February 5, 2010

NEWMAC Teams Participate in WBCA's "Pink Zone” Initiative

Babson Park, Mass.-For the second year in a row, all 10 of New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) women's basketball teams will participate in the "WBCA Pink Zone" initiative during the month of February. The "Pink Zone," formerly Think Pink, is an outreach and fundraising effort supported by the Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) to raise breast cancer awareness in college communities and beyond. This year's Pink Zone dates are February 12-21, but teams without games during that week are encouraged to participate throughout the month of February.

Clark and MIT will get things started this Saturday, February 6. Clark plays host to Mount Holyoke on Saturday at 1:00 p.m. Pink Zone t-shirts will be given away to fans and all gate receipts will go toward the Kay Yow/WBCA Cancer Fund. Clark's event staff will also be donning pink attire on Saturday.

MIT welcomes Wellesley College on Saturday as well, in conjunction with MIT's senior day. The game begins at 2:00 p.m. and MIT will be collecting donations at the door to benefit the Kay Yow fund. MIT has also ordered pink t-shirts that will be worn by players, coaches and support staff.

The following weekend, February 13, Mount Holyoke, Springfield and Wellesley will host Pink Zone games. During Springfield's game against Clark, beginning at 1:00 p.m., the Pride will wear pink t-shirts during warm-ups, pink ribbons will be distributed to all fans and the game program will be pink.

Mount Holyoke players will be wearing pink shoelaces and pink t-shirts during warm-ups when they take on MIT at 2:00 p.m. All admission receipts and donations will be donated to the Kay Yow/WBCA Cancer Fund.

Wellesley hosts WPI on February 13 at 2:00 p.m. for its "Pink Zone" contest. Wellesley's players will wear pink shirts during warm-ups, pink game programs will be printed and donations will be accepted at the door. In addition to the basketball game, Wellesley will extend its efforts to the pool as well. On Saturday, February 6 the Blue will host a swim meet with Connecticut College and Bates at 1:00 p.m. Wellesley's swimmers will wear pink swim caps, which will be available for purchase, the proceeds of which will go toward breast cancer research.

Coast Guard will hold its "Pink Zone" event on February 15, when the Bears play Mitchell College at 7:00 p.m. The Academy has purchased pink t-shirts and shoelaces, which will be distributed to both teams before the game.

On February 17, Wheaton will host a "Pink Zone" event in conjunction with National Girls and Women in Sports Day. Both the women's and men's teams will be in action that day, as the men host MIT at 5:30 p.m. and the women following against Wellesley. The men will wear pink warm-ups while the women have ordered pairs of Pink sneakers that they will sport during the game. The student-group Colleges Against Cancer (CAC) will operate a table at the door, collecting a "voluntary gate" and providing educational material.

Smith's home date with Springfield on the same night will feature a "pink out" of the crowd, as well as a contest to find the fan with the best pink outfit. There will also be an opportunity for fans to make donations to the Kay Yow Fund.

WPI also hosts a double-header on February 17 that will serve as its "Pink Zone" date. The WPI men take on Springfield at 5:30 p.m. followed by the women versus MIT at 7:30 p.m.

The final "Pink Zone" date on the NEWMAC calendar is February 20, when Babson plays host to a double-header, beginning at 2:00 p.m. The Babson women will take on Mount Holyoke in their final game of the regular season, followed by the men against non-conference foe, Framingham State. Fans will be encouraged to wear pink and will receive a free "Beaver Nation" t-shirt with a donation of $10 or more. There will also be a number of raffles and giveaways throughout the day, with all proceeds to benefit the Kay Yow/WBCA Cancer Fund.

The WBCA Pink Zone initiative is a global, unified effort for the WBCA's nation of coaches to assist in raising breast cancer awareness on the court, across campuses, in communities and beyond. The NCAA has also joined the WBCA's Pink Zone initiative by continuing the "Calling for a Cure" campaign, in which all NCAA women's basketball officials will be blowing a pink whistle in games from February 12-21, the period set aside for this year's program. Additionally, officials are encouraged to donate to the Kay Yow/WBCA Cancer Fund. The NCAA raised $45,000 over the past two years of the "Calling for a Cure" campaign.

The New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) is an association of ten selective academic institutions that are committed to providing high quality competitive athletic opportunities for student-athletes within an educational and respectful environment that embodies the NCAA Division III philosophy: Babson College, Clark University, U.S. Coast Guard Academy, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Mount Holyoke College, Smith College, Springfield College, Wellesley College, Wheaton College, and Worcester Polytechnic Institute. The NEWMAC sponsors competition within NCAA Division III in the sports of cross country, soccer, basketball, tennis, lacrosse, swimming & diving, field hockey, volleyball, crew, track & field, softball, and baseball.

For additional information on WBCA's Pink Zone, visit www.wbca.org/pinkzone.asp.