During the spring 2026 semester, a group of Pomona-Pitzer (P-P) student-athletes formed what is now known as Pomona-Pitzer Athletic Culture Transformers (PPACT). The group, assembled in response to a series of racist incidents, works toward athletic department reform.
Sports
The Art of the Story: Chris Ballard’s path from Claremont to Sports Illustrated
The year was 1996. Chris Ballard PO ’95, freshly graduated from Pomona College, had decided on a different path than many of his peers: to write a guidebook on pickup basketball across the country. Flipping through his phone book, he mailed pitch letters to as many agents as he could find, and got only one response.
Sagehens sweep at Pomona-Pitzer cross-country invite
At the Pomona-Pitzer (P-P) Invite last Friday, Oct. 9, the men’s and women’s cross-country teams both came out victorious for the first time since 2018. Just one weekend after pre-nationals, Sagehen men swept the podium, claiming the top five places with a perfect score, the first in meet history.
Give me a 5, give me a C, Claremont cheerleading springs to life
At the Claremont Colleges, school spirit is taking a new form. As co-founders Regan Cooper PO ’29 and Adelina Grotenhuis PO ’28 work to establish the 5C cheer team from the ground up, they strive to fill a gap in campus life and athletic events and build a stronger sense of community across the consortium.
‘A Long Talk’ trainings headline new P-P athletic anti-racism reform
This fall, Pomona-Pitzer (P-P) athletics implemented new trainings titled “A Long Talk About the Uncomfortable Truth” aimed at cultivating an anti-racist culture and strengthening department-wide community. A Long Talk focuses on the simple formula that “information plus empathy equals action.”
Womxn’s Flag Football touch-down in new league
As the fall comes into full swing, infographics and flyers are plastered around the 5cs, each pitching clubs and events to students passing by. One club’s tagline: “Do you ever watch football and wonder what it would be like to play it yourself?” The Womxn’s Flag Football team, founded in fall of 2024, is gearing up for their first year of play in the National Intramural-Recreational Sports Association Women’s Club Flag Football League.
Keeping score all year: The case for a Sixth Street Cup
Imagine Michigan Quarterback Bryce Underwood in a lab with the Ohio State wide receiver Jeremiah Smith just two days after a game. Anywhere else, most would call that absurd and even fight-worthy. In Claremont, that is just a normal Monday. This is because Claremont has something those rivalries cannot match: We live, study, and party with the opposing side. A rivalry that runs from classrooms to courts all year long deserves a restructured trophy that does too: a year-long Sixth Street Cup.
Claremont turns violet: Valkyries fans find each other across the 5Cs
The WNBA’s Valkyries exhilarating second season saw them make the playoffs for the second year in a row and advance to the semifinals for the first time in team history. At the 5Cs, wearing Valkyries merch, especially in the Valkyries’ signature violet, has become a signal of Bay Area identity, an expression of support for women’s sports, and an invitation to form community 400 miles from Balhalla.
Sagehens women’s volleyball sweeps Athenas for the first time since 2013
On Sept. 29, Pomona-Pitzer (P-P) women’s volleyball swept rival Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (CMS) 3-0 at Voelkel Gymnasium, the team’s first straight-set win over the Athenas since 2013 and its first win over CMS since 2024. With this Sixth Street rivalry victory, the Sagehens moved to 7-8 on the season, and 1-2 in conference play.
New P-P athletic trainers hit the ground running
Amid a year of personnel change within Pomona-Pitzer (P-P) athletics, the department recently welcomed new Director of Sports Medicine Joe Gonzalez. The Pomona-Pitzer Athletics Department introduced Gonzalez in a press release on July 10, following a nationwide search. Gonzalez brings with him four new assistant trainers In a move that saw the entire training room turn over this past summer.