Teri Tune
Sports Scene
The Lowell soccer team competed in the fourth annual Pink Out, where they defeated Grand Rapids Christian 5-3.
Grand Rapids Christian struck first, but the Pink Arrows came right back with two goals from Matt Kyllonen, one to tie it up and then another to give his team the lead. The second goal was assisted by Matt Hoogenboom, who was playing in honor of Jane Jones, a family friend who is battling cancer. Grand Rapids Christian took the lead back with two quick goals, and it stayed 3-2 until Pink Arrow Spencer Lyon tied it up with 4:53 left to play.
Both teams’ defenses then held strong until Alex Ligman scored the go-ahead goal with 1:53 left to play in the game. Ligman was playing in honor of Karen Kohn, a friend and survivor of breast cancer.
Jeremy Wodarek added a penalty kick goal to make the final score 5-3.
“Scoring that goal was unreal,” Ligman said. “Grand Rapids Christian is our biggest rivals in our conference, and to come back and beat them like this was great. The community gets the crowd pumped, and that gets us going. We never gave up; every guy out there was playing hard and never gave up. We keep playing until the end of the whistle and it pays off. This was awesome to get the win in front of this crowd and on a special day like this.”
The Lady Pink Arrows volleyball team hosted an outdoor volleyball match in its fourth annual “Pink Out“. This year, they invited Belding to join them and become Pinkskins for a worthy cause.
The Pink Arrow Project was started by varsity football head coach Noel Dean four years ago. The teams all wear pink jerseys in honor of somebody who is battling cancer, and the community members who attend the games also wear special “Pink Out” t-shirts that honor friends and family members affected by cancer on the backs. This community effort has helped Lowell raise over $500,000 in the first three years.
This year was especially hard on Lowell’s volleyball head coach Gigi Peal. A very special person was missing from the crowd, her father. He lost his battle with cancer last year. “This was a very personal and emotional year for me,” Peal said. “Even after three years, the feeling of what you’re here for is with me.”
“We lost some key players last year, and we are a young team that is rebuilding this season. For a lot of these girls it’s their first experience competing in the “Pink Out” and playing outdoors. It’s fun to watch the girls experience this for the first time, and every year it’s huge,” said coach Peal.
The Lady Pink Arrows defeated the Lady Pinkskins 25-13, 25-14, 18-25, but for all who participated, it was about much more than winning or losing.