Women's Soccer Raises Funds at Tournament
March 10, 2015 04:56 PM | General
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Junior Kailey Utley coaches her team during Saturday's tournament.
All-Pro Photography (Dale Sparks Photo)
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MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The West Virginia University women’s soccer team raised $7,207 in donations for Morgantown’s Betty Puskar Breast Cancer Foundation at its annual 4-versus-4 tournament on March 7.
The all-day “Three’s a Team…the Fourth’s a Mountaineer” event, held at the Caperton Indoor Facility, featured 264 participants. Tournaments were held for each of the three divisions – boys and girls in grades 3-8, college-age and 30-and-older groups – and each team was paired with a WVU women’s soccer student-athlete or a Mountaineer coach.
“We had another successful tournament this year. The turnout was tremendous, and all the athletes were very competitive and enthusiastic,” said Mountaineer coach Nikki Izzo-Brown. “This tournament is such a great opportunity for youth soccer players to play the sport they love and meet some of their role models, too.
“Ultimately, we seek to raise money and have fun, too. I have such an exclusive perspective at this event, as I’m a soccer mom and a participant. I witness first-hand the impact our girls have on these youth soccer players – their interaction is priceless.”
Unique to this year’s tournament was a new partnership with Morgantown’s Qdoba and Papa John’s. Both establishments sold refreshments to participants on Saturday and donated the proceeds to the Mountaineers’ cause. Additionally, all athletes received a pink bracelet donated by the Foundation and a pink rally towel courtesy of WVU Healthcare.
“The tournament has turned into something much bigger than I ever imagined,” said Izzo-Brown. “We loved having their support throughout Saturday.”
The annual tournament is the program’s first fundraising project of the new season. The team also will hold a second collection at its spring Pink Game against Pitt on Friday, April 3, at 7 p.m., at Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium. Additionally, each student-athlete will fundraise on her own for the cause.
“WVU student-athletes receive a lot on a daily basis, and this tournament, as well as our additional efforts throughout the spring and fall, remind each of the Mountaineers that they need to give back to the community, too,” said Izzo-Brown. “These efforts are much bigger than soccer.
“This weekend was a great start for the 2015 fundraising campaign.”
The Mountaineers open their 2015 spring slate this Saturday, March 14, with a 10:30 a.m. match against the National Women’s Soccer League’s (NWSL) New York Flash, at Sahlen Sports Park, in Elma, N.Y. The team opens its home slate against the Panthers in April.
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