Special to the Reporter

The Issaquah High School (IHS) Eagles varsity girls soccer team hosted a special fundraising night on Oct. 4 at its home game against Redmond High School. The event benefited the National Multiple Sclerosis (MS) Society in honor of alumni and current University of Washington (UW) soccer player Claudia Longo. More than $5,400 was raised from the event.

Longo is a 2018 IHS graduate, who was diagnosed her senior year, and was instrumental in guiding the Eagles to two state championships in 2015 and 2017.

The stands were packed with students and fans, and even the UW women’s soccer team showed up to be a part of the 2022 “Kicking MS with Claudia” fundraiser. Longo, with her entire family beside her, gave a heartfelt speech at halftime about her battle with MS and what her community has meant to her. The UW team passed orange buckets throughout the stands at halftime to collect donations for MS and to show their support for their teammate.

The IHS team wore orange socks during the game to show their support of Longo. The Eagles played an exciting game against Redmond, winning 3-1 and raising their overall record to 6-0.

To make a donation to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society in honor of Longo, visit https://mssociety.donordrive.com/participant/KickingMSwithClaudia2022.

The Issaquah High School varsity girls soccer team and Claudia Longo. Photo courtesy of Adam Lu Photography