MILTON, Mass. – Junior Alyson Hampston (North Easton, Mass.) of the Curry College women's soccer team was recently chosen to be the Playmaker of the Month (March), selected by the Institute of Sport and Social Justice.

The Institute for Sport & Social Justice PlayMaker of the Month award program recognizes the academic achievement and community service of student-athletes that reflect "The Institute's" core values. Many times, student-athletes' work in the classroom and within the community goes unnoticed. PlayMaker of the Month gives coaches, administrators, teammates, and faculty the opportunity to nominate and recognize those student-athletes who exemplify the "The Institute's" motto of "Changing Lives Through the Power of Sport." PlayMaker of the Month recipients are recognized in the months of October through June.

To see her recognition among other PlayMakers:

https://sportandsocialjustice.org/services/playmakers-of-the-month/

Hampston has spent and continues to spend a lot of volunteer hours in the local community, especially assisting children and those with special needs. Soccer has given Hampston some of the happiest times in her life and continues to do so and she looks forward to passing that love for the game on. "I wholeheartedly believe in the ability to change lives through the power of sports," Hampston said. "Growing up, soccer was always my go-to, and still is. It's important to keep that in mind and acknowledge the infinite ways I can provide a similar outlet for kids now. Everything I have done in the past and everything I do now makes me happy and it's what drives me. Being recognized for doing things that I'm passionate about is pretty cool. I believe that going back and doing these things is helping me create and grow a life I love. I'm thankful to have the support from Head Coach Brigi Palatino in helping me grow in this area of my life. She has always encouraged me to take this role on as a young adult and helped me start that path. I am humbled to be recognized for such an honor, but to me this is just the beginning. I have so much more that I hope to offer and accomplish in my life and I am excited for the future."

Hampston finds value in using her soccer skills to help mentor and coach youth who have a desire to excel in the sport. She currently serves as the FC Stars youth soccer assistant coach, a camp counselor at Kidsports, and she assists with event planning for Team IMPACT. Team IMPACT is a national non-profit organization that connects children facing serious or chronic illnesses with college athletic teams "forming life-long bonds and life-changing outcomes."

"We are thrilled to have Aly recognized by such a meaningful and impactful award," Palatino comments on why she felt compelled to nominate Hampston for the award. "She is an exceptional human being who has a clear passion for sport and how it can impact the lives of others in a positive way.  In her current fellowship with Team IMPACT, she has doubled Curry College's matches. We feel very blessed to have our Team IMPACT player, Emily Gallo, join our family and it is a credit to Aly for having our dreams and those of other teams come to fruition. Thank you Aly for being a visionary by ingraining the value in sport beyond the game in our community and beyond."

To strengthen her coaching abilities Hampston just received her 7v7/9v9 Coaching Diploma from the United Soccer Coaches organization. She attended this course on March 1^st for 6 hours in Boston. Here are Hampston's thoughts on this incredible experience: "I am incredibly lucky to be surrounded, supported, and coached by such young and empowered female role models. Women in sports in the past three years have taken me above and beyond anything I could have ever imagined for myself as a player, person, and now coach. Coach Beca took me under her wing and now we're flying. I am forever grateful for her. I went from helping her out here and there to being "Coach Aly" with her unwavering guidance and support, I owe her the world. I wouldn't have all of this going for me if it weren't for her and everything she's done for me. She offered me the opportunity to take this course to further develop and educate myself as a coach. It was a great experience, I learned a lot, took it in, and felt very blessed to be present in such a positive and empowering environment, learning from some of the greatest. I am forever thankful for this opportunity."