Winter 2017 Colonels Insider

Insider

Setting our New Standard A Look at Centre College’s Intercollegiate Athletics Department Winter 2017

SETTING OUR NEW STANDARD When Centre College set out to construct a new soccer stadium and locker room complex in 2015, the goal for Director of Athletics Brad Fields ‘98 was clear - set a new standard for facilities as the athletics department moves forward into future projects. Now completed, the entire complex shows many signs of this goal coming to fruition.

The top priority was the playing surface, a 75-yard by 120-yard natural grass Bermuda field which is believed to rival any in the region. The soccer stadium also includes spectator amenities such as bleacher seating for more than 500 fans, public restrooms and a two-tiered patio area. The 500-square foot press box features a separate broadcast booth and film deck. The bench areas are complete with individual player seating, and in the northeast corner of the field resides a state-of-the-art Daktronics scoreboard with LED capabilities.

The S. Gordon Dabney Locker Room Building is a 7,000-square foot building which will house the five different Centre teams that compete at the South Fields area, including men’s and women’s soccer, softball, field hockey and women’s lacrosse. The building also includes public restrooms, a washer and a dryer for laundry services, and a full-service athletic training room with a hydrotherapy tub.

Certain naming opportunities still exist, including individual lockers in each of the four locker rooms, for any alumni and supporters interested in helping with the project and being recognized at this facility. Please contact Associate Athletics Director Andrew Gavin ‘06 (859.238.5872 or andrew.gavin@centre.edu) for more information.

ALUMNI EVENTS SPOTLIGHT

For the second-straight year, former men’s and women’s basketball players returned to campus for the Centre Basketball Alumni Weekend on Jan. 14-15. The group included more than 30 alumni from five different decades and enjoyed getting back on the court at Alumni Gym and a reception at Nellie Burton’s Steakhouse on Saturday before watching the current men’s and women’s basketball players battle Hendrix on Sunday afternoon.

SAVE THE DATE FOR UPCOMING EVENTS April 1: Men’s & Women’s Soccer April 1-2: Softball April 8: Baseball

April 22: Volleyball May 22: 40th Annual Herbie McGuire Praying Colonels Invitational

SHOW YOUR COLONEL PRIDE - SHOP CENTREGEAR.COM!

For information on supporting the praying colonels fund, visit centrecolonels.com/pcfund or call Andrew Gavin at 859.238.5872.

COLONEL NEWS & NOTES

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1. Despite entering the tournament as the four seed, the Centre men’s soccer team claimed the 2016 Southern Athletic Association Tournament on Nov. 6, 2016. Led by head coach Jeb Burch ‘94, the Colonels used a pair of 4-1 wins to reach the finals before defeating Millsaps 2-0. The win secured the program’s sixth overall conference championship and clinched its fifth all-time trip to the NCAA Tournament. The Colonels finished the season 14-6-0.

2. For the fifth-straight season, head coach Jay Hoffman ‘96 and the Centre women’s soccer team hoisted the SAA Women’s Soccer Tournament trophy. On Nov. 6, 2016, the Colonels defeated Rhodes 1-0 at Hillside Field to earn its sixth-straight trip to the NCAA Tournament. Centre opened the NCAA Tournament with a 4-1 win over Piedmont before being eliminated in heartbreaking fashion in the second round by Hardin-Simmons. Senior Destinie Graves went on to be named a First-Team All-American for the second-straight season after scoring 23 goals.

3. Senior Serena Gale-Butto (Muskegon, Mich.) became Centre’s first All-American in women’s cross country since 2006 when she finished sixth overall at the 280-runner NCAA Championships on Nov. 19, 2016. Running at Louisville’s EP Tom Sawyer Park, Gale-Butto posted a time of 20:51 to shatter the programs 6k record and become Centre’s first women’s cross country All-American since Eileen Schilling ‘07 earned her second consecutive AllAmerican honors in the 2006 season.

4. Stepping into the huddle and taking over for all-time leading passer Heath Haden ‘15, junior Devin Hayes (Bowling Green, Ky.) ensured Centre did not miss a beat on the gridiron this season. The James Graham Brown Scholarship recipient helped the Colonels to an 8-2 record and was named both CoSIDA Academic All-District and honorable mention All-SAA. Hayes ranked seventh in the nation in passing yards with a single-season school record of 3,148 passing yards this year. The junior set single-game school records with 527 passing yards and seven passing touchdowns against Rhodes in week nine of the season.