The Bear Creek School‘s Grizzlies volleyball program hosted their third annual Dig Pink event on last Friday in conjunction with the Side-Out Foundation to raise money for breast cancer research and support for patients and their families.

The event brought in more than $2,000 for the Grizzlies.

For the third year in a row, the Grizzlies invited the Christian Faith Eagles to participate in the match and the Bear Creek gym was packed with pink-clad fans who cheered for their respective teams.

Last year the Eagles finished second in the 1B state tournament while the Grizzlies placed fourth in the 2B state tournament. Both teams continue to be highly ranked and played an intensely competitive match.

For the first time in this series, the Grizzlies were victorious, coming from behind to win in five sets.

Although the Grizzlies were plagued by service and other unforced errors in the first two sets, they turned the match around in the third set. Strong hitting on the outside by senior Nikki Peterson, senior Bethan Meyer and junior Makena Schoene propelled the Grizzlies to victory off junior Michele Brown’s sets. Defensively, senior Elizabeth Fernandez contributed five blocks, while junior libero Morgan Cadigan put up 20 digs adding to back-row work by Meyer and Peterson.

Dig Pink is supported by middle school, high school and college volleyball coaches and teams across the country. All proceeds benefit Side-Out, which in turn awards grants to medical research organizations and entities dedicated to providing support for breast cancer patients and their families.

The Bear Creek Grizzlies raised money at the event by charging an admission fee, selling bright pink commemorative T-shirts and concessions, including pink lemonade, pink sprinkle cookies and strawberry ice cream.