Community rallies around UW goalie Mia Hamant during cancer battle

Mia Hamant isn’t one to back down from a battle on the soccer field. With her teammates, family and the University of Washington community united beside her, Hamant is set to face her biggest battle yet. 

Hamant, a junior goalkeeper on the Huskies women’s soccer team, received sobering news in mid-April. After battling a persistent cough and issues with shortness of breath for several months, Hamant was diagnosed with Stage 4 SMARCB1-deficient kidney cancer. 

Though it’s a scary diagnosis, it has given Hamant a glimpse of just how much she means to her teammates and the UW community. Earlier this week, Kim Newlin, the mother of Hamant’s teammate and close friend Lucy, set up a GoFundMe campaign to raise money for Hamant’s treatment costs and family expenses.

The campaign started with a goal of raising $50,000. It blew past that mark easily, with $92,961 raised as of Thursday afternoon, from 917 donors. 

“It’s honestly been so overwhelming and just incredible,” Hamant said. “I never thought it was going to get this big. I have to thank my friends and just like honestly, everyone in my community, like on Instagram and all social media platforms just pushing, pushing, pushing. I never thought it was going to get this big, and for that sheer amount of money to be raised so fast, that has helped me and my family a lot.”

Hamant broke out as a standout goalkeeper for the Huskies last fall. She made 15 starts while splitting playing time with senior goalkeeper Olivia Juarez, and ranked third in the country with a Big Ten-best 0.882 save percentage. She had the third-best goals against average in program history at 0.66, and was named to the Big Ten all-tournament team, while taking on a leadership role for the Huskies on the field. 

While she can be confident and direct, UW coach Nicole Van Dyke admires Hamant’s empathy and the way she holds the team together with her passionate and warm personality. 

“She brings along the younger players with her inclusivity,” Van Dyke said. “She wraps her arms around them. She’s not afraid to tell a group of seniors, ‘You do your job and I’ll do mine.’ She takes on a lot of responsibility in the goal, being the last defender, but she’s built up the confidence to be able to do that.”

After the season, Hamant began experiencing a cough that wouldn’t go away. She had some health issues while on a team trip to Spain a few months ago, and finally went to the emergency room one day when she woke up unable to control her breathing, likely because of fluid surrounding her lungs. 

On April 11, she was told that she had kidney cancer. A few days later, she found out that it was an ultrarare type that comes from the loss of the SMARCB1 gene, without which the cancer can spread quickly. 

Hamant had her first round of treatment two weeks ago, and goes back in for more chemotherapy on May 16. She said she already is starting to feel better, and has kept a remarkably positive attitude throughout the process as support has come to her from all directions. 

Teammate and close friend Kelsey Branson made Hamant a gift basket with different items to help her during treatment such as peppermint gum for nausea, protein bars, a journal and a small doll that Hamant can slam around while feeling frustrated, called a “dammit doll.”

Her coaches, family, other teammates, and boyfriend Jack Maguire have also provided her with supportive texts, visits and positive messages. 

“The texts, the comments, and the DMs and just everything has been a really nice distraction almost, from something that is so scary,” Hamant said. “Just to know that the community has my back, and people who I don’t even know are reaching out and just saying, like, ‘I’ve had the same experience, like, we’re in this together, I’m here for you.’”

Because of her positive outlook on the situation, it seems at times like Hamant is the one providing emotional support to those around her. 

“She kind of just said something that’s like, ‘How can I be sad?’” Branson said. “How can I be upset when so much good is going on around me?’ So many people are binding together for her, so many people are doing such good things. She was literally just telling us, like, ‘How could I be upset? I have so much to live for,’ and all that kind of stuff.”

With the overwhelming support she has received the past few days, Hamant doesn’t seem too stressed. One donor gave $5,000 to the cause on Wednesday, and donations have continued to pour in as the campaign has been shared all over social media. 

“I think the quote was, after describing all of the amazing things that people have done for her and all the support that has come through, how ‘The only thing I have to worry about is cancer,’” Lucy Newlin said. “She made it seem so minimal when she has this whole community and support system around her. But I think part of her positivity has come from how much she cares about others.”

Hamant is hopeful that she’ll eventually return to the field, but there is uncertainty because her type of cancer is so rare. She still has a redshirt year remaining because of a knee injury that cut short her freshman season. 

Hamant has two main goals during this battle. The first is to prove that she is maintaining a positive outlook. The second is to be an inspiration for people who are going through tough times, including other young athletes going through health issues. 

Hamant is already thinking of ways in which she can use the situation to help others. 

“You can get through this,” Hamant said. “Having a positive outlook and having a community that’s here to support you. Like, I’m such an open book, I will talk about anything. I’ll be here to support you.”

With the numbers on the GoFundMe continuing to rise by the hour, it’s clear the community is there to support her too. 

“She is just such a beloved member of our team, and we are with her every step of the way,” Van Dyke said. “Both as a program, as an athletic department, and I think now that it’s public, we are so appreciative of everything that the community and the surrounding area has done for us and for her.”