Delta Zeta hosts Kicks for Caroline

Students gathered at West Campus on Sunday afternoon to remember GCSU student Caroline Bagwell. Her sorority sisters of Delta Zeta hosted the second Kicks for Caroline soccer tournament in her honor to help construct a memorial at Caroline’s high school soccer field.

Bagwell passed away June 15, 2008, at the age of 19 after an automobile accident in Milledgeville. Bagwell had just completed her first year at GCSU, but she had already made a lot of friends. Senior Laurene Greene said she is happy to have known Bagwell.

“She was a beautiful person on the inside and out. Her perfect smile was contagious and she could always make me laugh. She lived life to the fullest and really enjoyed the people around her,” Greene said.

Bagwell played soccer at Habersham Central High School and grew up competing in the North Georgia Soccer Association, which decided to create a scholarship program in her name. Delta Zeta decided that a soccer tournament was a great way to remember Bagwell.

“I think she would be very happy with Kicks for Caroline. (Bagwell) loved soccer and she was good at it. She was an incredibly talented person,” Greene said.

The tournament was planned by Delta Zeta’s Kelsi Cunningham and Michelle Burke. The preparation started in February and the event was planned to take place in March. The event had to be moved to the later date due to bad weather. Volunteers from the sorority stopped by local businesses for donations to be given to the winning teams or to be raffled off as prizes. Prizes included gift cards to Starbucks, Bodyplex, Chops, The Velvet Elvis, Metropolis Café and various nail and hair salons. Concessions were also donated by local businesses for the tournament.

Bad weather wasn’t a problem the second time around as teams showed up to compete in the double elimination tournament.

“Once we got the new date all the teams showed up and they were enthusiastic,” Burke said.

Teams could compete in the coed, men’s and women’s classes to win a gift card. Julia Newman played on a women’s team, coed team and helped coach a men’s team, all of which won.

“My roommates are Delta Zetas and that’s how I got involved. It’s a really good cause and they’re really into it,” Newman said.

Games lasted 20 minutes before going to penalty kicks if the teams were tied at the end of the game. The tournament was a 7-on-7 format.

“It was a good way to remember Caroline. I was friends with her. She was always out here playing. I lived in the room under her freshman year and I could hear her kicking the soccer ball around upstairs,” junior Jason McCloskey said.

The winner of the men’s class was team Matt Holland. Coed was won by team Slick and the Cougars won the women’s competition. The tournament ran smoothly and helped remember Caroline Bagwell.

“She left a lasting impression that will never go away, and for those of us who were blessed enough to know her and to be her friends will always carry her in our hearts,” Greene said. “We love and miss her dearly.”

Posted by Drake Simons on Apr 23 2010. Filed under News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry