When Washington women’s soccer lifted the Big Ten trophy last week, it wasn’t about rankings or seedings. It was about a team carrying the weight of a teammate who should have been there. Mia Hamant, just 21 years old, died from a rare and aggressive form of kidney cancer days before the championship. Her loss has turned this season into something far larger than sport.
Who Was Mia Hamant?
@jcubedhax and now they’re on to the National tournament #womenssports #woso #ncaa #cancerawareness @Washington Athletics
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Mia wasn’t a star because of statistics, though she had them. She was the emotional center of a locker room that relied on her laughter to ease tension, on her competitiveness to raise standards. Teammates say she made the hard days lighter and the good ones better. When she was diagnosed earlier this year, the team rallied, turning each match into a quiet act of solidarity.
Even after she stepped away to begin treatment, Mia stayed involved. She messaged players before matches, checked in on film sessions, and kept posting photos with that same wide grin. Every save made now feels like it’s made for her.
Mia Hamant’s Career Highlights and Stats
- Goalkeeper for Washington Huskies, wearing jersey number 00.
- Recorded a 0.66 goals-against average in 2024, the third-best single-season mark in program history.
- Posted seven clean sheets in 2024, tied for sixth-most ever by a Washington goalkeeper.
- Registered an .882 save percentage, ranking No. 3 nationally and first in the Big Ten.
- Made 75 total saves in 2024, with five or more in seven different matches.
- Allowed only five goals across eight Big Ten regular-season games.
- Delivered three penalty saves vs. Iowa to reach the Big Ten semifinals.
- Named to the 2024 Big Ten All-Tournament Team and CSC Academic All-District list.
Mia Hamant’s Battle With Rare Kidney Cancer
In April, doctors found that Mia had SMARCB1-deficient renal medullary carcinoma, which is one of the rarest kidney cancers known. Only a handful of cases have been documented worldwide. She was one of them. Within months, the disease advanced aggressively. Her family, teammates, and coaches documented her fight, describing her as courageous, stubborn, and somehow still smiling.
She passed away on November 6, 2025. Two days later, Washington played for a conference title. They won it on penalties, with her replacement in goal, Tanner Ijams saving two penalties to take them to glory.
Washington Huskies Soccer Are Playing for Mia Hamant in NCAA Tournament 2025
The Huskies are ranked 13th nationally heading into the NCAA Tournament. They’ll host Montana in the opening round in Seattle, where tributes to Mia have already filled the stands, orange ribbons for kidney cancer awareness, banners with her initials, players wearing black armbands etched with “MH1.”
When goalkeeper Tanner Ijams made two penalty saves to seal the Big Ten championship, she pointed to the sky for Mia. Coach Nicole Van Dyke called it “a moment that belonged to her.”
How the Washington Huskies Are Honoring Mia Hamant
What’s happening in Seattle goes beyond a typical postseason push. Every training session begins with a reminder of why they’re here. The players talk about “keeping her voice,” her insistence on joy, her refusal to quit on any play. There’s an orange flower on the bench for every match. The locker-room wall now bears a simple phrase: Play for Mia.
Fans across college soccer have taken notice. Rival programs have sent messages and ribbons. The Big Ten held a moment of silence before the final. Across the sport, people who never met her are wearing orange because they feel the story, because they see the humanity that sometimes gets lost behind stats and results.
Washington Soccer’s Title Run Is About More Than Wins
You don’t have to be from Seattle or follow college soccer to connect to this. What Washington is doing is what sport should be, a shared space for love, memory, and meaning. It’s what happens when young people take grief and turn it into purpose.
When the Huskies walk onto the field for the NCAA Tournament, it’s about chasing a national championship. But more than that, t’s about finishing what Mia started. And maybe, in watching them, we remember why we fall in love with sports in the first place.
