An athletic alliance between Villa Maria College and Nardin Academy has been struck. Villa Maria has announced that it will be expanding its existing athletic facilities by constructing a new gymnasium. At the same time, the college will enhance its current athletic program, which was reintroduced in the 2015-2016 academic year (men’s and women’s basketball and men’s and women’s soccer). Since that time, men’s and women’s cross country, men’s and women’s bowling and men’s golf were added.
Due to the wild success of the newly introduced athletics, including the men’s women’s basketball programs, which both advanced to the US Collegiate Athletic Association National Tournament in 2017, there is a newfound energy and excitement at the college. The two basketball programs managed to amass 70 wins over the past two seasons.
Moving forward, the new gym will be constructed where the current pool is located. By removing the underutilized pool, and constructing a gym, the addition of a regulation-size basketball court and a practice volleyball court is possible (the college will be adding men’s and women’s volleyball programs in the near future).
“These upgrades will allow our facilities to better support our growing programs,” said Don Silveri, Villa Maria College’s Director of Athletics. “We’ve had two very impressive years athletically, and we look forward to recruiting more student-athletes who want to study on our student-centered campus and can help lead the Vikings to success.”
A bonus of this expansion happens to be an extended five-year partnership with Nardin Academy. An existing athletic relationship has been in place between the two educational institutions since the 2014-2015 academic year. The arrangement sees Villa Maria’s facilities utilized by Nardin for the academy’s home competitions in basketball and volleyball. Nardin also uses the facilities for various sports’ practices.
“Nardin Academy is pleased to continue its partnership with Villa Maria College,” said Joe Baudo, Nardin’s Director of Athletics. “The expansion of their athletic facilities allows our volleyball and basketball programs to have a place to call home while we make advances to our athletic facilities and program.”
The construction contract has been awarded to Kirst Construction. The gym is anticipated to be complete by the start of basketball season.