New sports facility offically breaks ground

Oct, 2 marked the official start of what will be known as the Gassen Family Fieldhouse at the University of South Dakota. 

The ceremony was held at 10 a.m., and was open to the public to celebrate the facility breaking ground. The facility was named in honor of USD track and field alumni, Bill and Jill Gassen, who were both in attendance at the opening ceremony.

The facility will seat over 2,000 people, and is going to be the new home of the USD track and field team, the cross country team, and the triathlon team.

It will include several specialized areas for events, including; a 200-meter banked track, a 60-meter straight, as well as jump pits for long/triple jump, high jump areas, sections for pole vault and throwing cages. 

For faculty and athletes, there will be offices, lounges, hydrotherapy and more that will aid in practice and recovery. 

USD is not stopping at the field house, as the university has a master plan for the athletics department as a whole, with the new facility only being the start of the plan.

The plan is set to bolster USD athletics and improve the overall quality of the athletic program itself. 

The head coach of track and field, Lucky Huber, spoke at the ceremony.

“It’ll be world changing. It’ll change everything that we do,” Huber said. “To be able to bring something that’s this elite of a facility here to USD is really exciting.” Huber said.

The facility is expected to be finished in the summer of 2028.