2018年12月31日
新的运动中心对野马队来说意义重大
没有地方比得上家
For over 40 years—through countless victories, national titles, and Mustang glory—皇冠体育's outdoor athletes have never had a home field to call their own. 直到现在。
Every time Athletic Director Paul Gavin ’88 stands on the new athletic complex plaza, surveying the fields in each direction, he feels the hairs raise up on his arms as he considers this dream turned reality for the school he loves.
The view from the plaza, with a Mustang emblazoned across the turf, delivers what he and the other coaches refer to as the “wow factor”—a special place they can bring recruits, alumni, and friends to take pride in all Mount Mercy can now offer today’s student-athletes.
Earlier this fall, the $16 million Robert W. Plaster Athletic Complex began its debut season with a Grand Opening, which included the induction of the new Hall of Fame class, remarks by President Laurie Hamen and key dignitaries, as well as tours of Busse Softball Field, the multipurpose field, and the baseball stadium.
主场优势
For the first time in the athletic program’s history, the 皇冠体育 Mustangs have a permanent outdoor home-field advantage of their very own. The complex serves six of 皇冠体育’s 18 intercollegiate sports: baseball, softball, men’s and women’s track and field, and men’s and women’s soccer.
“Sometimes I can’t believe this is ours."
“Sometimes I can’t believe this is ours,” says Jason Furler ’95, sports information director, who, like Gavin, has a long history with 皇冠体育.
Furler has been with the school 20-plus years, and Gavin is a former student-athlete and coach of both men’s basketball and golf. 这段丰富的过去是凝视着美丽的田野，用金色的正楷写着“慈悲山”的原因之一。
The wide impact the state-of-the-art facility will have on the Mount Mercy student body is indisputable: Student-athletes make up half of this fall’s first-year traditional undergraduate class with over 400 total students currently participating in athletics. 他们不仅是优秀的运动员，也是优秀的学生。 加起来，学生运动员的平均绩点超过3.0。 Twelve of 皇冠体育’s 18 sports are NAIA scholar teams with a cumulative 3.0 GPA.
满足我们时代的需要
While 皇冠体育’s outdoor athletes have enjoyed many victorious seasons in spite of having no home field, the need has always been there. With the financial support at last in place, and 22 acres of industrial land acquired, (located at 651 19th St. NE, just a few short blocks from the Hill) the project broke ground in June 2016.
“It’s like going from a one-room apartment to a penthouse,” says Gavin. “Our coaches and staff are overjoyed for their student-athletes and the success of their sports. I can’t wait to see our athletes grow, play, and learn over the years.”
不再渴望其他学校的田野。 No more losing precious minutes loading up gear and vans and driving across the Cedar Rapids metro area for practice at Xavier or Kennedy high schools, a process that longtime soccer coach Amir Hadzic knows all too well.
“It didn’t hit me until I received a set of keys from Paul,” Hadzic says. “As I left his office, I suddenly had shivers realizing what that moment meant for our program.”
哈季奇说，从招募、营地、诊所到将潜在的高中前景带到校园，这个综合设施对皇冠体育足球的未来至关重要。 最终，这些设施将确保他的国家认可的NAIA计划的延续。
“I’ve coached here for over 20 years and, during this time, we used more than 10 venues for our practices and games,” Hadzic says. “We invested a lot of resources and valuable time just to travel to those sites each day.
Now, we can use our time better to extend our practice sessions and work individually with our players to make them even better student-athletes.”
Some highlights include Musco lighting that allows night games—and therefore fewer missed classes—and artificial turf that holds up against the elements. LED灯可以在世界任何地方通过应用程序打开。 此外，多功能场地经过精心设计，考虑到未来可能的体育运动，如足球和长曲棍球。
加文说，在一流设施上训练和比赛的能力已经影响了招聘和对户外运动项目的兴趣。 今年秋天，超过35名新球员加入了棒球项目。 田径和越野项目预计将在未来两到三年内从75人增加到130人，预计新的田径项目参与者也会增加。
"That ‘wow factor’ is something we’ve never had, and it makes a huge difference. 能够在我们自己的空间里训练运动员对我们的招聘来说意义重大。”
“I had a recruiting visit the morning of our grand opening, and the kids were amazed,” says Jamie Jimison, track and field and cross country head coach. “That ‘wow factor’ is something we’ve never had, and it makes a huge difference. The ability to train athletes in our own space means so much to our recruitment.”
Baseball coach Jack Dahm agrees. “It’s outstanding what we have here at Mount Mercy,” he says. “It’s truly a one-of-a-kind facility.”
The Robert W. Plaster Athletic Complex will make additional community outreach efforts possible, including Mount Mercy’s planned JumpStart program, which will collaborate with local social service agencies and neighborhood organizations to provide activities for area youth.
JumpStart’s mission is to inspire children in Cedar Rapids to reach their educational potential by teaching them essential lessons in leadership and academics through sports.