WOMEN’S SOCCER GOES ‘PINK’ FOR BREAST CANCER AWARENESS

Seniors Carolyn Blank and Nicole Mailloux have had remarkable seasons for the West Virginia women's soccer team.

On the field, the pair has shown leadership and poise to guide the Mountaineers to a 5-4-4 record.

Blank is second on the team with three goals scored. Mailloux has two assists on the year and is a reliable defender for this team.

However, this weekend's statistics and scores will take a backseat to a more important cause – breast cancer awareness.

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month and the team will don pink Nike jerseys to support the effort to fight the disease on Sunday against St. John's.

Breast cancer will strike roughly 192,370 women in 2009 and result in an estimated 40,170 deaths, according to American Cancer Society statistics.

"Combining the two – raising awareness through raising money and playing soccer – is a great way for all of us to help the cause," Mailloux said. "It really is something I love."

Blank agrees that this event is crucial to the community, the program and those who just want to help out.

"So many people come out for this," she said "Last year, all the sororities were there all dressed in pink, and so many people from the community come out.

"It's great having more people than just the regular soccer fanbase."

The match will also be Senior Day, something these two Mountaineers say will be a bittersweet ending to a successful career.

"It definitely came quick," Mailloux said. "It feels like we just got here. I think it is going to be emotional at home these last two games. It has definitely been great these last four years, and I will be sad to see it end."

Blank feels that having the chance to support breast cancer awareness will make her Senior Day even more memorable.

"It is a big weekend," Blank said. "These pink jerseys are just another way to support breast cancer awareness. It will be special."

The women's soccer team has been at the forefront of the awareness effort. Last spring, the squad raised nearly $12,000 for the Betty Puskar Breast Cancer Fund at the Mary Babb Randolph Cancer Center.

In order to collect the gift, the team held an all-day event March 1 at the Caperton Indoor Practice Facility.

The occasion "Three's a Team … the Fourth's a Mountaineer" invited over 65 area soccer teams of all ages to play with Mountaineer players.

On April 14, WVU and Pittsburgh played in the Betty Puskar Breast Care Center Soccer Invitational. The game was held at Dick Dlesk Stadium for the sixth year in a row.

After the match, the Panthers helped the cause by donating $2,000 of their own money.

At halftime of the game on Sundaym a check for the money raised earlier this year will be presented.

Over the past six years, the team has raised more than $48,000 for the fight against breast cancer.

"It's great for us to bring in a fanbase and be a part of the community," Blank said. "Getting to know everybody is great. People look up to us; it is a real responsibility and teaches us a lot."