Northridge community makes dream of new stadium reality

JOHNSTOWN — Riley Wheeler joked that many of the people cheering him on Aug. 23 also will be jealous.

That night the Northridge football team’s standout junior linebacker and his teammates will step foot on the turf at the new stadium for the season opener against East Knox. Community members received their first look at the Vikings’ new home Monday during the grand opening.

“My brother has made a few remarks about not being able to play on it,” Wheeler said. “It will be nice. I like turf.”

The new stadium is the culmination of the “Dreams Come Alive” project that began in 2019 before starting in earnest in 2021 after the COVID-19 pandemic. The stadium is located west of the high school at the site of the old track beyond the softball field.

More than 800 individuals and business pledged money for the project. It is a long time coming not only for the football program but also for the marching band, the soccer programs who begin play on the turf with scrimmages Tuesday against Bishop Rosecrans for the girls and Marion Harding for the co-ed and the track programs.

“The new stadium serves as a visual representation of the dedication and teamwork of so many individuals over the past five years,” superintendent Kristine Michael said in a press release. “Now as we look forward, it will stand as a commitment to present and future Viking athletes and band members who will benefit from the vision, hard work and generosity of our community.”

Senior Isabel Evans also was honored on Monday for winning the Division II state championship in the 100-meter hurdles in June.

The Vikings, whose girls previously finished fifth as a team in the 2023 state meet, will have a facility that matches their ability. They will host meets this spring for the first time six years, including the Route 62 rivalry event between the Vikings, Johnstown and Utica.

“I feel like the stadium initiative has been a great example of us dreaming big and then working hard to make the dream come true,” Ethan Goodwin, Northridge’s senior class president, said during Monday’s ceremony. “I don’t know if anyone else believed this new stadium would happen other than the athletic boosters. We have witnessed what happens when parents want something better for their kids, something better for the district’s kids.”

The Northridge football team will have an opportunity to make quite a first impression. After the Vikings host East Knox in Week 1, Fredericktown visits on Aug. 30.

“We want to perform well right from the beginning,” coach Dustin Calhoun said. “We have a lot of people in the community that really worked hard to give this to these guys. It’s a reward for our players, but it’s also a reward for our community.”

ksnyder@newarkadvocate.com

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This article originally appeared on Newark Advocate: Northridge community makes dream of new stadium reality