction I Between 4 p.m. and 6:30 p.m., an
tions would fade away, but at the line strung between two bollards IA victim’s bike was stolen in unknown suspect took the rear
same time allow for other freshmen and fell from his bicycle. November of 2007. On 2/21, a wheel and tire from a victim’s
dorms to grow. Department of Public Safety locked bike outside of the
“Gaieties will have to come up 2/18 WEDNESDAY deputy found a subject in pos- History corner.
with a line other than ‘Branner session of the victim’s bike at
sucks’ to prompt a Pavlovian I Between 9 a.m. and 11 a.m., a Columbae House. Remember, Contact Ellen Huet at ehuet@stan-
response from the audience,” she victim’s unlocked bike was don’t stop believing. ford.edu.
said.
The dean also said that the
majority of Branner alumni feel a
certain loyalty and affection for the
dorm, and that for as long as any-
body can remember, Branner has
always housed a large portion of the
freshman class.
“I think some people will be sad-
dened by the news,” Lythcott-
Haims said. “But let’s remember,
the dorm isn’t going away, it is actu-
ally being upgraded — varnished
and shined up for a higher purpose,
so to speak. I think Branner alums
can wrap their heads and hearts
around that concept.”
“And as a side note, I imagine
that for the coming three years,
there will be at least an informal
contest to see how many former
Brannerites can end up living in
Branner for two and even three
years as upperclassmen,” she
added.
Still, there remains the feeling
that incoming freshmen will be
missing out on what has become a
special part of the Stanford experi-
ence over the last four decades.
“My son is going to enter
[Stanford] next year as a freshman,
and we thought it would be cool for
him to have that experience [in
Branner],” Picazo said, “and it is sad
that he will not have that available
to him.”
Contact Christine McFadden at
cnm714@stanford.edu.
Given the athletic department’s de-
cision to shrink the Sixth Man section
due to low attendance, are you
more inclined to attend this week-
end's games or buy Sixth Man tickets
next year?
102 votes taken from stanforddaily.com at 9:00 p.m. 02/26/09
20%
D 34%
15% A
C
31%
B
A) Yes, we need to bring back the force that the
student section once was
B) No, this doesn’t make me more or less inclined
to buy tickets
C) It really depends on how good the team is
D) Who is the Sixth Man, and why don’t you ever
refer to him by his real name?
Today’s Question:
What do you think of the Wellness Room?
a) It will be an excellent resource, and I plan
to use it.
b) It sounds like a good way to relax.
c) I’m not very excited about it.
d) What wellness room?
vote today at stanforddaily.com!
The Stanford Daily Friday, February 27, 2009 N 5

OPINIONS
E DITORIAL The Stanford Daily
Established 1892 AN INDEPENDENT NEWSPAPER Incorporated 1973

Putting a face to a Board of Directors

Christian Torres
President, Editor in Chief
Managing Editors

Devin Banerjee
Deputy Editor
Joanna Xu
Managing Editor of Intermission
Tonight’s Desk Editors
Julia Brownell
News Editor

name in the admission In Ho Lee

Chief Operating Officer
Someary Chhim
Vice President of Advertising
Nikhil Joshi
Managing Editor of News
Wyndam Makowsky
Managing Editor of Sports
Stuart Baimel
Columns Editor
Tim Hyde, Niko Milonopoulos
Editorial Board Chairs
Denis Griffin
Sports Editor
Quynh Phan
Photo Editor

process Devin Banerjee

Kamil Dada
Michael Londgren
Emma Trotter
Managing Editor of Features
Masaru Oka
Managing Editor of Photo
Cris Bautista
Head Graphics Editor
Samantha Lasarow
Head Copy Editor
Samantha Lasarow
Copy Editor
Cris Bautista
Graphics Editor
Theodore Glasser
nlike many of its peer institutions, more personal than computer screens and re-

U Stanford chose not to incorporate an

interview component into its under-
graduate admission process until this year,
jection letters is an admirable goal.
Ultimately, the University should strive to
admit applicants who are able to engage with
Robert Michitarian
Glenn Frankel

when it started a six-city pilot program. Last
week, the Faculty Senate discussed proposals
to extend the program to all applicants, and
many senators expressed hesitancy.
The editorial board applauds the Universi-
ty’s decision to discuss this issue and encour-
ages the admission office to introduce a large-
scale interview program to its process.Howev-
er, we emphasize that such a program should
play only a minimal role and should remain
optional for applicants.
Adding an interview component to the ad-
missions process could have many benefits to
both the University and its applicants. Inter-
views would offer alumni a way to re-engage
with the University on a personal level. Partic-
ularly in light of the recent adoption of the
Common Application, interviews would also
give applicants the opportunity to engage with
Stanford on a more personal level. Alumni
would be able to share with the applicants the
types of things that set the Stanford experience
apart from other universities. This increased
personal connection between Stanford and its
applicants has the potential to increase matric-
ulation, an important goal in light of the num-
ber of amazing admits who, without a Stanford
interview, might opt for a school that had of-
fered them the opportunity for a more person-
al connection.
Interviews would also help to personalize
the admission process for those who ultimate-
ly will not get in — something that is especial-
ly crucial in light of the harsh reality that
comes with having an admit rate of about 7.5
percent.When so many highly qualified appli-
cants are going through tremendous stress,
making the admission process something
people, a quality that comes through most ef- Contacting The Daily: Section editors can be reached at (650) 723-2555 from 3 to 10 p.m. The Advertising Department can be reached at (650) 721-5803, and the
fectively in interviews.Regardless of whether Classified Advertising Department can be reached at (650) 721-5801 during normal business hours.
Stanford students end up working in a labo-
ratory, running non-profits or working at
high-tech start-ups, people skills remain an
important attribute. Even at Stanford, we all
benefit from an environment of engagement
and discussion. While the admission process
already emphasizes the importance of per-
sonal attributes through essays and teacher
recommendations, interviews can help the
University gauge whether its potential ad-
mits are ready to engage with fellow students
and have the skills necessary to take what we
learn at Stanford and make an impact in
other spheres.
Despite the display of desirable attributes,
however, interviews should not have a large
influence on admission-related decisions. If
adopted, the proposed interviews should be
optional.As Professor Paul Schwitzer pointed
out at the Senate meeting,nearly all applicants
in the pilot cities this year opted to have an in-
terview, which indicates that most applicants
prefer an interview to none at all. However,
because the college admission process can al-
ready be so time-consuming and interviews
are unlikely to have a large effect on admis-
sion decisions, some applicants may ultimate-
ly prefer to bypass the interview.
With these qualifications in mind, the edi-
torial board urges the University to push for-
ward with the interview program. In a time
marked by extraordinarily competitive and
stressful college admission processes, a
human face will greatly aid both Stanford
and the many people who wish to join us at
this university.

Unsigned editorials in the space above represent the views of The Stanford Daily's editorial board and do not
necessarily reflect the opinions of the Daily staff. The editorial board is comprised of two former Daily staffers,
three at-large student members and the two editorial board co-chairs. Any signed columns and contributions
are the views of their respective writers and do not necessarily represent the views of the entire editorial board.
To contact the editorial board for an issue to be considered, or to submit an op-ed, please email
editorial@daily.stanford.edu.

STUUKAS Stuart Baimel and Luukas Ilves

An open letter to parents

Dear Parent, science buildings far away from the Quad. If
you want to ensure your money goes to con-
elcome to the Farm! As you sit back crete programs that will benefit undergraduate

W to enjoy the sun and info sessions,you

are sure to hear from President Hen-
nessy and others about the topic that is on
everyone’s mind right now:budget cuts and the
economy. Administrators will tell you that
Stanford’s endowment has been hit hard, but
that the University remains committed to the
quality of the undergraduate experience.
As you might expect,there’s a gap between
administrators’ rhetoric and reality. The gap
seems particularly large this year.We’d like to
propose some of the issues you should think
about and bring up this weekend if you really
want to maximize your son or daughter’s un-
dergraduate experience at Stanford.
You are likely to hear about Stanford’s fan-
tastic advising resources, about our access to
top-notch faculty, about our supportive safety
net for students with mental and physical
health issues. What you will not hear about is
how all of these resources that are supposed to
distinguish Stanford from a large state school
like Berkeley are already over-stretched and
subject to serious budget cuts.
Stanford’s much vaunted academic excel-
lence confronts new undergraduates with a be-
wildering array of departments, programs and
interdisciplinary centers from which to choose.
In order to fully take advantage of these re-
sources, you need the advising that will cobble
individual classes and research experiences
into a coherent program.While some students
get lucky with fantastic freshman advisors,
many/most of us are stuck with apathetic pro-
fessors or administrators who could hardly be
bothered to do more than hold a quarterly, 20-
minute meeting.The University’s commitment
to advising remains questionable — the pro-
gram has seen deep cuts.
Some of the most distinctive elements of a
Stanford education occur outside one’s major
or dorm. Study abroad programs, research
grants, Stanford in Washington, Sophomore
College (SoCo), introductory seminars and
other similar programs are the highlights of
Stanford’s academic experience and the most
visible result of the Campaign for Undergrad-
uate Education. These small programs often
lead to research, new academic directions and
close contact with professors. These programs
are for the most part endowed through various
funds, but the endowments have taken serious
hits over the last months. They require addi-
tional support from other budgeting sources to
ensure they remain available to all of us.
The University will ask you to donate to
Stanford.Don’t.The University is using what it
has left after the budget cuts on its spending
priorities, which seem to be building massive
education, donate to them directly. A dollar
spent on introductory seminars is sure to go
far, but we can’t guarantee the same dollar
given as a blank check will ever be seen by us.
We also strongly encourage you to donate
to student groups. Dollar-for-dollar, student
groups are extremely efficient at spending
money and contribute to our learning outside
of the classroom. Some student groups are na-
tionally or internationally recognized, such as
the Forum for American-Chinese Exchange at
Stanford (FACES), which puts on annual con-
ferences in China. But these prestigious and
impressive student groups have enormous dif-
ficulty getting the funds they need to operate.
What may be insignificant aid — $500, $1000
— to an administrative entity of the Universi-
ty can make a big difference for a student
group. Stanford alone among our peer institu-
tions makes it extremely difficult, if not impos-
sible, for student groups to engage in outside
fundraising.
The importance of your money should give
you the confidence to expect a high level of
service from Stanford. For $50,000 a year, we
should not have to deal with complicated red-
tape and a labyrinthine bureaucracy. What’s
amazing is how responsive Stanford is to par-
ents.That cheesecake you’re eating in the din-
ing hall? First time we’ve seen it all year. The
dining hall isn’t even open on weekends in
most places, but it’s open for you. Parental in-
volvement can be crucial when your son or
daughter is having difficulty dealing with an
administrative entity of the University. Never-
theless, you should also encourage your son
and daughter to be more assertive when deal-
ing with administrators or applying for pro-
grams and grants. Stanford prides itself on
making its resources available to all students,
but the harsh truth is that the squeaky wheel
will get oiled.
This is a Parents’ Weekend unlike any
other.Much will be changing about Stanford in
the next year or two and,as parents,you have a
vital stake in what happens.Be critical and con-
structive this weekend. Your input could help
save a program or make a student group’s op-
erations just a little bit easier. We love Stan-
ford. We just don’t love everything that has
happened over the past couple of years.But we
love it enough to urge you, the parents, to help
us to try to fix it.
Stuart Baimel and Luukas Ilves would be
thrilled to be taken out to dinner by any parents
in town, as ours are too tired of our complaining
to come this weekend. Send dinner invitations to
sbaimel@stanford.edu and lki@stanford.edu.
Skeletons in the closet
tanford University loves to tout statis-
S tics. One of the University’s favorite
lines to throw around is that Stanford
consistently ranks among the top five happi-
est student bodies in the country. And who
could truly argue? Exceptional academics,
successful athletics and sunshine year-round,
not to mention mountains, beaches and city
nightlife a short drive away — it’s easy to see
how people can effortlessly find happiness.
Yet, despite these happy surroundings, at
least four deaths among the Stanford com-
munity in the last three years were confirmed
suicides — and those are just the ones that
have been publicized.
What to most would seem a shocking sta-
tistic, the suicide numbers are to some a
painful reminder that even at Stanford not
everything is as sunny as it seems. Last year, a
phone survey conducted by the University of
over 2,000 Stanford students revealed that
nearly a quarter of the student body had expe-
rienced a depressed mood during the previous
month, and that more than three percent of
students met the medical criteria for a major
depressive disorder. Of those surveyed, 0.5
percent of students had thought of suicide.
The issue of mental health has become a
larger and larger debate on college campuses
over the past couple of years, and it seems for
good reason.According to a 2007 study done
by the American College Health Associa-
tion, approximately 16 percent of college stu-
dents nationwide have been diagnosed with
clinical depression; and another 15 percent
would qualify as clinically depressed if they
were evaluated. Over nine percent of sur-
veyed students nationwide said that they had
seriously considered suicide during their col-
lege careers, a reflection of the sobering sta-
tistics that suicide is now the second leading
cause of death among college students.
But yet, here at Stanford, suicide and
other severe mental health issues seem to be
a taboo topic. Suicides are kept under wraps
as much as possible and if the University can
prevent the campus at large from hearing
M ARK M Y W ORDS
Mark
Kogan
about it, the better for them. Mental health
numbers are scarce and difficult to access at
best. My own attempts to contact different
administrators for statistics resulted in no re-
sponse, or a curt, “We don’t give that infor-
mation out.”
But why not?
Is it not in our interest as students to know
of the mental health situation on our particu-
lar campus? Mental health numbers, ranging
from the number of forced hospitalizations
to attempted and successful suicides, are just
as important for a prospective student as how
many gyms there are or how many people
live in each dorm.These are our lives and our
sanity we are talking about here — neither of
which any Stanford student takes lightly.
Privacy may be a legitimate concern for
grieving friends and family, and I understand
that and uphold a family’s choice to keep the
matter private. But there is no excuse to hide
the numbers from the student body and the
larger Stanford community.
Stanford isn’t alone in keeping its skele-
tons in the deepest part of its closet. Few
schools release this information, and for
good reason. Who wants to go to the school
that is the nation’s “suicide leader?” Would-
n’t you think twice about going to a school
that has the highest “forced hospitalization”
rate per capita? Schools are trying to protect
their enrollment numbers and keep the ad-
missions rate ever on the decline. Alumni
donors may hesitate to give money to a
school where students are deciding to take
their own lives left and right. Suicide num-
bers have an unfortunate way of getting in
the way of those goals.
However, these kinds of issues do come to
a head despite a university’s best efforts. At
the turn of the century, several highly publi-
cized suicides from Cornell and MIT, includ-
ing a girl who set herself on fire in her dorm
room, led to a national outcry for publication
of numbers. Schools resisted as best they
could and did their utmost to pretend noth-
ing was going on.
However, thanks to the diligent work of
local reporters and continuous national pres-
sure, the numbers eventually came out. As
soon as they did, everyone quickly under-
stood why these numbers were being hidden
in the first place.
At Cornell, between 1996 and 2006, 21
students took their lives. Only three of these
suicides were ever publicized. From 1990 to
2000, MIT’s student suicide rate was 53 per-
cent higher than the national average.
The numbers went on and on and the pub-
lic outcry reached an absolute furor.
And what came of it? After immense pub-
lic pressure to overhaul its mental health care
system, Cornell has dropped its per capita
suicide rate by more than half, now falling
well below the national average, despite de-
creasing enrollment numbers. MIT poured
millions into its mental health care system
and is now seen as a fantastic example of how
to run an efficient and effective student well-
ness program.
It may be convenient for the University to
suppress its mental health numbers, but that
action is both immoral and dangerous. Stu-
dents and their families have a right to know
how a school is addressing mental health on
campus, because without transparency, there
can be no liability.And with no liability, Stan-
ford will not reform or improve, and we will
continue to lose students that did not have to
be lost.
Mark hopes that someday, universities around
the world will weigh the health of their students
more heavily than their images. If you agree,
email Mark at mkogan@stanford.edu.
6 N Friday, February 27, 2009 Cardinal Today The Stanford Daily

BASEBALL Continued from front page

SOFTBALL
nal’s plate is the DeMarini Invita-
tional in Fullerton, Calif. There,
Stanford will face a struggling Indi-
Continued from front page ana team that sits at 1-11 this season,
BASEBALL then it will face Minnesota to con-
clude a Friday doubleheader.
2/26 St. Mary’s L 5-3 nings in the circle, during which she
coughed up four hits and four runs
“Minnesota has the upper hand
on the pitching,” Rittman said of the
before she was relieved by
UP NEXT Maryanne Cronin. The Gaels’ closer
Cardinal’s next opponents. “We
know the Big West teams a little bet-
had to withstand a faulty defensive ter.”
CAL STATE-FULLERTON effort, allowing Stanford to produce The Gophers are 8-8 this season,
2/27-29 two runs on three hits in her two in- and pitcher Briana Hassett can claim
Fullerton, Calif. nings of work. an 8-3 record in 14 appearances to go
Stanford handled the Gaels in the with a lean 1.34 ERA.
GAME NOTES: The Titans will finally get their chance later innings, but Rittman acknowl- Stanford will follow up with
at a rematch with the Cardinal this weekend as edged a need for more offensive pro- games on Saturday versus UC-
Stanford visits Fullerton for the first time since last liferation. Riverside and Cal Poly.The Cardinal
season’s NCAA Super Regional; back then, coach “We didn’t adjust to the pitch- is 2-0 lifetime against the High-
Mark Marquess’ team punched its ticket to Omaha ing,” he said, “but we did hit the ball landers of Riverside, while Fullerton
and the College World Series in a two-game series hard, and when you have speed, is 1-2 against Pac-10 teams this sea-
sweep. Stanford ace Jeff Inman will get his second you’re going to put pressure on son and has lost four of its last five,
start of the season Friday after going seven innings teams.” scoring just seven runs over that
in the season-opener last Friday against Vanderbilt. Stanford currently finds itself in stretch.
second place in the Pac-10, with only
Washington (14-0) able to claim a Contact Chris Fitzgerald at chrish-
As could be seen in the Vanderbilt series stronger record. Next on the Cardi- fitz@gmail.com.
and against St. Mary’s, Stanford has been
adept at creating late rallies when needed,
especially in the final innings of the game. In
its second contest against Vanderbilt, Stan-
ford came back from an 11-point deficit to
make noise in the eighth, pounding out
seven runs. Though the Cardinal could not
quite finish it off, it lost by three on Satur-
day’s first game of the doubleheader. In the
third game of the series, Stanford came back
from being down 5-3 to score three runs in
the eighth and win the game 6-5.
“We have the ability to play great base-
ball,” Marshall said. “If we play like we can,
than I feel confident about this weekend’s
series.”
Last June,the Card faced the Titans in the
NCAA Super Regional and won, earning a
trip to the College World Series,while the Ti-
tans were left behind.In the first game of the
Stanford-Fullerton series,the Cardinal came
up with a late rally in the ninth inning to take
the 4-3 victory. In the second game of the se-
ries, the Cardinal brought out the bats to
clinch an 8-5 win over the Titans.
Now,Stanford faces Fullerton for the first
time since last year’s triumphant streak.
Fullerton is widely considered to be one of
the nation’s top teams and the Card should
expect a tough battle.
“We know what to expect from Fuller-
ton,” freshman pitcher Jordan Pries said.
“Regardless of record, they’re a great team
and they’re going to be gunning for us espe-
cially after what the team did to them last
year. I expect there to be three very hard-
fought games from the first pitch to the last.”
GIULIO GRATTA/The Stanford Daily
Contact Claudia Preciado at claudiap@stan- Sophomore starter Danny Sandbrink will start his second game of the season on Saturday against the Titans in
ford.edu. Fullerton. The Cardinal upset Cal State-Fullerton in a Super Regional sweep last season to advance to Omaha.

The Stanford Daily Online

http://www.stanforddaily.com/ S search
The Stanford Daily Cardinal Today Friday, February 27, 2009 N 7

SPORTS
CARD CRUISES INTO L.A.
UCLA
(16-9, 7-7 Pac-10)
Los Angeles 7 P.M.
COVERAGE:
RADIO:
KZSU 90.1 FM, (kzsu.stanford.edu)

UP NEXT USC
3/1 Los Angeles
COVERAGE:
RADIO KZSU 90.1 FM
(kzsu.stanford.edu)
NOTES: The No. 3 Stanford women remain tied atop the
Pacific-10 Conference standings with No. 4 Cal. Both
squads are at 13-1 in conference play. This weekend
will mark the final road action of the regular season for
the Cardinal, as the Stanford women have just four
games remaining before the Pac-10 Tournament,
which opens on March 13 in Los Angeles.

By DAN BOHM
STAFF WRITER

The No. 3 Stanford women’s basketball

team will look to continue its hot streak when
it travels to Los Angeles this weekend to take
on UCLA and USC. In its final road trip be-
fore the beginning of postseason play, the
Cardinal will play the Bruins today before
traveling across town to battle the Women of
Troy on Sunday.
Having won nine in a row, Stanford is in
great position to compete for yet another
conference championship. The Cardinal
women enter the weekend tied atop the Pac-
10 with archrival Cal — both teams hold a
13-1 record in conference.
Stanford is coming off of an easy sweep of
the Oregon schools at home this past week-
end. Highly touted freshman forward
Nnemkadi Ogwumike came off the bench to
lead the Cardinal in scoring in both games. Stanford Daily File Photo
In an interview with GoStanford.com, Sophomore Jeanette Pohlen has had to step up for the Cardinal since an early-season knee injury sidelined junior point guard JJ Hones for all of the 2008-2009 season.
head coach Tara VanDerveer stressed the im-
portance of the play of her bench over the Pohlen.With the early season injury to junior position and leading the team in assists, Stanford having defeated UCLA 68-51 on er. She creates with quickness and her ball-
weekend. point guard JJ Hones, Pohlen’s role on the Campbell is also UCLA’s only player to aver- Feb. 1 at Maples Pavilion. handling ability and her three-point shoot-
“In our Oregon game, we started out kind team has dramatically increased from a year age double-digit points at 13.7 per game. USC enters the weekend in fourth place ing.”
of slow and had some people come off of the ago. The Bruins are a fast team that thrives in in the Pac-10 with a record of 14-11, including This will also be Stanford’s second meet-
bench and do a great job for us; Sarah Boothe After averaging about four points as a transition, leaving VanDerveer to prepare 8-6 in conference. ing with USC, with the Cardinal having taken
and [Nnemkadi Ogwumike] especially,”Van- freshman, the Brea, Calif.-native has slid into for all of the different looks UCLA could The Women of Troy, like the Bruins, are the first matchup at home 81-53 on Jan. 29.
Derveer said. the point guard role for Stanford, and is now give her team. led by their point guard. For USC, that is Despite the Cardinal’s recent success, the
The Cardinal is led by junior center Jayne second on the team in scoring, trailing only “UCLA is a very athletic team,” Van- fifth-year senior Camille LeNoir, who leads team cannot take these games for granted. It
Appel, who leads the team in scoring and re- Appel. Pohlen has also established herself as Derveer told GoStanford.com.“They are ag- the Women of Troy in both scoring and as- was only a year ago that Stanford traveled
bounding, averaging 15.2 and 9.1, respective- Stanford’s leading three-point threat, having gressive, they rebound well, they’ll mix up sists, averaging 12.6 points and 3.6 assists per down to Los Angeles only to be swept by
ly,per game.A starter since she arrived on the knocked down 60 on the season. She also their defenses, they’ll press, they’ll run, they’ll game this season. these same opponents.
Farm,Appel has also been awarded four Pac- leads the team in assists. zone, they’ll play player to player and they’ll VanDerveer has been very impressed The Cardinal hopes to avoid a similar out-
10 Player of the Week awards over the course The Bruins (16-9, 7-7 Pac-10) enter the set a lot of screens on the ball.They are a very with the play of USC’s point guard. come this weekend. The team’s quest begins
of this season. game in fifth place in the conference. Sopho- physical team.” “I think they have the premier point tonight at 7 p.m. in Los Angeles.
Also key to the Cardinal’s success has more guard Doreena Campbell leads them This will be the second meeting between guard in the conference,” she told GoStan-
been the play of sophomore guard Jeanette offensively. Despite playing the point guard the Cardinal and the Bruins this season, with ford.com.“[She is] really a tremendous play- Contact Dan Bohm at bohmd@stanford.edu.

TRACK & FIELD

Stanford’s sports scene Danny
Belch
MPSF Championships ahead
is unique,just like us
am usually very positive when it out to practice the cheers. At Duke,
On My Mind
By ANARGHYA VARDHANA
STAFF WRITER
TRACK & FIELD pionship meet, the main focus is to
score as many points as possible.”

I
comes to Stanford athletics. I
have written several times about
the unparalleled success of Stanford
sports over the years. I am upbeat
and optimistic about each team’s
chances to win an NCAA title. I love
to see as much fan support as possi-
ble for all of Stanford’s athletic
events.
But I think I need to shift gears a
little here, not to bash by any means,
but to clarify. It’s time to finally set
things straight: Stanford is not, and
might never be, a fan-crazy, sports-
first school.
This is not to say we do not have
passionate, adamant, and Cardinal-
loving fans here — because we do,
and I am one of them. But on the
whole, if you scope out and look at
the roughly 7,000 undergrads on the
Farm, we just aren’t that intense of a
student body. And it’s time to accept
this fact for what it is.
I think a reason is that Stanford is
just too good at everything. The rea-
son we have won so many Directors
Cups is because we have a solid,
highly successful athletic program
from top to bottom. Because we are
so good across the board, there has
not really been a sport or two to rally
around.
Stanford students and community
do show up to sporting events; it’s
just not in the numbers some hope.
But let’s be honest here; we don’t
have the student population of a
state school. We do not have a sport
that is our “religion” like so many
schools do. We are a student body
that, on the whole, does not see
sports as the school’s top priority and
our fanbase reflects that.
Texas A&M gets upwards of
40,000 students out to rehearse
cheers for football games. That’s
right — over 40,000 students come
students have to camp out in tents
just to get a seat at basketball games.
This type of student action and
support is quite amazing and impres-
sive. But that is the culture of those
schools. Stanford may never get to
that level in terms of student fervor.
But that’s not us anyway.
We are unique at Stanford and
that uniqueness separates us. We
aren’t psycho crazy fans, because we
have other passions in life.We will be
creators of new technologies, future
world leaders and strategists, innova-
tors and developers. Most of our
minds do not revolve around sports
24/7. We are not just one-dimension-
al — we did not come here just to at-
tend sporting events.And that is per-
fectly fine by me. because I don’t
think other schools can say the same.
I think we need to be quite
pleased with the level of support the
Cardinal does get from students and
the outside community. Everyone
here loves Stanford, even if not for
only the athletics.Yes, you may find it
frustrating when the guy down the
hall isn’t going to the football game
because he is studying. But there will
be someone the next day trying to get
you to come to an event promoting
sustainable energy and you might
not want to go either. It goes both
ways at Stanford — and at plenty of
other schools it doesn’t.
Stanford has actually insulated it-
self from a withering fan base be-
cause of the strength of the athletic
program year in and year out. I could
imagine this place a lot worse if our
teams weren’t so good all the time.
But Stanford attracts the best, and
our teams usually succeed, which
means fans show up.
And to be frank, if a team is strug-
gling, attendance will most likely
drop, whatever the school or city,
whatever team it is. It’s human na-
ture. But at a school like Stanford
where the culture is not diehard to
begin with, those drops will be more
noticeable and more frustrating.
This year, Tennessee football was
having one of its worst seasons in re-
cent history, rare for a traditionally
strong program. In the last home
game of the year in which the Volun-
teers entered the game with a 4-7
record (sound like a team we
know?), the stadium was still filled to
capacity with over 102,000 fans. Two
weeks earlier, with the team’s record
at 3-6, the crowd was over 99,000.
Now I know that it’s not fair to
compare Stanford with a school like
Tennessee in a sport like football.
But that is exactly my point — we
are not and will never be Tennessee.
We will never be that school that stu-
dents and the community come out
in raging numbers to support, what-
ever the circumstance. Fandom is in-
grained in the culture of schools like
Tennessee. On the Farm, it just isn’t.
Nor should we want it to be. Di-
versity, independence, freedom, hard
work and excellence are engrained
within Stanford. We have a commit-
ment to balance. Stanford is one of
the best educational institutions in
the world because of that.
I am and will always be a devoted
Stanford fan. And this column
shouldn’t deter you from being a fan,
either. We just have to realize what
kind of school Stanford is, so we
don’t get too caught up in trying to be
something we aren’t. The Stanford
culture is not a face-painting, drop-
everything, sports-or-northing way
of life.And I doubt many people here
would want it to be.
Stanford is the best university in
the country because it has every-
Please see BELCH, page 8
This weekend the men’s and
women’s Track and Field teams will
head off to Seattle, Wash. for the
Mountain Pacific Sports Federation
Championships, the final competi-
tion before the NCAA Nationals.
The MPSF Indoor Track Cham-
pionships will feature some of the
best runners in the nation from top
schools including Washington State,
Arizona State, Oregon, Cal, Wash-
ington, Cal State Northridge, Ari-
zona, UCLA and Long Beach State.
The highest nationally ranked in-
dividual for the Cardinal men is
sophomore Elliott Heath in the
3000-meter run, at No. 6 in the na-
tion. Heath will face off against No.
1 Galen Rupp of Oregon and No. 3
Michael Coe of Cal. Heath’s best
time of 7:53.63 is about 11 seconds
slower than Rupp’s, but with the
stakes as high as they are this week-
end, anything could happen as each
school vies for the MPSF title.
Outstanding freshman distance
runner Chris Derrick will face some
of the toughest competition in the
5000-meter run. Ranked No. 7, Der-
rick’s competition consists of No. 1
Rupp and Oregon’s No. 5 Shadrack
Biwott and No. 8 Luke Puskedra.
Freshman Amaechi Morton will
face some of the top names in the
country in the 400-meter dash, as he
takes on the No. 1 seed in the nation,
Jordan Boase from Washington.
Additional competition for Morton
includes No. 12 Jeshua Anderson
from Washington State, and No. 13
Donald Sanford from Arizona
State. Morton is currently ranked
No. 15, with a time of 46.88 seconds,
a mere 0.73 seconds off the auto-
matic qualifying time.
Senior Myles Bradley is current-
ly ranked first going into the MPSF
meet, with a No. 4 position in the na-
2/14 Husky Classic
UP NEXT
MOUNTAIN PACIFIC SPORTS
FEDERATION CHAMPIONSHIPS
2/27-28 Seattle
GAME NOTES: With the indoor season wind-
ing down, the Cardinal will be looking to
earn a few more bids to the NCAA Indoor
Championships this weekend in Seattle.
Following this weekend’s action, Stanford
will have one more chance to qualify some
athletes at UW on March 7 before the
biggest event of the indoor season opens
on March 13 in College Station, Tex.
tion. Bradley’s best time of 7.73 sec-
onds is 0.03 off the automatic quali-
fying mark, although his national
ranking should prove enough to
guarantee his ability to compete at
nationals.
“The men’s and women’s teams
are both very eager and prepared or
this weekend’s competition,”
claimed senior team captain Kyle
Davis-Hammerquist. “The hard
work put in by the new coaching staff
and all of the athletes should pay off
in the form of an MPSF victory. We
will be led by a frontline of world-
class and nationally ranked distance
runners, and supported by some of
Stanford’s best-ever sprinters.”
Leading the way for the women
will be senior Lauren Centrowitz,
ranked fifth in the nation in the 1-
mile run, with a time of 4:37.07.
“I’ve already qualified in the
events that I will do at NCAA’s and
will not be looking to hit any other
autos,” Centrowitz said of her events
this weekend. “Since this is a cham-
Competition in the event for
Centrowitz includes her Stanford
teammate Alicia Follmar, who is
ranked No. 14., and No. 7 Christine
Babcock of Washington. Follmar, a
senior, is currently two seconds off
from the automatic qualifying time
and will be looking to ride the ener-
gy of championship weekend to find
the extra burst of speed she needs.
Also looking to achieve an auto-
matic qualifying time is freshman
Laurynne Chetelat, who is four sec-
onds away.
Centrowitz, Follmar and Chete-
lat also have top positions in the
country for the 3000-meter run,
ranked eighth, 12th and 15th respec-
tively. The top competition for the
women in this event includes
Alexandra Kosinski of Oregon and
Katie Follett and Mel Lawrence of
Washington.
“We will be looking for Lau-
rynne Chetelat to hit auto in the 3K,
and some NCAA qualifying marks
in the women’s 5K from Emilie
Amaro and Kate Niehaus,” Cen-
trowitz said.
Another top position for the
women is the distance medley relay
consisting of Follmar, senior Idara
Out, freshman Maria Lattanzi and
Centrowitz. Ranked eighth in the
nation, the women will face their
toughest competition this weekend
in No. 4 Oregon and No. 5 Washing-
ton.
“The team is looking to win the
MPSF title after finishing second
last year,” said Centrowitz when
asked about the prospects for the
women. “There’s a lot of positive
energy this year within the team and
I think that can be used to our ad-
vantage this weekend.”
Contact Anarghya Vardhana at vard-
hana@stanford.edu.
8 N Friday, February 27, 2009 Cardinal Today The Stanford Daily

BASKETBALL
HOW TO PLACE AN AD
BOX SCORE MEN’S BASKETBALL

CLASSIFIEDS Call (650) 723-2555 Ext. 1

for display and contract rates
*Please allow for 3 business days from the
when you purchased your ad to when it

BY PHONE
appears in the paper

Call 650-723-2555 Ext. 1

Continued from front page

Shipp gave UCLA some breathing

room with a three-point shot at
STANFORD
NO. 22 UCLA
(15-11, 4-11)
(21-7, 10-5)
1ST 2ND F
38
37
33
39
71
76

Skills a Must BY FAX

11:10.The Bruins went up by five and STANFORD CARDINAL (15-11, 4-11 PAC-10)
INTERNSHIPS For a Silicon Valley Startup Call 650-725-1329
Please include Credit Card # and Exp. Date
never relinquished the lead. Pos Name FG-FGA 3P-3PA FT-FTA RB A TO PTS MIN
From $35 per hour E-MAIL
“Give them a lot of credit,” said F L. Fields 4-11 1-3 7-10 10 0 2 16 34
SUMMER LEADERSHIP E-mail Staff Aces: jobs@staffaces.com classies@daily.stanford.edu Stanford head coach Johnny
TRAINING & OFFICER F L. Hill 2-8 1-2 3-3 2 6 2 8 33
OPPORTUNITIES
ON THE WEB Dawkins. “We got up in the first half
SOFTWARE PROGRAMMERS WANT- Click on “Buy Classified Ads” at C J. Owens 7-8 0-0 0-0 3 0 0 14 25
http://www.stanforddaily.com and they just kept on fighting.”
ED! HTML, PHP, Java, Flash or Perl for Shipp fought especially hard. The G M. Johnson 0-4 0-0 0-0 3 3 0 0 23
Enroll in the Army ROTC Leader's
Training Course. Sophomores & dynamic fast growing Silicon Valley senior was nearly unstoppable, hit- G A. Goods 6-10 2-4 4-5 2 3 3 18 35
Grad Students Welcome! Develop startup. From $45 per hour contractual SUBJECTS WANTED ting timely shots and carrying his J. Green 0-2 0-1 0-0 1 0 1 0 11
your team-building & decision- or for permanent placement. Email your D. Shiller 2-3 1-2 0-0 0 1 2 5 13
resume to jobs@staffaces.com PLAQUE PSORIASIS PATIENTS WANTED team to a victory. He was 9-12 from
making Skills. Take the first If you are 18 years of age or older the field — including an outstanding K. Brown 3-3 2-2 2-2 2 0 1 10 21
step toward becoming an Officer HOUSING and have moderate to severe plaque 4-5 from three — and finished with D. Dildy 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 2
in the U.S. Army. Start Strong. psoriasis, you may qualify for a 24 points to lead all scorers. He
Compete for a Scholarship! J. Trotter 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 1 0 3
Life on the coast-fantastic ocean- research study of an investigational added seven rebounds, four assists
Qualify for a $5k sign-on bonus. view. Fully-furnished, 3bd/3ba medication at Stanford University's TOTALS 24-49 7-14 16-20 25 13 12 71 200
Call CPT Kerkow, 408-554-4034, home for rent in Half Moon Bay and two steals to boot. The Bruins’
Dept. of Dermatology. Clinic visits forward certainly got Dawkins’ at-
email:akerkow@scu.edu area, 30min drive to Stanford, SF.
∂ Avail 8/01/09-1/03/10, perfect for
and study medication are provided tention. NO. 22 UCLA(21-7, 10-5 PAC-10)
to you at no cost. Participants will
ARMY ROTC. START STRONG. sabbaticals! $2900/mo. inc. be compensated for time and travel. “He was very good tonight,” the Pos Name FG-FGA 3P-3PA FT-FTA RB A TO PTS MIN
utilities & gardener. 650-284-5588 Contact our research staff at Stanford coach said. F N. Dragovic 3-10 1-5 3-4 4 0 2 10 31
ANNOUNCEMENTS 650-724-0964 or 650-724-3617 oremail Stanford employed a full-court C A. Aboya 6-9 0-0 4-5 3 1 0 16 29
Office space avail in downtown Furnished 1 bd in midtown PA stanfordskinstudies@gmail.com. press for much of the night, a tactic G D. Collison 3-9 0-1 1-2 1 4 3 7 33
Menlo Park. 650-218-3669 house avail Apr 1. $950/mo. inc. util. that Dawkins has been using spar-
Krish4816@hotmail.com 650-328-2060 G J. Shipp 9-12 4-5 2-2 7 4 3 24 36
Paid Psych Studies ingly this season.
Various topics in Psychology Dept. G J. Holiday 3-6 2-2 0-0 1 2 0 8 22
Humanist Community in Palo Alto LOST AND FOUND “We wanted to make sure we
Diff. speaker each Sun. 11A-noon Pays up to $30/hr were being as aggressive as possible . D. Gordon 3-4 0-0 0-1 1 0 0 6 12
Lunch noon-1P www.humanists.org Found: Pissot Touch watch by psych.stanford.edu/participate . . and maybe try to speed them up M. Lee 1-2 0-0 0-0 5 1 0 2 14
Lake Lagunita. Call 650-725-0301 and get them out of their offense,” J. Anderoson 0-1 0-0 0-0 0 2 0 0 7
DONORS WANTED TUTORING Dawkins said, noting that the Bruins M. Roll 1-3 1-3 0-0 3 1 0 3 16
$$ SPERM DONOR NEEDED $$ SERVICES Tutors wanted: all academics, are particularly effective when run- TOTALS 29-56 8-16 10-14 29 15 9 76 200
Earn up to $100/donation. Healthy ning their half-court offense.
MEN, wanted for California Write Strongly! Good humored, Flex p/t $25-35/hr, nr Stanford
patient Marshall Scholar, Ph.D. The Cardinal had chances to — Compiled by Denis Griffin
Cryobank’s sperm donor Day: 941-4350; Eve/wkend: 493-5512.
can help with writing projects climb back into the game in the final
program. APPLY ONLINE: minute. In the last 45 seconds, both
www.spermbank.com great and small. Stanford discount, PA Bio AP tutor wanted 6509964624
free 30-min consultation. Contact Goods and Fields missed free ford is now 4-11 in the Pac-10. game,” he said at halftime. Bowlsby
HELP WANTED 650-380-2466, throws. Overall, the Stanford men Dawkins said he needs to do a better called the former Secretary of State
deathlessprose@mac.com Weekly tutor needed for HS honors
chemistry & precalculus shot a solid 80 percent from the char- job for his team to succeed. “a great asset” to the University.
IT Consultant or Administrator ity stripe, but they couldn’t convert “I have to be better,” he said.
Tech Savvy & Great Communication in Los Altos Hills. 941-0970
with the game on the line. “When we lose . . . the first person I Contact Jacob Johnson at twoj@stan-
“[We] just didn’t make our free look at and the first person I am al- ford.edu.
throws,” Goods said. “They made ways going to blame is me.”
theirs, we missed ours. They made Stanford’s last hope for redemp-

plays, we didn’t.”
“It’s just mental toughness,”
Fields added. “You’ve got to knock
those down. It’s frustrating.”
Owens was a bright spot for the
Cardinal. The sophomore was ag-
gressive in the post, showed a nice
touch on his shot and managed to
stay out of foul trouble. Dawkins was
pleased with his athletic big-man’s
progress.
“Josh has been getting better
every game,” he said. “It doesn’t al-
ways show up in the box score.”
Tonight, it did. Owens scored 14
points on 7-8 shooting in 25 minutes
of play. But Dawkins cautioned the
sophomore not to rest on his success.
“He can’t be satisfied,” the Cardi-
nal coach said. “If you get satisfied,
you start moving backwards.”
Despite the strong effort, Stan-
tion comes Saturday against USC.
Game time is set for 5 p.m. at Maples
Pavilion.
Notes
The crew of ESPN’s College Game-
Day was in attendance last night. Jay
Bilas played with Stanford coach
Johnny Dawkins at Duke, and was in
the same recruiting class . . . The un-
official attendance figure for the
Sixth Man was about 350, according
to Stanford Athletic Director Bob
Bowlsby. However, that number was
solely for Sixth Man members —
The student section was fairly full,
probably the result of increased sin-
gle-game ticket sales . . . Bowlsby
was also in attendance, accompanied
by a special guest:Condoleezza Rice.
“I had lunch with her earlier and
gave her a couple tickets to the
BELCH
Continued from page 7
thing. Included in that everything is
sports. So yes, it is frustrating when
there is not as much support for Car-
dinal athletic teams as another uni-
versity’s, but you have to realize
what kind of school you go to. So I,
for one, understand if we do not
have that same diehard attitude
here when it comes to sports. Be-
cause we wouldn’t be Stanford if we
did.
Danny Belch just hasn’t seen the An-
drew Luck era yet. Give it time,
Danny, give it time. Contact him at
dbelch1@stanford.edu.