SPRINGFIELD — In recognition of National Girls and Women in Sports Day, Wittenberg University's Department of Athletics hosted 150 girls from local schools for a morning of fun at Play Like a Tiger Field Day on Tuesday.

Fifth- and sixth-grade girls from Horace Mann, Warder Park, Fulton, Kenwood, Lagonda, Lincoln, Perrin Woods, Snow Hill, Simon Kenton and Snyder Park schools had the opportunity to participate in a variety of sports in Pam Evans Smith Arena and The Steemer, Wittenberg's world-class indoor training facility.

Play Like a Tiger Field Day began three years ago when Wittenberg Senior Woman Administrator and head women's soccer coach Katie Robinson reached out to Springfield City Schools officials about connecting with the community to celebrate National Girls and Women in Sport Day, and it has been going strong ever since.

"When we were thinking of ways to celebrate National Girls and Women in Sports Day, it was really important to me and the other women's sports coaches that we found a way to give back to our community here in Springfield," Robinson said. "Sports have a unique way of helping girls and women learn and grow as individuals, push themselves when things get hard or uncomfortable and develop relationships that will last far beyond their years competing. Our goal each year is to use our platform of college athletics to inspire these young girls while helping our student-athletes continue to develop as leaders in their sport and in the community."

The day is designed to mimic a field day while highlighting the sports offered at Wittenberg. Tiger coaches and student-athletes lead the girls in drills and activities for volleyball, basketball, field hockey, football, soccer, track and field and lacrosse before breaking for free time and lunch.

Pictured: Fifth- and sixth-grade girls from local schools participated in Play Like a Tiger Field Day at Wittenberg University on Tuesday. | Photo by John Coffman

Springfield City Schools Assistant Athletic Director Lee Ann Ballard appreciated such a wonderful opportunity being afforded to local students.

"This is an opportunity for our fifth- and sixth-grade girls to get introduced to a number of sports that we don't offer and Wittenberg does, so they can see what's available at the college level," she said. "Also, it's an opportunity for them to experience some sports that we do offer at the high school level that they could gain some interest in and later be a part of our teams at the high school level and perhaps turn it into a college career."

Wittenberg women's basketball senior Jade Simpson assisted with the basketball station and said it's important for Tiger student-athletes to connect with the local community with events such as this.

"We're reaching out to all the schools around us, which is good because we want them to come support us at our games, and we want these girls to have the same opportunities that we've had," she said.

Powered by the Women's Sports Foundation, National Girls and Women in Sports Day is an annual day of observance held during the first week of February to acknowledge the accomplishments of female athletes, recognize the influence of sports participation for women and girls and honor the progress and advocation for equality for women in sports. The celebration inspires girls and women to play and be active and realize their full power.

Simpson said it's important to continue exposing girls to a variety of sports at a young age to make them aware of the opportunities that are available to them later in life.

"As a female athlete, this day is important to me because sports have been a big thing in my life, and I want everyone around me to get to have the same opportunities and experiences that I've had," she said.

There is no doubt that female participation in sports is on the rise. According to the NCAA, 226,212 student-athletes competed in NCAA women's championship sports in 2021-22, which represented a 5% increase from 2020-21 and marked the largest increase for women since 2000-01. Events such as Play Like a Tiger Field Day will only help those numbers continue to grow.

"The growth of women's sports is huge right now," Ballard said. "These girls are getting an opportunity to see other women here that are successful at the college level, and they're seeing it all over the internet. This just gives them more ideas of things that they can do and something they can look forward to in the future."