Nipissing announces OUA basketball
Attention Nipissing students and North Bay citizens: get ready to hit the hardwood for some high flying, fast breaking, dunkalicious roundball action!
Nipissing University announced Tuesday that it is making a significant addition to the student experience, as well as the local sports scene, with the introduction of men’s and women’s varsity basketball. The teams will begin play in the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) league, in the 2014-15 season. The university will begin the search for a coach immediately and will start actively recruiting players as soon as possible.
Currently, there are 44 universities that offer men’s and women’s teams competing in Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) basketball and 16 teams in the OUA.
“This is a very exciting announcement for our students and for sports fans in North Bay,” said Dr. Mike DeGagné, Nipissing’s president and vice-chancellor. “We are a student-centred university and I am pleased that we have made varsity basketball a reality for our students. Varsity athletics plays a significant role for universities, enhancing the student experience, providing a source of pride for students and community, building national profile, and bringing the city and the university together in cheering for the student-athletes.”
“Having varsity basketball teams competing in the OUA adds a positive new dimension to the student experience at Nipissing,” said Kayla Fitzsimmons, Nipissing University Student Union president. “Nipissing students take a lot of pride in the university and we are looking forward to packing the new gym to cheer on our Lakers basketball teams. It’s going to be a lot of fun.”
“This is a big day for Nipissing and for our students. With the expansion to the Robert. J. Surtees Student Athletics Centre, Nipissing has a fantastic home for our Lakers basketball team in which to play and train, and our students and community have a beautiful facility in which to enjoy the action. It’s going to be a lot of fun with basketball, volleyball, hockey, soccer, cross-country and Nordic all on the athletics menu at Nipissing,” said Vito Castiglione, athletics director.
The basketball team will be funded through Nipissing’s Athletics budget. In addition, community support for student-athletes is a vital component of every sport at Nipissing University. Thanks to donors to the Adopt-a-Laker program, student-athletes are provided financial support so that they can focus on academics and athletics. The Adopt-A-Laker program has been expanded to include varsity basketball, for more information on Adopt-a-Laker, please go to www.adopt-a-laker.ca.
Nipissing currently competes in men’s and women’s hockey, soccer, volleyball, cross-country running and Nordic skiing.