ERIE, Pa. (Aug. 16, 2023) – The Gannon University basketball teams will compete at Cathedral Preparatory School's Hagerty Family Events Center beginning in January, when renovations begin to the university's Highmark Events Center.

Gannon's acrobatics & tumbling team might also host competitions at the Hagerty Family Events Center in the spring. 

The Gannon men's and women's wrestling teams, and competitive cheer and dance teams will use the Gannon Recreation and Wellness Center as their home facility during the winter and spring.

The women's volleyball team will play its entire 2023 season at the Highmark Events Center.

The Highmark Events Center will undergo a $12 million renovation beginning in December and stretching into late 2024. The project will overhaul the look and design of the structure – from locker rooms to seating while also updating the building's core heating, cooling, and electrical systems.

The agreement between Gannon and Cathedral Prep allows the Golden Knights to compete at the Joann Mullen Gymnasium, a state-of-the-art high school facility that features seating for more than 1,600 fans. In addition to ample seating and a court with college-sized dimensions, Cathedral Prep's facility offers other amenities for the fan and student-athlete experience. Among those are premium backed seats and general admission seating, a stand-alone concession stand, and a video board.
 

"We are incredibly grateful to Cathedral Prep Athletic Director Bill Flanagan and his tremendous staff for working with us to accommodate our teams during this exciting time in Gannon Athletics history," said Lisa Goddard McGuirk, Gannon's director of athletics. "With the recent renovations of the Carneval Athletic Pavilion's aquatic facility and McConnell Family Stadium, we are excited for construction to begin at the Highmark Events Center. 

"Our student-athletes and coaches have continued to elevate their performance academically, athletically, and in the community. This extensive renovation project of the Highmark Events Center further solidifies a first-class experience for all our teams," she said.

"Cathedral Prep and Gannon University have always shared in a great relationship, assisting one another whenever possible or needed," Prep Athletic Director Bill Flanagan said. "We are happy to provide a temporary home to the Golden Knights, playing in what we consider one of the top facilities in this part of the state."

Information about Gannon season tickets for the basketball teams – along with fan events leading up to the transition from the Highmark Events Center to Cathedral Prep – will be released soon.

Head coach Cleve Wright's women's basketball team and head coach Jordan Fee's men's basketball squad will open the 2023-24 home season at the Highmark Events Center. The teams will transition to playing the remainder of their scheduled home games at Cathedral Prep's Mullen Gymnasium on Jan. 3 in a doubleheader matchup versus Mansfield University. It will be the first of nine PSAC doubleheaders that will be played at Prep.

The Highmark Events Center has been the home for Golden Knight teams since the basketball programs began play there during the 1949-50 season. The facility was originally known as the Gannon Auditorium, or affectionately referred to as "The Audi" by longtime GU faithful. The facility was rededicated and renamed the Hammermill Center – nicknamed "The Mill" – in February 1983 in honor of the Hammermill Paper Co., whose generosity enabled the university to make necessary repairs and improvements.

In February 2022, the facility underwent another transformation, becoming the Highmark Events Center, as part of a multi-million-dollar renovation plan to bring it in line with other state-of-the-art facilities. Highmark is one of America's premier health insurance organizations and an independent licensee of the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association. Highmark Health is the parent company of Allegheny Health Network and Erie's AHN Saint Vincent Hospital.

For updates on this project and our teams' schedules, be sure to check Gannonsports.com.