Earlier this year, Jarod Forer and David Frey, graduate students in the Knight Campus Department of Bioengineering partnered with Hidetaka Hayashi, a graduate student from the Department of Human Physiology to form a cross-departmental local recreational soccer team through City of Eugene Athletics. The team, dubbed Team PK United, represents the interdepartmental representation of players from Human Physiology and the Knight Campus, officially starting the league in the Spring of 2024.
Since then, PK United has expanded to recruit players from the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, bringing in participants at various skill levels, and roles across the university. The team’s first season ended in August with a third place finish. After wrapping up its second season with a 3-5 record, the team is now using the offseason to recover and practice as they set plays and look to achieve a first place finish this fall.
"Our team started off as a collection of friends across the Knight Campus and the Department of Human Physiology, but it's grown to include several from Chemistry and Biology as well,” said Frey, the team captain. “Going into our third season, we now have a diverse group of undergrads, graduates, staff, postdocs, and even faculty, all eager for some fun competition."Center Midfielder and Human Physiology undergraduate Caroline Foskett said playing with PK United has positively impacted her experience working at the Knight Campus.
“This soccer team has been such a fun outlet that I look forward to after work,” Foskett said. “It has allowed me to get to know the enthusiastic undergraduate and graduate researchers across the science departments here at UO."
The fall season started on Sunday Sept. 15 with a match against Brat Pack at South Eugene High School. Organizers invite the Knight Campus community to support the team as spectators. The team is currently looking for a sponsor to help with equipment costs. For more information, contact Forer at jforer@uoregon.edu, Frey at dfreyrub@uoregon.edu, or Hidetaka Hayashi at hhayash7@uoregon.edu.