As Washington goalkeeper Tanner Ijams prepared for a shootout against Michigan State in the 2025 Big Ten championship on Nov. 9, the sophomore asked herself a simple question: What would Mia Hamant do?
Hamant was the Huskies goalkeeper last season, but her budding soccer career was tragically cut short by a rare and aggressive form of Stage 4 kidney cancer. Hamant, 21, died Thursday, Nov. 6, three days before the Big Ten championship match.
Ijams took over as Washington's starting keeper this season following Hamant's diagnosis. As Michigan State players lined up to take their penalty kicks, Ijams was confident the Huskies would win.
"(Hamant) has a really, really good way of reading which way the striker is going, and it definitely helped me a lot in those moments," Ijams told USA TODAY Sports on Wednesday. "She was always so supportive of me and teaching me little techniques and little tricks that she does to just be a better keeper. So she definitely shared so much of her knowledge with me, and she's such an amazing keeper."
MIA HAMANT: Washington goalkeeper dies from kidney cancer at 21
