For graduating student-athletes, the senior season is the culmination of typically four years of hard work, commitment and dedication to their respective sport. Sierra Grande, ’26, a member of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and the Meredith field hockey team, stated that “Senior Night is a time to acknowledge all [the seniors have] done and let them know how much they will be missed in the following season.” Grande also explained that for the field hockey team, teammates honor graduating athletes by “decorating their lockers, making posters, writing chalk messages to them outside of our locker room, and setting up scavenger hunts for them around campus.”
On Oct. 19, the field hockey team honored three seniors: MiRonda Swepson, Bella Allen and Kate Erb. According to Head Coach Colleen Cassada, “Both Bella and Kate have been with the team since we began in 2020, and MiRonda joined her first year at Meredith and will be graduating a year early.” Cassada also shared that “The three of them are the core of [the field hockey] team,” and that they “anchor” the defense on the field. Cassada notes that the three student-athletes “will be truly missed and hard to replace!” The senior night game was originally planned for Oct. 21, but the game was postponed until Oct. 30. As a result, the decision was made to honor the seniors on Oct. 19 instead. During the game, the Field Hockey team took a 2-1 victory over Eastern Mennonite University with Grande evening the score with a goal from a penalty shot and freshman Megan Ingenito scoring the winning goal. The field hockey team also hosted a “Neon Out '' during the same game in which spectators were encouraged to watch the game dressed in neon colors. This was an initiative that was organized by SAAC. Grande shared that SAAC has looked to promote "one game of each fall sportwith a themed student section."
Volleyball will be hosting a similar event to the “Neon Out” with a 90’s themed night for their match against William Peace on Tuesday, Oct. 24.
Additionally, Meredith’s soccer team will be honoring their seniors at their home match against Southern Virginia at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 27. Soccer advertised on their Instagram @meredithcollegesoccer that the team hosted their “Black Out” themed event during their game against Methodist University on Oct. 17. During this game, the soccer team advertised that they had bins available at the game where spectators could donate canned and non-perishable food items as well as a clothing drive. Kasey Wilkins, ’24, a member of the Soccer team, shared that the game resulted in a tie.
In additional news, the @goavengingangels Instagram page also shared in a post that the Angels would be celebrating the NCAA DivisionIII Diversity and Inclusion campaign. Senior Madeline Ostrowski, a member of the soccer team, states that she “had to cram so much into the last 2 years,” she had “a blast doing it all and still being able to play [her] sport.” SAAC President and All Region Lacrosse player, Lauryn Turner, ’25, was also interviewed to talk about her experiences in Meredith Athletics. The interview can be viewed on the @goavengingangels Instagram page.
Students can keep up to date with sporting events on the Meredith College Official Athletics website or on teams’ respective social media platforms.
By Lola Mestes, Copy Editor
Photo courtesy of Avery Wilson