Club field hockey hosts breast cancer fundraiser

By REBEKAH DEBELL

October brings Halloween, cooler weather and bright colors. However, October also brings Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Organizations, schools and sports teams work to raise awareness and educate about breast cancer; including the University of Mary Washington’s club field hockey team.

On Oct. 9, club field hockey took to the field in their bright pink shirts for their fourth annual Play4theCure tournament, in hopes of raising money and awareness to find a cure for breast cancer.

Emma Jones, a sophomore who is majoring in German, explained that playing in this tournament goes beyond her responsibility to the team but to “show support for the cause” as well.

Jones also explained how during the tournament she felt a “deeper sense of importance and camaraderie” as the team was playing for more than just a win. She went on to say that she felt it was important to help raise money in the bake sale that the team held the day before the tournament.

Jones hopes to continue this tradition, as she believes the team has been very successful in raising money and awareness for the cause while also having fun and enjoying the game. She also hopes that in continuing with this tradition to “inspire others to contribute” to the cause as well.

Similarly, Angie Thomson, a junior who majoring in art history, believes that the team did a good job raising money, in fact, they raised over $600. Thomson, however, hopes to do a better job in the future raising awareness for the cause through better “promoting the tournament” to provoke interest in the game and more fans to come support the team.

Thomson believes that to help advertise the tournament the team should wear their bright pink shirts around campus the days leading up to the tournament, which she hopes would both help increase the turnout on the day of the tournament.

The president of club field hockey, senior historic preservation major Chesley de Leon, felt that the tournament was a great success and is “very proud with everyone’s participation in the tournament and the success of our fundraiser.”

“This tournament was a great bonding experience for the team and that it was a good way to get the UMW community involved in such a great cause,” de Leon said.

De Leon encourages anyone to get involved by donating to the club field hockey fundraising site or to come out and support the field hockey team next year for their Play4theCure tournament.

Despite losing the game to VCU with a score of 0-3 the team in general felt that the tournament was a success in raising awareness and money for the cure to breast cancer.