Campus Connection

The stage is set for hundreds of high school athletes to run, jump and throw their way to being the best in Wisconsin. For the past few weeks, crews have been getting UW-L and Roger Harring Stadium at Veteran’s Memorial Field Sports Complex ready to host the WIAA State Track and Field Meet. The event starts Friday, June 5 and ends Saturday. “Up until Wednesday, we had just been preparing the venue,” says Josh Buchholtz, UW-L’s coordinator for WIAA State Track & Field. “Now we’re getting all the equipment set up, including the electrical, timing and concessions. You name it — it’s showing up.” All of the work ensures a crowd that could top 20,000 enjoys the competition. Come early, drive slowly “You can’t add 20,000 extra people to the city and not expect traffic jams at certain times of the day,” says Interim UW-L Police Chief Scott McCullough. McCullough expects the biggest congestion to be on Highway 16 from I-90 to campus. Visitors will only be able to drive onto campus at three entrances: East Avenue at La Crosse Street, Pine Street at Campbell Road, and the La Crosse Street entrance to the Recreational Eagle Center. All other streets and alleys will be blocked. Construction work on campus should not impact traffic. McCullough asks drivers to be extra patient, watch out for pedestrians and stay off the phone while driving. “Get here early,” notes Buchholtz. “We don’t want parents to be stuck in a line out front and miss their son or daughter’s race.” Housing the athletes More than 150 of the schools competing have opted to stay in the campus residence halls. Every hall on campus will be used to house the nearly 2,500 athletes, coaches, and event volunteers. Residence Life employees and a team of student workers have been preparing the rooms and buildings since the students moved out last month. “We’ve put linens, pillows, towels and wash cloths in all the rooms to make everyone feel welcome and more at home,” says Ryan Hoye, a summer assistant with Residence Life. On top of that, the Residence Life facilities crew has addressed a pile of work orders about seven inches thick. Those include paint touch-ups, changing light bulbs and replacing broken furniture. “We roll out the red carpet for these athletes,” says Troy Richter, an assistant director of Residence Life for Operations. “We really want this to be an excellent experience.” Creating memories UW-L’s track and field becomes home for some of the athletes who choose to come to UW-L following graduation. UW-L Senior Bria Halama made that happen. After graduating from Independence High School, Halama attended and competed in the Triple Jump at the University of Minnesota. After two years, she knew it wasn’t the right fit and transferred to UW-L. “It was just too big of a school for me,” says Halama. “I came here and found such a great group of girls to be my friends and to become my second family.” Halama, an eight-time, All-American who is the first eagle to be a national champion in the outdoor Triple Jump, will be watching this weekend’s meet and remembering her experience. “There are no words that can describe my experience here and how much I love this track and all the memories from both high school and college. It’s fun to come back and watch these athletes push themselves and make memories of their own,” she says. "It’s just an amazing place.”