Devin Greer talks UCSB Women’s Soccer and Pride Night ahead of contest with UCSD

For some athletes and fans in college sports, LGBTQIA+ pride is simply an off-the-field concern. But for UC Santa Barbara Women’s Soccer star forward Devin Greer, it’s the focal point of an event she has been planning for months.

This past Saturday, Oct. 17, the UCSB women’s soccer team hosted the UC San Diego Tritons in a Pride Night-themed match that Greer helped organize. 

When asked about the goal of the event, Greer explained that she wanted to create a welcoming environment for the LGBTQIA+ community. 

“The premise is to show that Harder Stadium is a place for everyone and that everyone should celebrate Pride,” Greer said. “Also to just show kids … and LGBTQ+ young athletes that they are also welcomed in the collegiate level [and that] they can play soccer and still be who they are authentically.” 

According to Greer, the planning process took her several months, especially because she aimed for the game to feature representatives from local LGBTQIA+ organizations. 

“In the spring, I reached out to [the associate athletic director] and I was like, ‘I really want to bring this to life and make it happen next fall,’” Greer said. “So I’ve been planning this for a couple months now, to just have a game specifically for Pride, and have LGBTQ+ organizations in the community and on campus involved.” 

The organizations offered Pride-themed freebies for attendees, which Greer described as a “really cute” perk for those attending the game.

“Usually at our games, they pass out little things and trinkets. So they’re gonna pass out these heart-shaped stress balls that are rainbow and have the logo on it,” she said.

Greer emphasized the importance of representing and spotlighting Pride in athletics to create community and empower those in marginalized groups.

“I feel like there’s a lot of discourse on social media talking about ‘Why do we have Pride in sports’ and ‘You should leave that gay stuff or whatever out of sports.’ But having Pride-themed games just shows that people who are different — whether that is [their] sexuality, background, ethnicity — that [they] belong in sports and are welcomed,” Greer said.

Greer shared that one of her inspirations for the Pride-themed event was dealing with her own experiences feeling unwelcome in certain spaces.

“I’ve been in spaces where I wasn’t welcome for who I was,” Greer said. “So I think it’s important to have those open spaces and open conversations that help and benefit everyone, even if you aren’t a part of a certain community.”

Greer gave a shoutout to professional queer athletes that she finds to be role models, including former United States women’s national soccer team players Abby Wambach and Megan Rapinoe, as well as U.S. track and field distance runner Nikki Hiltz. She shared that she hopes she can serve as an inspiration to young LGBTQIA+ athletes as well. 

“Growing up, I feel like I unfortunately didn’t really have a Black queer athlete that I really looked up to, which is why I want to be a more public-facing person, to be that role model,” Greer said.

When asked what one sentence she would say to all queer student athletes, Greer kept it concise: “I would just say, it’s okay to be yourself.”

Finally, Greer ended by encouraging the community to “come out and support” UCSB basketball, volleyball, soccer and other women’s sports matches.