Eddie Plank Gymnasium - Game Day

Built in 1926 and named in honor of Gettysburg Academy alumnus and Baseball Hall of Fame pitcher, Eddie Plank, Plank Gymnasium was used for varsity sports until the 1960s when the Bream, Wright, Hauser Sports Complex opened.

_{"Gettysburg Eddie" Plank, 1915, while playing for the Philadelphia Athletics}

Eddie Plank Gym was the heart of Gettysburg College athletics during high-level basketball and wrestling seasons. Alumni such as Robert B. Kenworthy, Class of 1959, and Tom McCracken, Class of 1966, speak on this.

_{1992 Interview with Robert Kenworthy} 

_{2018 Interview with Tom McCracken}

_{1992 Interview with Robert Kenworthy} 

In 1955, the college was passionate about the basketball team and it’s star. William "Bones" Snyder, Class of 1955. Not only was March 5th, 1955, "Bones" Snyder day, he also had a spoof piece written about him for April Fools’ Day in the Gettysburgian. In 1993, Gareth "Lefty" Biser, Class of 1957, continued the joke when he was asked by a student about the incident. 

_{1992 Interview with Gareth "Lefty" Biser}

 _{Spectrum 1955}

Overall students were all in when it came to Orange and Blue pride. They showed up and showed out! 

_{1992 Interview with Robert Kenworthy} 

The Grounds of Musselman Library - The Orginal Baseball Field and Jog-A-Thon 

Today Musselman Library stands stately, as the hub of studying, but the land once served as Gettysburg’s main athletic field. Alumni like Gerry Royals, Class of 1952, remember the open field where his baseball team played. 

Spectrum 1952

_{2018 Interview with Gerry Royals} 

Post-baseball-field; pre-library, the open space was somewhere where students could lounge, and host community events that brought people together. The site hosted the Jog-A-Thon, an event sponsored by the Camping Club. It was a 36-hour endurance challenge which raised money for the World University Service. Joggers were sponsored at 10¢ per mile. Sweatshirts went to the top 100 runners, and the winners earned trophies.

_{2025 Interview with Patricia Henry} 

For alumni Patricia Henry, Class of 1971, the Jog-A-Thon holds a special place in her memories. She assisted a blind student, David Hartman, Class of 1972, who wanted to run but needed a guide. Though not with David, Also running on her own she ended up winning the Jog-A-thon’s woman's division.

_{2025 Interview with Patricia Henry}

Eddie Plank Gymnasium - Womens Gym & Training Room

Throughout the 1960s and 1970s Gettysburg’s female athletes trained in facilities that were nowhere near equal to those of their male peers. When the new Bream Wright Hauser Complex opened, men’s teams moved in; the women’s teams remained in the aging Plank Gymnasium. Catherine Staneck, Class of 1966, talks about her experience in Plank.

_{Photo of Phys Ed Class VF Grace Kenney 1972Photo of Phys Ed Class VF Grace Kenney 1973}

_{1993 Interview with Cathrine Staneck} 

Women’s teams stayed in Plank Gym, even as the half-century-old building began to fall into disrepair. The basement held the training room and the women’s locker room, which alumna Sue Donahue, Class of 1971, describes as dark, cramped, and far from the modern spaces we know today. While Patricia Henry, Class of 1971, explains how the women were thankful to even have a space designated as theirs. 

_{2018 Interview with Sue Donahue}

_{2025 Interview with Patricia Henry}

Before and after the men moved out, female athletes faced restricted training room hours and often had to tape their own injuries because they were not always welcome inside. Patricia Henry remembers spraining her ankle but not having the training room as a resource as all athletes, no matter the gender, do today. She speaks about how she later used what she learned from Grace Kenney, a coach and pioneer in women's athletics at Gettysburg College, and the iconic trainer and alumni, Gareth “Lefty” Biser about taping. Sharon Plowman, Class of 1965, also recalls an injury when instead of walking in the training room herself, Grace took her.

_{2025 Interview with Patricia Henry}

 _{Photo of ankle taping in training room VF Gareth "Lefty" Biser 1978}

_{2025 Interview with Patricia Henry}

_{2025 Interview with Sharon Plowman} 

These stories describe the reality of pre-Title IX athletics at Gettysburg. They show how women carved out their own space, relied on each other, and built the foundation for the resources female athletes have access to today.

Weidensall Hall - The Pool Beneath The Hall 

^{Woman's League brochure, 1919} 

 ^{Weidensall Swimming Pool, 1924}

Most people on campus have no idea what used to sit right under the floors of our classrooms. Weidensall Hall was initially built as a YMCA and classroom building in 1922, and it included a full swimming pool on its ground floor. The Woman's League funded the building and named it in honor of Robert Weidensall, Class of 1860, the first national field secretary of the International Committee of the YMCA. For many years, it was an important space for physical education and student life. Gareth "Lefty" Biser also shares what he remembered about the pool.

_{1992 Interview with Gareth "Lefty" Biser} 

Even though the pool is now locked away, alumni memories bring it vividly back to life. In an interview, Robert D. Smith, Class of 1959, recalled, "You could stand on the diving board and touch the ceiling. It was an incredible little pool. I loved that pool. I swam there all four years.” The pool remained in use until the 1960s, when the new SUB (now the CUB) opened with its own pool. 

Clark Field - The Fight for Women's Lacrosse

Throughout the 1960s and 1970s women pushed to bring varsity women's lacrosse to Gettysburg College. What began as a fight for inclusion has grown into one of the most dominant programs at the college. Our women’s lacrosse team has been ranked top-10 nationally in Divison III every season since 2000.

2011, 2017, 2018 Gettysburg College Women's Lacrosse Teams

Pioneer's such as field hockey alumna Sharon Plowman, Class of 1961, recall playing an unsanctioned lacrosse game. She and teammates received immense pushback from the administration because of the game. Another field hockey Alumna Patricia Henry, class of 1971, remembers her younger teammate, Lois Hely, Class of 1972, showing up to the president's door, just to argue for a varsity women's lacrosse team. These women won their fight in 1971 when the first team was established. 

_{2025 Interview with Sharon Plowman}

_{2025 Interview with Patricia Henry}

_{Photo VF Womens Lacrosse 1971}

Grace Kenney became the first women’s lacrosse coach, leading both field hockey and lacrosse until her retirement. This shared-coach model continued for decades, with legendary coach/alumna Carol Cantele, Class of 1983, describing the relentless experience. The programs were split in 2001.

_{2017 Interview with Carol Cantele} 

_{Hall of Fame coach Carol Daly Cantele ’83 chosen as Class of 2025 Commencement speaker}

As of 2025, Gettysburg women's lacrosse team has produced more than 80 All-Americans. Without the efforts of these courageous and strong women who came before, the NATIONALLY elite program we see on Clark Field would not exist. 

Memorial Field - Football and

Traditions 

For many alumni, Memorial Field was the heart of campus. Robert Kenworthy, Class of 1959, and Patricia Henry, Class of 1971, describe it as constantly packed. Students crowded the sidelines, faculty showed up, and the energy around football made the field feel like a true gathering place. 

_{1992 Interview with Robert Kenworthy} 

_{Spectrum 1950}

_{2025 Interview with Patricia Henry}

Several alumni, including Tom McCracken, Class of 1966, Robert Kenworthy, Louisa Bream, Class of 1925, and Dr. John Schwartz, Class of 1950, remember traditions that shaped the student experience. First-years were greeted with the classic “Beat Bucknell!” cheer, students navigated the freshman maze during orientation, cheerleaders, and pre-game rallies helped fuel the excitement on game days.

_{2018 Interview with Tom McCracken}

_{Spectrum 1949}

_{1992 Interview with Robert Kenworthy} 

_{Spectum 1923}

_{1992 Interview with Lousia Bream} 

_{1992 Interview with Dr. John Schwartz}

Athletics were a huge part of campus culture.  Professor Louis Hamman,Class of 1955, recalls when he coached the men's soccer team how supportive the athletic community was of each other. 

_{2010 Interview with Louis Hamman} 

Tom McCracken recalls both football and basketball being played at a very high level. One Gettysburg player, Jim Ward, Class of 1966, played in the Super Bowl with the Baltimore Colts alongside two former Bucknell players. Bucknell was a major rival during the years our football team competed on Memorial Field. One of the most memorable moments to Dr. John Schwartz was Gettysburg’s 34–33 win over them at Homecoming in 1949.

_{2018 Interview with Tom McCracken}

Jim Ward 1968, art card created by highflyer16 accessed on flickr.com 2025

_{1992 Interview with Dr. John Schwartz}

Memorial Field wasn’t just a place to play; it was where the whole campus came alive.

Memorial Field - Grace Kenney and Her Team 

In the early years of women’s athletics, the teams shared the same uniforms. Eventually, in the fall 1969 the women of the Field Hockey team had enough. They decided to make their own uniforms because the school was not willing to provide new ones. Several alumnae remember this experience, Sue Donohue and Patrica Henry, both Class of 1971, offering a glimpse into the dedication needed to be an athlete before Title IX required the College to put equal resources into men’s and women’s athletics.

Field Hockey players: Sue Niblette, Timmie Marter, Lois Davis, and Pat Henry, November 1970

_{2018 Interview with Sue Donahue} 

_{2025 Interview with Patrica Henry} 

_{Photo VF Field Hockey 1970}

At the center of all of this was Grace Kenney, the first coach of Gettysburg women’s field hockey. Her first season was in 1948, and she remained a powerful leader for almost three decades (1948–1977), finishing with a record of 119–95–35. Many alumni describe her as the reason women’s sports at Gettysburg exist in the form they do today. She was known for being passionate, personal, and deeply committed to her athletes. She was an inspirational and resilient force who shaped generations of women on this campus. Two of Grace's athletes, Patrica Henry and Lois Hely, class of 1972, share their adoration for her. 

_{2025 Interview with Patrica Henry} 

_{Photo VF Grace Kenney 1973}

_{2017 Interview with Lois Hely}  

Since those early years, Gettysburg field hockey has built a long tradition of success, with more than 500 program wins (517–392–62). But the foundation of that success traces back to Grace Kenney and the women who created opportunity where almost none existed.

Photo VF Field Hockey, 1970, and Gettyburg College Field Hockey Team, 2025

Brua Theatre - Where Athletes Took the Stage 

Gettysburg athletes have been performing on and off the field/court for 100 years. Louisa Bream, Class of 1925, played women’s basketball and was an actress and secretary for the Owl & Nightingale. When asked about her experience during an interview she said, "It was a great part of my life."

 Women's Basketball Team, 1924-25, from MS-28: The Papers of Louise Dougherty Bream, Class of 1925

A few decades later, Tony Pierce, Class of 1983, and a few of his teammates, tried out for the play. Tony enjoyed his experience so much he pursued acting professionally. Recent alumni, such as football player Anthony Apicella, Class of 2025, continue the tradition. These three alumni are amazing reminders that the athletes of Gettysburg College having been multifaceted performers for a century. 

_{2021 Interview with Tony Pierce}  

_{2025 Interview with Anthony Apicella}