Central Penn Women’s Soccer Team Helps to Raise Funds for a Soccer Academy in Africa

Central Penn Women’s Soccer Team Helps to Raise Funds for a Soccer Academy in Africa

The Central Penn Women’s Soccer team assisted Keystone FC with their Crossbar Challenge fundraiser by running a speed gun station at the event on Friday, September 29, 2023. Participants donated $1.00 to take three shots on goal while Coach Rudy Grubesky clocked the speed of their shot using a radar gun. Women’s team players, Teagan Russell, and Alison Quinn, assisted with the event by helping participants with their shooting technique and by tracking and recording individual scores. The competition was won by two Keystone players who each hit a strike at 54mph.

Keystone FC partnered with an international organization, Macha Sport + Learning Project (MSLP), in Zambia to help raise funds to build locker rooms at newly constructed sport fields used for practices and games daily. MSLP serves the rural community that otherwise has limited organized activities for young people.

The MSLP built a sports complex to provide boys and girls of all ages with training in soccer, basketball, disc golf and volleyball. They are currently trying to raise funds to add a locker room at their soccer academy.

Many of the students attend the academy directly after school and currently there is not a safe and secure space for them to change, especially for the girls' teams. In addition to the locker room, the goal is to provide running water for showers and toilets which are not often afforded to young people at training facilities in rural areas.

Coach Grubesky was asked to assist with this fundraiser project by Corie Thuma after our women’s and men’s teams previously assisted her by running a soccer clinic in conjunction with a community day event sponsored by Representative Patty Kim’s office.

All money raised by Keystone FC’s Crossbar Challenge will go directly towards building the locker rooms at the sports complex in Zambia, Africa.