New changes around Mount athletics

Steve Morano
MSMU Class of 2024

(9/2024) As the school year gets underway at Mount St. Mary’s University every year, so comes the beginning of the sporting calendar for athletes representing the school. With such a rich tradition of athletic heritage, the Mount has always been a place where heroes are made and where history is written. Babe Ruth’s visit to the Mount in the early 1920’s, a College Division Basketball National Championship in 1962, Peter Rono’s gold medal victory in the 1500 meter race at the 1988 Seoul Summer Olympics, and a Rugby 7s National Championship in 2023 are all fine examples of the history that runs deep in the fabric of the Mount’s athletic tradition. The facilities and people that help run the athletic department are truly the most important part to creating that heritage that ushers in the next generation of students and fans to the Mount. And there are some major changes coming to that most important thing.

Starting at the end of the 2024 spring academic semester, work began to refurbish and modernize the PNC Sports Complex at the Mount where the majority of athletic training and games take place. Before major work began, small bits of new technology were added around the complex such as a overhead video board in the arena concourse and the addition of the Welcome Center at Echo Field for Rugby games. With the completion of the ESPN studio on campus to stream and produce games and events from campus to the wider world, the Mount started the upward trend in matching other institutions in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference.

Perhaps the biggest change coming to the Mount this year is the refurbishment of the basketball concourse into the new Lynne Phelan Robinson Concourse. Starting in the Spring of 2024, work began on completely redesigning the space in between the field house and Knott Arena into modern, more open design for fans and other spectators to enjoy a more intimate viewing of basketball games and other live events at the Mount.

Work began first on repainting the concourse in the spring, where crews completely remodeled and recolored the different parts of the concourse. The schools color way of blue, white, and gold too center stage as foundation of creating a more inviting atmosphere to fans as they travel the concourse. Branding for the Mount as well as from sponsors such as Under Armour, Pepsi, Hershey’s Ice Cream, and Ticket Smarter were also added to the walls and outlying structures as well.

New flooring was also added to the concourse replacing the older flooring to increase the new look of the space as a whole. Along with the flooring, an update in concessions and merchandise areas for game day has been added to the concourse to give fans a better opportunity to enjoy the game and support the Mount. These new efforts in concessions and merchandise are meant to bring the school into the modern era of Division 1 athletics and make game days a more interactive viewing.

Another addition to the concourse renovations is the addition of a lounge on the east side of the concourse meant to commemorate the success of the school’s athletic programs. The space includes seating, trophy cases, banners, and a vinyl mural of photographs depicting the great moments of the Mount’s athletic history. This addition of seating to the concourse is not standalone as the former balcony of the arena has been turned into more seating with a new design.

When the concourse was first being refurbished in the spring, a drastic design element, the removal of glass walls and doors from the back of the balcony, was done to create a physically more open environment to the concourse and arena. New seating and table tops are to be added to the balcony so that fans can still enjoy a Birds Eye view behind the south basket. The removal of the glass wall will create a louder, more attentive environment for fans during games where the concourse and people on it will not be unable to not hear or see the players or other fans in attendance.

But the biggest addition to the Arena’s renovations this summer is of course the replacing of the original basketball court with a brand new one. As well as a new hard wood floor, the court will get a new paint job and a new design that will embody the spirit of the Mount and the will power of the teams that will play on it. Moreover, the court represents the school as a ascending force in the MAAC, as the Mount will play in its 3rd season in the conference.

Outside of the renovations to the concourse, the Athletic Department is growing in who it deals with in regards to teams. This year, the athletic department has brought Men’s Rugby into the fold and will take part in its running of games and its coverage of the teams in both the fall and spring seasons. The 2016 NCR 15s National Champions and the 2023 CRC 7’s National Champions, the men’s rugby team has a long tradition at the Mount dating all the way back to the mid-20th Century. And at a school that lacks a football program, rugby, both men’s and women’s, is a great alternative for America’s favorite fall sport.

Throughout the over 200 years of history at Mount St. Mary’s, change has always come as a good sign of the progression of the university. The school has certainly grown from the small school building that Father John DuBois started in 1808 and has now expanded to include many other modern buildings for higher education. Along with the new changes to Knott Arena, new changes can also be found in the addition to the Science Building in the academic side of campus and the building of the School of Health Professions in Emmitsburg. With all of the new changes at foot, especially in the world of college athletics, the school may be ready to take on the next two centuries of educating and academic prowess as it did in its first two hundred years.