More than a game: The sisterhood of the Columbia women’s soccer team

What makes a team more than a roster? For the Columbia University Women’s Soccer Team, it is the traditions and shared experiences that turn teammates into sisters.

Photo by Sherry Chen/The Barnard Bulletin

By Maitree Mody

October 31, 2025

Before each game, every player on the Columbia University Women’s Soccer Team opens their locker to find a handwritten note and a small gift. Maybe they find their favorite snack or a personalized poem, bringing a smile to their face. These gifts are called “psych-ups,” a steady tradition in the soccer team for the last decade. 

“It’s for everyone. It doesn’t matter if you play zero minutes or you're a starter. You get one every single game from someone. You have to get one,” says goalkeeper Izzy Ackerman (BC ’28), one of the five Barnard athletes on the roster. She describes psych-ups as a “Secret Santa before every game.” This is just one of the ways Barnard’s culture of sisterhood has transcended into its athletics. 

“One of my goals and even in the process of recruiting, is that we really do try to create a sisterhood. I want them to find best friends for life,” says Head Coach Tracey Bartholomew, who has led this program since 2013. “That’s one of the greatest things about college soccer. You can compete for championships, and you can also have this journey with people.” Having trained multiple generations of teams at Columbia, Coach Tracey recognizes that trust between teammates takes time. “It doesn’t happen overnight. You can say you’re a family, but it’s really all the other things that you’re doing constantly.” 

That is why Coach Tracey introduced the tradition of psych-ups when she joined the program, which has since evolved to be a favorite amongst players. One of the psych-ups this season even featured an original rap composed by a junior on the team, performed in the locker room for fired-up teammates before kickoff. 

Another integral part of traditions amongst the team is good luck charms. Midfielder Krystal Medina (CC ’29) is “super superstitious.” She puts on all her gear on her right foot before her left. Medina also wears wrist tape every game, writing the team’s slogan, “Be Brave,” on it. To represent Columbia colors, the entire team sports blue ribbons in their hair, often worn in a slick-back courtesy of their manager, Izzy Liu. 

It is not just things they share physically; sometimes it is an experience. The team gathers and blasts their hype-up playlist featuring upbeat songs like “Hot Wings (I Wanna Party)” from the movie “Rio” and “We Are One (Ole Ola).” 

In a sport where seasons are fleeting and rosters change every year, traditions glue a team together. For the women’s soccer team, rituals like psych-ups create something deeper than just statistics or names on a roster. They create a “sisterhood” that extends far beyond the four years on the field.

The team focuses on building this culture just as much during the off-season as it does during the season. “The whole spring, since we’re not playing games, we have more time to spend with each other, creating a team culture that the freshmen can come into and feel a part of,” says Ackerman. Coordination, trust, and selflessness in teams are built intentionally in this way to strengthen team spirit before the competitive season begins. 

Fostering team culture is vital to the team’s response to victories and failures throughout the season. “When we win, we just go crazy in the locker room,” says goalkeeper Emme Pacheco-Hager (BC ’29). 

Last season, Ackerman’s favorite moment was when “Angel [Akanyirige] scored the winning goal at Harvard, and it was the first time since the year our class was born that our team had beat Harvard at Harvard. That was the best day ever. Also, we didn’t have many Barnard girls on our team at that point. So, it was just really cool.”

After a loss, they follow a motto as a team. Medina explains, “Don’t let the lows get too low, and don’t let the highs get too high.” In the demanding Ivy League environment, where student-athletes balance rigorous coursework with competition, these rituals are emotional anchors, reminding players that they are part of something larger than a single game or season. 

These are experiences that the current team shares with the program’s alumni as they carry Columbia’s legacy on. “I think it’s super important that, you know, you’re part of this journey and this legacy,” says Coach Tracey. “Every team is unique to itself, but there’s still people, women that came before you that did amazing things that built this place, and you’re carrying on all of that stuff.” She explains a postgame tradition where the players sign posters that fans bring to the game, a warm ritual that connects players to the Columbia community. This held special meaning at Homecoming, where players met alumni who had worn the same jerseys years before. 

Ackerman and forward Angel Akanyirige (BC ’28) think of legacy when they talk to alumni. “It sort of reminds you, oh my gosh, like, how lucky I am not just wearing the Columbia jersey, but to be part of the program at the point where it’s at,” says Ackerman. 

“So work as hard as you can now because it’s gonna be gone soon, and just kind of cherish the time that I have here,” says Akanyirige. This legacy, these traditions, and these experiences connect the past, present, and future of the team.

In four years, Medina, Akanyirige, Ackerman, and their teammates will be attending Homecoming games as alumni. Jerseys will change hands, new numbers will be claimed, and statistics will be updated. Yet, the traditions of the team will live beyond the players. Psych-ups, “Hot Wings,” wrist tape, and blue ribbons will continue fostering a sisterhood that players are proud to call their own.