Earlier this month marked the 30th Annual National Girls & Women in Sports Day, which recognizes and celebrates the extraordinary achievements of those who have effected change and created opportunities for women and girls in sports over the past three decades.
National Girls & Women in Sports Day has empowered women and girls to get moving, embrace physical activity and push past their limits both in sports and in life. When girls participate in sports, they develop the leadership skills to excel in school, at home and in their communities. The courage, confidence and character gained through physical activity are the very tools girls need to become the strong leaders of tomorrow.
This year’s National Girls & Women in Sports Day theme was Leading the Way, a nod to all those individuals and organizations who are on the front line for girls and women in sports: the organizations committed to advancing women’s issues, athletes who have overcome barriers, coaches who challenge their teams to succeed, girls who have faith in their own potential and all those who continue to use the power of example to inspire greatness.
Many of our own alumnae led the way throughout their careers at Middlesex and beyond at their various colleges and universities. From our own Athletic Hall of Fame we have such stars as Tracy Swecker Jaeger ’79 whose 8 varsity letters at MX were followed by a stellar career at Trinity playing field hockey and lacrosse. She returned to Middlesex as a faculty member in 1983 and coached 9 All-Americans, won multiple ISL championships, and achieved astonishing winning records in both field hockey and lacrosse. Laurel Pierpont Reichold ’00 earned 12 varsity letters at MX and completed a successful career in field hockey and lacrosse at Brown. Allison Kaveny Farkes ’02 earned 11 varsity letters at MX and played both lacrosse and soccer at Harvard. Amy DiAdamo Foster ’93 earned 12 varsity letters at MX and had a stellar career at Middlebury: she was an All-American lacrosse player, national champion in 1997, and she holds the record for goals and assists. You can find her amazing Middlebury Hall of Fame speech here.
Though there are many alums who are impressive in their athletic pursuits after Middlesex, our very own faculty member and Middlesex Hall of Famer, Sarah Moss Cohane ’95, truly embodies the “Leading the Way” mission of Women in Sports Day. After earning 11 varsity letters at MX (captaining all three sports as a senior), she went on to play soccer, hockey, and lacrosse at Union, once again captaining all three her senior year and earning player of the year in 1999. Sarah is just one of the numerous female faculty members at Middlesex who played sports at the collegiate level. We are fortunate at Middlesex to be surrounded by such talented, accomplished, and dedicated female faculty members, nearly half of whom participated in collegiate athletics across all levels and serve as role models for our student athletes today.
In celebration of National Girls & Women in Sports Day and forty years of coeducation at Middlesex, we have put together a video highlighting their accomplishments and what they have learned about themselves over the years through their participation in sports.