A $225,000 renovation of the Cal Poly women’s soccer locker room begins Friday, March 15.
Cal Poly Women's Soccer Locker Room Renovation Starts Friday
3/14/2024 4:00:00 PM | Women's Soccer
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SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. — The Cal Poly women's soccer program will be receiving a well-deserved and long-awaited complete renovation of its locker room thanks to some generous donations from former players, alumni and donors.
Construction on the fully donor funded project begins Friday, March 15. The $225,000 complete renovation of the women's soccer locker room housed inside the Mott Athletics Center features 35 brand new Holman lockers, audio and video systems and a fueling station. The locker room will also be receiving new lighting, flooring and lounge furniture for the team to enjoy, along with updated branding showcasing the history of the highly successful program.
Demolition and removal of the old lockers began Monday, March 11. The last time the women's soccer locker room was renovated was 2009, when the program first received its own team room in the Mott Athletics Center.
"Back in 2009 we were able to carve out enough space in the Mott women's locker room to allow us to create what is now our team room," Cal Poly women's soccer head coach Alex Crozier said. "The past 15 years has taken its toll and upgrading the room to refurbish and modernize is now needed."
The project was made possible thanks to support from over 30 donors, including alumni of the program, parents of current and former student-athletes and from community members. Shea Homes of the Central Coast also assisted on the renovation project.
Crozier, who has been named Big West Coach of the Year a record six times, has served as head coach since the program started in 1992. He's overseen and witnessed countless monumental moments in the history of Cal Poly Athletics, and he recognizes how much this renovation will benefit the women's soccer program for years to come.
"This project will provide a great place for the team to watch film, study, recover from training and to gather and enjoy each other's company," Crozier said. "As a coach, I am looking forward to having a dedicated place to share and review film with the team."
Cathie Cardoza Conner, a member of the Cal Poly Athletic Director's Council, took the lead on the renovation project and played a significant role in the fundraising efforts. Cardoza Conner played soccer at Cal Poly under the watchful eye of coach Crozier and was a member of the program's inaugural team. Cardoza Conner said this renovation is critical in ensuring the athletic department continues to provide student-athletes with the greatest opportunities for success. The women's soccer locker room on March 7 prior to the demolition. "The new locker room not only provides a space for on-field preparation, but will give the student-athletes a home where they can also study, do homework, watch film, rest, socialize and fuel up," she said. "This beautiful locker room will also help to build and strengthen team culture and team camaraderie."
"Cal Poly obviously sells itself as an academic institution, but with athletics, facilities become an important part of the recruiting process," Cardoza Conner added. "Showing potential future athletes that we continually invest in our facilities, equipment and performance nutrition is a vital part of recruiting the best of the best."
The renovation of the locker room comes at a time when the program is experiencing unprecedented success and excelling at a high level on and off the pitch. This past fall, Cal Poly finished with six or more wins in Big West play for the third consecutive season — a program first. The Mustangs also made their ninth appearance in the Big West Championships match in 2023 — tied for the most all-time by a team in the conference — a program-record 21 players recorded a point, and 15 players scored a goal, matching a 27-year-old program record.
In 2022, Cal Poly captured its first outright Big West regular season title since 2013 and earned at least a share of the conference regular season title in back-to-back years for just the second time in program history.
Midfielder McKenna Carbon, who will be returning this fall for her fifth and final year with the women's soccer team, has played a significant part in the Mustangs' recent success and can't wait to see the new locker room once its completed.Workers started removing the old women's soccer lockers on March 11.
"Having this brand new locker room being built — especially in my fifth year here at Cal Poly — really feels like a farewell gift and a reward for our program's success these last few years," she said. "These new lockers are sending off the senior class with a well-deserved bang!"
"I think current and future players are going to want to make the school, our athletic department, our donors and our alumni proud because they are the ones who made this all possible," Carbon added. "I am so excited to see everyone's faces the first time we walk into the new locker room. We are all going to act like kids on Christmas morning, and I can't wait for that moment."
Midfielder Sophia Minnite, who will be a redshirt sophomore on the team this fall, is most looking forward to utilizing the new TV and speaker system for film sessions and pregame activities.
"This project will enhance my experience here by making it more comfortable and convenient to use the facilities," she said. "The team room is a very active environment for our team. Most people, including myself, spend anywhere from four to ten hours in there weekly doing homework and hanging out in between classes, so this much needed reset will be a game changer for a space that is constantly occupied. I think this project will also benefit the team and future Mustangs by motivating us to maintain a hygienic space and take better care of the facilities overall."
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