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PLAY WHAT YOU LOVE!

Bates athletes and coaches work with community children on National Girls & Women in Sports Day

By Bates College

February 7^th, 2025

First-time softball players got into the swing of things, volleyballs sailed across nets and generations, and smiles were all around.

In the end, joy was the winner during Bates Athletics’ annual celebration of Girls & Women in Sports Day held in Gray Athletic Building on Feb. 2, 2025.

Since 2019, members of Bates varsity women’s teams, joined by Bates coaches, have hosted local children for a day filled with athletic adventure and, this year, a lunch in Commons with their new best buds.

This year, several dozen children enjoyed volleyball, tennis, field hockey, softball, rowing, and soccer clinics. After lunch, everyone walked next door to Alumni Gym and cheered on the women’s basketball team to a big NESCAC victory over Middlebury.

‘Matters So Much’

“Fostering positive sports environments for girls specifically matters so much. Especially at such a young age, it can make a huge difference to signal to girls that they belong in sports and athletic spaces.”

— Ruby Hill ’27, soccer player and mathematics and economics major from Berkeley, Calif.

‘It's How You Grow’

“One piece of advice I shared with the girls that I wish someone had told me when I was their age is that making mistakes isn’t something to be afraid of — it’s how you grow and is just a step toward getting better.”

— Sami Kim ’28, volleyball player and neuroscience major from San Diego, Calif.

‘Out of Her Shell’

“Even the youngest, smallest, and quietest little girl, who at first seemed too shy to try to pass, by the end was fully out of her shell, showing off to her friend next to her.”

— Anais Reneaum Lavoie ’28, volleyball player from San Diego, Calif.

‘Much More Special’

“I don’t really think of myself as a role model, but then you realize that you were once a little kids who had role models, and that makes events like this much more special.”

— Lilly Hogan ’28, field hockey player and biology major from Westport, Conn.

‘Impact Beyond the Game’

“This reminded me that being a student-athlete is about more than just competing and winning. Seeing their excitement reinforced how much of an impact we can have beyond the game, highlighting the importance of the values sports teach, such as sportsmanship and leadership.”

— Malina Young ’28, volleyball player from Redondo Beach, Calif.

‘Confidence in Themselves’

“At the beginning, the girls were a little uncertain and nervous. But as they started playing and engaging with my teammates and me, their confidence in themselves grew. There was this one little girl there that reminded me of myself at that age. It was so inspiring to see their smiles and confidence grow!”

— Rose Gordon ’28, field hockey player from North Andover, Mass.

‘A Big Inspiration’

“When I was younger, the women athletes in my life were big inspirations for me, and their presence in my environment really was life-changing. If I could be even just a fraction of that for someone else, that would mean so much.”

— Ruby Hill ’27, soccer player and mathematics and economics major from Berkeley, Calif.

Footnotes

Produced by the Bates Communications and Marketing Office and Bates Athletics, with photographs by Phyllis Graber Jensen and Avery Lehman '25 and text by Hannh Kothari '26.

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FootNotes

Produced by the Bates Communications and Marketing Office and Bates Athletics, with photographs by Phyllis Graber Jensen and Avery Lehman '25 and text by Hannh Kothari '26.