Lyon moves forward with athletic programs

Kevin Jenkins, athletic director for Lyon College, stands on the matted area of the practice gym that has recently been finished for the wrestling program that the college now offers.
Kevin Jenkins, athletic director for Lyon College, stands on the matted area of the practice gym that has recently been finished for the wrestling program that the college now offers.

BATESVILLE — College sports can do a lot for a school. Through increased enrollment and bolstered school spirit, many schools, including Lyon College in Batesville, reap the benefits of offering a variety of athletic opportunities on campus.

Lyon College has seen a recent growth in athletics on its campus with the addition of two sports, wrestling and football.

On Jan. 13, the school opened the Hatcher Wrestling Center, which sits in front of the ongoing construction of a field house for the school’s new football program. The Hatcher Wrestling Center is a 7,800-square-foot facility that includes a 60-by-90-foot open practice area, men’s and women’s dressing rooms, two offices for coaches and a welcome center.

Wrestling at Lyon started this year, and Athletic Director Kevin Jenkins said Lyon is the first college in the state to offer both men’s and women’s wrestling.

“We started the year with 26 men and 13 women,” he said. “This is just one great way we are adding to our enrollment. It’s growing, and now there are more opportunities for high-schoolers in Arkansas who want to go to school for wrestling.”

The college announced in summer 2013 its intentions to start a wrestling program. The new wrestling center is named after Greg Hatcher of Little Rock, who was a major donor for the project. Hatcher has been supportive of other wrestling programs at the college and high school levels.

Lyon’s wrestlers are not the only new athletes on campus this year. The Lyon College football team, the first since 1951, brought on 72 students at the beginning of the academic year to restart the program. This year, the team has been playing intersquad scrimmages and will play its first spring game on April 25 at Batesville High School’s Pioneer Stadium. This fall, the team will begin intercollegiate play as part of the Central States Football League.

“It’s exciting, but it can be a challenge,” Jenkins said of starting the football program again.

Even though the team has only played scrimmages so far, Jenkins said the school and the community have come out to support the football players. At their first scrimmage last fall, Jenkins was hoping for a couple hundred fans to come out. Instead, 2,000 people showed up to support the Scots, he said.

“It’s not just our football team,” he said. “It’s the community’s team.”

The field house being built will have offices, a weight room, practice areas and other amenities for the team and coaches.

“Our athletic program is expected to double in two years,” he said, and that will lead to a bigger enrollment at the college.

For more information about Lyon College athletics, including dates, times and locations for upcoming games and matches, visit www.lyonscots.com.

Staff writer Angela Spencer can be reached at (501) 244-4307 or aspencer@arkansasonline.com.

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