By Kayla Zapcic
Elm Staff Writer
On Saturday, Feb. 2 the Athena’s Club hosted an event inviting local girls from the community to celebrate National Girls and Women in Sports Day.
The Athena’s Club is comprised of female athletes who work in different ways to develop an intercollegiate network and build post-college skills.
Three women’s teams helped orchestrate the event and expose elementary girls from the community to various sports.
Eight girls from the community attended, ranging from second grade to fifth.
Annie Kietzman, Head Coach of the Washington College field hockey team and faculty advisor for the club, recapped the event, “The main goal of Athena’s is to engage women from all different sports teams who may not always have the chance to interact with one another,” she said. “It was fun to see all of the college athletes interacting with the girls and exposing them to sports they may not have a chance to experience in another setting.”
The women’s soccer team guided the local girls through a weaving drill and a series of games that were friendly and competitive to the age groups there.
The women’s rowing team taught both other college athletes and the local girls how to erg on the rowing machines, and the field hockey team ran the girls through some basic stick work and eventually finished with a game of around the world.
Kylie Weiss, Athena’s member and junior on the women’s field hockey team said, “Today was a really great day to expose all of these young girls to sports they’d probably never try. Everyone was so open to trying new things and really embracing the day.”
February 6, 2019 is the National Girls and Women in Sports Day, so the goal of this day was to acknowledge the importance of fair play, building the awareness of Title IX and working towards equal opportunity for women in sports.