16 <strong>Hood</strong> Magazine www.hood.edu/magazineA T H L E T I C SSophomore midfielder Bryan Lentz and the men’s lacrosse team play one of the most challenging schedules in NCAA Division III, which includesan annual contest against national powerhouse Salisbury University.Athletics programs growing, moving to new levelsBy Adrienne Gonzales, Sports Information DirectorGrowth in the student body over thepast four years has been steady and swift.But for the athletics department, perhapsmore than any other department or divisionon campus, the growth was moreswift than steady. It had to be.Soon after the board of trustees’October 2002 decision to make the<strong>College</strong> fully coeducational, AthleticDirector Gib Romaine knew that addingathletics teams to <strong>Hood</strong>’s NCAA offeringswas not an option, but an imperative.When Romaine studied formerwomen’s colleges that became coeducationalto increase enrollment, he foundthat a key ingredient for success inrecruiting more students—women andmen—was to improve and grow theathletics and recreational programs.“We knew we had to add teams, bothmen and women, to enhance and increaseenrollments,” Romaine said. “Every athleticdirector I talked to said expandingtheir athletics programs was the key tosuccess. It was part of every plan forcoeducation.”Today, <strong>Hood</strong>’s athletics programs havegrown from seven women’s teams and 99athletes, to 11 women’s teams and eightmen’s teams and more than 240 athletes.<strong>Hood</strong> currently offers 19 intercollegiateDivision III NCAA sports for menand women. In 2002, <strong>Hood</strong> competed injust seven NCAA women’s sports andwas a member of the former AtlanticWomen’s <strong>College</strong>s Conference. With 18AWCC titles in basketball, tennis, softball,field hockey and swimming over thepast 12 years behind them, <strong>Hood</strong>’s 11women’s teams will join <strong>Hood</strong>’s eightmen’s athletic programs in the CapitalAthletic Conference this year.<strong>Hood</strong>’s entry into the highly competitiveCAC, comprised of college athleticteams from Maryland, Virginia,Pennsylvania, Delaware and Washington,D.C., is yet another opportunity toenhance the athletic program, accordingto Romaine. “We hope that this movewill help our student-athletes heightentheir level of competition as we continueto grow as a college,” Romaine said.Romaine, whose career in collegiateathletics spans more than four decades,has been at the helm of the <strong>Hood</strong> athleticdepartment since September 2002, theyear before <strong>Hood</strong> became fully coeducationaland added its first men’s NCAAteams. Through growth, he has seen anevolution in the athletics department thatis still underway.99 Student-Athletesat <strong>Hood</strong> in 2002-03vs.At the top of that list is upgrading andadding to the athletic facilities, includingGambrill Gymnasium, which has beenserving the <strong>College</strong> for 56 years but nolonger meets the needs of the athleticdepartment. Each year upgrades arebeing made to the Thomas AthleticFields, which host women’s and men’ssoccer and lacrosse, women’s field hockeyand softball. Other teams use off-campusfacilities, most notably women’s andmen’s basketball, both of which will thisyear play their home games at nearbyGov. Thomas Johnson High Schoolbecause their home court in Gambrill istoo small and unusable for NCAAgames.Romaine leads a chorus of believers inthe need for a new, larger athletic facility,which the board of trustees has identifiedas a priority for fund raising in the nearterm. In addition to providing a muchneededvenue for competition, trainingand practice, contemporary and wellappointedathletics and recreation facilitiesare increasingly popular on collegecampuses and have become essential toolsin attracting and recruiting students,non-athletes and athletes alike.“There is a trend today toward recreationthat we have to follow,” Romainesaid. “Today’s students are likely to havehad high school facilities that are equal toor better than that of the colleges or universitiesthey will attend, and their expectationsare high. Well-equipped facilitieshave become part of what they not onlyexpect but need.” ■240Student-Athletes at <strong>Hood</strong> in 2006-07
Is <strong>Hood</strong> <strong>College</strong> affordable?You bet it is.But don’t take our word for it. ThePrinceton Review, U.S. News & WorldReport and Kiplinger’s magazinesconsistently give <strong>Hood</strong> high marks foracademic quality, generous merit- andneed-based financial support forits students.So what does this mean? Because ofthe numerous scholarships, generousaid awards and financing options,the out-of-pocket expenses for <strong>Hood</strong>families are often much less than thefull tuition and fees, and can be verycompetitive with that of moststate schools.Visit www.hood.edu/finaid for moreinformation about financing options tohelp fund a <strong>Hood</strong> <strong>College</strong> education.“ONE OF THE BEST COLLEGESIN THE NORTHEASTERNREGION FOR 2006”THEPRINCETONREVIEW“ONE OF AMERICA’S BESTCOLLEGES IN <strong>2007</strong>”U.S.NEWS&WORLDREPORT“ONE OF THE TOP VALUES INPRIVATECOLLEGESIN<strong>2007</strong>”KIPLINGER’SKnow of any college-bound studentswho might be interested in <strong>Hood</strong>?Have them contact us.Undergraduate Admissions: (301) 696-3400 • admissions@hood.eduGraduate Admissions: (301) 696-3600 • gofurther@hood.eduToll Free: (800) 922-1599
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