Washington Week: Student Voices (O)

Basketball teams unite against breast cancer
By Michael Aguilar
The Daily Gamecock, U. South Carolina
February 09, 2009

At most sporting events it is not unusual to see two teams and two fan bases divided against each other, both in spirit and physically. The two opposing sides cheer for opposite teams and wear opposing colors and stay divided throughout the contest.

Sunday afternoon, things were slightly different in the Colonial Life Arena when the U. South Carolina women's basketball team faced off against U. Mississippi. While there were two distinct teams competing to win and two fan bases obviously cheering for different sides, they were united by the color pink.

The Women's Basketball Coaches Association hosted the Pink Zone Sunday afternoon across the nation. More than 1,250 women's basketball teams and organizations participated in the WBCA's second annual national event to raise awareness and money for breast cancer research.

USC coach Dawn Staley spearheaded Carolina's participation in the event and is very passionate about finding a cure for breast cancer, a disease that one in every eight women are at risk of.

"The WBCA has united behind a great issue, and one that our staff and team are passionate about," Staley said. "This event is especially timely this year as the coaching community recently lost a great person and ambassador for both women's basketball and breast cancer awareness in Kay Yow."

Yow, a former coach for N.C. State, lost a long battle with breast cancer Jan. 24, and Carolina honored her with a moment of silence prior to the game. Also in remembrance of Yow, both the Carolina and Ole Miss players came out prior to the game in pink warm ups. Gamecock athletes also wore pink shoelaces and headbands in honor of the Pink Zone cause.

Apart from Staley and Gamecock athletes, plenty of other supporters were on hand to raise awareness for breast cancer research. Athletics Director Eric Hyman attended the game with a pink ribbon on his lapel to support his coach and athletes.

"(Breast cancer awareness) is such a worthy cause," Hyman said. "Anytime we can help with something like this we want to try and be able to do it."

Several Ole Miss fans also made the trek to Columbia to support their Rebels and the Pink Zone night. Mother and daughter Beverly and Bethany Ogden traveled with the team from Natches, Miss. to watch Sunday's game, but Ogden saw much more than basketball talent on the floor. She felt proud that the women representing both universities were answering a greater call than basketball.

"These young ladies, they understand and realize that the more awareness there is then the more money you can raise," Ogden said. "And the sooner you can find a cure because a lot of these people wearing pink shirts, are going to be affected by breast cancer."

Fourth-year hotel, restaurant and tourism management student Courtney Battista was in the crowd for Sunday afternoon's game. Battista has yet to come to a game this season but Sunday's game and the Pink Zone idea struck a chord for her.

"I've had several family members affected and my grandmother actually passed away from breast cancer," Battista said. "Almost every person I know has been affected in some way and this shows that [the athletic department] cares about more than just the sport."

The Zeta Tau Alpha sorority showed up in force on Sunday, as the sorority's philanthropy is the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation. Sorority president Lexie Rabun said that ZTA saw the Pink Zone as the perfect opportunity to help raise awareness and to promote their charity golf tournament, The Crown Classic, on April 1. Rabun sees breast cancer as an issue that students should be taking seriously.

"I mean, you can say that you'll never get breast cancer and it will never happen to you," Rabun said. "The reality is that you may."

That reality is a reality that USC women's basketball team and its fans are taking head on.

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