An estimated 2,500 people were in attendance at Eastern’s Groniger Arena Monday evening to watch the Meridian Bobcats boys’ basketball team take on the St. Anthony Bulldogs in the Illinois High School Association Class 1A Super-sectional.
Fans traveling from Mounds and Effingham respectively watched along as Meridian (26-9, 8-0) erased a 17-point deficit to force overtime, but ended up falling short 62-58 to the Bulldogs (29-4, 8-0), who punched their ticket to the State Semifinals.
Eastern made 20% of the total net revenue for hosting the event, according to Deputy Athletic Director Mark Bonnstetter, while the rest of the money goes to the IHSA.
According to Bonnstetter, the cost of running the event was estimated to be $1,600. The total ticket sales for the roughly 2,500 people in attendance totaled $22,500, excluding concession sales. Eastern keeps about $4,500 from the ticket sales plus its cut of concessions and then covers the expenses of the event.
“I really think the Super-sectional belongs here,” Bonnstetter said. “It just makes a lot of sense for us to not just do it this year but to do it for years to come.”
The plan was for Eastern to alternate between hosting a 1A and a 2A Super-sectional, according to Bonnstetter, and after two years of hosting a 1A game, he says it’s likely Eastern will host a 2A Super-sectional game next season.
Bulldog fans filled nearly every seat on their side of the arena.
“The location is fantastic,” St. Anthony head coach Cody Rincker said. “It was the shortest drive we’ve had all postseason, so it was nice to have a little extra rest at home and then be able to step up here and play in a great arena.”
St. Anthony senior Brock Fearday was excited by the support from Bulldogs fans in attendance on the St. Anthony side of the arena.
“This was an electric atmosphere,” St. Anthony senior Brock Fearday said. “It’s a great place to play.”
This is the second consecutive season that Eastern hosted a Class 1A Super-sectional game, and Bonnstetter says hosting the event means more to the university than the money they make from it. He said that hosting the Super-sectional gives EIU a chance to market itself while fans, students and parents attend the event.
The Super-sectional marks the second high school event Eastern has hosted in the past three days. On Friday and Saturday, Eastern hosted the Charleston High School Indoor Invite, an indoor track and field meet held in the Lantz Complex.
According to Milesplit.com, about 66 schools participated in the meet. The girls events happen on Friday and the boys events took place on Saturday.
These two events aren’t the only high school events that Eastern hosts. The university hosts the IHSA state track and field meet at the end of the spring season, and in the fall hosts the Coles County Clash football game between Mattoon and Charleston.
Hosting events like this help generate interest in the university and helps put EIU on the radar of more students, Bonnstetter said.
The university’s admissions department partners with different events that draw outsiders to campus to help pitch EIU and build the name recognition, according to Associate Director of Admissions Molly Fasnacht.
“Depending on what the event is, sometimes we’ll do information cards or give away T-shirts or other things to students that are on campus,” Fasnacht said. “We love that exposure and definitely supporting students when they’re here.”
Gabe Newman can be reached at 581-2812 or at ghnewman@eiu.edu.
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