The Sam M. Vadalabene Center (known as "First Community Arena" for sponsorship reasons) is a multi-purpose sports and recreation building on the campus of

Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (SIUE) is a public university in Edwardsville, Illinois. SIUE was established in 1957 as an extension of Southern Illinois University Carbondale.Butler 1976, p. 18 It is the younger of the two major inst ...

(SIUE) that features an

arena An arena is a large enclosed platform, often circular or oval-shaped, designed to showcase theatre, musical performances, or sporting events. It is composed of a large open space surrounded on most or all sides by tiered seating for spectators ...

with a

seating capacity Seating capacity is the number of people who can be seated in a specific space, in terms of both the physical space available, and limitations set by law. Seating capacity can be used in the description of anything ranging from an automobile that ...

of just over 4,000. The Vad Pad, which opened in 1984, was named in honor of

Illinois State Senator The Illinois Senate is the upper chamber of the Illinois General Assembly, the legislative branch of the government of the State of Illinois in the United States. The body was created by the first state constitution adopted in 1818. Under the I ...

Sam M. Vadalabene (1914–1994), who was a long-time and ardent supporter of the university. The Vad Pad is home to the

SIUE Cougars The SIU Edwardsville Cougars are the intercollegiate athletic teams of Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (SIUE), located in Edwardsville, Illinois, United States. The Cougars' athletic program is a member of the Ohio Valley Conference (O ...

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Summ ...

, and

wrestling Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts, combat ...

team A team is a group of individuals (human or non-human) working together to achieve their goal. As defined by Professor Leigh Thompson (academic), Leigh Thompson of the Kellogg School of Management, " team is a group of people who are interde ...

s. In addition to the arena, the Vad Pad also houses a swimming pool, classrooms, offices, and several activity areas. The Student Fitness Center (SFC), built in 1993, is immediately adjacent to and an integral part of the venue and contains numerous additional recreational and fitness facilities. In addition to SIUE athletics, the Vad Pad hosts the university's commencement ceremonies, trade shows, concerts, and sports events sponsored by the

National Collegiate Athletic Association The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

(NCAA), the

Illinois High School Association The Illinois High School Association (IHSA) is an association that regulates competition of interscholastic sports and some interscholastic activities at the high school level for the state of Illinois. It is a charter member of the National Fed ...

(IHSA), the Prairie State Games, and the State Games of America. The Vad Pad was host to the 1986 & '87

NCAA Division II NCAA Division II (D-II) is an intermediate-level division of competition in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). It offers an alternative to both the larger and better-funded Division I and to the scholarship-free environmen ...

wrestling championships which were televised on

ESPN ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...

. In 2000, the Vad Pad hosted the IHSA class AA sectional semifinals and finals, where future

NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United St ...

player

Darius Miles Darius LaVar Miles (born October 9, 1981) is an American former professional basketball player. The , forward was selected directly out of high school by the Los Angeles Clippers with the 3rd overall pick in the 2000 NBA draft. He was a Firs ...

led East St. Louis High School past Edwardsville High School in the championship game in front of a sold-out crowd. In 2002, rapper

Nelly Cornell Iral Haynes Jr. (born November 2, 1974), better known by his stage name Nelly, is an American rapper, singer, actor and entrepreneur. He embarked on his music career with the hip hop group St. Lunatics in 1993 and signed to Universal ...

played a concert at the Vad Pad. In May, 2010, the Vad Pad was site for a

Guinness World Record ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...

--- for most people clicking a pen at one time, despite an attendance of only about 100 at the event.

First Community Arena at Vadalabene Center

On August 29, 2019, it was announced that the arena in the Vad Pad would be named First Community Arena at Vadalabene Center for the next ten years. First Community Credit Union paid a $2.3 million fee to acquire the rights for 10 years through June 30, 2029 with a two-year extension provided, making the potential end date June 30, 2031. First Community, based in Chesterfield, Missouri has more than 40 locations across the

Greater St. Louis Greater St. Louis is a bi-state metropolitan area that completely surrounds and includes the independent city of St. Louis, the principal city. It includes parts of both Missouri and Illinois. The city core is on the Mississippi Riverfront on t ...

metro area, including branches in eight Illinois communities.

Renovations and additions

The Vad Pad finished a $6 million renovation project in 2008 to coincide with SIUE's move to the NCAA's Division I. The Vad Pad underwent a complete overhaul, adding a new floor, dressing room, seating system (increasing seating from c.2400), plus classroom and office space. After one season playing on the new floor, rain from a heavy storm flooded and ruined the hardwood because an opening in the roof had not been properly sealed; a similar flooding event had occurred in 1990. On November 29, 2012, the $5.4 million Lukas Athletics Annex was dedicated. Facilitated by a $4.2 million donation from the Charles S. and Mary L. Lukas Estate, the annex houses the offices of the entire SIUE Cougars athletics program in one location for the first time. On February 14, 2014, the SIU Board of Trustees approved the funding to expand the SFC weight room and to renovate the south entrance to the Vad Pad. The cost of these improvements is budgeted at $2.6 million.

Events

Jason Holmes owns the Vad Pad record for most points scored in a basketball game, with 45 on November 20, 1993; the women's record is 41 points, by Amanda Hyde of IP Fort Wayne on November 26, 2013 (high Cougar score was All-American Misi Clark's 40 on January 20, 2000). SIUE's longest home winning streak at the Vad Pad is 27 by the women's basketball team during the 1988-90 seasons; the men's record is 21, 1985-87. The largest crowd at the Vad Pad was for a men's basketball game between the then- Division II SIUE Cougars and the Division I SIU Carbondale Salukis on January 1, 1987, won by SIUC 84-83 in overtime. The largest post-renovation crowd at the Vad Pad was 4,157 on January 21, 2012 against the then-10th ranked

Murray State Murray State University (MSU) is a public university in Murray, Kentucky. In addition to the main campus in Calloway County in southwestern Kentucky, Murray State operates extended campuses offering upper level and graduate courses in Paducah, ...

Racers in the first nationally televised (on

ESPNU ESPNU is an American multinational digital cable and satellite sports television channel owned by ESPN Inc., a joint venture between the Disney Media Networks division of The Walt Disney Company (which owns a controlling 80% stake) and the Hears ...

) basketball game played at the Vad Pad. SIUE women's basketball won its first home game against a Division I opponent January 19, 2009 over the

Eastern Kentucky Eastern may refer to: Transportation *China Eastern Airlines, a current Chinese airline based in Shanghai * Eastern Air, former name of Zambia Skyways * Eastern Air Lines, a defunct American airline that operated from 1926 to 1991 * Eastern Air ...

Colonels Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel wa ...

; on December 14, 2010, the men got their first Division I win against the Kennesaw State

Owls Owls are birds from the Order (biology), order Strigiformes (), which includes over 200 species of mostly Solitary animal, solitary and Nocturnal animal, nocturnal birds of prey typified by an upright stance, a large, broad head, binocular vi ...

. On March 4, 2016, Democratic presidential candidate

Bernie Sanders Bernard Sanders (born September8, 1941) is an American politician who has served as the junior United States senator from Vermont since 2007. He was the U.S. representative for the state's at-large congressional district from 1991 to 2007 ...

gave a speech at the Vad Pad, with over 4,000 people in attendance.

References

External links

Official SIUE websiteVenue information (Map and photos)Cougars facilities (Vadalabene Center)
{{Ohio Valley Conference basketball venue navbox SIU Edwardsville Cougars men's basketball Basketball venues in Illinois Volleyball venues in Illinois Wrestling venues in Illinois College basketball venues in the United States College volleyball venues in the United States College wrestling venues in the United States Indoor arenas in Illinois Edwardsville, Illinois 1984 establishments in Illinois Sports venues completed in 1984

First Community Arena at Vadalabene Center

Renovations and additions

Events

See also

References

External links