one last time in
3...
Written and Photographed by Randy Plavajka
VAN
3… 2… 1… The buzzer sounds signaling the conclusion of the regular season of the California Baptist University’s men’s basketball team and more importantly, the last time either men's or women's basketball team will play in the Van Dyne Gymnasium. The box score indicates a loss for the men’s team and a victory for the women’s team, though next season provides a chance for both teams to form fresh legacies in a new facility, the Events Center, after 49 years of hard effort in the 1,100seat gymnasium. Formerly the Van Dyne Field House, the gym has hosted every event imaginable on campus and has arguably been the single most important facility at CBU. No other place builds student community, Lancer athletic legacies, and contributes to the quintessential CBU lifestyle, often simultaneously, quite like Van Dyne. Win or lose, it is always there, the neutral observer, though the fans packed inside for home games have been known to make it one of the most formidable gymnasiums for opponents to play in the PacWest Conference. Dr. Micah Parker, director of athletics, says he has never experienced a dull moment while the teams played in Van Dyne, partially because
Association of Intercollegiate Athletics to Division II of the National Collegiate Athletic Association, and by 2018, Division I of the NCAA. Graphic makeovers traditionally accommodate each period of the gymnasium’s life cycle, dating all the way back to the first additions to the Van Dyne Field House. Wooden bleachers, open office areas and a limited weight room have all been traded in over the years to improve the building and increase its lifespan for the Lancer athletic teams calling the facility home. This evolution will be no different. Parker says Van Dyne will progress into being more of a volleyball-centric facility and receive a fair amount of updates to the interior appearance, including the lobbies and spaces being vacated as team administrative offices move to the Events Center. The only thing missing will be the gym’s mainstay event since its construction: basketball. Senior players from this year’s teams have set new records, joined the 2,000-point club and led the Lancers to PacWest conference titles in their final seasons at CBU, but for the juniors and underclassmen remaining, a new facility presents new opportunity with an even larger crowd, though Van Dyne had its own personality and benefits. “We have the biggest home court advantage
of the environment and primarily because in Lancer culture, there is no option to quit. In the past seven years, the gymnasium has transitioned and progressed alongside the athletic programs, moving from the National
out of any team in our conference, simply for the atmosphere that is brought every single game,” says Jordan Heading, junior kinesiology major and gaurd on the men’s basketball team. “Van Dyne could erupt at any moment with any shot and that
58 | Pursuit