The athletic department at Shawnee State embarked on another successful journey Saturday afternoon by holding Pink Out 2025, which was greeted to capacity crowds for Shawnee State's men's and women's soccer's contests against Kentucky Christian with large crowds in attendance for the men's and women's tennis contests against Hanover (Ind.) as well as Shawnee State volleyball's home match against Saint Mary-of-the-Woods.

Representatives from Southern Ohio Medical Center (SOMC) were on hand, and at the volleyball match, folks could pay $2 for a bracelet or wristband to show support or $1 for a ribbon to write a message of hope or a person's name who has or was impacted by breast cancer. Each team that competed at home on Saturday wore either pink wristbands, bracelets, ribbons or tape that honored those who have been impacted. The ribbons, which were hung on Saturday in the Shawnee State Athletic lobby, will stay up for the month in recognition of those impacted by breast cancer.

All of the proceeds were donated back to the SOMC's Breast Cancer Compassion Fund, which provides financial and compassionate support to local breast cancer patients for costs such as transportation, wigs, medications, and additional needs not covered by insurance.

Wendi Waugh, who is a survivor and serves as the Administrative Director of Cancer Services and Ambulatory Infusion at SOMC, spoke for five minutes prior to the beginning of Shawnee State's volleyball match against Saint Mary-of-the-Woods (Ind.) about the importance of women making the time to go in for checkups and follow-ups to get ahead of the game as well as making informed decisions in regard to health.

"We're proud to partner with the SOMC Cancer Center in bringing our campus and the community together for such a meaningful cause," Shawnee State Athletic Director Gerald Cadogan said. "At Shawnee State, we believe that athletics extend beyond competition—they're a platform to inspire hope, unity, and service to others."

According to the National Breast Cancer Foundation, one in eight women, or 12.5 percent, will be diagnosed with breast cancer. However, the NBCF says that breast cancer, when caught at its earliest, localized stages, is 99 percent. Currently, 4,000,000 individuals have survived the diagnosis.

For more regarding breast cancer, visit https://www.nationalbreastcancer.org/breast-cancer-facts/. For more regarding the SOMC Cancer Center, visit https://www.somc.org/services/cancer-care/.

To learn more about Shawnee State Athletics, visit the SSU Athletics official website at www.ssubears.com, Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/ssubears/, Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/SSUBears and Twitter at https://x.com/SSUBears.