Men’s Hockey Team Partners with Alpha Phi to Support Women’s Heart Health
Joss Hoffman ’28
hoffmanjj@lakeforest.edu
Lake Forest College students flocked to the Memorial Fieldhouse in red on the evening of Feb. 7 to support the men’s hockey team and to raise awareness for women’s heart health.
That Friday, the Foresters faced off against the Green Knights from St. Norbert College, the second-ranked team in the conference, according to the Northern Hockey College Association. While each player wore their respective team’s uniform, the Forester players had a special addition–a sticker on the back of their helmets featuring two cherries, each marked with a Greek letter for Alpha Phi, and the words “Heart Health Week” across the top.
In this game, the men’s hockey team partnered with the Alpha Phi sorority to promote Women’s Heart Health Week, which the sorority hosted in February. Together, the two organizations designated the hockey game as a “Red Out,” encouraging students to wear red in support of heart health research.
It was a tough match-up, with each team scoring a goal in the first two periods. Fifth-year, Connor Scahill (#28), scored the first goal for LFC while Junior, Justin Ross (#9) followed him in the second period with a goal of his own.
“It’s my favorite event we are doing for heart health week,” said Katie Downey, a sophomore member of Alpha Phi. “It’s so fun to see the whole hockey team support.”
According to AlphaPhi.org, The Alpha Phi Foundation is a national nonprofit with 174 collegiate chapters in the United States and Canada, including the chapter at LFC. The Foundation focuses on supporting women’s heart health, the leading cause of death for women in the US, through research.
The Red Out hockey game was the first event of Women’s Heart Health Week that Alpha Phi organized in February. They also hosted a blood drive on Feb. 10 and Pilates on Feb. 18.
Although both teams put up a great fight, the Green Knights came out on top, with a third goal in the last period that the Foresters could not match. In the end, for Alpha Phi, it wasn’t about who won; it was about supporting a cause the sorority holds close to its heart.