When Virginia women’s soccer takes on Notre Dame on Sunday, it won’t just be a display of two top-25 teams, it’ll be a display of pride and inclusiveness at Klockner Stadium. Sunday’s game features the program’s first-ever Pride Game, organized by the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee in partnership with the Young Alumni Council and UVA’s LGBTQ+ Center.
The game is part of a larger initiative by SAAC’s new subcommittee, the Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Justice (DEIJ) group. Senior volleyball player Milla Ciprian, SAAC’s Internal Vice President and primary organizer this Pride Game, says that the DEIJ Group is “focused primarily on events like these and will be planning programming and athletic event for student athletes and the [Charlottesville] community in hopes of starting conversations, bringing awareness, and creating a more inclusive community for everyone.