Mustache Madness
The Ohio Wesleyan men’s lacrosse team took part in “Mustache Madness” during the month of November, with the individual team members growing mustaches to battle non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
“We basically just grew the mustaches, contacted friends and family, and asked them to support our cause,” said Ohio Wesleyan head coach Mike Plantholt. “Every time someone would comment or ask about our mustaches, that would be our opportunity to let them know about our cause.”
Perhaps none of the Bishops’ mustaches elicited comparison to those sported by baseball great Rollie Fingers or hockey’s Lanny McDonald, but the team’s efforts did raise more than $2,500 to support the HEADstrong Foundation, which raises money to help fight non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
“The lacrosse community has rallied around the HEADstrong Foundation because it was created by one of our own,” Plantholt said. “Many athletic teams raise money for breast cancer, and we thought that this was a cause that our sport could really get behind.”
The HEADstrong Foundation was founded by Nicholas Colleluori, who played lacrosse at Hofstra University and created the foundation while undergoing chemotherapy for non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
Plantholt was impressed by the Bishops’ efforts.
“It worked well,” he said. “There was not an official best mustache winner, but several players stuck out—Pat Basset, Jesse Lawrence, Steve Ford, and Drew Scharf. … Obi Greer-Carney and James Borda, both freshmen, admitted that they needed a little ‘Just for Men’ in order to really make their ’staches stick out. Frankie Weschler pulled in the most money (almost $400).”