Former Eagles Stepping Up to Support Completion of Wilson Athletic Complex

A group of former University of the Ozarks student-athletes are ensuring their legacy as an Eagle remains on campus through their support of the University's new Thomas and Frances Wilson Athletic Complex.

Alumni (pictured, from left) Dustin Cole '06, Rebecca Groff-Preston '12, Kris Breton '01, Dr. Jessalyn Halsted '08 are a few of the dozens of former Ozarks student-athletes who have recently committed donations to help the University complete the funding for the new $10.75 million facility. The complex, which will include new softball, baseball and soccer fields as well as locker rooms and press box, will be completed during the Fall 2024 Semester.

The University has raised approximately $7.4 million toward the $10.75 million complex, including the lead gift of $6.2 million from Mr. and Mrs. Thomas D. Wilson of Tulsa, Okla. The University is fund-raising the remaining $3.35 million of the project's total cost and there are numerous naming rights available for various areas of the new complex, including the soccer and softball fields, BBQ deck, dugouts and locker spaces.

Groff-Preston, a former softball and soccer standout at Ozarks, has committed to donate $6,000 over three years to be a part of the Softball Dugout Club.

"As soon as the opportunity to contribute came across, I was eager to contribute," said Groff-Preston, who lives in New Jersey where she works as a program manager for the CareQuest Institute for Oral Health. "In fact, my first call was to my parents to ask if they would also contribute on my behalf. I am incredibly grateful for my parents' contributions to my education, both my undergraduate and master's degrees. They worked tirelessly to enable my brother and I to go to college, and without their help, I would not have been at Ozarks, and I would not have had the opportunity to continue to play softball and soccer."

Groff-Preston said that when she heard that her alma mater was building a new athletic complex, her first thoughts were, "finally!"

"I am grateful to the board, families, friends, and alumni who have donated over the years to adapt with changing equipment, new sports, wear and tear, and so on," she said. "An overhaul to this extent has been in the works for so long, and I was very excited to see the formal announcement come through. Ozarks' athletes will finally be able to practice and play on state-of-the-art fields in mere minutes, compared to hopping on a bus to an away game to do so."

As one of the first players to help bring back the men's soccer program at Ozarks in the late 1990s, Breton said he is proud to have played a role in helping start one of the University's most successful programs. The men's soccer program has made 21 conference postseason tournaments and won three conference titles since the late 1990s.

"I chose to go to Ozarks because of the academic scholarship I was awarded and because I could continue playing soccer, but not necessarily in that order," said Breton, who is director of outreach for Columbia University Engineering in New York City. "I had no idea what I wanted to study, but I knew I loved soccer so that influenced me tremendously. That incoming class of soccer recruits in the fall of 1997 was the first to be really recruited. We went through some tough times that first year, but it brought us together. A few of us from that team still talk or text almost daily and 10 or so of us get together every few years, so that's unique."

Breton is proud to have committed $3,000 to have his name on one of the men's locker room spaces.

"One of my old teammates, Eric Steinmiller, has been donating to Ozarks regularly almost since the day he graduated so I really respect that," Breton said. "When he said he could use a little help in formulating a plan for how our friends could be involved I offered to make a few calls. Everyone is busy and wants to support Ozarks, but isn't sure how. So a few of us got together to see what we could do together. It was great to talk with a few buddies from that core group and each of them offered to commit to contributing $3k over the next three years."

Halsted, an optometrist in Northwest Arkansas, has supported the Ozarks Annual Fund for over a decade. A former standout for the women's soccer team, Halsted has pledged $2,400 over two years to the Wilson Athletic Complex as part of the women's soccer Locker Room Club.

"I first heard about the new complex while serving on the University's Alumni Board," Halsted said. "My time at Ozarks was paid for by scholarships and the generosity of others and I hope that I can give that same opportunity to future generations of student-athletes. I'm excited to see the future of athletics at Ozarks."

Halsted and her husband, 2008 Ozarks graduate Alex Gossett, have two young sons.

"I can't wait to show my kids the new athletic complex and my name in the locker room," Halsted said. "Playing soccer at Ozarks was a highlight of my collegiate experience and I made life-long friendships and memories that I'm able to share with my children."

Cole, a standout pitcher for the Eagles from 2003-06, is a senior vice president at Arkansas Federal Credit Union in Little Rock. He has pledged $6,000 to the new complex as part of the Baseball Dugout Club and $2,400 for a baseball locker.

"Playing baseball at Ozarks and traveling to other NCAA Division III schools, I realized that Ozarks didn't have facilities that were comparable to those other schools," Cole said. "A lot of student-athletes make their decisions on where to play college sports based on the fields, locker rooms and overall facilities. If you're going to get good players and good students, you need to have nice facilities and the Wilson Athletic Complex certainly fits that definition."

Cole said attending Ozarks and playing for the Eagles "had a tremendous impact on my life."

"It was literally an awesome experience that has been much, much more than just four years playing baseball and getting an education," Cole said. "Not only has it helped in my career, but I've made life-long friends from my time there, including my two very best friends. I think it's going to be amazing to know that I was a part of helping make this athletic complex a reality. When I show up to alumni games or just visiting campus, it will be really special to see my name and the names of my teammates and friends at the field and know we helped contribute to making it possible."

Jimmy Clark, the former director of athletics at Ozarks who is now serving as the major gifts officer for athletics, said there are numerous opportunities for other alumni student-athletes to contribute to the project.

"I am very proud to know Dustin, Becca, Kris and Jessalyn," Clark said. " They were leaders when they were here as students and they continue to be leaders now that they are alumni. The example they have set by monetarily supporting the athletic campaign is something we need all of our former athletes to do. We need everybody reading this to talk with your former teammates and figure out a way to participate."

Groff-Preston encourages other former Eagles to play a role in completing the Wilson Athletic Complex.

"I encourage other alumni and friends to contribute to this project however they are able," she said. "I can't wait to go back and see my name on that complex and I hope to see a lot of my former teammates' names as well. I think it will be very similar to seeing my brick in alumni plaza back in May 2012. What a celebrated day that was, and even more so, seeing my friends, teammates, and alumni names right along with me."

For more information on how to support the Wilson Athletic Complex, please contact Jimmy Clark at [email protected] or call 479-979-1363.

Topics: Athletics, Giving