New stadium a ‘game-changer’ at Badin High School

Dirt is moving in earnest after the official groundbreaking March 5 for a stadium at Badin High School, the co-ed Catholic high school on New London Road in Hamilton.

The Lanni Family Stadium at Matandy Sports Complex is scheduled to host its first football game in the fall of 2025.

“This project, obviously, is a game-changer for us,” Badin President Brian Pendergest said. “We’ve been waiting to have our own stadium at Badin for nearly 60 years. Our donors have been generous and we are blessed to be moving forward with this tremendous project.”

The stadium build, under the direction of Conger Construction Group of Lebanon, is moving forward in two phases behind school.

Phase 1 will include two fields — the stadium field as well as a practice field just west of the stadium. Both are full synthetic playing fields. Also included will be an all-weather competition track around the stadium, bleachers on both sides, locker rooms, restrooms, a concession stand, press box, scoreboard and lighting.

Phase 2 will include items east of the track – an additional concession stand and restrooms, an alumni meeting room and maintenance building, and an east-side entrance to the stadium from the school’s upper parking lot.

Other aspects of the “Build A Brighter Badin” project include a Military and First Responders Memorial around the flag pole in front of the school, as well as a grotto to the Virgin Mary at a site to be determined. Both of these enhancements are being separately financed by alumni families.

Pendergest noted that Badin has made significant improvements to its facilities for the past two decades — first with the $3 million Pfirman Family Activity Center in 2005, and then with the $2 million Student Development Center in 2020 that connected the main building with the Pfirman Center.

“We’re always looking for ways to improve the product that we’re offering to students and their families,” Pendergest said. “The opportunity for our teams to walk up the hill and, for the first time, play games on our own field will inaugurate a new era of excellence for our student-athletes.”

Preliminary work on the $15 million project has already involved a new parking lot to the west of the school on New London Road. The lot totals 346 parking spots and was created by purchasing four homes along New London Road and one on Jerdan Lane. Because of lighting and drainage requirements, cost for that improvement was $3 million.

“We are still raising money to complete the stadium project,” Pendergest said. “We have every confidence that while we are in the process of Phase 1, our benefactors will donate the funds to allow us to get it fully completed in a timely fashion. There is still a lot to be done, but we can see the light at the end of the tunnel — and that light is a bright future of home events for Badin High School teams.”

For more information, contact Dirk Q. Allen at 513-869-4490 or Dallen@BadinHS.org.

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