Earlham College opens new baseball, softball training facility
Subscriber Benefit
As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe Now-
(photo courtesy of Earlham College)
-
(photo courtesy of Earlham College)
Earlham College has announced that construction of a new indoor practice and training facility for its baseball and softball teams is now complete.
The Bud McCollum-Earlham College Baseball Hitting and Pitching Lab measures 80 by 104 feet and features six lanes that can be used for pitching, batting, fielding and footwork drills, the college said.
“Many NCAA Division I schools can’t say they have an indoor training facility of this caliber,” Steve Sakosits, Earlham’s head baseball coach and senior associate athletic director, said in a news release. “Not only will it provide a year-round facility to support the development of our players, but it will help us recruit a better student-athlete at the Division III level.”
A major gift for the facility came from frequent Earlham supporters Randal and Melissa Sadler, the college said. One of the Quakers’ best pitchers ever, he graduated from Earlham in 1973 and is now the CEO of Proware, an Ohio-based company that provides information technology to court systems.
The amount of the gift and the overall financial investment in the new facility are not being disclosed.
The new training facility is named after Bud McCollum, Sadler’s former teammate and a 1972 Earlham graduate.
“Melissa and I believe in the power of sports to transform lives and communities,” Randy Sadler said. “The Bud McCollum-Earlham College Baseball and Hitting Lab is our way of investing in the future of Earlham student-athletes, providing them with the resources and opportunities to excel both on and off the field.”
The Sadlers have made contributions to the college toward the construction of new baseball and softball stadiums, renovated tennis courts, and support of the men’s and women’s golf programs.
Additional support for the new baseball training facility came from Charlie and Esther Krieger, the college said.
An official dedication ceremony for the facility is expected in the spring.