South Hadley, Mass. - April 15, 2020 - Senior Micaela Pierce (Newton, Mass.) of the Mount Holyoke College field hockey team recently earned an NCAA Ethnic Minority Postgraduate Scholarship on behalf of the NCAA Minority Opportunities and Interest Committee.
As a recipient of the scholarship, Pierce will receive a $10,000 nonrenewable award to be used during the 2020-21 academic year. The goal of the enhancement program is to increase the pool of and opportunities for qualified minority and female candidates in intercollegiate athletics through graduate scholarships.
"I am so grateful to have been selected for this postgraduate scholarship," said Pierce. "I know that with it I will have the ability to pursue my passion for working in collegiate athletics. I am truly thankful for my mentors who have helped to guide me in this direction and the support from the Mount Holyoke College community. I am excited for the opportunities that will come next with this scholarship, and know that my experiences over the past four years at Mount Holyoke College will continue to serve me well."
An American Studies major at Mount Holyoke College, Pierce was one of only 13 ethnic minorities and 13 female college graduates who will be entering their initial year of graduate studies with an NCAA Ethnic Minority Postgraduate Scholarship.
"It is especially evident in this time of crisis how valuable the liberal arts degree is to athletics professionals," said Chair of Physical Education and Director of Athletics Lori Hendricks '92. "Our industry needs individuals who are comfortable working with different sets of data and across disciplines to answer the questions facing us. More importantly, we need thought leaders who are asking the right questions to begin with. I am confident that Micaela, with her Mount Holyoke education and many MHC mentors, is equipped with the skills to be a successful professional in this field. I am excited for her next chapter in graduate school, and I am grateful to the NCAA for its continued support of MHC graduates."
Pierce, who was recently named to the National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) Division III National Academic Squad for the fourth-consecutive year, also attended the NCAA Career in Sports Forum last summer and followed up with a trip to the NCAA Student Immersion Program this past January, which was associated with the NCAA Convention which was hosted in Anaheim, Calif.
In addition to her academic success as a student-athlete at Mount Holyoke College, Pierce was also a valuable member of the field hockey program, serving as team captain during both the 2018 and 2019 seasons. Pierce worked herself into a starting role during the 2019 season and started seven of the 15 games that she played in, leading the Lyons to a berth in the New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) Tournament for the 21st-consecutive season.
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