Contact:
Elizabeth Blevins, Director, Office of Communications
Office: (740) 351-3810; FAX: (740) 351-3179; Cell: (740) 464-4854
940 Second Street – Portsmouth, Ohio 45662
E-mail: eblevins@shawnee.edu 
Web site: www.shawnee.edu

            Shawnee State University and Malone University student athletes and coaches held hands and joined in prayer in support of breast cancer education and of SSU women’s basketball head coach Robin Hagen-Smith, who is battling the disease.

            The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) Champions of Character program instills five core values in sports and provides practical tools for student athletes, coaches and parents to use in modeling exemplary character traits. The values are integrity, respect by treating others the way you want to be treated, responsibility, sportsmanship, and servant leadership to serve the greater good.
            Nowhere has such behavior been demonstrated more than during the recent Shawnee State University Homecoming basketball game where athletes from both Shawnee State University and competing Malone University came together on and off the court in support of breast cancer education, and of SSU head coach Robin Hagen-Smith who is battling the disease.
            “The show of support was incredible,” SSU Athletic Director Jeff Hamilton said. “Everyone, from coaches to fans, stood in awe of the leadership shown by our student athletes.”
            The basketball game was a “Pink Out” with fans wearing pink shirts that were distributed at the entrance of the game thanks to a partnership with Southern Ohio Medical Center and the SSU Student Programming Board. Southern Ohio Medical Center also provided breast cancer education during the event.
            As if the sea of pink weren’t enough of a show of support, athletes from both teams wore pink socks and shoelaces and wore the pink shirts during warm-up. At the end of the women’s game, athletes from both teams, along with their coaches, held hands in a circle of prayer for women currently fighting breast cancer.
            “I thought the whole day was inspirational for people going through cancer,” Hagen-Smith said. “What a difference people can make with their encouragement and support. The entire time I was sitting there coaching, that pink just stood out and even though I am partial to blue, that pink looked pretty good. It was very inspiring. I was blown away.”
            People were so moved they have been sending Hagen-Smith cards and letters about the event.
            “When we planned the event, our plans went as far as asking people to wear pink during the game,” Hamilton said. “Robin was so touched by the event that she said a few words from the heart at the close of the game. Before I knew it, the student athletes – both our players and those from Malone – were coming out on the court to surround Robin. The crowd rose to their feet and just stood in silence at the site of these students rallying together like this. It’s difficult to describe what it meant to all of us.”
            The Shawnee State University women’s team won the game, 107-49, but the outcome of the game seemed insignificant to both teams.
            “At that moment, our athletes showed true character – and the game took on a higher purpose,” Hamilton said.