Lynn University Fighting Knights

de Hoernle Sports & Cultural Center

The epicenter of the Fighting Knights Athletics Department, the Count & Countess de Hoernle Sports and Cultural Center sits in the heart of the Lynn University campus. Completed in 1993, the center is the home court for the Lynn University volleyball and men’s and women’s basketball programs. Lynn’s 19 National Championship banners hang proudly from its rafters.

Housing four team locker rooms and one officials locker room, two athletic training rooms and laundry facilities, the de Hoernle Center also contains offices for all of Lynn’s coaches and administrators. During volleyball and basketball games fans can relax in the retractable chairback seating on one side or sit close to the teams on the retractable bleachers. The combined seating capacity is 1,000.

Wall of Champions

The front lobby is home to the Michael & Julie Chadwick Wall of National Champions, a space that has plaques recognizing the Fighting Knights National Championship teams, and six trophy cases which hold the many NAIA and NCAA individual and team honors of Lynn’s 11 programs. The de Hoernle Center is not just used for athletics; the gym floor is converted at the start of each academic year for Orientation and at each year's conclusion for Commencement.

Hall of Fame

A new addition was welcomed into lobby of the de Hoernle Center in 2008, the Athletic Hall of Fame. Twenty-eight former student-athletes and administrators are honored on the wall for their accomplishments while with the Blue and White.

The first basketball game held on the floor came on Dec. 28, 1993, as the LU women downed Michigan-Dearborn 99-72. The Knights men’s team played its first game on the floor two days later, besting Findlay 103-93 on Dec. 30, 1993. The first-ever Lynn volleyball game at de Hoernle was on Sept. 12, 1996.

Lynn Soccer Field

The only home Lynn soccer has ever known, the McCusker Sports Complex Field has seen its share of shining moments in Fighting Knights soccer history. With its plush Bermuda grass playing surface, the field is nestled on the southwest corner of Lynn’s campus. Six national championship teams have played on the soccer field formerly known as “the graveyard.”

Team benches and accommodations for the media, game staging personnel and administrators are located on one side of the field with two sets of covered bleachers and a concession stand on the other side. From 1996 to 1998, the field was the place to be to witness NCAA Division II National Finals.

The Lynn women took part in the 1996 NCAA championship game while the Fighting Knights men took on Cal State-Bakersfield in the 1997 title tilt. The Lynn women captured the 1998 final on the field, downing Sonoma State 3-1 on Dec. 6, 1998. Recently the men’s soccer team defeated Lander 8-0 on Nov. 10, 2005 in the NCAA Division II Quarterfinals, the second largest margin of victory in the program’s illustrious post-season history.

Lynn Baseball Field

Lynn’s baseball field is located on the southeast corner of campus, sharing a border with Military Trail and Potomac Road. Long home runs can be seen crossing mid-day traffic as the Blue and White play all of their games during the day. Recent facelifts to the field include a new scoreboard in right field, new Bermuda grass infield and outfield and a crushed brick warning track. Dimensions are 315-right field, 355-right center, 405-center field, 365-left center and 325-left field.  The baseball program claimed its first national championship in 2009.

Lynn Softball Field

The softball field is located adjacent to the baseball field and share outfield bleachers. This field saw a program record 88 home runs sail over its fences in 2005, which are 190 down the lines and 220 to straightaway center field. The softball field received a face lift in 2006 with new outfield turf and a crushed brick warning track installed.

Michael Kain Batting Cages

A new addition to the baseball/softball complex is the Michael Kain Batting Cages.  Built in the Fall of 2010 and dedicated on February 8, 2011, these lighted batting cages are a welcome addition for the baseball and softball programs.

Sindee Kerker, associate professor of criminal justice in the College of Liberal Education, generously gifted Lynn with funding to construct the new lighted, covered batting cages in honor of her late brother, Michael Kain. He died unexpectedly after being hit by a car in February 2010 in New York.  Baseball was Michael Kain’s passion. He was a volunteer team manager and statistician for a high school baseball team in Long Island. To memorialize her brother, to answer a need and do something significant for the baseball team, Sindee pledged to fund the construction of the batting cages to benefit the baseball and softball teams now and in years to come.

Perper Tennis Complex

Boasting a combined seven national championships and 13 Sunshine State Conference titles, Lynn University's men's and women's tennis programs ushered in a new era on February 7, 2010 with the opening of the Perper Tennis Complex. The state-of-the-art million-dollar complex contains a total of six courts, covered chair-back stadium seating and an electronic scoreboard and is the first outdoor lighted facility on the Lynn campus.  The first night match took place on February 16, against Palm Beach Atlantic.  In its first year of existence, the Perper Tennis Complex hosted the 2010 NCAA Division II Women’s Tennis South Region Tournament.

Golf

Although not on situated on campus, the Lynn men’s and women’s golf team take advantage of some of the best courses that Boca Raton has to offer .  The women’s program practices at three local golf clubs, Boca Lago Country Club (www.bocalago.com), Boca Woods Country Club (www.southfloridacountryclub.com) and Boca Delray Country Club (www.bocadelray.net) while the men’s squad calls both Ocean Breeze Golf & Country Club (www.oceanbreezegolf.com) and Boca Country Club (www.bocaresort.com/golf) home.