Freshman Simone Plater watches and assists fellow teamate Tara Wilkins bump the ball during their Dig-Pink match against Washington & Lee High School.
Sophmore Lindsey Bolger demonstrates her school spirit at the Dig-Pink game. “It was fun to preform at the Dig-Pink game because the crowd is so close. It was exhilerating, plus, it was nice because the whole thing is for such a good cause.”
All proceeds from the tournament go to the Side-Out Foundation, an organization that is devoted to supporting breast cancer patients and their families. The Side-Out Foundation was founded in 2004 by freshmen volleyball coach Rick Dunetz who was inspired by his mother’s fight with breast cancer.
“[Our intentions with the Side-Out Foundation] were always to help raise awareness. But we also wanted to get younger people involved, in high schools and colleges,” Dunetz said.
Dunetz had no idea that the response to the Side-Out Foundation and Dig-Pink would be so enthusiastic and positive.
“We started the tournament in June, and towards the middle of the year it just exploded!” Dunetz said. “It was exciting.”
The Dig-Pink tournament at Oakton grabbed the attention of the community and attracted a far larger number of spectators than is customary at most games. The girls on the court had great attitudess and played their hearts out for a great cause.
“It feels great to know that I’m helping people, while still doing something that I enjoy,” said sophomore Kaylee Homyk, a JV team captain. “We’re all excited and pumped to play.”
Not only did the girls play harder than ever, they were decked out in specially made pink jerseys, Dig-Pink tattoos and hair ribbons. The energy and spirit that filled the gym was impossible to miss, and all three Oakton teams came away with a win.
The huge success of Dig-Pink has inspired Dunetz to start to develop more programs for the Side-Out Foundation.
“We want to start building some programs for high school students and college students to learn a little more detail about the whole world of charities and cancer and about how all that first together,” Dunetz said.
Overall, the Dig-Pink tournament was a huge triumph.
“We’ve come a long way since the beginning of the season, and we’re all proud of the outcome,” said Erica Bossert, sophomore.
by Lauren Embroski and Madlin Mekelburg
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