Marist Women’s Basketball hosted the Manhattan Jaspers in their annual Play4Kay contest. This is the 13th consecutive year Marist Athletics has partnered with Miles of Hope Breast Cancer Foundation. Both players and coaches wore pink to honor those affected by breast cancer. The Red Foxes won last year’s game 66-50 against Canisius College and was able to continue their success this year, defeating the Jaspers 74-53.
“It’s tremendous. It is one of my favorite nights of the year. The unfortunate part is we don’t get to see the halftime show when the survivors come out,” said head coach Brian Giorgis.
Twenty breast cancer survivors were saluted by those in attendance at halftime as they were each handed a rose and applauded for their courageous battle against breast cancer. The first 1,000 fans in attendance also received a pink t-shirt as they entered McCann Arena. Additionally, proceeds from the 50-50 raffle went towards the Miles of Hope Breast Cancer Foundation.
Miles of Hope Breast Cancer Foundation is a non-profit organization that helps provide funds to programs for people affected by breast cancer in the Hudson Valley. Established in 2004, the foundation was started by Dana Effron and Cathy Varunok, two members of the community who realized there was a need for increased services. Marist College has even gone on to offer a special tuition price to the volunteers and employees of the foundation. A discount is provided (if eligible) towards graduate and adult undergraduate degree programs.
After defeating Manhattan earlier in the year by five points, the Red Foxes came out and dominated for most of the game as the team’s leading scorer this season, Rebekah Hand, led with 14 points. The senior guard also recorded a milestone at the end of the first half as she only needed three assists to enter the top ten in program history. Hand joined Corielle Yarde in exclusive company as the only Red Foxes to rank in the top ten in career points, rebounds, and assists.
“Rebekah is the glue to our team. She is a tremendous player. She is a tremendous teammate to play with. Without her this team would not be nearly as good as we are now,” said junior forward Willow Duffell.
Marist College encourages students and volunteers of Miles of Hope to review the program they offer. They have provided more information on their website about their partnership with Miles of Hope Breast Cancer Foundation.