HARTSVILLE, S.C. – Members of the Coker softball and men's basketball teams kick-started the Cobra/Tiger Lunchtime Connection between Thornwell Elementary School and the Coker Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) on Thursday (Sept. 11). The partnership is a new initiative to increase interaction between Coker student-athletes and local youth in need of mentors.

"My students are still talking about how excited they were to see the athletes," said Thornwell teacher and Coker alumnae, Taylor Adams. "I look forward to continuing the interaction between Coker and Thornwell, and hopefully this becomes a lasting partnership."

Before taking to the blacktop for recess, the members of the two teams spent time getting to know the Thornwell students over lunch.

"It was so much fun to just be a kid again and run free," said men's basketball player Alex Cohen. "You see these kids and you remember what it was like to look up to someone when you were little."

The students of Thornwell are not the only ones looking forward to seeing the student-athletes return.

"I cannot wait to come back again," said softball player Carylann Geddes. "I live for these kind of opportunities. It is nothing more fulfilling than seeing the genuine smiles on the faces of the little kids." 

The men's basketball team opens their season on Saturday (Nov. 8) against Campbell University, while softball kickoff their season on Friday (Feb. 6) at the UNC Pembroke tournament.