CUW Athletic Director Robert Barnhill addresses those who gathered for the Catalyst Sports Training Center open house.

Concordia University Wisconsin celebrated this week the completion of its latest building project, the Catalyst Sports Training Center.


On Thursday, March 1, the university hosted an open house and ribbon cutting ceremony to commemorate its new, 6,000-square-foot, multipurpose facility. More than 100 people attended the event, including Mequon City Administrator William Jones; Matt Burow, whose Milwaukee-based construction company, Catalyst Construction, LLC, is the namesake of the new building; and Concordia leaders President Rev. Patrick T. Ferry, PhD, and Director of Athletics Dr. Rob Barnhill.

“We are so blessed with the opportunity to offer our students and people in the community a place to get out of the cold to better their practice and cultivate their gifts,” Barnhill said on Thursday. “This project is the result of more than four and a half years of hard work and planning and the support and donations of multiple friends who are passionate about athletics.”

The Catalyst center includes a turf training surface, four batting/pitching tunnels, a covered patio for programming and protective netting to support athletic activities of all types. The facility will serve educational and athletic programs at Concordia, and will be available for community members’ use on a limited basis.

Concordia boasts 29 varsity-level athletics teams, and 35 percent of its undergraduate students participate in a varsity sport. Additionally, an estimated 75 percent of students participate in intramurals.

Well over half of CUW undergraduates are expected to make use of the facility through intramurals or educational programming, says Barnhill. The center will also enhance student-athletes’ training and strength and conditioning routines.

The Catalyst Sports Training Center was made possible solely through the support of generous donors.

— This story is written by Kali Thiel, director of university communications for Concordia University Wisconsin and Ann Arbor. She may be reached at kali.thiel@cuw.edu or 262-243-2149.

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