Saint Mary’s College hosts sports clinic for girls in honor of National Girls and Women in Sports Day

ST. JOSEPH COUNTY, Ind. -- Wednesday is National Girls and Women in Sports Day.  

And Saint Mary's College is offering young athletes a special opportunity to learn from players and coaches by hosting a free National Girls and Women in Sports Day Clinic. 

The clinic started back in 2015 with 80 young girls and has now expanded to over 125 future athletes.  

"It's huge for us, because we really want to show little girls, let them dream big and see what's out there that they can participate, they can learn about sport. And we want to showcase what St. Mary's College has to offer. We are often in the shadow here, and we've got a lot of great offerings for women's athletics," said Saint Mary College's Athletic Director Julie Schroeder-Biek. 

For Friday's ninth annual event, the girls will rotate through stations, spending 20 to 25 minutes at each one while learning the basics of different sports. Every session is led by student-athletes and coaches.  

According to the Women's Sports Foundation, research shows that if girls don't get involved in sports at a young age, they're less likely to stay active throughout their lives.  

Schroeder-Biek says that's why the targeted age group for the clinic is 6-12 to help instill a love for sports early on.  

The night will end with an autograph session, a chance for the next generation to meet their role models face-to-face.

"The girls that come to our clinic, some of them are very, very athletic, and some of them, this is their way of trying athletics. And I think if we can show them like it's good to move your body and try new things and do it in a really safe place where all of our counselors, which are athletes, are just encouraging and raising these girls up. I can't tell you the number of emails that I get from parents that are just like, 'my daughter had such a wonderful time,'" Saint Mary's College Cross Country Coach Jackie Bauters said. 

Even though Friday's event is sold out, both Bauters and Schroeder-Biek say for anyone who is interested in participating next year to reach out to Saint Mary's Athletics, where you will be added on the mailing list.