While Penn State is not returning to its original school colors of pink and black, the basketball Lady Lions will be donning pink uniforms for their Feb. 26 game against Minnesota as part of Penn State’s Pink Zone efforts. Penn State’s Pink Zone has raised both breast cancer awareness and more than $359,000 for breast cancer causes. Last year alone, nearly $200,000 was donated through the Pink Zone game against Northwestern.

For five years, Pink Zone has leapt in breadth and depth, thanks to the hard work of Coach Coquese Washington, the Lady Lions student-athletes, Penn State staff and many volunteers. Now a recently registered non-profit organization, Pennsylvania Pink Zone gained its first executive director last summer: Miriam Powell, who has been busy coordinating the tremendous work needed to pull off the annual Pink Zone game.

“Now that we’re a nonprofit, we’re hoping to make Pink Zone a little broader and a little bigger,” said Powell in an interview with State College’s Town & Gown. She said that she would like to increase sponsorship and involvement of downtown businesses and Penn State students. Pennsylvania Pink Zone also now has an 11-member board of directors, which includes Washington.

For the Pink Zone game at the Bryce Jordan Center, Penn State will donate $3 of every single-game ticket to breast cancer causes including Mount Nittany Medical Center, Penn State Hershey Cancer Institute, Pennsylvania Breast Cancer Coalition, the Kay Yow Cancer Fund and J.C. Blair Memorial Hospital in Altoona, Pa. This year’s event will carry on the tradition of honoring breast cancer survivors with a half-time survivor recognition program and post-game survivor reception featuring the Lady Lions.

Photo by Annemarie Mountz

Survivors can attend the Pink Zone game for free (up to four free tickets). The Lady Lions are once again teaming up with Fullington Trailways to offer survivors free bus service from 13 Pennsylvania cities to the Feb. 26 game. To register for tickets, visit online at www.GoPSUsports.com/pinkzone.

In addition to the Pink Zone game at the BJC, several Penn State campuses have Pink Zone games and fundraisers, as does State College Area High School, which also sells T-shirts. There is also a  fund-raising brunch called Pink Eggs & Ham, taking place 9:00–11:00 a.m., on Pink Zone day at The Village at Penn State. For reservations, click here.

Can’t make the sixth Pink Zone basketball game? Watch it on the Big Ten Network, and cheer on the Lady Lions in their fight against breast cancer.