By Alex Riley
Special to SMUMustangs.com
 
DALLAS – Every time the phone would buzz, Sophie Adler knew two things – something good had happened, and it was time to do something of her own.
 
What started as a player's only blood drive for members of the SMU women's soccer team, eventually became a nationwide effort to provide acts of kindness in the face of COVID-19. A team group chat allowed players to document what they were doing so coaches could keep tabs.
 
With the roster divided into different squads that would normally be utilized for practice purposes, the battle to see which group could outdo the others quickly became fierce.
 
"Having the ability to be connected and work towards some kind of goal, because that's what we do all year whether it's practices or games, we're always working towards something," Adler said. "I think right now, it kind of felt like we have no idea what we'll be working towards next. Picking something good allowed everyone to kind of get involved, stay connected and work towards a common goal."
 
That's exactly what SMU women's soccer coach Chris Petrucelli had in mind when he offered up the opportunity.
 
Because on-campus classes and workouts were canceled due the worldwide pandemic, most of SMU's players had gone home to be with family. Petrucelli wanted a way to keep his players connected, and thought a blood donation "drive" might do the trick.
 
From there, the project morphed into something bigger as players asked what they could do in lieu of giving blood since some weren't medically able to.
 
"I was really proud of them. They got the ball rolling and then they really went after it," Petrucelli said. "In the beginning, it started slow and I really questioned if it was going to catch on, but the way they worked at it, the thought they put into it, the time they put into it, it really did help us stay connected as a team."
 
Over the course of a few weeks in April, the Mustangs did a variety of different activities. Some wrote letters to front line workers in the medical field. There were donations of clothing, food and medical supplies. Some took the opportunity to get out and walk the shorelines of White Rock Lake and pick up trash.
 
The current players made up three squads, while the seniors composed the fourth group. Petrucelli and his staff kept track of which group was reporting which act of kindness throughout the process.
With a day left to go, the teams had combined for about 75 acts. Petrucelli challenged them to reach 100.
 
"We got to 100 in a couple hours," SMU senior Mary Meehan said. "It was really cool to see how fast people donated once it became more a team goal, even though we were still competing in squads. The last few hours of the last day, acts of kindness came pouring in to reach the common number."
 
The final total – 156 acts of kindness. And, it's not over yet.
 
Recently, NCAA soccer announced a campaign called Soccer United Against Hunger. The nationwide food drive will run the entire month of June to help local communities fight against hunger. The acts of kindness challenge might officially be over, but SMU's work isn't.
 
While the charitable acts were the ultimate goal, staying connected while staying apart was the biggest draw for the Mustangs. This gave everyone an opportunity to engage with each other, while helping their community during this time of crisis.
 
And that was the biggest reward of all.
 
"It became really fun because I hadn't talked to some of those girls in a while. When the season first ended, we would see everyone on campus, but once everyone got sent home, our communication slowed down a lot," Meehan said. "It was fun to look down at my phone and see notifications from all the girls on the team and the coaches about something that was for a good cause."