Football lineman Sean Green covered more than 10,000 yards in the MASCAC “Yards for Yeardley” Challenge. (WESTFIELD STATE UNIVERSITY SPORTS PHOTO)
WESTFIELD – Westfield State student athletes and coaches covered more than 1.3 million “Yards for Yeardley” as part of the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference Student Athlete Advisory Committee campaign last week.
As part of NCAA Division III week, where the Division, leagues, schools and student athletes highlight the benefits of playing intercollegiate athletics, the MASCAC SAAC engaged in the Yards For Yeardley campaign in conjunction with the One Love Foundation. The foundation, established in the memory of Yeardley Love, a women’s lacrosse athlete at the University of Virginia, promotes healthy relationships for college students, and encourages people to get moving, whether running, swimming, cycling or walking.
Westfield State recorded more than 1.3 million yards, out of the conference’s 2.62 million.
Unsurprisingly, Owls track and field and cross country athletes accounted for the lion’s share of the distance with 838,898.52 yards, followed by swimming and diving with 33,340 yards.
Owls’ coaches and staff accounted for more than 214,000 yards, helped by avid cyclist and faculty athletic representative Dr. Paul Cacolice’s workouts.
Women’s distance runners Amy O’Sullivan logged 73 miles or 128,000 yards, with teammate Andrea Noland logging 62 miles. Dual sport (field hockey/lacrosse) athlete Liv Mikkila contributed 2580 yards, and football offensive lineman Sean Green answered the bell with more than six miles (10,000 yards) of work.
Westfield State student athletes contribute thousands of hours of community service annually. Some recent projects include SAAC’s Secret Santa gifts for children, hockey reading in Westfield Schools, softball’s unused clothing drive, baseball participating in local school activities and several basketball clinics, plus annually SAAC hosts the Western Mass Special Olympic Flag Football championships at Alumni Field.
More information on the One Love Foundation is available at https://www.joinonelove.org/
