Nicholson Pavilion hosting events again for first time in nearly two years

Nicholson Pavilion is finally getting back to what it has done best over the past 64 years: hosting Central Washington University athletic events.

After nearly two years of construction work, the new-and-improved volleyball and basketball venue on the north end of campus reopened to the public on October 7 as the 20th-ranked CWU volleyball team hosted Northwest Nazarene.

The ‘Cats rolled to a four-set victory, thrilling the home fans with a dominant offensive effort. The win marked the team’s first match played inside the historic gymnasium—renamed Nicholson Arena—since November 2021.

“Getting a glimpse of what we’ll be capable of in this new space was amazing,” head coach Mario Andaya said. “We had to get used to it initially, with the new energy, surroundings, and teammates. But it’s definitely a cool facility, and we look forward to continuing to play in it.”’

The renovation work on Nicholson Pavilion and Purser Hall began in December 2021 and is nearly complete. The athletic spaces, including a new varsity weight room and locker rooms, have been in use for the past two months, and the court just recently received the green light to host fans again.

Wildcat student-athletes across every sport are overjoyed to be returning to their home venue after playing in alternate locations such as Ellensburg High School, Yakima Valley College, Big Bend Community College (Moses Lake), and the SURC Recreation Center over the past two years. All that moving around caused an enormous disruption for players, coaches, and fans.

“Being back here kind of feels like a full-circle moment,” junior middle blocker Emma Daoud-Hebert said. “I’ve spent five years with this team, and to see the facility I’ve been working in get this massive overhaul has been incredible.”

The volleyball team has played two more matches inside Nicholson Arena since the official reopening, including a straight-set victory over Montana State-Billings on October 20. The team improved to 9-4 in the GNAC and 15-6 overall last Saturday with a straight-set victory over Western Oregon on the road.

The Wildcats’ next home match will be November 9 against Alaska-Fairbanks. Meanwhile, the men's basketball team opens its exhibition season this Saturday, November 4, against Lincoln University.

“It’s super fun to be back in our gym,” Daoud-Hebert said. “The energy’s been super high, especially in the locker room, getting to pick our rituals back up and feel at home. Getting to play in front of our community is always a blast.”

Basketball starts soon

It won’t be long before CWU volleyball gives way to the Wildcat basketball teams. Beginning this week, both programs will play a handful of preseason games away from home before returning to Ellensburg the week of November 13.

Both teams played a handful of games inside Nicholson Arena last winter, but the events were not open to the public.

Fresh off their second consecutive NCAA tournament, the women will open their home schedule November 14 against Cal State Los Angeles, followed by a clash with Westmont on November 18.

“It feels really good for our team to be back in Nicholson on their home floor and to have their own team spaces, such as their locker room,” women’s basketball coach Randi-Richardson-Thornley said. “Our players handled being away from Nicholson tremendously, and because of that, it feels even better than expected to be back. We cannot wait for our first game.”

The ‘Cats return three starters from the 2022-23 squad, including junior first-team all-GNAC selection Sunny Huerta, GNAC Freshman of the Year Asher Cai, and senior all-conference honorable mention Tori Maeda.

“It’s going to be really special to be back in our home facility again,” Huerta said. “The band is crazy, the fans are awesome, so I think it’ll be super fun, and it’ll motivate us to give it all we’ve got.”

The men are also looking forward to getting back on the Nicholson hardwood after a long layoff. Head coach Brandon Rinta said having an opportunity to play on their home floor at the end of last season provided a huge boost to the players.

“For us to get five home games last year, I really can’t put into words what that did for our team’s morale,” Rinta said. “The first time we walked onto this court to play against SPU, it was emotional for me. We had guys on our team who’d never been in our gym, never been in our locker room, and I was just so grateful that they got a taste of the arena that they were going to get to play in.”

The GNAC coaches picked the ‘Cats to finish third in the preseason poll, while two players—seniors Cameron McNeil and Samaad Hector—were picked to the preseason all-conference team.

Hector averaged 11.7 points per game and is the program’s top returning rebounder, averaging 6.1 boards per game in 2022-23. He also led the team in blocks last season with 31. He echoed his coach’s sentiments about the importance of being able to play on the Nicholson Arena hardwood toward the end of last season.

“Playing on that court was very, very important to us,” Hector said. “Feeling that energy from the community for Ellensburg is essential, and coming back into this renovated, beautiful facility with all our fans back in town will really get things rolling. I’m really grateful and excited for this opportunity.”

Other amenities

Nicholson Arena isn’t the only space in the 180,000-square-foot complex that has undergone dramatic upgrades this fall.

Another major part of the renovation was the addition of a dedicated varsity weight room—a space that Athletic Director Dennis Francois calls “one of the best university weight rooms in the state.”

CWU Strength and Conditioning coach Eric Houim believes the upgraded facilities are going to offer a significant enhancement for all CWU Athletics programs.

“Here in the new space, not only do we have to put in fewer hours a week to get the athletes the training they need; we’re also able to provide a much broader variety of services in that training,” he said. “We can be much more accommodating for athletes with class conflicts, too. Our quality of life is significantly better.”

Likewise, Richardson-Thornley expects the varsity weight room to give her players an added advantage as they look to return to the NCAA tournament for a third consecutive year.

“Our players will have the same opportunities as before, but the space is much more conducive to an elite level NCAA Division II athletic department,” the coach said, adding that the new amenities will also be a boost to the program as it looks to attract top talent. 

“From a recruitment standpoint, the whole facility renovation has positively impacted interest,” she said. “It’s a great talking point to add to all the other great aspects of CWU.”

Aside from upgrading the arena, weight rooms, and locker rooms, the Nicholson renovation project also expanded the fieldhouse by approximately 75%, providing additional practice space for all CWU programs.

The new-and-improved fieldhouse features a six-lane, 70-yard straightaway Mondo track, a 70-by-40-yard artificial turf surface, drop-down batting cages for baseball and softball, and new LED lighting. The fieldhouse will also benefit to CWU’s sport activity programs.

As Francois pointed out, CWU Athletics and a variety of academic programs have a lot to look forward to in the years to come. 

“The fieldhouse is going to be a great space for soccer, baseball, softball, track, rugby, football and more,” he said. “When a prospective student-athlete sees all that CWU has to offer, they’re going to be blown away.”