Celebrate the power, passion, and impact of women in athletics at Blackburn College’s 2026 Women in Sports Day Celebration on Saturday, January 31. Join us beginning at 12:00 pm in the Blackburn Athletic Center for an inspiring program featuring a dynamic keynote speaker and student-athlete presentations honoring the trailblazing women who have shaped—and continue to shape—the world of sports.

Justine Siegal will serve as the keynote speaker for the event. Read more about Siegal at the press release for the event.

Blackburn College will celebrate the achievements, leadership, and lasting impact of women in athletics during its 2026 Women in Sports Day Celebration on Saturday, January 31, 2026, beginning at 12:00 pm in the Blackburn Athletic Center. The event will feature keynote speaker Justine Siegal, a nationally recognized baseball coach, sports educator, and advocate for gender equity in sports whose career has helped expand opportunities for women and girls in the game. The event is free, but registration is required.

Siegal is widely known for breaking barriers in the traditionally male-dominated world of baseball. In 2009, she became the first woman to coach a professional men’s baseball team when she joined the Brockton Rox of the independent Canadian American Association of Professional Baseball. In 2011, she again made history as the first woman to throw batting practice to a Major League Baseball team, working with the Cleveland Indians during spring training.

Siegal is also helping lead a new chapter for women’s athletics through the launch of the Women’s Professional Baseball League (WPBL). The league will play its inaugural season in Springfield, Illinois, at Robin Roberts Stadium beginning August 1, 2026, with four teams representing Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York, and Boston. League organizers selected Springfield for its central location and baseball history, including one of the earliest paid women’s baseball games in 1875 and the city’s connection to the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. The WPBL’s inaugural season will include a regular season, playoffs, and a championship, creating a new professional league for elite women to compete in baseball.

Read more about Siegal at the press release for the event.

Following the program, keep the celebration going by cheering on the Blackburn women’s basketball team as they face Principia College at 1:00 pm in Dawes Gymnasium. Alumni, students, families, and friends are invited to come together to recognize the remarkable legacy and bright future of women in sports.