Christian College in Oregon Unveils New NCAA D-III Soccer Field With Intercollegiate Doubleheader Sept. 2

Admission is free to both games and ceremony to honor those who helped make first phase of George Fox University's Austin Sports Complex a reality.

Newburg, OR (Vocus) August 13, 2010

After years of planning and fundraising, George Fox University will unveil its new NCAA Soccer Field, part of the planned new Austin Sports Complex, with a pair of intercollegiate soccer games on Thursday, Sept. 2.

The Bruin men and women will play at 4 and 7 p.m., respectively, on the complex’s new synthetic soccer field, installed over the summer. In between games, President Robin Baker will oversee a brief program at 6 p.m. to honor those who have worked to make the complex a reality.

Competition begins with the George Fox men’s Division III soccer game against the Oregon Institute of Technology, followed by the women’s Division III soccer contest against Northwest University. Admission to both games is free.

Between games, Baker will recognize the project’s key stakeholders – including general contractor The Saunders Company and primary donors, among them Ken and Joan Austin and Brad and Katharine Stoffer – and the university’s soccer teams and coaches.

The event celebrates a significant threshold in a project eight years in the making. In 2002, the Austins, founders of the A-dec dental manufacturing company, pledged 23 acres of land on the corner of Crestview and Villa roads for the expansion of George Fox athletics. The project received another significant boost in July of 2009 with the announcement of a $1.2 million lead gift from the Stoffers and their Boedecker Foundation.

Since then, a $250,000 matching grant donated by an anonymous Newberg family in October of 2009 and a $300,000 donation from Pacific Fibre Products of Vancouver, Wash., this spring helped boost the project’s fundraising total to nearly $2.1 million. Fundraising continues for the complex, projected to cost $6.5 million.

In June, general contractor The Saunders Company began overseeing installation of the synthetic Astro Turf GameDay Grass MT45 soccer field.

“I’m stoked about what the complex will bring to the program,” said Kristopher Brown, a junior defender on the men’s team. “I’ll actually have a good field to defend. We’ll have one of the best fields in the league and more clout with the other teams.”

Once completed, the Austin Sports Complex will include a multi-use synthetic turf field, the synthetic turf soccer field, an athletic center building, three grass fields, and a walking/jogging path.

To donate to the project or to learn more, visit georgefox.edu/dev/austin-complex/index.html.

George Fox University is ranked by Forbes as the top Christian college in the Pacific Northwest and among the highest Christian colleges in the country. George Fox is the only Christian university in the Pacific Northwest classified by U.S. News & World Report as a national university. More than 3,300 students attend classes on the university’s campus in Newberg, Ore., and at teaching centers in Portland, Salem, and Redmond, Ore., and Boise, Idaho. George Fox offers bachelor’s degrees in more than 40 majors, degree-completion programs for working adults, five seminary degrees, and 12 master’s and doctoral degrees.

Contact:
Shari Scales
Vie President of Advancement
503-554-2112

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