 Carpenter Sports Building,
named in honor of R.R.M. Carpenter Sr., a former member of
the Board of Trustees and long-time benefactor and supporter
of the University, serves as host to the University of
Delaware volleyball and men's and women's swimming and
diving teams and as a facility for UD club sports,
intramurals, and student, faculty, alumni, and community
recreational activities.
The 167,000 square-foot
building includes the Harry W. Rawstrom Natatorium, two
gymnasiums, including Barbara Viera Court (volleyball),
student and employee fitness centers, racquetball courts, a
rock-climbing wall, lockerrooms, and offices for the
Division of Intercollegiate Athletics and Recreation staff
and the Department of Health and Exercise Sciences
faculty.
Opened in 1942 as a
recreational facility, storage area of military equipment,
and an indoor drill area for the ROTC, Carpenter Sports
Building served as the home court for the UD men's and
women's basketball teams until midway through the 1966-67
season.
The Harry W. Rawstrom
Natatorium in Carpenter Sports Building has served as home
for the University of Delaware men's and women's swimming
and diving teams since the 1966-67 season.
Rawstrom Natatorium is named
in honor of Harry W. Rawstrom, who served as head coach of
the Blue Hen men's swimming and diving team from 1946 until
1981. A member of the University of Delaware Athletics Hall
of Fame and Delaware Sports Hall of Fame, he died in 1994.
The pool was dedicated and named in his honor in
1991.
The 15,000-square foot
natatorium, which underwent extensive renovations in 1996,
includes an Olympic-sized pool, a diving well with 1-meter,
3-meter, and platform boards, seating for approximately 700
fans, school and pool record boards, an electrical timing
scoreboard, and offices. A view of the pool can be seen from
windows located in the main corridor of the Carpenter Sports
Building.
In addition to University of
Delaware home meets, the Rawstrom Natatorium annually hosts
the Delaware Secondary School Athletic Association state
high school boys and girls swimming championships, regional
amateur meets, and serves University employees and students
and the community as a recreational facility. Delaware has
also hosted numerous conference swimming championships,
including the America East conference championship meets in
1992, 1994, 1996, 1998, and 2000.
Carpenter Sports Building
recently underwent a $14.3 million renovation to update the
function and appearance and improve the infrastructure of
the building. The project was completed in 2000.
In addition, CSB is the
primary recreation facility on campus. Open recreation hours
are available at the building's various facilities. For
information and hours, see
Recreation Information.
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