June 12, 2011
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RUSTON - As part of a continued effort to improve its athletic facilities in order to put its program's in the best position to succeed, Louisiana Tech is making the first of a number of renovations to the Lady Techster Softball Complex starting this summer.
With the facility scheduled to host the 2013 Western Athletic Conference championships in just under two years, the University and athletics department have committed to making the necessary improvements in order to prepare for the event.
"I'm excited to see the renovations that will take place this summer, and the ones that are planned for next year as we prepare to host the 2013 WAC Championships," said Tech head coach Sarah Dawson. "This program has had a lot of success in the last four years, and facility improvements like these are imperative as we try to continue to attain our goal of winning WAC championships and participating in the NCAA Tournament.
"I appreciate the administration for making a commitment to our program. Through their efforts and the Quest for Excellence campaign, our softball student-athletes and our fans will have a facility that they can be proud to call their own."
The majority of the costs for future renovations of the 29-year-old softball facility will be paid for through the Quest for Excellence capital campaign, a multi-million dollar fundraising project that will be funded with private donations and which will culminate with the construction of a new facility in the south endzone of Joe Aillet Stadium.
The facility will benefit every student-athlete at Louisiana Tech as it will include a new academic center, new sports medicine facility, new strength and conditioning facility as well as coaches' office and locker rooms for many of the Olympic sports as well as football.
Over the course of the next few weeks, the existing wooden fence surrounding the facility will be replaced with a new chain link fence that will be covered on the inside with padding.
An on-going issue of poor drainage on the field will also be rectified with the installation of a new subsurface drainage system underneath a new synthetic turf that will be installed in front of both dugouts and behind home plate. Synthetic turf will also be installed in both bullpens, while the entire outfield will benefit from the installation of a new irrigation system.
Aesthetically, the bleachers will also get a facelift as a new wrap has been designed by Donnie Bell Design and will be installed in mid-August. The wrap will cover the outside of the existing bleachers and will honor a number of Tech's all-conference selections in the last decade, the NCAA Tournament and Women's College World Series teams as well as the Lady Techsters 2008 WAC Championship team.
Future plans call for the construction of a press box, a hitting facility and new bleachers.
For more information on the Quest for Excellence campaign, log onto www.quest4excellence.com.
