Written by Rachelle Hernandez. Graphic by Avery Melhado.
Winning a national championship is one thing. Having somewhere to change afterward is another.
For years, SCAD’s soccer and lacrosse teams have competed for conference titles, national championships, and a place among the best collegiate athletic programs in the country–all while managing without locker rooms at their own fields. Under SCAD’s original expansion proposal, athletes had to store equipment in their cars, change in parking lots, and travel elsewhere to shower or receive treatment, not exactly what you’d expect for a championship-winning program.
This fall, things changed. SCAD unveiled a two-year awaited new 16,000-square-foot athletic facility all the way over the bridge in Hardeeville, South Carolina, complete with locker rooms, athletic training spaces, and meeting areas. After years of juggling practices, competitions, and the occasional parking lot wardrobe change, SCAD athletes finally have proper facilities at their own fields.
The building is an addition to SCAD’s existing athletic complex, which has hosted competitions for nearly two decades. Along with locker rooms for the soccer and lacrosse teams, the new facility includes spaces for the university’s developing women’s flag football program, equipment storage, laundry facilities, and areas where athletes can meet with their teams.
These might sound like ordinary additions to a college athletic program, but for SCAD athletes, they represent significant changes to their daily routines. Before the expansion, a player finishing practice couldn’t simply head to the locker room to shower before class. According to the university’s fundraising presentation, athletes had to return to their dorms or other campus buildings for basic amenities. They had to store their equipment in their cars, they had to take home their uniforms, and they had to go somewhere else entirely to receive athletic treatment.
And somehow, despite all this, they kept winning. In 2024, the SCAD women’s soccer team won its first NAIA National Championship, completing a season that also included regular-season and tournament titles in The Sun Conference. The women’s lacrosse team has won six national championships, while the men’s soccer and lacrosse programs have continued to compete at high levels. So, the question wasn’t whether SCAD’s athletes were capable of competing without a new facility. They already answered that.
SCAD originally announced plans for the expansion in August 2024, identifying improved athlete care, recruitment, and the ability to host more tournaments as some of its primary goals. The university’s fundraising materials sought $3.5 million to support the project, which would bring resources that had previously been spread across different locations directly to the athletic fields.
For student-athletes, having everything in one place could make a considerable difference. Practices, competitions, and travel already take up a substantial part of their schedules, and that’s before accounting for the academic demands of attending SCAD.
In SCAD’s original expansion presentation, women’s soccer player Abigail Siddall, who studied production design, discussed the importance of resources specifically designed for student-athletes. She pointed to improvements in recovery assistance, mental health support, and nutritional guidance as examples of the university’s growing investment in its teams.
But there’s another side to this expansion that goes beyond making practice days a little easier. The new building could change how prospective athletes see SCAD. For students hoping to pursue both competitive sports and creative careers, the availability of proper training facilities can play a role in deciding where to attend college.
SCAD’s proposal also identified the possibility of hosting more conferences and national tournaments, which could bring additional attention to its athletic programs. The timing of this proposal is something to consider as well, according to SCAD’s Oct. 7 announcement, 10 of its 16 athletic teams earned spots in the NAIA Top 25 rankings. With a record of national championships already behind them, the university’s teams now have facilities intended to support their continued growth.
The project even has a connection to the creative side of campus. According to WSAV’s coverage of the opening, SCAD alumni were part of the team that designed the building. It’s an interesting detail for a university where the students who design spaces and the students who compete in them are often working toward entirely different goals, sometimes within the same academic program.
Of course, a new building doesn’t guarantee another championship. Locker rooms don’t score goals, and training facilities can’t win games on their own. But they can make the work that happens before and after those games a little easier.
For nearly two decades, SCAD’s athletic complex has hosted athletes who have managed to compete, and win, without some of the facilities other programs might take for granted. Now, those teams have locker rooms, training areas, and a building designed around their needs.
The trophies were already there. The locker rooms just took a little longer.
