The Gosman athletic complex was converted into a sports camp for kids between ages seven and eleven on Sunday as Brandeis hosted the fourth annual Kids in Sports Field Day. The majority of the children were from Waltham elementary schools, while some were from the Brandeis Jewish Educational Program. This three hour event occurs twice a year and will happen again in the spring. Event coordinator Shani Reich '06, who is also a member of the women's tennis team, made sure the children were never bored, keeping them busy with activities such as basketball, softball and tennis.

The program was a smashing success. The children seemed genuinely excited about having the chance to play sports with Brandeis varsity athletes. Children were offered the choice of five stations, those being basketball, softball, tennis, track and field and soccer. Parents were able to watch their children hit three pointers and smack line drives over instructors' heads while sipping coffee from the bleachers. The afternoon started off with stretching exercises and jumping jacks along the periphery of the gym. Then it was time to break into groups.

The most popular station seemed to be basketball where the children played with Brandeis basketball players such as Jenna Schermerhorn '07, John Saucier '08 and Steve DeLuca '08. The basketball station began with a friendly game of knockout in which children and Brandeis athletes took shots in hope of eliminating the person in front of them. Then three teams raced in a dribbling competition. Finally a full court game, conspicuously involving more than 10 players, capped off the basketball station.

"It shows that we care a lot about little kids and showing them the basics of playing basketball and that we want to give something back to the community in Waltham," DeLuca said.

There were many children with varying degrees of interest in basketball. Amongst those was Joseph Gengo, a nine year old resident of Waltham, who plays for the YMCA league Cincinnati Bearcats. Gengo could certainly be considered an avid fan of basketball.

"My favorite sport is basketball, my favorite position is defense," Gengo said. "And I just like basketball."

Over on the make-shift softball diamond, the equipment consisted of wiffle ball bats and tennis balls, but it did not make a difference to these kids. The children played a smaller version of softball on the indoor tennis courts, with only infielders on the diamond.

"I just really think its great how all the athletes come out and help all the kids," Murray Glaster '07 said. "It really shows what Brandeis is all about, that the athletes take their time to come out and help kids in the community, and the kids really love it."

"It's very important for these kids to have role models and Brandeis athletes are always willing to help," Reich said. "It's just a wonderful experience to have these kids come down here and have a nice afternoon with a bunch of the older kids.