Former Jayhawks To Play In Hoops For Hope Charity Game
Oct. 24, 2011
LAWRENCE, Kan. – Former Kansas women’s basketball players Sade Morris (2007-10) and Ivana Catic (2006-09) will be back on the hardwood this week, but instead of suiting up for the Crimson and Blue, the duo will be supporting the color pink as they play in the third annual Hoops for Hope basketball game on Oct. 28 at Ashland High School in Ashland, Kan. Tip-off is set for 5:30 p.m.
Morris and Catic are two of 10 “celebrity” players scheduled to participate in the charity women’s basketball game, which consists of former Division I student-athletes and current and retired WNBA players. Fans attending the game will purchase special pink t-shirts to wear in the stands.
Ninety percent of the proceeds, including ticket sales, apparel, concessions, raffles, contests, sponsorships, silent auction, etc., go to the WEPAC Alliance, a local foundation that pays for cancer-preventive care (digital mammograms, pap smears and colonoscopies) for women in five Kansas communities (Wilmore, Englewood, Protection, Ashland and Coldwater). Ten percent of the proceeds go to the Kay Yow Cancer Fund ®. To date, over $100,000 has been raised, which has been used to help pay for over 400 cancer-preventive screenings. In the last 18 months, these screenings have caught at least nine cases of cancer.
Celebrity players/coaches for the 2011 game include:
Jackie Stiles (WNBA) – Missouri State University
Marion Jones (WNBA) – University of North Carolina, Olympian
Katie Smith (ABL/WNBA) – Ohio State University, Olympian
Shanna Zohlman (WNBA), Sidney Spencer (WNBA), and Chamique Holdsclaw (WNBA/Olympian) – University of Tennessee
Ticha Penicherio (WNBA) – Old Dominion University
Jennifer Lacy (WNBA) – Pepperdine University
Edna Campbell (WNBA) – University of Texas, Breast Cancer Survivor
Helen Darling (WNBA) and Andrea Garner (WNBA) – Pennsylvania State University
Kayla Herd – Kansas State University
Ivana Catic and Sade Morris – University of Kansas
Anna Florzak – Iowa State University
Kristi Meis – Fort Hays State University
Jamie Cavey – University of Iowa
Tara Davis (ABL) – University of Washington
Cassondra Bosten and Alli Volkens – Emporia State University
Debbie Antonelli, Brenda Vanlengen and Cindy Stein, three nationally recognized television analysts, will cover the game, which will be televised live on Fox Sports Midwest, as well as other FSN regional networks across America. The University of Kansas Women MBA program is planning a fundraising watch party at Wayne and Larry’s Restaurant in Lawrence starting at 5 p.m., Friday night. Participants can purchase a $5 wristband for the watch party with the money collected going to the WEPAC Alliance and the Kay Yow Cancer Fund ®. For more information concerning the watch parties, e-mail wmbaku.edu.
The WEPAC Alliance is a non-profit organization that is dedicated to providing resources and education to encourage women in Wilmore, Englewood, Protection, Ashland and Coldwater, Kan., to take active responsibility for their health. It combines the resources of Ashland Health Center and Comanche County Hospital to meet the collective health care needs of the women in their hospital districts.
The Kay Yow Cancer Fund® is a 501c(3) charitable organization committed to being a part of finding an answer in the fight against women’s cancers through raising money for scientific research, assisting the underserved and unifying people for a common cause. The fund honors Kay Yow, former North Carolina State University head women’s basketball coach who was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 1987, and passed away on Jan. 24, 2009, after facing her third bout with the disease.
More information about Hoops for Hope and the WEPAC Alliance can be found at www.wepacthehouse.org.
