DeKALB, Ill. – The opening of the Nelson Tennis Center at Chick Evans Field House this month represents the first of three significant facility projects that will positively impact the way that Northern Illinois University student-athletes in five different programs compete and practice, NIU Vice President and Director of Athletics and Recreation Sean T. Frazier announced Thursday.
These three projects continue the Huskies' commitment to improved facilities for NIU student-athletes that began with the 2014 NIU Athletics Facilities Master Plan and was developed further and refocused to specific initiatives during the 2017 Campaign to Sustain.
With the addition of a fourth court and the resurfacing of the previously existing courts, the NIU Tennis teams can now practice and – most significantly – compete, on campus in a facility that is truly a home for Huskie tennis. Thanks to the vision and support of longtime supporters and NIU alumni Dave and Linda Nelson, the Huskies can now play all of its home matches in DeKalb during the colder months of the season and have a permanent practice facility. In addition to the actual work on the courts, new netting surrounding the courts and interior painting has been completed, and a new scoreboard will be installed as part of the first phase of the project. A formal "grand opening" and dedication of the Nelson Tennis Center will be held at a future date.
"We are so grateful to the Nelsons for their continuing support of Huskie Athletics," Frazier said. "The new Nelson Tennis Center at Chick Evans Field House is a transformational venue for our tennis programs, allowing them to practice and compete every match right here in DeKalb for the first time. This is another facility that is a realization of a project initiated as part of our Facilities Master Plan, and it's a credit to our outstanding donors, like the Nelsons, who saw the vision and have invested in the future of NIU Athletics."
NIU men's tennis head coach Patrick Fisher, now in his 13th season with the Huskies, said the Nelson Tennis Center is a game-changer for NIU Tennis and fills a need in the community for quality indoor courts.
"To put it simply, having an on-campus facility that allows us to host conference matches on campus changes everything for NIU Tennis," Fisher said. "On top of that, the community we represent has a great need for a facility like this. The Nelson Tennis Center is a dream come true for our student-athletes, coaches, NIU and the surrounding Dekalb/Sycamore communities!"
Third-year women's tennis head coach Eric Burns said the facility provides NIU with a recruiting advantage in addition to elevating the student-athlete experience by eliminating traveling for home matches and creating a home court atmosphere.
"The renovation of the courts at Chick Evans is a huge upgrade for our program," Burns said. "With only three courts, we were forced to drive to Rockford for our [MAC] matches. Now, our student-athletes finally have a home in DeKalb where their friends, family and Huskie fans can see them play.
"From a recruiting standpoint, unlike other schools who have to go off campus to a private club to play, our ladies can just walk right across campus and play anytime. I believe this
can really set us up to continue our recruiting success as we build our program into a MAC contender."
Two additional projects which will provide dramatic and much-needed upgrades for the NIU soccer and baseball programs were approved by the NIU Board of Trustees at their most recent meeting.
Replacing the 14-year-old turf at the NIU Soccer/Track & Field Complex has been on the Huskies' priority list for several years and is critical to the future success and development of the NIU men's and women's soccer programs, which most recently saw the Huskie men's team win the 2021 MAC regular season and tournament titles and host a first round NCAA Tournament game. The replacement turf ensures that Huskie soccer student-athletes will have a safe and quality playing surface worthy of the programs that use them for practices, games and youth camps. The field replacement is the next step of facility improvements at the complex that included replacing the press box in 2020 and installation of the Pixellot automated streaming cameras used for games and practices.The Board of Trustees' approval of the project at Ralph McKinzie Field that will replace the natural grass and dirt infield with artificial turf is the first step in the Walt and Janice Owens
Ballpark project. In addition to the infield, turf will be installed in the foul territory areas and the visiting team bullpen. With an artificial turf surface, NIU Baseball will be able to use the field for both practice and games even early in the season when weather conditions force the Huskies to move or cancel games, while also reducing maintenance costs. With the improvements, the ballpark will be formally dedicated in honor of the late Walt Owens and his wife, Janice at a date to be announced. A longtime coach, professor, and ambassador for Northern Illinois University, Owens – known to thousands of Huskie students as "Coach O" – was a standout athlete who played professionally in the Negro Leagues before becoming an outstanding high school and then college coach."I'm extremely happy for our soccer and baseball programs that will benefit in so many ways from these artificial turf projects," Frazier said. "Replacing the worn turf at the Soccer/Track & Field Complex has been on the 'to-do' list for several years to address the health and safety of our student-athletes, and to provide a boost for scheduling and recruiting. Likewise, the addition of artificial turf in several areas is a much-needed improvement at Ralph McKinzie Field and enables us to take a huge step forward in creating the Walt and Janice Owens Ballpark."
In addition to elevating the NIU student-athlete experience, all three of these facilities will enhance community relations through youth camps and venue rentals. Tennis memberships will be available for purchase through the Department of Campus Recreation, DeKalb County United Soccer will continue as a tenant of the NIU Soccer/Track & Field Complex and Team Exposure baseball has contracted to rent Ralph McKinzie Field for at least 10 weekends during the summer with additional rentals available with the improved field surface. These opportunities, along with NIU Athletics' summer youth camps and tournaments allow for year-round use, as well as increased revenue generation at these facilities.
By the end of September 2022, NIU will have invested nearly $2 million in facilities for the NIU tennis, soccer, women's track and field, softball and baseball programs. The improvements to those existing facilities include installation of a climate-controlled press box, improved streaming capabilities and enhanced sound and public address system at the NIU Soccer/Track & Field Complex; expansion and turf installation in the home team bullpen and batting cages at Ralph McKinzie Field; and turf installation in the batting cages and pitching warm-up area at Mary M. Bell Field.
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NIU Athletics Moving Forward with Facility Projects - Northern Illinois University Athletics
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