Clarification appended.
On August 30, Bender Arena will open its doors to students, staff, faculty and community members for the first annual AU Athletics District Day as the women’s volleyball team takes on the University of Florida at 4 p.m.
District Day, a promotional series organized by the AU Blue Crew, aims to increase community involvement and promote sports on campus, said Benjamin Zenker, chairman of the Blue Crew Leadership Council. Every AU sport will have a District Day designated on its schedule, and each event will have a theme to help encourage students to attend the game or meet, Zenker said. Domino’s Pizza, Coca-Cola products and Robeks smoothies will be provided to the students at the volleyball game, and Blue Crew t-shirts will also be available at all District Day events.
Junior Luke Barr shows off a new District Day t-shirt; Photo Credit: AU Athletics Marketing and Blue Crew
Zenker said he spent the summer developing the brand District Day to replace Phil Bender Day, the previous promotional event series. He said he hopes the District Days will promote a stronger sense of school spirit and allow students to feel a tighter connection with the city.
“Everyone loves repping the District, everyone here loves community, so why not go with District Days?” Zenker said. “Days where it’s all about the District of Columbia. We want to get the community out here, we want to make it more community-oriented.”
The theme for Sunday’s District Day volleyball game will be “Bender Blue Out,” and new Blue Crew t-shirts will be unveiled at the event. Themes may correspond with AU traditions or historical events, and the “Phil Bender” name will make a reappearance for the men’s basketball District Day theme this season, Zenker said. Sophomore Matthew Mullin, another Blue Crew member, said he has organized a tailgate for the volleyball game this weekend and looks forward to celebrating the start of the start of another athletic season.
New District Day schedule; Photo Credit: AU Athletics Marketing and Blue Crew
“I absolutely will be attending the District Day volleyball game, and it will be one of the greatest days of my life,” Mullin said in an email. “There will also be a student run tailgate going on before the game at 1 p.m. on the quad that I hope every student at American will attend. It’s going to be the first ever tailgate before an AU athletics event, and I hope we can get a huge crowd so we can have many more in the future.
Mullin joined the Blue Crew last year as a way to promote school spirit and student attendance at AU athletic events, he said.
“It’s important that students come out to the games to not only show support for our school but also to take pride in the athletics program,” Mullin said in the email. “Our athletic programs allow us to show dominance in the Patriot League and across America, and it would be so much better if we packed Bender Arena for every game.”
The record for attendance at a NCAA volleyball game in the District is 2,483 fans, and only 33 percent of the school needs to attend the game to set a new standard, said Mullin. The Eagles set the current record in 2012 against Georgetown University, but the average attendance for a “Bender Blue Out” themed event is 1,884, as of 2013.
Allison Cappellino, a senior outside hitter on the volleyball team, said Sunday’s matchup will be a good challenge for the team, and she hopes the game draws a large crowd.
“I think that one of the best parts about having Florida here on Sunday is that we have the chance to play such a talented and successful program,” Cappellino said in an email. “It's not every day you have the opportunity to compete with the number four pick in the AVCA [American Volleyball Coaches Association] coaches poll. I think I can speak for the team in saying that we look forward to some high level ball on Sunday.”
Cappellino started in all 33 matches last season and was recently chosen as a member of the 2015 Preseason All-Patriot League Volleyball Team by the Patriot League, according to AUEagles.com. She said the support from Blue Crew helps Bender Arena feel like home and that events like District Days will attract even more students to the games this year.
“I think that District Days [help] to draw student to major events for some of the most important games,” Cappellino said in the email. “When they attend and show their support for our teams I think they will see how much of an impact they can make, as well as how exciting some of these events can be!”
sscovel@theeagleonline.com
Clarification: A previous version of this article misstated the themed events when Domino's pizza would be providing food to students.
