Hawks Raise Awareness for Athlete Mental Health

SUNY New Paltz Athletics have started hosting “Green Out for Mental Health Awareness” for the 2024‑2025 academic year. These themed matches were started during the 2019–2020 academic year, and the “Green Out” events are a collaboration between the Student Athletic Advisory Committee (SAAC) at SUNY New Paltz. 

Fourth-year women’s soccer captain Gabby Treble is the current president of this committee. “SAAC is run by student-athletes and our main focus is to create a connection between the athletes and the rest of the community at New Paltz by engaging through activities and events that we organize,” said Treble. “We are in charge of making sure the leaders of each athletic team get together to plan events, fundraisers, and activities. Overall, our goal is to create a better student-athlete community at New Paltz.” 

SAAC is led by the president and is divided into six subcommittees — Mental Health Subcommittee, Communication, Student Development, Diversity and Inclusion, and Community Relations. Each subcommittee has 10 to 12 athletes each, all coming together from various teams. 

SAAC has been hosting “Green Out
matches since the Mental Health Subcommittee was created. “Once that committee was in place, we started focusing on making mental health a priority by creating “Green Out” and doing more mental health events,” Treble said.

The Mental Health Subcommittee and SAAC started hosting “Green Out” matches together in support of mental health awareness. Xavier Zykoff, a third-year baseball player, and the head of the Mental Health subcommittee, plays a huge part in the “Green Out
matches at New Paltz.

”The reason I joined the Mental Health subcommittee was because I believe mental health plays an equal role in our lives as physical health,” said Zykoff. “I have been a part of these ”Green Out” events since I started playing collegiately at New Paltz and wanted to be involved in spreading the word of our”Green Out”games and come up with ideas to have the fans and spectators involved.”  

Zykoff’s main role is to communicate with the other people in his committee and be in charge of mental health events like the”Green Out”games. 

“I have been meeting up with each team captain and deciding with them when the perfect time is to host Green Out. We want to make sure we get the most turn out at these games because we want to get everyone involved,” Zykoff said. “Green Out Games are our largest event in the committee and it is our chance to advocate for mental health amongst collegiate athletes, not only in New Paltz, but everywhere.” 

The purpose of the “Green Out” is to encourage all to stand up to the stigma surrounding athletes and continue the conversation about mental health. 

“People think that athletes are having fun because they get to play the sport they love. That isn’t always the case. We have to learn to have a fair balance of school, maintaining a good GPA, going to practices and playing our games,” Zykoff said. “Especially when there is a stigma that athletes need to toughen up and work through their mentality, it can be overwhelming for student-athletes. Through my committee and SAAC we are trying to spread awareness for student-athletes.” 

SAAC and Zykoff are trying to create a culture where athletes can seek help without fear of judgment and prioritize their mental well-being alongside their physical performance. Athletes feel the pressure of excelling in their sport, so it is important for them to keep up with their mental health. The athletic department plays a huge part in ensuring their athletes are excelling mentally and physically. 

“The athletic department gives the athletes access to an app called Athlete Talk, which is a platform for athletes to deal with their mental health, such as doing journal entries, check-ins, and other exercises,” said Zykoff. “It is a great resource for athletes to cope with our mental health if we don’t feel comfortable sharing amongst one another.” 

SAAC and Zycoff hosted five “Green Out” matches this past month, including teams such as cross country, field hockey, tennis, men’s soccer, and women’s soccer. Before each game, Zykoff and his committee decorated the fields. 

“On Sept. 29 me and the student-athletes dedicated ourselves to make posters and decorations for “Green Out,”’ said Zykoff. As a group, they decorated their own mental health poster, he believes having all the athletic teams involved will help spread the word. They can then use these posters for all their”Green Out”games and have a whole section of posters and decorations for all them to help show their support for mental health. They want to remain consistent and keep the message clear that they are 100% committed to bringing awareness to this topic. 

Since then, Zykoff has helped make “Green Out” events well-known and has overseen a better effort into decorating for the events and showing love for mental health. Not only does he and his committee go all out in decorating, but they make sure every fan at these games gets a green ribbon. SAAC started has a table at the games in which they give the ribbons away to help spread awareness, not just amongst the players but also the fans. Zykoff emphasized “It is not only a way to give people the time to reflect not only their mental health but also the people around them such as the athletes. It is such a topic that gets overlooked and we are trying to get people to prioritize by having these ”Green Out” events.” He also discussed with the teams about trying to incorporate green into their athletic attire. By incorporating green into their attire, it stands out and it is the chance for athletes to promote mental health awareness.

There will be multiple “Green Out” matches throughout the year. Make sure to check out SAAC’s Instagram @newpaltzsacc, as well as @mh_newpaltzsaac, to keep up with future”Green Out”matches. The next ”Green Out” match will be Women’s volleyball team on Oct. 12, as they take on Fredonia.