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The Second Annual WVU Friendship Cup, April 22, 6-9 p.m. at the Student Recreation Fields, will celebrate the international student presence on campus. The soccer competition is open to all undergraduate and graduate students; registration is limited to eight teams. Each team must have coed participation in the event.

“Our spring gathering will feature a registration tent and student organization-hosted info tables. We will have four nets, with matches happening at overlapping times. WVU Men’s and Women’s Soccer student-athletes will serve as referees,” Patrick Hairston, College of Physical Activity and Sport Sciences teaching assistant professor, said. “The 2022 spring event acts as a prelude to the popular Diversity Cup that will take place in October.”

Jose María López-Gullón, a visiting scholar from the University of Murcia, Spain, will spend the next four months collaborating with Gonzalo Bravo, associate professor in the College of Physical Activity and Sport Sciences, examining the role of volunteers in amateur sport organizations.

Initially, Bravo and López-Gullón planned to study volunteers within medium-sized sport events, but then they decided to examine volunteers serving in amateur sport organizations. This shift was in part due to the lack of access to sport events due to COVID. Additionally, the decision was influenced by a casual observation López-Gullón encountered during his first month in Morgantown.

The Association for Applied Sport Psychology has awarded a seed grant to Sport, Exercise and Performance Psychology third year graduate student Tommy Minkler. The grant is intended to provide support for AASP members, especially early career professionals/pre-tenured faculty or students, for their community outreach/research endeavors.

Minkler’s study is titled ‘Drivers of Change in Mindfulness-Based Interventions with Athletes: Investigating the Influence of Dosage, Readiness, and Attitudes.’ Minkler says that his research explores wellbeing and performance outcomes along with the factors that contribute to them, during and after mindfulness interventions with college student-athletes.

Adam Zundell will serve as the inaugural director of communications and marketing within the emerging West Virginia University College of Applied Human Sciences. Zundell will lead strategic initiatives as the College of Education and Human Services and the College of Physical Activity and Sport Sciences transition for the launch, set for July 2022.

As a seasoned communicator, Zundell will focus on promoting efforts by the new College that highlight the holistic development and well-being of individuals at every stage of life. The new College is comprised of three schools, the School of Education, School of Counseling and Well-being and School of Sport Sciences, combining efforts to advance academics, student support and research.

Morgan’s Message, a pioneering student club within the College of Physical Activity and Sport Sciences, was selected to receive a grant in support of their ongoing efforts to promote mental wellness for athletes.

The group participated in the “I Belong” event during a recent WVU Women’s Basketball game. “Our team networked and connected with other people and organizations flawlessly. The table looked incredible and brought us a lot of awesome opportunities,” Nora Hanlon, club secretary, said. “The I Belong mirror was especially loved. I could not be prouder of the team and I know they feel the same.”

In honor of National Girls and Women in Sports Day, the WVU Association for Women in Sports Media and A2WD will host a panel discussion on mental health for women in sports on February 2 from 6 - 7:30 p.m. in the Media Innovation Center on the 4th floor, Evansdale Crossing or via live stream. The discussion, titled Women in Sport and Mental Health, is in partnership with the Association of Women in Sport Media – AWSM.

The panel will feature Marla Gladstone, doctoral student, CPASS coaching and teaching studies, as moderator. Panel participants include Kayza Massey and Brooke Brown, WVU Women’s soccer student athletes; Olivia Sneed, assistant director of athletics communication and CPASS SM master’s graduate; Sofía España Pérez, clinical and sports behavioral health therapist, WVU Athletics and CPASS doctorate degree in sport, exercise and performance psychology; and Felicia Hooper, behavioral health therapist, Carruth Center.

Maintaining a drive to constantly evaluate life aspirations has empowered CPASS graduate Ted Deljanovan to excel in coaching and his career. Deljanovan, physical education teacher education master’s degree (May 2019), says that goal setting has unleashed unlimited possibilities.

“Regardless of whether it was obtaining full time employment, using it in my coaching to be successful or in everyday life, goal setting and pushing me, my teams and individuals has provided opportunities across the board,” Deljanovan said. “I live the ‘never stay comfortable’ motto and keep setting new ambitions to better my teams and myself.”

The West Virginia University community is invited to attend the anti-racism activation experience titled “A Long Talk About the Uncomfortable Truth” on Feb. 15 and 22 from 4:30-6:30 p.m.

The two-day event will begin with a virtual conference organized as thoughtful conversations where participants are asked to listen, view and respond in real time. The discussions will include large and small group settings using the breakout rooms feature.

The College of Physical Activity and Sport Sciences online instructional designers, Beth Bailey and Michele Korgeski, presented their poster titled “ Trust the Climb: A guide to establishing and managing a quality online framework” at the virtual Quality Matters QM ConnectLX national conference this past November.

“Our virtual interactive poster tour took attendees step by step through our quality assured design and development process, while allowing them to view and download our tools and templates, and explore our delivery platform and framework for inspiration,” Korgeski said.

An introductory soccer program has provided real life training for 10 College of Physical Activity and Sport Sciences coaching and performance sciences students. Raymond Kryzak, director, Mountaineer United Soccer Club, organized and led sessions for the Fundamentals soccer program, an eight-week introductory soccer clinic designed for three- and four-year-old children.

“Last year, we officially partnered with the Fundamentals program and plan to make the same connection in the spring of 2022. CPASS did their part by arranging the use of the facility to host the first coaching and training class in the Morgantown area,” Kryzak said.