A game at Ocean Township High School Oct. 24 at 6:30 p.m. will honor the memory of Mya Lin Terry who died at the age of 10 due to cancer.
By CHRIS CHRISTOPHER
Kick cancer’s butt.
Attend the 13th annual Mya Cup, an anti-cancer event at Ocean Township High School.
The Spartans’ girls soccer team will host the Shore Regional Blue Devils at 6:30 p.m. Thurs., Oct. 24.
The event will honor the memory of Mya Lin Terry, who lost her five-year struggle with cancer at the age of 10 on April 10, 2013. It will benefit the Mya Lin Terry Foundation, which provides financial assistance to pediatric cancer victims and their families. To donate, go to http:/themylinterryfoundation.org. Foundation president Kelly Lynn Terry, Mya’s mother, can also be reached at kellylynnterry@msn.com.
Mya Lin Terry suffered from Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma and Secondary AML. She suffered three relapses and received three stem cell transplants from three separate donors. She was a fifth-grade student at the Township of Ocean Intermediate School.
“The match originated when Mya relapsed and the team adopted her as like her little sister,” Ocean coach Alexis Pickett said. “I was playing for Ocean and we wanted to do something in her honor. The reason for the match’s staying power is that it really brings the community together. Every year, we see the game grow more and more. Students, parents and even people in the community come together for a great cause and support other families in the community that are going through a difficult time.”
Ocean has won 10 matches and lost two in the event. It has taken on numerous teams, including Matawan, Red Bank Regional, Marlboro, Raritan, Colts Neck, Middletown South, Red Bank Catholic and Brick Township.
“The atmosphere of the match is always great,” Pickett said. “Our high school band plays during the match. The dance team always does a halftime show. We always have a great student section. I have noticed that even in poor weather our students seem to come out and support the cause, which is really special to see. It really is an amazing night all-around and the excitement behind it brings out a different side of my players.”
Proceeds will be raised through a T-shirt sale, a 50/50 and the snack bar. Kelly Lynn Terry will speak about the Foundation prior to the match. An Ocean student will sing the National Anthem prior to the match. The Mya Cup will be presented to the winning team by the two children who will benefit from this year’s match.
“You are playing much bigger than soccer,” Pickett said. “Having the crowd and everything going on seems to pump up the girls in a different way.”
Pickett competed in a 1-0 win over Red Bank Catholic in 2012, missed a 2-1 conquest of Brick Township because of knee surgery in 2013 and returned to action in 2014 when the Spartans scored a 3-0 victory over RBC’s Caseys.
“It was such an amazing feeling to play,” the 2015 Ocean graduate said. “I think knowing that all these people come together to support such an amazing cause and support people in their own community really makes it special. The nerves are high in the game, but knowing what you are playing for makes you as a player want to play so much harder and really give it your all.”
Which does Pickett consider more fun–playing in a match or coaching in a match?
“That is a very difficult question,” she said. “As a player, I loved the feeling of the atmosphere when I was on the field. Just seeing all the people there supporting this cause and it being a night game brings a different feeling.”
Pickett’s Spartans are 2-0 in the Mya Cup. She’s in her third season at the helm. Her team rallied from a 2-0 first-half deficit to defeat the Caseys in her initial season in charge. She labeled the rally a “crazy comeback.”
“While coaching, I love to see how much playing in a game that supports this cause impacts my players,” she said. “They really just go out there and give it their all. Also, I believe them knowing Mya is my cousin and the cause being so close to my heart brings out a whole different side of the girls.”
Since its inception in 2013, the Foundation has gifted $1,471,185.25 million directly to families and pediatric research institutions through Oct. 9. The Foundation is a 100 percent volunteer charitable non-profit organization. Kelly Lynn Terry is a 1985 graduate of Ocean where she played three years of varsity soccer.